W.H. Auden’s “The Unknown Citizen” is an epitaph on a statue of a man who was simply ordinary and is celebrated for just that. The speaker, presumably some government worker who researched Unknown Citizen JS/07/M/378, romanticizes this man’s unremarkable life but still maintains a tone similar to that of an official, unemotional report. The Unknown Citizen is memorialized as a model for all other citizens in this “fictional” society because of his lack of individuality or uniqueness. He is the government’s idea of a perfect man—one who doesn’t stand out, break the rules, or think for himself.
The poem gives us certain details of the citizen’s life, but Auden purposely omits any details that would make the unknown citizen seem to be irregular. Auden’s goal in doing so was to emphasize the fact that this man is celebrated because he fits the norm—not because he stands out as an individual or as one who has done anything remarkable with his life. This fictional government prefers this mindless conformity because it allows it to better keep track of and control its citizens.
The poem itself was written in 1940 and technically doesn’t reference any specific or real events, industries, or organizations. However, Auden uses this fictional society in which the government keeps very close track of its citizens to satirize America—the country where Auden himself had just become a citizen. In fact, the poem seems to be a social commentary on America. Auden criticizes America for its celebration not of the individual but of the citizen who fits in and does not think for him- or herself.
Auden’s word choice is simple. Since this epitaph is supposedly inscribed on a monument to this ideal unknown citizen, the speaker of the poem purposely made the inscription easy to understand so that all citizens could know exactly what their government views as ideal.
The rhyme scheme of “The Unknown Citizen” is irregular; however, it definitely contains rhyme and each idea in the poem is contained by its own unique rhyme scheme. For example, the pattern of the first five lines is ABABA, and the first five lines are a general introduction about the unknown citizen and what a “great” person he was. The pattern of the next eight lines of the poem is CCDEEFFD. Although this is not a normal rhyme scheme, each line rhymes with one other line. This section of the poem is concerned with the citizen’s work life and friends from work. The next two lines, a rhymed couplet, are concerned with the world around the unknown citizen and his reactions to it. The next two are another rhymed couplet and are about his health and insurance. The pattern of the next eight lines is IJJIKLK. These lines discuss the extent to which the citizen was an ideal consumer and patriot. The next three lines all rhyme with each other and depict the citizen’s family life. The last rhymed couplet seems to be Auden’s own voice letting us know that the whole thing was one big satire—surely an individual’s happiness cannot be measured by government standards and statistics.
The second to last line of the poem uses two rhetorical questions to clue us in to Auden’s clear satire. It makes us aware of the fact that the poem never addresses the citizen’s happiness or fun aspects of his life. This man seems to be living the American dream: he has a steady job, a family, a few friends, and some modern conveniences. However, we know nothing about his happiness or his ability—or lack thereof—to express himself as an individual. But as Auden points out, the unknown citizen’s life is measured not by how he developed himself as a human being, but by how he contributes to the society in which he lived.
(WC 638)
Do you think this poem is satirical? Why? How can you tell?
In my paper, I assume that the speaker is a government worker. What other assumptions could you make about the speaker?
What facts do you think were left out about this citizen? What traits could he have had that would make him less of a model?
Are any of the things that he is revered for potentially negative? (i.e. staying out of his children’s education, materialism)
Do you think this “unknown citizen” is a real person or did this fictional government just invent him as a model?
Monday, April 21, 2008
Sunday, April 20, 2008
1984 freaks me out a little bit.
So this is blog 1 of 3 for my novel. I'm sorry I didn't do them on time. Life has been many kinds of chaotic lately and I apologize. I hope to finish the book and complete the other two blogs by the end of the weekend. Sorry again for my lateness.
-Ally
My initial reaction to 1984 could probably be summed up as "I'm so glad I don't live in this world and what is wrong with these people?" I think I would submit to being "vaporized," as they call it, rather than live in this world where there is no freedom to think except to agree with the government.
The first of many things that I found disturbing about this society, Oceania, was the telescreens that exist in virtually every building. The idea that someone, somewhere could be watching your every move and listening to your every conversation is terrifying—particularly because it is this totalitarian government’s workers on the other side of the screen. Orwell gives us a very specific description of the pains to which Winston goes to be able to hide from the telescreen long enough to write in his diary—one of many offenses that could potentially get him killed.
Only a few pages into the novel, I could tell that Winston was different from the other people in Oceania. He was not as easily duped as the rest of them. When Winston started writing in his diary, however, I began to doubt his sanity as well. The nonchallant language he uses to describe a popular movie in which "a ship full of refugees [is] being bombed somewhere in the Mediteranean" (8) and all kinds of other horrible things happen is truly scary. He, like much of the audience at that film, does not seem to appreciate or understand the horror of the situation. These poor people have no concept of compassion or sympathy because their government has forced those instincts out of them.
I began to warm up to Winston as we learned more about him through his journaling and through his inner monologue that we get to read along with. We witness his inner struggle to remember things, to remember the truth as it really is and not as the government wants everyone to remember it.
Winston is able to recognize that something is wrong with the world he lives in due to the fact that he works in Minitrue, the Ministry of Truth. However very little of the work he does at Minitrue involves truth itself. Winston's, and many of his coworkers', job is to take what has really happened and reshape it into a lie that suits the government and then becomes accepted as truth. This fabrication process is appalling. It is no wonder that the citizens of Oceania are so brainwashed--they couldn't escape it if they tried.
Another disturbing aspect of this society is their invented language, Newspeak. As I understand it, at this point in the novel, Newspeak is not spoken by most of the population except potentially as a second language. We learn more about Newspeak from Winston's friend Syme, who works on compiling the Newspeak dictionary. Syme tells us that Newspeak is supposed to allow people to narrow their minds and thoughts by eliminating words that are "unnecessary" and therefore making true self-expression more difficult. Of course this totalitarian government doesn't want its citizens to be able to think for themselves. If they could think for themselves, they might rebel or otherwise cause problems.
The only free-thinking people in society it seems, are the proles--the lower class who are allowed to think for themselves because they make up the proletariat and don't seem to matter as much as other citizens. The government somehow just allows them more freedom; however, I think eventually they will revolt.
I'm really enjoying the novel so far. It's sort of terrifying at some points but I still like reading it and find it interesting.
WC 612
-Ally
My initial reaction to 1984 could probably be summed up as "I'm so glad I don't live in this world and what is wrong with these people?" I think I would submit to being "vaporized," as they call it, rather than live in this world where there is no freedom to think except to agree with the government.
The first of many things that I found disturbing about this society, Oceania, was the telescreens that exist in virtually every building. The idea that someone, somewhere could be watching your every move and listening to your every conversation is terrifying—particularly because it is this totalitarian government’s workers on the other side of the screen. Orwell gives us a very specific description of the pains to which Winston goes to be able to hide from the telescreen long enough to write in his diary—one of many offenses that could potentially get him killed.
Only a few pages into the novel, I could tell that Winston was different from the other people in Oceania. He was not as easily duped as the rest of them. When Winston started writing in his diary, however, I began to doubt his sanity as well. The nonchallant language he uses to describe a popular movie in which "a ship full of refugees [is] being bombed somewhere in the Mediteranean" (8) and all kinds of other horrible things happen is truly scary. He, like much of the audience at that film, does not seem to appreciate or understand the horror of the situation. These poor people have no concept of compassion or sympathy because their government has forced those instincts out of them.
I began to warm up to Winston as we learned more about him through his journaling and through his inner monologue that we get to read along with. We witness his inner struggle to remember things, to remember the truth as it really is and not as the government wants everyone to remember it.
Winston is able to recognize that something is wrong with the world he lives in due to the fact that he works in Minitrue, the Ministry of Truth. However very little of the work he does at Minitrue involves truth itself. Winston's, and many of his coworkers', job is to take what has really happened and reshape it into a lie that suits the government and then becomes accepted as truth. This fabrication process is appalling. It is no wonder that the citizens of Oceania are so brainwashed--they couldn't escape it if they tried.
Another disturbing aspect of this society is their invented language, Newspeak. As I understand it, at this point in the novel, Newspeak is not spoken by most of the population except potentially as a second language. We learn more about Newspeak from Winston's friend Syme, who works on compiling the Newspeak dictionary. Syme tells us that Newspeak is supposed to allow people to narrow their minds and thoughts by eliminating words that are "unnecessary" and therefore making true self-expression more difficult. Of course this totalitarian government doesn't want its citizens to be able to think for themselves. If they could think for themselves, they might rebel or otherwise cause problems.
The only free-thinking people in society it seems, are the proles--the lower class who are allowed to think for themselves because they make up the proletariat and don't seem to matter as much as other citizens. The government somehow just allows them more freedom; however, I think eventually they will revolt.
I'm really enjoying the novel so far. It's sort of terrifying at some points but I still like reading it and find it interesting.
WC 612
Sunday, March 9, 2008
Villanelle for Gabriel
I was thinking about the two villanelles that we have read during Bullwinkle's corner and decided to write a villanelle about Gabriel from Fences.
My favorite character from Fences is Gabriel,
Although he is a grown man,
He acts like a child and thinks he is the Archangel.
Some of the characters in Fences who we get to know well,
Are likable enough for some short timespan,
But my favorite character from Fences is Gabriel,
We learn that his brain doesn't work so well,
Because he fought in WWII and was injured in Japan,
He acts like a child and thinks he is the Archangel.
He leaves Troy's house and goes to live with Miss Pearl,
Who probably treats him far better than Troy--that despicable man,
My favorite character from Fences is Gabriel.
He is the only character--as far as I can tell,
Who is truly free of life's real demands.
He simply acts like a child and thinks he is the Archangel.
We grow to love crazy Gabriel,
And laugh at his quirky plans,
My favorite character from Fences is Gabriel,
Who acts like a child and thinks he is the Archangel.
My favorite character from Fences is Gabriel,
Although he is a grown man,
He acts like a child and thinks he is the Archangel.
Some of the characters in Fences who we get to know well,
Are likable enough for some short timespan,
But my favorite character from Fences is Gabriel,
We learn that his brain doesn't work so well,
Because he fought in WWII and was injured in Japan,
He acts like a child and thinks he is the Archangel.
He leaves Troy's house and goes to live with Miss Pearl,
Who probably treats him far better than Troy--that despicable man,
My favorite character from Fences is Gabriel.
He is the only character--as far as I can tell,
Who is truly free of life's real demands.
He simply acts like a child and thinks he is the Archangel.
We grow to love crazy Gabriel,
And laugh at his quirky plans,
My favorite character from Fences is Gabriel,
Who acts like a child and thinks he is the Archangel.
Friday, February 22, 2008
Subtext
SCENE IV. The Queen's closet.
Enter QUEEN MARGARET and POLONIUS (always scheming)LORD POLONIUS
He will come straight. Look you lay home to him:HAMLET
Tell him his pranks have been too broad to bear with,
And that your grace hath screen'd and stood between
Much heat and him. I'll sconce me even here.
Pray you, be round with him.
(Spoken vehemently...Polonius really wants to see Hamlet get it)
[Within] Mother, mother, mother!QUEEN GERTRUDE
(Mockingly, as if he's acting much younger than he is)
I'll warrant you,HAMLET
Fear me not: withdraw, I hear him coming.POLONIUS hides behind the arras but not well enough....
Enter HAMLET
Now, mother, what's the matter?QUEEN GERTRUDE
(Still with some condescension. He clearly knows what is the matter)
Hamlet, thou hast thy father much offended.HAMLET
Mother, you have my father much offended.QUEEN GERTRUDE
(to use a more modern phrase...OH SNAP)
Come, come, you answer with an idle tongue.HAMLET
(She is still patient with him at this point. Perhaps as if she is reprimanding a young boy)
Go, go, you question with a wicked tongue.QUEEN GERTRUDE
(Ouch.)
Why, how now, Hamlet!HAMLET
(She begins to lose her temper)
What's the matter now?QUEEN GERTRUDE
Have you forgot me?HAMLET
(Since she still babies Hamlet to an extent, she seems to think that he should still show her the same affection that a young boy would show his mother even though that is not the appropriate way to treat Hamlet.)
No, by the rood, not so:QUEEN GERTRUDE
You are the queen, your husband's brother's wife;
And--would it were not so!--you are my mother.
Nay, then, I'll set those to you that can speak.HAMLET
(Slightly taken aback)
Come, come, and sit you down; you shall not budge;QUEEN GERTRUDE
You go not till I set you up a glass
Where you may see the inmost part of you.
(Now Hamlet gains "control" of the scene. He is the one driving all the action)
What wilt thou do? thou wilt not murder me?LORD POLONIUS
Help, help, ho!
(She realizes she's lost control and is scared)
[Behind] What, ho! help, help, help!HAMLET
(He unnecessarily panics and reveals himself)
[Drawing] How now! a rat? Dead, for a ducat, dead!LORD POLONIUS(He knows what is really behind the curtain and believes that whoever it is deserves to die for being a co-conspirator in this scene and perhaps even Hamlet's father's death) Makes a pass through the arras
[Behind] O, I am slain!QUEEN GERTRUDE(Crooooak) Falls and dies
O me, what hast thou done?HAMLET
(Shocked by what just happened, she begins to feel faint and cannot seem to hold her ground)
Nay, I know not:QUEEN GERTRUDE
Is it the king?
(He wishes. He speaks very calmly for someone who has just committed murder)
O, what a rash and bloody deed is this!HAMLET
A bloody deed! almost as bad, good mother,QUEEN GERTRUDE
As kill a king, and marry with his brother.
(Almost as bad...but not quite. He places himself out of the same league as Claudius)
As kill a king!HAMLET
Ay, lady, 'twas my word.QUEEN GERTRUDELifts up the array and discovers POLONIUS
Thou wretched, rash, intruding fool, farewell!
I took thee for thy better: take thy fortune;
Thou find'st to be too busy is some danger.
Leave wringing of your hands: peace! sit you down,
And let me wring your heart; for so I shall,
If it be made of penetrable stuff,
If damned custom have not brass'd it so
That it is proof and bulwark against sense.
(His anger is apparent)
What have I done, that thou darest wag thy tongueHAMLET
In noise so rude against me?
(She seems to have missed the bigger picture)
Such an actQUEEN GERTRUDE
That blurs the grace and blush of modesty,
Calls virtue hypocrite, takes off the rose
From the fair forehead of an innocent love
And sets a blister there, makes marriage-vows
As false as dicers' oaths: O, such a deed
As from the body of contraction plucks
The very soul, and sweet religion makes
A rhapsody of words: heaven's face doth glow:
Yea, this solidity and compound mass,
With tristful visage, as against the doom,
Is thought-sick at the act.
(He continues to reprimand his mother for what she has done, reminding her of the extent to which he holds her in contempt)
Ay me, what act,HAMLET
That roars so loud, and thunders in the index?
(She still doesn't get it)
Look here, upon this picture, and on this,QUEEN GERTRUDE
The counterfeit presentment of two brothers. (He points to a portrait on the wall of Hamlet Sr. and Claudius)
See, what a grace was seated on this brow;
Hyperion's curls; the front of Jove himself;
An eye like Mars, to threaten and command;
A station like the herald Mercury
New-lighted on a heaven-kissing hill;
A combination and a form indeed,
Where every god did seem to set his seal,
To give the world assurance of a man:
This was your husband. (Hamlet Sr.=a god) Look you now, what follows:
Here is your husband; like a mildew'd ear,
Blasting his wholesome brother. (gross) Have you eyes?
Could you on this fair mountain leave to feed,
And batten on this moor? Ha! have you eyes?
You cannot call it love; for at your age
The hey-day in the blood is tame, it's humble,
And waits upon the judgment: and what judgment
Would step from this to this? Sense, sure, you have,
Else could you not have motion; but sure, that sense
Is apoplex'd; for madness would not err,
Nor sense to ecstasy was ne'er so thrall'd
But it reserved some quantity of choice,
To serve in such a difference. What devil was't
That thus hath cozen'd you at hoodman-blind?
Eyes without feeling, feeling without sight,
Ears without hands or eyes, smelling sans all,
Or but a sickly part of one true sense
Could not so mope.
O shame! where is thy blush? Rebellious hell,
If thou canst mutine in a matron's bones,
To flaming youth let virtue be as wax,
And melt in her own fire: proclaim no shame
When the compulsive ardour gives the charge,
Since frost itself as actively doth burn
And reason panders will.
(With each line, his anger mounts and he moves closer to his mother. As he speaks, Gertrude becomes more and more upset by Hamlet's harsh words.)
O Hamlet, speak no more:HAMLET
Thou turn'st mine eyes into my very soul;
And there I see such black and grained spots
As will not leave their tinct.
(She wipes tears from her eyes)
Nay, but to liveQUEEN GERTRUDE
In the rank sweat of an enseamed bed,
Stew'd in corruption, honeying and making love
Over the nasty sty,--
O, speak to me no more;HAMLET
These words, like daggers, enter in mine ears;
No more, sweet Hamlet!
(She cuts him off, appalled)
A murderer and a villain;QUEEN GERTRUDE
A slave that is not twentieth part the tithe
Of your precedent lord; a vice of kings;
A cutpurse of the empire and the rule,
That from a shelf the precious diadem stole,
And put it in his pocket!
No more!HAMLET
(She begins to sob)
A king of shreds and patches,--QUEEN GERTRUDEEnter Ghost
Save me, and hover o'er me with your wings,
You heavenly guards! What would your gracious figure?
(He looks up and in the opposite direction of Gertrude to where the ghost is)
Alas, he's mad!HAMLET
Do you not come your tardy son to chide,Ghost
That, lapsed in time and passion, lets go by
The important acting of your dread command? O, say!
Do not forget: this visitationHAMLET
Is but to whet thy almost blunted purpose.
But, look, amazement on thy mother sits:
O, step between her and her fighting soul:
Conceit in weakest bodies strongest works:
Speak to her, Hamlet.
(He rebukes Hamlet for upsetting his mother so. After all, the ghost still loves her)
How is it with you, lady?QUEEN GERTRUDE
Alas, how is't with you,HAMLET
That you do bend your eye on vacancy
And with the incorporal air do hold discourse?
Forth at your eyes your spirits wildly peep;
And, as the sleeping soldiers in the alarm,
Your bedded hair, like life in excrements,
Starts up, and stands on end. O gentle son,
Upon the heat and flame of thy distemper
Sprinkle cool patience. Whereon do you look?
(She is slightly more collected but still thinks Hamlet is bonkers)
On him, on him! Look you, how pale he glares!QUEEN GERTRUDE
His form and cause conjoin'd, preaching to stones,
Would make them capable. Do not look upon me;
Lest with this piteous action you convert
My stern effects: then what I have to do
Will want true colour; tears perchance for blood.
(He doesn't understand that she cannot see the ghost)
(They speak quickly) To whom do you speak this?HAMLET
Do you see nothing there?QUEEN GERTRUDE
Nothing at all; yet all that is I see.HAMLET
Nor did you nothing hear?QUEEN GERTRUDE
No, nothing but ourselves.HAMLET
Why, look you there! look, how it steals away!QUEEN GERTRUDE
My father, in his habit as he lived!
Look, where he goes, even now, out at the portal!Exit Ghost
This the very coinage of your brain:HAMLET
This bodiless creation ecstasy
Is very cunning in.
Ecstasy!QUEEN GERTRUDE
My pulse, as yours, doth temperately keep time,
And makes as healthful music: it is not madness
That I have utter'd: bring me to the test,
And I the matter will re-word; which madness
Would gambol from. Mother, for love of grace,
Lay not that mattering unction to your soul,
That not your trespass, but my madness speaks: (I'm crazy but I know what I'm talking about)
It will but skin and film the ulcerous place,
Whilst rank corruption, mining all within,
Infects unseen. Confess yourself to heaven;
Repent what's past; avoid what is to come;
And do not spread the compost on the weeds,
To make them ranker. Forgive me this my virtue;
For in the fatness of these pursy times
Virtue itself of vice must pardon beg,
Yea, curb and woo for leave to do him good.
(He still has some love for his mother. He wants her to reform her ways. He has not yet completely given up on her soul. He still holds her in higher regard that he holds the others)
O Hamlet, thou hast cleft my heart in twain.HAMLET
(You broke my heart)
O, throw away the worser part of it,QUEEN GERTRUDE
And live the purer with the other half.
Good night: but go not to mine uncle's bed;
Assume a virtue, if you have it not. (He is clearly begging her to listen to him)
That monster, custom, who all sense doth eat,
Of habits devil, is angel yet in this,
That to the use of actions fair and good
He likewise gives a frock or livery,
That aptly is put on. Refrain to-night,
And that shall lend a kind of easiness
To the next abstinence: the next more easy;
For use almost can change the stamp of nature,
And either [ ] the devil, or throw him out
With wondrous potency. Once more, good night:
And when you are desirous to be bless'd,
I'll blessing beg of you. For this same lord,Pointing to POLONIUS (and effecting a more scornful tone of voice)
I do repent: but heaven hath pleased it so, (looks up)
To punish me with this and this with me,
That I must be their scourge and minister.
I will bestow him, and will answer well
The death I gave him. So, again, good night.
I must be cruel, only to be kind:
Thus bad begins and worse remains behind.
One word more, good lady.
What shall I do? (She is exasperated by everything that has just taken place)HAMLET
Not this, by no means, that I bid you do:QUEEN GERTRUDE
Let the bloat king tempt you again to bed;
Pinch wanton on your cheek; call you his mouse;
And let him, for a pair of reechy kisses,
Or paddling in your neck with his damn'd fingers,
Make you to ravel all this matter out,
That I essentially am not in madness,
But mad in craft. 'Twere good you let him know;
For who, that's but a queen, fair, sober, wise,
Would from a paddock, from a bat, a gib,
Such dear concernings hide? who would do so?
No, in despite of sense and secrecy,
Unpeg the basket on the house's top.
Let the birds fly, and, like the famous ape,
To try conclusions, in the basket creep,
And break your own neck down.
(He wants her to reveal the truth about Claudius because her word is more reputable than Hamlet's. He begs her to condemn Claudius even at her own expense)
Be thou assured, if words be made of breath,
And breath of life, I have no life to breathe
What thou hast said to me.
(I can't do it.)
Friday, February 8, 2008
Lonely Hearts
Lonely Hearts
by Wendy Cope
by Wendy Cope
Can someone make my simple wish come true?
Male biker seeks female for touring fun.
Do you live in North London? Is it you?
Gay vegetarian whose friends are few,
I'm into music, Shakespeare and the sun.
Can someone make my simple wish come true?
Executive in search of something new—
Perhaps bisexual woman, arty, young.
Do you live in North London? Is it you?
Successful, straight and solvent? I am too—
Attractive Jewish lady with a son.
Can someone make my simple wish come true?
I'm Libran, inexperienced and blue—
Need slim, non-smoker, under twenty-one.
Do you live in North London? Is it you?
Please write (with photo) to Box 152.
Who knows where it may lead once we've begun?
Can someone make my simple wish come true?
Do you live in North London? Is it you?
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Do you really want to know?
In Sophocles's play, Oedipus the King, a terrible fate befalls King Oedipus--he kills his father and marries his mother. However, he commits each of these crimes without truly knowing what he is doing. When he kills his father, Oedipus thinks he has merely killed a few random travelers, and when he marries Jocasta, Oedipus has no idea that she is his mother. Over the course of the play, Oedipus discovers these horrors and is mortified. Several characters in the play contribute information that allows Oedipus to piece together the puzzle that is his misfortune, but many of them attempt to shield Oedipus from the terrible truth. Oedipus still begs them to reveal their secrets because he is determined to solve the mystery which has brought a plague upon his people. Although Oedipus may appear to be a proud and selfish character, as the play progresses, we see that he comes to terms with his terrible fate in order to redeem the people of Thebes so that they no longer share in his suffering.
When Creon first tells Oedipus that the man who killed Laos must be exiled in order for the people of Thebes to be saved, Oedipus calls on the seer Tiresias to reveal the true threat to the kingdom. Although Tiresias refuses several times to tell Oedipus the truth, he ultimately points to Oedipus as the ruin of Thebes. Oedipus is shocked and denounces Tiresias as a fool but then spends the rest of the play trying to determine what, if any, truth there is to Tiresias's claims.
At first, Oedipus's motive is merely to prove Tiresias wrong; however, once he speaks to Jocasta and learns more about Laos's death, he begins to entertain the unpleasant idea that Tiresias might be correct. He sends for the only man who survived the journey on which Laos met his death--a shepherd who no longer lives in Thebes. Before the shepherd arrives, a messenger brings word to Oedipus of his "father's" death. However the messenger also informs Oedipus that the King of Corinth, whom Oedipus believes to be his father, is in fact not related to Oedipus at all. Once the shepherd arrives, he begs that Oedipus not ask the truth of him, but Oedipus is so set on solving this mystery, even though it will certainly only lead to his own doom, that he demands the truth. The shepherd confirms that Oedipus is indeed the son of Laos and has married his mother and killed his own father.
In a fit of rage at his own misfortune and at Jocasta’s suicide, Oedipus gouges out his own eyes and succumbs to his miserable fate. It is then that he commits his most selfless act: he chooses to go into exile himself so that the people of Thebes will no longer suffer from the plague. Although Oedipus is introduced to us as a haughty, proud ruler who thinks he can defy fate and the gods, by the end of the play, he is reduced to a humble, unhappy man who leaves the life and people who once but no longer revere him so that they may lead a better life. (WC 530)
When Creon first tells Oedipus that the man who killed Laos must be exiled in order for the people of Thebes to be saved, Oedipus calls on the seer Tiresias to reveal the true threat to the kingdom. Although Tiresias refuses several times to tell Oedipus the truth, he ultimately points to Oedipus as the ruin of Thebes. Oedipus is shocked and denounces Tiresias as a fool but then spends the rest of the play trying to determine what, if any, truth there is to Tiresias's claims.
At first, Oedipus's motive is merely to prove Tiresias wrong; however, once he speaks to Jocasta and learns more about Laos's death, he begins to entertain the unpleasant idea that Tiresias might be correct. He sends for the only man who survived the journey on which Laos met his death--a shepherd who no longer lives in Thebes. Before the shepherd arrives, a messenger brings word to Oedipus of his "father's" death. However the messenger also informs Oedipus that the King of Corinth, whom Oedipus believes to be his father, is in fact not related to Oedipus at all. Once the shepherd arrives, he begs that Oedipus not ask the truth of him, but Oedipus is so set on solving this mystery, even though it will certainly only lead to his own doom, that he demands the truth. The shepherd confirms that Oedipus is indeed the son of Laos and has married his mother and killed his own father.
In a fit of rage at his own misfortune and at Jocasta’s suicide, Oedipus gouges out his own eyes and succumbs to his miserable fate. It is then that he commits his most selfless act: he chooses to go into exile himself so that the people of Thebes will no longer suffer from the plague. Although Oedipus is introduced to us as a haughty, proud ruler who thinks he can defy fate and the gods, by the end of the play, he is reduced to a humble, unhappy man who leaves the life and people who once but no longer revere him so that they may lead a better life. (WC 530)
Monday, January 14, 2008
Gerasim
In Tolstoy’s novella “The Death of Ivan Illych,” the only person with the ability to comfort Illych and to help him forget his terrible, painful suffering is his servant Gerasim. Anyone else who is even remotely acquainted with Illych seems to only irritate him further or offer him no real comfort at all. One day, in the third month of Illych’s illness, when Gerasim enters Illych’s room to attend to him, Illych asks him to please raise his legs because it makes his pain easier to bear. Gerasim does so and Illych discovers that he feels immensely better while Gerasim holds his legs up, and worse once Gerasim sets them down. Although it seems as if it is the position of Illych’s legs that affects his level of pain or comfort, I believe that it is actually the presence or absence of Gerasim’s companionship that affects Illych’s well being.
While Illych has Gerasim hold his legs up, he also asks Gerasim to sit with him for a while and talk to him. Illych grows to rather like Gerasim, and though “health, strength, and vitality in other people were offensive to him…Gerasim’s strength and vitality did not mortify but soothed him (paragraph 216).” Gerasim almost becomes Illych’s role model. Although Illych knows that he will never again be young and healthy like Gerasim, simply being around him allows him to remember the only somewhat happy period of his life—his youth. Maybe if Illych could have learned from Gerasim and adopted some of his good nature, he would have recovered from his illness, or at least lived his last few days in peace.
What bothers Illych most about his condition is the fact that others around him constantly deceive him in relation to it. They either feign sympathy for him, make excuses not to see him, or deny that he is dying when he knows he really is. Gerasim is the one exception to this norm as he does not lie to Illych, and truly does pity him. This small dose of actual concern that Gerasim begrudges Illych does more good for him and gives him more comfort than any dose of medicine that he takes. He even begins to look to Gerasim as a friend, not a friend like the phonies he used to play bridge with, but an actual, honest companion.
It is worth noting that Gerasim himself is a mere peasant, therefore not in the social class to which Illych worked so hard to ascend. Perhaps if Illych had merely allowed himself and his wife and his family to live out their days as happy peasants, and not always worked so hard to advance his position in life, he might have had a happier life. He might have found more companions in life who made him truly happy, or led a life that he could look back upon and remember fondly, rather than miserably. Unfortunately though, Illych passes away as an unhappy, lonely, middle-class man.
(WC 496)
While Illych has Gerasim hold his legs up, he also asks Gerasim to sit with him for a while and talk to him. Illych grows to rather like Gerasim, and though “health, strength, and vitality in other people were offensive to him…Gerasim’s strength and vitality did not mortify but soothed him (paragraph 216).” Gerasim almost becomes Illych’s role model. Although Illych knows that he will never again be young and healthy like Gerasim, simply being around him allows him to remember the only somewhat happy period of his life—his youth. Maybe if Illych could have learned from Gerasim and adopted some of his good nature, he would have recovered from his illness, or at least lived his last few days in peace.
What bothers Illych most about his condition is the fact that others around him constantly deceive him in relation to it. They either feign sympathy for him, make excuses not to see him, or deny that he is dying when he knows he really is. Gerasim is the one exception to this norm as he does not lie to Illych, and truly does pity him. This small dose of actual concern that Gerasim begrudges Illych does more good for him and gives him more comfort than any dose of medicine that he takes. He even begins to look to Gerasim as a friend, not a friend like the phonies he used to play bridge with, but an actual, honest companion.
It is worth noting that Gerasim himself is a mere peasant, therefore not in the social class to which Illych worked so hard to ascend. Perhaps if Illych had merely allowed himself and his wife and his family to live out their days as happy peasants, and not always worked so hard to advance his position in life, he might have had a happier life. He might have found more companions in life who made him truly happy, or led a life that he could look back upon and remember fondly, rather than miserably. Unfortunately though, Illych passes away as an unhappy, lonely, middle-class man.
(WC 496)
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