I see a place, a mythical place, it is not a house, it is certainly not a home it is a concoction of all its surroundings, it embodies a mystique of feelings unspoken, locked in ones heart by a key that one wishes that no one will find. Only in Hollywood can such a picture be presented to an audience that would see something that was opulent and gaudy, large but not homey, cold but not warm. You sense that something so beautiful, this mansion, like a person you fall in love with has flaws and yes, those secrets, those secrets. As time goes on the participants in our little tragedy start to see the flaws and those secrets unravel like a fine piece of silk that has snagged on a splinter. We see the secrets start as almost a little ripple on the water that was tickled by the wind. Was Desiree the poor abandoned child of those raucous Texans? Let us forget that for is not the child an angel sent by Providence to bring pleasure to our lives just as Moses brought pleasure to Pharaoh's daughter?
As our Desiree grow to maturity she is admired by a gallant young man with no true tried talents except his was born of the loins (or so we thought) of a rich father. Cupid strikes, the two are infected by love. Credentials are checked, but not too closely and the marriage is celebrated I'm sure in an almost mythical way as would only be fitting in our mythical mansion. The finest in wedding presents are obtained from France, Paris I would presume. The vanity flows like grog down a pirate's throat. Armand (I can't stop thinking of a bronze colored almond) is our Jupiter. He rules with the strength, determination and self-centeredness of a man with the pedigree of inheritance can anoint. As time will have and biology dictates a child is born. Armand is softened momentarily by the sweet smell of powder, the softness of skin, and the innocence of a creature of god that has not yet eaten the apple of human personality. He is proud, he is happy and he displays it outwardly even to his slaves. Such kindness. As our child grows and his physical appearance takes a more noticeable turn, people notice, they look and whisper.... whispers... oh those whispers. Whispers, the forerunners to secrets that will soon, no must be revealed.
The author illustrates the “dim, rundown apartment complex,” she walks in, hand and hand with her girlfriend. Using the terms “dim,” and “rundown” portrays the apartment complex as an unsafe, unclean environment; such an environment augments the violence the author anticipates. Continuing to develop a perilous backdrop for the narrative, the author describes the night sky “as the perfect glow that surrounded [them] moments before faded into dark blues and blacks, silently watching.” Descriptions of the dark, watching sky expand upon the eerie setting of the apartment complex by using personification to give the sky a looming, ominous quality. Such a foreboding sky, as well as the dingy apartment complex portrayed by the author, amplify the narrator’s fear of violence due to her sexuality and drive her terror throughout the climax of the
... in that barren hall with its naked stair... rising into the dim upper hallway where an echo spoke which was not mine ut rather that of the lost irrevocable might-have-been which haunts all houses, all enclosed walls erected by human hands, not for shelter, not for warmth, but to hide from the world's curious looking and seeing the dark turnings which the ancient young delusions of pride and hope and ambition (ay, and love too) take.
The idea of love in this piece of literature is exceedingly important, throughout the entire story characters are fighting for love, or being forced to love.
One story that stood out to be was Desiree 's Baby because it was set up in the Southern side of the United States. This story is different from the other traditional gothic stories in class. For one, it takes back in the era of slavery in the United States, and the background of the story doesn’t fit the traditional gothic background. The stories in class were based in a place in Europe with a dark background. When reading this story, the background seemed to be bright and sunny. There wasn’t much of a dark undertone like traditional gothic stories would have, which made it slightly harder to see it as a gothic story. I guess that it’s considered to be gothic because it’s a pre-Civil War and Victorian like era to read
Marie de France’s Lais, Guigemar and Yonec, are statements about the female condition of the twelfth- and thirteenth-century. In these Lais, the female characters are literally trapped by their jealous husbands and by their unwanted marriages. This jealousy is a tenant of the courtly romances from the time of Marie de France. In Guigemar and Yonec, the women protagonists do not have freedom or voice where their husbands are concerned; however, when the supernatural intervenes and their knights are brought to them, they are given love, a man who listens to their wants and needs, and a chance at freedom. These Lais make use of the tropes of courtly love and marriage, but rebel against them in a quiet and unsuspecting way. By rebelling against the rules of courtly love, Marie de France offers the ‘other-world’ and the supernatural as an appropriation of a future for women that did not yet exist.
Racism and slavery will forever stay written in our history books. There are thousands of books, articles, encyclopedias, and short stories that try to depict it, even until now. Rarely some can barely come close to describe the feelings and emotions felt during that era. One of those heart opening stories is “Désirée’s Baby”; a short story that speaks about a conflicted family living in that tense era. The setting of the story helps create tension because it talks about the post-civil war era, the tension in the divided country and the small town that enhanced discrimination.
It is about a family’s documentary that was fictional, written by a fictional blind man, with footnotes and references that are fictional, and compiled by a fictional tattoo assistant that is insane. The many different psyches and perceptions used to connect the characters in the House of Leaves act as foundational support for the theme of the entire novel, that without them in their entirety, there would be absolutely nothing interesting left in the book to read. The House of Leaves provokes thought, debate and analysis of one’s psyche from the reader. Each individual will analyze and interpret the book in their own unique way, through reflective consciousness and mediation. Readers that can navigate through the labyrinth of House of Leaves will learn that they have successfully deconstructed the book, survived the maze, and discovered new ways to interpret
There will always be ugly things in the world,but you have to look deep within to find the beauty of it all.That's the first theme of the story.One example of why i say that is,And one other thing i remember,another incongruence of memory-a brilliant splash of sunny yellow against the dust Miss Lottie's Marigolds on page 213,lines 12-14 in the collection textbook.Another example of my statement is whenever a memory of those marigolds flashes across my mind,a strange nostalgia comes with it and remains long
“It was a large, beautiful room, rich and picturesque in the soft, dim light which the maid had turned low. She went and stood at an open window and looked out upon the deep tangle of the garden below. All the mystery and witchery of the night seemed to have gathered there amid the perfumes and the dusky and tortuous outlines of flowers and foliage. She was seeking herself and finding herself in just such sweet half-darkness which met her moods. But the voices were not soothing that came to her from the darkness and the sky above and the stars. They jeered and sounded mourning notes without promise, devoid even of hope. She turned back into the room and began to walk to and fro, down its whole length, without stopping, without resting. She carried in her hands a thin handkerchief, which she tore into ribbons, rolled into a ball, and flung from her. Once she stopped, and taking off her wedding ring, flung it upon the carpet. When she saw it lying there she stamped her heel upon it, striving to crush it. But her small boot heel did not make an indenture, not a mark upon the glittering circlet.
In some stories, symbolism can play a significant role in coming to understand the overall moral of the story. One of the best examples of this is found in Raymond Carver's “Cathedral”. This story centers around the theme of the differences between physically looking at something, and truly seeing it. In the final section of the story Carver gives his readers a wonderful example of symbolism as the readers discover along with the narrator, that seeing something through understanding can be much more powerful than the physical sense of the word.
The tale of Sleeping Beauty is influenced by oral folklore and various written versions. Today fairytales are told as a domain for the entertainment and teachings of children. In traditional storytelling, peasants transmitted folklore orally around campfires to audiences of mixed ages. However, during the 17th century, peasant tales, such as Sleeping Beauty, were altered by writers like Charles Perrault’s, to appeal to the courts of aristocracy. Thus the characters of Sleeping Beauty adorned a courtly air to appeal to the crown, such as Louis XIV of France. Throughout history, various cultural influences transformed the tale of Sleeping Beauty through the manipulation of various social forces to achieve better entertainment purposes and reflect Christian beliefs and customs. In addition, the moral of the tale conveys a message that women remain passive in hope to marry her true lov...
All these critical elements to a short story come together to form the main idea of “The Fall of the House of Usher.” The theme is that an irreconcilable fracture in one’s personality can lead to the derangement and dissolution of the personality. Although this is a major theme, there are others prevalent, such as the mind cannot live or die without its counterpart (mirror image), the senses, and the theme of being a victim, having power, and being powerless.
The Speaker in ‘My Last Duchess’ is conversing with the servant of a count whose daughter he is proposing to marry. He treats t...
...emotions. With obstacles and power struggles the love between Christian and Satine is doubtful. Love ends up coming on top in the end and the materialistic things seem to vanish in the presence of the two lovers. The film creates a contrast between the right way to look for love and the wrong way. Forbidden love is unstoppable and Cristian and Satine embody this. Even death could not break the bond these two shared. The power struggle between upper class and lower class and the naïve and cynical outlook on love are the most important themes in this film and will forever be a spectacular and unique showcase of love.
sets a romantic "I wish I was there" setting. The purpose of the Sense and