Colonial literature from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries has made a large impact on society today. Literature from both the Puritan era and the Age of Reason contribute to this impact.
Providence, Self-Improvement, and Divine Mission: The Qualities of Colonial Literature Colonial literature from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries has made a large impact on society today. Literature from both the Puritan era and the Age of Reason contribute to this impact. Puritans were religious separatists who wished to 'purify' the Church of England of its catholic heritage. They believed in predestination; the idea that some people were saved and others were damned. The Puritans would scrutinize themselves for signs of grace from God. Following the Puritan era was the Age of Reason. This was a period of scientific and political enlightenment. It stressed the idea that basic truths can be arrived at through reason, not faith. People began to improve their present, worldly life rather than preparing themselves for an afterlife in Heaven. Three qualities of American writing from the Colonial period are the beliefs of providence, self improvement, and divine mission. The belief in God's providence is a major feature found throughout Colonial literature. God's providence was the idea that it was in God's power to control the salvation and damnation of humans. Their destinies were predetermined and they would live their lives looking for signs of grace. Every outcome of an action was considered a sign as God's providence. They believed God's intervention in their
nathanonial hawthorne
Young Goodman Brown Nathaniel Hawthorn's short story, Young Goodman Brown alludes to the struggle between good and evil, particularly, epitomizing the persona of the human race. In the story, Brown faces many decisions that will make the reader assume that the author had many issues and disagreements with the Puratians. Throughout the story of Young Goodman Brown, the main character of Brown is in conflict with his conscience. The good verses evil struggle is evident within the first few paragraphs. Browns feelings of guilt over taking a journey in the forest for evil purposes instead of staying safely with his wife of three months, Faith, was the situation pulling him in two directions at once. Hawthorn states: "What a wretch am I to leave her on such an errand! She talks of dreams, too. Methought as she spoke, there was trouble in her face, as if a dream had warned what work is to be done tonight. But no, no! 'twould kill her to think it, Well; she's a blessed angel on earth; and after this one night, I'll cling to her skirts and follow her to heaven" This last statement eased Browns guilt and justified his behavior enough that he kept his rendezvous in the forest with the devil. While on his rendezvous with the devil, Young Goodman Brown was tempted many times, the struggle between good and evil was always present. Brown expressed his desire to turn back; he
Sympathy for the betrayers and the betrayed. Cresseid and Madame Bovary are dissimilar to Emma in so far as they experience a development as a result of their infidelity, the former explicitly and the latter implicitly.
More than would be imagined, it is sometimes more difficult to sympathise with the victims of infidelity; easier than we might have imagined to sympathise with the betrayers themselves.' To what extent do you agree with this estimation in relation to the three texts chosen? In none of the three texts can it be said that the adulterers elicit or deserve greater sympathy than the victims of adultery. Despite this imbalance, it would unconsidered and possibly rather supercilious to simply judge the betrayers on their actions without meditating on the reasoning behind the actions and the circumstances in which the adulterers have found themselves. All the adulterers within the text (apart from Jerry in Betrayal (1978), and Rodolphe in Madame Bovary (1857)) merit a degree of sympathy, yet despite this, their actions cannot be wholly justified, and the characters cannot, therefore, be fully exonerated. The savage destruction of Emma Bovary by Flaubert, and Cresseid's gruesome infliction of leprosy are certainly a cause for sympathy in both cases. Emma Bovary's death is a painfully drawn out event in which 'she turned whiter than the sheet at which her fingers kept clawing' and 'soon began to vomit blood. Her limbs were contorted, her body covered with brown blotches.' It is interesting to note the contrast between the description at the beginning of the novel in which Flaubert
How does Edith Wharton present New York society in the first chapter of the age of Innocence?
How does Edith Wharton present New York society in the first chapter of the age of innocence? In chapter one, Wharton presents the hypocrisy of 1870’s New York society as having defines social classes and superficial values. It is a traditionally male dominated society, where there is an emphasis on ‘appearances” and being well respected. Wharton clearly demonstrates the snobbery and double standards of society using an ironic tone. Classism is shown in the opening page of the book., where Wharton uses the “Academy Of Music” as a cultural symbol for the old new Yorkers to use as a marriage market. Married women sit at the front of the opera displaying their jewels in order to arouse jealously for the husbands who provided them with lavish jewels. The men in turn, can display the women they possess. This elite society is divided between the traditionally wealthy and the noveau riche; there is etiquette differences between the two wealthy classes. The “conservative” cherish the fact that the opera house is too small to accommodate a large variety of people. As this keeps out the “new people”, the noveau riche class. Moreover, the upper class enjoyed going to the opera for socialising, however they were more than enthusiastic about leaving. “Americans want to get away from amusement even more quickly then they want to get to it.” This illustrates the
In Melvilles Bartleby the Scrivener, Melville displays the life of a person, named Bartelby, who does almost nothing with his life except write.
Freedom Writer In Melville's "Bartleby the Scrivener," Melville displays the life of a person, named Bartelby, who does almost nothing with his life except write. Even latter in the story, Bartelby gives up writing and on life itself. Melville's story brings up two major themes, which include writing and freedom. The story revolves around scriveners whose job it is to constantly copy documents and in a sense become a slave to writing. Bartelby, though one of the scriveners, resists the command to do exactly what he is told and as the story unfolds, he consistently refused to do what he was told. This defiance leads the reader to question whether Bartelby was protecting his freedom or just setting himself up for an early demise. Barthe includes in his essay "The Death of the Author" that the author has no control over how his work is interpreted and the reader must decide what the work truly means. Authors are only limited to being authors when they are in the midst of writing but once they have finished their work and are not writing then the Authors are no longer authors. Freedom is constantly emphasized throughout Melville's story because Bartelby chooses to quit writing do to the fact that he is not being a true author but only a "scriptor." Most of "Bartelby and the Scrivener" centers on writing and how it is necessary in the law practice. Scriveners are law
Alice in Wonderland: A Comparison between the Novel by Lewis Carroll and the Film Adaptation of Tim Burton
Alice in Wonderland: A Comparison between the Novel by Lewis Carroll and the Film Adaptation of Tim Burton Alice's Adventures in Wonderland is the story of a girl named Alice that falls down a rabbit hole and finds herself in a fantasy world inhabited by many peculiar creatures. Ever since the book was published in 1865 there have been various adaptations made after it, the most recent being the Disney film Alice in Wonderland directed by Tim Burton (2010). The Disney film is based on the Lewis Carroll novel and its sequel Through the Looking Glass, and What Alice found there (1871). Both works are very similar and have been viewed as something unique and intriguing by fans and critics worldwide. In my own opinion; the book was often difficult to understand at time because the wording was quite different than the vocabulary that we use today. I found the film adaptation to be much easier to follow but enjoyed the novel just as well. Despite the extended time period of over a century between the film and novel both begin using almost the same plot. The novel is off to a quick start that immediately gauges the readers attention to what is happening to Alice as she falls down a very deep rabbit hole. The author goes into great detail to describe all of the different pieces of furniture and object that the main character passes on her long journey to Wonderland (Carroll 1). The
How does Keats explore aspects of time in "La Belle dam sans Merci" and "Eve of St Agnes"?
"How does Keats explore aspects of time in 'La Belle Dame sans Merci' and 'The Eve of St Agnes'? - Jessica Bryant The poet John Keats, inspired by the sentimental nature of his unrequited love for Fanny and the depression he felt due to the death of his mother and his brother, wrote both ballads using the key theme of time, to engage the listener. The use of tenses links succinctly in with Keats' use of time. The change of tenses throughout "La Belle Dame", whereby the first three verses are set in the present tense, "no birds sing", verses four to eleven are set in the past, "I met a lady" and verse twelve is again set in the present, "no birds sing". The effect of this as well as the first and last verse including, "Alone and palely loitering", is to create a circular chronological structure. This represents a question asked and answered within the poem and a feeling of entrapment within a cycle of death and love (key themes featuring in Keats' poetry, and contextually in his life). Moreover, the lack of future tense suggests to the listener that there is to be no future and hence no hope - adding to the melancholy mood produced by Keats. Conversely, Keats uses a linear chronology in the past tense throughout "The Eve of St Agnes", "How changed", in order to construct an ordered narrative. This separates the 'feel of both poems, distinguishing one ("Eve of St Agnes") as
Wide Sargasso Sea-Explore how far you feel Antoinette is uncertain of her own identity
Explore how far you feel Antoinette is uncertain of her own identity The childhood that Antoinette has endured has facilitated many opportunities for one to believe that Antoinette is uncertain of her identity. Antoinette experienced great trauma in her childhood, from her father dying to eventually being forced into an arranged marriage with Rochester. These experiences were out of Antoinette's control and one may believe this lack of control contributes to an uncertainty about her identity. The novel acts as a prequel to 'Jane Eyre' whereby Antoinette, known as Bertha is insane. The insanity shown towards the end of 'Wide Sargasso Sea' and in 'Jane Eyre' by Antoinette/Bertha could be argued to be insane because of the uncertain feelings that she had about her identity as a child and adolescent. The lack of clarity that Antoinette experienced as a child about who she was emerged from the neglect and lack of family to 'close ranks with when trouble comes'. Antoinette is uncertain of her identity because of the constant and isolation that she experienced as a child. The main reason why Antoinette is so lonely is because where she lives. Antoinette is not exposed to any children her own age and she spends her days in the gardens, as she says 'when I was safely home I sat close to the old wall at the end of the garden'. Nature seems to form a basis of Antoinette's identity as
'In "The Turn of the Screw" the supernatural is the manifestation of chaos and disruption.' Discuss.
Coursework 'The Supernatural is the manifestation of chaos and disruption.' Discuss 'The Turn of the Screw' is a novel in which the supernatural is one of the most prominent themes, notable in the apparitions of Peter Quint and Miss Jessel. The imagery used by the Governess in her narration helps to augment the feeling of supernatural elements in the novel and the fear exhibited by her when she sees the ghosts is most convincing: "Then again I shifted my eyes - I faced what I had to face." Despite the clarity with which the ghosts appear in 'The Turn of the Screw', what makes the novel more compelling is the question of why this element of the supernatural appears in this story. In Victorian times it was considered that ghosts appeared when a person's death occurred under chaotic circumstances, or when their life had been immoral. When considering the lives of Jessel and Quint and the references to their death it is worth surmising this as a credible explanation for their appearances. However, there is perhaps more evidence suggesting that the supernatural manifests itself as a result of the chaos and disruption in the mind of the Governess, a girl from modest backgrounds, who in coming to Bly makes herself, for the first time in her life, an object of sexuality, whilst also experiencing levels of freedom and social status which she had never before enjoyed. The
Attitudes to Marriage and Women in Chopin and Gilman
Discuss the attitudes to marriage and women in pre-1900 prose. Your answer must be based on at least 2 literary works of that era. During the pre-1900 era, feminism was rising. This engendered many writers to write about the situation that women were in at that time and which therefore seemed to advocate certain feminist beliefs and attitudes. Some of the writings can even be said to be trying to make certain feminist-related changes. In this essay, I shall attempt to determine the ideas they seem to be suggesting and the feelings they try to incite. I will use Kate Chopin's The Story Of An Hour as well as Charlotte Perkins Gilman's The Yellow Wallpaper as the basis of my exploration. One of the primary topics that the works of this era explore is the idea of marriage. They appear to be contending the notion that marriage is comparable to a cage where women are locked in and their freedom removed. The Story Of An Hour certainly supports this conclusion. No doubt, the moment Mrs. Mallard receives the news of her husband's death, she goes through a "storm of grief". Yet, the storm is short, and soon she "could see in the open square before her house the tops of trees that were all aquiver with the new spring of life" and that "there were patches of blue sky...in the west facing her window". It is as though her husband's death implies life and a new beginning for Mrs. Mallard.