Is the story Daughters of the late Colonel more comic than tragic
for the reader overall? Be sure to comment on Mansfield’s use of
language.
The story “Daughters of the late Colonel”, written by Katherine
Mansfield takes place during Victorian times, based around two
sister’s whose father had recently died. Mansfield describes the
struggles of these two women as they try to express their femininity
and overcome the barriers of etiquette and the presence of their
father, whom they feared. The story ends as the sisters Josephine and
Constantia attempt to break free of their suppressed world but fail
to, thus ending the story in tragedy. Despite this the path leading to
the tragic ending is riddled in humorous moments. Therefore it might
be said about the story that it is more comic than tragic for the
reader.
Mansfield often uses humor as a technique to reveal the darker,
suppressed side of the two sisters and she often does it subtly. A
casual reader might never discover this area of the story. It is as if
Mansfield employs comic moments as a mask to cover the tragedy of the
play.
On one occasion Constantia is worrying about an imaginary mouse:
“A spasm of pity squeezed her heart. Poor little thing! She wished
she’d left a tiny piece of biscuit on the dressing table. It was awful
to think of it not finding anything. What would it do?”
The way Constantia exerts herself is simply pathetic. The reader is
amused at her antics to attempt to bring the mouse some food. This
obsession with detail is further emphasized with the rhetorical
question at the end of the quote, as well as the phrase: “poor little
thing!”- it’s short length and exclamation mark emphasizes its
importance, and the use of “poor...
... middle of paper ...
...ephine was silent for a moment. She stared at a big cloud where
the sun had been. Then she replied shortly, “I’ve forgotten too.””
During the final section, the sun represents their chance for freedom.
“Golden rays” symbolized the richness and exiting new life which they
could have taken. Yet, the whole new path the sisters might have taken
was blocked out, symbolizing the cloud. It is thus that the story ends
in tragedy- the sisters fail to break free, and remain stuck inside
their self-imposed world. Their late father’s influence is too great
for them to overcome.
In conclusion, it may be said that the story is both a comedy and a
tragedy. However, because Mansfield cleverly disguises the tragedy to
blend into hilarious moments the reader gets an overall sense of comic
fun. Therefore, Daughters of the Late Colonel is more of a comedy than
a tragedy.
Tragedy acts as an antidote to human fallibility; it also warns individuals of the dire consequences of follies in a way that comedy cannot. It accentuates how a character of high rank falls from grace due to his or her character flaw. More importantly, the downfall evokes pathos, which results in the viewers’ emotional cleansing and purging. In Richard Van Camp’s short story, “Mermaids”, the main character “Torchy” is a native Indian who struggle to find a goal in life. To cope with the loss of his brother and his traumatic life, he abuses alcohol and drugs.“Mermaids” is not considered as a tragedy since the main character does not fulfill a noble tragic hero, he does not go through peripeteia, and the ending of the story does not let the
Another interesting factor about this story is the irony and tone in this story and how it adds toward each character.
It is true that the voyage down the river has many aspects of a boy’s idyll. We owe much of its hold upon our imagination to the enchanting image of the raft’s unhurried drift with the current, the beauty of the river-all these things delight us...Then, of course, there is humor-- laughter so spontaneous, so free of bitterness present almost everywhere, grim a spectacle
The central theme of Flannery O’Connor’s three short stories is irony. Her stories are parables, that is, short stories with a lesson to be learned.
Many examples in Who Framed Roger Rabbit? suggest the film is a classical comedy. Some elements of a comical film include massive confusion, mistaken identities, errors in judgment, and excessive behavior. When such traits are exploited it leads to chaos and choices need to be made. The use of exaggerating characteristics to real life creates a humorous effect, for instance in “Who Framed Roger Rabbit?” Furthermore, the film “Who Framed Roger Rabbit?” is an example of a romantic comedy because it involves chaos, massive confusion, and two lovers.
The differences of these two plays, gives one a sense that any general idea can be broken into a distinct one and not sway away from its intended idea. This means, a comedy can be made into a tragedy, romance, and other themes, and yet still maintain the purpose of providing laughter to the audience. This shows the development of literature over the years, as many more subcategories result because of the contrasts.
According to Aristotle, “Comedy can be any colloquy or performance generally intended to amuse or stimulate laughter”. In modern times, comedy can be found in different forms, such as television, movies, theatres and stand-up comedy.
They go on to analyze Faulkner’s placement of Addie’s monologue, how others may judge the book, and the writing style. They compare As I Lay Dying with Faulkner’s other novel, The Sound of the Fury. They speak of the similar narrative strategies and the differences in levels of comicality of between the two novels in question. They believe that although both novels are humorous, only As I Lay Dying can truly be considered as comical and therefore, label it a
This paper will compare the attitudes of each character in their respective story. Included will be a reference page for further study. Both stories will be discussed in detail and the author will explain message he/she felt the philosopher was trying to relay to the audience and how their own philosophy compares.
Dessner, Lawrence Jay. "Irony and Innocence in John Updike's 'A & P'." Studies in Short Fiction 25.3 (Summer 1988): 315-317. Rpt. in Short Stories for Students. Ed. Kathleen Wilson. Vol. 3. Detroit: Gale, 1998. Literature Resource Center. Web. 19 Feb. 2014.
"And then I woke up."Thus goes the kind of "trick ending" that every first year writing student is told to avoid, a mark of cheap theatrics and poor craftsmanship.Historically, this kind of ending is often associated with Guy de Maupassant, the prolific French writer of the 19th century, or his 20th century American heir apparent, O. Henry (William S. Porter).In this well researched and at moments insightful book, Richard Fusco argues that Maupassant's bad rap as first and foremost the inventor and disseminator of the "trick ending" is undeserved.What Fusco feels Maupassant does deserve is recognition as perhaps the single most important influence on American short story writers of the late 19th and early 20th century, particularly Ambrose Bierce, Kate Chopin, Henry James, and of course O. Henry.However, even as Fusco's readings of these writers are laudable in their thoroughness (with the exception of his treatment of O. Henry), his overall argument seems finally too dependent on an understanding of "trick ending" which does not make necessary distinctions, and is therefore superficial enough to accommodate nearly any writer one cares to name.
What is comedy? Funk and Wagnalls New Encyclopedia says: "A comedy depicts the follies and absurdities of human beings." Webster's Dictionary defines comedy as: "A drama or narrative with a happy ending." Shakespeare's play, Measure for Measure, fits both of these descriptions. Follies and absurdities are present in the play: Lucio slanders the Duke, not realizing that his crude remarks are being spoken to the Duke himself; Angelo abuses his power thinking that the Duke is not present to know; and Ragozine happens to die in prison the day a head is needed to substitute for Claudio's. The play also ends on several merry notes, consistent with the definition of comedy. For example, Angelo's life is spared and he is forgiven; Mariana is married to Angelo; the Duke punishes Lucio humorously with marriage; Barnardine is pardoned; and Claudio is saved. The parallels between Measure for Measure and three other Shakespearean comedies, The Merchant of Venice, As You Like It, and Twelfth Night, also help to classify Measure for Measure as a comedy. In Measure for Measure, like in The Merchant of Venice, As You Like It, and Twelfth Night, an arbitrary law or obstacle is eventually overcome; a disguised character affects the outcome of the play; a clown adds humor to the plot; a female character bears a large responsibility for the final resolution; and forgiveness and reconciliation mark the conclusion of the action.
In conclusion, through the use of caesura and rhetorical questions, Duke Ferrara exposes his controlling, egotistical character. Through his description of the Duchess and his recount of her reactions to others’ gifts, Duke Ferrara reveals a motive for murdering the Duchess. Through his aside comment concerning the curtain, Duke Ferrara connects the two together and unearths his crime to the audience. Through the exaggerated example of the Duke killing his Duchess in an attempt to control her, Robert Browning successfully demonstrates a social commentary: men go to extremes to sustain control. By fabricating the Duke as an evil individual, Browning effectively renders the audience receptive to his message.
Comedy unites – It helps society relate to one another and adds to the interwoven-ness that invisibly threads us all together as a society. Comedies help underscore the sadness’ of life and enables playwrights to address problem in society and propose a solution. This problem solution construction is reoccurring in comedies. Comedies have endured the test of time as they continue to educate, influence, entertain and motivate humanity. Comedic works have been characterized as ending in all being right in the world. This notion is supported by the plays, Lysistrata by Aristophanes and The Importance of Being Earnest, A Trivial Comedy for Serious People by Oscar Wilde through their unique plot style, usage of literary and plot devices.
A tragedy is defined as beginning with a problem that affects everyone, i.e. the whole town or all the characters involved, the tragic hero must solve this problem and this results in his banishment or death [run-on sentence]. A comedy is defined as also beginning with a problem, but one of less significant importance. The characters try to solve the problem and the story ends with all the characters uniting in either a marriage of a party. Although these two genres are seen as being complete opposites of each other, through further analysis one can gather that though they are different certain similarities can also be seen.