The Help Essay Example for Free

The Help Essay How did people use non-verbals to communicate their status and identities in The Help? (e. g. : artifacts used by wealthy/poor, language tones/volume, dress codes, appearance, rituals, etc. ) The lines between black and white are clearly delineated by more than color in this film. While the socialite white women, even on routine days for mundane activities, dress in pretty pressed dresses, manicured nails, stiffly styled hair, and nice jewelry (reminds me of June Cleaver), the maids must wear identical uniforms, have severe hairstyles, and little or no jewelry. Their greatest possession is the purse they carry this seems to be of great importance, especially to Yule Mae when she is arrested. The maids are disallowed to speak in company unless it involves serving of some kind and must always address white folks with â€Å"sir†, â€Å"ma’am†, or â€Å"miss†. The maids must submit to white authority in all things (for fear of job loss or worse) and keep their voices low and calm in order to avoid tension or stress. And sassing (verbal and nonverbal) is a punishable offense as seen when Minny uses Hilly’s bathroom during the storm. Hilly could not care less about Minny’s safety in going outside during the dangerous storm, but rather is more concerned about how â€Å"clean† her toilet remains. There are many facial expressions and body postures that convey status/identity as well as artifacts. Hilly’s consistently raised chin and haughty expression mark her as quite self-important and the self-appointed leader of the socialites. Conversely, the maids (with the exception of Minny) keep their eyes down, if not their heads, hands to their sides, unless working, and maintain a social distance (more than 4 or 5 feet) from white people. Skeeter and Celia are the two white exceptions since they both accept the black women as equals and treat them with respect and kindness. Can prejudice and discrimination be expressed nonverbally? How? Provide examples from The Help when prejudice and discrimination was expressed nonverbally. One of the physical ways used in this movie to express prejudice is the use of hand gestures by Hilly. She flicks her hand in an upward motion when she orders Minny to cut a slice of pie for Mrs. Walters. The wicked facial expression indicates her hate of the black woman, especially because of her refusal to obey an order. There were several instances when Skeeter was speaking with one of the maids and one of the Junior League women caught her that they reflected their disapproval and distaste for so personal an interaction between a white and a black person. A painful expression is worn by Aibileen as she is forced to overhear Hilly’s insulting speech about the need for separate bathrooms. Not only does the hurt show on Aibileen’s face but she also hides in the hallway rather than have to be present during the conversation, as if she should be ashamed of her skin. Another example, this one involving white rejecting white, is when Celia shows up at Elizabeth’s during the bridge club luncheon. Not only do they refuse to answer the door but make a half-hearted attempt to hide from her when she comes to the window. They are giggling, covering their mouths with their fingers (as if this is a grand joke or oh, so cute), and you can overhear rude remarks about her desperation and obvious lack of social etiquette. One last example was in the grocery store at the end of the movie. Aibileen and Minny are shopping, walking down the aisle side by side with their carts. However, when a white woman approaches Aibileen it is made clear that she is to move aside and let the white woman pass, which she does with an apologetic look and hanging of her head (as if she were ashamed for having been in the way). Give me an example of someone in The Help whose nonverbal behavior was insulting, ridiculing, or demeaning to others. Which character was not insulting or demeaning to others? Explain. There are more variations of prejudice in this movie than just between races. One of the painful moments, at least for me, was when Celia Foote shows up, uninvited, to the bridge club luncheon at Elizabeths house. Pie in hand, she is hoping to make friends and finally be included in the social circle of Jackson. However, at Hilly’s urging, the entire group â€Å"hides† and is â€Å"shushed† in a poor attempt to evade Celia, who is considered an outcast because of where she came from and how she grew up (poor). Celia’s face, when she realizes what is happening, is painful to see and as she comes up out of the flower bed, her short attempt to be brave dissolves into tears. I believe where Celia came from and how she grew up gives her a greater compassion and understanding of the maids’ lives. She seems childlike in her acceptance of them and is ignorant of â€Å"proper social etiquette†. She simply takes them as they are, respects them as human beings and fellow women, and bestows care and affection generously. She is also open-minded concerning Hilly’s behavior and tries to shed a kinder light on why there is conflict between them, even after the luncheon debacle. Have you ever made a prejudgement about someone because of their nonverbals? If so, provide an example. Anyone who says they have never prejudged another person is lying. It is, unfortunately, in our nature to judge others, especially when we think we are better than they are. Most of the time we are wrong, but, once in awhile, we get it right. I was hired at The Home Depot in Kansas several years ago as a cashier. Shortly after I finished my training and was put on the register another woman, about my age, came out of training and joined me up front. She, like me, was an extrovert and seemed happy and friendly, coaxing confidences out of all of us. Particularly me, since we shared (or at least I thought we did) a common faith. It wasn’t until later that I found out she was not only cheating on a husband and using a boyfriend for free shelter and food, she was also a liar and a backstabber. She had been telling others things we had shared in confidence, with a little embellishment for good measure. My mistake was giving her credit for being a good person because of her clean appearance, she was well-dressed and accessorized, she had a winning smile and bubbly laughter, and seemed so open with her life and beliefs. She cemented these nonverbals with proclamations of sincerity and Christian values. I suffered some very embarrassing moments over my misjudgment. Have you ever had a negative nonverbal experience? Tell me about it. It was Wednesday choir practice and I was sitting with the director’s wife on the front row waiting for rehearsal to begin. Her husband was on stage arranging his music and making small talk with us. I responded to one of his quips with a â€Å"cute†, and I though humorous, quip of my own. I found out immediately that she didn’t appreciate my comment and perceived it as a â€Å"territorial dispute† (him being the territory! when she stomped on my foot with extreme force (I limped for a couple days) and growled in my face, â€Å"He’s mine! † I was stunned and I’m sure it registered on my face. However, she was unapologetic and stomped away. I was mortified since we were not the only people in the auditorium. Clearly, she communicated her anger, resentment, disgust, and an unspoken threat to keep my hands of f her property (since I didn’t like him, my thought was she’d be the only one who’d have him anyway). Explain the differences in the usage of proximity between the two cultures in the movie. While the white socialites observed white rules of space (hugging, sitting close, touching, etc, though it is stiff and emotionless) the blacks were not allowed to engage white people this way. There was a social distance maintained, unless children were involved. The maids would stand a distance of more than 4 or 5 feet away from white people and wait to be commanded. It was rather humorous to me that the white women didn’t want the maids to touch their utensils, cups, dishes, skin, toilets, etc. ut were entirely at peace with them cooking (handling food), laundering (the clothes touched by blacks then touched their bodies), and mothering the children. Even when Skeeter goes to Aibileen’s own house, Aibileen has a difficult time sitting in Skeeter’s presence (she finally ends up sitting on the arm of a chair, the furthest place away from Skeeter) and, for a time, continues to act as if she’s waiting on the white woman. As we see the intimate times in Aibi e’s house between she, Skeeter, and Minny, it becomes clear that the black people share space much more than whites do. They touch one another, hug firmly (as opposed to a light, meaningless embrace), laugh loudly, and have much more passion in life than their white employers. Define culture shock. The friendships created between Skeeter, Aibileen, and Minny broke societal rules during the 1960’s in Mississippi. How did people react when the secret friendships were revealed? Did people experience culture shock? Explain. Culture shock is the feeling of disorientation experienced by someone who is suddenly subjected to an unfamiliar culture, way of life, or set of attitudes. There was an uproar, socially, about Skeeter’s relationship with the two maids. People were incensed that she would debase herself, her family, and her race in this way (by fraternizing with â€Å"the enemy†). However, as people began to read the book, I believe they were faced with the choice of what to do with this knowledge. The stories in the book revealed the truth about what happens behind the scenes to the black women that serve white families and raise white children. Many of these stories, I’m sure, were ugly, painful, and humiliating. Once everyone knows the truth, each person must choose how to deal with that truth. This creates a type of culture shock. Some, like Skeeter’s mama, chose to support her and confess fault. Others, like Stuart, openly denied the truth or validity of Skeeter’s stance and ended their relationship. Hilly is very obviously divided within herself when Aibileen asks her, â€Å"Aren’t you tired Miss Hilly? Aren’t you tired? † I think she meant tired of holding on to an outdated way of thinking, fighting the tides of change, and being such a sad, lonely, mean person. 8. How did Skeeter deal with cultural tension between both cultures? Provide an example. a. Skeeter started out the same way all the other young women did. The daughter of wealthy, respectable white families, and raised by a black nanny/maid. Upon arriving home from college, she integrates herself back into society by attending the various meeting, luncheons, and bridge club dates. However, as s he sees and hears the ugly, supremacist treatment of The Help, she begins to bite back at her friends, though small at first. The initial example of this is at bridge club when Hilly is discussing her ‘Home Health Sanitation Initiative’ and Skeeter finally busts out with, â€Å"Maybe we should build YOU a bathroom outside, Hilly! † As her incense grows, Skeeter begins to form friendships with the maids Aibileen and Minny in a hope to write a book and thereby, maybe, right a wrong. She lies about her conversation in the kitchen with Yule Mae and intentionally plays a joke on Hilly with the toilets on the lawn. These are Skeeter’s little ways of dealing with the racial situation she finds herself in. I was a bit disappointed in the indirect ways she chose to â€Å"voice† her disapproval but it was a dangerous time for black sympathizers as well as the blacks themselves. 9. Did the more powerful societal group in The Help establish the rules for communication? How? a. The power group, the white women, certainly set the rules on how, when, where, and to whom the maids could interact. Fear was the crux of their power. The maids chafed under the supreme rule of the white yet they were powerless to do anything about it or they would lose their jobs and be blacklisted. Or worse, imprisoned or killed. Because of white supremacy sentiments and Jim Crow laws, blacks could be mob-lynched (killed by hanging or dragging) for the smallest of infractions, even if they were imagined. So, the black women only voiced their feelings to one another, in private, and even then they whispered. Otherwise, they kept their heads down, did their work, and tolerated the abuse. Times have changed how we communicate with others. How can you improve your intercultural communication skills? Provide examples. a. One of the biggest obstacles to accepting and positively interacting with an other person is a closed-minded attitude. We must first be willing to accept the fact that our own way of thinking, believing, and doing things is not the only right way. So, an open-minded approach is always best when communicating with others. Another way to hone good skills is to look for ways to positively interact with others, especially those with whom you do not share a common culture. Volunteer work, random acts of kindness, being openly friendly, making eye contact, smiling, and even attempts at vocal niceties can open many avenues to deeper, more meaningful experiences.

Julius Caesar, Death of a Salesman, and Oedipus Rex :: comparison compare contrast essays

Julius Caesar, Death of a Salesman, and Oedipus Rex Meet the Criteria of a Tragedy      Ã‚  Ã‚   To be considered a classic tragedy, a story should follow the principles presented by Aristotle in his work, Poetics. A tragedy, in Aristotle's view, concerns the destruction of a person of high social status and strong character. The tragic fall of the individual is brought about by a tragic flaw.   Arthur Miller expanded upon the classical definition of a tragedy to include not only those of high social status but also the common man.   Using the criteria established by Aristotle and Miller, the plays Julius Caesar, Death of a Salesman, and Oedipus Rex may be considered as tragedies.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Although the title of the play, Julius Caesar, focuses on Caesar, the play itself is really based on Brutus. "Brutus had rather be a villager than to repute himself a son of Rome."(Shakespeare 172).   This was said by Brutus after Cassius told him how Caesar had become a towering figure over Rome and how Caesar controls Rome. Notice the good in Brutus, and the extremes he will go to in order to protect democracy in Rome even if it means killing the one he loves, Caesar.   Brutus possesses one of the most tragic flaws.   He is too nice of a person and therefore he gets taken advantage of.   He lets Cassius persuade him into killing Caesar for the good of Rome.   Because he does for others more than himself he makes a fatal mistake, he lets Antony live. Brutus says to the conspirators, "For Antony is but a limb of Caesar"(Shakespeare 165) meaning that if Caesar is killed Antony will die off too. Brutus clearly does not regard Anton y as being a threat, but little does Brutus know that Antony will stir up the town to seek revenge after the assassination of Caesar. This mistake will cost him his own life.   When he dies he becomes a prime example of tragedy because not only did he bring about his own death he dies by his own hand.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   In Death of a Salesman, Willy Lowman's tragic flaw is that he is a dreamer who is unable to face the realities of a modern day society.   Willy builds his whole life around the philosophy that if a person is well liked and good looking then he will be successful.   Willy says to Biff, "I thank Almighty God that you are both are built like Adonises.

Elizabethan Age – Age of Marlowe and Shakespeare

Elizabethan age was an era of extraordinary juxtaposition of whole new avenue of thoughts and avalanche of ideologies, which flowed in words of great literary geniuses. It began with the spirit of Renaissance marked by the quest for adventure and material wealth. It was the age when the minds of the people were lured by the new visions of distant lands rich in gold jewels and were swayed by the captivating charm of the beauty and loveliness. Music, dance and mirth played a significant part in their lives. On the other hand, Elizabethan era also saw the decay of moral values. From the noble class to gentry and from royalties to peasantry: people in an inexhaustible pursuit of materialism devoid from spirituality, adopted greed and corrupt values. The literature world delved deep into the psyche of the masses to illustrate the situation whereby in their quest for lavish life, they forgot that a tragic end awaits them. Both Marlowe and Shakespeare created the characters in their enduring plays Doctor Faustus and Hamlet, Prince of Denmark who became the emblem of tragic heroes. Both protagonists enjoyed a life of royalty because of their noble birth but both of their lives ended in tragedy in virtue of their most tragic flaw in their character. Their flaw was their greed and pride, which led them to pursue their evil designs and eventually their death. Marlowe’s hero is   Faustus who had extraordinary qualities and was a super human but his consuming passion reaches beyond the ordinary aspiration until he met with his fate. On the other hand, we cannot say Hamlet was lacking in moral values but he was also a conqueror and his greed to revenge the murder of his father surpassed all his good actions and deeds. For the pow er and wealth, Claudius murdered King Hamlet whose soul wanders and tortures the young Hamlet to ponder upon some foul play. Faustus and Hamlet exemplified the different faces of the human struggle of choosing between doing good and evil and how the correct or wrong choices and actions surpass the moral fiber of the individual. An overview of Dr. Faustus would reflect how a man overpowered by greed and ambition can be driven to sell his soul to the Devil but in the end would suffer the consequences of such a repugnant act. He abjured the scriptures, the Trinity and Christ to fulfill his inordinate ambition to gain super human powers by gaining mastery over unholy art of magic. By selling the soul to Devil, he lives a blasphemous life full of vain and sensual pleasures in 24 years and did not even hesitate to insult and assault the Pope with the Holy Fathers at Rome (Sparknotes 2007, Doctor Faustus). Though he felt a constant dispute in his soul between his overweening ambition and conscience, he ignored such conviction until the time wherein it was too late as eternal damnation awaited him (Sparknotes 2007, Doctor Faustus). In his inordinate passion to unravel all the mysteries of the universe, he forgot that he cannot overpower the time and when ultimately the time came for the devil claim his soul, he rea lizes that his sins are unpardonable and nothing can save him. Before the devil totally snatches his soul to bring him to hell, Marlowe wrote a poignant expression of Faustus’ final soliloquy: â€Å"My God, my God, look not so fierce to me! Adders and serpents let me breathe a while! Ugly hell, gape not: come not Lucifer:   I’ll burn my books: Ah, Mephistophilis† (Marlowe1588, Scene XIV)! Shakespeare’s Hamlet told of a tragic end brought about by bitterness and revenge- but the end of Hamlet was not due to the flaw in his moral character but the waver of the mind of the noble soul to avenge the death of his father. The play began with the presence of supernatural element in the form of the Ghost of Hamlet’s father. The figure of Ghost implied the emergence of tragedy that would change the course of Hamlet’s life because of the greed of Hamlet’s uncle, Claudius who later ascended to the throne of Denmark after marrying Hamlet’s mother (Sparknote 2007, Hamlet). Torn between righteousness and vengeance, Hamlet decided to avenge the death of his father but as he was thoughtful by nature, he delayed the revenge and instead entered in a deep melancholy. A definitive turn of events caused Hamlet’s fit of rage happened when he attempted of to kill Claudius, mistakenly he killed Polonius. Hearing the news of the death of Polonius, Ophe lia, Hamlet’s lover, went mad with grief and killed herself by drowning in the river (Sparknote 2007, Hamlet). Laertes wanted to avenge his father, Polonius and his sister, Ophelia’s death. Taking the advantage of confusion, Claudius instigated Laertes for a duel with Hamlet that allowed him to position a poisoned sword in Laertes hand to use against Hamlet, as well as poisoned drink (Sparknote 2007, Hamlet). Wounded Hamlet proved Claudius’ guilt from the dying Laertes; he picked up a poisoned sword, stabbed Claudius and forced him to drink the remaining of the poisoned wine. Claudius went into the eternal doom and Hamlet too died after he had his revenge. The first point of comparison easily becomes the moral fiber that Faustus and Hamlet had as two individuals reflected different motives and different objectives throughout that frame of the play. Marlowe had captured the moral value of greed for materialistic desires in the form of Dr. Faustus’ aspirations for gaining the knowledge of black magic. He had selfish motives that were strong enough for him to bid farewell the religious values of medieval period that valued Christian principles and that focused on the Will of God. Faustus believed that â€Å"these metaphysics of magicians and necromantic books are heavenly; O, what a world of profit and delight of power, of honor of Omnipotence, Is promised to the studious artizen: All things that move between the quiet poles shall be at my command† (Marlowe 1588, Scene I).   Such a statement showed why Faustus was drawn to the black arts; he desired power and decided it was better than the traditional norms of knowledge th ey were accustomed to.   He constructed his own demise when he initiated the deal with the Devil. He considered different fields of knowledge and dismissed them to be nothing compared to black arts, seeing them as something that would make him â€Å"a mighty god† (Marlowe 1588, Scene 1 Line 62). It was this greed that dominated Faustus’ morality that led him to be impressed with Mephastophilis’ lie of his so-called freedom and power (Marlowe 1588, Scene III Lines 76-80). On the contrary, Shakespeare’s protagonist, Hamlet was presented as a noble soul and possessed strong moral convictions. Although revenge was not considered morally righteous, it was his response to the evil that was injected in his life by his father’s murder. It presented a more human response to evil and how he adapted such ways because of the circumstance and not for his own selfish desires for wealth and power. As an effect, he killed Polonius whom he had mistaken for Claudius, his father’s murderer. Hamlet believed that it was his moral duty to avenge his father for his father to rest in peace. Hamlet declared such duty when he said â€Å"The time is out of joint, O cursed spite, That ever I was born to set it right† (Shakespeare 1600, Act I Scene V). Furthermore, Hamlet had shown disgust to other forms of immorality within his family as shown in how he hated his mother’s relationship with Claudius (Shakespeare 1600, Act I Scene II). According to Studer-Pauer (1994), â€Å"He acts rather on his moral sense of duty†¦ knowing that at the same time that he is sacrificing his own happiness and life, we consider Hamlet not only morally impeccable, but, indeed, a heroic figure† (94).   The function of Hamlet’s complexity exemplifies a person’s goodness and how it can be challenged during the most difficult of situations. On the other hand, Faustus showed how some humans would not stop until they are satisfied with what they have, even reaching the most wretched of options to attain an imaginary level of satisfaction. The second point of comparison the Hamlet and Dr. Faustus in the actions they took to carry out their plans to achieve their goals. Faustus defied the medieval conventions of love, selflessness and trust to become all powerful and wealthy. He was an exaggerated manifestation of a man from the Renaissance period whereby man can go into an extreme extent to achieve his aims. Faustus pushed the limits of morality the different extents in their travels throughout Europe. There was a time wherein he even went to the pope. Mephastophilis and Faustus even used their powers to play tricks on the pope. During meal time, the two made themselves invisible to curse and to cause such a ruckus as the friars and the attendants tried to drive out the believed ghost from their presence. Faustus’ character showed that was the actually the one looking for trouble as his actions either provoked or caused it. A number of passages like the one below show the lack of wisdom Faustus held on the conce pt of hell. Mephastophilis describes hell to be any place that is not heaven. Faustus took hell merely as a continuation of the life on earth. His lack of morality blinded him from seeing the difference between him and Mephastophilis that he is not yet damned to hell for eternity and that he still had time to repent. However, he chose to see hell in a different light that made it seem a lot bearable that it was (Marlowe 1588, Scene V Lines 133-135). Hamlet’s motive was still connected to his sense of duty to his father’s vengeance. However, the route he took to achieve such goal was not through justice and righteousness by law. He took matters into his own hands with a path inconsistent with Christian values. Homicide and deception became his tools for revenge. He reveals such disdain for himself and his actions in a conversation with Ophelia, â€Å"I am myself indifferent honest; but yet I could accuse me of such things that it were better my mother had not borne me: I am very proud, revengeful, ambitious, with more offences at my beck than I have thoughts to put them in, imagination to give them shape, or time to act them in. What should such fellows as I do crawling between earth and heaven† (Shakespeare 1600, Act III, Scene I)? There was also a time when Claudius and even Hamlet’s own mother Gertrude did not want him to go home from school. Hamlet was such a deep thinker that he almost drove himself insane from all the pondering he has done, however it has driven him to melancholy. He was so depressed that he even contemplated on suicide. â€Å"O that this too solid flesh would melt, Thaw, and resolve itself into dew! Or that the Everlasting had not fix’d His canon ’gainst self-slaughter! O God! O God! How weary, stale, flat, and unprofitable Seem to me all the uses of this world† (Shakespeare 1600, Act I Scene 2)! He did not commit suicide but his final actions led him to stab Claudius after Laertes revealed to him that he was truly the one to blame for the former King’s death. When Hamlet had received be vengeance for his father, he has already killed Polonius and Laertes by his sword and the play ends in a tragedy. The actions of the two protagonists showed how choices made and the actions taken were important despite the fact that one holds a high degree of morality and righteousness. In the same way that the biblical truth goes, faith without action is dead. Hamlet’s morality and goodness would not matter if he chose to do evil. Faustus from the start lacked that fiber of morality and it was reflected in how he was clueless as to what he was getting into. The third point lies on the fact that both lead characters from both plays exemplified the fight for goodness as both struggled throughout the play about the righteousness of their actions. Both of them had scenes wherein there was an inner struggle in their souls about the consequences of their deeds, an inner conflict of following good or evil. There may be a varying degree of the level of struggle and goodness; the point is it existed for both characters. Even if Faustus has already sold his soul to the devil there were countless instances wherein good tried interfering to push him to ask for forgiveness and repentance. In the beginning, there was a time wherein a good angel and the evil angel reflected that Faustus’ struggle whether he should stop studying the black arts and turn to the Scriptures of God again. Like the other times that he struggled, he chose the evil path. Near his death, he was urged by an old man to repent and to ask for forgiveness from God, â€Å"Ah, stay, good Faustus, stay thy desperate steps! I see an angel hovers o'er thy head, And, with a vial full of precious grace, Offers to pour the same into thy soul: Then call for mercy, and avoid despair† (Marlowe 1588, Scene XII Lines 44-46). Once again, Faustus listened to Mephastophilis. He renewed his vow to the devil and stabbed himself sending him to an eternity in hell. Even in his final hours when there he was asking for mercy. However, he could not completely be freed from his ties with the devil partly because he did not have enough faith the God would forgive him. It is Hamlet’s nature to be meditating on the things that are going on around him.   The presence of the ghost that was supposed to be his father’s symbolized his contemplation of whether the ghost really was his father or if it was an evil spirit trying to get him to murder Claudius. Hamlet caught up in the despair of it all said, â€Å"To be, or not to be: that is the question: Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune or to take arms against a sea of troubles, And by opposing end them† (Shakespeare 1600, Act III Scene 1). His despair brought him to a point of hopelessness and depression that he questioned whether it was better to take his own life, which was a mortal sin, or to live and suffer. Nevertheless, Hamlet suffered and struggled inside for the rest of the play, more so because of his genuine goodness. Faustus showed the same regard for the consequences of his actions. Both opted to choose evil, even if one was lesser than the others; one chose revenge over justice, the other chose temporary wealth and power over salvation. There was reformation in every sphere of life and people were swept by the waves of such change of mindsets. The struggle for good and evil reflects the reality of the common man who constantly fights to uphold goodness in one’s life. A number of times, people fail to triumph over evil as the will grows weaker against the desires of the heart. The important lesson manifested in both plays was the importance of choices that is available to everyone. Bibliography Marlowe C. (1588). Doctor Faustus. New York: P.F. Collier ; Son Company, 1909–14 Shakespeare W. (1600) .Hamlet, Prince of Denmark. New York: The Norton Shakespeare: W.W. Norton ; Company, Inc. Sparknotes.com (2007). Hamlet, the Prince of Denmark. Retrieved on October 17, 2007, from http://www.sparknotes.com/shakespeare/hamlet/index.html. Sparknotes.com (2007). Faustus. Retrieved on October 17, 2007, from http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/doctorfaustus/. Studer-Pauer, H. (1994). Norms, Values, and Society. Netherlands: Kluwer Academic Publishers. ; ;

Essay on A Midsummer Nights Dream Critical Analysis

Mandy Conway Mrs. Guynes English 12 16 March 2000 A Critical Analysis of quot;A Midsummer Nights Dreamquot; William Shakespeare, born in 1594, is one of the greatest writers in literature. He dies in 1616 after completing many sonnets and plays. One of which is quot;A Midsummer Nights Dream.quot; They say that this play is the most purely romantic of Shakespeares comedies. The themes of the play are dreams and reality, love and magic. This extraordinary play is a play-with-in-a-play, which master writers only write successfully. Shakespeare proves here to be a master writer. Critics find it a task to explain the intricateness of the play, audiences find it very pleasing to read and watch. quot;A Midsummer Nights Dreamquot; is a†¦show more content†¦He needs her too, so he wins the boy for himself to make her feel inferior. In other words, Titania gave up something that she loved to make her husband happy. This is seen in everyday life, women give up their wants to make their men happy. Titanias sacrifice for Oberon cost her to lose both her Indian boy and his mother, her women lover. When men dont make women happy, they turn to their friends for what they need, whatever it may be. (Scott 370-373) Male domination not only exists between husband and wife, but also between father and daughter. Theseus will not allow Hermia to marry Lysander. Theseus wants her to marry Demetrius. Egeus, a ruler, will force Hermia to become a nun unless she marries Demetrius. In retaliation to his demands, Lysander and Hermia run away together. Hermia is scolded by Egeus for being in love with the man she chooses. This suggests that men cause women to feel forced and obligated to do as they say. (Scott 373) Another example of male domination is the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta. Theseus first wife was frail and yielding, and he divorced her. Hippolyta has been a warrior, and Theseus victory over her makes her unable to resist. By conquering the female warrior and marryi ng her, he fulfills his need for the exclusive love of a woman while satisfying his homoerotic desires. Close bonding fulfills this homoerotic desire with a male companion, such as Demetrius andShow MoreRelatedAn Analysis of the ‘Happy Ending’ of Shakespeare’s a Midsummer Night’s Dream.1930 Words   |  8 PagesAll’s Well That Ends Well†¦ Or Is It? An analysis of the ‘Happy Ending’ of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. It is commonly said that â€Å"all’s well that ends well.† In the case of the comedies of William Shakespeare, this is almost universally true. With specific regard to A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the machinations of Oberon are able to bring together Lysander and Hermia, as well as Helena and Demetrius, in a way that provides for the happiest of conclusions. 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