In The Lake Of The Woods Literary Analysis

As previously mentioned, John also has many issues with love. He is also very emotionally attached to Kathy and afraid of losing her. Although Kathy's death may be seen as a loss, in John's case it is his way of making sure she never escapes

Into the woods was an adventurous play that was perfect for the use of your imagination and spirit. Into the Woods had numerous different fairy tales involved which could make a small child feel like he/she was in heaven. The acting, music, concept, stage design, costumes, and even the language of the play all mixed to perfection. The crowd became involved right away with the irony of the play. I liked how Into the Woods was set up in the beginning because it made the play easier to follow. However, the play seemed to be a little lengthy and some of the characters became annoying. I do not believe the second part of the play altogether was necessary. Into the Woods did not fulfill my expectations to the max,

John has placed his wife in a prison. The disturbing stained and yellowed wallpaper is used, faded and repulsive. The color is one that is unwelcoming, uncomfortable, and uneasy; its color mirrors the narrator's relationship with her husband, and ultimately, with herself. The narrator is uncomfortable and anxious in the barred sulfur colored room where she is fussed over by her husband. John preens his wife, his possession, making the narrator draw further and further away from him. She realizes that her husband lacks the understanding that she craves. This is emphasized as John refuses to accept his wife's condition; "John does not know how much I really suffer. He knows there is no reason to suffer, and that satisfies him" (248). As the narrator begins to recognize herself as her husband's caged belonging, she becomes more attached to the symbol of the wallpaper. Instead of attempting to understand, John reduces his wife to the status of a child. He repeatedly refers to her as his "blessed little goose"

Once (when he was bigger) he tried to kill poor Waihusiwa [or Popé]… just because [Linda] used to have them sometimes” (Huxley 105). Despite John’s aggression towards the men, he was truly enraged by his mother for being so unchaste. John demonstrates this near the end of the novel when he discovers his mother in is the hospital. In her dying unconscious moments Linda comes to for a moment, but to John’s disappointment she says, “Popé! … Oh, I do so like it, I do…” (Huxley 179). In a desperate attempt to regain her attention John screams “But, Linda! Don’t you know me? ... Don’t you know me Linda?” (Huxley 179-180). To which she replied, “Popé!” (Huxley 180). John was infuriated that his mother, in her dying moments, saw Popé as her comforter—not her son. This reveals that John truly is alien among both of the societies. His mother has more compassion for another man, leaving John to feel alone.

Many of the passages concerning the husband can be interpreted as containing sarcasm, a great many contain irony, and several border on parody (Johnson 528). It is true that the husband’s language is exaggerated at times, but dismissing the husband’s character as caricature seems extreme. He is instead the natural complement to the narrator’s madness and uncontrolled fancy: the character of John is control and “sanity” as defined by Victorian culture and is therefore the narrator’s opposite. Greg Johnson notes that John exhibits a near-obsession with “reason,” even as his wife grows mad. He is the narrator’s necessary counterpart, without whose stifling influence her eventual freedom would not be gained. And he is also transformed at the end of the tale—in a reversal of traditional gothic roles—because it is he, not a female, who faints when confronted with madness (529).

There are many people in this world that can prove that our past experiences contribute to the shaping of our present day selves and lives. Whether our past contains hidden skeletons in our closets or not, we cannot keep it a secret nor can we run from it. But if we decide to do so the past will only come to haunt us. In the novel In The Lake of the Woods, we see that there is a fine line between love and insanity. And John Wade –the antihero of the story- is drifting on the border line. One day, John awakens to find Kathy Wade, the love of his life and wife, gone without a trace along with the boat. Although author Tim O'Brien presents us with many theories for her

In the Lake of the Woods is a fictional mystery written by Tim O'Brien. Through the book we learn that our lovers, husbands, and wives have qualities beyond what our eyes can see. John Wade and Kathy are in a marriage so obscure that their secrets lead to an emotional downfall. After John Wade loss in his Senatorial Campaign, his feeling towards Kathy take on a whole different outlook. His compulsive and obsessive behavior causes Kathy to distance herself from him. His war experience and emotional trauma are a major cause for his strange behavior. We remain pondering about Kathy's mysterious disappearance, which becomes fatal for her. Possible scenarios are presented in eight

Although John fell victim to Don Hector’s betrayal, he still felt the need to explain himself. He wanted the happiness he felt when he joined the ranch to last longer. John wanted to mend the patch with Don Hector and meet Alejandra again. However, when he arrived at the ranch,Don Hector and Alejandra already left. Instead, he found Senora Alfonsa, Alejandra’s great-aunt. Senora Alfonsa bailed the boys out of prison “because of Alejandra [and in return] she wont see [him] again”. Although Alejandra helped persuade her aunt to bail the boys out of prison, her decision created false hope for John. John believed that his old life would return to him once he left prison. But he showed up to the ranch to find everyone left him. He could no longer rely on anyone, which twisted the many knives that people left in his body. Everyone around John betrayed and hurt John to the point that he became numb to the

The American Civil War is one of the most impactful course of events in American History due to the massive violence, inadequate medical care, and destruction of the southern landscape. The war, which last from 1861-1865, resulted in over 625,000 casualties on the battlefield and a large unknown number of civilian and slave deaths. Due to the horrifying conditions of battle and of grossly understaffed and unequipped field hospitals, many soldiers deserted their positions and attempted to return home; such is the story of a confederate soldier named Inman in the novel Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier. The Civil War also massively impacted the nations African-American populations as slaves were now free, however,

John Wilson settling in his new job with new people at a new place. John is liked by everyone in Blaine Lake, which would later catch the eye of Jesse Paterson. John would always denie having any family from the old country. After the countless amount of letters from Polly people started to think John was always lying about the situation but people would never confront

The reader will start to fear for John’s safety mostly because they don’t know what will exactly happen to him. The uncertainty of John’s fate created an even more suspenseful outcome. By making John’s future unclear, the author was able to plant thoughts of unsureness and anxiety within the reader’s mind. Another internal event is when Alejandra went to visit John in the barn to talk about what Duena Alfonsa had said to him. After John Grady explained that he’s not allowed to be seen with her, Alejandra expresses the unfairness of her great-aunt’s order. At this moment, John starts to believe that he sees sorrow within Alejandra and starts to feel bad for her. He begins to feel concern for her and eventually agrees to disobey Duena Alfonsa and spend time with Alejandra. Right after John agreed to do whatever Duena Alfonsa asked him to do he breaks his promise once he sees Alejandra. His inner thoughts had an affect on his consciousness and changed his views on spending time with Alejandra. Due to John’s sympathy towards Alejandra’s apparent sadness, he makes the decision to go out with

Even though John Grady knew she couldn’t be with him, he tried to persuade her to leave her family. When he told her to trust him with her life it shows that he believes he can take care of her and love her forever no

Do we truly know those around us? Even those closest to us? Tim O’Brien, author of In the Lake of the Woods, would argue that we do not. This theme is clearly evident in the relationship of the main character, John Wade, with his wife, Kate. Kate does not know the haunts of John’s past that still plague him. John maintains this most intimate relationship with a disguise; he never exposes all facets of himself to Kate. When the book ends, the reader is left wondering if John could have killed his wife, and as John escapes to a new place, what new identity will he present to the strangers he encounters there. Tim O’Brien exaggerates John’s multiple personas to bring to light the idea that every person is complex with multiple characterizations

seems that John is very controlling and doesn't pay true attention to his wife. The illnesses of both the

John’s proposal. The reason for this is because she is actually thrown into a sort of trance by the way he delivers speeches; he does so in an empowered and igniting way, which very much arouses Jane. Listening to his voice and his words almost hypnotizes Jane into accepting his marriage proposition, but what actually ends up happening couldn’t be worse for St. John: he. In a sort of accidental way, he teaches Jane a lesson about love, independence, and equality, which just makes Jane realize that she has to go back to be with the man she really loves. St. John is an interesting character: he works uncontrollably, doing good deeds for people, and is a very hardworking man, who isn’t actually a “saint”, so to speak, but he certainly believes he’s close to it. He is handsome, blond, and blue eyed, and is evidently very caring. To contrast these qualities, however, Jane describes him as “hard and cold”, “frozen over”, and “cold as an iceberg”. These qualities are what make St. John a round and interesting character. Aside from these traits, John is also the kind of person who likes to take on challenges that are far out of his reach and are not in his favor. All if these qualities make many women attracted to him. The one problem that John faces, before Jane, is that he is in love with Rosamond Oliver. However, sticking to his guns as usual, he ultimately says, "It is