Imagination according to Oxford English Dictionary is defined as “the mind's creativity and resourcefulness to invent images which have the tendency to form ideas which do not correspond to reality.” In “The Playboy of Western World” by John Millington Synge, the presence of imagination directs the outcome of the play. Synge uses Christy as a substitution to the existence of boredom, fear and insecurity.
Christy gave a remark “I did not then. I just riz the loy and let fall the edge of it on the ridge of his skull, and he went down at my feet like an empty sack, and never let a grunt or groan from him at all.” Synge uses “just riz and loy” to describe the size of the weapon and emphasis the characters braveness for using such slight weapon to bring down his father who is supposed to be stronger. This word choice express the level of pride of defeat and the end of cowardness for the Playboy. Whiles Christy was describing the murderous act, it is thoroughly significant to take notice of the motion of Mahon fall; “went down at my feet like an empty sack.” The “empty sack” can be associated with the lack of power, and dignity as a man. Synge includes this dramatic fall to highlight Christy in a kingly manner; like a king, people of less authority fall at their feet. Also it could be said that the fall represents Christy’s legacy.
Jimmy said “Bravery’s a treasure in a lonesome place.” Since the society is filled with boredom, fear and insecurity, the presence of a young man with the courage to kill his father becomes an example of a hero. Synge includes this to demonstrate the readiness of desperate places in the western world like the county of Mayo to accept murderers under certain conditions as an act of heroism. At the beginni...
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...en though there was a period when Christy came out of his world of imagination, he run back to it because of his fear of the harsh world. Without his imaginary tale, his heroic title doesn’t exit and his legacy will be scripted on the memory of County Mayo as a deceiver. Christy stated “What’ll Pegeen say when she hears that story? What’ll she be saying to me now?” Synge uses this consistent questioning to assure the readers of the range of fear Christy is faced with; his fear that the whole world and even Pegeen is against him and see him as a hypocrite.
In conclusion, Synge places Christy into the world of imagination to communicate a broader message. The long false storytelling and fantasy are as important as the action because bravery of talk is an adequate substitute for brave deeds. Therefore, Christy’s imagination becomes a legacy of heroism in Mayo.
A characters courage is not measured by how an action will be accepted by others, but by how their actions stay true to themselves even in the face of a pressured surrounding. Colin McDougall’s The Firing Squad a story about a young soldiers attempt at redemption and George Orwell’s Shooting an Elephant an essay about Orwell’s days in a British colony where he was called to handle the situation with an aggressive elephant are two pieces of literature that demonstrate the effects of courage. Courage takes many forms and in these two great pieces of literature it can be measured by looking at the characters and how they use courage and lack of courage as a driving factor in different ways throughout their story’s.
58. According to the passage, O’Brien believes that storytelling conveys a stronger meaning than any real account. It amplifies the message one is trying to assert by engaging an audience through vivid, but fictional detail. O’Brien uses false events to represent greater emotional truths, which is best displayed through fictional accounts. This is a prevalent and recurring ideal throughout the
In his short story, O’Brien unravels step by step the irony in the double meaning of truth, implied in this first statement, “This is true”, to the reader which is then woven through the entire story. By trying to characterize what constitutes a true war story, but never really achieving this goal, the true irony of his short story is revealed. Even though in some instances giving away his opinion explicitly, the sheer contradiction of honesty and reality becomes even more visible in an implicit way by following O’Brien’s explanations throughout the story while he deconstructs his first statement. The incongruity between his first statement and what is actually shown in his examples does not need any explicit statements to drive home his message.
Life can bring unexpected events that individuals might not be prepared to confront. This was the case of O’Brien in the story, “On the Rainy River” from the book The Things They Carried. As an author and character O’Brien describes his experiences about the Vietnam War. In the story, he faces the conflict of whether he should or should not go to war after being drafted. He could not imagine how tough fighting must be, without knowing how to fight, and the reason for such a war. In addition, O’Brien is terrified of the idea of leaving his family, friends and everything he loves behind. He decides to run away from his responsibility with the society. However, a feeling of shame and embarrassment makes him go to war. O’Brien considers himself a coward for doing something he does not agree with; on the other hand, thinking about the outcome of his decision makes him a brave man. Therefore, an individual that considers the consequences of his acts is nobler than a war hero.
...a of his "red badge" of cowardice known only to him, he earned his "red badge of courage." However, the necessity of a turn in character to create the final hero is still evidenced. By showing the close relationship between the negative and positive aspects of a single characteristic--in this case confronting battle with either courage or cowardice--Crane opens the door for an infinite understanding of what makes a hero by demonstrating that perfection is not a necessary characteristic.
Charters, Ann. The Story and Its Writer – An Introduction to Short Fiction. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2011. Print.
There is particular consideration given to the political climate in this story. It is incorporated with social and ethnic concerns that are prevalent. The story also addresses prejudice and the theme of ethnic stereotyping through his character development. O'Connor does not present a work that is riddled with Irish slurs or ethnic approximations. Instead, he attempts to provide an account that is both informative and accurate.
Through his injuries from the blast, Frederic Henry shows that he is the main code hero as he exhibits courage by being eager to rush out of the hospital. After being hit by the blast, the doctor in the hospital inquire of Frederic, "'Do you want to keep your knee, young man?' 'No,' I said" (Hemingway 83). Through this quotation, Frederic shows courage, action, and the need to prove himself with action. He shows courage when he does not stagger when he does not want to wait to be operated on. This leads into the action and the need to prove himself with action as he wants to return to the battlefield and recuperate his honor after being hit with the bomb and losing a fellow mechanic. Frederic shows he is brave by being willing to lose a limb to return to combat quickly. While Frederic and Catherine contemplate their relationship, Frederic asserts, "'They won't get us,' I said. ’Because you're too brave. Nothing ever happens to the brave.' 'They die of course.' 'But only once.' 'I don't know. Who said that?' 'The coward dies a thousand deaths, the brave but one?'" (Hemingway 121). This quotation that Frederic uses and the expansion of it in the first line represents the code hero's courage and a fight for impossible values. It represents courage because it he straight up states that nothing happens to the brave and talks about their relationship and how no one will split them up if they pu...
The non-participating narrator in Stephen Crane’s short story “A Mystery of Heroism”, made a decision to have a series of realistic events to tell Fred Collin’s tale. The characterization of Collins is brought together through the development of plot. Although Fred didn’t reach his original goal of retaining water to quench his thirst, he did grow as a dynamic character by becoming his version of a “hero” (line 28). This makes him an approvable dynamic character according to the many events that changed his views and understandings in a successful way.
...c Fiction.” Southern Literary Journal 33.2 (Spring 2001): 9 pp. Online. Internet. 1 Nov 2001.
In his assessment of storytelling, O’Brien highlights the challenges of telling stories by including many tales that take place after the Vietnam War. For example, back in America, the soldier’s of Vietnam found
“And then one morning, all alone, Mary Anne walked off into the mountains and did not come back” (110). Tim O’Brien’s short story “The Sweetheart of the Song Tra Bong” presents an all-American girl who has been held back by social and behavioral norms – grasping for an identity she has been deprived the ability to develop. The water of the Song Tra Bong removes Mary Anne’s former notion of being as she, “stopped for a swim” (92). With her roles being erased Mary Anne becomes obsessed with the land and mystery of Vietnam and is allowed to discover herself. Through the lenses of Mark Fossie and the men in the Alpha Company, Mary Anne becomes an animal and is completely unrecognizable by the end of the story. Mary Anne, however, states she is happy and self-aware. The men of the Alpha Company argue for virtue in that Mary Anne was “gone” (107) and that what she was becoming “was dangerous… ready for the kill” (112). They did not want to accept a woman becoming something different from what women always were. In “How Tell to a True War Story” we are told that a true war story “does not instruct, nor encourage virtue, nor suggest models of proper human behavior” (65). Mary Anne did not truly become ‘dark’, because to her this is not a story about war; this is a story about a woman attempting to overcome gender roles and the inability of men to accept it.
Overall, imagination can result in a positive way and a negative way. Imaginations allow us to become a whole new person. Just like how Tim O’Brien used imagination to create a whole new himself. It gave him the power to do anything he want to do such as looking at dead bodies and being able to actually kill someone. O’Brien shows us the power of imagination and storytelling through his novel, “The Things They Carried.”
Di Yanni, Robert. "Character Revealed Through Dialogue." Readings on The Tragedies. Ed. Clarice Swisher. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, 1996. Reprint from Literature. N. p.: Random House, 1986.
There is another type of hero that almost no one is aware of. In the poorest areas of the country, live mostly minorities and other ethic background. All their lives they’ve been expected to work harder and expected not succeed in life. Some individuals living in poverty with a determination to succeed work hard all of their lives to become what everybody doubted they could. Escaping the crime, drugs, and prostitution is enough to escape hell, even if they don’t go to college. Despite of their financial problems, drug and crime surroundings, or difficulties in the language skills, their desire to triumph fuels their persistence. Those who make it to success are the few living examples of the purest form of hero anyone can be. They are not only their own heroes but also the heroes of the poor children who dream of becoming like them someday.