Spoon River Anthology (Monologue)

3) In this novel I feel that there are a couple of characters which have power in this book flowers for Algernon. First the main Character and protagonist Charlie has power over if he’s going to continue with the progress reports and coming to the lab once a day to do tests on him. The world is watching his steps of development and the more intelligent he becomes to more arrogant, Selfish and egotistic he becomes and he has the power to that because this experiment is based on how well he develops Nobody wants to get on his bad side.

The first passage reveals the parallel suffering occurring in the lives of different members of the family, which emphasizes the echoes between the sufferings of the father and the narrator. The narrator’s father’s despair over having watched

David Brooks argues, in his essay “What Suffering Does”, that pain often gives people a new outlook and possibly even a new path in life. He explains that suffering can help people see their lives from an outsider’s perspective, discover new depths of their character, and often find new paths: “The grief of having lost a loved one smashes through what they thought was the bottom floor of their personality, revealing an area below,” (Brooks 286). Brooks in this passage describes how suffering can enhance a person’s character. As cliché as it sounds, hardships can, in fact,

physical journey of suffering and pain was a test to his mental knowledge and inner

In chapter nine we learn about suffering which comes in inescapable different ways to everyone because it the law to humanity (Hiles & Smith, 2014). Everyone that will experience suffering in will change their perspectives on how

If you grew up with white boys Who only look at black and Puerto Rican porno Cuz they want something that their dad don't got Then you know where you're at Mortaring your ear holes shut In a rush with wet coke In a Starbucks bathroom with the door closed On booze some left in residue and confused Like the first time you used soft water Down on my luck caught unaware Like Houdini when the last fist struck Sinking in laughing at something sunken in I am If I'm sinking in laughing at something sunken in I am

The theme of suffering will be talked about throughout this essay. Even though it isn’t the most pleasant topic to talk about, it is part of our lives. The dictionary defines suffering as “The state of undergoing pain, distress, or hardship.” This essay will examine suffering and how it shows up in different printed sources, as well as in my personal life.

Have you ever felt like time was running past you? That the world kept spinning while you just stood still? Time is a central theme in many of Kenneth Slessor’s poems, however it is primarily explored through ‘Out of time’ and ‘Five Bells’. Slessor has made it obvious that he is aware that time continues whether we want it to or not and this is what allows us to put into perspective the notion of humanity’s dominance.

A deeper level is achieved in the mind of the narrator when she acknowledges her own mental state and that she is eager to leave her sad mood. While the man is described as animal-like and savage, she stands “In moody sadness, on the giddy brink” (9) full of contemplation and reflection on her own worldview. The poet is quite self-aware while the lunatic is not, and through her intelligent banter, the reader can see the extreme difference in personality. The poet’s own self-conception, however, is ironic in that she is wishing for ignorance that can only be achieved by lack of a self-concept. The catch-22 she experiences is perplexing, both to her and the reader.

This is also brought into the very beginning of “The Depressed Person”, “The depressed person was in terrible and unceasing emotional pain, and the impossibility of sharing or articulating the pain was itself a component of the pain and a contributing factor in its essential horror.” (TDP 1). This introduction lets the reader know that this story is partially person and about the author in a way.

The Spoon River Anthology, written by Edgar Lee Masters in 1915, was a unique piece of work in both style and structure. There are over two hundred “stories” told by the dead people who once lived in the town of Spoon River. The lives and dreams of these people are written as poems. The poetry itself is an excellent example of early modernist style.

The theme of suffering can come in numerous varieties; under categories both physical and emotional. Suffering is presented as a key concept in ‘Othello’, ‘Wuthering Heights’ and ‘One flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest’. All three texts explore many aspects of suffering in parts, however the most obvious and concentrated facet leans towards the psychological aspect rather then the physical side. In the three chosen texts many of the characters suffer from some sort of emotional trauma. Psychological suffering and distress is a major topic in all three chosen texts as the authors use this ailment in order to drive the storyline forward,

“Suffering” is a word which carries negative connotations, used to incite pity, empathy or fear. Why would it not? Is suffering not simply agony, defined justly by the Oxford Dictionary as “the state of undergoing pain, distress, or hardship” (“Suffering)? Yet, we accept suffering as part of life, a fundamental aspect that defines living. Nietzsche tells us that the very act of living is suffering itself, but to survive is to find value in that suffering. Yet, what sort of value can be attached to an idea so negative? Pico Iyer’s editorial in the New York Times explores the value of suffering, likening suffering to passion and “[p]assion with the plight of other’s makes for ‘compassion’” (________________).I began to think upon the cohesive

The suffering of man is a very complicated matter that is most likely impossible to understand completely. It is a subject that people have grappled with since the dawn of recorded history. In fact, suffering is evident in every form of art man has created. Suffering is in our paintings, our poetry, our music, our plays, and in anything else that is conceivable. But still, we as a whole still struggle with the idea of suffering. It is my opinion that some individuals may grasp the notion of suffering more than others, but that no one person will ever fully understand suffering in every form. A person may only understand his or her own personal suffering, not suffering as a whole. It is the next step to then say

He goes on to say, “I wanted to live deep and suck out all the marrow of life...to drive life into a corner, and reduce it to its lowest terms, and, if it proved to be mean...publish its meanness to the world; or if it were sublime, to know it by experience and be able to give a true account of it in my next excursion” (74). In this rather long passage, he outlines his true sentiment about life and living. He puts his feelings in very plain, broad terms, claiming that in order to know what life has to offer, one must do all that they can to “experience” it, and then judge for themselves. One cannot have lived if they have not confronted the true “essential facts of life,” whether they may be sweet or bitter.