great works ii – 2850 jta 12:25-2:05: love letters from the world

1. Although Gregor is isolated by his family and eventually dies, he, ultimately, goes through an internal transformation as he gains his freedom individual at the end of his metamorphosis.

2. In Kafka’s “Metamorphosis”, Gregor Samsa goes through a series of isolation as he is alienated from his family, work and even himself during his metamorphic stages.

3. Gregor Samsa, who is solely seen as the financial supporter by his family, is neglected by each of his family members, one by one, as he progresses through each stage of his metamorphosis.

“Fog-fraught cities” 
(Stanza viii Line 9)

Throughout the poem “Hole in the Sky”, Niyi Osundare uses short phrases to describe greater issues, whether they are historical, political, social, or environmental. The poet makes it evident that although man and nature are extremes, it is the collusion of man and nature that results in the happenings of reality. The phrase “fog-fraught cities” refers to horrible conditions of the Industrial Revolution during the 18th and 19th century. As the use of coal began to increase, factories were releasing smog into the air that had a serious effect on not only human but the environment as a whole. Osundare, as an environmental activist, wants to spread awareness of the poor environmental conditions in the world that results from going from an agrarian lifestyle to an industrial living. By using the word “fraught”, he emphasizes on the idea that the cities are being filled with undesirable substance from the transformation to mass production in factories. Osundare stresses upon the environmental impacts from this turning historical event to raise a social issue between man and nature.

Eric, McLamb. “The Ecological Impact of the Industrial Revolution.”Ecology 18 Sept. 2011. Web. 28 Nov. 2015.

Josh K, Tyler, Rose and Joseph

Samuel Beckett’s play “Endgame” is an expression of absurdism. An absurdist drama usually makes an audience depressed but at the same time tries to bring the audience closer to reality. A scene of absurdism is when “Nagg knocks on the lid of the other bin…the lid lifts and the hands of Nell appear, gripping the rim” and Nagg and Nell are nostalgic about the time “when [they] crashed on [their] tandem and lost [their] shanks” (772). Both characters laugh about it at first but as they remember the past more, their laughter become more meaningless. This portrays absurdism because it is abnormal to laugh about such tragic accident and their meaningless conversation resembles their lack of incentives in living. Rather than finding this scene humoristic, the audience feels more detached from the characters. However, this scene does make the audience question about their own reality and meaning in life as they try to find their purpose of living.

Throughout the narrative one may continue to ask him/herself whether or not there is a point to the lives of the characters in the play. Is there really a purpose for their existence? Is what they do in life significant or not? These are the questions Beckett attempts to tackle in his narrative. Surely enough, Endgame is a clear depiction of absurdism. Absurdism is a concept that explains that life is likely meaningless, but because we are unsure, we live life as if it has purpose. We see that in the play Hamm actually considers whether or not life has purpose when he states, “To think perhaps it won’t all have been for nothing!” (778). Although, not stated optimistically, this statement alone shows that Hamm has considered the idea of a life with meaning by stating, “it won’t all have been for nothing”. This consideration that Hamm makes is the distinguishing factor between what is absurdity and what is nihilism, and because he is uncertain, or unsure about the meaning of life, he chooses to live it with purpose anyway, an absurdist.

Despite the fact that the main characters are able to laugh about memories of the past, it is evident that their lives are meaningless. Thus, Endgame is an expression of nihilism. While describing a despondent man that he used to show things to, Hamm states, “Look! The sails of the herring fleet! All that loveliness! He’d snatched away his hand and go back into his corner. Appalled. All he had seen was ashes” (782). This specific man is “appalled” with humanity as a whole. He was shown things like fleets and plants: things described as “loveliness,” and would only see “ashes.” “Ashes,” in particular, is a word that holds true significance. It suggests that all of life is basically nothingness; life is burnt like ash. This shows the kind of demeanor Beckett is trying to express in his writing. Clearly, he supports nihilism because he is trying to assert that life is simply a delusion: it is meaningless, just like ash.

Absurdism and nihilism go hand in hand but in the case of Samuel Beckett’s play, like most is an expression of absurdism. Absurdism is the philosophy that one will look for meaning in the world and not find it, thus creating your own meaning for it. One can argue that it is nihilism because they chose their own faith and chose to repeat the same thing over and over but the philosophy of absurdism proves that Hamm and Clov were predestined this life. The story finished just how it started, Hamm had the handkerchief over his head and Clove never left his side after talking about leaving the whole time. Their life are cyclical, meaning it’s the same thing every day, thus giving their life no purpose. “Hamm stops him before he leaves and thanks him for his services. Clov thanks him, and Hamm says they are obliged to each other. He asks him for a last favor, to cover him with the sheet, but Clov has already left…He calls out for Clov, but hears nothing. He takes out his handkerchief, unfolds it, and says “You…remain.” He covers his face with the handkerchief and sits motionless.” Clove couldn’t see himself doing anything else and came back to a life he does not enjoy which by definition is absurd.

Overall Beckett’s Endgame depicts the gray area of absurdism and nihilism. It is evident that the characters in Endgame believe that life is meaningless. However the line that differentiates absurdism and nihilism is whether these characters choose to live their lives with purposes or not. The audience might perceive them to be living without any purpose but these characters are actually aware of their absurd situations. The characters can be seen as the few pieces left in a game of chess. Chess players, who are fully aware of the game, know when they will be defeated while the less experienced player will drag out the game to avoid their defeat as long as possible. Beckett’s characters resemble the players who prolong their defeats or situations. By doing so, they make it apparent that they understand their situations and try to drag on their lives as if they are trying to attach a purpose to their lives.

The chief clerk and Gregor’s father react differently when they discover Gregor’s transformation. The clerk has a normal humanlike reaction while Gregor’s father demonstrates an unfatherly behavior. The chief clerk “turned his back on Gregor…his trembling shoulder” (218). This reaction of the clerk can be seen as normal because most people would be stunned when they see a monstrous cockroach. Before Gregor could approach the clerk, the clerk was already in the hallway, trying to avoid such shocking sight. Gregor’s father, on the other hand, “remained relatively calm…grabbed a large newspaper from the table, and, by stamping his feet and brandishing stick and newspaper, attempted to drive Gregor back into his room” (219). While the clerk and the other family members react in a “normal” humanlike way, the father responds with anger. The father is more worried about the the finances of the family and thus he does not realize Gregor’s injury from the door. Through this violent act of the father, the audience can assume that Gregor and his father has a bad father-son relationship.

People have a tendency to make lies in order to hide the truth and they continue to lie to hide their previous lie. However, they do not realize that this chain of lies can be detrimental as it creates a bigger damage on oneself or another being. In Tagore’s “Punishment”, Chidam, who was traumatized by his brother’s wrongdoing blurts out a false statement because “when immediate danger threatens, it is hard to think of other dangers.” In order to protect his brother, Chidam, unknowingly, says that his wife, Chandara, killed his sister-in-law. As the creator of the lie, Chidam feels uneasy throughout the entire story because he put his wife into a horrible position as a criminal. He becomes even more nervous when Chandara does not follow the plan he came up with, which is lying that the older sister-in-law had tried to attack her first. Although Chandara is given the death sentence, she ultimately defeats Chidam and Dukhiram. She portrays her self-esteem by not conforming to Chidam’s plan. Her acceptance of the punishment symbolizes Chandara’s strength as an individual being rather than as Chidam’s unvalued wife.

Josh K.
Tyler
Rose (Yoon)
Joseph

Emily Dickinson – 303 “The Soul Selects her own Society”

In Emily Dickinson’s poem, “The Soul Selects her own Society”. The idea of the “Soul” is personified, and for this reason, the word soul is capitalized throughout the work. In the very onset of the poem, Dickinson writes, “The Soul selects her own Society” (483). It is apparent that the “Soul” is personified as a woman because of the personal pronoun “her” that is attached. Rather than simply referring to the “Soul” as one part of a human, Dickinson creates the “Soul” to be a character of its own to portray how the soul has its own power and will to choose the “Society” whom she wants to be part of. With the ability to exercise power of personal choice, the “Soul” is able to neglect the power and wealth of the larger society. She creates her own “Society” based on her own firm beliefs. In her particular society, it seems as if she has closed the doors to anyone she deems unworthy. The society is hers and she has the only power of judgment, not giving in to anyone that tries to persuade her. Essentially, she is closing the door against anyone who is trying to enter “her own society”. Thus, Dickinson personifies the “Soul” to emphasize the importance and power of individuality that comes from the inner thoughts or souls of humans.

1. It may seem as if men have more power when they objectify women, but the power of femininity is, ultimately, the greater force that empowers women over men.

2. Although most women were held under the dominance of men in 17th century, such as Dorine, there was a rising number of women, such as Mariane and Elmire, who spoke up as they strived for justice.

Femininity is a strong yet destructive force when taken for granted. Hedda Tessman may appear to be powerful woman, who manipulates the characters of lower ranks, but Mrs. Elvsted is ultimately the powerful woman, who holds power through her femininity. Mrs. Elvsted’s power of femininity is evident when Hedda runs her fingers lightly through Mrs. Elvsted’s hair and says “doesn’t it seem strange, Thea. Here you are, sitting together with Tessman – just like you used to sit with Eilert Løvborg” (837). Hedda, who has a domineering attitude, pretends to be strong by touching Mrs. Elvsted’s hair. However, this scene portrays Hedda’s jealousy towards Mrs. Elvsted’s feministic character because, unlike her, Mrs. Elvsted has “remarkably light, almost a white gold and exceptionally rich and full” hair, that Hedda wanted to burn since her childhood. In addition, Mrs. Elvsted inspired Løvborg with his manuscript and tried to preserve his death by putting the lost manuscript together. It is evident that Tessman was inspired by her too because Tessman, who praised Hedda, suddenly turned his back against his wife and sat next to Mrs. Elvsted to help her recreate Løvborg’s manuscript. Hedda, unable to deal with her insecurity and jealousy, committed suicide. Mrs. Elvsted may be of a lower rank than Hedda, but her femininity is more powerful than Hedda’s pride.

Du Tenth and the narrator of Saikaku’s From Life of a Sensuous Woman are both objectified women with different perspectives on love and pleasure. However, both women portray the idea of power over men when the men from their sexual relationships die. Du Tenth from Menglong’s “Du Tenth Sinks the Jewel Box in Anger” is a prostitute, who commits to one man, Master Li. They were an inseparable couple with “Affection as deep as an unfathomed sea; loyalty as heavy as mountains, but higher” (501). The narrator of Saikaku’s narrative, however, does not devote to a single man because her sexual desires are impossible to satisfy and thus, she slept with more than ten thousand men. Eventually, theses sexual partners of the narrator face their downfalls as they collapse and die. Ultimately, Du Tenth is also treated as an object when Master Li chooses thousand taels of white silver and asides with his fear of his father’s opinion rather than standing up for Du Tenth. Master Li loses his lover and “oppressive feelings eventually drove him crazy, and he never recovered as long as he lived” (516). Master Li’s downfall, similar to the downfalls of the narrator’s men, represent punishments for men, who take women for granted and objectify women.