The Monkey Wrench Gang, written by Edward Abbey, is a fictional piece of literature advocating environmental issues and radical anarchism. “We can have wilderness without freedom,” Abbey said. “We can have wilderness without human life at all; but we cannot have freedom without wilderness”(xvi). The Monkey Wrench Gang was set in 1975, after the Vietnam War and the Watergate scandal. There was a new sense of environmental awareness in the seventies enforced by the Federal government, including The National Environmental Policy, Clean Air Act, Endangered Species Act, and the Water Pollution Control Act (wiki). Abbey spent a majority of his life defending and living for environmental justice of the American Southwest. The Monkey Wrench Gang …show more content…
The reader is drawn into the intensity of the situations and the personalities of each individual as the adventure highlights socially and politically controversial issues. Abbey incorporated several themes within the book, such as Environment and the industry, the effect of industry on the environment, radical environmentalism, and social conflict between the characters, culture, and motivation to save the land from its enemy. The Monkey Wrench Gang said, “It’s our duty” and “We’re going to be heroes”(189), advocating for environmental justice. Edward Abbey’s, Monkey Wrench Gang consists of the old liberal doctor, the Bronx’s own feminist Bonnie Azzbug, the Mormon river guide, and the outspoken Vietnam Vet Hayduke. Dr. Sarvis is depicted as the wise old doc with the financial means to fund the trip and just incase, a great lawyer. Often, Dr. Sarvis’ head is held high on his shoulders insisting no weapons, no violence and “anarchy isn’t the answer”(74). Previous to the trip, Doc and Bonnie would protest polluting the scenery of the Southwest by burning billboards along highway 66 during the night. When the group needed to purchase their supplies they didn’t want to appear as a …show more content…
In the beginning of the book Abbey mentions industrial expansion of dams, power lines, power plants, bridges, railroads, pipelines, copper smelters, roads, campgrounds and tourism, mines, cars, and machines. Doc compares industrialism to cancer as he rants, “A planetary industrialism-growing like a cancer. Growth for the sake of growth”(64). Abbeys descriptions of the construction machines was always portrayed as a large monster allowing the reader to see the entirety of the potential size and destruction, The reference to industrialism was always portrayed as a negative operation. When the group raided the Comb Wash mine, they referred to the machines as “Iron
A)Socialization/page 67: The process by which people learn the characteristics of their group- the knowledge, skills, attitudes, values, norms, and actions thought appropriate for them.
...his antagonist proves to be their own inner character which determines the trajectory of their decisions. As they all become aware, the consequences of their decisions prove to have an extensive impact on themselves and those around them.
The conch shell represents democracy, power and stability. When Ralph first discovers the conch shell, Piggy proposes to Ralph that they, “…can use this to call the others. Have a meeting. They’ll come, when they hear us” (16) and that was the birth of the conch shell. Throughout meetings that are held at the beach, the conch is used as a “speaking stick”. After Jack separates himself from the rest of the tribe, Ralph barges into the camp and attempts to use the conch shell to gather up his former tribe mates. The boys say that th...
When they are first stranded on the island, the boys use the conch to symbolize order and democracy. The boys use the conch to call assemblies and meetings and only the boy with the conch is allowed to speak. The conch comes to represent the boys’ civilization. As the book goes on, the boys begin to disobey the “conch rules”, and this leads to most of the boys becoming savages. They disobeyed the conch rules by speaking
The Industrial Revolution in Great Britain is recognized as a period of great industrial capitalism, machine development, and emergence of the working class.1 The growth of factories began shortly after Richard Arkwright patented the spinning frame in 1769.2 Factories allowed for hundreds of unskilled workers to find jobs running machines and drastically changed their lifestyles as jobs moved away from rural areas. The putting-out system, where jobs were subcontracted, slowly came to an end because work became centralized in factories. 3 Few industries continued on with domestic manufacturing such as the iron industry. At the height of the Industrial Revolution, few laws had been passed to protect all workers.
In the novel, Lord of the Flies, by William Golding, a group of British schoolboys are stranded on an island, and soon find that fending for themselves and staying civilized is not as easy as they thought it would be. Although they start off with an organized society, through interactions with each other and objects around them, they become completely savage over time. Golding employs the symbolism of Jack, the conch shell, and the beast to serve the purpose of the allegory of the inherent evil of the human race.
Besides Johnson’s obvious personification of the animals, his use of metaphors and imagery strengthened the plots theme. When Tilford returned to the shoppe, no animal dared make a sound. Even Berkeley stood in his tracks and waited upon Tilford’s next move, but he never expected Tilford to praise him for the chaos that ensued while he was absent. “Reaching down, he stroked Berkeley’s head. And at last he said, like God whispering to Samuel: Well done” (Johnson 349). The image of Tilford being analogous to God is fitting, given the governing power he represents throughout the story. Johnson’s use of not only this metaphor, but also this image of God reigning down his wrath upon his people only to praise them for an unlikely outcome allows the reader to make real-world connections. Likewise, it creates a comforting image of Tilford rather than a cold and political portrait. The point of view of this story remains third person omniscient; the story is told from an outside voice, but it also feels as if the narrator could be God himself. Each animal’s thoughts are projected perfectly into the story, showing the many differing perspectives revealed when authority is absent. “Menagerie” also uses Tortoise to foreshadow the complete anarchy to come. As Berkeley and his foil, Monkey, worked to free all the animals, each animal darted out of their cages except for Tortoise, who remained solitary within his cage. “Tortoise had escaped the year before, remaining at large for a week, and then he returned mysteriously on his own, his eyes strangely unfocused, as if he’d seen the end of the world” (Johnson 346). Tortoise’s escape reveals the reason behind his desire to remain submissive throughout the whole conundrum; He saw a world without a master and decided he wanted to be without chaos. In Tortoise’s leave of absence, he recognized the people outside the Pet
This confusion can be seen in two reports from separate journals that differ greatly--so much so that the ability to attribute them to the same issue seems unlikely and unrealistic. William Alexander Abram, a journalist and historian in the 1860’s, wrote an article about the vast improvements made during the industrialization process (Doc 6). Abram specifically mentions the Hours of Labor in Factories Act of 1844 that prohibited excessively long work days. Additionally, Abram mentioned the increased wages and the subsequent increase quality of life. Abram attempts to justify any issues with the industrialization by addressing the new, more spacious cotton mill and the lower sickness and mortality rates. Abram describes the positive forces that arose during the industrialization to outweigh the mass concerns people had about the laboring class’s working conditions. This positive opinion is counteracted by an image included in a magazine from the 1870’s that shows the visual of a bridge and its surrounding factories at the time (Doc 7). The Graphic, a weekly magazine that dealt with social issues, included the view from Blackfriars bridge over the River Irwell that contained the numerous factories concentrated in the one location. The Graphic was famously influential within the art world for its use of imagery and attempt to conquer grand social issues with art. The factories are all emitting gas and the general conditions of the streets and buildings is less than ideal. This negative portrayal of the industrialization sheds a different light on the effects of industrialization. Between these two conflicting articles, it is difficult to see the true extent of the industrializations process’s benefits and harms. This uncertainty also supports the proposed
The technological aspect of the industrial revolution is the development of machines which are used in industries for instance the Slatter’s mill founded for the milling of cotton (Library of Congress).
The Industrial Revolution began in England during the late 1700s, and by the end of its era, had created an enormous amount of both positive and negative effects on the world in social, economic, and even political ways. The revolution began to spread across the world, raising the standard of life for the populations in both Europe and North America throughout the 1800s. However, even with all of its obvious benefits, its downsides are nonnegotiable, forcing workers into horrendous living and working conditions, all inside of unkempt cities. While some might argue that Industrialization had primarily positive consequences for society because of the railroad system, it was actually a negative thing for society. Industrialization’s
In the world of economic competition that we live in today, many thrive and many are left to dig through trashcans. It has been a constant struggle throughout the modern history of society. One widely prescribed example of this struggle is Upton Sinclair's groundbreaking novel, The Jungle. The Jungle takes the reader along on a journey with a group of recent Lithuanian immigrants to America. As well as a physical journey, this is a journey into a new world for them. They have come to America, where in the early twentieth century it was said that any man willing to work an honest day would make a living and could support his family. It is an ideal that all Americans are familiar with- one of the foundations that got American society where it is today. However, while telling this story, Upton Sinclair engages the reader in a symbolic and metaphorical war against capitalism. Sinclair's contempt for capitalist society is present throughout the novel, from cover to cover, personified in the eagerness of Jurgis to work, the constant struggle for survival of the workers of Packingtown, the corruption of "the man" at all levels of society, and in many other ways.
Character Development in Edward Abbey's The Monkey Wrench Gang. Search and Rescue, Utah State Police, and Bishops of the Church of Latter-Day Saints chase a group of bridge destroying, billboard burning, bulldozer mutilating eco-terrorists through the desert of the Southwest. The group known as the Monkey Wrench Gang consists of four very different characters: Seldom Seen Smith, also known as Joseph Smith, George Washington Hayduke, Doctor A. K. Sarvis, and Bonnie Abbzug. Each character has his own opinion of why nature needs to be saved. The group decides to make their mark on nature by "taking care" of the different machines, roads and bridges that are destroying it.
The fall of Saigon, the capital of South Vietnam, fell to North Vietnamese force on 30 April 201. This event marked the end of the Vietnam War. On this day Vietnam encounters the largest exodus of immigrants as Vietnam governed by the communist regime. Lan Cao in her novel Monkey Bridge reflects the struggle of the Vietnamese Americans immigrants in America. Lan Cao was born in Vietnam in 1961 and moved to live in America when she was thirteen years old as a result of the Vietnam War. Her novel Monkey Bridge published in 1997, it is a semi-autobiographical story of a mother and her daughter who leave Vietnam and settled in the United States. It considers to be the first novel by a Vietnamese American about the war experience. Monkey Bridge has two narrators. Mai one and a half generation Vietnamese American teenager, who run off to America when Saigon falls in 1975, and her mother, Thanh, who manages to join her daughter a few months later. Mai aims to help her mother to overcome her past. On the other hand, Thanh fells that by keeping her daughter away from the truth of their shameful history, she can protect her from having the same pain and sorrow that she once had. Thanh’s inability to achieve reconciliation with her past and her inability to assimilate in the new world leads her to commit suicide, leaving a message for her daughter to tell her the truth about her past.
Industrial Revolution, which took place over much of the nineteenth century, had many advantages. It provided people with tools for a better life; people were no longer dependent on the land for all of their goods. The Industrial Revolution made it possible for people to control nature more than they ever had before. However, now people were dependent on the new machines of the Industrial Age (1). The Revolution brought with it radical changes in the textile and engine worlds; it was a time of reason and innovations. Although it was a time of progress, there were drawbacks to the headway made in the Industrial Revolution. Granted, it provided solutions to the problems of a world without industry. However, it also created problems with its mechanized inventions that provided new ways of killing. Ironically, there was much public faith in these innovations; however, these were the same inventions that killed so many and contributed to a massive loss of faith. These new inventions made their debut in the first world war (2) ).
The story clearly illustrates that when one thinks of their ideal lifestyle they mainly rely on their personal experience which often results in deception. The theme is conveyed by literary devices such as setting, symbolism and iconic foreshadowing. The abolition of slavery was one step forward but there are still several more steps to be made. Steps that protect everyone from human trafficking and exploitation. Most importantly, racism is something that needs to stop, as well as providing equal opportunity to all without discrimination.