Aside from the death of Uncle Andy in ‘Growing Up in Public’, the deaths throughout Trainspotting are of young characters in their twenties and early thirties. The deaths occur most often from HIV, with the exception of Renton’s brother; whom dies in Northern Ireland. Welsh seems to kill of characters during the ‘prime of their lives’ a time when they could be growing, changing and even creating new life themselves. However, in their existence in the perpetual present they are unable to move the life cycle along organically. The death of Uncle Andy is important to note, because it seems he is the only character that’s death is the result of the natural cycle of life – and not from a complete lack of concern for the future, and the only one that accumulates with the narrator of the chapter remembering him in a positive way and finding both meaning and solace in her memories of him. This is further proved by the fact that she begins menstruating in this chapter; a sign that the future may continue if the characters come to learn from the past, incorporate it within the present and create a more positive future. If this does not occur; life and death will become obsolete much like the ‘trainspottin mindset’. The overall impotence in each of these novels brings the question of new life and therefore hope. If impotence and the circular patterns of violence that continue from one generation to the next, what hope is there that future generations will be able to move on, and save
Humanity constantly brings life and destruction to the world every day. In the novel A Long Way Gone, the protagonist, Ishmael Beah, constantly endures simple acts of charity, even in the cruelest environments of that time; however, what goes around comes around. Even though Beah does receive a minor variety of kindness, he still encounters the face of death everywhere he goes due to mankind’s hostility, whether it be in a deserted village or the everlasting depths of the forest. Throughout the majority of the novel, readers can find themselves praying for a miracle for Beah in addition to knowing about the violence of mankind. For the human condition project, groups are to cite a minimum of ten quotes from both the novel and previous articles
O’Brien highlights the importance of hope in Z for Zachariah by comparing the positive effect of it when Mr Loomis first arrived to when he destroyed her hope. Although it Was written in 1975, this novel shared many similarities with modern dystopian texts. For example, Divergents’ main protagonist is an adolescent female who finds the strength to survive in a world ruled by corrupt adults, much like Ann who survives despite misogynistic M Loomis. Furthermore, Tris and Ann are both fiercely independent, determined, and brave young women whom function as worthy role models to girls
Harding brings three important themes to his novel Tinkers that brings the reader to fully understand the emotion of the lives of his characters. The theme of life being the first. Harding demonstrates that life has its ups and downs but will eventually come to a pause at a more satisfying point where the hardships of life will come to pass. George partakes in this satisfaction by the end of his life when surrounded by those he loves and those that love him back. The moment at which the hardships come to pass, in the novel, is at a point of death. The death theme in the novel entices the readers in two forms of which death can be present. The first being that only the animate can die and memories with it and the other the complete opposite in which the inanimate can also posses the ability to ‘die’. As life and death goes, the fine line between them is the relationship that develops in between the two. Harding demonstrates that the relationship theme can be distinguished in forms that are unnatural but nonetheless still demonstrate relationship. At one point, the father-son relationship in the novel is expressed through fear but is also not to be expressed at all when referring to affection. Harding provides engrossing themes to progress the novel in its fragmented world but uses clear examples to help clear up the conflicting views
In “On Natural Death,” Thomas appeals to the readers by contemplating the subject of death with an academic approach that includes facts, data, and information. Thomas successfully transforms death from an awkward, emotional subject to a more comfortable intellectual one. This engages the readers by placing contemplation of death and dying within the confines of a more manageable and rational context. His gradual exhumation of death eases the audience into pondering the subject in the absence of emotional stress. The essay transitions from the death of an elm tree to that of a mouse. This is followed by Thomas giving a significant amount of attention to a scientific explanation of death, and then finally the description of the near death experience of a human. This use of an academic appeal moves the audience to a comfort zone with the subject of death and circumvents the common response of avoidance. The reader is simultaneously desensitized to the gravity of subject matter and given permission to consider death and dying without the normal societal negative stigma associated with the subject.
| |of forbidden love and the quest to keep it alive. The reader seems to |
Fireshadow - Analytical Essay: “Throughout the novel, characters encounter challenges and setbacks, but the novel’s message is optimistic.”
The author, Margaret Atwood demonstrates the theme that in a violent isolated world, feminism is despised by the offended society, the inhuman treatment that women received may lead to physical and psychological perils; conversely, one’s firm belief could embody hope and reveal a precise future. Atwood uses irony to impart the theme. Significantly, the protagonist Offred feels she increasingly losing control of her body as “ an instrument, of pleasure” (Atwood 84). But the infinite emptiness inside her can never swap out the
‘The Grave’ by Katherine Anne Porter is a story that illustrates the initiation of a child from innocence to experience. The underlying theme behind the central idea of innocence to experience is the cycle of life and death and rebirth. This theme is illustrated in the young protagonist, Miranda, and her epiphany on the concept of the cycle of life and rebirth. The dominant tone in ‘The Grave’ is melancholic, and that tone is created through the language elements of symbolism, diction, and imagery. The story’s tone is also supported by the fiction element character.
Literature is the window to realizing the negatives of society and how destructive certain norms can be. Readers are brought into a completely different story than their own, but by using similar issues in today’s world, the readers can actually learn from the story and its overall message. All writers write for a purpose, whether it’s for a new meaning to life, to live a different life than our own, or to impact others on an emotional level by teaching them to see the importance of the little things. As a reader, you search for pieces of literature that interest you whether you find the story like your own, or wish you lived the life in the story. By using issues in today’s within their works, authors are able to grab the reader's attention long enough for them to get across what they wanted to get across. Often in many works of literature, writers use societal issues as their basis for the work’s themes and symbols. By doing so, this allows the reader to question the morality behind social norms and how impactful certain ideals can be in people’s lives.
After this point, it seems that the destruction has taken its course and there is nothing left but emptiness and everyone “battered bleak of brain all drained of Brilliance in the drear light of Zoo.” The last “fantastic Book,” “open door,” and “piece of mental furniture” represent any remaining originality, opportunities, and ideas that were left being “thrown out the tenement window” and “slammed shut” by society and the capitalist system.
Sexuality has an inherent connection to human nature. Yet, even in regards to something so natural, societies throughout times have imposed expectations and gender roles upon it. Ultimately, these come to oppress women, and confine them within the limits that the world has set for them. However, society is constantly evolving, and within the past 200 years, the role of women has changed. These changes in society can be seen within the intricacies of literature in each era. Specifically, through analyzing The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne and The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath, one can observe the dynamics of society in regards to the role of women through the lens of the theme of sexuality. In both novels, the confinement and oppression of women can be visibly seen as a result of these gender roles. Yet, from the time The Scarlet Letter was published to the time The Bell Jar was written, the place of women in society ultimately changed as well. Hence when evaluating the gender roles that are derived from sexuality, the difference between the portrayals of women’s oppression in each novel becomes apparent, and shows how the subjugation of women has evolved. The guiding question of this investigation is to what extent does the theme of sexuality reflect the expectations for women in society at the time each novel was written. The essay will explore how the literary elements that form each novel demonstrate each author’s independent vision which questions the
Kurt Vonnegut is known for his dark humor, wit, and imagination. He is consistently listed among the great American authors of the later twentieth century and his novel’s such as Cat’s Cradle and Slaughterhouse Five are considered modern classics. In this essay, I will focus on two of Vonnegut’s short stories “Welcome to the Monkey House” (1968) which takes place in a dystopian future where everyone is required to take pills that take all the pleasure out of sex and “Miss Temptation” (1959) which takes place in a small east coast town by looking at them through a feminist lense. Both stories come to the same ultimate conclusion that over-moralization of human
In the 1920s many Americans were disillusioned by the massive destruction and carnage of the Great War and were questioning the meaning of life. It was a time of prosperity for many and a time when many of the countries talented young writers had fled to Europe. These books speak of a period that marked the end of the Victorian age and the rejection of what was accepted to be proper decorum. Both novels have characters that drink excessively, are sexually promiscuous, and fail to establish any meaningful relationships through marriage. They are searching for meaning in a world where there may not be any to be found.
As the era of literature slowly declines, the expert critiques and praise for literature are lost. Previously, novels were bursting at the seams with metaphors, symbolism, and themes. In current times, “novels” are simply short stories that have been elaborated on with basic plot elements that attempt to make the story more interesting. Instead of having expert critical analysis written about them, they will, most likely, never see that, as recent novels have nothing to analyze. Even books are beginning to collect dust, hidden away and forgotten, attributing to the rise of companies such as Spark Notes. An author deserves to have his work praised, no matter how meager and the masses should have the right to embrace it or to reject it. As
Women in literature have been portrayed in a multitude of ways throughout time. From goddesses to witches, and even prostitutes, women have not been limited in their representations. One challenge, in particular, is repression of their sexuality. In novels by Kate Chopin, George Orwell, and Kazuo Ishiguro, female characters live in societies that seek to regulate their sexuality. Published in 1899, The Awakening by Chopin focuses on Edna Pontellier, a woman who seeks to create a life outside her marriage by pursuing relationships with various lovers. George Orwell’s 1984, which was published in 1949, features Julia, a woman who rebels against her society by having sex for pleasure and not for reproduction. In addition, like Chopin and Orwell,