¶ … setting of a story can reveal important things about the narrative's larger meaning, because the setting implies certain things about the characters, context, and themes that would otherwise remain implicit or undiscussed. In their short stories "The Lottery" and "The Rocking-Horse Winner," Shirley Jackson and DH Lawrence use particular settings in order to comment on the political and socio-economic status of their characters without inserting any explicitly political or socio-economic discussion into the narrative. In the case of "The Lottery," the setting transforms the story from a one of simple horror to a more nuanced critique of American society, and particularly its dedication to arbitrary, destructive beliefs. Lawrence's "The Rocking-Horse Winner" makes a similar point, but in this case the setting serves to implicitly critique the consumerism encouraged by capitalist hegemony in England. Comparing and contrasting these two settings allows one to better understand how each story makes an identifiable ideological point without having to make explicit that ideology. The earlier of the two stories is Lawrence's "The Rocking-Horse Winner," and it takes place in or around London, as evidenced by the fact that some of the characters visit Richmond Park, which is located in London (Lawrence 236). However, the story does not concern itself with the hustle and bustle of the city, but rather the quiet, almost mundane existence of a family living "in a pleasant house, with a garden," who "had discreet servants, and felt themselves superior to anyone in the neighbourhood" (Lawrence 230). Despite their relative financial and social comfort, "they always felt an anxiety in the house," because "there was never enough money," as there was "not nearly enough for the social position which they had to keep up" (Lawrence 230). This introduction to the story's setting sets the stage for the entire narrative to follow, because it reveals a number of important things about the ultimate...
Lawrence could have easily set the story in a poor neighborhood and focused on a poor family, and the larger narrative would not have changed substantially; Paul would still likely have internalized his parents' constant need for more money, and thus would have still likely died after frantically riding his rocking-horse. However, if Lawrence had set the story in a poor neighborhood, Paul's death would have far more tragic and arguably noble, because he would have been helping his family to overcome real hardship. By setting the story in a well-off neighborhood, and making the family's money dependent not on a lack of basic necessities but rather the cost of maintaining their social status, Paul's death becomes arbitrary and almost comical (as much as the death of a child can be). His desire to raise money for his family is not some noble quest, but rather indicative of a neuroses born out of deference to ultimately meaningless class signifiers, and Paul is simply too young to recognize this. Lawrence uses the story's setting to demonstrate the process by which deference to arbitrary standards of social worth is transferred from generation to generation, how that transfer is accompanied by the increasing mental destruction of each generation.
Like other symbols of the civil rights movement such as the song "We shall overcome" and peaceful sit-ins, to Kill a Mockingbird quickly assumed a similar position. As the focus of the movie was on right and wrong, the director of this film, Robert Mulligan, provided the American movie viewing public with a strong lesson in justice but he was also able, largely through the character of Atticus Finch, to
Story Of an Hour The story details the events of one hour during which a woman learns of her husband's death and is thinking of all that she would do now that she is free and at the end finds that he is alive and the death of her hope causes her own death. In "The Story of an Hour," Chopin has introduced a character, Mrs. Millard, who relishes the freedom after
The various places he stops represent certain alternative futures, and the brothel promises one of pleasure. His ability to resist it -- whether through morality or lack of money -- and continue on his journey is indicative of the revolutionary spirit. The fact that he keeps moving, and keeps searching in new places, matched the movement of the revolution and indeed of the country since then as it goes
(They must pass time through story telling and caring for each other). In "If This is a Man," Primo has to bury his dignity and identity. (Ch. 1 p. 19 before he is arrested he is rebellious. Chapter 2 p. 33 a hollow man reduced to suffering and needs, he is at the bottom. P. 34 name is replaced by a prison number with which one can get food.
The narrator observes and describes but does not always interpret the events and the feelings of the characters to the reader. In other words, this narrative style could be termed limited omniscient. One should also take into account the fact that we are often in doubt about the exact nature of the feelings and thoughts of the main character. We are, for instance, not quite sure if Markheim is sincere
Introduction Edgar Allen Poe was a 19th century American author who wrote gothic horror stories (as well as gothic poetry). Here, he delivers his theme that no one escapes death in his short story “Masque of the Red Death” through symbolism, setting, and narration. The colors of the room serve as symbols of life, with the red room serving as a symbol of blood and of the horror that awaits the
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