Loss In Gwilan's Harp 'And The Last Leaf'

Since the start of time, and the preceding generations, death has impacted people and the way they act. A sudden, or even an expected death of a loved one, takes a toll on a person. It’s human nature for people to process and want to make sense of death and the loss it leaves behind. The five stages of grief reflect this process of dealing with the loss of a loved one. Through these stage of grieving, people can get lost either searching for answers or trying to get past it. In Hamlet, William Shakespeare depicts the role human nature plays in the striving for answers and justice surrounding death. Even though Hamlet was written early in the seventeenth century, the depiction of death and human nature still rings true today; people and

The idea of death can be, and is an enormously disturbing, unknown issue in which many people can have many different opinions. To some individuals, the process of life can progress painstakingly slow, while for others life moves too fast. In the excerpt We Were the Mulvaneys, by Joyce Carol Oates, a innocent farm boy named Judd Mulvaney has an eye-opening encounter by a brook near his driveway. During this encounter, Judd faces a chain of feelings and emotions that lead to his change of opinion of the issues of life and death, and change as a character. This emblematic imagery of life and death, as well as jumpy, and retrospective tones benefit the development of Judd as an innocent child as he begins to change into a more conscious and aware adult.

In “Whoever We Are, Loss Finds us and Defines Us”, by Anna Quindlen, she brings forth the discussion grief's grip on the lives of the living. Wounds of death can heal with the passing of time, but in this instance, the hurt lives on. Published in New York, New York on June 5, 1994, this is one of many Quindlen published in the New York Times, centered on death's aftermath. This article, written in response to the death of Quindlen’s sister-in-law, and is focused on an audience who has, currently is, or will experience death. Quindlen-a columnist for the New York Times and Newsweek, Pulitzer Prize winner and author-has written six bestselling novels (Every Last One, Rise and Shine, Object Lessons, One True Thing, and Black and Blue) and has

The narrator of James Hurst’s “The Scarlet Ibis” feels proud of Doodle’s accomplishments, but at the same time his pride makes him disappointed because of Doodle’s disability. “The Scarlet Ibis” has many dark and complex metaphors and similes in a “heart warming” story. For instance, "It was in the clove of seasons, summer was dead, but autumn had not yet been born, that the ibis lit in the bleeding tree." This is one of the darker examples because, this metaphor is explaining how the narrator describes summer as being "dead" and autumn soon to be "born." The seasons dying and coming back to life fits with how death surrounds the story.

In the book “A Long Way Gone” music plays a role as a healer and a saviour.

“Grief is like the ocean; it comes on waves ebbing and flowing. Sometimes the water is calm, and sometimes it is overwhelming. All we can do is learn to swim” by Vicki Harrison. It is proven that losing your loved ones is painful, shocking, some people might feel guilt, and anger. In the excerpt, “The Seventh Man” by Haruki Murakami the narrator’s best friend, K. died due to a typhoon that struck on September. After K.’s death the Seventh Man suffered in a major trauma and set back. For this reason, the narrator of “The Seventh Man” isn’t blameworthy for K.’.s death and he should forgive himself due to his actions.

Death and depression are just some of the tones found from chapter 36 in the book, A Tree Grows In Brooklyn by Betty Smith. The author uses diction, imagery, details, language, and syntax in the chapter to make it interesting to readers that makes them want to read the chapter. These factors helps the reader find out what the true feelings the characters feel towards Johnny’s death.

The cellist’s music affects Dragan who in the beginning of the book is an empty shell devoid of any emotion or bravery. Dragan explains, “He can

The Harp in the South written by Ruth Park tells the narrative of a Catholic Irish Australian family living in the Sydney suburb of Surry Hills during the 1940s. Through the characterization of Roie, Miss. Sheily and Tommy Mendel, Park positions the reader to feel a range of emotions from admiration to anger, as they endure the love, poverty and deception in a place where many fall a victim to circumstances beyond their control.

There are two main themes that are continually being presented throughout the novel “The Lovely Bones”, these themes are grief and hope. This essay will analyze how different individuals from the Salmon family cope with the death of a family member and their way of going forward with their lives.

The character openly feels empathy for his daughter, and near the middle of the piece the character seems to feel helpless as he describes the way his daughter “seemed to crave a companion, or an activity that would lift her spirits.” He soon discovers musical therapy as that exact activity and it gives him a feeling of hope. He has a way now to open a channel where she can express herself through music “in a way that she cannot express-has never been able to express-in

Constance Squire’s Running Out Of Music portrays Major Collins as a minor character, but in reality his misunderstanding of music and the importance of it plays in Lucinda’s development of identity plays an integral role in the short story through the theme of the unknown importance of music.

In making the story enjoyable and funny, Steinbeck neglects talking about serious issues and instead focuses on the hilarity of the characters predicaments. However, when serious topics are discussed they are very profound and give the book an underlying gloomy tone. For instance when the Bear Flag Restaurant’s previous watchman saw that the Greek knew he would commit suicide simply by how sad he looked “and the ice pick snapped into his heart” (Steinbeck, 19). The acceptance and simplicity of the act was shocking, but even more so was how easily it was to forget about him as Steinbeck talked about an encounter between a mouthy boy and the Chinaman. After making fun of the Chinaman and by looking the boy in the eyes the Chinaman somehow gives him a vision that produces extreme loneliness and fear causing the boy to “whimper because there wasn’t anybody at all in the world and he was left” (Steinbeck, 22).

He seems to suggest here that grief is but an illusion, because man is incapable of touching the human soul. Emerson continued with, “Grief too will make us idealists. In the death of my son, now more than two years ago, I seem to have lost a beautiful estate, - no more. I cannot get it nearer to me.” Now, Emerson reveals his inspiration for writing Experience. With the death of his son, Emerson had suffered the fourth major loss in his family, which had been long plagued by tuberculosis. His first wife died of the disease and had claimed the lives of his two beloved brothers. Emerson was no stranger to grief, and the more he tried to psychoanalyze it, the emptier he felt. After sustaining so much loss, one must steel oneself from any further blows.

There are two major themes that are continually being presented throughout the novel “The Lovely Bones”, these themes are grief and hope. This essay will analyze how different individuals from the Salmon family cope with the death of a family member and their way of advancing with their lives.