This particular passage was chosen because it details the climactic moment within Mishima’s novella where Noboru and his friends, acting on their sense of betrayal by Ryuji, lure him to an abandoned military based on the pretext of hearing him recount stories of his life at sea, and end by poisoning him. This extract encapsulates a great deal of the thematic concerns and literary motifs which are present in the main body of the narrative, and brings the entire work to an abstract, almost mystical, resolution. I will attempt to demonstrate how certain aspects of this work may pertain to certain events in the author’s life, and how the spectre of the authors own meticulously planned suicide a few years later resides in the highly ritualised death …show more content…
Here it is possible that Mishima is using the imagery of Fusako’s tears as a counterpoint to the notion of the Grand Cause, something that would lead him to a ‘life bereft of motion’. However, this in itself is not certain. The ‘gallant women’s tears’ may in fact refer to an abstract concept of The Sea, as a woman whose ‘sweet heavy power’ propels him towards the ‘pinnacle of manliness’. The notion of manliness is something which features heavily throughout the novel- it is the reason why the Noboru and his friends at first admire Ryuji, yet conversely, after learning that he is in fact a romantic, it is also the reason why they murder him. Manliness is something that was incredibly important for Mishima, who spent his entire life concealing his latent, closeted homosexuality through practising masculine and manly pursuits such as martial arts and militarism. Yet Ryuji’s masculine desire, his ‘dark longing’, for what we can only presume is a heroic death at sea is made impossible by his decision to marry. It is difficult to ascertain where the author’s allegiance lies. A few years later, after attempting a fascistic coup d’état, Yukio Mishima committed Seppuka (ritual suicide) after his own deranged, sentimental, archaic notions on the progression of Japanese society were rejected. With the benefit of hindsight, this fact of his biography may suggest that the author’s own end was a realisation of his character’s …show more content…
Initially, it serves the purpose of reminding the reader of the youth, and perhaps naivety, of the group of young boys- that their perverted sense of justice and their ideal of ‘objectivity’ is merely a product of their childishness. Yet, conversely, when we examine the Leader’s question in more detail- the meaning is changed entirely. Three words, no added pleasantries, or unnecessary language- only what is required to trick the victim into drinking the poison which will kill him. It is the essence of objectivity. The leader does not say something unless it is necessary to their cause and this suggests that these boys- dismissed, as simple children by all of the adults around them, possess more cunning and intelligence than the rest of the
...ile the war is still happening. The lack of freedom and human rights can cause people to have a sad life. Their identity, personality, and dignity will be vanish after their freedom and human right are taking away. This is a action which shows America’s inhuman ideas. It is understandable that war prison should be put into jail and take away their rights; but Japanese-American citizen have nothing to do with the war. American chooses to treat Jap-American citizen as a war prisoner, then it is not fair to them because they have rights to stay whatever side they choose and they can choose what ever region they want. Therefore, Otasuka’s novel telling the readers a lesson of how important it is for people to have their rights and freedom with them. People should cherish these two things; if not, they will going to regret it.
The physical effects of war overwhelm the naïve causing pain and suffering. Initially, war entangles the lives of youth, destroying the innocence that they experience as an aspect of their life. The girl “glid[ing] gracefully down the path” (1) and the boy “rid[ing] eagerly down the road” (9) have their enjoyable realities striped by the harshness of war. Likewise, war enters women’s lives creating turmoil. The woman who works “deftly in the fields” ( ) no longer is able to experience the offerings of life. The “wire cuts,” ( ) pushing her away from the normal flow of life. In addition, man undergoes tragic obstacles as a result of war. “A man walks nobly and alone” ( ) before the horrible effects of war set in on his life causing disruptions. War enters the life of man destroying the bond man shares with his beloved environment ( ).
This opening paragraph is a simple, poetic version of the main theme behind All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Maria Remarque. The point of the story is to show that war is not romantic, glorious, or fantastic. In fact, those words could not be further from the truth. War is a disgusting competition of human instinct, fought by the wrong people. It brings out the worst in everyone; it destroys their compassion, honesty, and ideals. The beginning chapters of All Quiet on the Western Front are devoted to showing that warfare hardens soldiers against true emotions. Their main priority is survival, second is comfort, followed by gain.
By doing so, Okuizumi seamlessly asserts his political standpoint while reminding the audience that although it may be possible to bury traumatic experiences, the memories could always lurk in the dark. Instead of chronological portrayal of Manase’s life before and after the war, Okuizumi intelligently switches the narrative back and forth within Manase’s seemingly contented yet actually distorted domestic life, ruined by his mysteriously excessive obsession over stone collection. If the narrative were to simply begin with Manase’s wartime experience in the Philippines and end with the tragic deaths of his tow sons, or vice versa, the audience would not be able to fully appreciate those haunting and overwhelming traumatic moments that Manase underwent. Perhaps by taking the words of the dying Lance Corporal as a sort of remedy for his horrifying military experience, Manase deliberately suppresses the agonizing memories from the war. However, as Manase never makes an effort to resolve his fear for the haunted past, he ends up losing grip of reality, and the unsolved trauma ends up shaping the tragedies that happened to his
Harvest Of Shame, an interesting and touching black and white documentary from the early 1960’s, documents and exposes the deploring lives of thousands of American migrant cultural workers narrated and dissected by one of the best and first American broadcast journalists called Edward Roscoe Murrow. The principal objective of this movie is not only to show the poor and miserable lives that all of these people live, but to let all the other Americans who are above these workers on the social and wealth scale know that the people who pick up their fruits, vegetables, and grains have no voice, no power, and no help to battle the inequities and mistreatment they receive.
According to Merriam-Webster's online dictionary, satire is "a literary work holding up human vices and follies to ridicule or scorn." When examining satire of the Renaissance, one has to wonder what a man like Erasmus of Rotterdam would think of today's world, politically and morally speaking. Would a man like Erasmus, who was so outspoken in his own time, be able to stand aside and let the folly flow freely? Where are the Erasmus' of our own time, and who will stand against our government, churches, and other powerful organizations for what is right, even if it requires speaking out against the actions and agendas of these very powerful entities? In Erasmus' Praise of Folly, Erasmus is a staunch adversary of folly within the church and politics of the day. If Erasmus were alive today, he would not only enjoy the freedom of speech which is taken for granted by many today, but he would surely espouse himself to any variety of modern day follies within American politics and the American Catholic church. Especially when it comes to the gross misappropriation the American budget, and the fact that evangelicals across the country supported George W. Bush, a president who has cost not only thousands of lives, but billions of dollars on a war that may have been unnecessary, Erasmus would have not only been disgusted and outraged, but he would have indeed spoken against these modern day follies. Erasmus, were he alive today, would have acted as a quintessential representative for many people who have lost faith in American churches and American government.
Yukio Mishima’s Temple of the Golden Pavilion represents the hardships, evil, and rebirth throughout the timeline of the war and after, creating the individual experience and perspective of a young man fighting his own personal, internal wars. This is highlighted through first person accounts of brutal acts of military officials and the contrast of the beauty in
Saikaku, Ihara. Life of a Sensuous Woman. The Longman Anthology of World Literature. (Vol. D) Ed. Damrosch. New York: Pearson, 2004. 604-621. [Excerpt.]
Another attribute to the story is the insight which the third person narrator offers to the reader regarding the sailors' state of mind. Particularly interesting, is the reference to the poem "Bingen on the Rhine". Until the correspondent must contemplate his own death on the cold and desolate seas, he does not realize the tragedy of a soldier of the legion dying in Algiers. Also, not only did he not realize the significance, he says that, "it was less to him than the breaking of a pencil's point"(385). Again, towards the end of the story, the narrator describes the bitterness the correspondent feels towards nature when he realizes that after all his efforts he may not live to appreciate his being. Observations such as these are not encountered frequently until confronted with death and the conveyance of these thoughts is insightful and meaningful to the reader.
The character, Miss Sasaki, who was left trapped, disabled and severely injured, by the dropping of the bomb suffered more in the long haul, from the emotional impact than just the physical destruction alone. Not only was she physically disabled, but also emotionally disabled, as the overwhelming feeling of being hopeless is a permanent psychological scar on the brain. Being unable to walk properly for the remainder of her life, Miss Sasaki, knew that she would no longer be able to provide for her family anymore; in Japanese cultural the honor of their family is of utmost importance, similar in nature to radical religious groups. Also of Japanese cultural priorities, were that of marriage. In Japan, women who were married were looked upon with higher statue and class. Miss Sasaki knew that her chances of getting married now had been reduced and for a woman of this time, that realization, also leaves damaged emotional baggage within herself. All of the aforementioned, left Miss Sasaki depressed for years to come and ultimately left her a permanent emotional scar affecting the rest of her life. By including the accounts of Miss Sasaki, in this book, John Hersey, exposes to the readers, that atomic warfare not only affects the human body physically for years to come but also
Saikaku, Ihara. Life of a Sensuous Woman. The Norton Anthology of World Literature. 3rd Ed. Volume D. Ed. Martin Puchner. New York: Norton, 2013. 591-611. Print.
One must look at this poem and imagine what is like to live thru this experience of becoming so tired of expecting to die everyday on the battlefield, that one starts to welcome it in order to escape the anticipation. The effects of living day in and day out in such a manner creates a person who either has lost the fear of death or has become so frighten of how they once lived the compensate for it later by living a guarded life. The one who loses the fear for death ends up with this way of living in which they only feel alive when faced with death. The person in this poem is one who has lost their fear of death, and now thrives off coming close to it he expresses it when he states “Here is the adrenaline rush you crave, that inexorable flight, that insane puncture” (LL.6-7). What happens to this persona when he leaves the battlefield? He pushes the limit trying to come close to death to feel alive; until they push
With exaggeration, authors craft their writing to have an even greater, more impactful effect on their audiences. This enhanced effect found in Candide serves the purpose of highlighting how humans adopt a type of absolute viciousness and inhumanity in times of war. One example is the instance where Candide - a member of the Bulgar army, at the time - must choose between being “flogged” by the entirety of the military command, or to endure “twelve bullets in his brain” (24). Here, Candide is given a nonsensical, almost ludicrous, ultimatum. Voltaire offers an embellished example that serves to demonstrate the barbaric military practices that come with war. Being a recurring aspect of war, Candide is, essentially, forced to choose between death and death. In fact, along with exaggeration, Voltaire satirizes war even further as the choice of whether it be a gradual or speedy demise is Candide’s own luxury. Voltaire does not just simply antagonize the ramifications of war, but rather, he ridicules all facets of war. Another example within Candide is when the Old Woman reveals the story of her own life as proof of the grim hardship that she too has experienced. In the midst of another battle, “one buttock” was cut off of the live bodies of every woman present in the interest of feeding the starving soldiers (56).
In Alexander Pope’s poem “Elegy to the Memory of an Unfortunate Lady,” Pope uses a great amount of war-like imagery to enhance his vision of the suicide described. He creates allies and enemies, weapons and invasions, as well as the gruesome death that only seems to come from war. These pieces add to the overall meaning of the work and the vision of the event that has occurred, giving the reader an image of a battle occurring.
However, even though the terms being used are grotesque and seem to describe beasts, the very conditions being described are so humanly in their nature that it cannot possibly be all dehumanizing. In this chapter, the protagonist is the fallen friend of Dong-Ho named, Jeong-dae, describing his experience as a soul post-death and the scene that followed his murder. The imagery he looks down as a fallen soul he describes in detail, “I’d lost so much blood that my heart finally stopped, the blood had continued to drain from my body, leaving the skin of my face transparent as writing paper” (51). The narrator himself describes his appearance as comparable to objects rather than a human and thus the interpretation that these words and scenes are dehumanizing is easy to understand. However, blood, heart, skin, face, body, even stench from the deceased, the limpness of a dead body, the convulsions that follow a blunt force trauma, all of these are human features and characteristics. These are the reactions and affects of trauma that any human would experience and it is clearly distinct form that of an animal because it is able to be talked about an communicated in language form souls or from others seeing it. Through these descriptions and graphic scenes, the author is humanizing the victims and allowing all readers to hear and feel the horrors that is the effects of war and violence on the human