One of the main motifs in All Those Things We Never Said and The Fault in Our Stars is death. Both Marc Levy and John Green have included cultural references from France and United States through the depiction of funerals and overall meaning of death to the protagonists in both novels. Levy attempts to portray a common American funeral, however, it is noticeable the influence of the French culture due to the omission of the eulogy and the presence of few relatives. Meanwhile, Green presents a typical American funeral and eulogies from Hazel and Isaac.
Levy, based the perspective of death on Orson Welles’ quotation “We're born alone, we live alone, we die alone. Only through our love and friendship can we create the illusion for the moment that
…show more content…
The eulogy is omitted; Julia refuses to give a small speech by replying, “I wish I did” and Wallace declines by saying he is not “capable” , which could be considered unconventional as in most funerals in the United States a close relative or friend will deliver an eulogy. Ergo, it suggests to some extent French influence; French citizens are respectful towards the deceased and their family . Julia and Wallace lack of a close relationship with Anthony, thus, both characters are presented as distant and hostile. Julia’s omission could be easily interpreted as a degree of loathing and detachment from her father. Whereas, Wallace, can be discerned as a respectful employee as it would be bizarre and disrespectful towards the Walsh family.
Green’s The Fault in Our Stars is substantially influenced by the (twentieth century) existentialist philosophy of Jean-Paul Sartre and Martin Heidegger .Thus, characteristics such as facticity, transcendence, and freedom have been included in the narrative in order to portray Hazel’s evolution regarding the facticity of Cancer, her own existence and her perception of death, and, her anxiety regarding her parents well-being as she believes to be nuisance that will ultimately harm those around
…show more content…
For instance, Hazel’s realization of the facticity of cancer restricted her existence and essence as she becomes an observer of her own life. She often perceives herself as a “grenade” that would ultimately harm those around her, especially her family, when she passes away. Despite of her observant condition, Hazel expresses her perception of death throughout the direct dialogue, “forever is an incorrect concept” . Therefore, the relationship between Hazel and her parents is pivotal in order to determine the evolution of Hazel’s “essence” and “existence”, causing her to understand her parents will never view her as a “grenade”
While thinking of death, thoughts of grief, despair and worry arise. Perhaps this is a product of the darkness often times portrayed of death from contemporary literature, movies, and music. Movies such as “Schindler’s List” and music such as Neil Young’s “Tonight’s the Night” are just a few examples of entertainment that show the darkness and finality of death. These forms of medium only present the idea, as no one who wrote them actually experienced death and therefore the dark thoughts associated with it are ambiguous. In “712 (Because I Could not Stop for Death)”, poet Emily Dickinson also shows the darkness associated but she has a different view of death. She writes from the standpoint of a narrator
... loss of loved ones like Junior in The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian and Andi in Revolution or faced your own inevitable passing like Hazel Grace in The Fault in Our Stars, you are not alone. In confronting and facing death, these characters learn that death is merely a small part of living. It is an element of the human experience. To return to the wise words of the late Steve Jobs, “Almost everything – all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure- these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important…There is no reason not to follow your heart.” Living is the adventure. In facing their fears and sadness, these characters learn how to be courageous, how to hope, how to love, and how to live. Join them on their journeys by checking out one of the spotlighted books at your local library.
The presence of death in the novel looms over the characters, making each of them reflect on the
Is it possible to live without fear of death? If you can, does it change your life and who you are as a whole? Lindqvist believes so. Early in the book he proposes the idea that with fear of death life has a deeper meaning. That only with the fear of death do...
In the contract of life, there are numerous requirements. Every living being must be able to reproduce, practice homeostasis, consume energy, and adapt. However, there is one component of life that facilitators don’t include in their lesson plans: death. While all living organisms must have the ability to perform certain tasks in order to be considered living, all life must come to an end. Death is not a matter of if, but when. Many humans share a common fear of losing a loved one, yet authors utilize death to convey a profound meaning within their novel. In the first paragraph Bill Barich’s novel, Laughing in the Hills, he uses the inevitability of death to supply the reader with insight on the theme of his writing.
A strong critique by existentialist writers of modern society is the way in which humans live unexamined, meaningless lives with no true concept of what it is to be an unique individuals. In Kate Chopin’s novel The Awakening and in Flannery O’Connor’s short story “Greenleaf” the characters Edna and Mrs. May, respectively, begin almost as common, stock characters living unfulfilled lives. They eventually converge, however, upon an elevated life and death filled with new meaning through their struggle with their role as individuals surrounded by other important beings.
“Become accustomed to the belief that death is nothing to us. For all good and evil consists in sensation, but
...hentic existence due to their refusal to constantly acknowledge death. Thus, Bergman takes these existing philosophies and uses them to create a new set of values for the human response to death.
More than death itself, Harwood’s poetry shows how many people fail to accept death. Their belief in immortality and fear of the end is also potrayed in Nightfall. Although when the subject of the poem is death, the words describe life, as if reluctant to face up to reality. The images are of suburbs, lights, birds and trees. Even with so many experiences, many of us will forever be ignorant seems to be the truth ringing perpetually though Harwood’s verses.
Death has a way of changing people, whether it is the passing of someone close to you or coming to terms with your own mortality, no one remains the same after dealing with death. Some people mourn in the face or death, while others are re-born and enlightened. In the novel The Fault In Our Stars by John Green, we are introduced to two adolescents that have faced death and gained different perspectives on life after doing so. When facing death, whether you’re own or someone you love, there are two types of reactions, two types of people, the “Augustus’s” and the “Hazel Grace’s”. After losing his leg, Augustus Waters decided that he wanted to make his mark on the world before he died, he was terrified of dying and feared oblivion more than anything but it was that very fear that compelled him to live the most fulfilling life possible, “I decided long ago not to deny myself the simpler pleasures of existence”(Green 11). Instead of wallowing in misery over having cancer, Gus wanted to enjoy life; he found beauty in everything, especially Hazel Grace. He lived his life through metaphors; he revolved many of his beliefs and actions around metaphors, one of his favorites was, “you put the killing thing in your mouth, but you don’t give it the power to kill you”(Green 13). I think he liked this metaphor and having a cigarette dangle between his lips so much, because unlike his cancer, which he had no control over, he could control whether or not he lit the cigarette. It made him feel like his destiny was in his own hands and under his control. Gus’s experience with death made him a more positive person, a “better” and inspirational person; he wanted to “drink stars” and live his life questioning everything. “While...
In our lives, we go through stages of mindset and maturity that naturally coincide with aging. One thing that remains the same, though, through all of these stages, is that eventually, we die; we are completely aware of that as humans. Whether because it’s due to the painful reality that is mortality, our ever-diminishing ability to be wistful and imaginative, or merely the impending coming of the Grim Reaper, our entire lives are, ironic as it is, surrounded by and flooded with death. However, as we grow older, our perception of death changes. It goes from taboo in our young ages to something that begins to surround and eventually consume us as we grow older. Between the poems “For the Anniversary of my Death” by
Death is inevitable and when you do die life will continue on without you. Some people may question whether or not the universe will care about their life and death after they die. In Thornton Wilder’s, The Bridge of San Luis Rey, and Leo Tolstoy’s, The Death of Ivan Ilyich, both authors seem to believe that the universe does care about peoples lives and their deaths. In The Death of Ivan Ilyich, Tolstoy evaluates the subject of death and dying by describing the story of a worldly careerist and a high court judge who is brought face-to-face with his own death. In The Bridge of San Luis Rey, Wilder analyzes the lives of five individuals who all hurtled to their deaths when a bridge collapsed. He tries to answer the inescapable question: Why those
The face is of a statue in the cemetery where the Comedian is being buried, raindrops running down its face as though it is crying. This chapter focuses on the funeral of Edward Blake, known also as The Comedian. As such, this chapter centers around and is the first presentation of the theme of death, a common theme in Watchmen – both real and symbolic, or “ontological”. Ontological death is best described as “the phenomenon of ‘world collapse,’ which occurs when one experiences an incident so jarring to his/her personal reality that the thing which gives one’s fundamental life, or world, meaning – whether God or something else – no longer applies. Preconceptions are extinguished, pushing one into a ‘new world’ where a revised reality must established.” (Stanford Encyclopedia of Psychology, 2007. The Encyclopedia of Death and Dying,
Augustus Waters always used to say, “The world is not a wish granting factory” (Green 214). In The Fault in Our Stars, both Augustus Waters and Hazel Grace Lancaster are dealt a far-from ideal situation for life. At the young age of thirteen, Hazel was diagnosed with nearly incurable stage four thyroid cancer with metastasis forming in her lungs. By some miracle, she survived; but, she does not thrive at all. In fact, she struggles severely, carrying around an oxygen tank wherever she goes, and even still she has to get fluid drained out of her lungs every so often. Gus, on the other hand, was diagnosed with 85% curable osteosarcoma and had to get his leg amputated. This ended his promising basketball career, and even still the cancer ended up taking more of his life; in fact the whole thing. Though Augustus and Hazel would have both wished for easier lives, sometimes what is real is not ideal; and in their case, what was real wasn’t even close to being ideal. As Augustus’s life came to an end, he always spoke about it being his personal dream to be remembered and not dying in vain. He needed to feel like his life had a purpose, which all individuals search for along with hope and truth. Augustus died and left the “sequel” to An Imperial
Hazel Lancaster Grace: She is diagnosed with Stage 4 Thyroid cancer with metastasis forming in her lungs, but has managed to live with her disease owing to doses of an experimental drug called Phalanxifor