Skip to content
Thesis Questions
- According to Aristotle, he describes the tragic hero as, “a person who must evoke a sense of pity and fear in the audience. He is considered a man of misfortune that comes to him through error of judgment.” In “Bartleby the Scrivener,” Herman Melville expresses a tragic story through Bartleby. Of course, Bartleby is an innocent victim of the social system, but does he truly possess traits of a hero? Although readers can sympathize with his misery and grief, does he show signs of courage? A traditional tragic hero will confront his downfall. Does Bartleby confront his downfall?
- In “The Metamorphosis,” Franz Kafka uses the protagonist to express the five stages of grief. The first stage, denial and isolation, are prominent themes found in the story. Gregor’s life as a cockroach eludes to alienation and isolation. However, is his transformation the root of the problem? The transformation may symbolize isolation, but did his isolation exist long before this?
This entry was posted in
Uncategorized. Bookmark the
permalink.
I really like your first question and how you describe Bartleby as “an innocent victim of the social system”. In my opinion Bartleby does not possess courage, but I really like how include that in your first possible thesis because he is a strange character who can be viewed in many different ways. Describing if Bartleby confronts his downfall can make for amazing paper if someone does think Bartleby did confront his downfall.
In your second thesis question, the way you pointed out how Gregor was experiencing isolation is really interesting. Gregors transformation into a cockroach caused him to be isolated completely due to his disturbing appearance. He was isolated in a way where no one looked at him in a normal way. Debating if Gregor was isolated before that transformation in comparison to isolation after wards would make for a great thesis.
I think what you stated about how the narrator told “a tragic story through Bartleby” is very interesting because it can be seen as a tragic story from the perspective of the narrator. It may not be so tragic from Bartleby’s POV. I do see Bartleby as courageous in a sense of being stubborn and doing as he pleased even though the narrator could have called the police from the beginning.
Your second question I think is a great question and really makes the reader think, good job!
-Myra K.