Hamlet -Carlson

Teenage love is a wild roller coaster that can make anyone feel any amount of emotion, and from any range such as horrific sadness or uplifting happiness. Teenagers are easy to fool and manipulate, and they are trusting to no end, which makes many of them fall in love so easily. It may not be a true love, but it certainly is a kind of love, and isn’t any less worthy of validation as true love is, as it can and has been proven to be powerful and have grand affects. Hamlet’s controlling and radical behavior perfectly exemplifies the issues of teenagers dealing with love, and more importantly, depression, which can often stem from teenagers being “in love.”

Back then depression wasn’t as widely known and accepted as it is today, many did not understand how someone like Hamlet existed. Now, we at least know what it is, but many still do not understabd depression fully, nor do they understand that it isn’t a phase in life, and while you may not be born with it, something can trigger it, and once triggered it’s similar to cancer, it is incredibly hard to fight off and often times the person does not have a choice.  Many even then begin to have suicidal thoughts, such as Hamlet when he said, “O, that this too too solid flesh would melt Thaw and resolve itself into a dew! Or that the Everlasting had not fix'd His canon 'gainst self-slaughter! O God! God! How weary, stale, flat and unprofitable, Seem to me all the uses of this world!” (Act 1, Scene 2) Hamlet here has recently lost his father. A teen who has recently lost a partner who they’d thought would be with them forever oftentimes will threaten suicide.   It’s emotional manipulation sure, but it works to get that person back into their life. Teenagers often feel depression because they survive off of attention. When they don’t receive it, they do what they can to get it, or they slip into sadness and grief because they feel unworthy, rejected, and “dirty”.  This sadness and grief can easily turn into depression if not handled promptly or correctly. Many teenagers feel ashamed of their heartbreak, so they contain it inside as to not be made fun of for not being able to get over a situation by themselves, and this is what can evolve into depression.

Depression can also make someone seemingly controlling to other people. Being in a relationship with someone who suffers from depression is difficult, because they often times will tell you who to be with, where to be, and expect you to meet their standards and expectations of always giving them attention. In truth, they need help by someone who is a professional to help them build confidence in themselves and learn how to be happy on their own. Hamlet shows his controlling nature by telling Ophelia where to go, and the kind of life she is going to live, simply because Ophelia is agreeing to her father’s orders and not Hamlet’s, “If thou dost marry, I'll give thee this plague for thy dowry: be thou as chaste as ice, as pure as snow, thou shalt not escape calumny. Get thee to a nunnery, go: farewell. Or, if thou wilt needs marry, marry a fool; for wise men know well enough what monsters you make of them. To a nunnery, go, and quickly too. Farewell.” (Act III, Scene 1) Hamlet is telling Ophelia that she would make any smart man into a monster, and that she should go to a nunnery for her sin. He tells her that she would turn a smart man into a monster to manipulate her into thinking that his sadness is really her fault, which sometimes depressed people will blame their depression or sadness on another person, claiming that the other person is the reason that they themselves are so broken inside.

Hamlet is a great representation of teenage love turning into depression because of his controlling nature, his radical behavior, and his suicidal thoughts. He is misunderstood by almost all people of his time, a great comparison to how people with depression often describe themselves as feeling alone and misunderstood. He strives for Ophelia's attention and obedience, and when she cannot grant his every wish, as it is very hard for someone to grant a depressed person's every wish, he tries to emotionally manipulate her into thinking that it is her fault that he is the way he is.

Death of a Salesman - Wescott

    The fictional play Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller follows a dysfunctional family during the late 1940’s in New York.  Although the play does not take place in the present, many of the political and societal issues discussed can be related to similar problems faced by current American families.  Some of these topics include cheating, depression, and financial struggles.

    One issue implemented by Miller in Death of a Salesman is cheating between a married couple.  He expresses this by having Willy sleep with an unnamed character called “The Woman” while on a business trip.  While numbers today fluctuate greatly, the Huffington post article “Why People Cheat: ‘The Normal Bar’ Reveals Infidelity Causes” states that about 33% of men and 19% of women have admitted to cheating in some time in their lives (other sources have these numbers over 50%).  After over 60 years since the creation of the play, the issue of cheating is still a problem within American households.  This is expanded upon when Willy’s son Biff discovers the affair, exclaiming “You fake! You phony little fake! You fake!” (Miller, pg 89) while Willy tries to defend himself by saying “She’s nothing to me, Biff. I was lonely, I was terrible lonely.”  This confrontation between the father and son ultimately destroyed their relationship and caused Biff to abandon his promising future.  This is an example of how cheating can ruin relationships and destroy families.  With a current divorce rate of over 50% in America currently, affairs are to blame for a large portion of them.  Miller’s goal was to express the damages cheating can cause in a family and with relationships.  These can branch out to more than just between the couple and can have serious implications.  Miller’s display of cheating can be related today as a grim reality that are ruining relationships.

    Another topic that Miller goes in depth with is that of depression and suicide.  The main character Willy is the unfortunate victim with years of depression and multiple attempts to end his life result in him driving off a cliff and taking his life.  The causes for this include poor relationships with his family (mainly his two sons), a struggle to make ends meet with his job as a salesman, the failure of his son Biff to succeed which Willy regarded as his “legacy”, and the loss of his job which was ultimately his breaking point.  Other factors, such as the immense success of his peers Charley and Ben can also be credited, but for the most part Willy’s difficult situation financially and problems with his family caused his death.  Today, suicide is the 10th leading cause for death in the United States and account for over 42,000 deaths yearly. (afsp.org)  The highest percent of these deaths are from middle aged white males, which Willy fits into.  Depression is also a significant issue in today’s society with just under 7% of America’s population dealing with this mental disorder.  Both depression and suicide have continued to consume lives over the past century.  The causes for Willy’s depression are in fact similar to those in today’s society.  Relationship and financial problems are two of the leading causes for both depression and suicide today.  Miller accurately displays just how catastrophic depression can be in one’s life.  Willy sets the example that anyone with an unlucky turn of events can become victim to suicide, no matter what time period.

    Although Death of a Salesman does not cover many major political issues of the time, it does an accurate job at pinpointing common issues faced in the average American household.  However, the money issues that Willy’s family faces show similarities to the current wage gap, a political issue in today’s society.  It is safe to assume Willy a middle-lower class citizen because of his low wages and struggle to make monthly payments.  The majority of Americans today fall in this category as over 50% of Americans fall in the middle class of below criteria. (investopedia.com)  The problem that comes into play is the gap between this middle class and the very wealthy.  In today’s society, this “wealth gap” is increasing at an alarming rate, with Pew Research Center stating “In 2013, the median wealth of the nation’s upper-income families ($639,400) was nearly seven times the median wealth of middle-income families ($96,500), the widest wealth gap seen in 30 years.”  While this large of a wealth gap was nonexistent during the 1940’s, Willy’s interactions with his boss Howard for a promotion can represent this gap between the rich and the poor.  While Willy symbolizes the middle class and Howard the upper class, the act of Howard firing Willy can be related to the increase of the gap between the two classes.  The interaction between them reflects the harder times the majority of Americans have faced compared to the success of the wealthy.

    Throughout the generations, the American household have faced common struggles.  Those in Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman can still be reflected upon today.  Whether it be depression, affairs, of financial struggles, people will have to faces challenges that will test their sanity and well being.  The story of Willy Loman show just how devastating these problems can be and teaches one how to avoid an unfortunate fate such as his.  We as Americans can reflect on works such as these in order to understand issues that still plague us in society today.

The Handmaid's Tale - Fogel

One genre that goes beyond everyday life and takes the reader into a world of magic, imagination, and science is speculative fiction. Not only that, but it is exceptional at bringing attention to social and political problems. Speculative fiction is able to illuminate these humanistic problems with fantasy in a way that makes them realistic enough for the reader to believe. The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood does just that by highlighting specific social concerns such as terrorism, feminism, and the safety of the environment.

Some of Atwood's ideas about repressive laws in Gilead are quite similar to those of some Islamic societies and fundamentalist groups. Such groups wish to see strict Islamic attitudes imposed universally, including segregation of the sexes, very modest dress for women and a ban on dancing. Perhaps more notorious in the Western world is the Taliban or terrorist groups such as ISIS, which are extreme Islamic fundamentalist groups. Their views include a refusal to allow girls to be educated, insistence on women being fully covered by a head-to-toe veil or burqa, and the imposition of brutal sentences, such as amputation and public stoning to death of both men and women, for what are perceived as breaches of Sharia Law. Echoes of the attitudes and methods of such fundamentalist groups can be seen in the strict dress codes imposed in Gilead and the public punishments and executions which the main character Offred witnesses. She notes in chapter forty-two that reading would be punished by having “…only a hand cut off” (275). The actions and views of extreme fundamentalist groups such as the Taliban and ISIS are feared by many, causing anyone in their presence to obey no matter what is asked of them in fear of their lives. They have caused the world to live in fear, for no matter where they go danger from their actions may lurk around any corner. There is no such thing as going to a big city or popular event without feeling completely comfortable and secure about your safety anymore due to the violence and terror these types of groups bring.

Feminism is a strong component of The Handmaid’s Tale, just as it is currently becoming a strong and popular movement as well. The recent movement deals with issues such as reproductive rights, domestic violence, maternity leave, equal pay, sexual harassment, sexual violence, and more for women. The degrading actions against women have been kept quiet for many years, and now people are starting to speak out. In music, movies and television shows women aren’t always looked at as people, but rather as a prize or possession. This is shown in The Handmaid’s Tale as well on a larger and much more drastic scale where women are treated as if they were property instead of human beings.

Another major plot point in The Handmaid's Tale is all of the chemicals, toxins, rays, and radiation in the environment has rendered people sterile, or made it nearly impossible for women to give birth to healthy babies. The harmful effects of environmental toxins on reproduction aren't quite as extreme as Atwood envisioned (yet, at least), but the world’s population has done irreparable and life-threatening damage to our planet in myriad other ways since The Handmaid's Tale was published. The well-being of the environment has been quite worrisome in recent years, just as it is for the female characters in The Handmaid’s Tale in order to give birth to healthy and thriving babies. With serious issues of global warming, climate change and natural resource depletion at hand, people are beginning to fret for their own safety and health as well as the safety of our planet. This goes to show that if the Earth isn’t taken care of better soon, the same situation or other ones may possibly arise in real life, not just in a fictional book.

Terrorism, feminism and the safety of the environment are current issues that is relevant almost anywhere. Bringing up these problems allows the reader to theorize what the world would be like if what happened in The Handmaid’s Tale were to actually occur in real life. The reader is able to imagine not only how life would be, but also how it got to that point. Atwood’s book served as a warning of what could possibly come, but will hopefully never happen.

The Kite Runner by LeTourneau

Children are constantly under watch by their parents and kids often look for their approval.  But, sometimes the pressure becomes too much for the child and they make wrong decisions while seeking for their parents praise.  Not only do parents put this pressure but society as a whole has norms that genders or ethnic groups are expected to be like that are just impractical.  Amir in The Kite Runner struggled with this as well as many teens and kids do today.

There’s a book called The Price of Privilege by Madeline Levine that goes into detail about the pressures privileged children endure.  In the book Levine talks about how these kids often feel that they must be perfect and compare themselves with other kids.  Even though Amir’s father never directly compares Amir to Hassan, he often feels that he is fighting for his father’s attention, this trait is especially common amongst siblings.  In today’s society it has become common for people to jokingly say that their is always the smart, obedient child; and then the more disobedient child who rather hang out with friends than study.  This is prominent in the book as it drives the decisions Amir makes in his life.

Throughout The Kite Runner Amir’s relationship with his father haunts him and even in adulthood drives his decisions the same way they did in his early years.  In today’s society the bond between a father and son are treasured and have shaped what society views as what a boy should act like.  Boys are supposed to be strong and have to be able to stand up for themselves, where many boys like Amir just don’t have that personality.  There’s also this expectations that boys don’t cry.  Even from personal experience there have been boys at the store who started to cry and were scolded by their fathers and whenever Amir felt like crying he always did it behind closed doors.  This results in someone being very insecure and closed off about their feelings and their past Levine says, this is also seen in Amir’s story as it became very difficult for him to talk about things in his past with his wife and father.

Another expectation that influences the kids in The Kite Runner into adulthood, is how their parents view other ethnic groups or how other kids view ethnic groups.  One character in the story, Assef, often bullies Hassan and Amir because Hassan is a Hazara.  This also influences how Amir treats Hassan, Amir doesn’t play with Hassan when other boys are around without even thinking about it.  Where Assef was more influenced than Amir was by the people around him who viewed Hazaras as lower on the totem pole and resulted in him not treating them like humans.  This even influences how Hassan is killed and the overtake of Afghanistan by the Taliban.  Kids often only hang out with certain people based on their surroundings, like Amir had.  Even in the early ages of preschool, this is best explained with gender norms.  Where girls on the playground wouldn’t play sports with the boys during recess because girls are supposed to be delicate.  Boys also are more violent with each other than they normally are because boys are supposed to be more violent and stronger.  One example of how parents influence their child’s opinions today, especially in America, is racism.  This sort of mindset is taught and even though the worst of racism is in the past influences are still seen today.  Racial issues have become normal on today’s news stations, why?  Given the way someone was raised these racial issues are still here today because of how parents influence their children.  There are some who rebel against their parents and form their own opinions but there are always kids who latch onto what their parents believe because kids are always told to listen to their parents.  Their influence also becomes greater as the child seeks for approval.  If a child has a different opinion than their parent arguments often arise and at times draw lines between the parent and child.

There are many political issues touched on throughout The Kite Runner but something that greatly affects the main character is the constant pressure he felt to gain his father’s approval.  Children all over the world deal with the pressures put on by parents and their opinions.  Children in life struggle to figure out for themselves what they believe is right and wrong.  Sometimes the child is able to form their own opinions of what they truly think is right rather than what they think will get the approval of their parents, other times it results in an insecure child who doesn’t always make the best decision like Amir.

A Tale of Two Cities by Robinson

History repeats itself; an oft quoted expression that is hard to misuse due to the numerous situations in which it is applicable. A Tale of Two Cities, written by the esteemed Charles Dickens some 157 years ago in 1859,  takes place even further ago: the late 1700s, during the French Revolution. Such a work of historical fiction wouldn't be predicted to be foretelling, and even during its authorship the intent was unlikely to be a prediction into the future; yet, because of the phenomena of historical recurrence, its resemblances to modern day events cannot be ignored. Although certainly unpredictable by Dickens and taking place over 200 years later than A Tale of Two Cities, Dickens has inadvertently represented the events of the ongoing Syrian Civil War with his characters.

Perhaps the closest thing to an archetypal revolution in the past decade, the Syrian Civil War can be compared to the French Revolution, arguably the most influential political revolution of all time. A witness of the Syrian Civil War, when interviewed by Al Jazeera, said: "Despite the bloodshed, it's worth it, 100 percent. It reminds me of the French revolution. A lot of people died, but finally they got freedom" (Al Jazeera). The Syrian Civil War has many parties involved in it: most notably, the Syrian Government, the Opposition, and ISIL. In addition, there is the outside world, observing and occasionally interacting. While the way that world crises play out has changed dramatically since the French Revolution as portrayed in A Tale of Two Cities, connections can certainly be made between belligerents in these two conflicts.

Many individual characters in A Tale of Two Cities can represent entire belligerents of the Syrian Civil War. The Marquis St. Evrémonde and the collective "Monseigneur" as used in the novel represent the Syrian Government: established, oppressive, yielding to tradition, and afraid of their own populace. Charles Darnay, Dr. Manette, and likely most French unnamed characters in the novel represent the Opposition: wanting a new, democratic government without bloodshed or tyranny, and overall respectful to all. And then ISIL, in perhaps a somewhat stretch of a comparison, can be viewed in the characters Madame Defarge, The Vengeance, the Mender of the Roads, and the Jacques. These characters, although opposed to the status quo, are certainly not tolerant and seek to establish a new tyrannical rule by terror. Their zeal towards republicanism and revolutionary doctrine might as well be the same zeal that ISIL has towards Sunni Islam. Their worship of the guillotine is uncannily parallel to the frequent beheadings by ISIL. And like ISIL, they want these incidents to be public, their purpose is to invoke fear.

The outside world, as an unofficial belligerent of the Syrian Civil War, is also somewhat simulated in the characters of Dickens. Jarvis Lorry is an English businessman who, although having feelings toward his friends, is overall only concerned with the economic impacts of the French Revolution. This echoes the voice of the modern economist, such as Satyajit Das, who comments: "From the financial and humanitarian cost of supporting millions of Syrian refugees to the interruption of trade links with China and Russia, political conflict is bad for the world's economy" (Das). Mr. Stryver, in his upholding of tradition as an esteemed English barrister, seems to take a stance against the Revolution, and when face-to-face with a French émigré, is written as "...broaching to Monseigneur, his devices for blowing the people up and exterminating them from the face of the earth, and doing without them: and for accomplishing many similar objects akin in their nature to the abolition of eagles by sprinkling salt on the tails of the race" (275). In this way, he can perhaps be objectified as Russia, taking a sympathetic stance to the Syrian Government and pursuing military actions to the tune of Stryver's fantasies. And of course, there is foreign espionage. John Barsad, or Solomon Pross, is an Englishman that is originally a spy for the French monarchy but later works for the French republic. Espionage is certainly existent in the Syrian Civil War, with Foreign Policy Magazine reporting that "Continuously, Israel’s intelligence agency, the Mossad, recruited agents in the Syrian military and government and planted its own operatives under false identities in Syria to carry out various missions" (O'Grady).

Despite a gap of more than one century in authorship and more than two centuries in events, A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens can be interpreted to mirror events of the yet ongoing Syrian Civil War. Although revolutions have changed, wars have changed, and politics have changed, the basic underlying frameworks that compose these concepts have remained in stone. And so Dickens has indeed predicted the Syrian Civil War, not because he had any intent to do so, but because history repeats itself.

Dickens and Miller- Brandt

 Charles Dickens and Arthur Miller, an esteemed writer of the Victorian Era, the latter a contemporary American playwright. Both authors found their work to be acclaimed in the spheres of academia and in the abodes of Americans. Both great men had distinct writing styles, Dickens with strongly developed satire and foibled characters juxtaposed with Miller’s use of excellent utilization of American society’s moral dilemmas to create the context and content of his works.
 Charles Dickens made use of social commentary as a means of combatting the disparity in ways of life between the pauper and the aristocracy in the Victorian Era. Through use of vivid imagery and detail in works such as Oliver Twist and David Copperfield, Dickens opened doors for discussion on the monetary issues plaguing England at the time. It is in a very similar manner that Miller drew allusions to issues such as the American Dream in Death of a Salesman or the Red Scare in The Crucible. It seems that showing people their actions through the perspective of another is quite effective means of implementing change.
 While similarities can be drawn as above, these men had very different styles of writing. Wielding the vernacular of a Victorian Englishman and metaphorical skills unparalleled, Dickens’ writing embraces and nearly necessitates his audience to introspectively analyze nearly every paragraph as there tends to be a comparison, an allusion, or some higher meaning lurking somewhere. He could take a scene lasting a literal moment in real life, and expand that into 30 pages of commentary. Arthur Miller on the other hand, uses characters with dialect more familiar and enchanting to a modern American. Their words are simple, yet are packed with meaning in their tone and conveyance. They can extract more emotion, because it can seem plausible the reader is in the Loman house in The Death of a Salesman and they nearly can hear the family argue. Perhaps that is another reason his work is so gripping to Americans, despite his works taking place a long time ago, elements such as The American Dream are still pervasive in our culture. It's amazing to hold commonalities with people 50 to 100 years ago, and Arthur Miller’s themes allow just that.
 Accolades aforementioned given to Miller are not to take away from Dickens’ writing. His themes despite being placed geographically distant and nigh archaic, can still be prevalent in our society. We still experience societal upheaval and tumult, albeit for multitudinous reasons. The world still has major unjust disparities, the world still has people that want a different quo. Books like A Tale of Two Cities and David Copperfield can encapsulate, sadly, the condition of many people.
 Speaking of people, Charles Dickens is widely regarded today for his skill in the art of melding characters into memorable ones. He created people often plagued with cognitive dissonance, infected with nihilist and idealist thought simultaneously, and so on. These characters had internal struggles that accentuated the world’s issues in the books, making them all the more interesting. So prominent they are in today’s society, even my father called my brother “Tiny Tim” the other night. These characters. Arthur Miller was no pushover in the creation of characters, either. Rather than making the overarching themes embodied in the setting, they were placed in the hearts of memorable people such as Willy Loman. The American Dream, again, is a big talking point in The Death of a Salesman. As a matter of fact, rather than shaping the struggles of them to their individual personalities, he shaped their personalities around this idea. Ben was a diamond tycoon because of his view that conquering nature and being wildly rich was of utmost importance. While in A Tale of Two Cities, each character has their own adversity to face based on who they are and more importantly, what they are.
 In summary, while this meager comparison of two legendary writers might not do justice, the reality is that they had very different styles of writing. Crafted by different circumstances and thoughts, they both contributed to the world great works of literature and and unique styles of writing. Furthermore, they helped articulate the struggles of many and made them easier to understand.

Hawthorne and Walker - Jessica Ruby

While The Color Purple by Alice Walker and The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne tell two very different stories during different times and places of two different women, there are many resemblances that can be found in both style and actual content. With the purpose of telling the story of two women struggling to survive through hardships they both continue to face in their lives, both authors use a strategy of pathos to create an emotional connection, focusing on faith in God to help through hardship, and diversified diction to create and explain personalities of characters.   

A reader’s connection to characters can make or break a novel’s impact on its readers. In both The Color Purple and The Scarlet Letter letter the authors’ employment of ethos has a monumental effect on the intended message. With the likeness of the two main characters, being mistreated and oppressed women, there is also a strong connection between the plots of  these two novels. The difference between the characterization of Celie and Hester, though, is that Celie remains afraid of the conditions she lives in, while Hester embraces her situation and remains relatively optimistic not allowing her unfortunate situation to get the best of her life. Celie explains her fears to God:  “He beat me today cause he said I winked at a boy in church. I may have got somethin in my eye but I didn’t wink. I don’t even look at mens.That’s the truth. I look at women, tho, cause I’m not scared of them” (Walker, pg 5). Celie goes on to explain that even though her mother used to yell and cuss at her, she forgives her and is no longer afraid of her. This theme of forgiveness and rising above is strong throughout both novels and allows readers to connect with the stories and emotions of both main characters.

Another strong resemblance lies within the focus on having faith in God to guide his children through hardship and to forgive them for their sins. Both Celie and Hester rely on their faith in God to help them push through their mistreatment and forgive those around them for their ignorance to their own sin. This is not just a piece to the story but a main focus and aid in the well being of both main characters. Walker displays this is overall structure, with every page being a passage of Celie’s confidence in God, her only outlet. Hawthorne, though, uses eloquent diction in his arguably dramatic analyzation of events and their relevance to God and his plans and expectations of his children. The puritan community in which Hawthorne’s novel takes place explains the reasoning for such strong faith and punishment. "In our nature, however, there is a provision, alike marvellous and merciful, that the sufferer should never know the intensity of what he endures by its present torture, but chiefly by the pang that rankles after it” (Hawthorne, pg. 28). This quote sheds light on how the punishment for sin can only be known after the act has been committed, and why Hester continues to pay for her actions. However, it is also in God that she finds peace and accepts her fate of being shunned and mistreated while not letting it command her life.

Lastly, language is a powerful tool that defines people by the way they use and interpret it. Everyone has their own style and voice that makes them who they are. By listening to the way a person bends and modifies English for their own use can tell a lot about their personality and background. Hawthorne and Miller use varied diction to express the likeness or difference between characters. While the form of English used between these two novels is quite different, their effect on the mind of the reader is the same. This attention to detail in terms of the voice of characters is very important when attempting to convey strong personality differences to a reader, especially because it can be difficult to understand the tone of a person’s voice when it is being read rather than heard, without great detail. For example, Celie’s innocence and ruggedness is conveyed through her subpar grammar and and writing skills, while still showing sadness and disdain towards her lifestyle and those that condemned her to it. It also shows her lack of understanding of her punishment by God and things that she cannot explain but to him. Her first letter to God best exemplifies this innocence and misunderstanding when she says “Dear God, I am fourteen years old. I have always been a good girl. Maybe you can give me a sign letting me know what is happening to me” (Walker, pg. 1). This passage set the tone for the whole book. In contrast, Hester’s more eloquent diction and understanding of her punishment and its unreasonableness characterizes her as a strong intelligent women with a better understanding than those around her of God and his intentions. It can be inferred by just her voice and expertly conveyed attitude that she is aware of her sentence as a scapegoat in her community. However, it is also understood that she does not hold onto regret and pettiness, accepting her new way of life with her loved child. She takes on the role of an excuse the other puritans use to overshadow their own lives of sin with her pride still intact. Both Celie and Hester display strong personalities shown through the different voices Hawthorne and Walker have chosen for them.

Week 5 Explanation

This week’s blog topic asks you to relate themes, topics, and situations in summer reading to current political or societal events, issues, or topics. The possible issues you can discuss are broad, ranging from dealing with Alzheimer’s to the political situation in Zimbabwe. I only ask that you avoid using “I think” or “I believe” or “I” anything -- use third-person point of view. Just state your opinions as fact. And keep the discussions tasteful.

The book you use should be new to the blog posting. Please write solely in THIRD PERSON and use some quotes (citing them properly).

When you write for this assignment (and most of the others) keep the following general guidelines and possibilities in mind: 1). DO NOT SUMMARIZE. I don’t care if I haven’t read your book; I’m not asking for the plot. 2). Pay attention to your content, ideas, and organization as you structure your post. 3). Certainly mention the book title (use italics to set it off) and author. The title of the post should contain the title of the book and your last name, like in the example that follows these directions 4). Deal with other issues that are interesting, novel, and intellectual yet still relate to the general topic of the post.

Try to have a good time. Remember internet safety protocols: don’t use your entire name or give away identifying information. You should probably change your display name if you’re using your real name. Be tactful and don’t disparage anyone. You are graded on the quality of thought and expression in your post, its length (between 700 - 1000 words), and on using quoted material properly. I suggest writing the post in a word processing program and then pasting it into the post window. Contact me if you have any questions and I’ll answer ASAP. The following example is not a strict template of what you should do but only a possibility, and a poor one at that. Off we go then…

Brave New World by de la Cruz

Speculative fiction, also called science fiction, is arguably one of the most poignant and insightful ways to bring attention to social problems. Although sometimes derided and dismissed for its quirky and clichéd elements -- aliens, talking computers, robots and the like -- exemplary speculative fiction uses fantasy and exaggeration to illumine realistic and notable ailments in the human condition. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley is the type of work that highlights significant social concerns; back in 1932, Huxley imagined a civilization struggling with dilemmas that are still prominent today: control of the masses and the search for happiness.

Nero and other Roman emperors tried to keep citizens happy. If the people were unhappy, they could blame their misery on the government, and then the government would be in jeopardy. So Caesar gave the people that which gave them the most immediate satisfaction: blood spilled in the Coliseum. Over a millennia later, England felt the cost of unsatisfied subjects when the American colonies declared themselves independent. In Brave New World, the government tries to keep its governed happy by conditioning them to believe they have everything they want. Citizens are taught and created to be happy in their castes; they have access to mind-numbing drugs; they can have sex with many different people without social consequence (women get birth-control and access to Abortion Centers); they have no parents or literature to drive them to accomplish more or to question the system; they have no religion to inspire “nobility or heroism” (213). The list goes on. Although Huxley’s vision is extreme, a similar concept of crowd-pleasing instant gratification exists in American society today.

Like the children in Brave New World, American kids are conditioned daily to do one thing above all: consume. Everyday, television runs countless shows for the sole purpose of getting an audience to watch the commercials, commercials that tell the people what will make them happy, keep them safe, make them popular, get them laid. Advertisers are America’s “Department of Emotional Engineering,” telling people exactly how to feel about particular things and what to buy in order to drive the economy and keep everyone happy. Advertisers even sell Huxley’s soma. “Depressed? Angry? Sexually frutstrated? Constipated? Inattentive?” they ask and then answer, “Take this pill.” If individuals will not take a pill to fix a problem, there are innumerable ways to take the mind elsewhere, especially when it comes to entertainment: computers, videogames, cell phones, movies, sports, food. There are so many ways to take the mind off of important issues like war, poverty, and government incompetence. In turn, Americans vote in fewer numbers, stay committed to the same partner in fewer numbers, volunteer to defend their country in fewer numbers, and are willing to sacrifice for the common good in fewer numbers, but they look out for number one more. That is a byproduct of unbridled consumerism and self-gratification.

The fewer the citizens focusing on the government, the more the government is free to do what it pleases. To mollify a populace, the government must make its constituents believe they are happy with what they have. People must believe things are run as they should be. People must be taught to be complacent and self-centered.

Children are often asked “What do you want to be when you grow up?” Both the children and their parents will often answer “a doctor” or “a lawyer” or “an engineer,” but they rarely say “I want [my child] to be happy.” Does this mean that people do not want happiness or rather is there a common notion that these careers automatically provide happiness? The answer is likely not as simple as a career choice, but society often presents it that way. Brave New World portrays a society where few people question their happiness because they have been conditioned to believe they are happy from the beginning. Because humans are engineered to love their lot in life as an Alpha, Beta, Delta, or Epsilon, they lack a desire for anything but to conform and give to the group. The American public school system also classifies students in a similar way. There are “A” students, “B” students, and so on going through an industrialized production line, getting a generic educations. There is room for the individual to find a road to happiness, but the paths are obscure and overgrown.

The control of the masses and the individual’s search for happiness are topics with nearly universal relevancy. Brave New World and books like it -- 1984, Fahrenheit 451, etc. -- provide thought-provoking scenarios and commentaries on contemporary society. Through them, readers get the opportunity to reflect and theorize what might happen if society took certain avenues. These books of speculative fiction act as warnings and watchdogs against worlds will hopefully never come to be.

Week 4: Comparison of the Literary Styles of The Scarlet Letter and The Grapes of Wrath

The books The Grapes of Wrath and The Scarlet Letter have many similarities and differences in their literary styles.  Both contain the use of lengthy visual descriptions and symbolism, but differ in Hawthorne’s use of very formal dialogue in contrast to Steinbeck’s use of colloquialism in slang terms and very informal speech.  Steinbeck also uses a very different form of writing is his use of intercalary chapters to provide background information and context, whereas Hawthorne releases information throughout the novel in subtle hints and revelations.   

The two novels The Scarlet Letter and The Grapes of Wrath have very different literary styles, but one similarity that both of them share is the use of lengthy visual descriptions and imagery to make up for the lack of pictures.  An example of this in Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter, is his very detailed description of the prison door from which Hester emerges in the first portion of the book.  He again uses lengthy description in describing the marketplace, the scaffolding, and the people who are assembled there, and in describing Pearl, Hester, their clothing, and other adornments.  Similarly, In The Grapes of Wrath, Steinbeck also uses lengthy descriptions when describing the cornfield and the dust storms that take place in the first chapter.  He also uses imagery in describing the migrant people’s attitudes and the areas in which they live and work and their moods that accompany these places. Throughout the book he does a good job of describing the scenes thereby allowing the reader to develop a good visual of what is going on at that moment in the story.

Another similarity between the two novels is their use of symbolism.  In The Scarlet Letter, Hawthorne uses a lot of symbolism in order to express different elements of the story.  Pearl is used as a symbol to express everything about Hester and the Reverend Mr. Dimmesdale’s relationship.  She embodies the passion of the moment in which she was conceived in her attitude and actions, the purity of the morals up to that point in that she is a child and is dragging her mother out of danger of committing more sins, and the contradictory feelings and morals in the tempestuous behavior that she has.  She demonstrates the circumstances surrounding her birth in recognizing the constant adversity that she faces and strongly disputing that adversity in fighting the world and just about everyone in it. She also shows how an acceptance of that adversity and the sharing of the burden can impact a person's behavior by the transformation in her attitude following her father's confession.  Another symbol is the scarlet letter itself, the way that Hester has embroidered it and made it overtly ornate shows her attitude towards the whole punishment of being made a social pariah from the town and it of course symbolizes the sin that she committed.  Another symbol is the use of the scaffolding as the only place where Reverend Dimmesdale could defeat the hold that the evil physician had on him.  Only by owning his mistake and sin publically could he have any chance of salvation and ending the inner struggle that conflicted him throughout the whole book.  The evil physician himself is also another symbol as he represents the Devil and the hold that the sin had on Mr. Dimmesdale causing the Reverend’s inner turmoil to worsen and bring him to the point of death, and his ultimate defeat demonstrates the power of confession which was one of Hawthorne’s points in ending that inner struggle.  In The Grapes of Wrath, the scene in which the truck runs over the turtle killing it can be seen as a symbol of the little people constantly being squashed by those who are larger than them. The sun is seen as an oppressive force always beating down and worsening the Dust Bowl.  

A difference between the two novels is the different types of dialogue that the authors prefer.  Hawthorne, in The Scarlet Letter, uses very formal dialogue between the characters throughout the entire book even having little Pearl speak more maturely than most adults speak today.  In contrast to this, Steinbeck, in The Grapes of Wrath, uses slang terms and highly informal, uneducated dialogue between his characters.  This contributes to giving the reader a better sense of the characters and of the area in which they live.  

Another difference between the two is the way in which they provide background information to their readers.  Steinbeck uses intercalary chapters providing more background and contextual information in alternating chapters, whereas Hawthorne reveals information much more slowly and subtly.  For example, the identity of the man who committed adultery with Hester is unknown in the beginning of the book, Hawthorne provides clues throughout the story such as the Reverend getting ill shortly after Hester is punished, the suspicions of the physician as he cares for him and searches for his dirty laundry before finally looking at the scarlet letter on his chest, but the actual identity is not truly solidified until much later in the book.

In conclusion, The Scarlet Letter and The Grapes of Wrath share many similarities in literary styles through their use of symbolism and lengthy visual descriptions, but differ in their ways of expressing background information and their forms of dialogue.

A Tale of Two Cities vs. The Scarlet Letter - Dell

Dickens & Hawthorne: Comparing and Contrasting A Tale of Two Cities and The Scarlet Letter

          The first thing to be noticed about the similarities in these two novels is the fact that they were written very close together. Cities was published in 1859, and Scarlet Letter was from 1850. However, they both discuss very different topics from different time periods, Cities being the late seventeen-hundreds as from the line “It was the year of Our Lord one thousand seven hundred and seventy-five.” (Dickens 5). The Scarlet Letter states the year at some point, but the location of that statement is unknown. However, we can infer that the book takes place mid-century sixteen-hundreds due to the Puritan era.

          While this is more than a century of time, the styles of the writing seem very similar to me due to the period in which they were written. For example, there is a plethora of metaphors and imagery that both authors use. This one describes the conception of Pearl in Scarlet Letter: “Providence, a lovely and immortal flower, out of the rank luxuriance of a guilty passion.” (Hawthorne, Kindle Locations 1119-1120) This sentence tells of how something light and beautiful was created out of something evil, much like the little girl herself. It also paints a more familiar picture of what Pearl should be. This sentence from Cities is chock-full of description, stating “That, hereupon he had ascertained, through the registers on the table, that his son-in-law was among the living prisoners, and had pleaded hard to the Tribunal—of whom some members were asleep and some awake, some dirty with murder and some clean, some sober and some not—for his life and liberty.” (Dickens 350) The description of the judges who decided Charles’ fate appears to be a metaphor of the revolution itself: sleepiness, drunkenness, and murder—understandable from the insanity of the time. Yet Dickens over-abundance of description also makes this book incredible difficult to read. One could zone out for a moment and become completely lost the next.

          Another similarity surprisingly is the plot of both stories. Cities describes the guilt of the aristocrats who took the land from the French people, and Scarlet Letter discusses Hester Prynne’s guilt over her sin. Charles did not mean to cause harm to the people by wasting their land, and Hester did not mean any harm in her adulteress sin. This connection shows that guilt can be an incredible driving force in one’s actions, especially in Dimmesdale:

“And thus, while standing on the scaffold, in this vain show of expiation, Mr. Dimmesdale was overcome with a great horror of mind, as if the universe were gazing at a scarlet token on his naked breast, right over his heart. On that spot, in very truth, there was, and there had long been, the gnawing and poisonous tooth of bodily pain. Without any effort of his will, or power to restrain himself, he shrieked aloud: an outcry that went pealing through the night, and was beaten back from one house to another, and reverberated from the hills in the background; as if a company of devils, detecting so much misery and terror in it, had made a plaything of the sound, and were bandying it to and fro.” (Hawthorne, Nathaniel. The Scarlet Letter (Kindle Locations 1859-1864).  . Kindle Edition.)

          Dimmesdale is so full of guilt from is sin that he goes up on to the perch where the prisoners are forced to face their actions, and lets out a scream. This should remind one of how Charles goes to France to relieve his imprisoned friend and take credit for the actions committed by his family. This shows that guilt is a very common theme in life, no matter the time period or location.

          Lastly, there is something about Pearl and little Lucie that seem strangely similar. Perhaps it is that they are both little girls in a whirlwind of war and pain, but they also seem to be similar in appearance with their striking beauty. However, Pearl seems to be much less innocent than little Lucie, most likely due to the strange situation she was raised in (and perhaps the fact that she is a bastard child, but that is mainly blamed on the time period). Lucie is much more sweet an innocent, although she is rarely discussed in the book as much as Pearl is.

          In conclusion, A Tale of Two Cities and The Scarlet Letter, while they are quite different, both have very similar characteristics due to the time period they were written in, the themes they discuss, and even some of the present characters. Both books are also fairly difficult reads, but classics that are definitely worth putting some time into.

Hawthorne and Shakespeare - Martin

William Shakespeare and Nathaniel Hawthorne and are both highly regarded authors in the world of literature. They are both from different time periods, long before now, but are still held in high esteem due to their writing.  They may both be considered fantastic writers, but the differences in their writing can be seen when Hamlet and The Scarlet Letter are compared.

Hamlet and The Scarlet Letter deal with various issues, some very similar. They both deal with forbidden love, betrayal, revenge, and death. In The Scarlet Letter, forbidden love creates the plot. Hester has an affair, therefore earning her the scarlet A on her clothing branding her an adulteress. Hester, Dimmesdale, and their daughter Pearl plan to return to England because they cannot be together in their current settlement. Forbidden love plays a smaller role in Hamlet. Hamlet and Ophelia are in love, but Ophelia's father, Lord Chamberlain, prevents them from being together because he does not feel that Hamlet loves her. Betrayal also plays a role in each story. Roger Chillingsworth feels extremely betrayed by Hester in The Scarlet Letter. She has an affair during their marriage while he was at sea. He also does not believe that she loved him during their marriage. In Hamlet, Claudius betrays his brother, King Hamlet, and his nephew, Hamlet, by murdering King Hamlet. Revenge is a significant part of both stories plots. Hamlet is based mainly on revenge, as it follows Hamlet’s journey to get revenge on his uncle for murdering his father. In The Scarlet Letter, Roger Chillingsworth seeks revenge on Dimmesdale for having an affair with his wife Hester. Both stories end in death, with most of the main characters ending up dead.

The set up of the stories are different. Hawthorne makes the amount of time that passes very clear. The Scarlet Letter takes place over many years. It begins during Hester's pregnancy with Pearl, and ends after Hester’s death when Pearl is an adult. Hawthorne informs the reader of how much time has passed and occasionally mentions Pearl’s age. Shakespeare does not specifically mention how much time has passed in Hamlet. It shows that as writers, Hawthorne finds time fairly important and Shakespeare does not. Hawthorne’s use of time breaks the story and plot up more while Shakespeare's lack of time makes the story flow together more instead of being broken up by time periods.

Both The Scarlet Letter and Hamlet may not be very enjoyable to most people present day. They both take place in the 1600’s, so the language may be difficult to understand for people currently and the society and culture is very different from now. The stories may be similar in time period, but they take place in different places. The Scarlet Letter takes place in Puritan society in New England and Hamlet takes place in Europe. The locations of the stories reflect the homes of the authors, as Hawthorne was born in Massachusetts and Shakespeare was born in England. The types of writing the authors are known for also creates differences in The Scarlet Letter and Hamlet. Nathaniel Hawthorne is known for being a novelist and short story writer while Shakespeare is known for being a playwright and poet. The difference can be clearly seen between the two authors. Shakespeare’s writing is very poetic, as displayed when Polonius says to Laertes, “Those friends thou hast, and their adoption tried, Grapple them unto thy soul with hoops of steel; But do not dull thy palm with entertainment Of each new-hatch’d, unfledg’d comrade. Beware Of entrance to a quarrel; but, being in, Bear’t that the opposed may beware of thee.” It is set up very poetically. Hawthorne’s straight forward style of writing is displayed when he writes “Mother,” said little Pearl, “the sunshine does not love you. It runs away and hides itself, because it is afraid of something on your bosom. . . . It will not flee from me, for I wear nothing on my bosom yet!” In comparison, Shakespeare makes Hawthorne seem very easy to understand.

Nathaniel Hawthorne and William Shakespeare are considered timeless writes. Their writing has similarities and differences, but both writers are still highly respected to this day.

Hawthorne and Walker--Beck

Perhaps more so than its content, a book’s success is determined by the author’s writing style. This essential part of writing is largely the reason individual authors are able to experience success in various genres. The American authors Alice Walker and Nathaniel Hawthorne were both praised for their personal writing styles in their books The Color Purple and The Scarlet Letter respectively. Being an African-American women born in 1944, Alice Walker lived and wrote under very different circumstances than the white, male Hawthorne that was born in 1804. Despite this, and because of it, these two acclaimed authors’ writing styles were both similar and different for a multitude of reasons.

The writing style of Hawthorne in The Scarlet Letter and Walker in The Color Purple were alike in many ways. First, the two authors developed very similar protagonists. Celie, Walker’s main character, is an abused woman unable to change her circumstances. Celie expresses this saying, "He start to choke me, saying You better shut up and git used to it. But I don't never git used to it. And now I feels sick every time I be the one to cook” (Walker 11). Likewise, Hawthorne’s character Hester is a female outcast forced to wear a symbol of shame for having cheated on her husband. The similarity of using mistreated women as central characters is an important similarity in the two authors’ characterization as these individuals drive their story’s plots.

Moreover, the two authors’ style of writing is similar due to their utilization of symbolism. As the book titles indicate, color is a symbolic tool used by both authors. For Hester, the color scarlet symbolizes her sin of adultery because that is the color of the letter “A” she wears for being an adulterer. This is further reinforced as Hester’s child, the result of her sin, wears scarlet clothing. Hawthorne proves this connection when Mr. Dimmesdale, talking about Hester, says, “Therefore it is good for this poor, sinful woman that she hath an infant...to remind her, at every moment, of her fall” (Hawthorne 118). Similarly, Walker uses the color purple to represent an idea. Celie’s friend demonstrates this saying, “I think it pisses God off if you walk by the color purple in a field somewhere and don't notice it” (Walker 197). Purple is a representation of beauty and freedom as Celie was never allowed to wear purple while living with her abusive husband.

Lastly, the writing styles of the two book were similar as a result of their themes. In both, the authors emphasize the idea of the women strength and the power of resistance. Celie, despite being submissive for the majority of the book, defies her husband, who she doesn’t love, and goes on to live a better life. Similarly, Hawthorne creates a strong female character with the strength to defy the wishes of the town. Early on, the town’s officials and religious leaders attempt to pry the name of the man Hester cheated with out of her in front of the entire community. For the entirety of the day, Hester resisted these inquisitions despite pressure and bravely took on the consequences that ensued. This theme regarding the power of individuals, particularly women, is a connection that ties together Walker and Hawthorne’s writing styles.

While their writing styles were similar in some regards, Walker and Hawthorne’s style of writing was different in others. The largest difference in the writing style of the two books is the point of view. Walker uses the first person and tells the story through letters written by both Celie and her sister. This perspective gives great insight as to what the main character is thinking and feeling, however, leaves out details, such as other characters’ thoughts, that a different point of view would allow. Contrary to this, Hawthorne uses the 3rd person omniscient which allows readers to know more about what other characters are thinking and feeling. The trade off to this writing style is the reader is unable to develop the same personal connection with a particular character which is developed in the first person. On top of this, Hawthorne frequently breaks the fourth wall by addressing the reader in the text. This perspective is a critical difference that separates the two authors’ writing style.

Furthermore, the writing style of Walker and Hawthorne are different as a result of their diction and syntax. Because The Color Purple is “written” by a character in the book who is uneducated, its word choice is very simplistic with sentence structure that is basic and frequently contains incorrect grammar. This style of writing is in total contrast to Hawthorne’s. Being a well-educated man, Hawthorne’s diction is complex, including words such as; sumptuary, iniquity, visage, and amenable. Additionally, Hawthorne’s writing style can be seen in his book’s syntax which frequently includes appositives and mid-sentence punctuation such as parenthesis and hyphens. This syntax difference is an important distinction between the two book’s writing style. Hawthorne is very descriptive, developing a very vivid and clear setting while Walker’s rudimentary sentences leave a lot of the scenery to the reader’s imagination.

In conclusion, the writing styles of The Color Purple and The Scarlet Letter were similar and different in several ways. Despite having numerous writing elements, such as point of view, different, these two books have stood the test of time and are revered as American classics. The reason these two books were successful was not because one writing style was better than the other, but because the writing styles fit the story being told. The complex writing style Hawthorne uses matches the strict Puritan society the book is set in, while the casual, informal writing of Walker matches the setting of the rural South where Walker emphasizes the ignorance of society. Finally, the two writing styles are effective, despite their differences, because they were written for different audiences, making it so an individual can enjoy and understand one more than the other.