Idolatry In Silas Marner

For a story by an author to be signified as a classic literature piece, it requires a timeless feature which the main passage can echo throughout the ages. Particularly, a relation to society's behavior and values. The characters, created by Washington Irving, most especially Tom Walker, gives us an insight on how his life centered predominantly on wealth up to the point where he is consumed by temptation. Tom Walker’s engagement in a deal with the Devil portrays how money-driven society has become more prominent through the times of the 1700s and today's world.

“Worldly wealth is the devil's bait; and those whose minds feed upon riches recede, in general, from real happiness, in proportion as their stores increase, as the moon, when she is fullest, is farthest from the sun.” This quote, written Robert Burton, relates to the folktale that Washington Irving wrote. Irving’s story, “The Devil and Tom Walker”, is about a poor man who sold his soul to the devil to gain wealth over night. Thus, the story “The Devil and Tom Walker” illustrates a folktale with the inclusion of the folktale characteristics stereotypes, unlikely events, and lessons to be learned.

The story ‘‘The Devil and Tom Walker’’ presents the idea that greed is something which can lead to great loss in a person’s life. Washington Irving book’’ The Devil and Tom Walker’’ tells about a man name Tom Walker who is facing challenges with the devil. Tom Walker is a sinner and a hypocrite who is living life with his crazy wife, and being under leadership with the devil. Tom Walker is miserly, brave, parsimony. In the story Tom becomes friends with the devil. Tom Walker is stingy with his belongings. Tom is brave going through the darkest treacherous routes.

Although the play is mainly concerned with money, whether it’s owning it, paying it or earning it; Wilson uses vivid language to develop different themes. Some of the themes he uses to develop commerce are the desire to escape, and betrayal. The next few paragraphs will discuss these themes and how Wilson uses language to develop them.

Part of you is being slowly chipped away, the more and more you live life the less and less you have of it and you don't even know it. “Nothing Gold Can Stay” is a poem by Robert Frost that uses nature to represent innocence in a person. The Outsiders is about a boy named Ponyboy and his gang the Greasers dealing with bullying, deaths, and life threatening situations that chips away at their personalities. In the Poem “Nothing gold can stay” by Robert Frost and The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton the theme innocence is portrayed in similar ways.

Another item the narrator stores in his briefcase is a coin bank. Right before he is about to leave Mary (the kind lady who gives him refuge in New York) to join the Brotherhood, the narrator notices a “cast-iron figure

Greed, as defined by The Webster Dictionary, is the intense, selfish desire for something, especially wealth, power, or food. The greed the couple expresses in The Devil and Tom Walker is unmistakable. The devil reveals the treasure buried in the swamp to Tom and offers him a trade. Tom must think about the deal and returns home to inform his wife about the deal. “All her avarice was awakened at the mention of hidden gold, and she urged her husband to comply with the black man’s terms and secure what would make them wealthy for life” (Irving). Tom’s wife could not even fathom what the consequences may be, only that wealth is the ultimate outcome. “Greed has unpleasant effects on our inner emotional lives. The anxiety and restlessness we feel when we long for some possession, and the false assurance that upon gaining it we'll be put at ease and satisfied places us in a literally vicious circle. By contrast, the virtue of generosity is most present not only when we share, but enjoy doing so” (Austin). The wife succumbs to the devil and Tom ends up with the treasure, only to live a lonely, rich, and short life. If the couple had only practiced generosity with the wealth, shared joy would have been experienced by both. In the end, the greed cost Tom his life as well. The black man had come for Tom. “‘Tom, you’re come for,’ said the black fellow gruffly. Tom shrank back, but too late. He had left

In the short story “The Devil and Tom Walker”, the author shows greed by the main character selling his soul for a large treasure, being a cheap and greedy moneylender, and the lack of the main character and his wife sharing the wealth between each other in order to show that people will do anything for money and become rich.

Tom has been controlled by wealth ever since he was born into a rich family. Tom and Daisy’s negligence is what eradicates their morality. Their view of life is absurd which causes their foolish actions. Money is their leverage against society and the world. Tom also continues to show his licentiousness through his affair with Myrtle. When Tom and Myrtle first exchanged looks at the garage, Myrtle “walked through her husband as if he were a ghost, shook hands with Tom, looking him flush in the eye” (Fitzgerald 26). Tom then says, “I want to see you. Get on the next train” (Fitzgerald 26). Being already married to Daisy, Tom still decides to have relationships with other women, clearly indicating the his indecency. He acts as if what he is doing is acceptable because his possession of money provides him a sense of self-conceit. The upper class assumes that since they have money, they are able to do anything they want, whether it is ethical or not. Based on the events in East Egg, Fitzgerald is able to explicitly stress how wealth is one of the factors that intensifies moral decay in society.

Manipulation has dwelled upon society in various forms; often times, it is illustrated in the enticing idea of wealth, as money can wielded as a weapon against all those the wielder wishes to string up like puppets. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald is an exemplary model of how manipulation is manifested in money. Through the use of charming imagery, F. Scott Fitzgerald embodies the mirage of wealth in Daisy’s captivating voice that lures an enthralled Gatsby into a false sense of hope before he falls to his demise, guided by the fatal charisma of her Siren voice.

Not only does the money represent good, but also bad where its fuels more the conflict between the siblings Walter and Beneatha. As one can see, Walter seeks to use the money to invest in a new liquor store with his friends; Beneatha looks to use the money to pay for medical school. The conflict is, the money brings only parallels the thought that money can corrupt an individual and this case it corrupts the family as each of them tries to take the money for their own use. For this reason, Mama is the only individual who uses the money for the whole family purchasing the house in order to move them out of the tight, dark, and bad apartment they were living in. The money drives the family; the one individual who seems mostly mesmerized by money is Walter who portrays the average African American man who with the money symbolizes the common misuse of money especially in a society where African Americans are expected to be poor and uneducated. Mama explains the impact of the money when she said “Oh—so now it’s life. Money is life. Once upon a time freedom used to be life—now it’s money. I guess the world really does change . . .”

Tom Walker sat at his bedside feeling rather melancholy for he had not much to do but be chided at by his notorious witch of a wife. They both lived in their humble abode of an apartment in the middle of a city but they had a sublime view that overlooked the scenery of the domicile's dumpsters. They lived poorly, just barely getting by to afford a couple gallons of gas. Tom grew a hatred for almost everyone around and had only a handful of “friends”, he believed that money was the most valuable and important thing in his life.

In the story The Devil and Tom Walker by Washington Irving, hidden evils and greed are exceptionally important themes. Tom Walker loves the money but he starts to feel guilty and wants to change, but he won’t change.”Your are the usurer for my money. In this way he made hand over hand, and became a rich and mighty man.” This quote displays that he made money, but throughout the story Tom’s greed didn’t change. His greediness became

The author depicts a common demon the human race faces that is greed and society's need for more possessions and money. This is projected throughout the story showing that Paul's family enjoyed living in style yet always lived beyond their means. There is never enough money, causing a great deal of anxiety in the house (Lawrence 221). The family believes that they are

are linked in a way that is very important in the point of the story.