Vonnegut uses satire, from innocent innuendo and wit to burlesque, sarcasm and cosmic irony to attack American society in the 1950’s and 1960’s. These forms of satire can be seen in ‘Miss Temptation’, ‘Welcome to the Monkey House’ and ‘All the Kings Men’. In ‘Miss Temptation’, Susanna’s “diabolical beauty” (75) or evil beauty mad Puritanism to fall “into such disrepair” (75). The innuendo of Vonnegut’s opening sentence attacks the so-called modern thinkers of the day and the ignorance and attitudes of the 1950’s conformist people. Vonnegut compares American civilization to that of the Puritans, who were extremely intolerant of anything different and posses the epitome of conformity. Puritans did not even go to plays or shows, and Susanna was “an actress” (77). The theme of Puritanism and innocent sexual innuendo is carried on throughout the story. Hinkley laments that “all of [his] pleasures are looking at what used to be pleasures” (81). Hinkley along with the rest of the town, find their only enjoyment throughout the day is by watching Susanna’s “tinkling walk” around the town. Suppressed by Puritan attitudes, the townspeople can only enjoy Susanna from afar. Wit is also used in ‘Miss Temptation’, as Susanna uses it against Fuller. Susanna criticizes Fuller and the other “dumb toots” (86) who judge her y her appearance. She could not help it if Fuller wanted to “kiss her” (86) and asks, “whose fault is that?” (86). It was not Susanna’s fault that she was born with “feathery hair” (75) and black eyes. Fuller hated Susanna merely because she was a girl and supposedly made “more people unhappy” (78) than happy. It was not the town that was unhappy with Susanna, but Fuller who felt that “beautiful girls gave [him] a pain” (82). The wit and irony of it all is that Fuller caused Susanna more pain than he ever felt from a girl by excluding her from the human race. Sarcasm is also used in the story. Fuller criticizes American women as being “the greatest actresses in the world” (77), only to “put an ice cube” (77) in a man’s hand. In ‘Welcome to the Monkey House’, Puritan ethics and morals are taken a step farther to outlaw any pleasure including sex, even for reproduction, “thus science and morals go hand in hand” (31). Just like Fuller took the humanness out of Susanna because of her sexuality and sensualness, the ethical suicide parlors and ethical suicide pill took the humanness out of the society as a whole.
In her article “‘But is it any good?’: Evaluating Nineteenth-Century American Women’s Fiction,” Susan Harris provides methods and criteria for examining Women’s Fiction in what she calls “process analysis” (45). To apply Harris’ guidelines to Catherine Maria Sedgwick’s A New England Tale, I must first “acknowledge the ideological basis of [my] endeavor” (45) as a feminist/equalitist critique of the text. Furthermore, I identify the three-fold approach that Harris describes as historical, in distinguishing early nineteenth-century from mid- to late-century attitudes, rhetorical, in labeling Sedgwick’s communication to readers didactic, and ideological, by understanding my objections stem from twenty-first-century attitudes. Harris also explains, “If we look at them as both reactive and creative…we can understand [texts’] aesthetic, moral, and political values” (45); I consider A New England Tale to have a sentimental aesthetic, a Christian morality, and a support of female subordination.
Linda M. Hasselstrom wrote the article “A Peaceful Woman Explains Why she Carries a Gun,” she has a credible argument for carrying a gun because she has experienced many dangerous sexual assaults. Hasselstrom is a journalist who has gun ownership. The audience of this article is the women who want to protect themselves. In the article, Hasselstrom describes many sexual assaults, and she shows that women are always the victims. After that, Hasselstrom explains how she can protect herself by learning kung fu and carrying a gun.
Studies in American Fiction 17 (1989): 33-50.
The Proper Lady and the Woman Writer. Chicago: U of Chicago P. (1984): 121-31. Rpt. in Frankenstein: Contexts, nineteenth century responses, criticism.
The Puritans in London think of themselves as righteous and worthy before God because of their “pure” ways of living. They view other humans that are not in their order vile, unclean, and incapable of God’s true love, even though one message of Christianity states that everyone is God’s children. One instance of this disdain and superiority is when a Puritan makes the statement to the Dog-Woman, “‘Cleanliness is next to Godliness,’” obviously noting her lack of wealth and access to hygienic products; to this she replies, “‘God looks on the heart, not a poor woman’s dress’… but there was no stopping his little sermon, which he gave with his eyes rolled back as piously as a rabbit’s” (Winterson 15). The Dog-Woman reveals to the audience that she is a sinner in her mind, but she still believes that everyone has a chance of being saved by God if they truly wish it. This particular event emphasizing cleanliness and purity, as well as a statement from the Dog-Woman that Preacher Scroggs “makes love to [his wife] through a hole in the sheet… ‘for fear of lust’” (Winterson 22), strongly contradicts the actions that take place in the brothel. For the importance of faithfulness and abstinence from lust, Preacher Scroggs and Neighbor Firebrace commit acts of homosexuality with each other. For the emphasis on cleanliness, they are creative with each other’s bodily fluids in their sexual acts. For the prominence of being faithful to God and having familial love with their fellow men, they burn down the Dog-Woman’s house in the name of Jesus and Oliver Cromwell. In an act of justice for herself and for the death of the king, the Dog-Women sets forth her own means of execution for Preacher Scroggs and Neighbor Firebrace, interrupting their affair and applying her own method of normalizing
The ending paragraph of this chapter perfectly builds up the drive inside the reader to continue this journey by Ishmael’s choice of words, comparison, and imagery until he leaves it up to the reader to decide if they are also driven to the whale hunt. It is a beautiful description that gathers everything the whale is to the protagonist but also establishes the whale as a metaphor for the reader.
I completed my service at OVMC in Wheeling, and my first day at the hospital was pretty scary. I chose to escort patients, stamp parking tickets, and deliver the mail, flowers, and newspapers. I have come to realize that the hospital was not as big as it looked on the outside. I learned the ropes very quickly and soon enough I did not need anyone to show me where to go. I was constantly on my feet and was never bored, unless it was a ve...
I have established a relation with my primary physician, and he has agreed to act as my mentor and help me in any way he can. As odd as it may sound, I feel at home when I am in a hospital, going to medical school and obtaining a position that will allow me to be that figure and do everything in my ability to help others is exactly what I want to do. Gaining insight into the medical field was not only an important step that should be taken before entering graduate school it became a personal goal. I have been volunteering in the Medical Intensive Care Unit at Sutter Medical Center and I am constantly learning new things from all of the staff that I come in contact with. I look forward to going to every shift I have. Although I am not qualified to do many things that the staff do, I do what I am allowed and enjoy every moment of it. This experience that I am going through strengthens my desire to go to medical school. I want to learn more and be able to help others in everyway I am capable of. I know that medical school is a large and hard task and working in any position in the medical field is not always a happy thing, not everyone can be helped or saved. However, you can do your best to keep them comfortable and be a guiding hand during the process. Through every high point and low point I want to be the kind of person who will help make others
Fetterley, Judith. The Resisting Reader: A Feminist Approach to American Literature. Bloomington and London: Indiana University Press, xi-xxiv. Print.
Ever since literature has existed, there has been some arrays of mockery. Whether it be a criticism about a person, an action, or the way people live, there has especially been satire. In the novel, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, Huckleberry Finn, encounters plenty of people and situations that are easy targets to ridicule. Throughout the text, Mark Twain satirizes religious views, hypocrisy, and romantic ideals to expose the real human flaws in southern society.
A Doll’s House and The Importance of Being Earnest were both written in the late nineteenth century at a period in time when gender roles in society were not only significant to the structure of society but were restrictive and oppressive to individuals. This was particularly true in the case of women who were seen as the upholders of morals in polite society and were expected to behave accordingly. A Doll’s House and The Importance of Being Earnest challenge society and its inclination to categorise and expect certain behaviour of individuals based on their gender.
I loved and enjoyed the time I spent there and the people I met. Every day I learned something new and was even able to interact with many patients. I spoke to doctors, nurses, and medical students; they would tell me advice for my future and share their own journey with me. The hospital environment was no longer a foreign place but a place I was able to be comfortable in. Now, I intern at Weill Cornell Medical Center. I look forward on Fridays to return to a hospital environment and to have that rewarding feeling of being able to help someone. To me I feel like I belong in a hospital setting. I had a summer internship at financial banking office two years ago. Although I enjoyed the experience I had, I did not feel a calling to work behind a computer screen for hours on end and do
Guns have always been and always will be a form of protection. A gun is the easiest way to keep the peace. Nothing scares someone more than knowing they could die. There are few people that are not scared of guns. When guns are in the hands of the right people peace will be kept and there are no problems. If a gun is in the hand of the wrong person then there is danger. The best way to stop the wrong person with a gun is a good person with a gun. That is why Americans have concealed carry. Concealed carry is a privilege that Americans have. It allows Americans to carry a handgun secretly in order to protect themselves. In order to obtain a concealed carry permit one has to take and pass a class. In this class people are educated about weapon safety and how to use weapons properly. Concealed carry is one of the greatest privileges someone can have. It is used to save lives. Many Americans have used concealed carry to save themselves and others. One case where concealed carry has saved a life was March 15th of last year. An ex-marine who recently acquired a concealed carry permit was driving home from work early in the morning. While he was driving he saw a man viciously hitting and kicking a woman. He jumped out of his car and drew his weapon. He yelled at the man to stop and pointed his weapon at him. The man st...
I was both excited and scared on my first day. I was curious about everything that I could see, smell and hear. I was excited because everything was new to me. The office was very quiet, all the physicians were concentrate on their work. Everything in the office was organized very well. The equipments were gleaming as they attracted me to touch. The smell of the ink was still dimly in the air. I got a little scared when I stepped into the hallway. It was really crowded, people seem very busy no matter if they were patients or physicians. People were everywhere. It was really easy to pump into someone. Rapid footsteps made flap sounds on the marble floor. The smell of the hospital special antiseptic solutions was very pungent. The call bells in the wards were very sharp, and they were coupled with the red lights in front of the wards and white walls. I had never felt more nervous before. I felt dazed because I had no idea what I could do, but this was piqued my fighting will more. Overall, I like this place. The department where I worked in was called the comprehensive internal medicine ward, and it also included a rheumatology clinic. Though I had volunteered in hospital for a very long time in school, I’ve never got a chance to get in the real business as a volunteer. So I was eager to learn everything. My instructor was a really person. He was near my father’s age, so he took care of me like his daughter....
I have been in many hospitals since the beginning of my short life. The reasons for being there range from medical emergencies to just watching my mother do her job. I can say that being there for medical reasons and just being there, are two completely different feelings. I have no doubt, that these feelings are universal and felt by many people all over the world.