Representation of Death through Texts

Mar G. Berg, Repitions and Reflections in Chronicle of a Death Foretold, Division of the Humanities and Social Sciences, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, California. http://authors.library.caltech.edu/18939/1/HumsWP-0110.pdf

“Oh! No mortal could support the horror of that countenance. A mummy again endued with animation could not be so hideous as that wretch” (Shelley 57). This statement is how Mary Shelley successfully portrayed the overall negative consensus of the industrialization of Europe in the 1800s in her novel Frankenstein. This story parallels the world’s transition from nature and emotion to reason and truth which was the primary cause for the industrial revolution. Though the revolution brought new technology and knowledge, people felt as though they were enslaved by this sudden change. This is clear through Shelley’s Dr. Frankenstein and the ‘wretched monster’ that would forever change the world.

Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein has undoubtedly withstood the test of time. Frankenstein’s direct association with fundamental Gothic literature is extremely renowned. However, the novel’s originality is derived from the foundational thematic values found within the relationship (or lack there of) between Victor Frankenstein and the monster he had created, in combination with a fascinatingly captivating plot. Understandably, Frankenstein can often be associated with a multitude of concepts; however, in this particular instance, the circumstances in the book seemed remarkably coherent with Shelley’s Romantic beliefs in preserving the natural world, and one’s natural existence. These values present themselves as metaphorical symbols that

“Frankenstein” is a gothic/science fiction novel that keeps the reader at the edge of their seat. It is filled with scenes of love, power, tragedy, and much more. This novel, is packed to the rims with themes and lessons, most of them dealing with creation; however, I wanted to discuss a theme that is lying beneath the surface and is buried in the text. This paper explores how Frankenstein mistakes friendship for possession. This theme will be analyzed using gender, class, a tone of disgust, possession, and disappointment, imagery of beauty, and lastly, metaphor.

Edgar Allan Poe is the most morbid of all American authors. Poe made his impact in Gothic fiction, especially for the tales of the macabre of which he is so renowned for. “How can so strange & so fine a genius & so sad a life, be exprest [sic] & comprest in on line — would it not be best to say of Poe in a reverential spirit simply Requiescat in Pace [?]” — (Alfred Lord Tennyson’s reply to the Poe Memorial committee, February 18, 1876). Poe’s own life story sheds light on the darkness of his writings.

Death is the great equalizer. No matter the person, death comes to all eventually. The idea that no matter what one does or says death’s grip is ever present scares a large majority of people. This means death is not a topic typically approach with thoughtful discussion in normal conversation, rather it is regulated to philosophers and academics. Cathy Malkasian seeks to challenge that notion in her graphic novel Percy Gloom. In it, Malkasian uses symbols that at first seem absurd, or amusing to broach the topic of death and deep truths surrounding it, in an accessible way. The three biggest symbols that Malkasin uses are the goats, the muffins, and Safely Now.

Humans are known for bestowing their judgment irrationally and based on the “book cover” of a person, they may degrade their fellow human into the worst positions of the social ladder. Mary Shelley, in her novel Frankenstein, expands on this perspective by using mood and tone to parallel with the circumstances of an event occurring in her novel with shifts throughout the context of the book, symbolized by the changes in nature and seasons. This shift is made frequently between the agonized, desperate, frightful, maybe even suicidal mood and tone with the occurrence of dreadful acts of murder and execution, to the more calming, soothing, optimistic and life-full during a physical and spiritual recovery.

Explore any primitive culture and you are likely to unearth taboos about death. Whether universal or not, there appears to be a propensity for not saying aloud those thing that will attract the attention of bad spirits, the evil eye, or the grim reaper. Looking away from evil is believed to keep one safe from harm. It is no wonder then, that the superstitious behavior of humans extends to death as if it were an unnatural event instead of a completely natural milestone albeit, the final one in a life. Doubtless, there are times when people could be more sensitive to the harbingers of death, as John Updike intimates in his poem Dog's Death. Fiction, fantasy, and film are chock-a-block full of images representing death. Even the beloved The Christmas Carole tells the story of a present in which Marley is dead and spirits escort Scrooge to a season in the future in which Scrooge is absent. So, too, Jean Rhys takes her character into the future. In analyzing, comparing, and contrasting these two literary works, we can see that the human tendency is not to acknowledge mortality, but rather to live with the incomprehensibility of death by ignoring it as fervently, studiously, and deliberately as we are able to, right up until the point when death is irrefutably imminent or has irrevocably occurred. This paper will analyze the content, form, and style of Dog's Death by John Updike and I Used to Live Here Once by Jean Rhys.

Gothic Horror and death go hand in hand. No matter the subject, this genre will have some macabre happening. For the most part, the stories I selected by name, length, and subject matter. How people in these stories react to mortality is either a little odd or normally. Humans, for the most part, react to death in a serious, solemn and melancholy manner. The characters in Poe’s stories stories and real people do react the same, in some cases.

Death is a powerful force of life which is inevitable to overcome eventually. Throughout Mary Shelley’s romantic novel, Frankenstein, death is a dominant theme. Death can be the cause of a sad and depressing time, especially losing a loved one. In the novel, death solemnly brings people closer and truly ties the plot together. Death induces many different events into action in the novel and if one event was absent then the storyline could change drastically as death plays huge roles to bring people together and change everyone’s lives for the better. Unfortunately, death is a recurring event throughout the entire novel and though it is tragic, it truly makes the book what it is.

According to Samir Chopra “The central motif in ‘American Gothic’–at least in the two sequences cited above–is the decay of the familiar: inevitable, persistent, insidious, ever-present and perhaps most frighteningly, contagious.”. Using two modern examples to support his argument, American Horror Story, and The Walking Dead, he breaks down the key component of American Gothic; the unfamiliar. It’s the fact that we don’t know, is what makes the American Gothic so believable and intriguing and it’s because of this very reason American Gothic is popular in television today. Along with the unfamiliar, Chopra’s analysis of death and its influence on American Gothic television, reveals that American Gothic exposes us to the reality that death does

Thantophobia, the fear of death, has an affect on 68% of the U.S. population in some way or another. “Some people fear being dead, while others are afraid of the actual act of dying” (Thantophobia). Throughout history, many different assumptions of death have occurred, leading people to be curious of what is true and what is not. This may be why most pieces of writing use the fear of death somehow in their story. “An almost universal fear, death recurs in literature more than any other fear…” (The top 10). Throughout literature the popularized fear of death writing style has been used in many pieces of work such as “The Pardoner’s Tale” and “The Masque of the Red Death”.

Death is a very popular theme in world literature; authors seem to feed off the anguish it causes readers. However, there are many types of deaths from many different eras. For example, in its broadest sense death has two forms homicide and suicide. Homicide for instance, dates all the way back to the two earliest works of literature known to man; The Epic of Gilgamesh and The Holy Bible. Suicide is also ancient, but has a much darker feel to it. Despite death being universal throughout time, there are some striking similarities in today’s world.

Death and dying are major components of gothic literature. In order to rehabilitate, you are compelled to acknowledge the pain of the person you have lost. People also deal with death by understanding that their grieving process is unique to them. Also by understanding the difference of grief and depression. The characters in the stories deal with death like the examples shown above. It also takes some people a little longer than others to heal themselves from their loss.

Question 1 The Dead In this short story “The Dead,” techniques such as imagery, point of view, motif, diction, and syntax are used. Also, this short story is talking about a character named Gabriel, and Joyce reveals aspects of his character. Joyce uses imagery in this short story by saying how Gabriel looks at this woman. However, Gabriel is not described as seeing her with a happy mood, rather with a look of unhappiness.