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Technological advancements and its impact on society
Impact of advancement of technology
Technological advancements and its impact on society
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The Endless Dissonance between Humanity and Nature
The scientific and technological advancements of the early 20th century entered people’s daily lives with the intention of bringing the whole of humanity into a brighter, more modern era. However, the darker side of such immense achievement was the increasing encroachment on the previously untouched natural world. Many great minds grew weary of such advances and conveyed their apprehension through the popular literature of the time. The pivotal novel Tess of the D’Urbervilles by Thomas Hardy explores the impact that industrialists with access to technology had on the pastoral countryside and lower classes. Conan Doyle expands on this message in his novel The Hound of the Baskervilles, by examining how the well-educated elite began using science to their advantage, threatening nature in the process. While each novel warns against abusing available technologies, the authors differ in how they believe nature will eventually respond and have incited a debate that has lasted well into the 21st century.
Both Tess of the D’Urbervilles and The Hound of the Baskervilles take a critical approach to humanity’s use of modern technology in manners that impose on or damage the natural world. The theme is explored in several instances in Tess of the D’Urbervilles, with the first clear example being a modernized mail-cart killing the Durbyville horse, Prince. The new form of transportation sped along the road “like an arrow” and drove into the Durbeyville’s “slow and unlighted equipage. The pointed shaft of the cart had entered the breast of the unhappy Prince like a sword, and from the wound his life's blood was spouting in a stream. [...] Tess became splashed from face to skirt with the crimson...
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... using it against the lower classes and the natural world. Both Tess of the D’Urbervilles and The Hound of the Baskervilles explore this idea and take a critical approach to humanity’s use of technology in ill-intended manners. While Hardy describes nature as a passive entity that can be permanently damaged, Doyle portrays it as a primitive force capable of retaliation. This dialogue continues into the 21st century as scientific discovery has only accelerated, putting even greater strain on the environment and the people who inhabit it.
Works Cited
Doyle, Sir Arthur Conan. Sherlock Holmes: The Hound of the Baskervilles. New York: Penguin Books Ltd., 2001. Print.
Gatiss, Mark, Steven Moffat and Paul McGuigan. "Sherlock." The Hounds of Baskerville. 13 May 2012. Television.
Hardy, Thomas. Tess of D'Urbervilles: A Pure Woman. London: MacMillan & Co. Ltd., 1953. Print.
In the novel, My Antonia, by Willa Cather, society seems to govern the lives of many people. But for the others, who see past society's stereotypical values, had enough strength to overcome this and allowed them to achieve their dreams. Throughout the book, everyone seems to be trying to pursue the American Dream. While they all have different ideas of just exactly what the American Dream is, they all know precisely what they want. For some, the American Dream sounds so enticing that they have traveled across the world to achieve their goal.
Doyle, Sir Arthur Conan. The Hound of the Baskervilles. Great Britain, Penguin Groups, 2004. New York, Berkley Publishing Group,1993.
to keep her out of the house” (138). The sexist and racist attitudes of that era, in addition to the idolized Kurtz’s savage behaviour towards the Africans, amplify the anomaly of an African woman instilling fear into colonial white men. Conrad establishes the influence that women can have, as it clearly contrasts Hardy’s insinuation of the powerless nature of females when compared to men. While both novels show women embodying traditional male roles and characteristics, the chivalric trait of honour in a woman is most prominent in Tess of the D’Urbervilles.
The injustice within Tess of the D’Urbervilles (1881) and Robert Frost’s poetry is unjustified and causes major suffering to those illustrated in both the novel and the poetry. Numerous variations of injustice are portrayed within these works such as; social injustice, religious injustice and moral injustice. These injustices often combine together to form an upsurge of ill-treatment within the characters’ lives. Furthermore, Frost’s poems often address heavy topic matters such as suicide, child morality and human morality. Harriet Monroe supports this argument by stating ‘Such art passes local boundaries as lightly as an aeroplane and swings out into wider circles of space and time.’(Monroe: 1924:149). Hardy’s ‘Tess’ addresses problems such as the unjust treatment of women in society by their own peers, which leads to the eventual downfall of Tess in a tragic tale of cruelty and its consequences. Moreover, Wuthering Heights (1847) displays a tragic, injustice and complex world for those who suffer the infortunes of being born into this isolated microcosm.
Normally when most people think of vampires, they envision a deathly, pale creature with fangs. But Thomas Foster seems to think differently, who argues that it is not necessary for a vampire to embody a stereotypical vampire. Surprisingly enough, even humans can be these types of monsters. From Foster 's perspective, being a vampire not only includes an individual 's aesthetics, but also their actions, personality, intent, and overall representation of personal identity. The classic novel, The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, presents an excellent example of this occurrence, where the character Roger Chillingworth meets the criteria of a vampiric figure, based on Thomas Foster 's ideas of vampirism, found in his book How to Read Literature Like a Professor.
Just as Georgiana died when the hand that nature gave her was severed from her being, so too will we suffer if we sever ourselves too far from nature. At this moment in history, with climate change, pollution and population on an exponential rise, Hawthorne’s story is as relevant as ever. It reminds us that while science can serve us as a tool, it can neither bring us perfection nor sever us from the nature to which we belong and of which we are a part.
Ever since the earliest scientists, including the likes of Aristotle and Plato, the question of the morality of man's meddling in nature has been a prevalent issue. While science can provide boundless amounts of invaluable contributions to mankind, ultimately some scientific endeavors should never have been pursued. In Frankenstein, Mary Shelly explores the ethics involved in this query through the creation of a wonder of science, and its inevitable consequences.
Since the scientific revolution it has become easier and easier for us to use mathematics and science to decode the environment around us, which to some means a mastery of that environment. In his Discourse on Method, Rene Descartes even refers to us as the “masters and possessors of nature” as we can understand and control many aspects of it (Descartes, 41). Andy Goldsworthy comments on this through his use of nature in the creation of the piece. Although it shows how easily humans can manipulate nature, even something as small as leaves, to create what they want, the effect is temporary. Being that the piece is temporary… doomed to be dismantled by the very nature it is made from, the idea of nature’s supremacy is still preserved. Nature will always return to its own course and eventually no remanence of human intervention will remain. Thus while humans do have this power to manipulate and work with nature, it still remains its own master. This exemplifies a relationship between humans and nature where Goldsworthy recognizes the power of humans as well as the power of nature working simultaneously. Furthermore, Sycamore Leaves also comments on important aspects of nature
The 19th century was a time of massive change socially, politically and scientifically. This time saw the rise of Imperialism and of the Industrial Revolution in Britain, seeing massive changes in the way industry was run. Also during this time the literary movements of Romanticism and Victorianism emerged. Romanticism dealt with the issues of reality versus illusion, childhood and man versus nature. The first book I will examine in this essay, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, comes from this literary period and focuses on the man versus nature theme, namely the theme of scientific development and it’s contrast to nature. The second book I will look at in this essay comes from the Victorian period of the 19th century. This period saw the rise of the Industrial Revolution and of huge social and political change. Hard Times by Charles Dickens deals with these issues very closely, focussing mainly on the rise of industry in Britain and its effects on the people of Britain. Both of these novels challenge the social, political and scientific developments of the 19th century, namely the advent of science and technology.
Tess of the d'Urbervilles Through life people may fault, or get on the wrong side of the tracks. Yet hopefully they keep faith and then willingly they may recoup and redeem themselves by recovering. Many believe that, Tess in, Tess of the d'Urbervilles was a great example of this. In Hardy's Victorian age novel, Tess of the d'Urbervilles, he illustrates casual wrong, the will to recover, the growth of love, and death. Almost everybody has done something casually wrong and not think much of it, many call this indifferent nature.
Analyse the use of Dr Watson as the narrator of The Hound of the Baskervilles
The novel Tess of the D’Urbervilles written by Thomas Hardy was an interesting novel with lots of suspense. The main protagonist is Tess D’Urbervilles, a young, attractive, intelligent, and sensitive girl. In the first chapter, Tess’s father finds out he’s the last descent of one of the oldest families in England, the D’Urbervilles. Tess’s family lives in poverty and faces difficult to get through life. In the process of all this happening Tess experiences many bad things. The book introduces many symbols; one of the many was Red and White. These colors foreshadow future events in the novel such as pureness, beauty, carelessness, innocence, sin, evil and more.
Hardy’s novels are ultimately permeated upon his own examination of the contemporary world surrounding him, Tess’s life battles are ultimately foreshadowed by the condemnation of her working class background, which is uniquely explored throughout the text. The class struggles of her time are explored throughout her life in Marlott and the preconception of middle class ideals are challenged throughout Hardy’s exploration of the rural class. Tess of the D’Urbervilles revolves around Hardy’s views of Victorian social taboos and continues to be a greatly influential piece from a novelist who did not conform to the Victorian bourgeois standards of literature.
The Scarlet Letter is a blend of realism, symbolism, and allegory. Nathaniel Hawthorne uses historical settings for this fictional novel and even gives historical background information for the inspiration of the story of Hester Prynne in the introduction of The Scarlet Letter, ‘The Custom-House’. The psychological exploration of the characters and the author’s use of realistic dialogue only add to the realism of the novel. The most obvious symbol of the novel is the actual scarlet letter ‘A’ that Hester wears on her chest every day, but Hawthorne also uses Hester’s daughter Pearl and their surroundings as symbols as well. Allegory is present as well in The Scarlet Letter and is created through the character types of several characters in the novel.
The Scientific Revolution, perhaps one of the most significant examples of human beingsí relationship with the natural world, changed the way seventeenth and eighteenth century society operated. The power of human knowledge has enabled intellectual, economical, and social advances seen in the modern world. The Scientific Revolution which included the development of scientific attitudes and skepticism of old views on nature and humanity was a slow process that spanned over a two century period. During the Scientific Revolution, scientific knowledge enabled humans to control nature in order to improve society. With leaders such as Nicolaus Copernicus, Galileo Galilei, Francis Bacon, Isaac Newton, and Rene Descartes, the Scientific Revolution proves to be a crucial piece to the puzzle of understanding the effects of humansí interactions with the natural world.