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Death Of Mr Sammler Essay

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The story takes place in New York City during the 1960’s, a city that epitomizes the disgust of the world, through Artur Sammler’s eyes, in the form of nihilism, sexual maladjustment, and barbarous activities. Unfortunately for Mr. Sammler, the Holocaust is an all to close reminder about the negative aspects of the world that it has to offer, and this indicator is a constant reminder that there is much evil in the world and not much can be done to stop it. It is here in this case that the memory of the cruel experiences that many Jews suffered during the war that has morphed Mr. Sammler’s view of it, to a more profoundly negative view. There is one character in the story whose multiple appearances are of particular importance when considering …show more content…

Eyla Gruner represented what is right and sane in the world, the imminent death of Dr. Eyla Gruner in the novel represents the death of hope in the world. In the beginning of the novel, Mr. Sammler is more accepting of the world around him and adapts to what he experiences everyday. As the novel progresses towards the death of Eyla, Mr. Sammler moves closer towards the “death” of his hope in the world. Mr. Sammler’s heavy reliance on the idea that Eyla was his close dear friend and nephew was his source of inspiration and happiness in the world is brought to light when he thinks to himself, close to the time of Eyla’s death “At this moment, walking in white moonlight on Elya Gruner’s washed gravel, which had been cut with black tracks by the fire engines, he recognized and identified his motives. He had gone back to 1939” (Bellow 248). With it becoming increasingly evident that Mr. Sammler will in some way, shape, or form relate the experiences of his life back to that of the Sixty-Days War in Israel and to the Holocaust, it is important to realize that his own personal history is intertwined with the worse parts of the 20th century, and that the pleasure he can take in from his everyday experiences are

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