Personal Freedom and Nonconformity in Kobo Abe's Novels
“No man or woman is wooed by theory alone.” (WITD 32)
In declaiming the ability to woo by theory, Kobo Abe betrays his desire to do exactly that. Trained as a physician, Abe has a mindset which leans toward the scientific method: one of hypothesis, experiment, result, and conclusion. In this case, the original hypothesis posed that a man could woo by theory alone, the experiment was the attempt of a wooing guided by theoretical principles, the result a failure, and the conclusion drawn is that such a wooing is not possible, disproving the original hypothesis. We see in this procedure not only Abe’s predilection for theory and introspection, but we also are provided a glimpse at the motivations of a man who would initially believe in a theory of wooing, a concept which to many might seem an obvious contradiction. His novels, indeed, is rife with the contradictions that have been Abe’s trademark, and it is in his attempt to unify these various contradictions to prove a common theme of personal freedom and nonconformity that the novels gain the greater part of its power.
In The Woman in the Dunes, Abe describes the nature of reality: the individual reality, wherein it ultimately springs forth from the unconscious mind, and the social reality, where the individual reality, at least in terms of its manifestation, can be either suppressed or encouraged by the type of society in which the individual lives and works. It is a complex attempt to unify these two realities, and to reach a sort of accord whereby the individual self can find expression and participate in a meaningful manner in the social reality. In other words, he is attempting to bridge that chasm, the gap that separates the constricting perception of day-to-day social reality from the larger and far less stable absolute reality, of which the day-to-day social reality is but one small part.
Abe deals with these themes through the image of the sand. The sand is formless, and yet it becomes a barrier blocking the protagonist’s attempts at escape. It sucks moisture from his body, but also traps it, causes wood to rot, and, in the final pages of the story, becomes a massive water pump. Abe uses sand imagery as a means to convey both the absurdity of the social day-to-day reality as well as a means by which an almost Zen-like meditative state is induced in the protagonist, through which he may achieve a higher level of consciousness.
Hemingway, Ernest. "Hills like White Elephants." Responding to Literature. Ed. Judith Stanford. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2006. 841-44. Print.
In a well-written short story, different literary elements and terms are incorporated into the story by the author. Ernest Hemingway frequently uses various literary elements in his writing to entice the reader and enhance each piece that he writes. In Hills Like White Elephants, Hemingway uses symbols to teach the reader certain things that one may encounter during daily life. Symbolism may be defined as relating to, using, or proceeding by means of symbols (Princeton). The use of symbols in Hills Like White Elephants is utterly important to the plot line and to the fundamental meaning of the story. Through this use of symbolism, the reader can begin to reveal the hidden themes in this short story.
"Do any human beings ever realize life while they live it, every, every minute?" Are humans ever able to realize life? Are they able to " comprehend completely or correctly [?]" "Webb" Gibbs is only able to mutter this statement after her eyes are opened to the truth. Emily's eyes were not even opened after her death. She was just able to see after a flashback and relive one special day in her past. She realizes what life really is after watching all the hustle and bustle that takes place even on her 12th birthday. Thornton Wilder has written Our Town to show the downfall of western society, i.e. "organized religion." Religion is highly regarded in Grover's Corners. " Over there is the Congregational church; across the street is the Presbyterian. Methodist and Unitarian are over there. Baptist is down in the holla by the river. Catholic Church is over there beyond the tracks." Is this far from the reality shown in society today? Organized religion is one of the largest contributors to self-suffering, violence, and ignorance. Religion, along with other minuscule
In an expressive voice, Ms. Angelou paints a memorable picture of a small black community anticipating graduation day fifty-five years ago. She describes the children as trembling "visibly with anticipation" and the teachers being "respectful of the now quiet and aging seniors." Although it is autobiographical, an omniscient voice in the first six paragraphs describes how "they" - the black children in Stamps - felt and acted before the omniscient voice changes to a limited omniscient narration in the seventh paragraph. Her eloquent voice skillfully builds the tension as she demonstrates bigotry destroying innocence.
Bill Miller of the short story “Neighbors” is described as a confused and weak person as he attempts to live the life of his neighbors, the Stones. In “Hills Like White Elephants,” the antagonist, Jig, is optimistic and confident. However, Bill and Jig are not completely different from each other, not just about their genders, but also the ways that they feel about situations and themselves. The reader can see the change of Bill and Jig as the stories gets told. In the end of the
Maya Angelou tells her story of coming to age from her perspective as a child until the age of 17, when she gave birth to her son. In the title and dedication of Angelou’s autobiography, Angelou relates her story to the metaphor of a caged bird as she encountered racism and oppression throughout her adolescent years and further relates it to a specific audience as she dedicates it to her son “and all the strong black birds of promise.” She uses this metaphor to illustrate her message of hope, that despite any situation, Black children can become strong, independent individuals and strive for success. Angelou provides detailed accounts of specific instances in her life where she overcame cruelty, and relates it to the metaphor of “strong black birds of promise.”
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One can analyze the story of “Hills Like White Elephants,” in the form of the structuralist perspective by using the system of binary oppositions. Robert DiYanni states in the text “Literature Approaches to Fiction, Poetry, and Drama,” that “Structuralist critics find all kinds of opposition in literature, from small scale elements, such as letters and syllables; through symbols, such as light and dark; to motions or directions (up and down)... places (inside and outside)... to elements of plot and character , such as changes of feeling and reversals of fortune” (1583). In addition, Isaiah Smithson’s definition of structuralist criticism supports Robert DiYanni’s statement. He defines it as “A method of analyzing phenomena, as in anthropology, linguistic, psychology, or literature, chiefly characterized by contrasting the elemental structures of the phenomena in a system of binary oppositions” (Smithson 145). Also, one can use Richard Webster’s definiti...
Humor is not only to entertain, but “to convey with impunity messages that might be dangerous or impossible to state directly” as argued by Alain de Botton, a Swiss philosopher, writer, and television presenter. Humorists sometimes use their platform in order to send their arguments and/or messages across. Because they say things in a joking matter, they are able to touch upon a topic, which at times can be inappropriate or politically incorrect, and give their opinions and comments while they come out of the argument and the fight with minor scratches. Many subjects such as, sexual orientation and race, are just a few of the topics humorists talk about, which make them a vital function in society.
It is also a novel in which the nature of the landscape determines the psyche and the actions of its protagonists. Indeed, the 'sands' can be said to be the dominant character of the whole book.
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...orce the good behaviour with rewards and decrease the likelihood of negative behaviour being repeated. The structured discipline of both parents and teachers help the child to appreciate that good behaviour is much more beneficial than bad behaviour but without this structure in one or both of these settings, could lead to the child not understanding, leading to it being much more difficult to correct behaviour that isn't wanted without resorting to drastic measures of physical or psychological punishment that would do more harm than good. Further research into helping the children in these sort of circumstances would be much more beneficial to the topic of child behaviour and punishment.
Hemingway, Ernest. “Hills Like White Elephants.” The Norton Introduction to Literature. 10th ed. Eds. Alison Booth and Kelly J. Mays. New York: Norton, 2010. 113-117. Print.
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Matthew Arnold uses diction and imagery to produce the themes of alienation and self discovery in the poems: "Dover Beach" and "The Buried Life."