To what extent, and in what ways, would you describe any TWO or THREE of the following as feminist plays: Overtones, Trifles, A Man's World, Machinal?
To what extent, and in what ways, would you describe any TWO or THREE of the following as feminist plays: Overtones, Trifles, A Man's World, Machinal? Throughout the early and mid 20th century, Feminism played an important factor in the readings of many literary works, mainly those written by leading women writers. The female cannon of Modern American Drama contributes to those feminist readings with leading authors such as Sophie Treadwell, Susan Glaspell and Alice Gerstenberg. Their literary work such as, 'Trifles', 'Machinal' and 'Overtones', are just three plays that express feminist ideologies; all of which feature female protagonists or female characters that "struggle for autonomy...in a male dominated society."1 The form of Expressionism and the use of Language, stage directions and names are all approached in a feminist way to go to the extent of providing awareness to the troubles of women in their society. Sophie Treadwell's 'Machinal' contains a central reading of feminism. Critics of her literary work often claim that her "Partisanship of Feminism" marks the majority of her works."² Within the play this "Partisanship" or devotion to feminism is clearly seen through the female protagonist Helen, otherwise known as 'Young Woman', "an ordinary young woman, any woman,"³ and the other women within 'Machinal'. Even just through this choice of character name, 'The
The Symbolism in the Punishment of Sin in Dante's Inferno
The Symbolism in the Punishment of Sin in Dante's Inferno Inferno, the first part of Divina Commedia, or the Divine Comedy, by Dante Alighieri, is the story of a man's journey through Hell and his observance of the punishments incurred as a result of committing sin. In all cases the severity of the punishment and the punishment itself, has a direct correlation to the sin committed. The punishments are fitting in that they are symbolic of the actual sin; in other words, "They got what they wanted." (Literature of the Western World, p.1409) According to Dante, Hell has two divisions: Upper Hell, devoted to those who perpetrated sins of incontinence, and Lower Hell, devoted to those who perpetrated sins of malice. The divisions of Hell are also split into levels corresponding to the sins committed. Each of the levels and the divisions within levels 7,8, and 9 have an analogous historical or mythological figure used to illustrate and exemplify the sin. The first of the two divisions of Hell is Upper Hell. Upper Hell is the area inhabited by those who committed sins of incontinence or lack of self-restraint. This lack of self-restraint comes in the form of many sins ranging from sex to mood. Before delving into the sins of incontinence, one must first look into the first inconsistency of the Inferno. This inconsistency is found in the Vestibule of Hell. The Vestibule of Hell
Shakespeare - King Henry V.
Shakespeare King Henry V In Henry V, Shakespeare gives us many different views of Henry V, both as a man and as a king. Choose two contrasting scenes and explore the ways in which Shakespeare brings out these differences in his play. King 'Henry V' is just one out of the five Shakespeare's English history plays, most of the audience would have seen the other two plays such as Richard II and Henry IV. It was written in 1599, very near end of Queen Elizabeth I 's reign, last tutors monarch descended from Lancastrian lines and Henry V is the great early Lancastrian king. This is probably why William Shakespeare choose Henry or Hal, because Shakespeare does seem to be responding to popular interest in young male heroes, an example would be Earl of Essex, his possession of wit, being able to handle puns, metaphors, similes, showing us how good he is. Shakespeare got his story from Holished's chronicles of England, Scotland and Anon; the famous Victories of Henry V containing the honorable buttell of Agincourt (1594). In Richard II, it tells how Henry's father, Bullingbrook, deposes King Richard and is crowned King Henry IV. Henry IV Parts1 & 2 tells of the young manhood of Henry (Hal). As Prince of Wales, 'he frequents the Boar's Head Tavern, Eastcheap, and learns much from Falstaff, his alternative father-figure. He rejects Falstaff on becoming king.' And finally Henry V
Examine the relationship between speech and power in Christopher Marlowe's Tamburlaine and Thomas Kyd's The Spanish Tragedy
Examine the relationship between speech and power in Christopher Marlowe's Tamburlaine and Thomas Kyd's The Spanish Tragedy 'Language exerts hidden power, like a moon on the tides' (Brown 1989:56). Rita Mae Brown's sentiment may be more visibly apparent in Marlowe's Tamburlaine than Kyd's The Spanish Tragedy; however both Elizabethan dramas use language to convey power and authority in different ways. When considering the importance of speech in a play, there are fundamental functions must not be forgotten; speech is not simply a method of conveying a story to an audience, but also a manner of setting a scene when few props or stage materials are available. Speech must also be used to develop characters on stage, often achieved through the use of asides, in which a character speaks a line heard only by the audience, or by soliloquies, whereby a character delivers a dramatic speech whilst alone on stage, expressing their intimate thoughts and feelings. Lastly, as the only communication medium, a playwright must make their attempt at innovation and originality through character's speech. Whilst combining all these elements, the play must flow naturally through continued speech and tell the story in an unforced manner, so as not to seem constructed or disjointed for the audience; all this without even considering the actual words themselves! In many ways it can be argued
Examine the ways in which Shakespeare and Morrison both use slavery as a means of voicing their perspectives on imperialism.
COLONIAL AND POSTCOLONIAL LITERATURE - ENGL 353. Examine the ways in which Shakespeare and Morrison both use slavery as a means of voicing their perspectives on imperialism. 'And neither world thought the other world's thought, save with a vague unrest.' - W. E. B. DuBois, "The Souls of Black Folk." In this essay, I hope to use the ideology of postcolonial criticism - focusing essentially upon the portrayal of the practice of slavery - in order to draw together two strikingly different texts. I have chosen to look at Toni Morrison's Beloved and Shakespeare's The Tempest. Despite being contemporaneous, in that they conform to Ashcroft et al's definition of a postcolonial text - 'all the culture affected by the imperial process from the moment of colonization to the present day'1, they are disparate in many senses. These divergences stem from the position of the respective writers in terms of their colonial experiences, to the date at which they were written and the very different contextual circumstances surrounding the two times. On the surface, both texts explore the theme of slavery and much attention is paid to the brutalities of the practice. In Beloved in particular there are evocative images of violence and cruelty that can only serve to disgust and outrage the reader. The disturbing representation of human suffering is a constant motif in Beloved and is
From Hal to Henry V - The Making of a King.
Pamela DeSilva 2-9-03 Eng 448 Tues From Hal to Henry V The Making of a King 1 Henry IV was probably written and first acted in 1596. Theatre was still a very new concept since it was not born until 1576. For the higher, educated class, the history plays would be of familiar subject. Shakespeare, however, had to be rather careful on how these stories were presented as not to offend the nobles and especially the royalty. Though 1 Henry IV is a sequel to Richard II, it is hard to imagine two more different plays telling parts of the same story. While Richard II is entirely in verse, essentially a true story, and mostly about the aristocracy, 1 Henry IV mixes prose and poetry, turns historical fact into Shakespearean fiction and includes a wide cast of characters that can be found in actual history. Shakespeare uses the real characters as a basis for those he will develop with the real goal being the development of Prince Hal into King Henry V. The story itself is important to tell but by the end of the tetralogy, the comparisons and contrasts of the surrounding characters (even King Henry IV) seem to be tools to tell the story of the maturation and rise of Henry V. Shakespeare needs a wide variety of ages and classes in order to tell his story. It is hardly an exaggeration to say that Shakespeare has put all of England in one play. Though definitely not done
First Lady of the World - Eleanor Roosevelt.
First Lady of the World Eleanor Roosevelt Sr. Bridget Ellis, fsp Psychology of Women (PS230) Professor Shawn Healy June 27, 2002 Emerson College, Boston Introduction Anna Eleanor Roosevelt, the first child of Elliot Roosevelt and Anna (Hall) Roosevelt, was born in New York City on October 11, 1884. Having been born to parents who were from prestigious, wealthy and distinguished families, faithful to the standards of Victorian virtue and social class, and successful in commerce and politics, she seemed destined to enjoy a very privileged lifestyle. Home was in the beautiful and elite Hudson Valley (Dietz & Williams, Producers, and Williams, Writer/Director, 2000; Hoff-Wilson, & Lightman, 1984). Eleanor, who regarded her own mother as the most beautiful woman in the world, knew as a very young child that she was a great disappointment to her mother who thought she was very plain and dull. Girls who were beautiful had their lives made for them. Their beauty and charm, considered essential in those days, were almost a guarantee that they would make a splendid debut into society, find a suitable husband, have children and preside over a large household. Eleanor's mother disdainfully called her "Granny," even in front of guests, because she thought the child was too somber, lacking all spontaneity and joy. Eleanor, described as homely by her mother, suffered emotional abuse
Death of a Salesman By Arthur Miller
Death of a Salesman By Arthur Miller TABLE OF CONTENTS A. Background Information . Biographical about Arthur Miller 2. Description of USA at the time Miller wrote this play - social, political and economic conditions. B. Staging . Music, lighting and non-realistic staging are all important in the play. Discuss how they are used and what effect. 2. How does Arthur Miller achieve the blending of present reality with dreams of the past and with what success? C. Summary . Write a plot summary for Act I 2. Write a plot summary for Act II D. Character Description . Willy Loman 2. Linda 3. Biff 4. Happy 5. Bernard 6. Charley 7. Uncle Ben 8. Howard Wagner E. Essays . All the principle character in the play are trying to understand what is driving Willy to suicide. What is your understanding of this? 2. How far would apportion the blame for Willy's suicide between Willy's own character and the society in which he lived in? A. Background Information Biographical information about Arthur Miller Arthur Ash Miller was born in New York City on the 17th of October 1915 as the son of a clothing company owner. During the Depression his family lost the business. He visited the University of Michigan where he started his career as a playwright. In 1947 he had his first great success with All My sons. Only two years later he produced his most important piece, Death of
HOW WELL DOES A VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE FIT INTO THE TRAGEDY GENRE?
HOW WELL DOES A VIEW FROM THE BRIDGE FIT INTO THE TRAGEDY GENRE? A view from the bridge is a marvelous tragedy that was written by Arthur Miller in 1956 following some of the guidelines of Greek tragedy. In this piece of coursework I will be examining how well the play fits into the tragedy genre, by looking closely at the character of Eddie as a tragic hero and the role of Alfieri as the chorus. I will also comment on the type of language Miller uses throughout the play. Since Eddie is the central character in this play, and while the story is weaved around him using his own actions and feelings as its threads; I am going to start my essay by analysing his nature as a tragic hero and the different flaws that ended with his distressing downfall. The ancient Greek tragedies and those of Shakespeare are about kings, dukes or great generals e.g. King Lear. However, Eddie is not a king or illustrious figure. This is because in their day, these individuals were thought to represent the whole people. Nowadays, we do not see even kings in this way. And so when writers want to show a person who represents a nation or class, they typically invent an "ordinary" person. In Eddie Carbone, Miller creates exactly that type. He is a very ordinary man, decent, hard-working and generous, a man no one could dislike and moreover, he is the head of his family; this means he has control over
Essay on George W. Crandell, "echo spring"
George W. Crandell in his essay entitled "echo spring": Reflecting the gaze of Narcissus in Tennessee William's 'Cat on a hot tin roof' claims that Bricks problem is psychological, whereas Charles E. May in his essay entitled "Brick Pollit as Homo Ludens: 'Three players of a summers game' and 'Cat on a hot tin roof' affirms that his problem is not psychological but metaphysical. After careful consideration of these two viewpoints (A04) consider what you believe to be Bricks essential problem and discuss whether or not Tennessee Williams allows him to resolve it. In your answer consider the methods Williams uses to present Brick's dilemma (A03) and examine the contemporary influences working upon him (A05i). George W Crandells mentions the idea that T.W draws upon mythological analogues to highlight his characters .He goes on to compare Bricks problem to be similar to that of mythological character Narcissus, who was so good-looking that he fell in love with his own reflection and who's name now denotes a psychological disorder and believes that his problem is psychological and can be cured. This would have been particularly appealing to Tennessee Williams as his plays have often been commended for their psychological realism. The similarities between Brick and Narcissus are suggested mainly by Bricks favourite alcoholic beverage (Echo spring) and by Bricks consistent self