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Essays on symbolism in literature
Importance of symbolism in literature
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Eudora Welty's The Ponder Heart: A Romance Parody
Jennifer Lynn Randisi's book, A Tissue of Lies, explores several of Welty's works. Chapter III of this book takes a close look at the Southern Romance in Welty's novel, The Ponder Heart. In her essay Randisi writes that Welty's novel can be seen as an "ironic myth or romance parody" (57).
This idea of ironic myth or romance parody comes from Northrop Frye's definition of"myth as an imitation of ritual (e.g. plot)" (57). Randisi continues to say that
the events of the story comprise a quest, but one that recounts events
leading to isolation rather than reconciliation, revealed through what the
reader comes to know and what Edna Earle cannot see (that is, what she
has edited from her perceptions). (57)
The distance, or isolation, Edna Earle finds at the end of her quest, which is the telling of her and her family's story, is the alienation of her audience.
This alienation is more thoroughly explained by examining different elements of Southern Romance. These elementsare, regional myth surrounding the Southern character,
geographic legend [historical legend], family myth (here incorporating a preoccupation with identity in relation to name), acceptance of the authority of the narrative voice,
repetition of incident, belief in the ability of language to order chaos, and
the ultimate need to create a romance. (58)
Randisi makes a very well articulated argument that the novel contains elements of a declining Southern Romance through this "romance parody" (57) theory. She brings to light elements of Edna Earle as a "respectable Southerner" (60), and elaborates on the family myth, which also plays its part in the "respectable Southerner" (60) motif. She successfully demonstrates how the appearance of being a wealthy and generous family is important to the Southern Romance tradition. She then goes on to show that for Edna's story to be believable, readers (listeners) first must accept Edna Earle as a voice of authority; and then readers must recognize that by retelling the story, Edna Earle recreates the ideal version of reality.
Randisi helps Welty's readers read between the lines. She shows Edna Earle to be a person who will manipulate her language in order to protect the family name. "The narrative is, in fact, a composite family portrait taken over time, but one stylized, or edited, by its Edna Earle is, to paraphrase Emily Dickinson 'telling all the truth but telling it slant'" (77).
From the text we were able to gain insight into the Assyrian society. From An Assyrian Emperor’s Resume we were able to determine that they were a polytheistic society with Gods such as Nergal, Shamash, and Assur, the chief god. As well as given insight into who they believed in the text also reveals how they worshiped their gods. After Emperor Ashur-Nasir-Pal II seized the land of the king Karduniash, he build his royal dwelling and named it Der-Assur, the same name as the chief god.
Edna Pontellier was on her way to an awakening. She realized during the book, she was not happy with her position in life. It is apparent that she had never really been fully unaware However, because her own summary of this was some sort of blissful ignorance. Especially in the years of life before her newly appearing independence, THE READER SEES HOW she has never been content with the way her life had turned out. For example she admits she married Mr. Pontellier out of convenience rather than love. EDNA knew he loved her, but she did not love him. It was not that she did not know what love was, for she had BEEN INFATUATED BEFORE, AND BELIEVED IT WAS love. She consciously chose to marry Mr. Pontellier even though she did not love him. When she falls in love with Robert she regrets her decision TO MARRY Mr. Pontellier. HOWEVER, readers should not sympathize, because she was the one who set her own trap. She did not love her husband when she married him, but SHE never once ADMITS that it was a bad decision. She attributes all the problems of her marriage to the way IN WHICH SOCIETY HAS defined the roles of men and women. She does not ACCEPT ANY OF THE BLAME, AS HER OWN. The only other example of married life, in the book, is Mr. and Mrs. Ratignolle, who portray the traditional role of married men and women of the time. Mr. Pontellier also seems to be a typical man of society. Edna, ON THE OTHER HAND, was not A TYPICAL WOMAN OF SOCIETY. Mr. Pontellier knew this but OBVIOUSLY HAD NOT ALWAYS. This shows IS APPARENT in the complete lack of constructive communication between the two. If she had been able to communicate with her husband they may have been able to work OUT THEIR PROBLEMS, WHICH MIGHT HAVE MADE Edna MORE SATISFIED WITH her life.
Asylums were thought of as a best place for the mentally ill in the 1900s, but over the years stories of abuses lead people to use drugs and outpatient care instead of sending the insane to asylums. In 1955, nearly 560,000 patients were put in mental hospitals, however, there are now only 35,000 in the twentieth century. There has been a ninety percent decrease in mental health facilities (Campbell 1). In the past, there were no asylums or institutions for the insane to be sent, so they were thrown in jail and were treated as criminals. Dorothea Dix could not stand the unfair treatment and took upon herself to spread mental hospitals around the world. Throughout Dorothea Lynde Dix’s life, she was sedulous to helping people; she built an academy
how quickly women succumb to their "roles", and how easily people can. be shaped to consider a different and all too meaningless set of morals. The sexy of the sexy. Edna is strategically alienated in the novella so as to be the
Out of all mental illnesses found throughout the world, eating disorders have the highest mortality rate. Anorexia nervosa is one of the more common eating disorders found in society, along with bulimia nervosa. Despite having many definitions, anorexia nervosa is simply defined as the refusal to maintain a normal body weight (Michel, 2003). Anorexia nervosa is derived from two Latin words meaning “nervous inability to eat” (Frey, 2002). Although anorexics, those suffering from anorexia, have this “nervous inability to eat,” it does not mean that they do not have an appetite—anorexics literally starve themselves. They feel that they cannot trust or believe their perceptions of hunger and satiation (Abraham, 2008). Anorexics lose at least 15 percent of normal weight for height (Michel, 2003). This amount of weight loss is significant enough to cause malnutrition with impairment of normal bodily functions and rational thinking (Lucas, 2004). Anorexics have an unrealistic view of their bodies—they believe that they are overweight, even if the mirror and friends or family say otherwise. They often weigh themselves because they possess an irrational fear of gaining weight or becoming obese (Abraham, 2008). Many anorexics derive their own self-esteem and self-worth from body weight, size, and shape (“Body Image and Disordered Eating,” 2000). Obsession with becoming increasingly thinner and limiting food intake compromises the health of individuals suffering from anorexia. No matter the amount of weight they lose or how much their health is in jeopardy, anorexics will never be satisfied with their body and will continue to lose more weight.
Edna’s first action that starts off her route to freedom from her relationship is when she fell in love with Robert. Edna had already married a man that she had not loved but he has not been treating her a...
The most prevalent and obvious gender issue present in the novella was that Edna challenged cultural norms and broke societal expectations in an attempt to define herself. Editors agree, “Edna Pontellier flouts social convention on almost every page…Edna consistently disregards her ‘duties’ to her husband, her children, and her ‘station’ in life” (Culley 120). Due to this, she did not uphold what was expected of her because she was trying to be superior, and women were expected to be subordinate to men. During that time, the women were viewed as possessions that men controlled. It was the woman’s job to clean the house, cook the meals, and take care of the children, yet Edna did none of these things. Her lifestyle was much different. She refused to listen to her husband as time progressed and continually pushed the boundaries of her role. For example, during that time period “the wife was bound to live with her husban...
The writer acquaints the reader with the idea of myth. While recognizing that researchers contrast enormously on the exact definition, Oswalt demands that this should not discourage the single person from looking for a decent meaning of the saying. While trying to help characterize the saying, he records four essential qualities of a myth. These qualities conclude that people have practically zero natural worth, they are relatively absence of enthusiasm toward history, they are fascinated with magic and the occult, and they refuse to acknowledge obligation regarding individual
Dorothea Dix was an activist who, in the nineteenth century, worked to help start mental asylums in America. Before she started her work, people who were mentally ill were either put in prison or almshouses (almshouses were what we would call homeless shelters now). If the family of the person who is mentally ill had enough money, they would care for the person in their home. They would hide the person and make them live only inside so no one would see them. In the prisons and almshouses, they were commonly kept chained to walls or floors or in cells smaller than horse stalls. Often, they were not properly clothed. Heating, in any form, usually was not provided for them either. In her speech to the Massachusetts legislature, she states that, “I would speak as kindly as possible of all wardens, keepers, and other responsible officers, believing that most of these have erred not through hardness of heart and wilful cruelty so much as want of skill and knowledge, and want of consideration”(Dix 1). She is saying that she does not believe that the wardens or other ‘caregivers’ are trying to be cruel; they are just doing what they have been taught to do. They did not know any better. She did not want to say anything bad about any of them specifically because of that. She believed it was more of a general problem than a problem primarily caused by the prison wardens.
Kopley, Richard. “Hawthorne’s transplanting and transforming ‘The Tell-Tale Heart’”. GALE Studies in American Fiction 23.2 (1995): 231-234
“The Tell-Tale Heart by Edgar Allan Poe.” University of Virginia, n.d. Web. 27 March, 2014.
This entire novel is about an identity crisis. At the start of the novel, Edna Pontellier is a wife who barely accepts the constraints
Thury, Eva and Margaret K. Devinney. “Theory: Man and His Symbols.” Introduction to Mythology: Contemporary Approaches to Classical and World Myths. New York: Oxford University Press, 2013. 519-537. Print.
The Akkadian language continued as the main language of Mesopotamia into the first millennium BC. The Assyrian and Babylonian languages both developed from Akkadian dialect. Cuneiform writing found its way in varying forms by the Egyptians, Persians, Hittites, and Syrians. Correspondingly, the Akkadians influenced and left wonderful works of art that included sculpture and relief work. Archeology also shows evidence of roads, a postal service, and an astrological calendar. While the empire disappeared, its legacy
In actuality, she was defiant, and ate macaroons secretly when her husband had forbidden her to do so. She was quite wise and resourceful. While her husband was gravely ill she forged her father’s signature and borrowed money without her father or husband’s permission to do so and then boastfully related the story of doing so to her friend, Mrs. Linde. She was proud of the sacrifices she made for her husband, but her perceptions of what her husband truly thought of her would become clear. She had realized that the childlike and submissive role she was playing for her husband was no longer a role she wanted to play. She defied the normal roles of the nineteenth century and chose to find her true self, leaving her husband and children