The Birthday Party

In fact she never called her husband George unless she was trying to manipulate him in some way. Tesman is so blind to Hedda’s manipulative nature that he responded with joy, “Hedda- Oh, is this true?- What you’re saying?… I never noticed that you loved me in this way before”(1458). This disgusted Hedda because she was not truthfully trying to please Tesman and his reaction was one of excitement. With Hedda’s cold manipulati... ... middle of paper ... ...on to her problems. Hedda’s relationship with all three men ultimately created a life she was unhappy with thus leading her closer to her death.

He is also a disappointed man who has no happiness in marriage and who treats his foolish wife and younger daughters as objects of amusement. He is aware of how much his wife and younger daughters compromise themselves in company, but instead of trying to reeducate them he takes to observing their follies as a kind of sport. He seems to enjoy seeing people ridicule themselves in front of others. His fault, however, is that he never realized that by allowing himself to simply be ignorant to and amused with their shortcomings, he has indirectly encouraged and reinforced their behavior. His unwillingness to control Lydia’s improper behavior almost lead to disgrace of his family.

For Elizabeth, her prejudice against Darcy came from his snobbery. It caused her to not see his feelings for her and to believe whatever Wickman said. Darcy's fierce pride often alienated him from others. For example, he acted so snobby and superior at the first ball with the Bennet's that they were all turned off by him. His eventual love, Elizabeth, was disgusted at his behavior and formed a prejudice against him.

(31) Mr. Ramsay devastates his wife's emotions. Because of a little lie, the temperamental Mr. Ramsay hurts, if not kills, Mrs. Ramsay's emotions. Still, right after the incident, Mr. Ramsay self-reflects and  "[he was] ashamed of that petulance [that he brought to his wife]." (32) Mr. Ramsay understands and regrets the sorrow he brought on Mrs. Ramsay. He sympathizes with her and is "ashamed" for what he had done.

A bit of irony is used here, because it is ironic that after all the work the wife did, the husband would need a night out alone. No one seems to sympathize to the wife’s needs. It is exaggerated throughout the text that the husband does no real work, yet would still need to be the one to go out alone. All the things that wives do is brought to light when Brady says, “My God who wouldn’t want a wife” (Brady 253). Brandy’s use of sarcasm adds emphasis to the word ‘wouldn’t.’ It contradicts the rest of the very one sided text by bringing value to wives.

The other two male characters also mistreat their women. Cassio appears to have no real feelings for Bianca. He is a lady's man, and therefore cannot be concerned with such things as true love. Even Othello, the one character who truly loves his wife, mistreats Desdemona. He ends up suffocating her because he believes she has been unfaithful to him.

Mrs. Bennet married for the same reason she pushes Mr. Collins on Elizabeth, for business. Mrs. Bennet has married a man who doesn’t respect her simply because he was a decent choice. “Respect, esteem, and confidence had vanished for ever; all his views of domestic happiness were overthrown…To his wife he was very little otherwise indebted, than as her ignorance and folly had contributed to his amusement. This is not the sort of happiness which a man would in general wish to owe to his wife; but where other powers of entertainment are wanting, the true philosopher will derive benefit from such as are given ” (Austen,

As the story escalates, Lantin feels so helpless that he seeks to find out the true value of the “worthless article[s]” (636) that his wife obsessed over. However, completely unaware of the fact that their luxurious lifestyle was because of his wife’s lover, the author characterizes Lantin as childish and careless; had he reflected on how they were able to sustain their lifestyle solely based on his mere paycheck, he would have discovered the flaws of their marriage. His urge to constantly show affection for his wife clouded his ability to make shrewd judgments. Throughout the process of discovering the whereabouts of their good fortune, Lantin begins ‘to recognize his own culpability’ (State College of Florida 2) that is no one’s fault but his own. The illusions he created for himself allowed him to become more receptive to his wife’s suspicious motives.

Although, he tries to better himself, Yunior’s awful treatment to women prohibit him from attaining a significant connection with them. His dishonesty erodes his strength, health, and his relationships with not only women, but his family and friends. Yunior realizes that his own heartbreak was his own fault due to betraying his fiance. His language of objectifying women only makes the reader see how disrespectful he is towards females. His words and actions towards his past lovers make him regretful and guilty for the hurt he put them though.

He feels betrayed because his daughters who claimed they “loved” him the most went against his orders. It is like as if Lear views himself weak and not powerful anymore. In Act I, Lear commands his daughters to promote their love for him but in respect for her father Cordelia refuses to. Since Cordelia did not obey his orders Lear throws her out. He becomes furious because to him he feels as if his daughter has no love for him.