Eric Dade Mr. Crema ENGL 101 Final Paper 05/05/16 Physical and Emotional Imprisonment In Ragtime, there are numerous actions, thoughts, and dialogue among characters which point to a larger theme as the story progresses. Over the course of the book, E.L. Doctorow demonstrates a common theme - the struggle of imprisonment vs. self-liberation. Doctorow brings out this theme through a few different characters in his novel. Imprisonment does not necessarily mean a jail term, but rather in this case, mental, emotional, philosophical, economic, or political struggle a character is going through at any point in the story. Self-liberation, on the other hand, is the attempt to mentally and psychologically abandon oneself from …show more content…
Throughout the story, Harry constantly amazes crowds with his ability to escape from enclosed areas. In this case, Harry demonstrates two kinds of imprisonment: physical imprisonment and emotional imprisonment. He demonstrates physical imprisonment as he attempts to set himself free from the enclosed areas. However, his emotional imprisonment occurs when Harry is alone and pondering his unique career, which gives him much stress, as we often get in-depth looks into Harry’s thoughts from the narrator. For example, after one of Harry’s infamous stunts, he reads the newspaper. As we go inside the mind of Harry, “He had never known such feelings of dissatisfaction. He wondered why he had devoted his life to mindless entertainment” (Doctorow 101). This interpersonal thought shows that Harry has at least a fragment of doubt in regards to the life he’s living, as it seems as if he’s not satisfied with the lifestyle he chose. This time, along with many others, he more or less questions his purpose in life. On top of that, Harry is going through a tough time with his mother recently passing away. Ultimately, these reasons make it hard for Harry to will himself to do these amazing escapes, making Harry emotionally imprisoned, as often times he does not develop a sense of gratification from his achievements. As explained in this book, this is mainly due to the depression he experiences after his mother’s death. In specific, near the middle of the story, Harry is in the middle of performing a crazy stunt - one in which he had to break free from a locked, steel box filled with water. In context, this describes the atmosphere of his crowds and describes how his escapes affected him emotionally after his mother’s death. “People shouted from the audience. Women closed their eyes and put their hands over their ears. They begged his assistants to stop him. He was helped
He discusses demise in the primary sentence, saying, “The marvelous thing is that it’s painless” (Hemingway 826). As the story creates, Harry as often as possible specifies his desire to pass on or the way he feels that passing is close now. “You can shoot me.” (Hemingway 826) and “I don’t want to move” (Hemingway 827), and “There is no sense in moving now except to make it easier for you” (Hemingway 827) and “Can’t you let a man die as comfortably as he can without calling him names? “ (Hemingway 827). It sounds as though Harry is surrendering, not so much, since he is a weakling, despite the fact that his wife calls him that, yet more since he feels that, it is more agreeable for him right now to set down and pass on as opposed to sitting tight for a truck or plane that will most likely never arrive. During the rest of the story, Harry has several moments when he feels the proximity of
Although they dream of riches, they begin life in America in poverty. The fictional story of Ragtime accurately depicts history. The story gives a realistic picture of what New York City was like at that time by using fictional and real people and describing events in the book that mirror real life. " Based on the bestseller by E.L. Doctorow, "Ragtime" artfully blends historical events (immigration, the industrial revolution, the birth of the civil-rights movement, women's suffrage and the invention of motion pictures) and historical figures (Henry Ford, Booker T. Washington, Harry Houdini, Emma Goldman, Admiral Perry) with fictional characters to paint a nation in the making in the early 20th century" (Jim Ruth). Ragtime takes place in New York City, during the 1900’s.
... serious crimes could be sentenced to a life of hard labor back in the nineteenth century. In addition, the author demonstrated the life of poor people and the struggles placed upon them. In real life, some people were even so poor that they had to rob graves like Worms did. Finally, some children had to resort to robbing from other living people to help feed themselves like Darkey and Penny. All in all, these events could have actually happened in history.
In the first three sentences of the essay, the speaker adopts a very childlike style. He makes use of simple words and keeps the sentences short, similar in style to that of an early aged teenager. But since the text is written in the past tense and the narrator mentions that he was 'going on thirteen' (181), we know the speaker is now older. After reading a little further, we find that the style becomes more complex, with a more select choice of words and longer sentences. The contrast between simple and complex styles is present all through the rest of the essay, and creates a more personal atmosphere. Another particularity of 'Salvation' is the fact that the story recounts Langston Hughes' own personal experiences as a young boy. This high degree of intimacy allows Hughes to supply the reader with some very concrete details and vivid descriptions. The beauty in Hughes? personal insights lies in their power to reach our senses. We can clearly picture th...
To understand the desperation of wanting to obtain freedom at any cost, it is necessary to take a look into what the conditions and lives were like of slaves. It is no secret that African-American slaves received cruel and inhumane treatment. Although she wrote of the horrific afflictions experienced by slaves, Linda Brent said, “No pen can give adequate description of the all-pervading corruption produced by slavery." The life of a slave was never a satisfactory one, but it all depended on the plantation that one lived on and the mast...
The novel Ragtime, written by E. L. Doctorow, tells the tale of the many hardships that many experienced at this time. During this time there was a vast range of technological advances that caused change in everyday life. Although all of the characters differed in race, gender, and even social class, they all dealt with their changing society in variety of ways. Some flourished and prospered in it, while others had aversion towards it. This time period was known as the “Gilded Age” where America was viewed as a lavish place where anyone could escape poverty and become successful and free. This captivating illusion obscured the truth of what the nation actually contained. It was a time of greed and corruption, of brutal industrial competition and harsh exploitation of labor.
Tennessee Williams brilliantly weaves together plot, symbolism, and dialogue to create a tapestry of imprisonment. It shows that humanity cannot achieve true escape from within itself. True freedom comes only through the saving and redemptive power of the Lord Jesus Christ and God Almighty, as well as through letting go of the past. Christ is the Only One who can truly liberate us from our prison of sinful entrapment and deliver us into His Kingdom of Freedom. “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed,” (John 8:36).
In Langston Hughes’ poem, the author gives us vivid examples of how dreams get lost in the weariness of everyday life. The author uses words like dry, fester, rot, and stink, to give us a picture of how something that was originally intended for good, could end up in defeat. Throughout the play, I was able to feel how each character seemed to have their dreams that fell apart as the story went on. I believe the central theme of the play has everything to do with the pain each character goes thru after losing control of the plans they had in mind. I will attempt to break down each character’s dream and how they each fell apart as the play went on.
Just to quickly run through the two previous books; Harry Potter is a wizard, who’s parents were killed by the worst dark wizard ever known. The reason why Harry Potter is still around, is because Lord Voldemort failed to kill Harry. His spell hit Harry, but then backfired on Voldemort taking all of his powers with him. Harry is so famous for two things. Withstanding the powers of Lord Voldemort, and, taking him back in to the underworld in hiding. In the first book, Harry receives a letter from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. He’s eventually allowed to go, and spends the next six months there learning magic, getting into trouble, and trying to solve mysteries of his past, and the school. In the second book, Harry goes back to his second year at Hogwarts, and gets into more trouble, figures out many astonishing mysteries and learns loads more magic. His best friends in the two books consist of Ron and Hermione (two of his fellow wizard students) and Hagrid the gamekeeper who was expelled from Hogwarts but allowed a job as the gamekeeper.
Hard Rock Returns to Prison from the Hospital for the Criminal Insane is a poem by Knight, Etheridge. The poem is centered on a heroic character named Hard Rock. Knight’s poem is an allegory of oral tradition. The author depicts Hard Rock as a legend to all inmates, as his exploits are well known among the inmates. Because of his defiance, Hard Rock is sent to a Hospital for the Criminal Insane. When he comes back, Hard Rock has been lobotomized and changed into a different man. He is not the strong prisoner the other inmates have heard of, he is a shell of what he used to be with no sight. The poem is just about a hero falling after a lobotomy procedure. The authorities used lobotomy to tame Hard Rock’s rebellion and this was not right.
I was torn by Harry’s negative thoughts. Harry (2010) states, “You are beautiful, but if you’re going to hang around and give me trouble, I’d rather you died (p. 4). In addition, she did not see her daughter for the first 24 hours! A mother’s love for her daughter should always be unconditional. Riding along Harry’s roller coaster of emotions, I was sad and mad at first but then I became understanding of her feelings. Harry sets forth the honest truth of how she felt. She asked questions to the doctor regarding Melanie’s intelligence, while coping with her own fears. I understood the things she said and felt because it was her way of coping and expressing how her ideal story of motherhood and how it had to be rewritten. As Harry questions the doctors, she begins to expose herself to the unfamiliar world. She learns about her daughter 's diagnosis and grows as a person as she reflects on her thoughts. Hence, Harry’s growth as a person has left me feeling grateful that she tells her story the way she does. However, gripping on the last few pages, I was saddened and heartbroken to find out that Melanie had passed away at the age of 5. The way Melanie had died brought out my feelings of fear. It rushed through my body reminding me that my inner deepest fear of working with children is coming across death. If anything happened to the child, I would feel responsible and reminisce endlessly
The Shawshank Redemption by Stephen King is both a wonderful film and a brilliantly written short story. There are many themes represented in each form of The Shawshank Redemption. The one major theme that interests me in both the film and the story is freedom. Freedom serves a large purpose for both the story's writer and the filmmaker. Both use similar examples to signify freedom, not only in the jail, but also in a larger context about life. There are many events and examples in both the film and the short story that signifies the theme of freedom. The one main difference is when the film uses the director’s technique to portray a feel of freedom for the inmates. The overall three issues used in this essay are all linked to the feeling of the inmates feeling the sense of freedom with the prison walls.
The film, “12 Years A Slave” tells an eye opening, very illustrative story of how slavery in the states was a cruel and sickening part of American history. The story follows a once free black man named Solomon Northup, a successful violinist with a family living in the north who gets abducted and forced into the slave trade then sold at an auction. The events that happen throughout the movie elaborate the brutality of slavery on blacks, it shows the effects of slavery on them and also the slave owners, and lastly it depicts how women both black and white were subject to authoritative treatment.
The concept, destruction of identity, in Toni Morrison’s Beloved emphasizes the struggles that the characters had to endure to gain their freedom, constantly reminded of the devastation in the past. It reflects the negative impact that slavery had on everyone, destroying the identities of the characters not , just emotionally, but physically and spiritually as well. Sethe, Baby Suggs, and Paul D. were former slaves who lived in freedom, but were haunted by Beloved’s presence that brought upon suppressed memories and increased their self-alienation from the world. The history of slavery is acknowledged through the different character’s perspectives that tells the story of their dehumanized slave life to get a glimpse of their traumatizing experiences. Through characterization and comparison perspectives, Morrison in Beloved argues that slavery hinders the ability to progress as an individual, but time revitalizes the human spirit which ultimately gives identity to one’s self.
...ck and a potential pitfall. Someone full of hate and greed, such as Tom Marvolo Riddle, who has never known it even once in their entire life, cannot understand its full magical power. Love is one of the hardest and strongest kinds of magic and is perhaps the fabric that holds the wizarding world of Harry Potter together. Dumbledore says to Harry “Do not pity the dead, Harry. Pity the living, and, above all those who live without love” (Harry Potter and the Deathly Halllows 722). The series stresses that it is important to love. It is obvious throughout the series that Harry embraces his history and duty by accepting the soul-purifying act of practicing self-sacrificial love. It is no surprise that the Harry Potter series is so widely in a time of fear, uncertainty, and unrest. Harry defeats evil not by fearing it, but by embracing it and overcoming it with love.