Use of Satire in Canterbury Tales, Pride and Prejudice and The Rape of the Lock Jane Austen and Alexander Pope had had a myriad of writing styles and techniques from which to express the desired themes of their works. Satire, however, seemed to be the effective light-hearted, yet condescending, tool that enabled them to surface the faults and follies of their moral and elite society. In Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, satire is used to the full extent in revealing the glutton within a pious and sacrificing nun, the vain hunter within a poor and meditative monk, and the vulgarity within a honorable woman of society. In Pride and Prejudice and The Rape of the Lock, Austen and Pope use contrasting forms of satire to obtain the same result as Chaucer: to ridicule society's hypocritical and supercilious manner by forcing it to see the absurd truth of what society pretends to be and what it really is. In order to create satire in their literature, Austen and Pope must place an ironic, mocking language in an environment, and allow the language to transform its surroundings into a parody of human moral regression. The essence of satire in Pride and Prejudice and The Rape of the Lock begins with the writer's mocking use of diction, and then spreads to how the characters, tone, and theme of the literature are heightened to a level that identifies with supercilious society. Characters in Pride and Prejudice and The Rape of the Lock are necessary tools in establishing satire within the stories. Austen uses a range of different character types in order to highlight the absurdity of society. For example, Elizabeth Bennet differs greatly from her other sisters and young ladies of Hertfordshire because h... ... middle of paper ... ...rning within society to undermine its flaws. Austen and Pope were great writers and observers of their time, and though they have passed, their writings continue to reveal the hidden follies of humanity. Humanity has not made any extremely valuable changes beside the obvious advancements that are expected through time. However, there will always be literature to magnify humanity's growth and regression, urging its readers to never hide from the truth. Works Cited: Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. Ed. Donald Gray. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1996. Chaucer, Geoffrey. The Canterbury Tales. Norton Anthology of World Masterpieces. Ed Mack, Maynard et al. W. W. Norton and Co. New York, NY. 1992. Pope, Alexander. "The Rape of the Lock". The Norton Anthology of English Literature. Ed. M.H. Abrams et al. 6th ed. Vol. 1. New York: Norton, 1993.
The Regency Period in England was an extravagant era often associated with prominent social, political, economic, and artistic advancements. It took place in the early 1800’s and was a time of much elegance and aristocracy. Movies and books set in this time period all seem to highlight the elegance and romance that was prevalent at the time. Famous Regency Era literary works, such as Pride and Prejudice, portray young English women getting their happily-ever-after endings with their true loves. Unfortunately, such endings did not actually happen to real women of the era because they lived very austere and vapid lives. They hardly had a choice in many of their lives’ decisions and had little to no career options. These women were raised from birth to be lady-like, obedient, and agreeable in order to attract respectable men to marry, as they were fully dependant on men. Women were essentially treated as property passed on from their fathers to their husbands. They had many restrictions placed on them and often weren’t even allowed to walk outside without proper accompaniment. Because the expectations placed on women were so rigid and absurd, some feminist authors from the time ridiculed these social standards in their writing. Famous novelist Jane Austen was known for satirizing many social customs of the Regency Period in her romantic fiction novels, placing a special emphasis on women’s rights. Pride and Prejudice in particular depicted protagonist Elizabeth Bennet as a smart, headstrong, free thinking individual who didn’t let negative outside forces sway her beliefs. In Pride and Prejudice, Austen challenges the social propriety and creates her own ideals for women through Elizabeth Bennet’s independence, intelligence, and stron...
Since Holden is so happy with childhood and so completely turned off by adulthood he fears his inevitable change from youth to adult. He has no positive adult role models and no real interests other than preserving children and he is unable to communicate with anyone other than children. Holden is unable to accept growing up with an open mind. He sees only phoniness, greed, and corruption; it is this narrow-minded idea that is the basis of his problem. He does not see any uncorrupted adults. Once Holden learns that an adult is able to remain pure at heart if so desired, he will be a balanced individual. Unfortunately Holden feels alone in his quest which to him is an impossible mission. Since Holden is telling the story to a psychiatrist it is evident that he is facing his fear. It seems Holden just needed his own “Catcher in the Rye” to help him through his difficult time
Each person is absorbed in their own world, they hardly check on the next person. In the article, The Books of the Times it is stated that, “Holden is bewildered, lonely, ludicrous and pitiful. His troubles, his failings are not of his own making but of a world that is out of joint”(Nash K. Burger). Holden’s only friends are children and even then, he cannot really identify with them. He does not have many friends of his own age, he has no one to confide in. This has also played a major role in the person he is. He has no one he identifies with, however his desolation is partly because of his own doing. Holden pushes people away because he does not want to get too attached to them. He does not want to miss people in the event that they abandon him. Holden’s defense mechanism has caused him to distance himself from other people and miss out on opportunities to build new
Holden is a teenager who refuses to grow up because he is afraid of gaining the responsibilities that come with it. Just like Holden, humans are naturally afraid to face the realities of the adult world. Holden tries to protect himself from the change of losing innocence, he imagining himself “in this big field of rye”,
His fear of children growing up and facing the world drives him to shelter innocence as much as possible, but he is avoiding the problem of growing up instead of facing it. Holden , too, needs to let go of his innocence and face the world instead of having delusions of an ideal world that he wishes for. Antolini quotes Wilhelm Stekel “The mark of the mature man is that he wants to die nobly for a cause, while the mark of the mature man is that he wants to live humbly for one” (Salinger 244) and Holden needs to mature by letting go of his innocence. Children cannot be sheltered from corruption to protect innocence. In order to mature, Children have to grow up and learn themselves that even though adulthood has a dark side, there is also a brighter
Although Alexander Pope's, "The Rape Of The Lock" and Jonathan Swift's "A Modest Proposal" are both witty satires, they differ on their style, intention, and mood.
Use of Satire in Pride and Prejudice & nbsp; & nbsp; Satire is used in Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen to show the deficiencies in morals and ethics of the characters that Austen disapproves of. Satire is used to "attack" characters and to bring about change. The different character types she satirizes are "suck-ups," hierarchical, and/or ignorant. & nbsp; Austen disapproves of Mr. Collins and that is why she attacks and satirizes him. Mr. Collins is a "suck-up." His living with Lady Catherine has caused him to demoralize himself.
England, under James 1st rule was a vastly altered period compared to our now modern society. So many of the values held during this time, have now been discarded and forgotten. Jane Austen grew up in the Romantic period and experienced a world which was divided, whether through education, class, status, fashion, abilities, gender and etiquette. Her novel, Pride and Prejudice is counted as one of the great classics of English Literature. Austen engrosses readers to live in her world for a time and experience a society filled with matchmaking, romance, marriage and gossip. Every one of her characters is so distinctive and has a clearly outlined caricature. Each of their diverse values conveys a different thinking of the time. Pride and Prejudice is preoccupied with the gentry and most of the social aspects which consumed these people’s lives. There were so many expectations of how you would behave in public, but of course not all of these were upheld. Elizabeth Bennet, Mr Darcy, Mrs Bennet and Charlotte Lucas are four characters which keep such strong beliefs about the social norms. These characters are expressed so descriptively and through their personalities readers can learn just how the numerous social standards were received.
Chaucer, Geoffrey. The Canterbury Tales. Norton Anthology of World Masterpieces. Ed Mack, Maynard et al. W. W. Norton and Co. New York, NY. 1992.
Even after its publication in 1813 Jane’s Austen’s romantic and wonderfully written masterpiece, Pride and Prejudice, remains an absolute joy to read for thousands and thousands of readers across the globe. The 19th century novel enchants the youngest of readers to the wisest of souls. Many individuals all over the world, very much like us as university students here at Villanova, are quite intrigued by the amazingly created characters, impressively dynamic portrayal of an oppressively class-bound culture, and the vitality of a strong woman at the center of the novel. Jane Austen presents the reader with the most tantalizing and illustrious opening sentence, which enamors the reader and never lets go. "It is a truth universally acknowledged,
Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. Ed. Donald Gray. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2001.
Throughout the history of literature there have been many connections made between writers and their reoccurring styles of writing found in each of their literary works. Jane Austen is only one example of this type of author who exemplifies a style of repetition by using repetitious themes. Theme is a very important literary element in any piece of literature. Themes teach the reader a life lesson, often times lending advice or a point of view. In Jane Austen’s novel, Pride and Prejudice, she uses themes which can also be found in other pieces of literature written by Austen. These themes deal with the subjects of; marriage, good breeding and appearances, social rank and morals, and happiness. In the novel Pride and Prejudice Austen uses different literary elements including; satire, irony and humor in order to support these themes. In addition to using these elements Austen also supports her themes through the actions and opinions of different characters. One very prevalent theme found in this novel is marriage which can be shown through the characters of; Elizabeth Bennet, Jane Bennet, Mrs. Bennet Charlotte Lucas and Lydia Bennet.
“He is a gentleman, and I am a gentleman 's daughter. So far we are equal” (Austen 51). Jane Austen was an acute observer of the Georgian era society that she lived in, through her observations, she began to notice many flaws, especially in the treatment of women. With her love of writing and social awareness, Austen decided to combine both together to create some of the most famous works of literature. As seen in Austen’s novel, Pride and Prejudice and others, Austen uses realism, an upper class voice, and an ironic tone to deliver her underlying message of feminism to the gentry of the Georgian era.
Austen, Jane. Pride and Prejudice. Ed. Donald Gray. New York: WW Norton &. Company, 1996.
In Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice,” through strong characters she demonstrates how prejudice between social classes blinds the heart from falling in love. Austen’s flawless utilization of characterization and her ideas of society and class develop a timeless love story that invites the heart to become consumed with love. Each device that Austen uses paints a vivid picture in the readers mind and helps the plot of the story unfold. The characters that Austen uses each play a huge role in how the story will end and add suspense and interest while reading the entire novel.