Dune, despite it's age, remains a one of a kind innovation in the vast, yet somewhat repetitive, world of science fiction. Referring to Dune as anything short of revolutionary could border on blasphemy. In just the first book, the author, Frank Herbert, begins to construct a story from ideas that had remained almost, if not completely, untouched by other authors. Whilst writing, he showed no fear or restraint as he implemented feudal elements of our past into an otherwise technologically advanced future. Elements that other science fiction writers chose to completely exclude from their universes. These elements include ideas such as an ever-present religion, which still holds relevance in an era thousands of years after our own; and monarchies, in which dukes and barons are allowed wage war …show more content…
Doctor Yueh had made his move, and had brought down the shields surrounded the Atreides house. He had given the Duke a tooth capable of filling a room with a poisonous gas, and told him to use it when in the presence of the Baron. When the Duke tried to refuse, Yueh assured him by saying, “You mustn't refuse. Because, in return for this small service, I'm doing a thing for you. I will save your son and your woman... by secreting them among people who draw knife at hearing the Harkonnen name, who hate the Harkonnens so much they'll burn a chair in which a Harkonnen has sat' ” (158). Yueh's attempt at reassuring the Duke gives great insight on the fate of Paul and the Lady Jessica. He said that while he would be killed, the Lady Jessica and Paul would turned over to the enemy of their enemy – a people who despise the Harkonnens as much, if not more, than them. The obvious choice in this case is the Fremen. Not only did the Atreides make an effort to make peace with them, both Paul and his mother also have their own roles in the Fremen religion; giving the Fremen multiple reasons to give them asylum from the
The Stone Mountain Coal Company wielded monopoly control over the town of Matewan through a feudal system of economic, cultural, political, and environmental processes. Every person in the town of Matewan came under the power of the company in one way or another. The employees of Stone Mountain were under a bondage contract with the company. Once they came to the company it was impossible to leave and at the same time maintain a basic standard of living. They could not leave also because once they signed on with the company they owed the company a large sum of money for everything ranging from the ticket for the train that brought them to Matewan to the equipment they needed to work there. In this way it was as if they were paying the company to let them work in the mines rather the other way around. They did not have the rights basic to capitalism such as the right to join a union, the right to sell their labor in a labor market to the bidder of their choice, and the right to spend their wage freely.
Throughout the 1920s Fundamentalism and Modernism clashed. Inherit the Wind showcases the rift between the two. Modernist beliefs go against what the fundamentalist believed. Fundamentalists believed in the literal interpretation of the bible while modernists believed in evolution.
Looking at the title, King of the World, with its photograph of Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr./Muhammad Ali, I assumed it was a biography. It isn't. Jumping to my next conclusion I thought it was a book about the "sweet science;" it isn't. Okay, maybe it's a tell-all about the seamy side of the boxing 'business.' It's not.
As I finished reading the final story in Almanac of The Dead: A Novel by Leslie Marmon Silko I had to reserve a few minutes to dwell in my thoughts, questions, and bittersweet emotions about the overall content of the book. A key concept that I believe is prominent throughout Silko’s book is the main role Colonialism plays in the objectification, degradation, and commoditization of people, epistemologies, and the environment. Reading the different forms of violence performed throughout the world of the text perfectly portrays the disturbing dehumanizing power that arises from colonialistic capitalism. I argue that Silko gives life to Colonialism which is present throughout the various plots in the novel and deconstructs the idea that Colonialism, as a period in time, belongs in the past. She constructs Colonialism
The literature of the past can reveal a lot about the lives, culture, traditions, and history of the people who wrote it. Through a story, poem, or any other form of writing, lifestyles, people, and society can be described in great detail. Beowulf is a great example of this. Beowulf is one of the most important works in Anglo Saxon literature, being one of the few surviving works in Old English. It tells the story of a warrior named Beowulf, who travels to Denmark to help the Danes defeat a monster named Grendel. He then goes on to defeat Grendel’s mother and returns home to rule over his people as a great king for many years, until he is forced to fight a dragon attacking his land, dying in the process.Throughout the poem, elements and culture
A culture is entirely dependent upon the attitudes, beliefs, traditions, values, forms of government, and economic systems shared by a community. Cultures vary from region to region, which formulates an interesting and diverse world. The book, Rebel of the Sands by Alwyn Hamilton showcases a unique desert culture that deviates from modern America.
The emergence of capitalism in Western Europe was considered as a majority change in human history. As prior to the emergence of capitalism conditions are mainly agriculture and there was no sustained monotonic income per capita. Also prior to the emergence of capitalism there was a feudal system of organising the economy emerged in the 15th century of medieval Europe.
In the essay Island Civilization: A Vision for Human Occupancy of Earth , Robert Frazier Nash discusses the past and present human impact on the environment and offers solutions for the distant fourth millennium.
Later they are found by a group of Fremen who think Paul is the Muad’Dib (their messiah). After Paul kills a non-believer the Fremen begin to worship Paul.
Desert Solitaire: A Season in the Wilderness is an autobiographical narrative written by naturalist Edward Abbey. Abbey composed the account based on his personal experiences as an employee for the United States Park Service at Arches National Monument in Utah. Abbey’s anecdotal account is nonlinearly comprised of occupational experiences and renditions of the region’s folklore. These illustrations analogous because they exhibit related themes and trends associated with the author’s experiences and beliefs.
Let us presuppose to begin with that the cursed jewel is an impossibility and the powers of the Moonstone or any other gem for that matter only exist on an atomic level ( i.e. the energies which bind such objects together and make them what they are). Additionally it should be considered that no such object is the means by which a being exerts powers and no such object consciously exerts powers itself. Notions of the cursed or powerful jewel can be seen as a bi-product of what Said terms “Orientalism.” Said describes “The Orient” as “almost a European invention,” a place of “exotic beings and remarkable experiences.” (Ashcroft et al ed. p.87) This hypothesis adequately compliments Wilkie Collins’ characterisation of the eponymous jewel in The Moonstone and the moral pattern the author forms around its adventures.
When writers write, it is often to convey a deeper meaning or truth to it readers. With this in mind, we should first take the book at face value then analysis the story to see the point that the writer revels. In The Heart of Darkness, Joseph Conrad does this very well. The story goes from what we originally thought as just a story of a journey into Africa to a story of indeed a journey to the hearts of men. Conrad’s truth in The Heart of Darkness is multi-layered in dealing with imperialism and colonialism, but leads us to a critique of humanity as a whole. The biggest issue that Conrad shows in this book, is his philosophy of the dark nature of man. This paper will explore the evidence for the nature of man theory and then look at the proposed solution subtlety given by Conrad.
Ben Bova begins his liner notes on Frank Herbert Reads his God Emperor of Dune (Excerpts) by stating that "All truly great art shares this characteristic: the more you study it, the more it reveals" (Herbert). Although it refers specifically to the fourth book in the Dune Chronicles, his statement also applies to the trilogy that precedes it–Dune, Dune Messiah, and Children of Dune. Herbert's "polyphonic" work contains themes on so many levels (ecology, politics, war, philosophy, religion, and technology, just to name a few), that it soon becomes difficult to separate one from the other. The topic of human awareness, however, takes on a specific tone and special level of importance above all the others. Whether looking at the Bene Gesserit sisterhood and their political intrigues and planning, or the Mentat's historical role as the human computer 1 , filing away and analyzing countless bits of data, human awareness somehow always becomes a focus. Even in the economics of the work, where the "coin of the realm," the spice melange, is able not only to extend human life, but also to open up both past and future to the properly prepared mind, does this theme become evident.
Throughout Dune there is a clear emphasis on the power of religion in society. Frank Herbert explores just how prominent religion is when it comes to control again and again in this book with the idea of prophecy and messianic suggestion. The main character, Paul, is often looked upon as some sort of supernatural human being and is in turn glorified and protected. After having been crowned the messiah of multiple prophecies Paul becomes referred to as Muad’Dib, which means “mouse”. Herbert uses this name to exemplify Paul as resilient and admirable; however, the more he is picked apart, the more deceit and trickery is revealed. Paul is no more a messiah than he is an honest man.
In this paper, I would like to examine how Conrad's Heart of Darkness has played an important role in exposing the brutal reality of Belgian colonialism of the Congo Free State under the pretence of a civilizing mission . The study focuses on how historicizing Conrad's Heart of Darkness has been instrumental in uncovering atrocities committed by King Leopold II's agents in their desperate scramble for the rich resources of Congo like ivory and rubber. King Leopold II's atrocities may account for the death of almost ten million Congolese natives, a crime of a genocidal scale which has terribly affected the future of the Congo and its people till today. Conrad renders his own anti colonial critique through his central character,