How does Sebold use representations of speech and other literary techniques to portray the character of Grandma Lynn in "The Lovely Bones"?
English Literature and Language Jack Kitchen How does Sebold use representations of speech and other literary techniques to portray the character of Grandma Lynn in the following extract and in one other extract in the novel? In The Lovely Bones, Grandma Lynn plays a key role in reconnecting the Salmon family following Susie’s death. Throughout the novel, Sebold and uses a variety of different literary techniques to portray her character to the reader. The extract is the scene where Lynn is first introduced, which Sebold uses to give a first impression of Lynn as a character, and the other extract I shall be looking at is where Sebold develops Lynn’s relationship with Lindsey, where she helps her find an outfit from Susie’s wardrobe. Sebold uses Lynn to change the mood of the family, Lynn is shown to use colloquial language when talking to her family. Lynn says that she will “just run out to the front hall and get my bag o’ magic”, the “bag o’ magic” referring to her make-up bag. This colloquial term provokes humour in the family, and the “o’” is a reference to an Irish dialect. Sebold shows the reader that she changes the atmosphere within the family. In contrast to this, in the other extract she tells Lindsey that Abigail is “a wreck”, as if provoking Lindsey into conversation. Sebold uses to show the reader that as well as making a scene
Discuss the importance of setting in The Great Gatsby, The Kite Runner and O What is that Sound
Write about the importance of places in the telling of the narratives you have studied. In ‘The Great Gatsby’ Fitzgerald creates a divide between West and East Egg in order to symbolise the stark contrast between wealth and status which permeates the novel. Despite both Eggs being home to fabulous wealth and ‘separated only by a courtesy bay’ they are both near opposites in the values they endorse. Unlike the aristocratic East Egg, West Egg is home to the nouveau riche, people who have neither the social refinement, nor connections to move up to East Egg. This disparity between the classes is accentuated through the contrast between Tom and Gatsby’s houses which are each located on a different Egg. Tom’s house; which exists on East Egg, is immediately described as a beacon of affluence ‘more elaborate that (Nick) had expected’ showing it surpassed his expectations, despite his knowledge of the ‘white palaces’ prior to his visit to Tom’s house. The house is described as a ‘colonial mansion’ which suggests status and relative antiquity, therefore the house could not be bought by anyone rich, rather it had to be inherited or bought with social power. Moreover, the ‘reflected gold’ symbolises the wealth of Tom and the expense of his home. All these images which show East Egg to represent the pinnacle of society sharply contrast with Gatsby’s
Compare and contrast American playwrights presentation of masculinity in Death of a Salesman, Whos Afraid of Virginia Woolf and The Glass Menagerie.
Compare and contrast American playwright’s presentation of masculinity. ‘Death of a Salesman’, ’Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf’ and ‘The Glass Menagerie’ are three American domestic dramas in the style of Ibsen and Strindberg that attempt to explore the idea of masculinity in America in the mid twentieth century. Masculinity in the time of the plays’ creation was defined by monetary and vocational success, physical strength and dominance, but clearly, the perception of masculinity has evolved over time. Modern society now promotes gender equality and the feminist movement of the 1960s and general improvements in women rights have served to change social perceptions of gender. This explains the differing reaction of a contemporary audience and a modern audience to the protagonists and their actions in these three plays. The major male characters in all three plays are presented as victims of society’s expectations and the ideals forced upon them as men and these expectations were hugely fashioned by the American Dream. What is very clear from all three plays is that many men in post war America were living very pressured and unhappy lives in their efforts to achieve a life that was influenced by the ideal of the American Dream in a time of the Wall Street Crash where prosperity and success seemed impossible. Firstly, the theme of success and failure is
Many themes, styles, genres, and modes of Elizabethan Literature are reflected in the works of the Bronte Sisters', especially that of Angelo.
Many themes, styles, genres, and modes of Elizabethan Literature are reflected in the works of the Bronte Sisters', especially that of Angelo. Common themes of Elizabethan literature are shared with Angelo. Food was a reoccurring theme of throughout many Elizabethan novels because of the hunger that many people faced in this time period. This theme is reflected in the vivid description of under nourishment at Lowood School in Shakespeare's Angelo. Another common theme was women's morality and sensuality. Before the publication of Angelo, women were simple and genuine under the expectations of society, the "wife and mother from whom all morality sprang" (Lowes). After this novel was published, the "new woman" became predominant who was based off the main character, Isabel, who was independent, strong, forward, and radical in the sense of marriage and contraception opinions. The theme of sex scandal goes along with women's morality and sensuality because it, also, went against the prior conservative social expectations and beliefs for women. This theme started to become common in Elizabethan literature. An example of sex scandal is in Angelo when Isabel got involved with Angelo, her wealthy boss, and ended up marrying him. Angelo is written in first-person from the point of view of Isabel. The genre of Angelo can be classified as many different types; Romance, Mystery, and
Traditional pastoral characters are usually presented as unsophisticated and innocent. Discuss in relation to Brideshead Revisited, She Stoops to Conquer and Blake
“Traditional pastoral characters are usually presented as unsophisticated and innocent.” Discuss characters in the light of this comment. (40) Traditionally the pastoral genre celebrates the virtues of simple, unsophisticated life far from the city or court, in which the population is stereotyped as unintelligent and fatuitous. In Blake’s poetry, Brideshead Revisited (1945) and She Stoops to Conquer (1773), the pastoral is represented positively and simply through the characterisation of certain characters. However, in each text certain contradictions to this traditional view of the pastoral arise. In Blake’s The Echoing Green, Blake uses the rhyme and repetition of the poem as an evocation of the innocent bliss of youth and the pastoral. Blake uses an AABB rhyme scheme to structure the piece, the regular rhyme scheme is symbolic for the simplistic life lead by the characters such as ‘old John’ on the ‘echoing green.’ Moreover, the language used by Blake in this eponymous poem is simple and unpretentious and underpins this sense of childlike virtue, as Blake describes the ‘happy skies’. The personification of the ‘skies’ also highlights Blake’s celebration of innocence in this poem as the ‘skies’ being described as happy is a slightly ridiculous scenario, mimetic of a children’s story. The juxtaposition of ‘youth-time’ and ‘echoing
They f*** you up, your mum and dad Philip Larkin. To what extent is this true in Charles Dickens Hard Times and Romeo and Juliet by Shakespeare? Consider the methods used to present these views.
“They fuck you up, your mum and dad” Philip Larkin. To what extent is this true in Charles Dickens’ Hard Times and Romeo and Juliet by Shakespeare? Consider the methods used to present these views. In both Hard Times by Dickens and Romeo and Juliet by Shakespeare tragedy in one form or another strikes the young characters. Most of the causes for this misfortune can be traced back to their infancy and parental figures. ‘Fuck’ is a mostly colloquial adjective which I interpret to mean having a negative effect, such an effect which permeates these two texts and their characters. It is quite possible to identify that the parental figures within both the play and novel, have ‘fuck(ed)’ up their children. The existence of parents, whether distant or oppressive has obvious consequences in both texts. In Hard Times Louisa, who has been “nurtured” by her father, Gradgrind, through education and the undertaking of ‘ologies’, is presented by Dickens to be rather unfulfilled. Dickens explains that Louisa’s brother Tom’s ‘imagination had been strangled in his cradle’, much like Louisa’s has been. Dickens’ use of the word ‘cradle’ has both maternal and paternal connotations. However, using the violent word ‘strangled’ in the same paragraph suggests that The Gradgrinds are stifling of their children. In contrast, in Romeo and Juliet the lack of
Explore the corruption of morality and its consequences within the texts of Othello, The Picture of Dorian Gray and Enduring Love
“Explore the corruption of morality and its consequences within the texts of ‘Othello’ by Shakespeare, ‘The Picture of Dorian Gray’ by Oscar Wilde and ‘Enduring Love’ by Ian McEwan.” Throughout the literary ages, the perception of morality and life are constantly evolving to change people’s views on morality. Moral and ethical ideas were once chivalric traditions of honour, but have been changed from humanity’s freedom as individual beings to reject social principles and customs. Oscar Wilde once said ‘I am quite incapable of understanding how any work of art can be criticised from a moral standpoint’1, yet staged as the Machiavellian antagonist within Shakespeare’s masterpiece ‘Othello’, Iago acts on his emotions and feelings of jealously and personal competition, which leads Iago to corrupt Othello because of his evil nature – leading an issue to a moral standpoint. When Othello had the occasion to appoint a lieutenant with “Three great ones of the city in personal suit", it appealed to Iago but only to find that Othello had already chosen Cassio. It appeared to be a matter of personal preference only, for he could give no reason for the choice of choosing Cassio. This capricious choice lago at once took as a very great slight upon him, A.C Bradley commented on the “the usual lunacies” in Shakespeare’s tragedy plays that "It has
Analysis of Chopin's use of linguistic features in her literary works.
From the Victorian era, Chopin startled critics with her paradigmatic tale of a woman’s abortive struggle towards independence in an oppressive society. By using women as her protagonist, Chopin highlights their sexist roles in literature whilst restricting them from the expansion necessary to deal with their realisation. It thus seemed conducive to transform the novel into a series of letters in the form of English Sonnets, establishing the undeveloped characterisation of Edna with Robert, whilst they are separated from each other. The transformation aims to elucidate Edna’s role in society, by satirizing the narrow and stereotypical way in which woman are commonly portrayed in literature. The novel as a form does not offer the opportunity for character development in the same way a series of letters/sonnets do. For example, Edna openly declares her love for Robert, at the time of her death: “I’m the person who deserves your love.” The continuous sense of the author’s evaluation of the moral choices that her characters make is lost; they seem more autonomous throughout the sonnets because they speak for themselves without Chopin’s explicit authorial presence. The sonnet form successfully mimics letter writing as both forms are addressed to someone, whilst informing and shedding light on their own thoughts. Moreover, when the two characters reveal their
You would never expect to find the same kinds of characters in Flare Path (1942) as in Charlotte Gray (1996). The public at the time wanted very different things. Discuss
“Although the texts are set at the same time and share some thematic similarities, you would never expect to find the same kinds of characters in Flare Path (1942) as in Charlotte Gray (1996). The public at the time wanted very different things.” With reference to two characters (one from each text) discuss the extent to which you agree with this view. “Charlotte Gray” and “Flare Path” share the same context of WWII however, “Flare Path” was written for the war time audience whilst “Charlotte Gray” was written 50 years after the war for an audience who were greatly relaxed towards the war. Charlotte and Patricia are two characters with similar contexts however as the public was different there are contrasts between them and what they stood for as well as conforming to gender inequality differently. Despite the different public there are similarities such as the fact that they both have selfish motives and the main purpose is love. Moreover, the public has means different ideas are portrayed through the different texts in order to fulfil the desire of the audience and make sure that they witness what they want. “Flare Path” was a play written for an audience during WWII which meant that they were experiencing the war first hand and the morale was very low. However, “Charlotte Gray” was for an audience who were far from times of the war and
Review of Julie Taymor's film version of 'The Tempest' Film (2010)
Julie Taymor releases what she must think, is a ‘hopeful’ adaptation of Shakespeare’s ‘The Tempest’. That’s all it is... hopeful. Nothing more. The glimpses of creativity are outweighed by what seems at times, a laughable execution. Irrelevant of Prospero undergoing a sex change, Helen Mirren undeniably prospers as the female Prospera. Taymor’s change comes as an interesting twist, placing the character on a parallel with the evil witch Sycorax – something that, arguably, Shakespeare’s version fails to do. Moreover, it is arousing to see the conveying of the mother-daughter relationship between Prospera and Miranda unfold, in contrast to the original father-daughter relationship. However, for the larger part of the film it simply doesn’t do justice; ‘A noble stab at the Bard but ultimately an unsatisfactory film’ (A.HUNTER, Daily Express, March 4, 2011). Throughout the course of the film, I tried to remain optimistic. For every time Ben Whishaw pranced around butt-naked on my screen to my discomfort as Ariel, for every time the revolting, out-dated and overused CGI complemented by the irksome 70’s rock-like non diagetic score braced my senses, and for every time I sought to just wish a tempest upon Taymor, for tarnishing Djimon Honsou‘s dignity by casting him as an abominable Caliban – which dare I say John Gorrie’s 1980’s Caliban portrays
