Essay on The Fly by Katherine Mansfield

Symbolism is often utilized in literary pieces to help express an idea and reveal a deeper meaning. In Zora Neale Hurston's short story "Sweat," the main character, Delia, is a victim that suffers from her husband Sykes' cruelty and abuse. The symbols of clothing, sweat and snakes play a major role in "Sweat" and reveal hidden meanings (the truth) about the two characters Delia and Sykes.

Reading literature allows people to imagine, create, and believe certain things that reality or other written works are not capable of. The same way writers create their literature is the same way readers interpret it. Both readers and writers use imagination to do so. Literature opens a world where every thought/thing is brought to life. In literature, any person, place, or thing could possibly mean more than its’ literal meaning. When writers do so, he or she uses a literacy device called symbolism. Symbolism is when the author uses objects to represent a certain idea, an idea that is beyond its’ actual meaning. In Robert Olen Butler’s “Jealous Husband Returns in Form of Parrot” and “The Paring Knife” by Michael Oppenheimer, the authors

“Flying,” by Alice Miller is a complex story about a woman named Allie, who reminisces about a time spent when her cousin Mack taught her to fly when she was just a young girl. On different occasions when Mack visited, he would show her how to do new things. As Allie grew up she found herself thinking of the secret that Mack shared with her and how he told her not to tell anyone or she may get hurt. Allie longed for the feeling of flying, if she could just reach out and talk to Mack but too much time had passed. She dreams of flying in her sleep, not for long periods of time, but just enough to embrace that feeling she had years ago. She wonders if many people have experienced flying the way that she has and if she could fly by herself without Mack. One day, Allie tries to fly on her own and succeeds, soaring higher than she did with Mack. Before Allie knew it, she was flying through the clouds and around town. Now that Allie has experienced the feeling of flying again, more than ever she wanted to share with her kids. One night after the children were asleep she wanted to share her secret with her boys but instead chose her daughter. Miller suggests that when a person is afraid of doing something on their own, sometimes it just takes a little bit of courage to step out and let go of the things that could be holding a person back.

“Flying,” by Alice Miller tells the story of woman reminiscing on the time that her cousin taught her how to fly when they were kids. It begins with the main character, Allie, flying in the air with her cousin, Mack, when she was six years old. Allie has many questions and Mack tells her that all boys can fly and instructs her to not tell anyone that she knows this secret. He also tells her not to ever try to fly without him and compares this secret to the myth about Prometheus giving the God’s fire to man and being punished for it. As the years went by, Allie wonders if she would ever fly again and even doubts if the memory was real. She becomes a wife and a mother to two sons and a daughter but still wonders if flying is possible. One night, she decides to test her memory and tries to fly out of her backyard. She slowly ascends just as she did when she was young but even higher. Over the next few days, her urge to fly again grows. One night, she sneaks into her children’s room and picks up her daughter to take her outside and show her how to fly. The story ends with Allie telling her daughter to promise not to tell the boys what she is about to experience and excitement building in Allie for her daughter. The central idea of this story is the pursuit of satisfaction never ends.

Who is the antagonist, or the person who causes the conflict for the protagonist? What is he like?

Symbolism is a clever device used by authors to impart a deeper understanding to the reader concerning the story. “The Scarlet Ibis” is about a newborn baby named Doodle and his struggle through his limited life being “different”. After Doodle’s accomplishment of walking, his older brother strived to make him “normal enough” to go to school. In the end, Doodle did not complete his training and brutally died in a storm. “I lay there crying, sheltering my fallen scarlet ibis from the heresy of rain” (Hurst 198). James Hurst used the scarlet ibis to tie the story together. In many stories, such as “The Scarlet Ibis” by James Hurst, authors use foreshadowing through object symbolism to convey what is happening to the characters.

An antagonist is a character or group of characters that oppose the protagonist or causes the drama in the literary work (Literary Devices). “The Piano Lesson” was written by August Wilson in 1990. “The Piano Lesson” is about Boy Willie trying to sell the piano that his sister, Berniece, kept that belonged to their mother. Berniece refuses to let Boy Willie sell the piano because of the message behind it. Boy Willie causes all this drama so that he can sell the piano and use the money to buy land. The antagonist in the play “The Piano Lesson” is Boy Willie, even though he is not an evil character.

Symbols are important in each story to define the theme. Close observation of the symbols within each story proves to one their

How literary symbolism helps makes a story relatable by giving everyday objects a meaning. “The Birds” is a short story about birds turning overnight on the humans and killing them or trying to kill them. In “The Birds” by Daphne du Maurier, symbolism adds detail and foreshadows what is to come in the story role because it makes the story relatable and ties in the reader.

“She Flies With Here Own Wings” is the well know motto of the state of Oregon. Oregon, home of the grass seed capital of the world, is also home to many other attractions that can be appropriate to people of all ages and genders. Whether an interest is educational like going to a museum, or just taking a leisurely stroll on one of Oregon’s beautiful beaches, there are many places that would be perfect to fulfill any needs. The most interesting sights of all include farms, wineries and dairies in the Willamette Valley.

Every individual encounters periods in their life that threaten their security, livelihood and overall well being. How one deals with these tough situations and perceives the lessons brought forth by their perils shapes who they ultimately become. Janet Hepburn and Russell Thornton have their fair share of differences as creatives in literature, however, their adverse experiences have shaped the way they create their art, and its subject matter. From a young age, Thornton experienced the absence of a father figure in his life and the topic of fatherhood is a reoccurring theme in much of his work, including Sirens. Similarly, Janet Hepburn, the creative mind behind Flee Fly Flown also experienced the absence of a parent; she lost her mother

An antagonist is defined as “one that contends with or opposes another” (Webster Dictionary, 2014). In stories, they are what moves the

The author utilizes the literary technique of symbolism to ensure that readers understand the message in the play, rather than directly telling the audience the lesson that the author expects them to learn through reading. This type of literary device makes the play more enjoyable for readers, as it engages them as they attempt to understand the meaning behind the symbols. First, the canary is symbolic of Mrs. Wright. Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters presume that Mr. Wright had killed Mrs. Wrights bird, this is a parallel to how he treated her.

Antagonist is the opposite of protagonist, it comes from Greek “opponent, emeny”, and, in most cases, battles against protagonist. Antagonists are usually represented with angular, spikier shapes and dark, or “dangerous” colors.

Being referred to as “the boss,” rather than his birth-given name, tells a great deal about the boss. The boss in “The Fly” has a very bossy personality finding great pleasure in being in control. Readers can tell that the boss is controlling by his method of killing the fly in his office. He carefully observes the fly struggle to stand after being unstuck from the inkpot and he drowns the fly with the ink from his pen. After the boss observes the fly finish its “laborious task” of freeing itself, he refills his pen and shakes “another dark drop.” The boss then asks, “What about this time?” as he repeats his actions twice more. Even after the fly dies he commands it: “Come on… Look sharp!” This proves that the boss is empowered by displaying his dominance even over such a helpless insect. Readers also see that the boss is taking advantage of his control when he orders his secretary Macey around. He first tells him, "I'll see nobody for half an hour, Macey.