Sense and sensibility
Extension English: Sense and sensibility When Mr. Dashwood dies, he must leave the bulk of his estate to the son by his first marriage, which leaves his second wife and three daughters (Elinor, Marianne, and Margaret) in straitened circumstances. They are taken in by a kindly cousin, but their lack of fortune affects the marriageability of both practical Elinor and romantic Marianne. When Elinor forms an attachment for the wealthy Edward Ferrars, his family disapproves and separates them. And though Mrs. Jennings tries to match the worthy (and rich) Colonel Brandon to her, Marianne finds the dashing and fiery Willoughby more to her taste. Both relationships are sorely tried. But this is a romance, and through the hardships and heartbreak, true love and a happy ending will find their way for both the sister who is all sense and the one who is all sensibility. Themes Money/Inheritance: Laws surrounding inheritance are what put the Dashwood women in limbo at the beginning of the novel; and their lack of money, compounded with their inability to work, means that they cannot ease their situation, except through marrying well. Money also dictates the eligibility of Elinor and Marianne, as women with larger dowries are of course seen as better prospects for marriage. Gender: There are very definite gender limitations involved in the society Austen describes; women cannot own
'Dangerously alluring', to what extent is this an accurate estimation of Richards Character?
'Dangerously alluring', to what extent is this an accurate estimation of Richards Character? Richard III. One of the most complex characters in Shakespeare's various plays. Psychologically, he is an enigmatic individual, who possesses a number of contradictory characteristics, which qualify him as a fantastic villain. He is a man so determined to succeed, that he can almost be perceived as slightly insane. His three dimensional character means that there is a side of him that will appeal to the audience, and absorbs the viewer into his world of madness, irony, and mayhem. There is no other suitable way to characterise Richard, apart from 'Dangerously alluring', as I will prove in a psychosomatic analysis of Richard in the play 'King Richard III'. One of Richard's most dangerously alluring characteristics is his manipulative speech. He is undoubtedly the most articulate character in the whole of the play, making him dangerous to encounter. He proves, throughout the play, that, with the aid of his 'honey words', he can free himself from any situations that may jeopardise, his plot and thus his path to the throne. One of the most improbable situations, which Richard's verbal dexterity allows him to escape, is his confrontation with Anne (Act I Scene III), at the funeral of her late husband Edward Prince of Wales, who died at the hands of Richard following the Battle of
Is it right to describe Edward the Confessor as a failure?
History Coursework Essay Is it right to describe that Edward the Confessor as a failure? During Edward's the Confessor's reign from 1042-1066, Edward faced many problems. According to Stafford, some of the problems had no obvious solutions. Some historians argue that Edward was a failure as he was unable to deal with the power of the Godwine, and was even less successful with the power of Harold and thirdly, he was unable to solve the problem of the succession issue according to Barlow as he shows that there were no contemporary sources that show Edward dealing with the succession, in the latter part of his reign. Evidence shown from historians that Edward had an inconsistent policy towards the succession issue. The Norman sources and English sources tell a different story about whether Harold or William had the right to the throne. However, other historians may argue that Edward was not a failure, as he was able to maintain relationship with the Godwines, he was able to solve the problem of not having enough supporters, able to defend his kingdom according to Barlow and also according to Barlow he was able to keep his reign peaceful, this view is backed up by the ASC, which shows that there was no evidence of crisis during Edward's latter part of the reign. It could be argued by some historians that Edward should not be described as a failure as king. This was shown
How do we feel Sympathy or Admiration for Richard III?
How do we feel Sympathy or Admiration for Richard III? Richard III is a play set just after the War of the Roses, which the Yorkists have won. After this Edward IV was crowned king of England being the head of the house of York, and the population was taken out of an era of depression. At this time Richard was forth in line for the throne, behind the kings two young sons, to whom he became lord protector after he murdered the third heir, his brother Clarence. The historical context of the play is of great significance. This is because it effected the whole way the play was written. When the play was written the monarch at the time was Elizabeth I, and Henry VII was her Grandfather (Clarence), so if Shakespeare had made Richard III's character the opposite to what he finally was portrayed as he would have been guilty of treason or being disloyal to the Queen. The Philosophical context of the play was also very important because it included the beliefs of the Divine Right of Kings. This was a belief that the King was directly chosen by god and that the King was aligned to god, hence the reason for the heir of the throne being direct family. This is very important towards the controversial attitude of Richard and the way he expects other to perceive him. Richard III is classed as a historical tragedy. This is because it tells a true historical story of a real King but it is
How far would you say Shakespeare creates sympathy in the minds of the audience for Richard's victims?
How far would you say that Shakespeare creates sympathy in the minds of the audience for Richard's victims? Shakespeare's play, Richard III, written in the 16th Century, is a tragedy revolving around Richard of Gloucester's ascent to the throne of England. Throughout the play, the plot centres around the murders orchestrated by Richard, of several important characters including Lady Anne, George Duke of Clarence and the two princes in the tower. He is also indirectly responsible for the fleeing of one of his closest friends and political ally, Buckingham. Shakespeare deals with each of these characters quite differently, encouraging the audience to be more sympathetic towards some victims rather than others. It must be remembered that this play was effectively a dramatisation of history which had occurred only few centuries previously in the period 1471-1485. It could also be considered a sequel to three other plays that Shakespeare had written about the Monarchy of England, and he would have been aware that some of his audiences would have come with pre-conceived ideas about the characters in this play. The effects of any play depend on its production- different productions will engage different sympathies from an audience. A constant factor may be the plot, theme and language that the actors use, but also the type of stage, costumes, sound effects, acting styles and
How does Shakespeare reveal Richard III's characteristics and skills to be both repulsive and somehow impressive the first Act of the play?
How does Shakespeare reveal Richard III's characteristics and skills to be both repulsive and somehow impressive the first Act of the play? Richard III is a dramatic and historic play by William Shakespeare, set in the 15th century. The play tells us the story of Richard III, and how he disposes of the royal family one by one, so he can become King. Soon after victory against the Scottish, Richard's father, the king, who was also named Richard, died, leaving Richard's younger brother Edward as the heir to the throne. Richard who has been waiting for his chance to become King, is angered, and plots a ruthless, but cunning plan to become King. Despite being physically disabled, Richard has the mind of a genius, his ruthless plan will certainly lead him to the throne. The audience has a mixture of reactions to Richard's character, at first, after hearing how he longs for a women to love him, they would sympathise, but after hearing his ruthless plan and plans to kill his own family with no guilt whatsoever, the audience would certainly be shocked and in disgust towards Richard's character. Richard's opening soliloquy explains his character in detail, resulting in a mixture of first sympathetic and then appalled reactions from the audience, who already have an accurate picture of Richard's extreme insecurity by the end of his soliloquy. The first sign of Richard's character is
Explain the importance of Act 1 Scene 1 to 'King Richard Third' Discuss your ideas for presenting these scenes and say, how successfully you think the Loncraine Version interpreted them.
Explain the importance of Act 1 Scene 1 to 'King Richard Third' Discuss your ideas for presenting these scenes and say, how successfully you think the Loncraine Version interpreted them This plays deals with the story of King Richard third, Duke of Gloucester, and reflects on how he gained the English Throne. The genre is 'history' although in our terms it changed to 'horror' due to the number of deaths that take place among the characters throughout the film. Richard becomes the focus of the play; it is structured to allow the audience to feel involved and complicit in his crimes. The backdrop to the play is the infamous civil conflict, 'the war of the roses'. The play is presented in the Tudor perspective. It was written to flatter the monarchy. Therefore, Shakespeare portrayed Richard in a negative light as a deformed, obsessive villain not a hero. The conflict of the 'war of the roses' was a brutal civil war where Queen Elizabeth's godfather Henry VII defeated Richard and gained the throne of England, the first Tudor monarch. In this way, Shakespeare indicated that the Tudors were the founders of peace, ending the 'war of the roses' in favour of Elizabeth. The civil war affected people badly, throughout the whole British Isles. Shakespeare's language indicates that after the civil conflict, everybody was involved in great celebrations. The language of war is balanced
How Genuine was the Relationship Between Richard and Buckingham?
How Genuine was the Relationship Between Richard and Buckingham? The 'friendship' between Richard and Buckingham is an important storyline in this play 'Richard III' and could be used to demonstrate how Richard sees all his 'friends' or associates. Looked at simply, Richard seems to be merely using Buckingham in exchange for help in achieving his goals without any hint of real affection. However, examined more closely, is there a point in the play where Richard feels genuine enjoyment with his relationship with Buckingham? In this essay I am going to be exploring the nature of this relationship chronologically throughout the course of the play. We first meet Buckingham in ACT 1, SCENE 3 when he is party to the hostile gathering in which old Queen Margaret curses almost everyone in the room. He is an able politician as well as a powerful nobleman and is discreet and apparently non-committal in this first scene. He is clearly well known and respected by those present in the room and so is put in a very awkward position when Margaret - by refraining from cursing him and instead offering the hand of friendship as "Thy garments are not spotted with our blood" - forces Buckingham to choose sides. The problem is this: if he sides with Margaret, he escapes from her curse; however, since everyone else in the room have already been cursed and are therefore firmly
Discuss the effectiveness of the opening ofTim Burton's 'Edward Scissorhands'
Khalil Thirlaway, 10JS 28/12/03 English GCSE Media Coursework Discuss the effectiveness of the opening of Tim Burton's 'Edward Scissorhands' In this essay I will examine the dramatic and cinematographic devices used in the opening of Edward Scissorhands to create an effective introduction. The scenes are those up to and including the meeting of the main characters Peg and Edward In the opening scenes, Tim Burton sets out the moral message of the film. In making Edward Scissorhands he intended to 'deflate the American Dream', exposing the rotten core of society that hides beneath a pretty façade. This is achieved by establishing two conflicting worlds inhabited by people who are the opposite of each other. The theme of the two worlds is at its most both prominent here and at the end of the film when the suburban world trespasses into the 'forbidden' world of the mansion. The town, as we see early on, looks superficially pretty and neat with each boxy bungalow sitting in a featureless garden almost identical to the next. Nothing stands out as individual and the only dwelling that differs from the rest is the mansion, which is shunned by all. As Peg visits each house the audience sees different social inadequacies through the behaviour of each housewife. The director uses these to subtly show us what is wrong with society; we are slovenly, immoral, uncaring and even
Exploration of the techniques used to foreshadow death in Richard III Shakespeare's tragedy of Richard III is a play where death is one of the central themes
Exploration of the techniques used to foreshadow death in Richard III Shakespeare's tragedy of Richard III is a play where death is one of the central themes. It is therefore essential that Shakespeare makes this theme obvious to the audience even before characters die, and his primary way of doing this is through the foreshadowing of these deaths. He does this through dreams, language forms, imagery, curses, character and broken oaths. Due to these devices, the audience is already aware that certain characters will die, enabling Shakespeare to create dramatic irony. The context of the play is fundamental in ensuring that foreshadowing is taken seriously. Richard III would have been originally performed in front of an Elizabethan audience, an audience who would have believed that foreshadowing, both obvious and discreet, would have been extremely important. In addition they would have taken dreams, one of the principal devices that Shakespeare uses in Richard III to foreshadow death, very seriously. Dreams in Richard III play a vital role in ensuring that the plot moves along, moreover they play a significant part in the foreshadowing of death. 'So full of fearful dreams and ugly sights' 1.4.3-4. Clarence's dream in this scene is one of the more evident techniques Shakespeare uses to foreshadow death. Clarence interprets his death as being an accident, however, as the