‘Ode to a Nightingale’ by John Keats

Happiness, sadness and loss are all things that human beings have to experience in their lives. These elements play an important role of shaping one’s life, and they define the kind of an individual that one is. An individual that have experienced great loss and sadness is likely to have a sad pessimistic life and he is likely to wish for death as a way out of his misery. On the other hand, an individual that have experienced happiness in their life is likely to have an optimistic character that enjoys life. The poem ‘Ode to a Nightingale’ by John Keats is a sad poem that helps in illustrating the concept of loss and sadness, and how it was motivated by the losses in Keats life.

‘Ode to a Nightingale’ is an eight stanza poem with ten lines in each stanza. The poem has a regular rhyme scheme; though it has an impression of a rhapsody type of poem in that Keats gives free expression to his thoughts and emotions. The poem is a free inspiration that is not controlled by a plan that was preconceived; Keats shares an experience that he is having at the time, not something that he is recalling. This is something that is happening in his mind as he listens to the nightingale song.

The first stanza is an expression of Keats sadness, ‘My heart aches, and a drowsy numbness pains my sense, as though of hemlock I had drunk, Or emptied some dull opiate to the drains’ (Line 1-3). In the second stanza he expresses his desire to forget his sadness ‘Tasting of Flora and the country green, Dance, and Provençal song, and sunburnt mirth! O for a beaker full of the warm South’ (Line 3-5). He believes that the nightingale can help him forget the problems in his life. This stanza illustrates Keats celebration in the notion of an adored past both in classical and medieval. The third stanza is a further illustration of his desire to forget his sad life; ‘Fade far away, dissolve, and quite forget What thou among the leaves hast never known, The weariness, the fever, and the fret’ (Line 1-3). Keats wishes to have a life like that that of the nightingale where all there is happiness unlike in his life where all he feels is sadness.

In the fourth stanza, Keats illustrates that his desire for happiness can only be achieved through poetry. ‘Away! away! for I will fly to thee, Not charioted by Bacchus and his pards, But on the viewless wings of Poesy’ (Lines 1-3). Keats believes that poetry is the only way that he can be able to connect fantasy and his world, and in the end find happiness but not by chaos and revelry. In stanza five, Keats uses a lot of imagery to show how stuck he is between the world of fantasy and the real world. This stanza helps in illustrating the confusing world of Keats, where he is so sad in his life and lingers in the fantasy world to try and forget his sadness. His fantasy world is dark and luxurious he ‘cannot see what flowers are at my feet’; he is ‘in embalmed darkness’ (Line 1-3). The darkness is important to him because it helps him to flourish his ideal creation and also to bring out some sense of supernatural setting. Stanza six is an expression of Keats obsession with death. ‘I have been half in love with easeful Death, Call'd him soft names in many a mused rhyme’ (Line 2-3). He envisions his soul with that of the nightingale but acknowledges the fact that death will separate them. Keats cannot really be defined to want death because he fears that death will separate him with the things that he desires including his fantasies.

Stanza seven is an illustration of Keats recognition that the nightingale cannot die, he realizes that the voice of this bird has been there for centuries and the mention of Ruth demonstrates this fact. ‘The voice I hear this passing night was heard In ancient days by emperor and clown’ (line 3-4 ). This is the section where Keats comes to his senses and understands that he is in a fantasy world and it is a representation of some sense of maturity and truth for him. Stanza eight is where Keats returns to the real world and leaves his fantasy world of the nightingale. ‘Was it a vision, or a waking dream?  Fled is that music:—Do I wake or sleep? (Line 9-10). Keats at this point is surprised because he does not understand whether he is asleep or awake. Even though he is able to connect with nature in the process of creating art, he feels disappointed with the knowledge that there are limits to his imagination and that he cannot change his current world through imagination.

John Keats was born in England in the year 1975; his life was a sad one given that his parents died when he was very young (Hough, p1). The death of his parents greatly affected him and it can be in a more abstract sense be defined to be the element that shaped his understanding for the human suffering and loss. This poem was motivated by the tragedies in his life; Keats’ life was unsatisfactory especially some time before he wrote this poem (Hough, p1). He felt alone and sad after he lost his brother to tuberculosis and the other brother left him to go to America. He had financial problems that caused him not to marry the woman he wanted because he was not in a position to support her (Hough, p1). This poem is Keats’ reaction to his life frustrations; the death wish in the poem is his recurrent attitude toward an unsatisfactory life.

This poem is one that helps define human feelings and how they try to fantasize their worlds in order to forget what their real lives look like. Fantasy world as expressed in the poem do not really help to change reality, Keats at the end of his fantasy had to go back to his old sad life. There are two main thoughts that are brought out by this poem; one is the evaluation of life in Keats eyes. Life is meant to include tears, frustrations and sometimes happiness. Keats life was always sad, he was however able to find some momentary happiness in his fantasy world. The other thought that is brought out in the poem is the concept of death. Human beings have a tendency to wish for death when things are not going so well in their lives. However death is not the solution to everything. After one dies, they are not able to solve the problems that motivated their death and so their deaths become useless.

Life can sometimes be exciting and other times sad as illustrated in this poem and the life of Keats. People need to learn how to manage the two situations without giving up. When one is sad like the situation of Keats, they can create their fantasy world to try and find some happiness. Fantasy world should however not be confused to be the real world because it can bring around some frustrations like it did with Keats. The society needs to understand that death is not an escape route to a sad life because it does not bring any solutions.

Works Cited

Keats, John. Ode to a Nightingale by John Keats. Retrieved from

            https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44479/ode-to-a-nightingale.

Hough, Graham Goulder. “John Keats.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica,

            Inc., 27 Oct. 2019, https://www.britannica.com/biography/John-Keats.

‘You Can’t Kill the Rooster’ by David Sedaris is a funny and yet critical essay. One of the reasons I found the essay funny is the irony in that Sedaris parents were those people who believed in the concept of perfection. Sedaris and his other siblings were brought up in a strict culture that required them to speak correctly without using any vulgar or even incorrect English like ‘y’all’ in place of ‘you all’(Sedaris, p 1). Smoking cigarettes was not allowed and as Sedaris puts it, this was something that could cause them to be disinherited.

The irony comes in with their small brother Paul who was the complete opposite of what their parents advocated for in regard to use of vulgar language and the way he carried himself. The use of terms ‘motherfucker’, ‘bitch’, ‘pussy’, and ‘shit’ is the common language for Paul (Sedaris, p 1). He constantly smokes weed and their parents have come to accept it even though they do not like it. Another funny but at the same time sad is the fact that Sedaris parent’s in trying their strictness pushed their children away and the only child that they allowed to be himself (Paul) is the one that sticks with them at their old age. Paul even with his character is a loving and caring individual, he is the only one that visits his father during thanksgiving and when his house was destroyed by the hurricane (Sedaris, p 1).

This story is considered to an important piece of modern non-fiction because it is real; it is more than just a funny family story. This is a reflection of the modern society, where parents struggle so much to perfect their children and they end up pushing them away in the end. The children that do not conform to the norms of their parents expectations are looked at as failures. The parents however have no choice but to love and accept them because these are the individuals that show them love and stick by them even at their old age.

Works Cited

Sedaris, David. “You Can't Kill the Rooster: Esquire: JUNE 1998.” Esquire,

            https://classic.esquire.com/article/1998/6/1/you-cant-kill-the-rooster.

The Truth about War in ‘The Things They Carried’ by Tim O’Brien

‘The Things They Carried’ by Tim O’Brien is dazzling story that gives a detailed account of soldiers at war and how they are able to survive the war. Soldiers are always faced with the tension of confronting staying true to the war and also trying not to forget their families back at home. The soldiers carry various different items that have personal meaning for them to motivate them to survive during the war, even creating a fantasy world like Cross did. Some like Cross carry pictures of people they love, others like Lavender carry marijuana and others have sentimental items given to them by their loved ones (O'Brien , p 12).

This story helps to illustrate the concept of death for the soldiers during the war. These are people that understand that they can die at any minute, but they are still not emotionally prepared when one of their friends die (O'Brien, p 17). O’Brien right from the beginning helps the readers to understand that war even for the soldiers that are expected to be strong and brave is scary. The way that Cross reacts to the death of Lavender is a good illustration of how the war changes the soldiers, causing them to become pessimistic and depressed. Cross destroyed the pictures of Martha, the only thing that kept his motivated during the war (O'Brien, p 22). Seeing Lavender die made him lose hope of ever going back home to Martha and he also sees her as a destruction.

The reaction of Cross help to understand some of the reasons soldiers have changed personalities after the war. Most soldiers after the war suffer from mental breakdown all because of the trauma they went through during the war. These soldiers just like the way Cross behaves tend to be angry and they blame the innocent people in their lives for their anger. The society needs to be more understanding about the effects that war has on soldiers and to come up with better strategies to help them recover from their traumas.

Works Cited

O'Brien, Tim. The Things They Carried: A Work of Fiction. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1990.

            Internet resource.

Fate versus Free Will in ‘Macbeth’ by William Shakespeare

The concept of human morality has always been presumed to be motivated by the society. This presumption indicates that the people that involve themselves in immoral activities are always forced by the circumstances around them in the society. This presumption is however ineffective, the society defines what is right and what is wrong. The choice that an individual makes in regard to doing what is right or wrong is all based on their own judgement and it is hence their responsibility. In ‘Macbeth’, Shakespeare uses the character of Lady Macbeth and her behaviours throughout the play to help show that the decisions that one makes in life are what determines their fate. Rules and regulations are there in the society to guide people, but the decision on whether to follow them or not are all dependent on an individual’s choice.

Power and domestic spheres

Macbeth is a play that contains many conflicts, but they are all linked to the issue of political and domestic spheres. “Everything includes itself in power, ‘/ Power into will, will into appetite; / And appetite, an universal wolf, / So doubly seconded with will and power, / Must make perforce an universal prey / And last eat up himself’ (Act 1 scene 3). Shakespeare through the play characterizes political power as an appetite of cannibalistic and self-destructive dimensions. ‘Macbeth deploys the concepts of power, political and domestic; to posit that without the equalizing force of the domestic, the political turns all the things that are significant into nothing’ (Abdalla, p 2). This plays seems to attribute gender identities to the two models of power. ‘The privileging of masculine elements such as violence, ambition, tyranny and public success; this induces an existence in which such feminine elements as self-sacrifice, peace, friendship and private wealth are stifled’ (Uddin et al., p 63). More problematically and herein lies the true peril of this fractious world, the male elements perverts itself to the point where it becomes offensively hermaphroditic (Abdalla, p 5). This means that though the masculine is completely disengaged from the feminine, it nonetheless manages to engage in a suffocating reproduction. The extinction of the feminine by the masculine gives rise to the central inconsistency of the play, it gives birth to life that which cannot live and yet it continues to flourish (Uddin et al., p 67). Political power is paradoxically self-generating, but at the same time barren. All the individuals that pursue political power instigate a self-defeating infertility.

Gender roles and human morality

Lady Macbeth can be defined to be a proponent but at the same time a victim of the matrix of power and domestic spheres. Her pursuit of the masculine engages her in a perverse maternity, one that matures from and gives birth to political power. She propagates destructive and unregenerate power and in the end no aspect of the feminine sphere remains (Abdalla, 5). Lady Macbeth does not comprehend masculine right action just like the men in the play, she glamorizes the need for violence and power. Her definition of manhood turns on achievement of power, “When you durst do it, then you were a man; / And to be more than what you were, you would / Be so much more the man” (Act 1. scene 7). She does not discern between political and domestic good and this makes her a failure just like the men in the play. This paradox is mainly highlighted in Lady Macbeth because her gender is the one that integrates the feminine elements.

‘Macbeth’ is a play that finds men and women to be equally liable for equivocating between political and domestic goals, power and love. The power system is the one that creates the fissure that is there between feminism and masculinity. In the play ‘to be manly is all about being aggressive, daring, bold, resolute and strong’ (Uddin et al., p 63). To be womanly on the other hand is to be gentle, fearful, pitying, wavering and soft. Shakespeare clearly brings out the issue of gender in the play using Lady Macbeth, all her evilness is brought out by her desires to be recognized just like the men in her society. She feels that her society looks down on women and that is why she does not want to be associated with feminism even though she plays her feminism role (Uddin et al., p 65).

Lady Macbeth identifies herself in regard of female agency. She conducts herself in a manner that can be presumed under the three designations of a woman; a hostess, a mother and a wife (Abdalla, p 8). She however vacates each of the domestic roles because her main interest is to gain power. In regard to being a wife, Lady Macbeth does what she does not because she wants to be recognized but because she wants her spouse Macbeth to be adored. She does not at any point mention her personal profits even in soliloquy, her resolutions are all to ensure Macbeth’s betterment. The conception of murder is initially Macbeth’s; she however encourages him to go ahead with the plan so that he can accomplish his desires (Act 1 scene 3).

Lady Macbeth as a good wife is ‘able to discern the character of her husband and she yearns to aid him in what she believes is the right course for him’ (Kimbrough, p 175). All through the play, her ambition can be felt and she at times perceives her husband to be weak. She believes that her contribution in reinforcing him with the typical female attributes for instance nagging will help him achieve his goals (Uddin et al., p 64). Lady Macbeth’s main interest is power and her choice to play the domestic role is all motivated by the need for power. She understands that by pushing Macbeth to gain power, she will also just be as powerful.

Lady Macbeth helps in illustrating the endemic failure of the Scottish system in her role as a hostess. Her main aim in entertaining people in her home is all so that she facilitates the promotion of her husband (Abdalla, p 8). Lady Macbeth welcomes Duncan happily knowing very well what she had in plan for him, she greets ‘the entrance of Duncan under [her] battlements,” if only because it is “fatal’ (Act 1, scene 5). The choice to prepare for the assassination and even clean up after helps to demonstrate the frightening pervasion of women domestic roles during the Renaissance period (Kimbrough, p 177). Lady Macbeth by providing the poisoned wine established the domestic conditions that help to facilitate the success of her husband. The more Lady Macbeth wades in political blood, the more she facilitates the distinction between power and love, as well as right and wrong.

Lady Macbeth’s desire for evil is manifested in the section where she perceives her identity in regards to mothering. This is when she pleads with the spirit to ‘unsex her’, though she asks that she don’t made a man but rather a generator of evilness (Act 1, scene 5). Her craving for strength and political power is evident and it is ironically expressed in feminized metaphors. The fact that as a woman she has thoughts about changing her gender to become greater than even a man helps to illustrate her evilness. ‘The Renaissance period was a time when women were perceived to be inferior to the men’ and so by desiring to be greater than a man was going against the societal standards (Harding, p. 278). This speech helps to articulate the matrix of the play where masculinity is validated over the femininity and they both become meaningless. The disjunction between the masculine goal and the feminine method of attaining it is accepted by the absurdity of the central allegory in the speech, giving birth to obliteration.

Humanity and human morality

Lady Macbeth right from the beginning knows that her husband is an individual who is loving, compassionate, pitiful and remorseful. Her main agenda is to repress these emotions that are human nature in-order to turn him into a cruel individual that she can relate with (Kimbrough, p 176). She also clearly illustrates that she also has to repress the same emotions in herself, which she perceives to be feminist (Harding, p 255). Her desire is to acquire the masculine traits so that she can attain her desires of being cruel. Lady Macbeth and her society labels remorse and pity as feminine something that she has no interest being associated with. Her belief is that being cruel makes her look stronger and hence manlier (Harding, p 256). By rejecting her feminine nature, Lady Macbeth becomes cruel and loses her humanity.

She understands the power of gender roles in her society, which is why she motivates people around her to do evil things using the concept of masculinity to challenge their humanity. She particularly challenges and motivates Macbeth to commit murder and disregard his humane feelings by challenging his masculinity (Kimbrough, p 177). This can be illustrated when Macbeth is frightened after the ghost of Banquo first appears to him, she tells him ‘Are you a man?’ and he boldly responds ‘Ay, and a bold one, that dare to look on that Which might appal the devil’ (Act 1 scene 4). By challenging Macbeth, Lady Macbeth motivates him courageous and to get over his doubts and go along with her wicked plans. Lady Macbeth’s choice to become manly causes her to become a demonic life denying witch. She goes against the secular idea of the sixteenth century secular ideal, The Dame Nature (Kimbrough, p 178). This was the genderless force that created the world and kept it in motion towards fulfilment.

Lady Macbeth in a perversion of the normal acts of intercourse and impregnation asks the spirits to invade her body and ‘fill her from the crown to the toe topful’ with cruelty that she hopes to give birth to (Act 1, scene 5). Her born cruelty is nurtured with poison, she requests the spirits to take her milk and nurse from it so that they can find their sustaining poison. The prevailing image from this speech is that of a mother breastfeeding for death and not life like it is human nature (Kimbrough, p 178). All this helps to prove the evil nature of Lady Macbeth, one that is not shaped by her society, but rather one that is of her own making. Her evilness is also illustrated in her value for power than human life. Lady Macbeth confidently states that she would rather kills her own child than break her promise of gaining power, ‘I would, while it was smiling in my face, / Have pluck’d my nipple from his boneless gums, / And dash’d the brains out, had I so sworn as you’ (Act 1 scene 7). Women were created with mothering instincts; they would do anything to protect their children. This is however different with Lady Macbeth who is willing to kill her own child just so that she can gain power. Her cruelty is her own made choice, the society does not in any way push her to be evil. The society has always set clear boundaries allowing women to take care of their families and most especially the children. Lady Macbeth evil ambitions are what motivate her to disregard her role as a mother just to show how cruel she can be.

Further evilness of Lady Macbeth is seen in the way that she is willing to blame on the innocent grooms she asks Macbeth ‘why did you bring these daggers from the place?... go smear the sleepy grooms with blood’ (Act 1 scene 5). This is an illustration of the lengths that Lady Macbeth is willing to go in her evilness. She is not guilty of her actions, her only fear is getting caught and this is why she is willing to let other people take the blame for the murder that she helped commit. In this scene, she is blaming her husband for showing some sense of humanity, for being afraid of the murder that he had committed. This is a feeling that all normal human beings would have, however Lady Macbeth interprets it to be a cowardly behaviour illustrating her cold-heartedness.

                   Lady Macbeth’s motivation for evilness causes her to seek the help of the unnatural. She regards the witches to be the best option in helping her to achieve her goals. The witches were genderless and she admired that fact, she perceived their genderless nature to be powerful and she wanted to be just like them (Kimbrough, p 179). Lady Macbeth all through the play denies the essential nature of human beings, the aspect of love compassion and guilt among many other humane feelings. She assumes that having these feelings made human beings weak and it affected their ability to achieve goals. Her presumption is however wrong and this is illustrated at the end of the play.

                                                            Conclusion

                   ‘Macbeth’ is a play that helps to shed light on the issue of human nature and how the evil choices that people make are motivated by greed for power. Lady Macbeth is a character disregards the concept of humanity because she perceives it to be the cause of human weakness. She manipulates the concept of femininity and masculinity to motivate cruelty all through the play. She constantly challenges her husband Macbeth to do evil things by challenging his masculinity. Lady Macbeth in the end is unsuccessful in denying her essential human nature; she is unable to kill Duncan because he resembles her father in his sleep all which is human nature. Her evil actions torment her because she cannot forget all that she did, despite her pride where she states ‘A little water clears us of this deed’ Act 2 scene 2). She is haunted by the innocent people that helped murder and she has constant night mares that cause her to sleep walk at night trying to wash off the stains of her evil acts. However no water is able to clean the evil blood in her hands and even her power could not free her from the guilt of her actions, ‘what’s done cannot be undone’ (Act 5 scene 1). Her choice to be evil is what destroys her in the end; it leads to her madness and in the end death. The character of Lady Macbeth helps to illustrate the fact that humanity is stronger than evil.

Works Cited

Abdalla, Laila. “Birthing Death: A Reconsideration of the Roles of Power, Politics and the

Domestic in Macbeth.” Journal of the Wooden O Symposium, vol. 14/15, Jan. 2014, pp. 1–20. EBSCOhost,  libproxy.wc.edu:2048/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=123746198&site=ehost-live&scope=site.

Harding, D. W. “Women's Fantasy of Manhood: A Shakespearean Theme.” Shakespeare

Quarterly, vol. 20, no. 3, 1969, pp. 245–253. JSTOR, JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/2868376.

Kimbrough, Robert. “Macbeth: The Prisoner of Gender.” Shakespeare Studies (0582-9399),

vol. 16, Jan. 1983, p. 175. EBSCOhost, libproxy.wc.edu:2048/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=7166190&site=ehost-live&scope=site.

Uddin, Mohammad Jashim, and Mst.Halima Sultana. “Patriarchal Dominance in

Shakespeare’s Macbeth: Viewing from A Feminist Perspectives.” ASA University Review, vol. 11, no. 2, July 2017, pp. 67–76. EBSCOhost, libproxy.wc.edu:2048/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=a9h&AN=129662592&site=ehost-live&scope=site.

Hamlet play essay

Victimization of women

 In the play, ‘Hamlet' female characters live in a patriarchal society where their roles are restricted.  They are treated as subordinates and men control their lives.  Their economy and social rights are restricted and they have no power or autonomy.  At first, Gertrude thinks that entering into a new marriage will change his life but it seems like it is the beginning of troubles.  Men have a patriarchal power to control the lives of women.  All men losses respect when Claudius marries Gertrude and they believe that she thinks about sexual pleasures.  The society believes that she does not have concern over her son who is in distress state due to the death of his father.  Note that the decision of remarrying to the king is a rebellious act that is against the religious as well as the gender standards.  In many cases, Gertrude is defiant and her defiance behaviors in trying to capitalize her abilities ruin her life.  The society expects women to comply with social order but her rejection cause death.  In addition, the compliance with the social orders ruins the lives of women as seen in Ophelia.

Ophelia

            Victimization of women is a major theme in the play ‘Hamlet'.  Ophelia is a silent woman who comes from a royal family.  However, her family restricts her from fulfilling her self-interests and desires, and the family controls her life including attitudes and actions  (Wright, 41). Not that Ophelia lives in a patriarchal system where women are expected to respect men and comply with the social orders.  However, the compliance affects the women's lives in that they do not express themselves nor do their exercise their rights.    Note that in the patriarchy society,  men have power or the society is characterized by a male-dominated power.  Thus, women are biased and are victims of violence, abuse,  exploitation, harassment, and other crimes simply because they have less power (Wright, 41).   Men are in the dominant position in the political and economic arena and women have less control over their lives.

 Ophelia is a typical feminine in the patriarchal society and she is seen as physically and morally weak.  In Act 3, Scene 2, Ophelia says that ‘I think nothing, my lord".  When Hamlet is speaking to her, Ophelia has nothing to offer simply because her voice is suppressed.  She does not have anything to say in the presence of men. Life has no meaning but rather, he is a weak creature and a passive woman.  In Act 1, Scene 3, Laertes tells Ophelia that ‘Farewell, Ophelia, and remember well what I have said to you… In this scene,  she is under the male voice and she admits everything. She does not have the power to express her feelings and she allows the men to control her life.  Note that when Hamlet tells Ophelia that she wants to marry her,  she cannot make sound decisions about this idea of getting married but rather, her decisions are controlled by  Laertes and Polonius.  When Ophelia tells his father that Hamlet wants to marry her, Polonius says that ‘ Marry, I will teach you. Think yourself a baby (Act 1, Scene 3).  It is evident that men encircle Ophelia’s life and therefore she lacks self-expression affects her life in that she suffers from emotional conflict and later commits suicide.

 Gertrude

In the play ‘Hamlet' two women; Gertrude and Ophelia are manipulated and their negative treatment help detects the contradiction between the role of men and women in a patriarchal society.  King Hamlet has died and leaves behind his wife Queen Gertrude. After two months, Hamlet’s uncle, Claudius marries his mother Gertrude.  Later, a ghost reveals to Hamlet that Claudius killed the King Hamlet and this heights Hamlet's pain.  First,  Hamlet is distressed because his mother has remarried to the king's brother, and the ghost reveals that Claudius killed his father.  

The first evidence to show how women's rights are violated is when Gertrude asks Hamlet ‘what have I done, that thou darest wag thy tongue. In noise so rude against me… (Act 3, Scene 4).  Hamlet tells his mother that the act of remarrying to   Claudus  ( a murderer and a villain)  is associated with a lack of loyalty. Note that Gertrude has a different character in that she is not controlled by male power like Ophelia but she is a sensuous woman who acts against the norms of the patriarchal society.  Following the death of King Hamlet, the patriarchal norms expect Gertrude to take care of his son.  However, Gertrude follows her interest and prefers to get married (Act 3, Scene 4).  Even though she tries to comfort her son due to the loss of his father, the patriarchal society ignores her wish and believes that she does not consider her son.  Note that the society does not appreciate or recognize her words or suffering but rather,  they perceive her as wicked.

 The English culture has a dominant system that defines the political and social roles.  However, during the 16th century, there was a  radical change in that individuals were against the orthodox or the traditional rules and norms and supported heterodox ideas (Mullaney, 2).  Queen Elizabeth was a well-known figure whose image represented the demand for peace and protects the English throne.  However, during this period, women were not recognized and there were perceived as physically and mentally inferior (Mullaney, 2).  Elizabeth was a strong woman who showed that she had the power to protect the nation.  As a female figure, she faced misogyny.  However, Elizabeth maintained her political power and her gender did not hinder her from becoming a ruler (Levin, 57).  She went through many challenges and her character shows that women can thrive in a man's world.

 It is significant to compare both women (Gertrude and Elizabeth) to underhand the nature of justice and the power of women.  Gertrude is perceived as sexual women, she does not have the power to express herself.  All women in Hamlet's plays are seen as troubling figure and their lives are under male dominance.  The lesson from these women is that women are stereotypes but they should speak up and resist the abuse of power (Mullaney, 6). Women should express their feminism through actions and they should have full control over their life and let the people recognize their thoughts and interests.

Conclusion

 In society,  there are social orders that individuals must comply with. Failure to comply with orders results in disagreement, chaos, and conflict.  Conflict may not only occur because people fail to comply but it can also occur when some people hold a high amount of power. This means that society will have two classes; those with greater power, and those with little power.  In the play ‘Hamlet',  Ophelia accepts to be under the power of men and the compliance affects her life in that she is restricted to create her identity as a woman. On the other hand, Gertrude does not comply with the norms or in other words, she goes against gender-based expectations.  However, the life of both characters is destroyed in that their actions; Ophelia (compliance) and Gertrude (defiance) hinder them from enjoying their femininity.  

 Work cited

 KELLY J. MAYS. THE NORTON INTRODUCTION  TO LITERATURE. SHORTER 

TWELFTH  EDITION. UNIVERSITY OF NEVADA, LAS VEGAS

Mullaney, Steven. "Mourning and Misogyny: Hamlet, The Revenger's Tragedy, and the Final

Progress of Elizabeth I, 1600-1607." Shakespeare Quarterly 45.2 (1994): 139-162.

Wright, Courtni C. The Women of Shakespeare's Plays: Analysis of the Role of the Women in

Selected Plays with Plot Synopses and Selected One Act Plays. Lanham u.a: Univ. Press

of America, 1993. Print.   39

 ‘All Summer in a Day'

Critical Reading Response

Introduction

‘All Summer in a Day’ gives an account of nine-year-old kids who live on the planet, Venus.  Note that on Venus, the rainy season lasts for seven years and therefore they rarely see the sun. Children have the worst experience due to the rain which has occurred in seven years and therefore they are eagerly waiting for the sun to come out. When these children are in class, they all engage in classroom activities like writing an essay about the sun. The children do not remember the last time they saw the sun. However, Margot, who lived in Ohio but recently migrated to Venus, remembers the sun. Note that the other children only remember how the rain has rained for seven years, but Margot remembers the experience of the beauty of the sun when she lived on the earth. The children feel the pain that Margot can remember the sun, and they also hear rumors that Margot's parents will come for her. For this reason, they show Margot hatred and to make the matter worse, they hide her in a closet and lock her. When the sun appears, Margot remains in the closet as the children enjoy the sun. The major theme that is developed in this story is that jealousy, hatred, and selfish influence people to treat individual from other races as different.

 By viewing the story using a different lens, one can depict a jealousy-based malevolence.  First, it is important to understand that Margot comes from the Earth and therefore, she is different from other children. Note that when doing classroom activities, Margon describes the sun like a flower (Bradbury, 2012). On the other hand, the children remember heavy storms-they cannot talk anything about the sun. However, they develop jealousy, hatred, and cruel actions toward Margot because she can speak of the sun.  In interpreting the text, I believe that the story sheds more light on how people from other races are bullied because of being different (Bradbury, 2012). There is always a group of people or dominant group that bring other people down due to their appearance and personality. Note that in the short story, Margot is the object of harassment and bullying. Similarly, minorities in a dominant culture are the object of discrimination. 

Margot is an outsider, and she is struggling to live in the new world since she cannot find happiness. However, she firmly holds onto her great memories, and she cannot let them go (Bradbury, 2012). Similarly, subordinates groups experience all kind of prejudice, stereotype, and discrimination because of their social difference, but they firmly hold onto their cultural heritage (Apfelbaum et al. 2012). From the short story, it is apparent that people discriminate others for various reasons. For example, whites view themselves as the ‘perfect race', and they see African Americans as fragile and weak. Due to their racial status, the minority are denied opportunities and privileges in social settings such as educational attainment. The negative attitude toward minority makes them suffer from the loneliness, which affects the physical and mental health (Apfelbaum et al. 2012). Note that when the kids realized that Margot has knowledge and experience about the sun, they run away from her and hide her in a closet. Margit lives a lonely life and experience bullying.

 In today's society, minorities are seen as people with lower education, high level of power, and poor health. As a result, they are segregated and experience various disparities such as health disparities and other social inequality. They suffer from loneliness and psychological distress (Apfelbaum et al. 2012). They lack the power to fight back, and they feel they live in a strange world.   However, a valuable lesson learned from the short story is that it is important to realize the pain that minority go through and challenge the cruel actions. To solve the issue of discrimination, society should consider the use of colour blindness (Apfelbaum et al. 2012). This will help the dominant group end discriminate and assimilate other races into their culture. In addition, colour blindness will make them stop judging people on their race and culture and realize human nature and focus on shared humanity.

Conclusion

 The short essay ‘All Summer in a Day' reveals the life in Venus, where children enjoy the sun for only two hours after seven years. As children interact with Margot who came from Earth, they realize that Margot remembers how the sun looks unlike them since they cannot tell anything about the sun. They feel jealousy that Margot can talk about the sun and the jealousy inspires them to mistreat and harass her by locking her in the closet. After reading the story, the message that comes out of the story is how people from different races are discriminated and prejudiced. The children do not want to hear about the precious experienced that Margot is talking about. Similarly, dominant groups do not appreciate the minority's way of doing.  Dominate groups treat minority as poor people due to their skin colour. However, the story gives a solution to the social problem by asserting that in the end, the children experience guilt. To address the race-related issues, the dominant group should realize their negative actions toward minority and challenge those actions. Not that racial conflict makes the minority suffer, and therefore, the dominant group should value the difference and recognize that people who are different can offer valuable things.

 References

Apfelbaum, E. P., Norton, M. I., & Sommers, S. R. (2012). Racial color blindness: Emergence, practice, and

implications. Current directions in psychological science, 21(3), 205-209.

Bradbury, R. (2012). All summer in a day. Retrieved from:  https://archive.org/stream/RayBradbury-

SummerDay/All%20Summer%20in%20a%20Day%20-%20Ray%20Bradbury_djvu.txt

Analytical essay Analytical essay on migrant daughter by Mario T. Garcia

Introduction

‘Migrant Daughter'  by Tywoniak & Garcia  (2000)  gives an account of Frances Esquibel  Tywoniak, A Mexican American woman who moved to California in 1937, where he got the opportunity to join the University of California. The great depression led to an economic crisis in New Mexico, and this forced Tywoniak and her family to look for opportunities.  In California, the family settled in Corcoran, and later moved to Tagus Ranch, and therefore Tywoniak came across different cultures. Tywoniak encountered cultural challenges since it was not easy to adjust to the new different environment. For example, the geographical borders seemed challenging, she found it hard to form intercultural relationships, and language learning was also a challenge in the classroom. In the Tagus, Tywoniak worked into unpaid labor. While working in the field, they could wake up early to go and work in poor conditions and for long hours. Tywoniak learned that she was living in a new world where her personality and identity were affected. In the book, the author addresses many issues, such as family life and personal growth. I believe that in sharing this life experience, the books communicate the struggles that Mexican immigrants experienced in the U.S.  From the story, the reader can learn that immigrants experienced job crises, unpleasant food, unemployment, lived in desperate conditions, among other struggles. The book  ‘Migrant daughter' sheds light on the life experiences of Mexican Americans and how they struggled to find stability. 

             The book illuminates the struggle that Mexican Americans experienced for survival in the U.S and how they achieved unexpected benefits. First, it is important to understand that the collapse of the world economy or the great depression caused devastating effects in Mexico (Tywoniak & Garcia, 2000). The country suffered greatly, and families were greatly devastated. This forced the Mexican families   to move to the U.S to relief poverty. However, little did they know that they were unwanted in America. First, immigrants believed that California would give them a better life since the area was good for farming.  However, all migrants, including Mexicans and African Americans, were named Okies and described as immigrants from the poor rural south (Tywoniak & Garcia, 2000). Immigrants mixed with a community of culture, and they used ethnocentric and discriminatory attitude toward other cultures. This means that immigrants stereotyped other cultures, and they suffered from in-group tension. They lived in hostile environments, they suffered from hunger, language barriers, they did not find suitable employment, it was hard to access community services, and they suffered from cultural differences, prejudice, isolation, among other challenges (Tywoniak & Garcia, 2000). In general, immigrants believed that California was not the best place since, rather than getting rest; they kept on moving from one place to another to look for steady income. Focusing on the story, the  Tywoniak says that achieved her dreams since she joined the university and earned a bachelor's degree. The reader does not only see the success of Tywoniak and her struggle, but one sees how immigrant struggled until they achieved their dreams (Tywoniak & Garcia, 2000).  Like Tywoniak, Mexican immigrants experienced turmoil, tension, alienation, and all forms of discrimination. However, they maintained their cultural identities and cultural values. They strongly maintained their ancestral roots while in amidst of multiple cultures.

 Through Tywoniak experience, one can learn that Mexican Americans lacked education, and that is the reason why Tywoniak family worked in the low-wage labor field (Ortiz & Telles, 2012).  I believe that the education disadvantages was the reason as to why the immigrants were stigmatized and racialized.  In the U.S., they experienced racial barriers that restricted them from entering into the white society. Note that in California, there were various cultures such as whites, blacks, and Mexicans.  The latter was considered as non-whites and treated as laborers and people of low status (Ortiz & Telles, 2012). In the economic realm, Mexicans experienced discriminatory treatment. In the school, Mexicans experienced segregation and alienation. Tywoniak points outs there was culture otherness where Mexicans were marginalized and seen as different from others. Ortiz and Telles (2012) support the idea that the life experience reflect the struggles and difficulties that Mexican Americans experienced.  However, they assert that education is important in that Mexican Americans who are educated do not face discrimination as those who lack education (Ortiz & Telles, 2012).  However, the less educated experience discrimination and stereotype in places of work and other settings.

 King (2011) says that Mexican Americans are participating in the U.S labor force. In 2003, the number of Mexican women in labor was 57%, and in 2004, the number was 57.8% (King, 2011). These figures indicate that the participation of Mexican women in the economy has increased. In the past, Mexican women were denied this opportunity due to lack of education, they valued marriage than job, they were caretakers at home, and other cultural issues (King, 2011). Today, marriage and children do not hinder women from entering into the labor force. However, there is a difference between women in Mexico and Mexican American women in terms of employment. In Mexico, women are underrepresented and underpaid. They are treated as ‘wives' who should participate in industrial homework (King, 2011). The wage differences in U.S and Mexico have influenced women to move from Mexico to the U.S. The macroeconomics conditions influenced by the neoliberal policies are not favorable, and therefore educated women are moving to urban areas.  It is important to understand that Mexican American has occupied a good position in U.S society and also in the labor market since they are well-educated, and they have gained American presence than nonmigrants (King, 2011). Today, Mexican women are recognized in the U.S than men as long as they have greater education. Given that women are underrepresented in Mexico, they are focusing on the economic sector in the U.S since it is the only place they are accessing economic opportunity. The U.S economy is benefiting women by providing them with employment.

 Conclusion

 ‘Migrant Daughter’ is a story about Tywoniak who struggled for search for identity and economic stability. At a young age, she played important roles such as working in a field, domestic task, among other roles.  As a migrant worker, her story reflects on the structural issues immigrants experienced in the U.S society, as well as in the labor market.  Her story reveals the benefits of struggling to achieve the American dream, which entails freedom and quality.  It is important to understand that the family moved to the U.S for economic reasons. Recent research shows that today, the aspect of moving from Mexico to the U.S is still significant since people believe that the U.S provides freedom and welfare, and more importantly, economic benefits. In specific, Mexican women are supported by their employment status since, in Mexico, they are limited opportunities. The U.S is offering more significant opportunities, and therefore, Mexican migrants are participating in the labor market, whereas Mexican has failed to meet the basic needs.

References

King, M. C. (2011). Mexican Women and Work on Both Sides of the US-Mexican

Border. American journal of Economics and Sociology, 70(3), 615-638.

Tywoniak, F. E., & García, M. T. (2000). Migrant daughter: Coming of age as a Mexican

American woman. Berkeley, Calif: University of California Press.

Ortiz, V., & Telles, E. (2012). Racial identity and racial treatment of Mexican Americans. Race

and social problems, 4(1), 41-56.

‘My Papa's Waltz’ and ‘Those Winter Sundays’

Speakers

            In both poems, the speaker is an adult (youth) who is remembering his childhood and life experiences with his father. In both poems, the subject matter is the same (describing the relationship with the father), but the difference occurs in that the speakers express different attitudes.  In ‘My Papa's Waltz', the speaker has a negative attitude and says that his father was always drunk and abused him (Roethke, 1). In ‘Those Winter Sunday', the speaker uses a realization attitude. He remembers the self-sacrificial love from his father, and now he realizes the good deeds (Hayden, 1).During childhood, he was indifferent to his father, but now he realizes the fatherly love.

Audiences

In ‘My Papa's Waltz', the intended audience is his father. He is talking to his father and reminds him of how he mistreated them, but the boy still hung on to him (Roethke, 1).In ‘Those Winters Sunday', the intended audience is every child (Hayden, 1). He is addressing those children who are unappreciative and those who not recognize parental love for them.

Situations

 In both poems, the speaker and his family are in a family’s home, maybe in a kitchen.   However, the difference in a situation occurs in that the speaker in ‘My Papa's Waltz' is in conflict with his father whereas the speaker in ‘Those Winter Sundays' is in conflict with himself (Hayden, 1). In the former, the speaker expresses negative ideas, and this suggests that he is bitter toward his father (Roethke, 1).  In the latter, the speaker is regretting why he took the father's love for granted.

Tone

 In ‘My Papa's Waltz', the speaker, who is an adult, uses a poignant tone.  He is expressing the disappointments he experienced due to the egregious behavior of his father.    Inline 13, the speaker says that “you beat time on my head” (Roethke, 1).The speaker has a traumatic memory and remembers how his father punished him. The father was a threat to the life of the son and his mother. In ‘Those Winter Sundays,' the speaker uses a sadness and regret tone. In line 13, he says that ‘What did I know’ (Hayden, 1). He feels so unfortunate that he did not appreciate his father for the difficulties and sacrifices he made to serve him. He sacrificed himself, but he was apathetic and cold.

 Work cited

 Roethke Theodore. My Papa’s Waltz. Poetry Foundation, 2019

 Retrieved from: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/43330/my-papas-waltz

Hayden Robert. Those Winter Sundays. Poetry Foundation, 2019. Retrieved from:

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/46461/those-winter-sundays

Response essay

 Introduction

 Composition is a writing activity where students are expected to express their thoughts.  Writing a composition is important in that students improve writing skills, imagination skills, thinking skills, and communication skills. Teller (2016) states that according to compositionists, students must employ the process approach in composition writing. This means that students should engage in creative brainstorming, they should focus on complex ideas, and they must have the ability to read and write effectively. Teller (2016) asserts that the three principles do not work.  Thus, students fail in writing composition because they do not work hard. In other words, they do not revise, they do not like peer workshops, and they do not like engaging in complex issues. He argues that students' failure is not a teacher's fault. In other words, teachers should blame students in that teachers work hard to teach English and composition writing but students are not focused. Stewart (2016) supports Teller's idea that students do not know how to write a composition. However, he raises a different argument and says that students are not responsible for their failure but the education system should be blamed. Stewart says that teachers should act as mentors in helping students. They should understand the students' need and differences, and they should set clear expectations. In comparing both authors, it is important to understand that many factors contribute to students' failure. In my opinion, students are not at fault. Students have failed in composition writing due to the lack of flexible knowledge. Teachers should know that students have little knowledge and it is their role to empower students and lead them towards the path of improvement so that they become better writers.

I think creative writing should be incorporated in composition writing. This is because, in composition writing, students should exercise brainstorming, visualization, reading, outlining, among other processes.  Note that for students to understand writing, the teacher should teach writing skills, provide valuable feedback, teach structure and clarity, provide image-rich vocabulary, and encourage their efforts (Stewart, 2016). Therefore, I disagree with Teller's argument that student fail in composition writing because they do not revise, they do not engage in peer workshops, and they do not employ basic argumentative structures to write a coherent essay (Teller, 2016).  Teller also criticizes the critical reading and argues that it should not be incorporated in the writing course.  I feel that students fail to revise because teachers do not encourage them to revise. Teachers should provide them with revision skills, meaningful goals, revision models, and guided practices. In other words, for students to revise, they need tools, time, uninterrupted environment, and teacher's help and supervision. It is important to understand that students are eager to revise but they lack guidance and supervision from the teachers (Stewart, 2016). I also feel that peer workshops boost students' growth and performance. Note that in peer workshop, students engage in common practices such as creative writing, reading, listening to other students' work, sharing with the class, among other practices. They hold a discussion, explore the evidence, engage in brainstorming, they become exposed to different writing styles and they also have the opportunity to address the concern. On engaging in complex issues, I feel that students are unable to present a clear and unifying argument because of their lack of knowledge about ‘argumentative structures'. Another important point is that students must engage in critical reading so that they can understand the argumentative structures (Stewart, 2016). Teachers should help students set smart goals, create a plan for the study, and let students know that writing is a process.  Teachers should teach students that the purpose of writing is not to fulfill an assignment but they should become engaged with what they writing to achieve a therapeutic value.

I agree with Stewart that composition writing require a process approach. In other words, it is the role of teachers to engage students in classroom activities that encourage brainstorming, discussion, reading, writing, listening, among other activities (Stewart, 2016). Note that for students to gain interest in creative reading, peer workshop, and revision, they need language support, brainstorming, and discussion. They need to organize ideas, compare ideas and judge quality, receive feedback and collaborate with teachers and other students.  It is the role of the teachers to ensure that students should constantly engage in the writing process. To accomplish this, teachers should provide writing assignments so that students can experience various writing styles (Stewart, 2016). Teachers should encourage students to believe in themselves and become less afraid. Students also need technical skills so that they can think critically, value teamwork, and explore ideas.  In general,  I think that teachers should teach students writing skills, allow them to engage in peer groups, let the students see the importance of revision, guide and help them, understand students' deficits, and teach them grammar and structure (Stewart, 2016).  As a result of applying these approaches, students will become creative and they will improve in the composition writing.

 Conclusion

 If teachers want students to be successful in composition writing, they should sharpen their writing skills in critical thinking.  First, teachers should let students know that writing is a creative practice, an act of discovery, and a process.  I feel that it is the work of educators to care for students and allow them to grow. The teacher will benefit because ultimately, he or she will produce amazing products that will take a significant position in real life.  Students will also benefit in that they will write a composition using a sound writing style. In other words, they will communicate their ideas effectively using perfect grammar.

References

 
Teller, J. R. (2016). Are we teaching composition all wrong? The Chronicle of Higher Education, Retrieved from: https://www.chronicle.com/article/Are-We-Teaching-Composition/237969

Stewart, E.M. (2016). No, we’re not teaching composition ‘all wrong.’ The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved from https://www.chronicle.com/article/No-We-re-Not-Teaching/238468

 English Language Arts Teacher Interview Reflection

ELA Teacher Interview Reflection

The interview with teacher Morgan, took place in classroom in the evening after her lessons. This time was appropriate because classes were over, so she was free for the interview without any interactions from her students. Morgan is a 5^th grade ELA teacher who has been teaching for over ten years, which is why she was a perfect candidate for the interview. I began the interview by enquiring on her thoughts about teaching the four skills including; speaking, viewing, listening and thinking. Her response emphasised on the importance of young students having a good foundation on this skills, because this is what determines the rest of their language learning journey.

Teacher Morgan frequently mentioned the importance of games during her ELA lessons, indicating that young students are able to understand concepts better when they are introduced to them using a fun activity. some of the games she mentioned included; word wheel, hot wad and time wrap all which can be used to teach parts of speech, types of sentences, tenses and also help in writing and reading skills. The games which can either be conducted in groups all by the whole class, as understood from the interview create an interactive mood within the class. The games allow all the students to be engaged and take part in the learning, through presentation, asking and answering of questions during the game learning activities.

Effectiveness of teaching ELA is all dependent on the strategies employed during the lesson. From the interview, it came out clearly that a teacher who does not take time to understand the students and their needs can have a hard time helping the students improve their language skills. Everything that a teacher does during the lesson beginning with how they speak provides the students with an opportunity to develop language skills. Learning does not stop at school; parents also have a great role to play in helping their children develop effective language skills.

Teachers should always educate parents on the importance of engaging in learning activities with their children when at home. This can be done by constantly holding parent meetings whereby parents meet the teachers and learn about their children’s progress. parents should just like the teacher use every activity at home as a learning item, where they ask the children to name various items, name the part of speech among others. Parents should be actively involved in helping the students with their homework, which help ensure that the learning process is not cut off when the students go home from school.

This interview has been very educative for me as an aspiring ELA teacher. I now understand that one of the most important elements of teaching ELA is making learning fun for the students. Games not only help create good social environment within the class, but they also help the students to grasp contents much easier and better. I have also understood the importance of creating a learning cycle for the students by engaging their parents in the learning process. This helps ensure that learning does not stop at the end of the day when the students leave school, but rather continue with the help of the parents at home.

Interview questions                           

1. How would you define ELA teaching, do you find it challenging?
2. What types of ELA activities do you use to teach skills related to speaking, viewing, listening, and thinking?
3. How do the learners react to these learning activities?
4. How do you encourage whole class social interaction and communication in the English language arts classroom?
5. How do you encourage small group social interaction and communication in the English language arts classroom?
6. What strategies do you use to support the diverse communication needs of exceptional students and English language learners?
7. What are different ways you communicate with parents? How do you explain the importance of literacy skills to them? Do you explain ways they can help their children develop these skills? If so, how?
8. Have you noticed any differences in language skills acquisition between the students whose parents are involved in their learning and those that are not? If yes, which are some of the differences?
9. What do you do to help these students whose parents are uninvolved in their learning process?
10. What are some of the advice you would give to new ELA teachers, who are having challenges teaching language skills

Interview notes

• The teacher appears excited about the interview; she passionately describes her experience in teaching ELA.
• Her spoken English is excellent; she does not make any grammar mistakes as she responds to the interview questions.
• She indepthly responds to all the interview questions without hesitation, even going ahead to give case examples to help illustrate how she ensures learning takes place during her lessons.
• She readily shares her teaching materials to help illustrate how she uses them during the ELA learning activities.
• She sounds very conversant with ELA teaching strategies matching her ten years of experience as an ELA teacher.

Social Issues Challenged by Nick Enright in his play ‘Blackrock’

The play ‘Blackrock’ by Nick Enright was constructed to help challenge the dominant social issue of female marginalisation in the Australian society during the twentieth century. This is a text that presents a very critical approach towards the notion of mateship in the Australian society, where mateship is exposed and greatly criticised. The play which is inspired by a true story of a girl, who was raped and murdered, provides a very powerful direct criticism of the dominant Australian youth culture most especially the male youth. It helps emphasize on how attitudes and ideologies, which are assumed to be harmless can lead to loss of an innocent life.

The Australian culture is one that identifies with physical accomplishment rather than mental, the concept of mateship, role of violence and the misconception of classes. All this prompts the readers to query the overall moral justice, logicality and prudence of this society. This play is used as a representation of the Australian society, the creation of realistic characters helps to ensure that the teenage audience are able to easily identify with the themes and the ideas that are presented. The play brings to light the flawed values of mateship, marginalisation of women and independence of the youths within the Australian culture which are detrimental to the people that follow them.

The Australian society is one that ensures that by law, women are respected and have equal rights and status to the men. It is therefore very difficult to acknowledge marginalisation in this society which presents itself as egalitarian. Detrimental attitudes towards women, however exists where women are just portrayed as mere sexual objects of male yearning and conquest. This just like it happens with other ideas is disseminated by the media through magazines, TVs among others. Women are depicted as good-looking and desirable, a strong insinuation that a beautiful appearance is one of the woman’s crucial strength. In the play, this concept is brought to light where the young women compete for the attention of the men by dressing provocatively and behaving in a sexualised manner in order to achieve a high status among the men. This behaviour is partly blamed for the rape and the murder of the young teenager, Tracy.

In the play, Cherie defends the innocence of Tracy and challenges the patriarchal ideology as an attempt to try and breakaway from the constraints of this society. Cherie is in this case used as a tool through which the audience sympathise with Tracy’s death. This character is created to appeal to the young people; she is presented as being responsible, rational, morally aware and vigilant of the dangers in this society. On scene (12), her mother illustrates ‘she knows more than we do’, which helps to illustrate Cherie’s understanding of the urban youth both physically and psychologically. Cherie rejects the idea that Tracy’s death was her own fault because of her sexual behaviour which shows the author’s rejection of the idea that women are just mere sexual objects.

Enright in contrast to the character of Cherie uses the character of Tiffany who accepts the prevailing, domineering patriarchy beliefs, and only realised their harmful magnitudes after the death of Tracy which was already too late. This contrast is used by Enright to criticize the submissiveness of the female population, and to show the importance of women fighting for their rights and defending their beliefs. Ricko who is Tiffany’s boyfriend as one of the dominant males in the play objectifies her, through the symbolic use of his surfing trophy demonstrative of Tiffany. To Ricko, Tiffany was just a trophy because she was an object that he desired and was able to conquer.

The character of Tiffany in the play helps to illustrate the concept of female marginalisation and disempowerment. Tiffany has no power within this community and even when she tries to break away, she is rejected. Her promiscuous life is an attempt to gain status within this community, which instead leads to her being mistreated and objectified by men like Ricko and it pushes her further lower in the social status.  Both Tiffany and Tracy are sufferers of the standards within the Australian society all because they were unwilling to contest these central principles instead of giving in to them. Enright encourages the audience to reject the allowance of men objectifying women and the detrimental attitudes of women being sexual objects for male conquest.

Another social issue challenged in the play is that of mateship. This is a very common issue in the Australian society where men are willing to engage in heroic and dangerous behaviours, with the goal of obtaining a higher status in a group. The play focuses on the competition between the young boys; Toby is used to expose the peer pressure oriented aspects of mateship. Toby who is new in this community is forced to engage in immoral activities irrespective of his upbringing just so he could fit in with ‘the boys’.  During the party, he is forced to perform a ring of fire which was a form of initiation into the Blackrock boys. Toby is in this case willing to risk and ignore all the dangers of playing with fire just so that he earns his reputation in this community.

The rape of Tracy and the involvement of Toby in it are used in the play to help show the faults in the morals and standards of mateship. Toby in scene (15) states ‘"I took her off down the beach...she wanted to , then she didn't want to... then the other guys were there, and it was like I had to.", this shows the deep desire for him to be equal to the other boys regardless of what he has to do to earn it. This rape by the boys is not considered as a crime, but rather just an exercise that helps their bond to become stronger. Jared is another character that helps to show the flaws of mateship, where he witnessed the rape of Tracy but kept quiet about it because he wanted to protect his boys. In scene (17) he was also torn between or keeping quiet about the secret that Ricko was the one that murdered Tracy because he was not willing to betray his mate. All this helps to establish the horrific expectations of mateship in the Australian youth culture. This forces the audience to reconsider the meaning of mateship where an accomplishment of a dare no matter how immoral it is earns one respect in the mateship.

Blackrock is a play that criticizes the concept of mateship and female marginalisation. Enright reveals how the Australian culture is unrefined and needs to evolve in order to keep up with the change because it is flawed based on youth culture. Enright uses this play to educate the Australian society of the imperfection of their culture and to encourage changes such as family guidance, logic before mateship and gender equality in the social setting.

Works cited

Enright, Nicholas. Blackrock: The Screen Play. Sydney: Currency Press, 1997. Print.

Manipulation of Setting in ‘Therese Raquin’ by Emile Zola

Setting is a very important element in a story; this is what helps a story to be better understood by the readers. For some authors, the setting is used to convey a particular message and it can be effectively manipulated to suit this function. The mood of a story can be in influenced by the setting depending on how it is used and this is what happens in ‘Therese Raquin’. In this story, Emile Zola, uses setting as an element through which important scenes in the story are intensified. He uses the concept of naturalism to define the characters and show their development through setting. Setting is used in this story repetitively to help show the development of the main characters basing their experiences on the themes of the story as it progresses.

Naturalism in the story is explored through the use of personalities, where Zola assigns certain personalities to his characters to try and establish inter-character relations in the plot. Laurent for instance is associated with sanguine where he is described as handsome and full blooded; Therese is associated with misery while Camille is associated with unemotional qualities. Using this device helps Zola to add a certain amount of reality and human nature to the plot which is an essential aspect to the naturalism genre (Knutson, 2001). Naturalists such as Darwin argue that human beings just act as a response to the environmental forces around them. Human beings are basically driven by desires such as sex, terror and hunger; all this are things that they cannot regulate or even comprehend (Knutson, 2001). In the story, all these features occur throughout the story and they become predominant in the sexual connotations of the affair between Therese and Laurent.

Some of the settings that are repeatedly mentioned include ‘Thursday evenings’ and ‘the room where Theresa sleeps’ which all help in promoting the development of the themes and the characters in the story. The gatherings that happen on Thursday evenings are also used symbolically to help show how the characters continue to develop as the story progresses. During the first Thursday evening, Madam Raquin is introduced to the readers as being the entertainment for the guests, while Therese is brought out as someone uninterested in the happenings of the evenings (Zola, p. 23). This first Thursday evening places Madam Raquin and Therese at odds, where Raquin is portrayed as an extrovert while Therese is portrayed as an introvert. Therese has no desire or interest to be a part of the meetings and this firsts meeting helps to show how her introvert character changes with time and how she develops as a character with the basis of her behaviours during the Thursday meetings.

The character of Therese develop and changes in the later Thursday evenings most especially after Laurent starts to come for the meetings. At the beginning, all that Theresa does during the meetings is observing silently preferring to let her thoughts wonder and remember her relations with Laurent. These scenes are used by Zola to help develop the theme of deception. Theresa’s outward appearance of order and introversion is used to hide her inner mockery of the society around her. Zola uses this scene to develop Theresa’s character as a melancholic character, where instead of participating in events on the activities that are happening within her; she preferred to reflect on her personal thoughts.

The bedroom when the story begins is described as a cold place where Therese and her sickly husband share. The coldness of the bedroom is a description of Therese’s life which is cold, boring and sad. She is a character that is forced to live with her aunt Raquin and forced to marry her sickly cousin. She has to pretend to be contented with the life that she is living, though deep down she feels sad and regretful. The bedroom is used by Zola as a setting element that changes with the progress of the novel. When Therese meets Laurent, she begins to have an affair with him and the cold bedroom changes and becomes her source of happiness. Her hate for the bedroom stops and she starts enjoying the look of this room which she sees as the source of new found happiness. This shows a development in Theresa’s character, where she now stops being the sad self-absorbed individual that is presented at the beginning of the story and becomes more jovial and open as the story progresses. Naturalism is presented where; the taste of happiness changes the personality of Therese. She is no longer scared of narrating her sad life to Laurent and openly proclaiming her hatred for Raquin and Camille (Zola, p. 37)

Madam Raquin at the beginning of the story is brought out as a strong, outspoken deviance character. Her character however changes as the story progresses where she becomes paralysed and she is no longer able to entertain guests during Thursday meetings. The strong woman that was introduced at the beginning of the story is reduced to a sad, self-absorbed person, who has to depend on other people like Therese and Laurent to help her go on with her daily activities. At the last Thursday meeting, she acknowledges that her guests were really empty headed, because they are not able to help her expose the Laurent and Therese as murderers (Zola. p. 53).

 Every day that Therese spends with Laurent in her bedroom, changes her personality and helps her to become stronger and open to her hatred of Raquin who does not give her a chance for a better life. Therese changes her attitude from being the soft, humble woman that is presented at the beginning of the story. She adopts a more reckless attitude where she is not afraid and actually enjoys having an affair with Laurent and deceiving Raquin. Thursday evenings change for her, while at the beginning of the story they were the most dreaded days of her life. They now become more fun because they become her love sessions with Laurent, something that makes very happy.

Manipulation of setting to show to develop characters in the story is further illustrated when Theresa and Laurent are no longer able to meet at the bedroom, which is what helps their affair to grow. This is a room that has become a source of inspiration for Theresa and anything that deters her love sessions with Laurent becomes a threat to her new found happiness. Theresa at this point feels superior to all her previous fears and she is not scared of murder. At this point of the story, Theresa is portrayed as a character that has gotten over past scares and will do anything to keep her present happiness. She encourages and goes ahead with the Laurent’s plan to kill Camille just so that they can be together. Naturalism is also portrayed here where Laurent and Therese’s desire to be together forces them to develop some hatred feelings for Camille and even ends up committing murder. The idea and thought of eliminating Camille, her childhood companion who is now her husband just to keep her affair with Laurent excites her (Zola, p. 70). She is not scared to be an accessory to murder and she does not even try to stop Laurent when he drowns Camille.

The development of Theresa’s character throughout the story is viewed through the change of setting both in the bedroom and also during the Thursday meetings. The humble, sad, self-absorbed Theresa that is introduced at the beginning of the story changes to become a wild, brave woman that is not scared to express her feelings and fight for what she wants at the end of the story. This is in contrast from the character of Raquin who at the beginning of the story is brought out as an outspoken brave woman. However, the event of the story most especially the death of her son changes her reducing her to a sickly mute character that cannot defend herself. 

Works Cited

Zola, Émile, and Nicholas Wright. Thérèse Raquin: A Play by Émile Zola. England: Nick

            Hern Books, 2006. Print.

Knutson, E. M. (2001). The Natural and the Supernatural in Zola’s Thérèse Raquin.

            Symposium, 55(3), 140. https://doi.org/10.1080/00397700109598538