In Antigone, we see the dangers set forth by power through Creon. His power makes him prideful and dangerous as he uses it to threaten (not just criminals, or Antigone who he believes to be a criminal, but also Haimon who has done nothing).
Because he is king, he believes that he knows best. He shows his pride when he says things such as, "You consider it right for a man of my years and experience to go to school to a boy?" "And the City proposes to teach me how to rule?" "My voice is the one voice giving orders in this city!" (pg. 1339) As he gets increasingly angry, his words show how he resents the thought of anyone trying to tell him anything about ruling. He is clearly arrogant in his power, and this arrogance gives him a willingness to abuse this power. He wants everyone to know that he has power and control over them. Basically, he is arrogant and a control freak! :P
Creon becomes so angry with Haimon that he rashly threatens to use his power to kill Antigone right then and there in front of him. While Haimon keeps calm and rational, Creon is completely out of control, yelling how he is an adolescent fool and how he is weak to be "sold out to a woman." Creon threatens his son's marriage, saying, "You'll never marry her while she lives." Haimon comments that she must, then, die, but that her death will cause another. I find this an obvious statement that he plans to die with her, so that he can be with her; however, Creon, obsessed with power (and perhaps paranoyed about losing it) takes this as a threat on his own life. Shortly after he calls for Antigone to be brought out and killed before Haimon's eyes. He says this, wanting to punish his son for his words, and Antigone for her actions. He seems to speak this threat in the heat of the moment.
It is clear that Creon's power makes him prideful and dangerous.
I would also like to point out (though I referred to it above) the difference in Haimon's and Creon's attitudes. Their responses foil eachother in this interaction. Creon is out of control, angry, and rash, while Haimon is controlled, calm, and mature. Haimon's attitude highlights Creon's craziness.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Monday, December 8, 2008
Meaningful Connection!!!
A connection between Heart of Darkness and Waiting for the Barbarians can be seen through the women of both novels. Both Kurtz and the Magistrate have affairs with barbarian/native girls. Although both characters have these relationships, the significance of each is very different.
In Heart of Darkness, Kurtz has a relationship with the "magnificent black woman." This relationship, however, is less about the woman and more about nature. As Douglas Kerr says in his article, Kurtz's real relationship is with nature. It is therefore fitting to say that she represents nature -- a notion that is also discussed by Marianna Torgovnick in her article, "Primitivism and the African Woman in Heart of Darkness." In this novel, Kurtz does not really have a love for the African people or his "magnificent black woman," but instead just enjoys his power over them, his "fantasies" (Torgovnick).
In Waiting for the Barbarians, the Magistrate has a relationship with a captive barbarian girl. During his encounter with the torture of captives and the barbarian girl, he comes to find sympathy for the barbarians. His intitial attraction to the barbarian girl is his need to heal her. He washes her every night (in a very sensual fashion), therefore becoming rather close to her. Whether he comes to truly love her is a very debatable and gray area, however, it is safe to say that on the whole he stands up for the proper treatment of prisoners (barbarians). The Magistrate clearly has a struggle with his attraction to the barbarian girl -- admiring/praising her at times and then going on in disgust about her ugliness. This shows some initial prejudice towards her kind, but he eventually gets over that and invites her back with him. His actions are very different from Kurtz's, and although he may be a slightly annoying, kind of bipolar, bitter about aging (and way too obsessed with his sex life) man (and kind of a man whore), he is definitely a much more thoughtful and genuine man than Kurtz.
While the magistrate found a sympathy for the barbarians and stood up against their mistreatment, Kurtz manipulated the Africans -- took advantage of them. While both are "outlaws" to their people (as Kerr concluded), they have very different roles and emotions. The connection between the two novels is the encounters that men have with barbarians and native peoples (especially through women).
About 400 words
In Heart of Darkness, Kurtz has a relationship with the "magnificent black woman." This relationship, however, is less about the woman and more about nature. As Douglas Kerr says in his article, Kurtz's real relationship is with nature. It is therefore fitting to say that she represents nature -- a notion that is also discussed by Marianna Torgovnick in her article, "Primitivism and the African Woman in Heart of Darkness." In this novel, Kurtz does not really have a love for the African people or his "magnificent black woman," but instead just enjoys his power over them, his "fantasies" (Torgovnick).
In Waiting for the Barbarians, the Magistrate has a relationship with a captive barbarian girl. During his encounter with the torture of captives and the barbarian girl, he comes to find sympathy for the barbarians. His intitial attraction to the barbarian girl is his need to heal her. He washes her every night (in a very sensual fashion), therefore becoming rather close to her. Whether he comes to truly love her is a very debatable and gray area, however, it is safe to say that on the whole he stands up for the proper treatment of prisoners (barbarians). The Magistrate clearly has a struggle with his attraction to the barbarian girl -- admiring/praising her at times and then going on in disgust about her ugliness. This shows some initial prejudice towards her kind, but he eventually gets over that and invites her back with him. His actions are very different from Kurtz's, and although he may be a slightly annoying, kind of bipolar, bitter about aging (and way too obsessed with his sex life) man (and kind of a man whore), he is definitely a much more thoughtful and genuine man than Kurtz.
While the magistrate found a sympathy for the barbarians and stood up against their mistreatment, Kurtz manipulated the Africans -- took advantage of them. While both are "outlaws" to their people (as Kerr concluded), they have very different roles and emotions. The connection between the two novels is the encounters that men have with barbarians and native peoples (especially through women).
About 400 words
Sunday, November 23, 2008
Waiting for the Barbarians
Waiting for the Barbarians begins by introducing two very different characters -- Colonel Joll and the narrator, the magistrate. I found both to be portrayed very well and I especially loved the use of the sunglasses to reveal character and the different lifestyles. Not only do the sunglasses keep Colonel Joll hidden and in a veil of mystery, but they represent the technology differences between the capital and the outskirted village. The sunglasses are new to the village; they are an invention that the villagers have never seen before.
I enjoy the writing and content. I find the writing to really connect the readers with the narrator and I find the story interesting.
I found that I don't care for Colonel Joll at all. I find him intimidating and cruel, not to mention superior-feeling. The narrator I like better. I find him to be an easy-going, simple man who finds himself wrapped up in more than he expected because he has a heart. I found his sympathy for the prisoners to be appropriate and appreciated his efforts of kindness and good treatment towards the boy captive. I also found his thoughts on torture and reflections on "clean" and "unclean" men to be very interesting. They were a great representation of the different cultures and the "old school" versus "new school." He seems to be a fair and decent man, and it was very kind of him to bring the blind woman back to the village with him. However, I find the dynamic between them to be very odd and I came to view him as kind of a manipulator some of the time. In conclusion, my views and opinions on the narrator are not fully formed, but he seems decent.
About 270 words
I enjoy the writing and content. I find the writing to really connect the readers with the narrator and I find the story interesting.
I found that I don't care for Colonel Joll at all. I find him intimidating and cruel, not to mention superior-feeling. The narrator I like better. I find him to be an easy-going, simple man who finds himself wrapped up in more than he expected because he has a heart. I found his sympathy for the prisoners to be appropriate and appreciated his efforts of kindness and good treatment towards the boy captive. I also found his thoughts on torture and reflections on "clean" and "unclean" men to be very interesting. They were a great representation of the different cultures and the "old school" versus "new school." He seems to be a fair and decent man, and it was very kind of him to bring the blind woman back to the village with him. However, I find the dynamic between them to be very odd and I came to view him as kind of a manipulator some of the time. In conclusion, my views and opinions on the narrator are not fully formed, but he seems decent.
About 270 words
Monday, November 17, 2008
Heart of Darkness
"Primitivism and The African Woman in Heart of Darkness" pg. 396
- Kurtz has mated with the magnificent black woman, violating British social standards
- Marlow conceives her as a substitute for Kurtz's white "Intended"
- the heads that adorn Kurtz's abode connect the primitivity of Africa with the primitive societies of Scotland (Macbeth time) and England
- Head-hunting practices in primitive societies had specific purposes and goals: "absorption of a slain enemy's courage and power"
- Expressions of virility and masculinity
- Kurtz collected heads to act out a Western fantasy of savagery
- Acephale (European writings) explores the metaphor of headlessness: emblem shows a naked man, headless, with a death's-head in place of where the penis should be, de-emphasizing the European preoccupation with the mind and rationality, and symbolizing a more primitive-driven masculinity, one that is not driven by the mind
- men's need to maintain masculinity through saparation, difference, and control -- seen in Kurtz: isolated from other Europeans, complete control over the Africans
- The Africans and Africa have become a "stage" for Kurtz to play out his fantasies, representing masculinity in his culture's view, borrowing rituals practiced by certain African groups, but "perverting" them to "Western ends"
- primitive Africa contrasts with civilized Europe: "emptiness of modern European life"
The Woman
- prejudiced language: sorrow = "wild"; pain = "dumb"; her resolve = "half-shaped"; her purpose = "inscrutible," she is "fecund and mysterious" "tenebrous and passionate," (like the landscape); "fool nigger" "insolent black head"
- woman = embodiment of Africa, African landscape; African landscape = death, the "white man's grave"
- Kurtz has mated with the magnificent black woman, violating British social standards
- Marlow conceives her as a substitute for Kurtz's white "Intended"
- the heads that adorn Kurtz's abode connect the primitivity of Africa with the primitive societies of Scotland (Macbeth time) and England
- Head-hunting practices in primitive societies had specific purposes and goals: "absorption of a slain enemy's courage and power"
- Expressions of virility and masculinity
- Kurtz collected heads to act out a Western fantasy of savagery
- Acephale (European writings) explores the metaphor of headlessness: emblem shows a naked man, headless, with a death's-head in place of where the penis should be, de-emphasizing the European preoccupation with the mind and rationality, and symbolizing a more primitive-driven masculinity, one that is not driven by the mind
- men's need to maintain masculinity through saparation, difference, and control -- seen in Kurtz: isolated from other Europeans, complete control over the Africans
- The Africans and Africa have become a "stage" for Kurtz to play out his fantasies, representing masculinity in his culture's view, borrowing rituals practiced by certain African groups, but "perverting" them to "Western ends"
- primitive Africa contrasts with civilized Europe: "emptiness of modern European life"
The Woman
- prejudiced language: sorrow = "wild"; pain = "dumb"; her resolve = "half-shaped"; her purpose = "inscrutible," she is "fecund and mysterious" "tenebrous and passionate," (like the landscape); "fool nigger" "insolent black head"
- woman = embodiment of Africa, African landscape; African landscape = death, the "white man's grave"
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Closure in The Sound and the Fury
At the end of The Sound and the Fury, the pear tree blooms on Easter Sunday. This ending scene provides closure for the novel because its characters and images represent hope and forgiveness. The pear tree represents original sin; Caddy's climbing it with her muddy drawers, which represent her loose affairs to come, and Quentin's (number 2) descending it to meet her lovers, etc. connect human sin with the tree, and therefore the tree is a symbol of sin. The pear tree finally blooms on Easter Sunday, now a sign of forgiveness, because of the significance of the day on which it bloomed. Easter Sunday is the day that Jesus rose from the dead after dying for the sins of the world. His resurrection was hope for the world, and so in the blooming of the pear tree, we see the sins of the characters forgiven and hope for the future.
Interesting factoid: This is not the first time that a pear tree (specifically) has been connected with Jesus or his dying, etc. The song, "The Twelve Days of Christmas," was written back in a time when Christians were persecuted and not allowed to practice their faith as a way to teach their children about the religion without actually speaking of it. "On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me a partridge in a pear tree," in this line, the partridge in the pear tree represents Jesus on the cross. So, in this song the pear tree also acts as a symbol of sin and forgiveness, just as in The Sound and the Fury.
word count: 268
Closure in The Sound and The Fury
At the end of The Sound and the Fury, the pear tree blooms on Easter Sunday. This ending scene provides closure for the novel because its characters and images represent hope and forgiveness. The pear tree represents original sin; Caddy's climbing it with her muddy drawers, which represent her loose affairs to come, and Quentin's (number 2) descending it to meet her lovers, etc. connect human sin with the tree, and therefore the tree is a symbol of sin. The pear tree finally blooms on Easter Sunday, now a sign of forgiveness, because of the significance of the day on which it bloomed. Easter Sunday is the day that Jesus rose from the dead after dying for the sins of the world. His resurrection was hope for the world, and so in the blooming of the pear tree, we see the sins of the characters forgiven and hope for the future.
Interesting factoid: This is not the first time that a pear tree (specifically) has been connected with Jesus or his dying, etc. The song, "The Twelve Days of Christmas," was written back in a time when Christians were persecuted and not allowed to practice their faith as a way to teach their children about the religion without actually speaking of it. "On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me a partridge in a pear tree," in this line, the partridge in the pear tree represents Jesus on the cross. So, in this song the pear tree also acts as a symbol of sin and forgiveness, just as in The Sound and the Fury.
Interesting factoid: This is not the first time that a pear tree (specifically) has been connected with Jesus or his dying, etc. The song, "The Twelve Days of Christmas," was written back in a time when Christians were persecuted and not allowed to practice their faith as a way to teach their children about the religion without actually speaking of it. "On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me a partridge in a pear tree," in this line, the partridge in the pear tree represents Jesus on the cross. So, in this song the pear tree also acts as a symbol of sin and forgiveness, just as in The Sound and the Fury.
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