In Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson, the story follows Ruth and Lucille as they pass through the care of their mother, grandmother, great-aunts, and finally their mother’s transient sister, Sylvie. While Ruth is generally passively accepting of the care or lack thereof that she receives from these women, no matter how unconventional, Lucille purposefully sets herself against Sylvie. After existing outside of the boundaries that society imposes for the majority of her adult life, Sylvie is unable to provide the structured normality to which Lucille so desperately cleaves. In their own methods of seeking happiness, Sylvie prefers a fluid way of housekeeping, while Lucille needs strict adherence to convention. The polar relationship that …show more content…
Even while Sylvie is trying to live without boundaries, in the way that she claims makes her feel the most at peace, she contemplates suicide. “She walked up the bank, and stood looking across the bridge for a moment, and then she began carefully, tie by tie, out onto it. Slowly she walked on and on, until she was perhaps fifty feet out over the water… ‘I’ve always wondered what it would be like.’” (81-82) Sylvie knows that the only way to live unrestricted is to die, much the way Helen did. In reality, however, society even places restrictions death. While the decedent may not be sentient and aware of such things, the categories of natural death, accidental death, and suicide are all seen within Housekeeping, and are a way of defining the lives of those who die after their deaths. However, it is her earthly restrictions – her obligations to Ruth and Lucille – that prevent Sylvie from committing suicide.
In extreme contrast, Lucille has boundaries, and if society has an expectation, Lucille is going to follow it. Though the community did not peer through the windows at suppertime, Lucille requires complete normalcy from herself at all times. “She insisted on light at suppertime. She found three place settings of china and began demanding meat and vegetables.” (102) These demands are not unreasonable, but for a child to be requiring such things rather than grilled cheese sandwiches is odd – what kid
Elsewhere presents several characters who are emotionally tied to the lives that they have left behind on Earth. These characters may believe that to remain attached to the living is helping them find closure, but it is torturing them and their living family. “‘[...] Being sad takes a lot of work. It’s exhausting’”(107). Liz takes this advice with a grain of salt. As she continues to refrain from longing to come in contact with her family, Liz finds herself in a better state of mind. Overtime, Liz strays away from the living and focuses on her afterlife. Even though she is at first conflicted with her life, she realizes that there is another purpose for her. “‘[...] dying is just another part of living[...] Just think of it as Elizabeth Hall: The Sequel’”(78-79). As Liz copes with her death, she ponders the positive in order to pass her grief. If there is an unhealthy obsession with the living, there is no true closure, rather it is near impossible to move on to the finer things ahead in this life and the next. If Liz had not become disinterested with her grief, nor evolved from a lowly standpoint on life, a climax would be
Sylvie begins to clean the house, she removes the eccentric collections that have been building up in the home and begins grooming Ruthie to maintain a clean appearance. Sylvie’s practice of socially acceptable housekeeping is performed in the hope of controlling an outcome in the face of human nature. “Those days she cast about constantly for ways to conform our lives to the expectations of others, or to what she guessed their expectations might be, and she was full of purpose, which sometimes seemed like hope” (201). Nature’s uncontrollability is displayed when Fingerbone’s choice to deny Sylvie legal guardianship of Ruthie becomes apparent regardless of her attempts at housekeeping. The girls are forced to flee Fingerbone and embrace that they live a transient life in order to remain together. The reader is reminded that even human nature cannot be controlled and that when we try to control an outcome based on predictability it is not
Despite this, Gertrude says she was “scared to death”; in her case,“death” does not refer to her life ending since her husband “didn’t care what color it turned out,” but instead, her respectable position in society
During my highschool career, I have been apart of many groups that one might not commonly associate with each other. I am currently apart of the Waxahachie chapter of the FFA, the Waxahachie Theatre Arts Program, and the Waxahachie Swim Team. These organizations are not commonly associated with one another, and it is due to the types of people who take part in each. Being apart of all of these groups has prepared me for my future goals by allowing me to work with several different groups of people, and they have taught me many different life lessons which will help me to succeed in accomplishing my lifetime goals. Our FFA chapter has a greenhouse that I currently manage.
A field sobriety test is commonly used to see if a driver is under the influence of alcohol or other substances. It's important that drivers understand how the test works and what is involved so that they are prepared should they ever find themselves having to take one. Understanding the field sobriety test will also allow drivers to better understand their rights.
Dennis P. Kimbo once said, “Life is 10% what happens to us and 90% how we react to it.” Despite the numerous obstacles of life, people can choose how they react. Today, many people are faced with the obstacle of life threatening diseases. By some diseases being incurable, the cloud of only having so much longer to live hangs over them. As a result, some may choose the option of euthanasia if it is available. In the contrasting pieces of writing, Kara Tippetts use of ethos about euthanasia is more convincing than Brittany Maynard use of logos.
It is commonly believed that the best way to influence people to act is through encouragement and positivity. This notion is dispelled throughout “As I Lay Dying”, as numerous characters are guided to function based off of the cruelty that was completed upon them. All together, the Bundren family met by various cruel events on their mission to bury their dead mother. The inhuman and wicked acts, however, do not bind the family together in an attempt to achieve one goal, but rather proves that the family values their own personal objectives more than that of the the entire group.
There is a widely shared view that active and passive euthanasia are importantly different. It is said to be one thing (passive euthanasia) to let patients die, which may sometimes be permissible, but it is quite another (active euthanasia) to kill them, which never is. This discrimination between two forms of euthanasia has been forcefully attacked by certain philosophers on the ground that the underlying distinction between killing and letting die is either not clear or, if clear, not morally important. This paper defends that there is distinction between killing and letting die. My first argument that will defend my thesis will be based on the definition of killing or letting to die and the difference in the intentions that accompany the
Death is a controversial and sensitive subject. When discussing death, several questions come to mind about what happens in our afterlife, such as: where do you go and what do you see? Emily Dickinson is a poet who explores her curiosity of death and the afterlife through her creative writing ability. She displays different views on death by writing two contrasting poems: one of a softer side and another of a more ridged and scary side. When looking at dissimilar observations of death it can be seen how private and special it is; it is also understood that death is inevitable so coping with it can be taken in different ways. Emily Dickinson’s poems “Because I Could Not Stop for Death” and “I Heard A Fly Buzz When I Died” show both
There are many myths that surround the genetically modified (GM) crops and food. Are they just a mere myth or it is the truth that has been shunned from public discussion? I believed that, there are some misconceptions and truths upholding the myths with the evidences from great studies conducted by researchers all over the world. From the book GMO: Myth and Truth the second edition by Antoniou and his colleagues (2012), the arguments are adapted to discuss the topic. In this article, the issues that would be discussed involves genetic engineering technique, health hazard of GM food, impacts of GM crops on farms and environment, health hazard of Roundup Ready crops and also feeding the world. These are the main arguments
The narration of the mother lecturing her daughter with commanding diction leads to the theme of women conforming to domesticity and if they don’t conform then they will lead a life of promiscuity that will affect the way people perceive them. Women in the past believed that a woman’s role was that of a domesticated housewife. The narration of the third point of view in this story and the commanding diction of it places an importance in the reinforcement of this idea, that if a woman doesn’t follow social norms, she will eventually turn to a “slut” one that her family will be ashamed of. She must set the table for lunch and for breakfast that is “how to behave in the presence of men who don’t know [her] very well, and that it the way they won’t recognize immediately the slut that [the mother has] warned her against becoming.”(Kincaid 485) through her commanding diction, the mother is telling her daughter how to set a table, how to cook, she
A person who dies is denied the possibility of fulfilling their future desires which, for Blackburn, constitutes a loss. Conversely, those that have never existed do not have a desire of which they can be deprived. For Blackburn, these points underscore that non-existence after death is bad and is distinct from non-existence before birth. That said, Blackburn also says, “But then what about desired death, such as suicide or euthanasia”(Blackburn, 71). In this quote, Blackburn hints at the issue of terminal illness and concedes there are circumstances where death is not necessarily a bad option. Blackburn argues that a terminal illness that entails considerable suffering, eliminates any positive future possibilities, and only delays death is a scenario where choosing death over life can be justified ethically. He further argues that a doctor helping a terminally ill patient take their own life has not necessarily committed a bad deed and is perhaps even showing them mercy because they are reducing their patients suffering (Blackburn, 72). We should keep the nuances of Blackburn 's argument in mind when doing our analysis.
Regardless of race, caste, religion, or age, every human has wondered about the one fact of life that unifies us all: What is death? Both poems, “Death of a Young Son by Drowning” by Margaret Atwood and “Because I could Not Stop for Death” by Emily Dickinson share a common subject of death. Using figurative language, both poems illustrate distinct takes on a similar topic.
In her poem, “Lady Lazarus,” Sylvia Plath uses dark imagery, disturbing diction, and allusions to shameful historical happenings to create a unique and morbid tone that reflects the necessity of life and death. Although the imagery and diction and allusions are all dark and dreary, it seems that the speaker’s attitude towards death is positive. The speaker longs for death, and despises the fact the she is continually raised up out of it.
Poets, Judith Wright, Sylvia Plath and Emily Dickenson all express their views on life and death, however, do so in varying manners. Through imagery, Wright and Plath both consider life’s beginnings, however, Wright considers it to be a beautiful gift, whereas Plath views birth as an empty burden. Subsequently, through structure Dickenson and Wright each acknowledge life, expressing how in some cases it is difficult, yet in other circumstances it is celebrated. Finally, through tone, Dickenson and Plath convey their views on death, yet differ in that Plath believes it is purifying and holds a sick fascination with it, while Dickenson instead holds a unique curiosity about it. Therefore, whilst each poet recognises the journey of birth,