A Rebuttal to E. R. Dodds On Misunderstanding the Oedipus Rex Essay

A Rebuttal to E. R. Dodds' On Misunderstanding the Oedipus Rex In "On Misunderstanding the Oedipus Rex," E. R. Dodds takes issue with three different opinions on Oedipus Rex. I consider the first two opinions, which Dodds gleaned from student papers, to be defensible from a close reading of the text. The first of these opinions is that Oedipus was a bad man, and was therefore punished by the gods; Dodds counters that Sophocles intended for us to regard him as good, noble, and selfless. But the play would seem to indicate that Oedipus, while a clever man, is not a good one -- this can be shown through Dodds' own source of argument, the attitude of the chorus, as well as through Oedipus' own actions onstage. Oedipus does not, as Dodds asserts, unselfishly seek out the truth even though he knows it will be painful for him; rather, he has no idea what the outcome of his search will be, denies the truth at every turn, and threatens those who speak it. The second conclusion drawn by students -- that Oedipus' actions are entirely determined by the gods , who control him completely -- Dodds pooh-poohs on the grounds that Oedipus is a free agent, acting on his own initiative. In fact, Dodds states, the idea of free will vs. determinism is a Hellenistic thought and would not have even occured to an audience of Sophocles' time. I believe that, as all of Oedipus' actions, including those over the course of the play, were determined before his birth, and he cannot avoid them although it is his will to do so, those actions cannot be construed as real choice. This play contains many post-Sophoclean ideas, such as denial, that (while not yet named by Greek society) still were understood by the audience. In his rebuttal of the first opi... ... look at it as Greeks would, isn't this the same as saying that the play is meaningless to today's readers? One of the wonders of classic texts is that every generation will find something new in them. This should not be looked upon as a sign of students' ignorance, but rather of their ingenuity. Works Cited and Consulted Dodds, E. R. "On Misunderstanding the Oedipus Rex." Twentieth Century Interpretations of Oedipus Rex: A Collection of Critical Essays. Ed. Michael J. O'Brien. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, 1968. 17-29. Hamilton, Edith. Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes. New York: Penguin Books, 1940. Knox, Bernard M. W. The Heroic Temper: Studies in Sophoclean Tragedy. Berkeley: U of California Press, 1964. Sophocles. "Oedipus Rex." An Introduction to Literature, 11th ed. Eds. Sylvan Barnet, et al. New York: Longman, 1997. 800-836.

American Civil War and United Fruit Company Essay

In, â€Å"Testimony: Death of a Guatemalan Village,† Victor Montejo describes events surrounding the military regimes occurring throughout Guatemala. The book itself is an eyewitness account detailing one instance of violence between the indigenous peoples village’s â€Å"civil patrol† and the army. This occurrence leads to the execution and imprisonment of many villagers. Even though the book is mainly a testimony by one person, in which he discusses the personal conflicts and struggle between himself and the army, the account is structured around the Guatemalan civil war and the conflict between the government and civilians. The Guatemalan Civil War occurred between the years 1960 to 1996. It was a battle between the government of Guatemala and the numerous leftist rebel groups who were supported by the Mayan indigenous, poor, and working class. This civil war began as the many poor realized that their government had little concern for them, as the elites in the country owned most of the land. Much of the land was also owned by multinational corporations, such as the U. S. wned â€Å"United Fruit Company† in the 1940s and 50s. The result of this unequal land ownership, which also contributed to an unbalanced distribution of wealth, led to an oppressed population living in extreme poverty. These local hardships were ultimately the driving force behind the rebellious leftist groups As military leaders began to have control of the government by the 1960’s and through the 1970s, physical violence became a method used to overthrow political opposition. As other countries in Latin America had their own revolutions; Guatemalan citizens looked to them as a source of inspiration for their attempts to take control of their country. The example of Cuba became a stepping stone and a clear example for Guatemala as Fidel Castro was successful throughout the Cuban Revolution in Cuba and was able to overthrow the Batista family. Other examples included the Sandinista guerilla movement who successfully completed a revolution in Nicaragua in 1979, and in El Salvador where the FMLN guerillas also appeared to be having similar results. However, these regimes are appealing at first, but after having them continue for long periods, much conflict ensued which contributed to much loss for the poor rebels and their fight for sovereignty. Looking at Montejo’s testimony, Maria Lupe’s testimony, and the cold war in Guatemala; we will examine how these violent regimes appeared to the civilians, their effects on society, and their connection to the civil war. Victor Montejo describes several political instances that have led to the people’s desire for a revolt against the acting government. He mentions that former president Lucas Garcia left many things â€Å"undone;† though not much information is given for background information of Garcia, we can conclude that he was responsible for the growth of the military’s power and an initial cause for the dissent of the poor. He also mentions Garcia’s successor, president Efrain Rios Montt and his lack on taking the government out of the hand of the military. Montejo states â€Å"no president would be able to control the situation because the military were the ones in charge. Later on Montejo reveals that under Lucas Garcia’s administration’s military; â€Å"paramilitary, police, and priests, were kidnapped, tortured, and killed; or rather anyone who had influence in the town who spoke out against the government. † As the government paved ways to try to economically stabilize the state, many of its poor suffered, and regimes occurred to support the poor, leading many to suspect communistic or socialist identities, and a desire for government change. With the military being in control, with help and support coming from the U.  S. , the army was used to stamp out the leftist guerrillas who were pushing for a new government that would support the people. Looking at Montejo’s testimony, we see the creations of civil patrols, a group of men designated by the military government to protect their town from the guerillas. However, some of these patrolmen were thought to also secretly support the guerrillas and under a confused set of operations, attacked the army and; according to Montejo’s testimony, many villagers were killed. The army also rob and burn down parts of the village. In one case, a young man who was part of the patrols is shot and as he laid dying, reveals that the uniform worn (in that particular day) by the army was similar to the ones the guerrillas would wear, except that the guerrillas didn’t cause any harm as they walk through the village. This has a lot to say about how the civilians saw the government’s military, and how they saw their repressive state; being something they had to do without question due to fear. Taking a look at the testimony alone, we can also see how society was effected. Out of Montejo’s brief background detailing the ailures of the presidents and the absolute repression faced by the civilians, we can conclude that the governments force to keep the guerillas unsuccessful was limited and pushed society into rebellions. In other words, as the army continued to torture and persecute the innocent, many found it necessary to fall into the hands of the guerrillas in order to stamp out their oppression. Maria Lupe’s account is similar to Montejos. She describes her hardships as a house wife, working on a plantation of a rich land owner. Her husband worked for 50 cents per day, and her payment was in food. She mentions moving closer to the north in a town called Ixcan, hoping for better jobs. At about two years the member of the guerrilla army for the poor began entering the town, recruiting people, and telling them that they were fighting so that they could all live better lives. After she had met with the guerrillas, she realized that their interests were aligned with hers. The guerillas and â€Å"companeros† as the group was called, effected society for the better; they were able to construct support within the community, almost â€Å"communistic† in style; sharing food, selling materials, and taking care of each other. She mentions that spies were beginning to infiltrate the village and set up a military commissioner. Just as Montejo, suspicion of guerrilla collaboration was dangerous and could lead to death. She eventually becomes involved with this group which enables her to feel secure, and at some point is given arms for protection. She also mentions that the †companeros† made efforts to include women and support women’s roles in society, outside of the home, giving women more of a say in the community. We see an opposite reaction as to how the civilians felt about the guerrillas that is only slightly mentioned in Montejo’s testimony through the eyes of the dying patrolmen when he mentions that the guerrillas never attack them. The government military’s efforts was to remove any dissent, particularly those of the guerrillas. The hatred for them is revealed in Montejos testimony, as he is constantly beaten by the army because of the suspicion of him being a guerrilla. He eventually flees the country for fear that they may target him again under false pretenses. In Lupe’s account the military is the enemy, and when suspicion arises, she is arrested and detained for several months, leaving behind her children; she later flees and leaves the community, having to work for low wages again in another town. Lupe’s case shines a light upon the guerrillas, they are almost portrayed as saviors. She never discusses the government’s military repression into great detail, but we see here that civilians showed a bit of amnesty toward the guerrillas and favored their motives against the repressive government. The history of these conflicts stem from the effects of the Guatemalan civil war. Initially, it began as a â€Å"social revolution,† a stance against neo-colonialism. Through 1944 to 1954, Guatemala experienced the â€Å"Ten Years of Spring† a time when two democratically elected Presidents; Arevalo and Arbenz, stressed reform, nationalism, and new constitutions. The Arbenz reforms stressed the importance to remove any outside corporations and instead focused on independent commerce within the country. He was able to move Guatemala from a semi-colonial system to an independent country. He did this by moving the country’s economy from a feudal system to a more capitalistic one. He was also able to raise the standard of living for most of the population. In order to do so, he confiscated large estates and redistributed them to the peasants, he also seized unused â€Å"United Fruit Company† and railroad lands to benefit his people. His most controversial step was his opposition to the â€Å"Declaration of Caracas,† which aligned all of Latin America with the United States to ensure the â€Å"success† of democracy. He instead supported solidarity against U. S. interventions. This lead to wide speculation by the Eisenhower administration, and concluded that Guatemala was moving toward communism. This led to a huge U. S. infiltration on the Guatemalan government. The U. S. trained and armed proxy forces in Honduras who later joined the conservative Guatemalan military to overthrow Arbenz. These coups are the ones who will become responsible for the military takeover that plagued Guatemala for many years, and which are highlighted in Montejo’s and Lupe’s accounts. By June 1954 a new military junta in Guatemala formed, supported by the U. S. nd established the â€Å"National Committee of Defense Against Communism,† which allowed for the arrest and death penalty of â€Å"subversive† activities. By September 1954, General Carlos Castillo Armas, who was supported by the U. S. becomes president of Guatemala. He then forces society to reverse many of the Abrenz reforms; revoking voting rights for illiterates, which made up half of the population, forced peasants to leave the acquired lands, banned political parties and peasant organizations, and restored the secret police. By the 1960s, a 36 year civil war had begun, with the U. S. supporting the authoritarian government. With the onset of the civil war, we see the outcomes which shaped Montejo’s and Lupe’s testimony, and the hardships the civilians faced and the effects on society; being banished from lands that were given to them, having to abandon jobs and a thriving economy due to outside efforts to contain â€Å"communism. † For three decades the civil war was fought, a fight, one might say, to reclaim what belonged to Guatemala from greedy outsiders and those wanting to ensure their own success, while the poor Indians had no say in government and were forced to remain loyal to a government that did not share in their interests. Luckily, the civil war came to an end and the violent regimes once waged ceased. However, through the eyes of Montejo and Lupe, we are able to see the lives of the civilians that had to live under the repressed state and the attitudes these people shared for their government, leaving an important legacy for all people to witness, that regimes started by the poor where necessary in order to create a society where everyone had an equal share to the same rights as the elites.

The Return: Shadow Souls Chapter 34

I don't think about those things, Elena answered in the same way Damon had spoken and for the same reason. I don't think because if I do I'll go insane. But if I go insane, what good will I be to Stefan? I couldn't help him. Instead I block it all out with walls of iron and I keep it away at any cost. â€Å"And you can manage that?† Damon asked, his voice shaking slightly. â€Å"I can – because I have to. Remember in the beginning when we were arguing about the ropes around our wrists? Meredith and Bonnie had doubts. But they knew that I would wear handcuffs and crawl after you if that was what it took.† Elena turned to look at Damon in the crimson darkness and added, â€Å"And you've given yourself away, time after time, you know.† She slipped arms around him to touch his healed back, so that he would have no doubt about what she meant. â€Å"That was for you,† Damon said harshly. â€Å"Not really,† Elena replied. â€Å"Think about it. If you hadn't agreed to the Discipline, we might have run out of town, but we could never have helped Stefan after that. When you get down to it, everything, all you've done, you've done for Stefan.† â€Å"When you get down to it, I was the one who put Stefan here in the first place,† Damon said tiredly. â€Å"I figure we're just about even now.† â€Å"How many times, Damon? You were possessed when you let Shinichi talk you into it,† Elena said, feeling exhausted herself. â€Å"Maybe you need to be possessed again – just a little – so you remember how it feels.† Every cell in Damon's body seemed to flinch away from this idea. But aloud he just said, â€Å"There's something that everyone has missed, you know. About the archetypal story of how two brothers killed each other simultaneously, and became vampires because they'd dallied with the same girl.† â€Å"What?† Elena said sharply, shocked out of her tiredness. â€Å"Damon, what do you mean?† â€Å"What I said. There's something you've all missed. Ha. Maybe even Stefan has missed it. The story gets told and retold, but nobody catches it.† Damon had turned his face away. Elena moved closer to him, just a bit, so he could smell her perfume, which was attar of roses that night. â€Å"Damon, tell me. Tell me, please!† Damon started to turn toward her – And it was at that moment that the liftmen stopped. Elena had only a second to wipe her face, and the curtains were being drawn. Meredith had told them all the myth about Bloddeuwedd, which she'd got from a story-telling globe. All about how Bloddeuwedd had been made out of flowers and brought to life by the gods, and how she had betrayed her husband to his death, and how, in punishment, she had been doomed to spend each night from midnight to dawn as an owl. And, apparently, there was something the myths didn't mention. The fact that she had been doomed to live here, banished from the Celestial Court into the deep red twilight of the Dark Dimension. All things considered, it was logical that her parties started at six in the evening. Elena found that her mind was jumping from subject to subject. She accepted a goblet of Black Magic from a slave as her eyes wandered. Every woman and most of the men at the party were wearing clever attire that changed color in the sun. Elena felt quite modest – after all, everything out of doors seemed to be pink or scarlet or wine-colored. Downing her goblet of Magic, Elena was slightly surprised to find herself going into automatic party-mode behavior, greeting people she'd met earlier in the week with cheek kisses and hugs as if she'd known them for years. Meanwhile she and Damon worked their way toward the mansion, sometimes with, sometimes against the tide of constantly moving people. They made it up one steep set of white (pink) marble stairs, which sported on either side banks of glorious blue (violet) delphiniums and pink (scarlet) wild roses. Elena stopped here, for two reasons. One was to get a new goblet of Black Magic. The first had already given her a pleasant glow – although of course everything was constantly glowing here. She was hoping that the second cup would help her forget everything that Damon had brought up in the litter except the key – and help her remember what she'd been fretting over originally, before her thoughts had been hijacked by Bonnie and Meredith's talk. â€Å"I expect the best way is just to ask someone,† she told Damon, who was suddenly and silently at her elbow. â€Å"Ask what?† Elena leaned a little toward the slave who'd just supplied her with a fresh goblet. â€Å"May I ask – where is Lady Bloddeuwedd's main ballroom?† The liveried slave looked surprised. Then, with his head, he made a gesture all around. â€Å"This plaza – below the canopy – has gained the name the Great Ballroom,† he said, bowing over his tray. Elena stared at him. Then she stared around her. Under a giant canopy – it looked semipermanent to her and was hung all around with pretty lanterns in shades that were enhanced by the sun – the smooth grass lawn stretched away for hundreds of yards on all sides. It is bigger than a football field. â€Å"What I'd like to know,† Bonnie was asking a fellow guest, a woman who had clearly been to many of Bloddeuwedd's affairs and knew her way around the mansion, â€Å"is this: which room is the main ballroom?† â€Å"Oh, my deah, it depends on what you mean,† the guest replied cheerfully. â€Å"Theah's the Great Ballroom out of doors – you must have seen it while climbing – the big pavilion? And then theah's the White Ballroom inside. That's lit with candelabras and has the curtains drawn all round. Sometimes it's called the Waltz Room, since all that is played in there is waltzes.† But Bonnie was still caught in horror a few sentences back. â€Å"There's a ballroom outside?† she said shakily, hoping that somehow she hadn't heard right. â€Å"That's it, deah, you can see through that wall theah.† The woman was telling the truth. You could see through the wall, because the walls were all of glass, one beyond another, allowing Bonnie to see what seemed to be an illusion done with mirrors: lighted room after lighted room, all filled with people. Only the last room on the bottom floor seemed to be made out of something solid. That must be the White Ballroom. But through the opposite wall, where the guest was pointing – oh, yes. There was a canopy top. She remembered vaguely passing it. The other thing she remembered was†¦ â€Å"They dance on the grass? That – enormous field of grass?† â€Å"Of course. It's all especially cut and rolled smooth. You won't trip over a weed or hummock of ground. Are you sure you're feeling quite well? You look rathah pale. Well† – the guest laughed – â€Å"as pale as anyone can look in this light.† â€Å"I'm fine,† Bonnie said dazedly. â€Å"I'm just†¦fine.† The two parties met later and told each other of the horrors that they had unearthed. Damon and Elena had discovered that the ground of the outdoor ballroom was almost as hard as rock – anything that had been buried there before the ground was rolled smooth by heavy rollers would now be packed down in something like cement. The only place that anyone could dig there was around the perimeter. â€Å"We should have brought a diviner,† Damon said. â€Å"You know, someone who uses a forked stick or a pendulum or a bit of a missing person's clothing to home in on the correct area.† â€Å"You're right,† Meredith said, her tone clearly adding for once. â€Å"Why didn't we bring a diviner?† â€Å"Because I don't know of any,† Damon said, with his sweetest, most ferocious barracuda smile. Bonnie and Meredith had found that the inside ballroom's flooring was rock – very beautiful white marble. There were dozens of floral arrangements in the room, but all that Bonnie had stuck her small hand into (as unobtrusively as possible) were simply cut flowers in a vase of water. No soil, nothing that could justify using the term â€Å"buried in.† â€Å"And besides, why would Shinichi and Misao put the key in water they knew would be thrown out in a few days?† Bonnie asked, frowning, while Meredith added, â€Å"And how do you find a loose floorboard in marble? So we can't see how it could be buried there. By the way, I checked – and the White Ballroom has been here for years, so there's no chance that they dumped it under the building stones, either.† Elena, by now drinking her third goblet of Black Magic, said, â€Å"All right. The way we look at this is: one room scratched off the list. Now, we've already got half of the key – look how easy that was – â€Å" â€Å"Maybe that was just to tease us,† Damon said, raising an eyebrow. â€Å"To get our hopes up, before dashing them completely†¦here.† â€Å"That can't be,† Elena said desperately, glaring at him. â€Å"We've come so far – farther than Misao ever imagined we would. We can find it. We will find it.† â€Å"All right,† Damon said, suddenly deadly serious. â€Å"If we have to pretend to be staff and use pickaxes on that soil outdoors, we'll do it. But first, let's go through the entire house inside. That seemed to work well last time.† â€Å"All right,† Meredith said, for once looking straight at him and without disapproval. â€Å"Bonnie and I will take the upstairs floors and you can take the downstairs ones – maybe you can make something of that White Waltz Ballroom.† â€Å"All right.† They set to work. Elena wished that she could calm down. Despite most of three goblets of Black Magic oscillating inside her – or perhaps because of them – she was seeing certain things in new lights. But she must keep her mind on the quest – and only on the quest. She would do anything – anything – she told herself, to get the key. Anything for Stefan. The White Ballroom smelled of flowers and was garlanded with large, opulent blooms in the midst of abundant greenery. Standing arrangements were placed to shield an area around a fountain into an intimate nook where couples could sit. And, although there was no visible orchestra, music poured into the ballroom, demanding a response from Elena's susceptible body. â€Å"I don't suppose you know how to waltz,† Damon said suddenly, and Elena realized that she had been swaying in time to the beat, eyes closed. â€Å"Of course I do,† Elena answered, a little offended. â€Å"We all of us went to Ms. Hopewell's classes. That was the equivalent of charm school in Fell's Church,† she added, seeing the funny side of it and laughing at herself. â€Å"But Ms. Hopewell did love to dance, and she taught us every dance and movement she thought was graceful. That was when I was about eleven.† â€Å"I suppose it would be absurd for me to ask you to dance with me,† Damon said. Elena looked at him with what she knew were large and puzzled eyes. Despite the low-cut scarlet dress, she didn't feel like an irresistible siren tonight. She was too wrought up to feel the magic woven in the cloth, magic which she now realized was telling her she was a dancing flame, a fire elemental. She supposed that Meredith must feel like a quiet stream, flowing swiftly and steadily to her destination, but sparkling and glinting all the way. And Bonnie – Bonnie, of course was a sprite of the air, meant to dance as lightly as a feather in that opalescent dress, barely subject to gravity. But abruptly Elena remembered certain glances of admiration she had seen directed toward herself. And now suddenly Damon was vulnerable? Yet he didn't imagine she would dance with him? â€Å"Of course I would love to dance,† she said, realizing with a slight shock that she hadn't noticed before, that Damon was in flawless white tie. Of course, it was on the one night when it might hinder them, but it made him look like a prince of the blood. Her lips quirked slightly at the title. Of the blood†¦oh, yes. â€Å"Are you sure you know how to waltz?† she asked him. â€Å"A good question. I took it up in 1885 because it was known to be riotous and indecent. But it depends on whether you are speaking of the peasant waltz, the Viennese Waltz, the Hesitation Waltz, or – â€Å" â€Å"Oh, come on, or we'll miss another dance.† Elena grabbed his hand, feeling tiny sparks as if she'd stroked a cat's fur the wrong way, and pulled him into the swaying crowd. Another waltz began. Music flooded into the room and lifted Elena almost off her feet as the small hairs on the back of her neck stood up. Her body tingled all over as if she had drunk some sort of celestial elixir. It was her favorite waltz since childhood: the one she'd been brought up on. Tchaichovsky's Sleeping Beauty waltz. But some child part of her mind could never help but pairing the sweet sweeping notes that came after the thundering, electrifying beginning together with the words from the Disney movie version: I know you; I danced with you once upon a dream†¦. As always, they brought tears to her eyes; they made her heart sing and her feet want to fly rather than dance. Her dress was backless. Damon's warm hand was on her bare skin there. I know, something whispered to her, why they called this dance riotous and indecent. And now, certainly, Elena felt like a flame. We were meant to be this way. She couldn't remember if it was an old quote of Damon's or something new he was just barely whispering to her mind now. Like two flames that join and merge into one. You're good, Damon told her, and this time she knew that it was him speaking and that it was in the present. You don't need to patronize me. I'm too happy already! Elena laughed back. Damon was an expert, and not just at the precision of the steps. He danced the waltz as if it were still riotous and indecent. He had a firm lead, which of course Elena's human strength could not break. But he could interpret little signals of her own, about what she wanted and he obliged her, as if they were ice dancing, as if at any moment they might twirl and leap. Elena's stomach was slowly melting and taking her other internal organs with it. And it never once occurred to her to think what her high school friends and rivals and enemies would have thought of her melting over classical music. She was free of petty spite, petty shame over differences. She was through with labeling. She wished that she could go back to show everyone that she'd never meant it in the first place. The waltz was over all too soon and Elena wanted to push the Replay button and do it from the beginning again. There was a moment just when the music stopped where she and Damon were looking at each other, with equal exaltation and yearning and – And then Damon bowed over her hand. â€Å"There is more to the waltz than just moving your feet,† he said, not looking up at her. â€Å"There is a swaying grace that can be put into the movements, a leaping flame of joy and oneness – with the music, with a partner. Those are not matters of expertise. Thank you very much for giving me the pleasure.† Elena laughed because she wanted to cry. She never wanted to stop dancing. She wanted to tango with Damon – a real tango, the kind you were supposed to have to get married after. But there was another mission†¦a necessary mission that had to be completed. And, as she turned, there were a whole crowd of other things in front of her. Men, demons, vampires, beastlike creatures. All of them wanted a dance. Damon's tuxedoed back was walking away from her. Damon! He paused but did not turn back. Yes? Help me! We need to find the other half of the key! It seemed to take him a moment to assess the situation, but then he understood. He came back to her, and taking her by the hand said in a clear, ringing voice, â€Å"This girl is my†¦personal assistant. I do not desire that she dance with anyone other than myself.† There was a restless murmuring at this. The kind of slaves that got taken to balls of this sort were not usually the kind that were forbidden to interact with strangers. But just then there was a sort of flurry at the side of the room, eventually pressing toward the opposite side where Damon and Elena were. â€Å"What is it?† Elena asked, the dance and the key both forgotten. â€Å"Who is it, I'd ask, rather,† Damon replied. â€Å"And I'd answer: our hostess, Lady Bloddeuwedd herself.† Elena found herself crowding behind other people to get a glimpse of this most extraordinary creature. But when she actually saw the girl standing alone in the doorway to the ballroom, she gasped. She was made out of flowers†¦ Elena remembered. What would a girl made out of flowers look like? She would have skin like the faintest blush of pink on an apple blossom, Elena thought, staring unashamedly. Her cheeks would be slightly deeper pink, like a dawn-colored rose. Her eyes, enormous in her delicate, perfect face, would be the color of larkspur, with heavy feathery black lashes that would make them droop half-shut, as if she walked always half in a dream. And she would have yellow hair as pale as primroses, falling down almost to the floor, wound in braids that were themselves incorporated into thicker braids until the whole mass was brought together just above her delicate ankles. Her lips would be as red as poppies, half-open and inviting. And she would give off a scent that was like a bouquet of all the first blossoms of spring. She would walk as if swaying in the breeze. Elena could only remember standing, gazing after this vision like the dozens of other guests around her. Just one more second to drink in such loveliness, her mind begged. â€Å"But what was she wearing?† Elena heard herself say aloud. She could not remember either a stunning dress or a glimpse of lustrous apple-blossom skin through the many braids. â€Å"Some sort of gown. It was made out of what else? Flowers,† Damon put in wryly. â€Å"She was wearing a dress made of every kind of flower I've ever seen. I don't understand how they stayed put – maybe they were silk and sewn together.† He was the only one who didn't seem dazzled by this vision. â€Å"I wonder if she would talk to us – just a few words,† Elena said. She was longing to hear the delicate, magical girl's voice. â€Å"I doubt it,† a man in the crowd answered her. â€Å"She doesn't talk much – at least until midnight. Say! It's you! How're you feeling?† â€Å"Very well, thank you,† Elena replied politely, and then quickly stepped back. She recognized the speaker as one of the young men who had forced their cards on Damon at the end of the Godfather's ceremony, the night of her Discipline. Now she just wanted to get away unobtrusively. But there were too many of the men, and it was clear that they were not about to let her and Damon go. â€Å"This is the girl I told you about. She goes into a trance and no matter how she's marked; she doesn't feel a thing – â€Å" † – blood running down her sides like water and she never flinched – â€Å" â€Å"They're a professional act. They go on the road†¦.† Elena was just about to say, coolly, that Bloddeuwedd had strictly forbidden this kind of barbarism at her party, when she heard one of the young vampires saying, â€Å"Don't you know, I was the one who persuaded Lady Bloddeuwedd to ask you to this get-together. I told her about your act and she was most interested to see it.† Well, scratch one excuse, Elena thought. But at least be nice to these young men. They might be helpful somehow later. â€Å"I'm afraid I can't do it tonight,† she said, quietly, so that they would be quiet themselves. â€Å"I'll apologize to Lady Bloddeuwedd directly, of course. But it just isn't possible.† â€Å"Yes, it is.† Damon's voice, just behind her, astounded her. â€Å"It's quite possible – given that someone finds my amulet.† Damon! What are you saying? Hush! What I have to. â€Å"Unfortunately, about three and a half weeks ago I lost a very important amulet. It looks like this.† He brought out the half of the fox key and let them all take a good look at it. â€Å"Is that what you used to do the trick?† someone asked, but Damon was far too clever for that. â€Å"No, many people saw me do the act just a week or so ago without it. This is a personal amulet, but with part of it missing, I simply don't feel like doing magic.† â€Å"It looks like a little fox. You're not a kitsune?† someone – too clever for their own good, Elena thought – asked next. â€Å"It may look like that to you. It's actually an arrow. An arrow with two green stones at the arrowhead. It's a – masculine charm.† A female voice somewhere in the crowd said: â€Å"I shouldn't think you need any more masculine charm than you have right now!† and there was laughter.

How Does Williams Present the Themes of Illusion and Fantasy in a Streetcar Named Desire?

How does Williams present the themes of illusion and fantasy in A Streetcar Named Desire? The theme of reality vs. fantasy is one that the play centres around. Blanche dwells in illusion; fantasy is her primary means of self-defence, both against outside threats and against her own demons. Throughout the play, Blanche's dependence on illusion is contrasted with Stanley's steadfast realism, and in the end it is Stanley and his worldview that win. To survive, Stella must also resort to a kind of illusion, forcing herself to believe that Blanche's accusations against Stanley are false so that she can continue living with her husband. One of the main ways Williams dramatises fantasy’s inability to overcome reality is through an exploration of the boundary between exterior and interior. The set includes the two-room Kowalski apartment and the surrounding street. Williams’ use of a flexible set that allows the street to be seen at the same time as the interior of the home expresses the idea that the home is not a place of safety. The characters leave and enter the apartment throughout the play, often bringing with them the problems they encounter outside. For example, Blanche refuses to leave her prejudices against the working class behind her at the door. The most notable instance of this effect occurs just before Stanley rapes Blanche, when the back wall of the apartment becomes transparent to show the struggles occurring on the street, foreshadowing the violation that is about to take place in the Kowalski’s’ home. Blanche is the most fascinating character in A Streetcar Named Desire. One reason for this is that she has an absolutely brilliant way of making reality seem like fantasy, and making fantasy seem like reality. This element of Blanche's personality is what makes her character interest the audience and contribute to the excellence of the work. Returning to the beginning of the play, Blanche, shocked with the  dirtiness  and gloominess of Stella and Stanley's home in New Orleans, looks out the  window and says ‘Out there I suppose is the ghoul-haunted woodland of Weir! ‘, to which Stella replies ‘No honey, those are the L and N tracks. ‘ Blanche would assume that something so common and simple as noisy, dark railroad tracks might as well be ‘ghoul-haunted woodlands. Further evidence of Blanche's warped view of reality and fantasy is shown throughout the entire play. She seems to hint to Stella and Stanley, and therefore the audience, that she is actually much more than she seems. In scene  seven, Blanche soaks in a tub, singing: ‘Say, it's only a paper moon, sailing over a cardboard sea -But it wouldn't be make-believe If you believed in me! It's a Barnum and Bailey world, Just as phony as it can be -But it wouldn't be make-believe If you believed in me! ‘ As she sings this song, telling the story of her tendency to believe a more pleasant, warped view of reality over the actual reality, Stanley is telling Stella the horrifying truth about Blanche's scandalous past. These lyrics sum up Blanche’s approach to life. She believes that her lying is only her means of enjoying a better way of life and is therefore essentially harmless. In scene nine, Blanche is confronted by Mitch, who has learned the truth about her past. Mitch tells Blanche that he has never seen her in the light. He tears Blanche's paper lantern off of the plain, bright light bulb, and tries to see her as she really is, and not in a view warped by Blanche's efforts to make herself seem more innocent, young, and  beautiful  than she is. Blanche responds to this by saying ‘I don't want realism. I want magic!†¦ I try to give that to people. I misinterpret things to them. I don't tell truth, I tell what ought to be truth†¦ Don't turn the light on! ‘ This intense, frightening scene reveals to the audience the way Blanche views the world. Tennessee Williams' use of this kind of dual view of the world to develop Blanche's character is a perfect example of the way A Streetcar Named Desire makes the audience react to the characters in the play. The use of light and dark links to the key theme of fantasy and reality. The light is the truth, and this is what Blanche always tries to cover up. Stanley wants the truth so rips away any protection Blanche hides behind, for example the paper lantern over the naked bulb. The Streetcar light that always shines through the window, is trying to uncover the truth so Blanche ides away whenever it drives by, ‘A locomotive is heard approaching outside. She claps her hands to her ears and crouches over. ’ In conclusion, the reader of A Streetcar Named Desire is not only entertained by an interesting story when they read the play. They are also thrust into a reality which is not their own, yet somehow seems familiar. This realistic fantasy Williams creates with his brilliant use of symbolism, intriguing characters, and involving action in the play causes the reader to connect fully with the setting, characters, conflicts, and emotions within it.

Understandings of Anderson's (2007) 'Imagined Communities' Essay

Understandings of Anderson's (2007) 'Imagined Communities' - Essay Example Understandings of Anderson's (2007) 'Imagined Communities' Other analysts for the concept will be included in the essay. Conclusion This compilation provokes will thought that ‘Imagined communities’ actually exist and that all nations have endeavored to strive towards accomplishing their imaginings. Anderson's 'imagined communities' The concept of imagined communities has had numerous opinions among various analysts and researchers in the context of geographical notion. In the words by Anderson, the concept of imagined communities is of the opinion that nations are not fallacial as the word imagined contemplates (6). Rather, this concept means that the making of a nation is of the meaning that the states are created from various processes that are common to the populace of that particular state. According to the research conducted by Anderson, the concept of ‘imagined communities’ relates to the fact that all persons hope to have touch with the members of their state and all that these members engage in (7). At most times, the members of the nation do not have the opportunity to interact with each other, meet all the members of the nation or even interact with all, but they all act in communion. Anderson continues to emphasize that imagined communities are mostly shaped by the institutions that are put in place in the nation (6). These institutions range from the political to cultural systems. Through these institutions, the beliefs, opinions and outlooks shared by a people in the nations are shared generally. The nation is indeed a large territory that encompasses numerous persons from all walks of life, with finite boundaries. These boundaries, must however bar persons from interacting with each other, but bring them together at all times (Chasteen & Castro-Klaren, 117). Additionally, Anderson is of the opinion that nations are imagined from the fact that all nations hope to be free (142). This relates to the sovereignty of the state and limited demography or spatial barriers. The hierarchies present in a nation as expected of a sovereign nation are in one way or another imagined being absent, and freedom is the pillar of the nation. The nation is expected to have assumed the archaic systems and replaced them with societal systems that include all persons in the social order. The nation, in this case, is one that should be inclusive of rule and sovereignty. Anderson emphasizes that this form of rule must be allow the nation exercise its authority over its citizens (6). On another point of view, the nation is imagined for the reason that all nations always hope to have a form of solidarity despite the forms of inequality and abuses prevalent in the nations (Anderson, 137). Members of the nation will always endeavor to uphold respect for each other for the nation is considered greater than all the individuals. It is also in this line that the members of the nation uphold respect and love for each other and will not watch the nation derail due to their individual differences. The imaginings by the members of these nations steer the nation towards heights of success. It is also evident that the members of the nation will be more than willing to offer any thing to see the achievement and maturation of their imaginations of a successful nation. This is a depiction of

If Jack is the id, Ralph the ego and Piggy the super-ego in Lord of Research Paper

If Jack is the id, Ralph the ego and Piggy the super-ego in Lord of the Flies, which characters are the id, ego and super-ego in The Sun Also Rises - Research Paper Example The paper attempts to identify the Id, Ego and super-ego in the story The Sun Also Rises comparing the roles of the characters with those of Lord of the Flies where Jack is the id, Ralph is the ego and Piggy is the super ego. The first story depicts the power sharing relationship among some British school children that are individualized with their distinct personality traits. But the later projects the life of a group of characters that are driven by different conflicting forces at the same time. It is necessary to mention that the three protagonists of Golding’s story—Jack, Piggy and Ralph are the allegorical representation of the three different components of human psyche. Ralph represents the consciousness of mind (ego) when he is guided by rationality, while Piggy acts as a voice of conscience representing the super-ego. â€Å"Ralph is practical and organized. For him the most important thing is to light a fire so that the boys can be recognized† (Golding, 14). Jack on the other hand is driven by violent desire for power, hunting, aggression and all other primitive impulses. In Hemingway’s story the characters are in fact multi-layered. Jake indulges carnal desires toward s his fiancà ©e Brett but he also recognizes his physical limitation caused by thee war and this torments his moral self. Brett is always in a frolicking mood enjoying temporary passing affairs. But it is also true that she truly loves Jake and her multiple affairs can be arising from her lack of gratification in Jake’s love. For example, when Jake says, â€Å"there’s not a damn thing we could do†(Golding, 26), Brett replies, â€Å" I don’t want to go through that hell again†. She goes to San Sebastian with Cohn, formerly had a relation with Mike, Patched up with Pedro, the bullfighter in no time. But she has an ultimate realization that keeps her from sexual intimacy. Cohn is a character that is comparatively less intricate, dependent on the

Getting a New Business off the Ground Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Getting a New Business off the Ground - Essay Example Additionally, since there is a potential for product liability for Joan in the aviation parts industry, Joan is legally responsible for any damages her defective products may cause. As a sole proprietorship, she absorbs these responsibilities personally, which could pose a large problem should a case arise where she is blamed for her product’s malfunction. For tax purposes, the tax rate imposed on Joan’s business is determined by the personal income tax rate of the owner. So, the sole proprietor of a business does not pay taxes apart from, or separate from, the owner. As such, this tax benefit forms one advantage of operating the business as a sole proprietor (Mauro, 2004). 2. To protect her client from liabilities incurred by the business, Joan’s attorney might recommend a limited liability company (or LLC). The LLC model shields Joan from any blame incurred by the business. So, if some product she manufactures malfunctions on a plane, she cannot be held personally responsible for those who suffer from the malfunction; in that case, it is just the company that is financially and legally responsible for the error. Her attorney may also suggest a corporation, which is a legal entity with its own liabilities and privileges separate from those of its members. A corporation may make more sense than a limited liability company if Joan hopes to expand her business to a larger scale, and if she can persuade investors to help grow her base of business. Like a LLC, a corporation shields Joan from the company’s liabilities and debts (Moye, 2004). 3. Her attorney may suggest liability insurance, which is an insurance system that can protect Joan from the risks of liabilities imposed by lawsuits. If Joan’s company were to be accused of negligence or error in manufacturing its aviation parts and brought to court in a civil suit, Joan’s liability insurance would