From the beginning of time two literary themes have emerged: love and death. Both of these elements serve as a building block for literature, they also serve as building blocks for each other. The concept of love and the happiness it could potentially bring is not as joyous when death remains a factor. In both Pale Horse, Pale Rider and The Dead the idea of death before one’s time changes the remaining character’s view of love. Throughout literature the two concepts have always been delicately intertwined.
Throughout The Worm at the Core the connection between love and death is explained. As humans we are naturally prone to consider our futures, which ultimately leads to thoughts of death. As a result of most people fearing death, we develop high levels of self esteem and depend highly upon cultural worldview. A person must possess both high self esteem and depend on cultural worldview to avoid frequent thoughts of death. One of the most popular ways to build self esteem is throughout a loving relationship with another individual. “The feeling of personal significance is what keeps our deepest fears at bay” (Solomon, Greenberg, Pyszczynski 39). Both Miranda and Adam in Pale Horse, Pale Rider use their relationship to decrease the thoughts of the constant threat of death. Likewise, Gabriel uses his relationship with Gretta and
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Miranda avoids the seriousness of death by distancing herself from it in every way possible. She refused to buy a war bond, because that was accepting the war at hand. “Miranda said hastily, ‘I have eighteen dollars a week and not another cent in the world. I simply cannot buy anything’” (Porter 273). Adam avoids dwelling on death by fighting it. He is more than willing to fight in the war, even though his life will be in jeopardy. He views it as his duty to be a soldier and contribute everything he is able to the war
In Alistair McLeod’s collection of short stories the Lost Salt Gift of Blood; death seems to be a constant companion. Death is important and perhaps even symbolic in this collection of short stories. It is important because it has the power to affect people and relationships, invokes freedom and even predetermines ones future, through the death of animal’s people and the impending death of others.
Moses’ strong-will, strictness, and love towards Adam and the rest of his family made him the person he was. This story showed how much a war can do in 24 hours. I believe that Moses died assured that his son could take over and be the man of the family. Moses would have been proud of the way that Adam responded to what had all happened that
The deaths and dangers in the world we face are sometimes made of ourselves and of our fears. In the dark story The Masque of the Red Death the danger being unavoidable death that Prince Prospero shuns away but comes back to kill him. In Young Goodman Brown, the protagonist fears that his faith will be loss and nothing will be good in the world anymore. Both these stories are’ descriptive and use many symbols that connect to fear. While the protagonists in Young Goodman Brown and The Masque of the Red Death are both fearful, Goodman Brown fears of losing his innocence and runs off to find faith but loses it on the way, and the prince in The Masque of Red Death fears losing his riches.
Self-esteem is confidence in one’s own worth or abilities or self-respect. Janie from Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neal Hurston and Jefferson from A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest Gaines both struggle with establishing a positive self-esteem or a sense of self-worth. Both characters get so overwhelmed by the supremacy of someone or something around them that they doubt their own power, thus, creating a feeling of doubt for themselves and the voice that they have. In order to gain a sense of high self-esteem, a person must endure points of self-doubt.
Shrouded in a black cloak and a razor sharp scythe gripped in its callous hands. Feared by the bravest of men. It is the inescapable end met by all. This tends to be the common notion when it comes to death. In Markus Zusak’s extraordinary novel, The Book Thief, death is personified as the narrator. In contrast to the average perception, Death is an intricate and internally conflicted character with a lot to offer. Death’s perspective softens the harshness of the overall subject of the book and contributes a poetic view of the world. Death provides a complex knowledge of the characters and the human psyche, as well as future events and the outside world.
The concept of mortality is truly fascinating, because no one living knows what happens after death. Some choose simply not to think about death’s inevitability, but the realm of the living is rife with reminders of what everyone must become. The stories of Tom Walker and Prince Prospero serve as such reminders to the readers of their macabre tales. In both stories, the protagonists are scared of the prospect of death. The eponymous Tom Walker of The Devil and Tom Walker worries about what will become of the riches accumulated from his deal with The Devil and consequently becomes very pious.His fate is sealed when one day he exclaims “The Devil take me if I have made but a farthing!” at a time when his Bibles are not present. The Devil himself returns and carries him off on a black horse, never to be seen again. In The Masque of the Red Death, however, Prince Prospero decides to just blatantly ignore the inevitability of death. He locks himself and his friends in his castle. All is well until the eve of a grand masque. An uninvited guest intrudes seemingly dressed as the Red Death. Outraged, Pro...
For the first time, “I felt as if I understood,” not only the imminence of death, but the intentions of his mother (122). Mersault feels a human connection: a novel idea after all of his experiences with Raymond, Salamano, and Marie. Therefore, as Mersault faces death, he “opened [him]self to the gentle indifference of the world” (122). He recognizes that man has no control over his fate: he would still be facing the “dark wind” (122) whether or not “the sentence had been read at eight o’clock at night and not at five o’clock” (109). Thus, in the face of death, Mersault reaches his enlightened state.
There are many short stories in literature that share a common theme presented in different ways. A theme that always keeps readers’ attention is that of death because it is something that no one wants to face in real life, but something that can be easily faced when reading. “Harrison Bergeron” by Kurt Vonnegut and “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson both exemplify how two authors use a common theme of death to stand as a metaphor for dystopian societies.
In the lovely bones, Lindsey has more knowledge about the case than anyone else, because she finds physical proof against Mr. Harvey. George Harvey constructs rooms by using his skills. Jack Salmon is confident that Mr. Harvey killed his daughter, because he acts suspicious plus he kills small animals. In the Lovely Bones, Alice Sebold illustrates knowledge is power to Lindsey, Mr. Harvey and Jack Salmon.
Authors use various styles to tell their stories in order to appeal to the masses exceptionally well and pass the message across. These messages can be communicated through short stories, novels, poems, songs and other forms of literature. Through The Masque of the Red Death and The Raven, it is incredibly easy to get an understanding of Edgar Allen Poe as an author. Both works describe events that are melodramatic, evil and strange. It is also pertinent to appreciate the fact that strange plots and eerie atmospheres are considerably evident in the author’s writings. This paper compares and contrasts The Masque of the Red Death and The Raven and proves that the fear of uncertainty and death informs Edgar Allen Poe’s writings in the two works
Death, despair, and revenge, these three words form a treacherous triangle to any reader who dare enter the mind of Edgar Allen Poe. In many of his works these expressions seem to form a reoccurring theme. Comparing the works "The Mask of the Red Death" and "The Cask of Amontillado", we will discuss these themes while analyzing the method behind Poe’s madness.
According to Ernest Becker, “The main thesis of this book is that it explains: the idea of death, the fear of death that haunts humans like nothing else; the mainspring of human activity designed to avoid the fatality of death, to overcome it by denying in some way that it is the final destiny for man” (“Becker” ix). The author of this book describes and quotes many other psychological thinkers views on the different kinds of fear and what contributes to the fear of death in man. The author explores several topics like self-worth, heroism, fear, anxiety, depression and many other issues throughout this book.
Intro : Introduce the concept of death, and how the concept of death is shown to be something to be feared
Edgar Allan Poe's short stories, "The Telltale Heart" and "The Masque of the Red Death" are two very different stories. One is about a simple man, perhaps a servant, who narrates the tale of how he kills his wealthy benefactor, and the other is about a prince who turns his back on his country while a plague known as The Red Death ravages his lands. Yet, there are some similarities in both. Time, for instance, and the stroke of midnight, seem to always herald the approach of impending death. Both are killers, one by his own hand, the other by neglecting his country. One seeks peace, the other seeks pleasure, but both are motivated by the selfish need to rid themselves of that which haunts them, even at the expense of another's life. However, the point of this critique will show that their meticulous plans to beat that which torments them are undone by a single flaw in their character - overconfidence.
Death is both an interesting and appealing concept to readers and writers alike. It is a powerful tool which can derive many emotions out of their readers and sometimes the writers themselves. Many writers use this tool to evoke emotional responses to their work by either removing a character from existence, portray a character going through the loss of a loved one or simply writing about the subject in general. There are many ways to portray death, but the outcome is usually the same, but what is it that affects of reading and writing about such a topic and why do people gravitate to this subject? The causes that lead to writing about death are not a choice but the path that was walked.