1. In We Were the Mulvaneys, Patrick avenges Marianne’s rape with his form of justice and, from what can be told from the first few pages of Expensive People, there is a hint at justice brought upon the “child murderer”. Does the definition of what “justice” for these crimes are connect between both novels? 2. After tragedy occurs in We Were the Mulvaneys, each character goes through a similar type of alienation. In Expensive People, Richard writes his confession alone, hinting a similar form of alienation. Is this a typical characteristic of Oates’ novels and how does it impact each character’s identity? 3. In both We Were the Mulvaneys and Expensive People, multiple male characters, including Zachary, Abelove, and Richard, lust after …show more content…
Her tone towards the women is positive, particularly as the novel approaches its end with the introduction of Sable Mills, a widow who lives with Corinne, also a widow by the end of the novel. It is too soon into Expensive People to tell whether or not Richard’s mother Nada is portrayed as weak or strong but she does yell at her husband in the beginning when he treats her …show more content…
It also acts as a way for the reader to see into the minds of other characters such as the quickly deteriorating Mike Sr. and the crestfallen Corinne after the changes in her family and home life.
Expensive People is a combination of social satire and gothic horror. The novel is a satire because it reflects on the role of family and how society’s views impact it. It comments on it and exaggerates the flaws. It is gothic horror because it has elements of suspense as well as romance. In this case however, the romance appears to be in the form of an Oedipus Complex, as analyzed through a psychoanalytic lens.
Expensive People begins as a novel of the narrator and main character’s confession to a murder he committed as an eleven-year-old. The narration is first-person and the narrator, Richard, takes a lot of time to explain out each event in deep detail, as was the case with Judd in We Were the Mulvaneys. By employing a narrator that is limited and slightly disturbed, she makes the narrator appear unreliable thus dragging out the confession of who was murdered. This is the classic Gothic horror theme of
Tobias Wolff’s “The Rich Brother” is a story of two brothers, Donald and Pete. These brothers have very contrasting lifestyles; Pete is a successful businessman with a wife and kids. Donald, on the other hand, is an outcast. He’s unemployed and irresponsible. He lives his life as a vagabond. Despite these facts, the successful brother, Pete, still lacks the self-esteem he desperately craves. Therefore he tries to make his brother, Donald, feel foolish with every chance he gets.
throughout the novel allows the audience to gain a better understanding and personal compassion for both the character and the author. 	The novel is written in a short, choppy sentence structure using simple word choice, or diction, in a stream of consciousness to enable the reader to perceive the novel in the rationale of an eleven-year-old girl. One short, simple sentence is followed by another, relating each in an easy flow of thoughts. Gibbons allows this stream of thoughts to again emphasize the childish perception of life’s greatest tragedies. For example, Gibbons uses the simple diction and stream of consciousness as Ellen searches herself for the true person she is.
Did you know that many people greed over money? Neither did I, it’s just ridiculous how people act over money. Now , this is worst did you know how men greed over women? You wouldn’t expect that but it actually happens. The Pardoner’s Tale and The Wife of Bath were almost the same but they also had some differences too.
The first portrayal of justice occurs when Squier manages to convince Mantee to shoot and kill him. The reason why Squier’s death is justice is because he is then able to help Maple. Squier makes Maple the beneficiary to his life insurance policy, and with that money Maple is free to leave the diner and pursue her dreams of traveling to Paris and becoming a painter. Without Squier’s help Maple would most likely remain at the diner and never be fully happy. The last portrayal of justice occurred when law enforcement officials closed in on Mantee’s location and a shootout began. After the shootout one of the characters claims that the police got Mantee. I interpreted that this meant Mantee was also shot dead. Mantee’s death is justice because he in essence paid for all his wrong doings and he harm he caused to
On each payday, the narrator of “Edison, New Jersey” evaluates how far he is from reaching his goals of buying a pool table: “You have to buy sticks and balls and chalk and a store keeper and triangles and French tops if you’re a fancy shooter” (128). The repetition of “and” illustrates an impossible large amount of materials that are need in order to play pool. This creates an impression that it is impossible for the narrator to be wealthy when he can’t obtain the objects that represent wealth which hinted at the possibility of jealousy arising of those who can afford it. As a result, when the buyers of pool tables have done something the narrator does not like, he would create troubles like “cram bubble bath drops” into his pocket and “throw fist-sized wads of toilet paper into the toilet” (123). This displays how when the narrator could not get the pool table he want because he is not wealthy enough, he act out against those who can. The troubles creates are evidence of him drawing a line between himself and the rich, isolating himself in order to takes revenge on what he can’t accomplish. Similarly, the residents in “A Real Durwan” isolates themselves from the community as the concept of money led to greediness. However, the residents isolates themselves in the process of proving that they can be wealthy like Dalahs while the
Therefore, we witness all events without the bias of a character's thought or opinions. This detail develops the reader’s understanding of how the characters feel and why they act the way they do in the story. Finally, by portraying the story in third person the reader can understand everyone point of view instead of just one person view.
The conversations of the rich people are based solely on material wealth and finances. For example, the women tend to discuss fashion and new cloths and gossip about each other. The author clearly shows that “all they think of is money”, pointing to lack of moral virtues and proper education as well (Fitzgerald 31). The men also have negative features, such as greed, betrayal and bribery. Generally, the whole society lives in the conditions of dishonesty, injustice and corruption. Many symbols, such as valley of ashes or Doctor T. J. Eckleburg’s faded eyes witness the moral and social decline experienced by that generation. Perhaps, it was the influence of the recent war and economic recession, or it could indicate the fall of the individual morality and focus on the financial
Wealth has both a good and a bad side. It can change the life of a person for the better or worse, and that is clearly shown in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby and Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God. Wealth affects the lives of the characters of Their Eyes Were Watching God very differently than the characters of The Great Gatsby. Janie’s wealth came about, mainly, from her failed relationships.
Christopher, Cathy, Carrie and Cory Dollanganger suffer from the effects of greed at the hands of their mother, Corrine, in the novel Flowers in the Attic by V.C. Andrews. Compassion gives a person the ability to see through someone’s behavior to find the truth hiding behind it. Therefore when personal gain and self indulgence overshadows the needs of others, such greed plays a prominent role in the life of those impacted by that selfish desire. To accurately describe greed is to take a cup with a hole in the bottom and try to fill it with water, and not understand why the cup never fills up. Greed stems from desire; so then it is greed, which is never satisfied, disintegrates hope, and pollutes the soul.
The pursuit of wealth is ubiquitous around the world. Most people spend their entire lives trying to attain more. This is a common theme worldwide. One major difference is key though. The meaning and symbolism of wealth and how wealth is expressed is different for every individual. In the novel
Names represent a kind of social identity, and Oates' main interest here is in exploring what might happen when her character's social framework and the comfortably predictable life that goes with it are suddenly, and irrevocably, taken away. This, of course, is precisely what happens. What then, Oates seems to be asking, would be left? The answer, which is feverishly detailed in the remaining thirteen pages of this sixteen page story, is something this woman would never have asked for nor anticipated.
F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby and William Faulkner’s A Rose for Emily uses setting, characterization, and figurative language to show us how old money is selfish and responsible with their money and how new money is selfless, but uses their money unwisely.
“Money is the root of all evil”(Levit). Man and his love of money has destroyed lives since the beginning of time. Men have fought in wars over money, given up family relationships for money and done things they would have never thought that they would be capable of doing because of money. In the movie, based on F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby, the author demonstrates how the love and worship of money and all of the trappings that come with it can destroy lives. In the novel Jay Gatsby has lavish parties, wears expensive gaudy clothes, drives fancy cars and tries to show his former love how important and wealthy he has become. He believes a lie, that by achieving the status that most Americans, in th...
is the driving force of the story. All the characters express different emotions and contribute in different actions because they all have a desire to have possession of this valuable objects. Trust, greed, and stupidity are characteristics that describe the characters in the story. Consequently, these characteristics end up eliminating each character one by one. This novel focuses on the themes of deception, greed, and is developed through excellent character
We all have gotten paid or saved up money to buy something expensive. From getting three dollars from the tooth fairy or getting your first real job paycheck, you always have the urge to take that money and go take a day out and spend it. In the short story by author Kate Chopin called “A Pair of Silk Stocking,” the main character receives fifteen dollars which she wants to spend on her kids, ends up spending it all on herself. This story takes place in the 1890’s and back then fifteen dollars is equivalent to four hundred dollars now. The main character, Mrs. Sommers. Takes a day out and goes around town spending her money. She goes to the shops and buys a pair of silk stockings, which she had been wanting for awhile. Mrs. Sommers ends up going out to dinner and then to the theatre. A huge theme of the short story focuses around the idea of consumerism. Consumerism is an increasing consumption of goods that are desirable. Mrs. Sommers shows her wants for the goods throughout the story. She goes around town buying things she doesn't need but buys them because she desires or wants them. Throughout the short story “ A Pair of Silk Stockings,” Kate Chopin uses the literary elements of conflict and symbolism to develop the theme of consumerism.