Shakespeare is widely considered the greatest English writer of all time. However, even Shakespeare has been inspired by other writings. Montaigne’s essay “On the Cannibals” greatly influences the character Gonzalo speech about his dream government. Montaigne writes about the rationality of living in nature with a society that has “no terms for governor, or political superior, no practice of subordination or of riches or poverty, no contracts for kinship – except such as is common to them all” (Montaigne 84). Shakespeare rewords this quote into Gonzalo speech of his ideal government, as the character Gonzalo wants these qualities if he was king of the island. People who live in a society without structure are seen as salvages. However, “those
... Brontё and Shakespeare focus on presenting the outcast as the epitome human complexity; Shakespeare allows a deep insight into Hamlets internal conflictions and the emphasis on how corrupted Claudius becomes to better understand Hamlet’s role as the outsider, where Brontё’s decision to make Heathcliff her hero can be read as an intervention into the Victorian prejudice against outsiders, such as gypsies and beggars. Rather more explicitly, Kesey is unequivocally concerned with the place of the individual within society and the means by which society seeks to impose order at the expense of independence and freedom. Thus they can all be read as fundamentally aiming to expose the oppressions of the unjustifications of capitalism and feudalism, to which these characters rebel, particularly the abuse of power and authority to control and manipulate a conforming society.
A grotesque body is one that is open, sickly, comprised of many parts, and overflows in excess. In Montaigne’s Of the Caniballes, Europeans view figures of cannibalism as the Native inhabitants of the New World. The consumption of humans involves opening up the contained body, allowing its inner parts to be abjected beyond its internal boundaries. For colonizers, participants of cannibalism are barbarians who eat their victims by transforming their classical bodies into grotesque forms. As a result, these cultural practices make them inferior and savage compared to the modern Europeans. However, in reality, Europeans are also closely related to cannibalistic practices. A Short Account of the Destruction of the Indies written by Las Casas show how Spaniards are barbaric in their character. They lack control and engage in a series of horrific excesses due to their insatiable hunger for power and
Filial cannibalism is a biological phenomenon where an adult or a parent of a species attacks and consumes all or some of its offspring. This behaviour is quite common among fish species, the family poeciliidae in particular. Filial cannibalism in poeciliids is very well documented due to their commercial popularity as aquaria fish. Poeciliids are live-bearers and engage in partial clutch cannibalism where the parents only cannibalise on some of their offspring (Manica 2002). Scientists do not fully understand as to why this behaviour exists as it is seemingly disadvantageous since the act decreases their reproductive success and ability to pass on their genes. Yet, if the behaviour was to the detriment of the poeciliids the trait would not have been favoured, evolutionarily speaking. Filial cannibalism is so widespread among poeciliids, which means that there must be benefits to this behaviour. However, does this behaviour only benefit those in captivity or is it as prominent in wild poeciliids?
Purity and Civility in The Praise of Folly by Desiderius Erasmus and Of Cannibals by Michel de Montaigne
William Shakespeare has become landmark in English literature. One must be familiar with the early days of English literature in order to comprehend the foundation of much of more modern literature’s basis. Shakespeare’s modern influence is still seen clearly in many ways. The success of Shakespeare’s works helped to set the example for the development of modern dramas and plays. He is also acknowledged for being one of the first writers to use any modern prose in his writings.
In King Lear, Shakespeare portrays a society whose emphasis on social class results in a strict social hierarchy fueled by the unceasing desire to improve one’s social status. It is this desire for improved social status that led to the unintentional deterioration of the social hierarchy in King Lear. This desire becomes so great that Edmund, Goneril, Reagan and Cornwall were willing to act contrary to the authority of the social hierarchy for the betterment of their own position within it. As the plot unfolds, the actions of the aforementioned characters get progressively more desperate and destructive as they realize their lack of success in attaining their personal goals. The goals vary, however the selfish motivation does not. With Edmund, Goneril, Reagan and Cornwall as examples, Shakespeare portrays the social hierarchy as a self-defeating system because it fosters desires in its members that motivate them to act against the authority of the hierarchy to benefit themselves. A consideration of each characters actions in chronological order and the reasons behind such actions reveals a common theme among the goals for which morality is abandoned.
In the essay, “Of Cannibals,” Montaigne describes the lives of an indigenous group in Brazil. He compares their beliefs and actions to those of his fellow countrymen during this time, and in many cases prefers the indigenous way of thinking. In this comparison, Montaigne groups all of European Renaissance society to one side because of the similar beliefs concerning imperialism, economics, and societal structure throughout most of the continent. During Montaigne’s time, these beliefs were based in aristocracy and territorial expansion, and will be further discussed later. The purpose of Montaigne’s essay is to criticize and challenge this Renaissance ideology in a time when Europeans were imposing themselves upon peoples in all corners of
George Fitzhugh’s, Cannibals All (Excerpt) is a primary document that appropriately argues that it is in the United State’s best intentions to preserve negro slavery across the South and the rest of the country in effort to sustain better lives for American negroes. Frederick Douglass argues in his piece, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave that society is responsible for shaping the negro community into slavery, and that abolition is necessary to remove that from existence. The author, Fitzhugh is a considerably significant individual who has a strong political background and is recognized for pro-slavery theology, influencing him to be a prominent figure in the context of arguing for the justification of slavery.
In Hamlet’s speech, Shakespeare’s efforts to target his Elizabethan audience develop the theme of the frailty of man. Shakespeare conveys this underlying theme of the play by subt...
Shakespeare, William. "Hamlet." The Norton Introduction to Literature. Eds. Alison Booth, and Kelly J. Mays. Tenth. New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company, 2011. 1024-1129. Print.
mankind is argumentative, Shakespeare shows how the perceptions of human nature are influenced by the circumstances that surround events in society, due to the subjective perspectives of
Shakespeare has created stories that are so powerful, emotional, comedic, tragic and romantic that they are still continuously remembered and studied in the modern era. Though the essence of his talents does not lie in the simple themes behind his plays, but more so in
Over the course, we have learned of many writers such as Pico, More, Montaigne, Machiavelli, and Shakespeare present different views of characteristics and situations that are essential to human existence. Their work describes how each author depicted society, whether it be by the causes a person’s actions, or what characteristics makes a good person. These authors believe that characteristics such as: potential, fear, social order, or emotion defines human condition. Although they all have different perspectives of human condition, they are similar to Hamlet because they share themes of what makes a human strong or weak.
In The Tragedy of Julius Caesar , he reveals his historical influences by incorporating aspects of Roman Society, such as the plebeians struggle against Roman hierarchy. Additionally, Shakespeare formulated the play’s main conflict around Caesar and his ambition, which can be attributed to the cause of man’s demise, and he based Caesar’s character after the actual Caesar motivations and conquests. He also reflects English society by including parallels between Queen Elizabeth I and Julius Caesar. Lastly, through the play’s conflict, he conveys his political views on civil war and expresses his concern for the fate of England’s government. Most importantly, Shakespeare demonstrates how age-old stories, such as the betrayal of Julius Caesar, can be applied to current society. By understanding Shakespeare's motivations and influences, readers are not only able to glimpse into the age of Roman Empire, but also, they are able to understand the political turmoil in England during Shakespeare's
Shakespeare, William. "Hamlet". Literature for Composition: Essays, Fiction, Poetry, and Drama. Barnet, S.; Berman, M.; Burto, W.; Stubbs, M. 4th ed. New York: HarperCollins, 1996.