More handpicked essays just for you.
Attempt a character sketch of Hagar Shipley in the novel The Stone Angel
The Symbolism of the Stone Angel by Margaret Laurence Essay
The Symbolism of the Stone Angel by Margaret Laurence Essay
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Stone Angel - Hagar as a Product of her Environment
Since the commencement of our world, there have been those such as Hitler, Einstein and Hitchcock, whose very name stands apart from the masses; their distinct aura symbolized something far greater than just a simple human life. Such a statement can be applied to Hagar Shipley, the protagonist from the novel The Stone Angel by Margaret Laurence, and hold true. Hager is a unique character, whose essence rises above others, such that after understanding the journey of her life, her first name evokes a series of emotion within the reader. Due to her crass nature and uncompromising pride, one questions if the prestigious background of the Currie clan sculpted such. In addition, during her young life set in the nineteenth century Manawaka society, a high importance was placed on social status. This feeling of superiority over others traveled with Hagar into womanhood. Although it may be argued that one possess the ability to control her own existence, when the intricate web of elements that complete Hagar's life are considered, it becomes evident that her life, in its entity, is a consequence of her environment.
Throughout the period of her childhood, Hagar was relentlessly educated of the Currie family glory. Her father exuberantly reminded the children that the "Curries are Highlanders" (Laurence, 15) from the "Sept of the Clanranald MacDonalds" (Laurence, 15). Such self-righteous episodes, installed a false pride deep within young Hagar, as she wholeheartedly believed that her wealthy Scottish relatives "lived in castles"(Laurence, 15). This exaggeration of the Currie past fueled Hagar's feeling of superiority over others. It was this Currie...
... middle of paper ...
...bringing. The unbending pride associated with her character was an inheritance from her father and the past Currie glory, while the town and her status as a young girl shaped her speech and manner. Over the years, Hagar has come to represent the stone angel that marks her mother's grave, but not a beautiful image of serenity, as one may conjure when thinking of angels, but rather an expression of immovable pride that lead to her demise.
Works Cited
Brooks, April. "Girls in Nineteenth-Century Life". The Historian. December 18, 1992 <http://www.findarticles.com>
Laurence, Margaret. The Stone Angel. Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, 1964
Thomson, Ross. "Beginnings of the Woman's Suffrage Movement". A History of Women. January 2000. <http://www.wouldbook.com>
I have read Kathryn Kish Sklar book, brief History with documents of "Women's Rights Emerges within the Antislavery Movement, 1830-1870" with great interest and I have learned a lot. I share her fascination with the contours of nineteenth century women's rights movements, and their search for meaningful lessons we can draw from the past about American political culture today. I find their categories of so compelling, that when reading them, I frequently lost focus about women's rights movements history and became absorbed in their accounts of civic life.
In the years after 1870 there were many reasons for the development of the women’s suffrage movement. The main reasons were changes in the law. Some affecting directly affecting women, and some not, but they all added to the momentum of Women’s campaign for the vote.
Independence is something most humans strive for, although some are not lucky enough for it to be an option for them. When a person loses their independence they lose the faith in themselves that they are even capable of being independent. Once the right is taken away, a person will become dependent on others, and unable to function as they used to. Most people would sit back and let their right be taken, but not Hagar Shipley. Hagar loses her independence as most do, because of her age. Doris confronts Hagar about an accident she had when she wet the sheets, and Hagar begins to feel the vice slowly closing down on her already tiny slice of independence. Feeling threatened, Hagar snaps, “That’s a lie. I never did any such thing. You’re making it up. I know your ways. Just so you’ll have some reason for putting me away.” (Lawrence 74) As if Hagar wasn’t having a difficult enough time wat...
Bender, David L. The Women's Rights Movement, Opposing Viewpoints: Greenhaven Press, Inc., San Diego 1996
After seeing though the eyes of my pastor I’ve come to realize the importance of faith and committing to one’s beliefs. Returning to church after two massive losses has helped my mother in many ways and it has also taught me as a young man how small things that I could do would turn to have a big impact on someone’s life the same way my pastor impacted my life and the life of my siblings.
“Become accustomed to the belief that death is nothing to us. For all good and evil consists in sensation, but
The cycle of life always ends in death, but the frightful aspect of death is not necessarily death itself, but the concept of timing. Mark Twain states that “The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man who lives fully is prepared to die anytime” which means people’s fear of dying stems from their fear of living, and this frightful emotion takes over people’s lives and prevents them from living each day like it is their last. This fear prevents many from taking action on their dreams and ambitions which inevitably is giving one’s life up too quickly. Dylan Thomas, a famous contemporary author, believes existence is taken advantage of and when one’s existence is threatened, most people are too quick to give up. In Thomas’s “Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night,” the speaker of the poem confronts his deceased father about releasing one of the most valuable things in nature: life (Pattern #3).
In our lives, we go through stages of mindset and maturity that naturally coincide with aging. One thing that remains the same, though, through all of these stages, is that eventually, we die; we are completely aware of that as humans. Whether because it’s due to the painful reality that is mortality, our ever-diminishing ability to be wistful and imaginative, or merely the impending coming of the Grim Reaper, our entire lives are, ironic as it is, surrounded by and flooded with death. However, as we grow older, our perception of death changes. It goes from taboo in our young ages to something that begins to surround and eventually consume us as we grow older. Between the poems “For the Anniversary of my Death” by
Sexual orientation covers sexual desires, feelings, practices and identification. Sexual orientation can be towards people of the same or different sexes (same-sex, heterosexual or bisexual orientation, pansexual, asexual, ect.). Gender identity refers to the complex relationship between sex and gender, referring
I also love being able to inspire children and leaving a good impact on people. Being a teacher also gives you the chance to learn just as much from the students as they learn from you. The educational requirements for a teacher are: earning a bachelor’s degree in the specific subject you want to teach, and earning a teacher’s license that qualifies you to teach up to grade 12. The best college to attend is Michigan State college of Education, and it’s a 4 year program depending on the level of education you want to teach. Teachers receive $35,760 per year, this payment increases every year. The benefits that a teacher receive are: Medical, Dental, and Eye care insurance, life insurance, referral free access to doctors, routine prenative care, flexible spending accounts, and family planning
Death is always an interesting topic for discussion. Individuals will respond differently to it emotionally and physically. Some will see it as a nuisance and attempt to remain as busy as they can to not think of it but once death catches up to us we hope and pray that there is an afterlife where we can continue living. Others will do anything in their power to fight against it and make sure that they live their life to the fullest. These individuals are determined to leave some trace of them behind before it is too late. There are a few individuals who find the beauty in death. As if death is all around us and we simply need to take the time to look at it. In any case death is something we will encounter and in Dickinson’s “Because I Could Not Stop for Death”, Thomas’s, “Do Not Go Gentle into that Good Night”, and Seuss’s “Still-Life with Turkey” we are shown these different viewpoints in very different and unique ways.
Beginning in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century women began to vocalize their opinions and desires for the right to vote. The Women’s Suffrage movement paved the way to the nineteenth Amendment in the United States Constitution that allowed women that right. The Women’s Suffrage movement started a movement for equal rights for women that has continued to propel equal opportunities for women throughout the country. The Women’s Liberation Movement has sparked better opportunities, demanded respect and pioneered the path for women entering in the workforce that was started by the right to vote and given momentum in the late 1950s.
Death is one of the concepts that is perceived differently throughout cultures. Some see it as a punishment or loss, some take it as just another chapter of our existence – a transition to the unknown. Death is so much more than just life running out of time; it includes a great deal of pain: physical, social – leaving our loved ones behind, mental – trying to understand what fills that void when we die, emotional – frustration and regret, and spiritual – fear of not having led a fulfilling life. There is a fear of death, or the unknown that awaits afterwards not only in relation to ourselves, but also in relation to people we love, and despite the pain that fills our hearts, sometimes we need to do the right thing to ease their journey.
One thing that we often hear is that “death is just a part of life.” So often in our day and age do we hear people utter these words. However, death is far more significant and impactful than some would allege. True death is not merely a time when we cease to exist; it is an entombment, a mindset in which we are dead to this world. Throughout our lives, it is true that we can all be dead in one way or another, but it does not have to be that way. When we have our eyes opened to what death actually is, it is far easier to grasp what the true meaning of life is, and to embrace it. Often, we will come across individuals who are enveloped in death and others who are immersed in true life. The shadow of death and entombment lies upon some, encompassing
Vrangalova, Z., & Savin-Williams, R. C. (2012). Mostly heterosexual and mostly gay/lesbian: Evidence for new sexual orientation identities. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 41, 85-101. doi: 10.1007/s10505- 012-9921-y.