In Friedrich Dürrenmatt’s play, The Visit, the decrepit town of Guellen is given the ultimate choice: They may lift themselves out of poverty through a gift from billionaire Claire Zachanassian, but in doing so, must abandon their morality and murder one of their own. As the leader of the town, the mayor has a particularly difficult struggle between morals and money. And, in the same way that the mayor represents the people in town government, the mayor’s struggle, too, reflects the struggle that the entire town experiences; a slow, painful slide into desire and decaying morality.
Before Claire arrives in Guellen, the mayor, along with the entire town, holds Alfred Ill as one of Guellen’s most beloved citizens. This is demonstrated in the opening scene of the play, when the mayor’s unaltered opinion of Ill is expressed when he says, “I’ve sounded out to Opposition: we’ve agreed to nominate you as my successor” (Dürrenmatt 15). Not only is Ill esteemed by the people of Guellen, they wish for him to become their leader, which clearly demonstrates the deep respect they have for him. This trust for Ill continues when Claire’s return to Guellen is announced, and the town puts Ill up to the task of securing a donation from Claire to revitalize the town. In a conversation with other town leaders, the mayor calls for a toast to Ill, and says he is “a man who’s doing all a man can to better our lot” (Dürrenmatt 27) In this same conversation, the mayor reveals his feelings about Claire’s purpose, stating “Ill has her in the bag… He’ll get thousands out of her” (Dürrenmatt 26). This degradation of Claire to nothing but a money source contrasts sharply to the admiration the mayor has for Ill, yet as the play progresses, the regard of ...
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...ey value Alfred Ill as their favorite citizen, and they carry on with their squalid lives. Naturally, they are quick to defend Ill when Claire offers a million to the town upon the murder of Ill. However, the seeds of desire were planted, and they grew into a powerful challenge to the town’s original values. This dissonance between desires and morals caused the distress seen in the town’s early behavior, and as the desire grows, it becomes impossible to resist. Therefore, in order to reunite their morals and desires, they change them, now citing the condemnation of Ill and acceptance of the money not as giving in to desire, but as a deliverance of justice to correct the wrong they had allowed to occur. The mayor’s speech and town’s repetition of that speech cement this change of morality, and Alfred Ill is unanimously “convicted” by this new court of justice.
The first barrier to a better life had to do with surviving poverty or the absence of certain privileges. In Angela’s Ashes, Frank, the protagonist of the book, along with his family had to endure persistent rains, exposure to disease and starvation. Frank and Malachy Jr. had to resort to stealing food several ...
Hence, upon analyzing the story, one can conclude the certain themes that parallel through the pages. Firstly, a theme of unity and trust is present at the end of the play. This is supported by the image of the cathedral, which is a place of unity. Most importantly, the notion of equality among people is the main theme within this story. The narrator starts as a biased, idiot, who dislikes all people that are not like himself. He even at times is rude to his wife. Ironically, it takes a blind man to change the man that can literally see, to rule out the prejudices and to teach him that all men are created equal.
Through O’Connor’s religious background, the audience must closely analyze the true message of her story through her symbolism. Her shocking and grotesque ending of the short story challenges individuals by questioning what is good and what is evil. O’Connor’s symbolism found in her setting and main characters truly embody her view of modern society. She uses these elements as a representation for the realistic paths individuals struggle to choose between: the path involved in sin concerning money, good looks, and pride or the path towards God concerning morals, values, and respect for humanity.
The setting and symbolism of the play act as a portal that allows for the dramatic development of the message and themes. Throughout the play, Glaspell continually uses the setting to demonstrate the differences between men and women during that time period, and further, how the lives and roles of women were devalued and considered unimportant. From the start of the play, the audience immediately gets a feel for the run-down atmosphere of the farmhouse, the life Mrs. Wright must of led, and more importantly, the distinct separation between the male and female sexes. Not only are the genders separated biologically and geographically throughout the play, they also differ in mindset, behavior, and overall thoughts regarding the motive of the murder. This can be seen when Mr. Henderson, Mr. P...
In the short story “An Adventure in Paris” by Guy De Maupassant an unnamed woman seeks for adventure, love, and excitement. An unnamed narrator starts to explain the inner nature and curiosity of a woman. The story transitions to the point of view of an unnamed lawyer’s wife which allows us to see her deepest desire to travel to Paris and be part of the lavishing life she has seen in the magazines. To escape her regular routine she makes a plan to go to Paris; however, her family members are only middle class and cannot help her fulfill her desire to live the life of a celebrity, fame, and fashion. Just when her trip seems to be monotonous she comes across the chance to live the life of an extravagant person. This chance happens when she meets Jean Varin, a wealthy author, in a store wanting to purchase a Japanese figurine. When Varin decides that the figurine is too expensive the lawyer’s wife steps up to buy the figurine which causes Varin to notice her. She flirtatiously invites herself into Varin’s daily activities which intrigue Varin. As the day closes she invites herself to Varin’s house and has an affair with Varin; however, she doesn’t feel she is satisfied because of his many needs. She anxiously waits till morning to come so that she can leave which only confuses Varin. When Varin asks her why she is leaving after all they have been through she states that she wanted to know what depravity felt like; however, it was not what she expected. The central idea of the story is about a woman’s psychological desire for romance, adventure, and an opulent lifestyle that leads to curiosity and the immoral act of adultery.
Durrenmatt uses many allusions in The Visit in which its connections sheds so much more light on the play and helps to emphasize even the smallest aspects of it. Durrenmatt’s implementation of allusions to describe characters at a deeper lever, compare events in Guellen to its contrasting Westernized culture and show the irony of what Claire does to what others say, helps us understand The Visit at a much deeper level and far more interesting way.
The play begins in the present 1988 with Rene Gallimard sitting in a Paris prison. Gallimard declares himself as a celebrity, and relishes that his “fame has spread to Amsterdam, London, New York” (Hwang). Outside of his cell is the first encounter of other presences, the two men and woman chat about Gallimard and his crime vaguely, and they toast and laugh at its idiocy. Gallimard believes these toasts and laughs to be recognition towards his accomplishment. Gallimard then proclaims “...they should be scratching at my door, begging to learn my secrets! For I, Rene Gallimard, you see. I have known, and been loved by…the Perfect Woman” (Hwang).
Rieux throughout the novel is compassion and sympathy towards humanity. Grand is another character in “The Plague” and he challenged by the sense of loneliness and expulsion from what is important to him, yet he remains an affectionate and tender man. He even strongly encourages the necessity of fighting against the plague as an obligation of human civility as he says "Why that’s not difficult! Plague is here and we’ve got to make a stand, that’s obvious.” His writing and his struggle for opposition are both stirred by love (for his late wife) and yearn for what he feels in his heart. Rieux comes to appreciate Grand’s lonesomeness and love for his departed wife. In the end, Grand falls sick with the plague. This is clearly shown in this quote; “Rieux, too, couldn't speak...At this moment he suffered from Grand's sorrow, and what filled his breast was the passionate indignation we feel when confronted by the anguish all men share." In other words, Rieux sympathized with his fading friend, as he acknowledges the pain he and Grand both have in common. This lets Grant know the importance of love and his memories of his past wife, curing him of his meaningless in
Our characters of Public Amenity 9 live in a society controlled by an unethical company who has privatized toilet use due to a 20 year drought. Because of this our characters are faced with multiple dilemmas that affected their ethics and values. While reading Urinetown, I began to think about certain events that reminded me of the issues our characters where faced with. This helped me envision what the scenery was like and what time period this took place in. Kotis and Hollmann wanted their audience to experience the reality of these issues and not just a fictitious story. Beginning the play we see a relationship between Urinetown and government corruption. “Senator Flipp had received a bribe from Cladwell to insure that the new rate hikes are applied; shortly after he plans on going to Rio with the cash.” Unfortunately, whether it is a business or a state concern, society is faced with witnessing corruption of this same instance. This gave the reader/viewer a humorous yet non-fictional aspect of realism. As they disregard the common good for private benefit, they throw away trust and become partners in crime. Some of the most influential forces in society deal with politics and authority figures.
Living in Grover’s Corner can be an eye opener to wanting to modernize and live in the a world where new things happen to help instead of hinder, or it can be a lesson that teaches you how being close and doing things that your family approve can be a good quality in life. The Play “Our Town” lets you see the play in your own point of view. Either you can see living in a small community and not having much privacy as a good quality or you can think that being so close to your neighbors is a bad thing. Either way the play shows us that caring for each other and helping each other out is something you have to work on and become better. The play lets us know as long as we live our life as we want no one can take that from us.
is the understanding of this "rich" character. In this study I will try to analyze some of his traits (invisibility-lack of indentity , blindness) and his journey from idealism to a grim realism about the racism that confronts him in the story.
To conclude, the author portrays Blanche’s deteriorating mental state throughout the play and by the end it has disappeared, she is in such a mental state that doctors take her away. Even at this stage she is still completely un-aware of her surroundings and the state she is in herself.
In the beginning of the play, Walter is foolish and quarrelsome, with his heart set on becoming affluent. As he grasps how hard work his father worked and how hard his family works, he reasons that living by his standards is more important than gaining wealth, and he stops feeling resentful towards them. This play highlights how many members of society focus more on making money than living by their ethical
The author shows that money can change a characters behavior. You see this behavioral change in Claire by the way she dresses and acts as she is above everyone. In the beginning
Janwillem Van De Wetering says, “Greed is a fat demon with a small mouth and whatever you feed it is never enough.” Guy De Maupassant’s “The Necklace” tells of Mrs. Mathilde Loisel’s longings for the finer things in life. Her desires are so intense she risks her husband’s affections, the friendship of an old chum, and even her mediocre lifestyle to pursue these cravings. One small decision based on an ill-placed desire causes a slow drawn out death of the spirit, body and relationships.