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Manus: A Tragic Hero

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Lately, it is nearly impossible to read a newspaper, read an article or even turn on your television without learning about the overwhelming amount of troubles that have plagued our world today. Contrary to our scientific development, it seems as though humanity has made hardly any advancements in the quest for world peace. The world as we once knew it is nearly gone and now the remnants of it can only be found in the precious reminiscences of the old, the dusted bindings of books, and the hearts of those who crave for society to return back to the way it was. Wars that use to be fought on enemy lines have now been brought home, governments that rose to power preaching democratic ideologies have grown to be totalitarian, and now more than ever, …show more content…

Manus, unlike his brother, remained home and was deeply invested in their community. Manus had an incomparable devotion for his culture. He was a teacher and the second command to a school in their community called the Hedge-school. Despite not being paid for his work as a teacher, there is a clear indication that he loves teaching. Because for many years, he had enthralled himself so deep into the culture, to him, his brother's efforts to change their map was an assassination attempt against who they are. He is rather dismayed by his brothers openness to change and he is not afraid to call him out on it. Saying things like, "there was nothing uncertain about what Lancey said: it's a bloody military operation, Owen! And what's Yolland's function? What's 'incorrect' about the place-names we have here?" (36) Many of the characters in the play are fooled by the way the British have disguised there pursuits, but not Manus. Manus believes that their culture is a stunning one that needed to be treasured rather than erased. He would not stand to allow this to happen. Like his brother, he was significantly shaped by his perspective on what must be done. Both of them were drawn to oppose each other's efforts. Owen thought that the stories of old and meanings behind the street names were now minuscule to who the community was now. On the other hand, Manus thinks that the street names should stay the way they are. He does not think they need to change or become modernized. Once could say that his assessment of how valuable their culture was is priceless. These competing perspectives not only drew them against each other for a significant part of the play, but also ignite inner conflict which effectively affect the other characters in the

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