How Jane Gardam Reveals the Extraordinariness of Ordinary People
Jane Gardam uses a variety of writing styles to give the characters
and narrators a sense of extraordinariness. She does this, for
example, through her choice of language that gives life to the
characters. Three stories in this collection that show this are The
First Adam, Stone Trees and An Unknown Child.
===================================================================
One of the ways in which Jane Gardam explores the unusual features of
every day people is the use of narrative voice, in first or third
person. The First Adam, is a story of a man named Bull. After finding
retirement boring, Bull returned to work in Drab. The analogy of the
orang-outang is a symbol of Bull's lonely life, which also comes
across through the use of monologue throughout the story. The audience
are first introduced to Bull's extraordinary way of life when he uses
the phrase "My tender mistress" to describe his work. This story is
written using a first person narrator and so he expresses his own
thoughts and feelings to the reader. This is useful for the reader as
they are seeing exactly the same as Bull and so gain an understanding
of the way he views Drab, his work and his life. This is similar to
the style chosen for Stone Treeswhich is about the narrator, her life
and told using stream of consciousness. The story starts on a journey
to the Isle of Wight where the reader realise that her husband has
recently died. One of the most important points of this story is the
narrator repeatedly telling the audience that she did not want
children but she discovers that her husband al...
... middle of paper ...
.... In Stone Trees, the narrator
is amazed at how kindly Peter is treating her, "even though he is only
seven". This evokes a moment of realisation when she sees the pink
starfish and sees the, "growing things that are there all the time,
though only now and then seen."
All these characters experience "The Pangs of Love" which shows them
to be different and in some cases extraordinary. Jane Gardam's use of
writing styles, for example first and third person, monologue, stream
of consciousness and use of metaphors of motifs teach the audience
different features of the characters so that they are seen as
individuals. The fact that the characters thoughts are all told to the
reader helps them to empathise with the characters and see them as
surprising for coping with their difficult situations in the ways that
they do.
...is interactions with his wife are filled with tension and he is saddened when he reflects upon the men lost during war and the death of his brother.
The west insists on the discrete identity of objects. To name is to know; to know is to control. (Paglia, p.5)
“He uses similes such as the breeze that ‘blew curtains in at one end and out the other like pale frogs’ and that also made a shadow on the ‘wine-colored rug’ as ‘wind does on the sea’.”
Judith Guest's novel Ordinary People evinces some main principles of the modernist literary movement, such as the philosophy that modern man is beset by existential angst and alienation. According to Carl Marx, a renowned existentialist, alienation, as a result of the industrial revolution, has made modern man alienated from the product of his own labor, and has made him into a mechanical component in the system. Being a "cog in the wheel" prevents modern man from gaining a sense of internal satisfaction of intellectual and emotional pleasure. Further more, according to Sigmund Freud, there are two pleasures, work and love. Consequently, Freud would say that being disconnected from pleasure from work, half of the potential for psychological fulfillment would be lost. Modern man is suffering from alienation as a result of large institutions, and as individuals, modern man neither feels that they are part of them nor can understand them. Additionally, the existentialists say, man is shut out of history. Modern man no longer has a sense of having roots in a meaningful past nor sees himself as moving toward a meaningful future. The modern man also suffers from alienation in his relationships with other people. Since he lives life not authentically and not knowing who he is, he cannot relate to others authentically. Hence, there are no real relationships at work and there are no real relationships of love. Also, according to Sartre, modern man is absolutely not a victim of his environments, of his childhood, and the circumstances in his life. The events in life are only neutral and since modern man is free, he chooses the meanings of the facts of his life. Modern man lives in a constant state of existential angst, which is dread of the nothingness of human existence and the fact there is no underlying purpose to human existence or set of objective truths or morals by which to navigate life. According to Martin Heideggar, German existentialist philosopher, the unaware person tries to escape the reality of death by not living life to the fullest. However, death can be the most significant moment for the individual, his defining moment of personal potential, if accepted and confronted squarely will free the individual from anxiety of death.
The character’s demeanour changes the entire atmosphere of the movie due to experiencing serious trauma through bullying in childhood. The
Why does Jane Addams think women should have the right to vote? Please summarize her argument in your own words.
person than he does about the actual personality of the person. In the story a
The major internal conflict that Janelle faces throughout the entire book is how she thinks of herself. She always seems to be arguing with herself about whether she is pretty, or whether she has a chance with Devon. Like when she was imagining herself as Mrs. Devon Hope, and then starts saying, “Dream on fool. You can stand here in the girls’ room and practice saying that name ‘til your tongue falls out, or the change bell rings, whichever comes first, and it still won’t ever be true. Face it. Devon is Denzel Washington, and you are Thighs “R” Us.” Here you can see that she doesn’t like the way she looks, and she doesn’t think that anyone else ever will, but then she goes on to say, “I mean, I am smart and funny, and I know I’m a good person.”
The late 19th century was a time where cities in the United States experienced dramatic growth. The increase in population during this time was a result of the expanding commercial aspects. Migrant immigrants from various parts of the world accounted for an additional 15 million civilians among townships, cities and bureaus in the United States. Industrial America, as this time period is often referred to, was owed the radical change of the nation. The mass influx of people had their demands, which helped the boom of music, technology, and motor vehicles. With all the advancements occurring so rapidly in The States, important issues still lingered and were addressed throughout the lifetime of a woman named Jane Addams. Throughout this paper
In "A Woman's Beauty: Put-down or Power Source," Susan Sontag portrays how a woman's beauty has been degraded while being called beautiful and how that conceives their true identity as it seems to portray innocence and honesty while hiding the ugliness of the truth. Over the years, women have being classified as the gentler sex and regarded as the fairer gender. Sontag uses narrative structure to express the conventional attitude, which defines beauty as a concept applied today only to women and their outward appearance. She accomplishes this by using the technique of contrast to distinguish the beauty between men and women and establishing a variation in her essay, by using effective language.
The movie “Ordinary People” was a very entertaining and educational movie. It looked into the dynamics of families and showed the different parts and dependencies. It also looked into a type of client/therapist relationship and how it evolved over time. The discussion below will attempt to explore deeper into these aspect of the film.
that this old man didn’t stand well in society due to the characterization. The comprehension of
Sixteenth century England was a turbulent time in the religious life of its citizens. The Reformation and Henry VIII's 'Great Matter' had turned Catholic against Protestant. This was a time of greed, as well as, controversy. As Henry VIII neared the end of his rule over England, many became thirsty for power and awaited any chance to attain it, no matter what, or who, was at stake. It was into thia hectic time that Jane Grey was born. A Protestant and grandniece to Henry VIII, Lady Jane was almost destined for tragedy. Having been so innocent and so eager to please, Jane was the perfect target for manipulation. Lady Jane Grey was an innocent victim of greed who was born into royalty, forced into marriage, forced onto the throne, and executed for the crime of others.
...a character shift through unearthing the reality of fate; by refuting the unjust inequality of society as pointless due to the inescapability, he establishes his detachment from appraisal whilst combating societal standards of judgment due to status one possesses.
'For a text to be appealing, the audience must see the protagonist in conflict.'(respond critically by making close analysis with the text.) To be completed by the first week of the holidays.