Comparing Lillian Hellman’s The Children’s Hour and The Little Foxes.
Lillian Hellman was a well-known American dramatist who was born in 1905 in New Orleans ("Hellman," 1999). She later moved and attended New York public schools and went on to go to New York University and Columbia University as well. Within the confines of her youth, there had been confusion about her family background (Harmon, 1999). There has always been talk about her parents troubled marriage and other events have cropped up to make Hellman an intriguing figure. Yet, she went on to grow up and find a husband, something typical in her day. She married another playwright named Arthur Kober, but this relationship ended in divorce ("Hellman," 1999; James, 1999). Her intimate friendship with the novelist Dashiell Hammett would continue until his death in 1961 (1999). Yet, Hellman would never remarry.
Hellman did not begin to write plays until the 1930s, her dramas are well known for focusing on various forms of evil ("Hellman," 1999). Her work has not escaped criticism however. She has been criticized at various times for her doctrinaire views but she nevertheless kept her characters from becoming social points of view by including credible dialogue and a realistic intensity which put her a step above her peers ("Hellman," 1999). Indeed, Hellman wrote with the skill of a professional but the emotions of a child. I feel she was able to capture the innermost fears and thoughts of people, drawing on their most hideous features. In the encyclopedia Hellman is described as an American Dramatist, whose plays are distinguished for the forcefulness of their matter, usually a condemnation of personal and social evil. They are also notable for character development and expert construction (Encarta). These points come through clearly in both The Children's Hour and The Little Foxes. Interestingly, Hellman seemed to entitle these works in an innocuous but mischievous way.
In a variety of works, it appears that Hellman’s themes have all centered around evil and lies. They have drawn on things that, for the most part, people do not like to look at. Her works are truly disturbing, as she forces the audience to dig deep into their own psyches. It is important to note that Hellman had grown up in interesting times. She was a teenager in the Roaring ...
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...x Plays by Lillian Hellman.
New York: Vintage Books. pp. 1-78
Hellman, L. (1979). "The Little Foxes." Six Plays by Lillian Hellman. New York: Vintage Books. pp. 147-199
James, C. (1999, May 31). "That 50's Cocktail of Hellman, Hammett and the Red Scare." New York Times, pp. E1.
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Webb, K. (2000, July 22). "It’s all a lie: Destructive dishonesty in the works of Lillian Hellman." [online]<http://www2.rpa.net/~webb/kaw/allalie.htm>
Wright, W. (1996, November 3) "Why Lillian Hellman remains fascinating."
New York Times pp. H9.
Gilman manipulates the reader s perspective throughout her story as she immediately introduces us to her world. Language plays an important role as a normal woman assesses her husband s profession and her own supposed illness. The narrator comes across intelligent if not a little paranoid-less concerned with a slighthysterical tendency but rather a queer untenanted (Gilman 691) house. Her suspicion occurs early on; appearing at first as misdirection meant to foreshadow a possible ghost story. She goes on to describe the most beautiful place with a delicious garden (Gilman 692). Her depiction is that of a quaint home-leading thereader to imagine a stable woman in a new setting. Clearly the narrator s broad vocabulary is an indication of her right-mindedness as well as her ability to examine a condition she disagrees with.
There is plenty of opportunity for interpretation in Carter’s writing, particularly in her book ‘The Bloody Chamber’ which is commonly considered to be her masterwork, brimming with intertextualities and ambiguities. Some may find her work to be excessively violent or savage, perhaps even alienating. Yet others may have found this no-holds-barred approach to be exhilarating and refreshing in comparison to other authors of her time. In her re-writing of Perrault and Beaumont’s classic tales, Carter proposes a reading of several well-known stories with intent to unveil through a feminist perspective the ideological content they present. “The Bloody Chamber” is her take on the tale of Bluebeard; “The Werewolf” is her variation of the tale of Little Red Riding Hood; and “The Snow Child” is a very brief but equally powerful story based on the tale of Snow White. Whilst some may find her writing to be ‘grossly repellent’ and most certainly did at the time of its original publication, it remains clear that there are numerous aspects of intertextuality within her writing which delve beyond the face value of her work, that there is much latent content within every story in the collection.
Their staggering profits have removed the Tribes worries about paying college tuition and health insurance. In addition, all tribal members receive a yearly bonus if they stick to a strict education and work incentive plan that basically consists of “no school, no money.” Members are guaranteed casino or reservation employment, and all their health care, child care and educational expenses are paid for from kindergarten through graduate school. Foxwoods president and CEO G. Michael “Mickey” Brown has been quoted as saying, “Gaming is the economic engine that is going to take Native American tribes into the 21st century.”
Hellman, Lillian. Six Plays by Lillian Hellman. Vintage Books Edition. New York: Random House, 1960.
Gilbert, Sandra M., and Susan Gubar. The Madwoman in the Attic: the Woman Writer and the Nineteenth-century Literary Imagination. New Haven: Yale UP, 2000. Print.
Christina Rossetti also provides an insightful look into the problem of the “fallen woman,” and of the perception of this kind of woman, in Goblin Market. Unlike Eliot, who uses realistic characterization and carefully detailed prose, Rossetti relates her views through fantastical characters and highly energized poetry. Although they work within different genres, however, Eliot and Rossetti both challenge the stereotypical understanding of what it means for a woman to be “innocent” or “experienced.” Through the contrasting natures of sisters Laura and Lizzie,...
Many critics question whether this story is meant as a personal documentation about Gilman or a reflection of women’s position in society in 1892. However, due to her creation of this unreliable narrator, it creates the allusion that this story has many meanings. The narrator generates the way we see John and the ironic theme of entrapment, through many different angles. The subject of the story changes from reality, to her obsession with the wallpaper and consumes the narrator’s tone and thoughts. The way Gilman used narration to manipulate the reader’s interpretation John and to convey the theme of entrapment makes this an effective piece of literature.
The simple injections have potential to save thousands of lives every year and they are making the world a safer place. Vaccines can help create an environment where children are not receptive to disease which would have taken lives in previous decades, and for the general population to be healthy, and to keep children safe from illness and disease people should vaccinate themselves. Throughout my research for vaccinations, I didn’t realize the many stances parents could support. I knew previously before researching that many parents didn’t agree with the idea of giving their child a vaccination that could possible cause an issue that wasn’t present before. Although, I always supported vaccinations strictly because of scientific facts; when I read about the many reasons why parents didn’t it was a shock and ultimately overwhelmingly disappointing. Mainly, because it seems like parents are only looking at the few effects vaccinations could have on a child. Overall, I believe that everyone should be vaccinated, not only to help themselves but to help the public from outbreaks that can easily occur if the anti-vaccination movement continues and makes
For decades now critics have viewed, Gilman’s novella, “The Yellow Wallpaper” mainly in a feminist way, focusing on the way women acted and how they were treated in the 1800s. Although there are good points to the feminist criticism, one could go more in depth by psychoanalyzing it because feminism fit more into the 1800s when women did not have the roles they have today, by looking at the psychoanalytic effect the restrictions had on her, and observing the effects the room had on her.
Kessler, Carol Parley. "Charlotte Perkins Gilman 1860 -1935." Modem American Women Writers. Ed. Elaine Showalter, et al. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1991. 155 -169.
Gilman critiques the position of women in society by giving scaring psychological tales. She depicts how the perceived “respectable” mistreat their women. In her text, one can see how cruel sometimes society can be towards women. An image of a woman in extremely pathetic state of consciousness is seen and lingers in one’s mind. Though to some it might be a false portrayal of reality, Gilman
Some people tell the truth and some people show the truth. Elizabeth Bowen shows the truth in her story, “The Demon Lover”. Her story is about a forty four year old woman who revisits her childhood home to collect some possessions for her family. However, the woman finds a letter from an unknown source that she believes is from her dead fiancé. Many readers believe this piece of fiction to be a ghost story, but it is one that is about a woman with acute psychological delusion portrayed through the use of characterization and occasion.
Throughout the story, the reader is called to trust the narrator although it is clear she is going crazy, for she is the only telling the story. Gilman is able to develop the theme through this character’s point of view by showing that the narrator has no choice in the world in which she lives-- she must obey the men in her life above all else. If Gilman chose any other perspective, the story would not have been able to portray the woman’s oppression as well, because the reader would not have been able to see into her mind as it slipped away well into insanity.
Stanton, Kay. "Women and the American Dream of Death of a Salesman." Feminist Readings of American Drama. Ed. Judith Schlueter. Rutherford, New Jersey: Fairleigh Dickinson UP, 1989. 67-102.
Baym, Nina et al. Ed. The Norton Anthology of American Literature. Shorter 8th ed. New York: