Essay on J.M. Coetzee's In the Heart of the Country

In Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Harriet Beecher Stowe uses the character of Augustine St. Clare to play a very important role in expressing her views of abolition to the reader throughout the novel. St. Clare is, in himself, a huge contradiction of a character, as his way of life is supported by the same system that he despises, slavery. St. Clare professes multiple times in the book that slavery is wrong, yet he holds slaves and refuses to release them, making him a hypocrite whose morals are right, mainly because of his mother, but he is unwilling to do the right thing. St. Clare symbolizes some of the southern slave owners at the time who knew that slavery was a sin and an act against God, but refused to stand up and stop it. St. Clare is such an essential character in Uncle Tom’s Cabin, and he is an important part of the overall message of the novel and Stowe’s interjection of her abolitionist views that are throughout the novel.

The name Civil War is misleading because the war was not a class struggle, but a sectional combat, having its roots in political, economic, social, and psychological elements. It has been characterized, in the words of William H. Seward, as the “irrepressible conflict.” In another judgment the Civil War was viewed as criminally stupid, an unnecessary bloodletting brought on by arrogant extremists and blundering politicians. Both views accept the fact that in 1861 there existed a situation that, rightly or wrongly, had come to be regarded as insoluble by peaceful means.

     William Faulkner is one of America's most talked about writers and his work should be included in any literary canon for several reasons. After reading a few of his short stories, it becomes clear that Faulkner's works have uniqueness to them. One of the qualities that make William Faulkner's writings different is his close connection with the South. Gwendolyn Charbnier states, 'Besides the sociological factors that influence Faulkner's work, biographical factors are of great importance…'; (20). Faulkner's magnificent imagination led him to create a fictional Mississippi county named Yoknapatawpha, which includes every detail from square mileage of the county to the break down of

The civil war, reconstruction, and Redemption era does serve as a unique moment in American history because it shaped what kind of nation US would become. All wars are the result of social change, talks of revolution, institution of slavery and connection to power and liberation. There are many reasons that attribute to the institution of slavery becoming a big determinant in the Civil War and in American History. A consistent reason is that the states have always been dependent upon themselves and relying on their own kind to create a sense of power. The institution of slavery gave white men a sense of power in which was stripped away from them by the government. They no longer could control and have an opinion in state nor federal government decisions. Throughout all these eras of history the enslaves Africans were never seen as equal, therefore were never treated as equal. They were always seen as the black labor workers. The focus point of this paper will be the institution of slavery. After the civil war and reconstruction, America changed drastically in defining slavery and what would become of the institution.

Reconstruction was the time between 1863 and 1877 when the U.S. focused on abolishing slavery, destroying the Confederacy, and reconstructing the nation and the Constitution and is also the general history of the post-Civil War era in the U.S. between 1865 and 1877. Under Abraham Lincoln, presidential reconstruction began in each state as soon as federal troops controlled most of the state. The usual ending date is 1877, when the Compromise of 1877 saw the collapse of the last Republican state governments in the South

Reconstruction took place after the end of the civil war. The reason for reconstruction was to put the union back together and free the slaves once and for all. Reconstruction took three eras to be completed. The first was Lincoln, the second Andrew Johnson, and the third was the Congressional “hard plan.”

How did the sectional crisis begin? What one event triggered this crisis? While these are question commonly answered, it is up to interpretation of the conflicts between the North and South in order to decide which events caused the secession. There is not simply one event or conflict which resulted in the secession of the deep southern sates beginning in 1860 (Brands 2015, 333). As of February 1, 1860 seven southern states had seceded from the union due to the friction between Northern and Southerners. While some may argue that the sectional crisis is a result of the fight for power between the North and South; the sectional crisis can be attributed to three main factors and their effects on the nation, differences

In the Antebellum South, physician practices were often questioned for their veracity, and were frequently disregarded by both the slave owners and slaves themselves. Therefore, slaves and masters typically received medical care from the herb and root doctors living within the plantation’s boundaries. These specialty doctors were normal slaves, however, they had intimate knowledge of roots and herbs that helped cure certain diseases. Along with their practices being less painful than the cupping, leeching, lancing, and mercuralizing that a typical physician would perform, root and herb doctors were the primary medical practitioner to consult for an illness (Kiple 1-2). The incapability to trust physician’s practices forced slaves to deal with

Night by Elie Wiesel was heart shattering; The experiences Elie had, undoubtedly affected him and his perception of the world. Elie Wiesel was put through unbearable oppression; torture, starvation, and extreme labor, simply because he didn't fit the nazi standards. Due to his hostile environment he struggled with many things including his faith in God. Throughout the novel Weisel described countless acts of violence between men, causing him to question humanity, and whether or not humanity was present. The theme of Night is inhumanity as described by the pain and vulgarness towards him, along with Weisel losing his faith in God, but also humanity.

1. The experience of empire for conquered peoples was broadly similar whoever their rulers were. Does the material of this chapter support or challenge this idea? Support your answer.

Ignorant souls will probably tell you that No Country for Old Men is a film of thirst for blood, material wealth and a sheriff's investigation. Those that suggest this, however, are the same that tune in weekly for their dose of Big Brother: The Evictions and are swayed by the words of their local car salesman. The Coen brothers’ masterful 2005 adaption of Cormac McCarthy's No Country for Old Men is a standout in recent cinema history, pushing aside this year’s spit-out of Transformers from explosion-junkie Michael Bay. Taking a different approach from their usual quirky, humour films littered with three word profanities (cue: Burn after Reading Osbourne Cox fans), the Coen’s have successfully stepped into a dark, deeply disquieting drama

After a few of these vain attempts to convince the man to consider having the baby, she implores him to "Please. please please please please please please stop talking" (272). The author uses her avoidance of confrontation and denial of self-expression to assure the reader that the girl?s weak and dependent nature prevents her from verbally expressing her point of view. Even the use of character terms?the man and the girl?reinforces this effect.

Magda hadn’t had the luxury of seeing other camp detainees laugh during her short life, but the shawl, with its ability to sooth, allows Magda to experience ‘happiness’ even if it is just for a short moment. Considering her environmental circumstances, the shawl permits Magda to avoid knowing the pain and suffering that surrounds her. It is only when the comfort of the shawl is stolen by Stella that Magda dies, Magda is seen by a soldier as she is “grieving for the loss of her shawl” (paragraph 14).

While all of the residents in the nearby village know Magda is a gypsy, they keep it quiet, because the gypsies, like the Jews, are persecuted by the Germans. She turns out to be a good witch, unlike the earlier fairy tale. That she was taken away after helping the children to flee may be evidence that life, for an ageing person, must have taken on a different importance at that time than it might in other times. Again this may be a reminder that during the holocaust older people, who were considered to be of less use overall, and were automatically annihilated. This book touches on the fact that the more useful a person was the greater their chances of survival.

In J.M. Coetzee’s novel Waiting for the Barbarians, the Magistrate comes to discover the humanity of the barbarian through his interactions with the blind girl, which eventually leads him to learn about the nature of his own humanity. Although the Magistrate is more lenient on the Barbarians than Colonel Joll, he still unknowingly objectifies them, while placing himself above them. It is only when he is imprisoned that he comes to realize the fragility of his own humanity. Ultimately Coetzee uses the magistrate’s journey from empirical leader to broken and fearful prisoner to express that peace and stability between people can only be obtained when all humanity is valued.