Summary
A Burnt-Out Case is one of the latest novels by the British author Graham Greene, first published in 1960. This brilliant work deals with the search for meaning in life by the main character, Querry, a world-famous ecclesiastical architect. He arrives anonymously at a leper colony, but in spite of his efforts he cannot conceal his identity for too long, so he takes his vocation back again, and by doing so he starts connecting back with the emotions he used to experience towards his art and towards people as well.
Commentary
The scenery is perfectly set by the author, through a series of very vivid descriptions of the environment, that transmit wonderfully the feelings provoked by the climate, the vegetation and the landscape. Sensations of dampness, humidity, heat and discomfort are automatically perceived by the reader, as the narrator describes the river journey and the village. Smells are used to imply the revolting situations they are exposed to. Besides this, there are also overwhelming descriptions of the conditions in which people had to live, due to poverty, illness and lack of communications and resources.
The characters are not introduced right away. Instead, there is a veil of mystery that covers each of them, and although it might make it hard for the reader to understand the plot and each character's motivation, it also raises curiosity and makes the book impossible to put down. When the main character first comes into scene, you do not even know that he is Querry. As the plot
unfolds, hints of his past and his motivation are revealed, as the white community starts to relate him to the stories they have heard about the prestigious architect who built many outstanding churches. Eventually, he b...
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... to be avoided.
Catholicism and the Catholic Church are both hardly criticized through the main character's view of them, particularly in his conversations with, Dr. Colin, who is of the same thought as him in such matters. A line is drawn between real Catholic deeds and what is believed to be appropriate by those who only care about looking pious. Faith is constantly questioned, and the priests' arguments are never enough to convince Querry.
To sum up, this book invites us to approach life critically, to question what happens around us and not to accept everything we are given. It also shows a totally different reality from which we are used to, and somehow teaches us to appreciate what we have and how lucky we are. In the end, Querry proves not to be the only one who is empty inside, but he was wise enough to realize that and to do something about it.
There are a few minor characters in the story. There’s Clarisse and there are the firemen. The firemen are only mentioned to give you a better perspective of their world. They are very obedient and don’t seem to have minds of their own. Their personalities are not shown and they don’t really play a significant role in the novel. Clarisse, however, is a big player. She is the reason that Montag decides to quit and print books instead. She is used to get things going and ignite the rebellion, but she is soon killed off. So, she doesn’t have a big enough role to be considered a major character. Most of the minor character4s are there to show contrast with some major characters. This way, you have a better insight as to who they really are.
Apart from the novel's thematic development, McCarthy's setting and his detailed description of the ornate beauty of the desert southwest is deserving of praise. A lyrical quality and refined beauty are apparent in the novel's description. McCarthy's extended accounts of the pristine beauty of the desert can be seen as an artistic and visually appealing piece work apart from the plot of the novel. Such memorable accounts seem to be a lone highlight in a shockingly disturbing book (Moran 37).
Other characters are introduced throughout the play one by one; this creates a build-up of different levels of plot and character tension. The more characters the more drama and suspense as each character adds more to the storyline. For example, first the lead player, Vereen, and the other fictional players that are presumably “in” Pippin’s head are intro...
This places the reader in recognisable landscape which is brought to life and to some extent made clearer to us by the use of powerful, though by no means overly literary adjectives. Machado is concerned with presenting a picture of the Spanish landscape which is both recognisable and powerful in evoking the simple joys which it represents. Furthermore, Machado relies on what Arthur Terry describes as an `interplay between reality and meditation' in his description of landscape. The existence of reality in the text is created by the use of geographical terms and the use of real names and places such as SOrai and the Duero, while the meditation is found in...
Malone, Peter. “Catholic Analysis of ‘Doubt’ on Independent Catholic News.” Catholic Analysis of ‘Doubt’ on Independent Catholic News. N.p., 2 Jan. 2009. Web. 25 Mar. 2014.
In the mid-1970s, Jim Jones, a preacher and the leader of Peoples Temple, craved his way into the hearts of the Fillmore district, San Francisco’s desolated black neighborhood. He moved into the neighborhood at its lowest point. The people were searching for someone to follow, someone to fix their problems and Jones would make sure he was the solution. His personality was one of great charisma and he “…won the hearts and souls of people. And people followed him to hell. That’s where Jim Jones went. That’s where he took the people who followed him.” (Talbot).The people of the Fillmore district were seen as trash by the rest of society and society ignored them. Jones’ vision made even the lowest member of the district feel “special, like something bigger than ourselves” (Talbot). Though Jones was a misfit most of his life, he found peace in taking on a black persona and like the great black leaders that came before him he would lead “his people out of bondage and into the promised land.”(Talbot). However, his council was dom...
“Why don’t you just kill yourself?” I hear these words harshly uttered in hallways. “ Drink bleach.” I see these words wickedly typed on social media. “You’re ugly.” I face these words jokingly said to my face. Four-thousand, four-hundred young people die each year in the United States because of malicious remarks that are barked from the mouths of those who are insecure themselves. Welcome to the vicious cycle of bullying and the insensitivity of the human species. However, this occurrence isn’t exactly new, as Ray Bradbury, author of Fahrenheit 451, spoke of a corrupted society where life wasn’t valued. Fingers are pointed at irrelevant issues that are blamed for the downfall of our society, but the only place we must look is at ourselves
The next theme used by the author to inspire a feeling of despair in this story is the randomness of persecution. By making the villagers draw these slips of paper once a year would provoke a feeling of hopelessness. Because they know that no matter what they do one day they may be subjected to this brutal death. And it woul...
If my life had no purpose, no individuality, and no happiness, I would not want to live. This book teaches the importance of self expression and independence. If we did not have these necessities, then life would be like those in this novel. Empty, redundant, and fearful. The quotes above show how different life can be without our basic freedoms. This novel was very interesting and it shows, no matter how dismal a situation is, there is always a way out if you never give up, even if you have to do it alone.
The emotive language used throughout her memories, show direct contrast to her present situation, as well as her reasons for leaving home. The use of personification, in text such as ‘ the sea roared like an angry beast’, provide emphasis of emotive language, used in describing the estrangement felt. The language is so eloquent, conjuring such engagingly vivid images, of Ziba’s emotions, particularly as she feels the ups and downs of the unforgiving ocean. Through figurative and evaluative language, Ziba is able to depict her past and present feelings and memories. The strong connection between sensory experiences and memory is sophisticated and crisp, making the text straightforward and resonant. The author uses simile’s such as, ‘thoughts of home washed over Ziba like the surge of sea washing over the deck’, linking past and present, creating feelings of loneliness, whilst reflecting on her once peaceful home. The effective use of noun groups - laughter of children, cool mountain air, rich spices of the evening meal - alongside side a number of sensory verbs - thought, felt and smelled - assist and connect the reader to Ziba’s thoughts. Furthermore, the use of repetition in the first and last page of the text, places emphasis on the unstable state of their emotions, the uncertainty of what’s to
In the story, The Natural, certain characters and events are portrayed in a distinctive way that makes this story unique to other books and shows the typical writing style of the narrator. The author uses a repetitive writing technique that is impossible to overlook. The writer of this book is able to catch the reader’s eye with his concept of the importance of beautiful description. The Natural, by Bernard Malamud, uses great imagery that makes the story appealing.
The main character is completely alienated from the world around him. He is a black man living in a white world, a man who was born in the South but is now living in the North, and his only form of companionship is his dying wife, Laura, whom he is desperate to save. He is unable to work since he has no birth certificate—no official identity. Without a job he is unable to make his mark in the world, and if his wife dies, not only would he lose his lover but also any evidence that he ever existed. As the story progresses he loses his own awareness of his identity—“somehow he had forgotten his own name.” The author emphasizes the main character’s mistreatment in life by white society during a vivid recollection of an event in his childhood when he was chased by a train filled with “white people laughing as he ran screaming,” a hallucination which was triggered by his exploration of the “old scars” on his body. This connection between alienation and oppression highlight Ellison’s central idea.
The narrator of The Autobiography of an Ex-colored Man decided not to fight for racial equality in America for his fellow African-American, or even for himself, but rather conformed with the white majority thus selecting the uncomplicated path: the path that would lead him to security and safety in the years to come. After struggling with his identity in the white and African-American community as a “colored” man who could pass as white, he decided to discard his “colored” roots and stick with his white origin. By doing such a thing, he was able to live a simple, respectful, and safe life, but he abandoned a very significant part of his identity. He felt slight remorse towards the end of the novel, but self-interest held more importance to him than embracing the cultural heritage of the African-American community.
In the poem there is an ABAB rhyme scheme along with use of alliteration, onomatopoeia, and imagery. By using all of these techniques, it helps the reader to better understand the message which is being relayed in the poem. Some of the subjects of this poem include, urbanization, dystopia, nature, dying and the fall of man. The reader gets a vivid image of a huge industrial city built in “valleys huge of Tartarus”(4).
He is a hustler to the end, a smooth-talker who is now at home in his new ego and his new profession. Jones employs the dynamics of change in his speaker throughout the poem. From an aimless vagrant to a passionate revolutionary, Jones plots his speaker's course using specific words and structural techniques. Through these elements, we witness the evolution of a new black man—one who is not content with the passivity of his earlier spiritual leaders.