The Letterbox Essay By Lori Provan “The Letterbox” By Ann Marie Di Mambro is a dramatic monologue which discusses the theme of domestic violence. This essay will look at how the author uses a wide range of intense techniques to explore the theme. In “The Letterbox” housewife, Martha, has to suffer with her ruthless husband. Having been thrown out, Martha is slouched on a landing of her own flat. Throughout the monologue, she speaks to her young daughter, Wendy, through the letterbox. During their conversation only Martha can be heard. We can hear that she makes many unacceptable excuses to her young daughter made by the victims of domestic abuse. Her parenting skills are being questioned because of her instructions that are …show more content…
The stage directions “Jack puts his arm protectively around Jill” suggest that Jack is a very stereotypical man. Jack also refers to Martha as being “Pissed!” Jack and Jill’s names contrasts with Martha’s plight as the nursery rhyme seems innocent but there is an undercurrence of violence, but nowhere as near as brutal as Martha’s non innocent story. Therefore the brief appearance of Jack and Jill explains a large part of the large part of the stereotypical society we live in today. Furthermore, another way the author highlights the theme of inhuman treatment is through Martha’s conversation with Wendy, and the fact that some of her conversation with her daughter raises moral questions about the lessons she is teaching Wendy for the future. Throughout “The Letterbox” Martha teaches many outrageous lessons to Wendy. For instance, Martha explains to Wendy that the way her brutal husband behaves is acceptable and that all men do it. The quote, “It’s just the way men are” shows objectionable parenting skills, as only a small fraction of today’s male population act violently towards their loved ones. However, the large majority of the population do not act in this manner. At the end of the play Martha sings Wendy a bedtime lullaby. The simple four lined song is adaptable and poignant. There are three symbols in this song. Light, darkness and sleep. “Light” is to signify hope, that the light of their lives are fragile and can be easily
The author creates pathos by exposing the reader to whom and how conditions impact families and youth. Duffield writes:
When she enters the bedroom, her voice changes from present to past tense and she starts to reminisce and begins to talk about her mother and aunts. She seems happy to remember her mother’s room and introduces her aunts to the audiences. Mary delivers her dialogue saying that the dressing table and the small elephant statue figures are all same. When Mary gently touches her mother’s photo, she delivers a sad tone. Her performance conveys to the audiences that she misses her mother. The tone of her voice represents that she is a gentle, innocent and a loving child. Her verbal and non-verbal interactions conveyed the viewers with a message that she is an orphan.
When considering the similarities between Lois Lowry’s novel, The Giver, and the real world; one must consider all aspects of our domain, and history. A few similarities stand out as being predominantly controlling. The Giver, possesses several resemblances to Nazi Germany. The novel also portrays an appalling method for dealing with newborns that are less desirable. The novel also reflects on the way those who are too old are sent on a vacation to elsewhere. The novel leads one to assume that the handicapped would be met with equal cruelty. The story primarily sets forth ideas that are relevant of the era; when politically correctness would have been obstructing to an individual’s uniqueness. There reaches a point where conformity and perfection is controlling of an individual’s free will, and Lowry tries hard to portray the issues found in a world where everyone is the same; in which she indisputably succeeded.
In Sylvia Plath's novel The Bell Jar, Esther Greenwood seems incapable of healthy relationships with other women. She is trapped in a patriarchal society with rigid expectations of womanhood. The cost of transgressing social norms is isolation, institutionalization and a lost identity as woman. The struggle for an individual identity under this regime is enough to drive a person to the verge of suicide. Given the oppressive system under which she must operate, Esther Greenwood's problems with women stem from her conflict between individuality and conformity.
The route the children are designated to take, in addition, is specified in the writing to inspire in the audience fear. The segregated school for Black students is located within a mass of railroad tracks, warehouses, and red-light districts, all notably dangerous locations for children to be in. By specifically mentioning that Ellison had “forbidden words” added to his vocabulary, he implies that he had interacted with the many unsavory individuals in the area to the extent of learning immoral materials or skills (Ellison 4433). This emotional appeal enforces the idea that impressionable children are innocent and that their actions were forced upon them by the adults in control. It also appeals to the parental instinct to protect children and preserve their future. By being forced to maintain continuous exposure to dangerous environments and professions of ambiguous morality, the Black children are victims of tarnishing and possible injury by the White authority purposefully segregating the children to hazardous areas. The strategy in specifying the unfortunate circumstances the African American children are facing is for causing the White adults to appear as villains who impose professionals of socially denigrated on innocent children. In contrast, Ellison, despite not doing anything particularly virtuous, is designated the ‘hero’ to be cheered for along with all his associates and peers, who are also victims.
The narrator's childlike behavior represents how men would treat women as children which drove women to insanity.
Symbolisation is also used to counteract the miserable life of an Australian housewife. This can be seen in the line “She practises a fugue, though it can matter to no one now if she plays well or not, (stanza one, line one).” This line suggests that the woman portrayed is a musician. The poem latter reads, “Once she played for Rubinstein, who yawned,” (stanza one, line nine). This suggests she was talented enough to present to Rubenstein but didn’t succeed. “The children caper, round a sprung mousetrap where a mouse lies dead.” This line symbolizes the housewife. Her dreams of becoming a musician are trapped within her own environment. This same line can also evaluate the difficulties and harshness of the urban Australian life. Seeming sad this is something that is exciting to the children.
Even thought both were working full time and physically absent most of the time, the difference in their parenting style had influenced their kid’s life in different way. Unlike Joy, who was strict and fixed rules and clear expectations for her son, Mary had a permissive and uninvolved parenting style. Mary did not teach her son much discipline, she was lenient and intervened minimally only when she faced serious problem. She even gave her son unclear message about what is inappropriate, by the role model she played. Especially when Wes found the weed on her closet (59).In the contrary, Joy fixed clear rules at home, like her reaction when Wes punched his sister, she said while talking to her husband,<< Wes, he needs to learn what is acceptable and what is not>>
Throughout life, we all encounter delicate things that must be treated in a special way, whether it be treating them gently or just treating them with a great deal of respect. In the short story, “The Scarlet Ibis,” the author, James Hurst, demonstrates this by telling a story about a brother trying to make his disabled brother do more than he is capable of, because he is ashamed that his brother is not “normal.” Through the author’s storytelling, readers can clearly see that the theme of “The Scarlet Ibis” is that delicate things must be treated with respect. Hurst clearly emphasizes this theme by using several literary devices. The literary devices that are most evident in building the theme are indirect characterization, symbolism, and flashback.
In the novel, Mercy Among the Children, David Adams Richards paints a intricate picture of Lyle’s struggles with his father’s past mistakes and closes the passage with Lyle finally standing up for himself after witnessing his family being heavily discriminated against in the prior pages. These pages are plush with detailed diction, vast rhetorical devices and sentence structure.
Then there is Jack ahhh I love Jack. Jack is every stereotype ever whispered about gay men. He has delusions of grandeur, lives off the generosity of others because he can't keep a job, sleeps around
It is a well-known fact that men rule the world. Obviously this is not just a problem in America but all over the world. Throughout Their Dogs Came With Them the reader can see what kind of a misogynistic society that we live in. The socialization process of young males all over the world have many similarities. The pattern of misogyny and male privilege has been going on for a very long time and the fact that it still exists brings up the question, where did and where do we go wrong? At what point are boys learning this behavior and thinking that is it ok to act and think in this way. Observing these ideas in the novel could potentially affect the reader by changing the way that they treat the women and men in their life. The story may affect
Wendy’s father, Mr. Darling, sets the prime example for adult male stereotype. Barrie characterizes him as the breadwinner of the Darling family and a proud businessman. Throughout Barrie’s insight into his character, the reader observes him insist upon respect and obedience from his children and wife; and even the family dog. In one instance, Mr. Darling even boasts to Wendy that his wife, Mrs. Darling, not only loves him, but more importantly, respects him. This attitude as displayed by the character of Mr. Darling as the most prominent adult male influence can be argued to be associated with the male stereotype in many ways. Mr. Darling’s character in the text supports the culturally stereotypical view of the male gender as the
Throughout the short stories, characters endure circumstances that allow them to realize the unfairness of the world, ultimately causing a change in attitude. In “Souvenir,” the protagonist finds herself in a shop purchasing a pack of condoms for her mentally ill boyfriend while being followed by an old man. With the belief that sacrificing something precious of herself such as her virginity, the teenager initially felt that her love could save him from his mental illness. Those in the store around her, however, forced humiliation upon her, especially the elderly man. Finally becoming aware to those around her, she has an epiphany of those surrounding her in addition to the society she lives in. Witnessing the differences in people’s behaviors and attitudes, she grasps the understanding that people are influenced by others
This code of conduct becomes the social norm, where most people see no other way of life. They become completely oblivious to their wrong ways. Provincialism of the caucasian minority is encapsulated by a quote from Mrs Holbrook, “They carry different diseases than we do. That’s why I’ve drafted the Health Sanitation Initiative.” Clearly ‘they’ is people of colour - this is absolutely false, yet people believed it. A similar quote is used in ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ , “Prosecuting comes from people who are prejudice”. It would be impossible for children to escape these beliefs if their teachers, who are pillars in their community, are ignorant of their own bias. Stockett incorporated many examples of inequality and discrimination in ‘The Help’ , and gives readers an insight into the prejudiced actions of people in the 1960’s.