2008. In a literary work, a minor character, often known as a foil, possesses traits that emphasize, by contrast or comparison, the distinctive characteristics and qualities of the main character. For example, the ideas or behavior of a minor character might be used to highlight the weaknesses or strengths of the main character. Choose a novel or play in which a minor character serves as a foil for the main character. Then write an essay in which you analyze how the relation between the minor character and the major character illuminates the meaning of the work.
In The American Dream by Edward Albee, there are charcters that are foils of one another. They also play a large role into the the theme and main idea of the play as a whole. The main character of the play is Grandma, while the minor is Young Man. These two characters are what this play revolves around. Albee uses these characters to compare and contrast the two kinds of people in the world: the materialistic and the non materialistic.
Grandma is an old woman who lives with her daughter, Mommy, and her daughter's husband, Daddy. Grandma is ignore and seems to be useless and annoying to Mommy and Daddy. Mommy wants nothing to do with her and wants to have her carted off to a nursing home. Daddy doesn't seem to care either way, but he isn't opposed to having her carted off. Young Man is a young, materialistic, your stereotypical, perfect boy. He's attractive, masculine, and everything any girl would ever want.
Grandma represents the old American dream, while Young Man represents the new American dream. Grandma is falling apart and decrepited. Young Man is every way complete, except he has no values. While Grandma has all these values, and seems to know everything, and strives for what she wants, Young Man will do anything for money and doesn't care about anything other than materialisitc goods.
To represent the materialistic views of the world Albee uses Mommy and Daddy to get this point across. When Grandma brings in the boxes and continues to mention them, Mommy and Daddy are only concerned with what the boxes look like. They cannot see through the boxes even though Grandma tries to get them to see through it. Grandma mentions the boxes hoping Mommy and Daddy will see past the wrapping to view what is inside. But this just shows how materialistic people view things; only from the outside.
With the two contrasting characters, Albee tries to show how the world is going to become materialistic. He tries to get across the point that we only see what is right in front of our faces and we are never satisfied. While with the old dream, we had values and strived for what we wanted to be happy. The dream is no longer about what makes you happy and having a family, and the house and car. It has become something where no one is perfect and what color hat you have decides your social superiority.
These two characters and their values and manner help show what Albee is trying to say about the old dream fading away. At the end of the play, Grandma finally gives up her role as the dream to Young Man and leaves. She then leaves it up to the audience to help the old American Dream live on and strive.
Tuesday, March 19, 2013
Monday, March 11, 2013
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead Summary
Author: Tom Stoppard
Setting: desolate nothingness; Hamlet, Elsinore, England
Plot: R and G wander throughout the nothingness flipping coins. Every time it lands on heads, which is always, R wins it. G worries about the improbability of the coins always landing on heads and wonders if the world they are is where the laws of chance and time are gone. Neither of them can remember where they are and why they are there. The only thing they know is that a messenger called. They encounter the actors or tragedians. The Player tells them that they specialize in sexual performances and gives R and G a chance to participate for free. G turns the coin flipping to their advantage by giving the player a bet. The player loses but says he cannot pay. G asks for a play and starts to leave as the tragedians prepare but R says that the coin has turned tails. R and G are now confused as they are in Elsinore. Claudius confuses the two and tells them they need to find out what Hamlet's deal is. R and G play the question game to practice finding out what is wrong with Hamlet. Hamlet confuses R and G also. Polonius comes to tell them that the tragedians have arrived. R and G feel bad becasue they have discovered nothing about Hamlet's feelings. Hamlet announces of the play to come the next day. R and G and the Player discuss the source of Hamlet's problem. Then they talk about death and what happens afterwards. R and G tell Claudius and Gertrude they are to attend Hamlet's play. Hamlet makes his to be or not to be speech. The Player explains tragic aspects of their work which foreshadows R and G's death. They discuss whether or not death can be truly and accurately represented on stage. Hamlet's play has disturbed Claudius. Claudius and Gertrude tell R and G to find Hamlet to get Polonius' dead body from him. R and G figure out a plan to get the body from Hamlet. Hamlet won't give up the hiding place of the body and acusses them of being Claudius' puppets. R and G and then to escort Hamlet to England. On the boat to England, R and G wonder whether or not they are dead and where they are. The notice Hamlet and remember their misson and figure out what to do when they arrive. They fight over who has the letter Claudius sent with them. When the letter is found, they read it and find out Hamlet is to be executed in England. While R and G sleep Hamlet switches the letter. The wake up and find that pirates have invaded and taken Hamlet. R and G and the player come out from barrels after the invasion. R and G tell the player of the letter. G finds that the letter now says they are to be executed. G stabs the player. The player fakes death. The player describes the different deaths performed. R realizes his death is near and G wonders how they got in this situation. R and G disapper the light changes and shows the dead bodies of Claudius, Gertrude, Hamlet, and Laertes. Horation arrives and gives the last speech of Hamlet.
Characters:
STYLE
1. Point of View: All first person; characters interact with one another
2. Tone: humorous, self-concious
3. Imagery:
1. Player: "Uncertainty is the normal state. You're nobody special"
Importance: Incomprehensibility of the world; criticizes G for thinking he is in a uniquely different situation. The player is saying that doubt is a human characteristic and it is normal to not understand everything that happens.
2. Player: "Life is a gamble, at terrible odds-if it was abet you wouldn't take it."
Importance: The world is a random and chaotic place where success is rare. We wish the world to be orderly and everything to work out perfectly but the world doesn't change for our desires. Even those who do good or those who are in the middle get punished.
3. Rosencrantz: "What are you playing at?"
Guildenstern: "Words, words. They're all we have to go on."
Importance: Language is complex and always changing means that it can be a great source of delight. Characters spend much of their time playing with words and creating jokes. The complex and instable parts of language has a negative consequence too. Language is our primary way of understanding, the fact that it is all we have to go on, is concerning. We have trouble expressing ourselves and making sense of everything.
Theme: One major theme in this play is the relationship between life and stage. The play asks the audience to assume all the characters from Hamlet are real and deserve to have their story told from different perspectives. The tragedians show this connection. They perform a play that depicts events that the two men find themselves in. When watching the play the shows the two men's death, R gets confused as to why there are actors dressed just like him and G. This shows that theater reflects life so well that R cannot tell the two apart. The Player states that theatrical death is the only death people believe in because it is what they expect.
Setting: desolate nothingness; Hamlet, Elsinore, England
Plot: R and G wander throughout the nothingness flipping coins. Every time it lands on heads, which is always, R wins it. G worries about the improbability of the coins always landing on heads and wonders if the world they are is where the laws of chance and time are gone. Neither of them can remember where they are and why they are there. The only thing they know is that a messenger called. They encounter the actors or tragedians. The Player tells them that they specialize in sexual performances and gives R and G a chance to participate for free. G turns the coin flipping to their advantage by giving the player a bet. The player loses but says he cannot pay. G asks for a play and starts to leave as the tragedians prepare but R says that the coin has turned tails. R and G are now confused as they are in Elsinore. Claudius confuses the two and tells them they need to find out what Hamlet's deal is. R and G play the question game to practice finding out what is wrong with Hamlet. Hamlet confuses R and G also. Polonius comes to tell them that the tragedians have arrived. R and G feel bad becasue they have discovered nothing about Hamlet's feelings. Hamlet announces of the play to come the next day. R and G and the Player discuss the source of Hamlet's problem. Then they talk about death and what happens afterwards. R and G tell Claudius and Gertrude they are to attend Hamlet's play. Hamlet makes his to be or not to be speech. The Player explains tragic aspects of their work which foreshadows R and G's death. They discuss whether or not death can be truly and accurately represented on stage. Hamlet's play has disturbed Claudius. Claudius and Gertrude tell R and G to find Hamlet to get Polonius' dead body from him. R and G figure out a plan to get the body from Hamlet. Hamlet won't give up the hiding place of the body and acusses them of being Claudius' puppets. R and G and then to escort Hamlet to England. On the boat to England, R and G wonder whether or not they are dead and where they are. The notice Hamlet and remember their misson and figure out what to do when they arrive. They fight over who has the letter Claudius sent with them. When the letter is found, they read it and find out Hamlet is to be executed in England. While R and G sleep Hamlet switches the letter. The wake up and find that pirates have invaded and taken Hamlet. R and G and the player come out from barrels after the invasion. R and G tell the player of the letter. G finds that the letter now says they are to be executed. G stabs the player. The player fakes death. The player describes the different deaths performed. R realizes his death is near and G wonders how they got in this situation. R and G disapper the light changes and shows the dead bodies of Claudius, Gertrude, Hamlet, and Laertes. Horation arrives and gives the last speech of Hamlet.
Characters:
- Rosencrantz
- Guildenstern
- Hamlet
- Horatio
- Gertrude
- The Player
- Tragedians
- Alfred
- Ophelia
- Claudius
- Polonius
- Laertes
STYLE
1. Point of View: All first person; characters interact with one another
2. Tone: humorous, self-concious
3. Imagery:
- coins
- coins
- boat
- Lord's Prayer
- gambling
1. Player: "Uncertainty is the normal state. You're nobody special"
Importance: Incomprehensibility of the world; criticizes G for thinking he is in a uniquely different situation. The player is saying that doubt is a human characteristic and it is normal to not understand everything that happens.
2. Player: "Life is a gamble, at terrible odds-if it was abet you wouldn't take it."
Importance: The world is a random and chaotic place where success is rare. We wish the world to be orderly and everything to work out perfectly but the world doesn't change for our desires. Even those who do good or those who are in the middle get punished.
3. Rosencrantz: "What are you playing at?"
Guildenstern: "Words, words. They're all we have to go on."
Importance: Language is complex and always changing means that it can be a great source of delight. Characters spend much of their time playing with words and creating jokes. The complex and instable parts of language has a negative consequence too. Language is our primary way of understanding, the fact that it is all we have to go on, is concerning. We have trouble expressing ourselves and making sense of everything.
Theme: One major theme in this play is the relationship between life and stage. The play asks the audience to assume all the characters from Hamlet are real and deserve to have their story told from different perspectives. The tragedians show this connection. They perform a play that depicts events that the two men find themselves in. When watching the play the shows the two men's death, R gets confused as to why there are actors dressed just like him and G. This shows that theater reflects life so well that R cannot tell the two apart. The Player states that theatrical death is the only death people believe in because it is what they expect.
Response to Course Material: Number Seven
We finished Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead. It was a really good play. I liked the movie a lot too. And after having a disussion about the play in class, it gave me a clearer understanding. Overall, I thought the play was more just going off of Hamlet. The fact that Ros. and Guil. are in limbo until characters from Hamlet enter shows this. The readings about the play and Stoppard's outlook really helped too.
We started Ceremony. I am not really too sure what to think about it. I am confused half the time as to what is going on. But we will have to see, it is only the first read. When Ms. Holmes said that it was a book with a lot of meaning and that it is really hard to get, I was concerned. Hopefull I will understand more as we discuss in class.
We have also been doing a closed prompt. After we talked about in class what the speech was about, I knew it was going to be trouble. I am sooo glad we get to rewrite it because my essay now is so awful. And having to grade myself has helped me realize what I really need to work on. I need to get the whole thesis paragraph down. I am sure I will get it down.
We started Ceremony. I am not really too sure what to think about it. I am confused half the time as to what is going on. But we will have to see, it is only the first read. When Ms. Holmes said that it was a book with a lot of meaning and that it is really hard to get, I was concerned. Hopefull I will understand more as we discuss in class.
We have also been doing a closed prompt. After we talked about in class what the speech was about, I knew it was going to be trouble. I am sooo glad we get to rewrite it because my essay now is so awful. And having to grade myself has helped me realize what I really need to work on. I need to get the whole thesis paragraph down. I am sure I will get it down.
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