Greek Myth Project

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ti5VkAzcXvc

Jane Eyre Essay

     Charlotte Brontë published Jane Eyre, a three-volume novel, in 1847 and till this day it is one of the greatest English nineteenth century novels. The novel tells the story of a young woman who, orphaned as a child, must first become a teacher and then a governess to survive. Accentuating one of the most unforgettable and independent female characters of all time, this novel constructs its plot and characters in terms of hypocrisy verses honesty, with Jane herself systematically on the side of righteousness.

     During the first volume of the novel, Jane is sent as a misfortunate orphan to "Lowood", a religion based public establishment in which the tyrannical Mr. Brocklehurst attempts to purify the girls by means of brutality and victimization. He dresses his daughters and wife in finery, whereas he makes the girls at Lowood cut their hair and practically starves them to death. Jane's best friend, Helen Burns, becomes a target of brutality in the novel and her mistreatment contributes to the advance of her severe case of tuberculosis. This portion of the novel distinctly depicts Jane as immune and resistant towards the hypocrisy of a world that can kill a young girl for her own good. Jane shows defiance again a few years later when Mr. Brocklehurst invites her to stay as an adult teacher at Lowood and she refuses to. Jane's rebelliousness and independence are represented as positives here, as the reader is expected to detest the casual cruelty Mr. Brocklehurst brings forth to the novel.

     Jane leaves Lowood behind and goes on to become a governess at the Thornfield Manor and tutors a French girl, Adele. Jane's boss, Mr. Rochester speaks to Jane with irony and brutal honesty, telling her that she is plain- to which she replies that he is not handsome. Later on in the novel, Rochester and Jane fall in love and he claims to have fallen for her because she is different than the rest. Rochester shows how hypocritical he is when he tries to dress up Jane in fancy clothes and jewels, for he had already claimed he fell in love with her because of her plain appearance. Jane does not make Rochester look bad in the reader's eyes at all throughout the novel, showing how honest she continues to remain while she is surrounded with hypocritical people.

    While Jane Eyre is clearly a romantic novel, it is also an early illustration of a feminist novel. The issue of honesty is at the center of the story. Those who are dishonest are clearly intended to earn the disapproval of the reader, and those who are honest are expected to win the reader's admiration. The reader respects Jane for the genuine nature of her virtues- she may be plain visually, but she is wise and has a compassionate heart, as well as a burning desire to do the right thing. Desire is evidently a theme in the novel, but a powerful moral code as well, one that captures the heart of fairness in social relations, not just one that focuses on soul-less rule making. The theme of righteousness verses hypocrisy further develops the character of Jane Eyre in this novel, and she also helps to establish the theme.  

Jane Eyre

Klara Sulce

Mr. Perez

English AP

13 February 2012

     “Jane Eyre” is written in the form Bildungsroman and takes place in Victorian England during the mid-nineteenth century. It is one of the most famous works of Charlotte Brontë because it is a memoir of her arduous life and the obstacles she overcame. The people Jane Eyre encountered had a huge impact on her life, particularly the females, including Mrs. Reed, Bessie, Helen Burns, Miss Temple, and Diana and Mary Rivers. Jane based her relationship with the women on a reciprocal nature because she lacked motherly guidance and therefore needed an affectionate woman to show her respect and love.

     The first woman that Jane Eyre was introduced to after her mother's death was Mrs. Reed. Mrs. Reed showered her no kind of motherly love, therefore Jane was witty towards her and suffered from emotional scarring throughout her teen years. Jane underwent many struggles due to Mrs. Reed and the most challenging one was attending Lowood School. Mrs. Reed sends her off to a private school because she hopes that Jane’s time at Lowood will reform her, particularly her tendency to lie. Although the family mistreats her, Jane still wishes that she could have the same attention and love that her cousins receive from her aunt.

     Contrasting from Mrs. Reed tremendously are Miss Temple, Jane's teacher at Lowood and Bessie-the nurse in the Reed household. Bessie is the only figure in Jane's childhood who regularly treats her kindly, telling her stories and signing her songs. She gives Jane hope that things will get better and visits her later on in the novel only to find out that Jane is now a lady. Miss Temple treats Jane and her best friend Helen with respect and compassion and serves as one of Jane's first positive female role models, encouraging the spirit of independence and dignity in Jane. She even goes out of her way to clear Jane of Mrs. Reed's accusations against her. Both Bessie and Miss Temple impacted Jane positively and reminded Jane that there are women out there that do in fact care about her and are not out to get her. She was so used to the idea of being tormented by the Reed family, that once exposed to true compassion by others, she did not know how to react to it or feel worthy.

     Helen is Jane's closest friend at the Lowood school and serves as Jane's foil. The two young ladies differ immensely in personality. Helen endures her miserable life with a passive dignity that Jane cannot understand, whereas Jane answerers back to all her elders and will not tolerate being disrespected. Helen dies of consumption in Jane's arms at the age of ten and this has a powerful effect on Jane. How can someone that so firmly believes in a loving God die so early in their life? What Jane learns from Helen becomes a part of her value system and affects her emotional responses, behavior, and decisions.

     Diana and Mary Rivers are the final two females that truly have a lasting impact on Jane. Jane tells us directly that, when she’s hanging out with Diana and Mary, she aspires to their level of intelligence, saying, "They were both more accomplished and better read than I was; but with eagerness I followed in the path of knowledge they had trodden before me" (Bronte 308). In relation to her female friends, then, Jane often reverts to the dynamic she learned as a child, where she is the loyal pupil and the compassionate women around her are her teachers. The loss of a mother figure that Jane experienced early in her childhood lead to the way she judges the women that later came into her life. In other words, the way Jane relates to most of the women in her life is either as their master or their pupil and in some instances, as both.

     The encounters Jane made with all the women in her life helped her to become the woman she presents herself as as the Bildungsroman novel progresses. Jane's development in character starts because of Mrs. Reed and continues as she meets Helen, Mrs. Temple, and Diana and Mary Rivers. These women are not Jane's equals, some are her teachers, that Jane hero-worships and learns from, whereas some are her students. As the novel comes to a close, Jane becomes an independent woman because of all the experiences she underwent with all the women in her life and she has the ability to form her own religion regarding right and wrong.

Essay part 3

Klara Sulce # 3

               

Many characters in novels are superior to the outside world’s influences. For instance, Gregor Samsa exemplifies the effect that family and society has on individuals as a whole. In Metamorphosis, Gregor is constantly pressured by his family to provide for them financially. They became so used to him providing for them that once he transforms into an insect, they do not know how to provide for themselves. Had it not been for the Samsa family’s continuous stress put forth on Gregor, his outcome would not have been so appalling.

                Before his metamorphosis, Gregor was faced with working an unpleasant job that left no time for him. The pressure of time and intense monetary ambition of the economy-driven world drives Gregor to feel alienated from himself, as well as his family, through his obligation to providing for them. The frame of a woman he has hung up in his room acts as a companion in Gregor’s alienation from the public realm. This void in his life is the result of the immense amount of hard work he undertakes. Gregor places this unknown woman in a golden frame, symbolizing how he desires the loving intimate relationship that time does not permit him to engage in.  

                Gregor’s family is selfish in many ways and they are the reason for Gregor’s demise. They see gold purely for its monetary value, a perspective from the economically-driven outlook, where value is determined by financial asset instead of one’s spirit. The expression “time is money” summarizes the value that time holds in the economy-driven world.  Once the supply of money became ill, the Samsa family’s true colors were revealed.  This often happens to society as a whole, they become so preoccupied with money that everything else, including family becomes irrelevant in their attempt to achieve happiness and success.  Had his family been more supportive and appreciative of Gregor, his death could have been avoidable.  His family has lost sight of the appreciation of family, a blindness directly caused from living and participating in a society driven by greed.

Hamlet Midterm Essay

Klara Sulce

                William Shakespeare’s characters tend to display forth behaviors that one might find evil. In “Hamlet”, Hamlet is seeking revenge and will stop at nothing to avenge his father’s murder.  Some people find his behavior to be sane and merely attempting to cope with the death of his father, whereas others find his actions to be that of an evil man. While some of Hamlet's deeds were cruel, it was not evil that led him to commit such harsh deeds, he was led by duty.

                Upon reflection, Hamlet conducted himself horribly in some scenes of the play. In Act 3, Scene 4 when Hamlet kills Polonius, his words indicate that he thought it was the king hiding behind the arras and so killing him would have fulfilled his father's ghost's request for vengeance. If he had known it was Polonius, he would not have murdered him in such a gruesome way. For he loved his daughter Ophelia and he would not want someone he loves grieving over the death of her father like he once had. He knows how painful the loss of one’s father is.

 Also, in this particular scene, Hamlet is highly incensed because of Claudius' reaction to the play that Hamlet had the actors perform. After all, he's just been shown definitive proof, in his mind, that Claudius killed the king, Hamlet's father. Imagine the hurt, fury, and feelings of betrayal that must be surging through Hamlet at this time. Certainly it was not evil that led Hamlet to act the way he did, it was simply emotion.  Love makes individuals do some crazy things, things that one is not always proud of. 

It is evident that Hamlet is the kind of person who wears his emotions openly and is guided by them from the very beginning of the play, when Claudius and Gertrude both tell him essentially that he needs to get over his father's death and move on.  His love letters to Ophelia are also proof of how highly emotional Hamlet is. There are constant examples of how Hamlet is led by his emotions.  The most "evil" act he engages in is when he changes the letter that Rosencrantz and Guildenstern take to England so that they will be put to death. That is a high price to pay for being pawns in Claudius' game.

Midterm

Klara Sulce

            Poets always have different opinions and outlooks on life, therefore some poems are depressing and not as enjoyable. Others have an overload of happiness expressed in their lines, but it all depends on the author who wrote them. William Blake and John Keats poems were very contrasting, but had a few similarities.  Keat’s poem, “Bright Star” and “The Lamb” by William Blake differentiate in terms of language and diction, but the overall theme of the poems is quite similar.

As a poet, Blake would create happiness in his Innocent poems and in his Experience poems, more cruel lines were found. Dissimilarly, Keats' poems focused more on depression, anger and suicidal considerations. “The Lamb” opens with a child asking the lamb about its origins. Questions such as how it came into being, how it acquired its particular manner of feeding, its “clothing” of wool, its “tender voice.” were brought up to the child’s attention. Although the poem is a child’s song, it is written in the form of question and answer. A person is looking for guidance and answers in an object or rather an animal that can not necessarily answer them.

“Bright Star” by John Keats, expresses the poet’s desire to be like a star. In the poem the tone is melancholic whereas the theme is the desire to live in an unchanging state. Keats uses rhyme and literary techniques to reveal these ideas. This poem is not as suitable for children as opposed to Blake’s poem. Both of the speakers in “Bright Star” and “The Lamb” become impatient for responses and their questions are not answered by those they seek replies from.

Hence, the theme of both “Bright Star” and “The Lamb” has to deal with accepting the world for what is.  Both speakers are looking for answers in the wrong places and in wrong people or objects, for it is impossible for the star and the lamb to reply to the child or the speaker in “Bright Star”.  It is up to the speaker to come up with the answers they hope to find and towards the end of the poem, they are both obligated to answer their own questions.

Revision of "Clocks and Lovers"

Klara Sulce

Mr.Perez

English AP

11 December 2011

“Clocks and the Lovers” by W.H. Auden refers to the love that we all experience in life that can seem eternal at times and stimulate us to be forever passionate. Auden brings the reader's attention to the truth about time, and how it fades our love away without sympathy. He explains that love has no meaning in the beginning of the poem and demonstrates it through understatement. The reader's feelings are exaggerated as being strong enough to make a “river jump over the mountain.” The overall mental attitude of the lover is one of everlasting delight and romantic happiness.

As the poem progresses and we grasp onto the lover's feelings, our attention is shifted to that of the clocks’, who tell the mere truth. The clocks are powerful, for they end the lover's time. This is that state of strain and business of society with “headaches and worry, vaguely life leaking away.” The clocks believe that this is the fate that was chosen for lovers. Auden's language and imagery change extremely from the lover’s perspective to that of the clocks’. The lover demonstrates his emotion by song and the clock by “whirr and chime”, which set the time right away for the reader. All of the animals that the lover mentions are loving and joyous, from the salmon, to the geese, then to the rabbits.

Thus, the lover’s use of language is reflective of solely one emotion, Love.

The clocks however, show many signs of love in a different way that is through coughing, worry, breaking, stares, cracking, and distress. They also go on to courageously state, “You can not conquer time.” These apprehensions of reality depict a depressing sense of love and how time fades it away day by day. Like the death of his lover, the last line emphasizes the finality of life and an end void of

purpose.  

Ap Exam Essay

Klara Sulce

Mr. Perez

English AP

06 January 2012

         In Shakespeare's historian play,Richard II, the queen listens in on the conversation occurring between two commoners. She attempts to be discrete by hiding in the trees' shadows and comes to learn the current state of the king. It is quite ironic that she does not ask the King, considering she is most likely his wife, but instead she trusts a servant and a gardener, misfortunate individuals. The King's situation is unquestionably dramatized through figurative language in the selected passage.

        Considering the low status of the people she decided to eavesdrop on, she does come to acquire a sufficient amount of information about the present “kingdom situation.” “Go, bind thou up on dangling apricocks, which, like unruly children, make their sire stoop with oppression of their prodigal weight.”This statement is referring to the King's children, which are most likely the Queen's also and how they are “bringing the team down”, the team being the kingdom. Something has to be done in order to restore the kingdom's prosperity. The gardener and the servant discuss the options.

     The servant states, "Give some supportance to the bending twigs, go thou, and like an executioner, cut off the heads of too-fast-growing sprays, that look too lofty in our commonwealth." The line suggests that the children are encouraging each other, but are still unsteady. The king is looking to terminate the control they have as fast as he can, because they are getting too powerful for the kingdom. This also implies that the children might throw off the current balance of power both inside the kingdom and outside it, which could lead to dreadful consequences for all involved, including the damaging of land and hostility of women.

     The figurative language and metaphors make the passage far more dramatic. “You thus employed, I will go root away the noisome weeds which without profit suck the soils fertility from wholesome flowers.” in other words means, “imprison or kill all those who are not equal.” Without Shakespeare's use of figurative language, the Queen's reaction would not have been as irate as it was and the conversation would not have contributed as much as it did. 

Beatnik Poem

Klara Sulce

Why bring a defenseless human on the planet Earth?

Corrupt, monstrous land, why bother giving birth?

America..“Land of the free, home of the brave”

Recession in session, no money left to save..

Martin Luther King gave love to this nation..

He attempted to put a stop to segregation..

Yet racism lives on to this very day..

Someone always has something negative to say..

People slay day and night to get food on the table..

Some are less fortunate, they are unstable.

Rich people get and get and never give..

Selfish bastards, their impossible to forgive.

Hurricanes, earthquakes, death is always near..

Mothers in hysterics, their sons and daughters are not here..

Christmas time approaching, families are miles apart..

A soldier serving their country, risking their heart..

People seek to live through better days and nights..

What ever happened to people's civil rights?

Dreams shattered, promises broken..

Words that were left unspoken..

Babies crying, people dying, mothers weeping, fathers sleeping..

Soldiers fighting, animals biting, priests praising, criminals hell raising..

Birds singing, insects stinging, men cheating, woman breast feeding..

Love fading, women degrading, the sun setting, diseases spreading..

Why bring an innocent baby into a country full of devastation?

Where billionaires do not bother to make dollar donations..

Where government controls everything we do..

Surely now you will think things through..

"Bright Star" and "Choose Something Like a Star" Essay

Robert Frost's poem, “Choose Something Like a Star” and John Keat's literary work,“Bright Star” share a common subject, but convey altered messages that are displayed through different and contradictory techniques.The theme in "Bright Star" is that when in love nothing is more beautiful than your lover. While the theme of "Choose Something Like a Star" is that humans need to be individuals. Both poets gaze for this same quality in the stars, but thematically and stylistically each poem has its similarities and differences.

Both renowned poets, Keat and Frost agree that the star is abstracted from humanity as they know it, however Keats takes a personal approach to the star, whereas Frost takes a scientific approach towards the star and tries to acquire from it for social reasons.“Bright Star” contains lofty, formal kinds of words such as “thou art” and “splendor hung aloft” to show reverence toward the star. Keat’s specific word choices also contribute to the theme of the poem that man wishes happiness would last forever. Keats describes the moving water as priest like, and the star as an "eremite". The narrator does not desire these qualities. He wants instead to be forever with his lover. The speaker uses the imagery of being "forever pillowed upon his fair loves breast" to portray his desire for an eternity with her.

Robert Frost’s poem also addresses a star in the first fifteen lines, but the diction is informal. In plain, ordinary kinds of words, the speaker asks the star to “Say something to us that we can learn/By heart.” The speaker of this poem wants the star to tell the secret of its steadfastness or staunchness, instead of just wishing to be like the star. Then in the last ten lines, this poem adds a lesson. Although the star seems to give “little aid,” it teaches the talker “something in the end.” The speaker feels that just thinking of the impressive star will help him to be steadfast and not to be swayed easily with the “mob.”

While at first "Bright Star", and "Choose Something Like a Star" may seem to have much in common, they in fact share only similarities in apostrophe and subject. Therefore, one can see that these poems although similar in their title and central image of the star differ in their themes, form and treatment of the author's ideas. 

One Art

Klara Sulce

Mr. Perez

English AP

11 December 2011

            Elizabeth Bishop approaches loss in her poem “One Art” in a rather indirect manner; she doesn’t dive straight in and attack the big issues, like the loss of a home or a loved one, but alternatively begins with the little things that we lose throughout life. In so doing, Bishop correlated these immaterial possessions with the more important things we “own.” However, as the poem progresses the objects mentioned become more and more meaningful, as does their loss. By the end of the poem, it becomes evident that the loss of simple objects such as a key or a watch are a drawn-out metaphor for the loss of other things Elizabeth loves, such as her past homes and lovers. Verse and form provide the reader with an understanding of the speaker's attitude towards loss.

            In the first stanza, the poet personifies the lost objects, stating that they “seem filled with the intent/to be lost.” She boldly declares that loss is not a big deal, and that we should become familiar with it, loss is inevitable. She goes on to bring to the reader's attention to the fact that more abstract things, like time (“the hour badly spent” ) are also an example of loss. She is initially expressing the idea that devoting your time to relevant things is crucial. In lines 7-9 the losses are vague, but consist of things that we attempt to remember, such as names and places we've been to. By the end of the fourth stanza, the poem has become personal and she refers to “her mother's watch” and the house that she once loved and eventually lost. Bishop vigorously confuses the reader throughout the poem by making them wonder whether the speaker has indeed mastered this so-called “art of losing.”

            The last two stanzas hold forth the speaker's true emotions and reveal the conflicts that she refuses to admit she is going through. In the third stanza, we are not given answers as to what has happened in her life to make her feel like certain places have lost their significance, but we are free to speculate. In the final stanza, we discover that the speaker has merely been mulling about her beloved.   In the last line, she has a mini-breakdown and thus demonstrates the true difficulty of coming to terms with loss. Ultimately, her façade of confidence and wittiness integrate; the fact that she has to force herself to even write the word "disaster" this last time reveals the poet to be human and vulnerable, just like the rest of us.

Clocks and Lovers

Klara Sulce

Mr.Perez

English AP

11 December 2011

           

            “The Clocks and the Lovers” by W.H. Auden is about the contrast between clocks and lovers. This poem refers to the love that we all experience in life that can seem eternal at times and stimulate us to be forever passionate. Auden brings to the reader's attention the truth about time, and how it fades our love away without sympathy. Auden explains that love has no meaning in the beginning of the poem and shows this through the lover's point of view. The reader's feelings are exaggerated as being strong enough to make a “river jump over the mountain.” The overall mental attitude of the lover is one of everlasting delight and romantic happiness.

            As the poem progresses and we grasp onto the lover's feelings, our attention is shifted to that of the clock's, who tells the mere truth. The clocks are powerful, for they end the lover's time and begin the attitude we all go through at some point. This is that state of strain and business of society with “headaches and worry, vaguely life leaking away.” The clocks believe that this is the fate that was chosen for lovers'. Auden's language and imagery change extremely from the lovers to the perspective of the clocks'. The lover demonstrates his emotions by song and the clock by “whirr and chime” which set the time right away for the reader. Love is the one word that the language of the lover is filled with. All the animals mentioned are loving and joyous, from the salmon, to the geese, then to the rabbits.

            The clocks however, show many signs of love in a different way, which is through coughing, worry, breaking, stares, cracking, and distress. They also go on to courageously state, “You cannot conquer time.” These apprehensions of reality depict a depressing sense to love and how time fades it away day by day. The poet's purpose in assembling this poem show us that this is reality we should realize it so we can either expect it so not to get our hopes up, or never fall into this curse ourselves.

The Stranger & Metamorphisis

Klara Sulce

Mr. Perez

English AP

5 December 2011

            Are there distinct similarities between the protagonist in Franz Kafka’s The Metamorphosis and Albert Camus’s The Stranger?  Are these resemblances apparent through the theme or the actual characters themselves? Is the theme not the value of life as well as existentialism in both novels? Is there not an evolving aspect of identity in the character Meursault? Moreover, is there not a devolving identity characteristic in Metamorphosis?

            Is Meursault not an empty slate in part one of The Stranger? Does he clearly identify himself to the reader? If not, then is reader not forced to compose his or her own opinion about the character based on how they feel? Does the apathy he feels towards everyone around him in the first part of the story reflect his apathy towards the society he lives in? Does part two not show that he has more depth and insight on life? Does Meursault not frequently convey existentialist ideals through a metamorphic sub human circumstance?

            Is the idea of devolving identity not evident in The Metamorphosis being that Gregor transformed into something pitiful, “a vermin”?  And in the novel, does he ever go into detail as to how he turned into a monstrous animal or slowly accepts his transformation?  Does he die with the idea that he is a pest or an actual human being? Is there even a slight progression in the character of Gregor Samsa? Does he not demonstrate extistentialist thoughts through establishing a sub human reason for existence in the human sense? Is existentialism then the most overarching theme in both The Metamorphisis and The Stranger?

As I Lay Dying Presentation

https://docs.google.com/present/edit?id=0AR4ZM8vIBfnbZGd0NG45MnhfMHY5dDR6d2Yz

Existentialism

A common question that comes to mind when we think of death is commonly, “is there an afterlife?” I do believe the concept that our bodies either ascend up to the sky or descend and belong to Satan.  The subject is so controversial that when someone makes a suitable point contradicting my idea, I begin to have second thoughts. Existentialism suggests that human nature is chosen through life choices, meaning we can change our future if we wanted to and our fate is not predetermined.  An existentialist believes that a person should be obligated to choose and be liable for their choices without the help of outside forces. Furthermore, existentialism is broadly defined in a variety of concepts and there can’t be only one answer as to what it is or if it can be seen as the correct way of thinking. Personally, I think God knows what our next move is because he knows us so well, but we do have the ability to change his mind and prove him wrong. Nothing in life is permanent except for death, which is why god looks down upon suicide so much, because you lost all hope and made a permanent solution out of a temporary problem.

Empty Page Sonnet

Klara Sulce

Mr. Perez

6 November 2011

English AP

Robert Pack’s most inspiring piece of work is “An Echo Sonnet: To an Empty Page”. The use of literary devices in the sonnet contribute drastically to its meaning. The two apparent literary terms are apostrophe and the use of dialogue to help the reader better interpret what the poem is getting across. He displays forth a conversation that the “voice” partakes in with the “echo”, thus leaving the reader to believe that he is truly grief-stricken by some kind of tragedy.

Whether it is a death or the loss of a lover, it is quite apparent that the voice is recuperating from some sort of heartbreak. This is because of the quatrains he creates in the sonnet. For example, in the second line the states “And starting must I master joy or grief?” To which the echo replies, “Grief”. He is essentially saying that upon undergoing a death or loss of some sort, should one start fresh and move on, or grief some more in hopes of someday forgetting. The reader is deprived of an answer to these rhetorical questions because either decision made will cause pain and heartache to the voice.

As the sonnet progresses, he goes on to declare, “Her beauty makes of dying, ecstasy”. And the echo’s response is “see.” This explains the reader’s reflection of the sonnet being addressed to someone who has passed away and makes dying worth looking forward to. The voice has undergone a horrible misfortune that ultimately leads him to be alone and receive responses solely from his echo, whom turns his rhetorical questions into one word answers. 

Sonnet 130

Klara Sulce

Mr. Perez

English AP

3 November 2011

In Sonnet 130, William Shakespeare utilizes literary devices to develop themes in his poems. He relates the speaker’s lover to a variety of other beauties---none of which work in the mistress's favor. During the Elizabethan era, poets accepted Petrarch’s technique for writing love poems. He makes highly overemphasized comparisons between nature and the poets’ paramour that when literally translated, sound absolutely preposterous. In Sonnet 130 William Shakespeare’s use of understatement parallels the common poets’ use of exaggeration with regards to their perception of women. As a result, the poem is uplifted and brings forth the ideas that women encompass flaws and that beauty should not be defined through comparisons to nature.

            In the first quatrain, Shakespeare states that her eyes are “nothing like the sun,” her lips are less red than coral; compared to white snow, her breasts are dun-colored, and her hairs are like black wires on her head. It is through being brutally honest that he teases the traditional metaphors, and demonstrates a speaker who somewhat bewildered, decides to tell the truth about women and their imperfections. He questions the conventions of love poetry common to his day by intimating that, “Your mistress’ eyes are like the sun?” For the speaker, this idea is bizarre. For “my mistress’ eyes aren’t at all like the sun.”

            In the couplet the speaker goes on to declare that, “by heav’n,” he finds the love he exhibits for his mistress as ultra rare and valuable. The speaker’s full intent is discovered in the last few lines of the sonnet. He demands that love does not require conceits in order to be genuine; and women do not need to look like goddesses in order to be beautiful.

Aesthetics in Sonnet 31

Understanding the art of a poem is not an easy task to accomplish, for people often refer to things as either “ugly” or “beautiful” without attempting to determine the meaning behind the object or work of art.  We indicate that something is beautiful because it holds value to us and embodies a definite purpose.  For example, lyrics are striking or significant because they remind us of an individual or moment in our lives.  This principle has been come to know as aesthetics, the branch of philosophy dealing with such notions as the beautiful, the ugly, the sublime, the comic, etc. Because artistic value is compassionately personal, it must be felt as ones own. Sonnet 31 by Sir Philip Sydney portrays beauty through its powerful poetic conceit and its ability to reflect on love.

            In Sonnet 31, Sir Philip Sidney is infatuated with Stella, the star he seems to be seeking, but yet she is far out of reach. He is hurt incontrovertibly because she rejects him.  He asks the moon rhetorical questions and confides in him about his love life with Stella. He then goes on to propose that all women must be the same and their existence on Earth or in the heavens is irrelevant.  He resembles the idea that once a man is mistreated by a woman they love, they lose hope for all the others that might potentially be different.  To go as far as question whether even in the heavenly realm faithful love is regarded as foolishness proves how ungrateful he believes Stella is by contemptuously rejecting him.

            While he speaks to the moon he remarks that both of them have now become fellow sufferers of love. It is fascinating that Sidney makes the moon into a proper noun by capitalizing it, almost giving it human qualities in doing so.  This apostrophic take on the poem shows how love can have irrational effects on people, but still holds exquisiteness behind it. The moon is beautiful because it helps morose romantics think, meditate, and dream while also creating a passionate atmosphere. Astrophel’s eyes meet with the moons at night in hope of receiving some sympathy from someone who sees all that goes on in the world and looks down at all the lovers.

Sydney’s influential vanity concerning love and his personal experience with it is the prime example of beautiful poetry. Love is a powerful emotion that conquers everyone in the world at one point in his or her life. Rejection is not pleasant, but when the person you love does not reciprocate your love, you have to have the pride to accept this fact. By confessing to the moon his dilemma, the speaker hoped to obtain compassion of some sort. As noted in Sonnet 31, love is a natural and extraordinary passion; humans are wired to fall in and out of love.  

Passion and responsibility go hand in hand.

Klara Sulce

Mr. Perez

English AP

27 October 2011

A frequently conveyed theme in literature is the classic war between passion and responsibility. William Faulkner’s novel As I Lay Dying displays forth this powerful clash between what one wants to do and what one needs to do. Most of the characters in this novel all face the challenge of deciding what is right to do and what they hope to accomplish. The most selfish person in As I Lay Dying is undeniably Addie and Anse’s daughter Dewey due to her unsympathetic attitude concerning her mother’s death and the fetus inside of her. Her actions show the predominance that one’s self-seeking passions hold against their obligations as a diligent person.

            Upon the death of her unfortunate mother, Dewey did not mourn as is expected to when one faces a dramatic loss such as this.  One of her goals in the novel should have been to abide her mother’s dying wish of being buried in Jefferson, however she becomes engrossed in her egocentric ways to accomplish this task. Although Dewey was going through a lot during her mothers’ illness being that a local farmhand left her pregnant, the reader is left feeling unsympathetic towards her. She portrays an immature and rash soon to be mother in distress and the struggles they face in modern day life. A moral duty of hers is to care for her youngest brother, Vardaman, be a mother figure to him, and to perhaps obtain some knowledge of how to take care of her own child.  However, she foolishly lets her own problems or rather; mistakes sojourn her from carrying out her responsibilities as the only woman left in charge of the Bundren residence.

            As a woman back in the 1930’s, Dewey should have taken over her mothers’ role in the family being that their family consists of five men.  Women are considered the caretakers of their families and have duties to live by such as cooking, cleaning, etc.  Dewey however, was not ready for this responsibility.  Conversely, she hopes to get rid of the fetus growing inside of her as soon as possible and demonstrates how uncivilized humanity becomes in order to fulfill their selfish needs. She is misled into exchanging sexual services at the local pharmacy in an effort to purchase abortion drugs. If Dewey had pursued help from one of her older brothers concerning her pregnancy; her outcome would have been extremely different. Ultimately, she seems to make one mistake after the other and displays the idea that once one stops being responsible, everything does downhill and leads to their decline.

            Not only did Dewey fail her responsibilities as a daughter, but she also was unsuccessful at being a potentially nurturing mother. Had she thoroughly thought things through, her life would have turned out better. She would struggle to provide for her brothers and child, but her life would hold a meaning behind it. She would have a reason to revitalize her life, her family. Consequently, Dewey’s selfish manner is significant of societies' way of acting upon their selfish needs and the consequences that follow their decisions.

Hamlet essay

Scene five initially unfolds with the two gravediggers discussing the burial of Ophelia.  Back in the day, if one committed a suicide, it was the ultimate sin and they were not worthy of a Christian burial in the churchyard. This conversation between the two gravediggers symbolizes how religious people were in the Elizabethan times and how sins were generally not overlooked. Shakespeare is attempting to stress the importance of religion in this scene and how even people that are not as important as others have a say concerning this matter.  He makes it apparent that the gravediggers serve a purpose in Act five due to the great themes they brings forth to the tragedy, specifically, economic irrelevance once one is deceased and existentialism.   

The main gravedigger commences to singing songs while he digs up a variety of skulls of wretched souls. Hamlet is shocked by the gravedigger’s lack of sympathy as he nonchalantly tosses the skulls around as if they are worthless compost.  He contemplates about whom these skulls might have belonged to. By displaying the throwing of the skulls, Shakespeare is making an effort to show that everyone dies, their economic status and place in society is irrelevant. Hamlet perplexedly states, “Why may not that be the skull of a lawyer? Where be his quiddities now . . . ?” (V.i.90–91). Hence, the lawyer and the courtier might have had an impact on someone’s life while they were alive, but once their bodies are buried, life goes on and does not stop for anyone.

Allusions play an important role in this scene; Shakespeare mentions legendary men such as, Adam, Alexander the Great, and Julius Caesar. Hamlet ultimately comes to the realization that all men eventually perish and no one is spared of death’s wrath.  In the beginning acts of the play, Hamlet deliberated committing suicide and in this scene it is evident he is glad he did not do so. By looking at the bodies and how people as insignificant as gravediggers can have an immense amount of supremacy over people that once were much more vital to society, Hamlet is repulsed. For someone who is looked upon so highly while he is living, he now knows that people will react inconsequentially years upon his death.

From a metaphorical perspective, the skulls represent the idea of existentialism. A British novelist once stated, “Existentialism is about being a saint without God; being your own hero, without all the sanction and support of religion or society.” By this she means, make your own legacy while you are living because once you are dead, nothing you have done will truly impact the world. This quote describes the characters of Hamlet, for they all wish to be heroes in the end of the play and keep their reputation flourishing, but once they die no one foresees them as protagonists. Their deaths were simply tragic and will be forgotten about rapidly. No one’s legacy or body lives on eternally.