Analysis Of Synge's In The Shadow Of The Glen

Language is an integral part of every distinctive culture. It represents a way of life and a way of communication among those that share similar traditions, values, and heritage. The Irish people have consistently been faced with foreign cultures encroaching on their land and threatening not only their culture but also the Gaelic language itself. In Brian Friel’s Translations, the language barrier between the Irish and the English people is explored. The characters are faced with the difficult decision to either give in to the new, foreign language or remain true to the language of the land and resist these changes. Through his characterization of Sarah and Hugh, Friel depicts the feeling of powerlessness that occurs

Oscar Wilde wrote his plays against the backdrop of the Victorian English society. It therefore helps to discuss the salient aspects of the Victorian society. Victorian England is known for many paradoxes -- glaring contrasts between the rich and the poor, insistence on morality on the one hand and the practice of cynicism on the other, blooming creativity pitted against blatant constriction, imperial grandeur since Britain was then ruling almost one fifth of the total surface of the earth and domestic squalor since the majority of people did not have decent means of livelihood, and finally collectivity dictated by tradition opposed to the rapidly developing individualism. The class system denied the talented members of the lower classes access to social and economic advancement. The upper classes alone had the privilege of working in the government, the armed forces, and the church, while trade was monopolized by the rising middle class. The lower classes were obliged to work hard in the factories and farms and make do with very low wages. It often resulted in friction between the classes bordering on social strife although it never erupted in a revolution the way it did in France. The injustice of the English society encouraged novelists such as Oscar Wilde to describe in moving terms the many hardships suffered by the common people and the many failures and follies of English life.

Gwen Harwood to a large extend, takes marginalised groups such as women, and privileges their experiences by giving them a voice through poetry. Both ‘Suburban Sonnet’ and ‘Burning Sappho’ express the frustrations of women who feel tapped by motherhood and the expectation that they will conform to domestic roles. Harwood comments on the inability of women to pursue personal happiness as she shows that motherhood can be both rewarding and all consuming. Meaning is therefore drawn from each poem through Harwood's intricate use of stylistic features such as figurative language and imagery, shaping readers to understand that it is often those we love that cause the most intense feelings of resentment and internal frustration.

“Scarcely noticing, as yet, in what a curiously reserved and mechanical way Defarge spoke, Mr. Lorry put on his hat, and they went down into the court-yard” (chapter 3, page 264-265).

There are many factors that determine how people behave in their daily lives. We are run by a number of rules and regulations that influence the way we behave, talk and live. In Lord of the Flies, William Golding shows that without the influence of a civilized society and law and order, people’s characteristics can change drastically. Similarly in Macbeth, Shakespeare represents the loss of morality of a leader as his hunger for power clouds his judgement. Both pieces of literature present how both writers view the breakdown of morality through the breakdown of civil behaviour.

To compare and contrast the roles of Lady Macbeth in the play, giving close consideration to their relationship their husbands. In the play ‘Macbeth’ we notice that the roles of Lady Macbeth and Lady Macduff are very different. The contrast between these two ladies, is especially noted by each woman’s loyalties and manner of death. These two women, as similar as they were, also had dissimilarities that are far more striking.  Although Lady Macduff and Lady Macbeth each had the ability to influence their family, they used this influence in entirely different ways.

To convey the brutality and animosity of “The Troubles”, Seamus Heaney expressed his thought-provoking opinions in the form of poetry. His collection of poems called “North” specifically portray the violent and hatred of The Troubles during 1968 to 1998. The Troubles refer to the sectarian warfare and division between the United Kingdom and Ireland. During this time period, political infighting occurred and caused conflicts that eventually lead to a bloody and brutal war. The North collection utilises various historical context while also stylistically allude to the bygone era of the Vikings and the discovery of the bog bodies of the Northern Europe in order to emphasis the endless occurrence of brutality and violent events. Furthermore, the poems contain multiple stylistic devices that symbolically emphasize the natural aspects of life and death. Heaney symbolically expresses his thoughts and accepts the natural occurrence of mortality through certain poems such as “The Grauballe Man” and “Exposure”. All in all, the underlying purpose of Heaney’s poems is to portray his struggles to escape the ongoing brutality and violent in a society.

Shakespeare’s tragedy, Macbeth, focuses on the tumultuous events that surround a regicide. Despite being the shortest of Shakespeare’s plays, in his critical study of the play A. C. Bradley concludes that due to its vehement nature the audience is left with an impression “not of brevity but of speed” . The principal female character of Lady Macbeth is arguably one of his most contentious. Consumed with intense passion, ambition and greed she challenges the subservient role of the traditional Elizabethan woman. She has disturbed, horrified and intrigued both contemporary and modern audiences alike through her powerful diction. This study will focus on the way in which Shakespeare crafts his play and uses dramatic devices in his portrayal of Lady Macbeth in order to confront the gender stereotypes of the time, femininity and the natural order of society. During the early 17th century there was a substantial fear that if women were liberated from their domestic, maternal roles, the historically patriarchal society would unravel. With prevailing challenges of gender such as “When you durst do it, then you were a man” Shakespeare uses the character of Lady Macbeth to transgress the natural limits concomitant with her sex.

In this essay I will be comparing two female characters from different texts and different time periods. We will be looking in depth at Lady Macbeth from Shakespeare 's play 'Macbeth ', and Sheila from J.B. Priestley 's 'An Inspector Calls '. We will be looking at their roles in their respective plays, and how their characters develop over time.

“The Empty Space”, a book written by the director Peter Brook outlines his four theories of theatre each that evokes a different meaning, Deadly, Holy, Rough and Immediate. In his opinion, Deadly Theatre is the most common type of theatre, which fails to modernize, instruct or even entertain. This style concentrates on the act of imitation by mimicking successes from the past and relying on old schemes instead of exploring the deeper meaning from the text (Brook, Peter). However, Shylock, a character from the Merchant of Venice a play written by Shakespeare, has had various interpretations from actors through out time, causing tendentious reactions from its audience. This thought fueled my inquisitiveness to investigate the importance on how

Topic: What elements existed or were created within the Church to allow fathers to have power over the sisters in Doubt, a Parable? Discuss.

”The Open Boat” is the most frequently discussed work of American writer Stephen Crane, famous for his naturalistic writing in which human beings have no control on their lives. It is more than a narrative of adventure. In January 1897, the writer was shipwrecked and lost at sea for 30 hours. He and three other men were forced to row to shore on a ten-foot life boat. The short story was written several weeks after the harrowing accident. The setting is dark, enormous sea symbolizing nature. It is not an ordinary setting; rather very active in the lives of the characters and has contradictory qualities. It has seven sections and each section is told from the point of view of an anonymous correspondent. The first part introduces the four characters-the

In my essay I am going to analyse Seamus Heaney’s poem, Act of Union. It is important to know the background of the author in order to understand the poem. Seamus Heaney was one of the major poets of the 20th century. He was from Northern Ireland. His upbringing made a great impact on his poetry, as his most common topic was Ireland, and how English rule ruined its culture, and its language. He wrote Act of Union during the Troubles, the conflict in Northern Ireland which lasted from 1968 till 1998, and in which over 3600 people were killed. The constitutional status of Northern Ireland was at the heart of the conflict.

“Cathleen Ni Houlihan”, a play that William Butler Yeats co-wrote with Lady Gregory, in 1902, is about Ireland’s fight for their independence. According to Nicholas Grene: “What is at issue [in Kathleen Ni Houlihan] is the political meaning which the play generated and the potential for such meaning which the text offered.” (Grene, 1999)

“Riders to the Sea” is a one-act play written by Irish playwright John Millington Synge. J.M. Synge, after visiting the Aran Islands situated off the Irish coast, found inspiration in the peasant life of rural Ireland. He started making annual trips in the summer and studied the lives of ordinary people and observed their superstitions, culture and folklore. This play was based on his experiences while there. On one of his trips he heard the story of a man whose body was found washed up on the shore on one of the Aran Islands. After hearing that story, he was inspired to write a play and “Riders to the Sea” was written. Considered one of the greatest one-act plays of modern theatre, it combines elements of rural Irish life and its pagan influences with Greek tragedies. He masterfully paints a picture of the sorrows of Irish rural life and the perseverance of the people in the face of their harsh environment.