Abstract This paper compares several of James Stephens' poems in which animals or mythological creatures are used as the subjects or main characters. The paper discusses the reasons Stephens used animals and their imagery in his poems, suggesting that Stephens used animals in order to comment upon the state of contemporary human life in an indirect fashion.
From the Paper "James Stephens was an Irish novelist and poet. His poems such as "The Ancient Elf," "The Cage," and "Little Things" make use of common everyday creatures, such as rabbits and mice, and also small, familiar mythical figures of Irish legends to comment upon the state of contemporary human life in an indirect fashion. Like elves and rabbits, when viewed with the perspective of a God's eye (or simply the poet's distanced eye) human beings appear similarly contradictory, trapped, or frustrated in their frantic searches for meaning as these physically smaller or fictional beings. Stephens writes with a tone of wit, even whimsy, but beneath the surface of lightness exists a darker view of the dog-eat-dog nature of the mortal world."
Abstract This paper uses Elizabeth Ammons' "Expanding the Canon of American Realism" to examine why Stephen Crane's "Maggie" and Upton Sinclair's "The Jungle" should both be included in the education curricula. The paper suggests that the inclusion of these two works will help teach a multicultural point of view.
From the Paper "In "Expanding the Canon of American Realism", Elizabeth Ammons argues that the canon of American realism needs to reflect its social context of multiculturalism. The canon of realism is defined by teachers who choose what texts they want to teach about, therefore the canon has been composed of works that are considered highly teachable. In that respect, it is subjective and can just as easily be changed according to one teacher's idea of teachability as another's. Elizabeth Ammons takes the..."
Tags: Elizabeth Ammons, Upton Sinclair, The Jungle, Stephen Crane, Maggie, realism, multicultural, Expanding the Canon of American Realism
Abstract The paper reviews the book as a biography of both Steve Biko and Donald Woods. It illustrates how Donald Woods was able to combine his own story with that of Steve Biko in the novel. It begins with a background on Steve Biko and Donald Woods, goes on to state the main struggle of the book and gives a synopsis of the plot. The focus of this paper is on the way the events affected Woods.
From the Paper "Biko tells the story of Donald Woods and his relationship with black consciousness leader Steve Biko. The author Donald Woods is a journalist and was a close friend of Steve Biko?s. Biko is a biography of Donald Woods as well as a biography of Steve Biko as Woods sees him.
Firstly, I will briefly detail who Steve Biko is so the events of the book can be seen in perspective. Steve Biko was a black South African who led the black consciousness movement in South Africa. He struggled for liberation from the apartheid regime. He was a political activist and believed that black liberation started with black psychological self-reliance. This idea was the basis for the black consciousness movement that Biko led. Biko believed that by doing this you could get to the base of the problem and change the way society operated. Biko was killed by South African security forces while in detention, aged thirty."
Abstract This paper explains that James Joyce's semi-autobiographical rendering of Joyce's fully autobiographical conception of himself "Stephen Hero" can be found in both "Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man" and "Ulysses". The author relates that the hero of these tales, Stephen Dedalus, serves as the focal point of both novels and should be viewed as the abridged version of "Stephen Hero", an almost allegorical tale of an artist besieged by his surroundings. The paper points out that, at the heart of the idea that Stephen Dedalus can represent the universal modern man is Joyce's struggle with himself to convey his own life into words, concluding that the best possible representation of himself that can be conveyed is one in which he is a character lost in a world he cannot hope to understand.
From the Paper "Joyce uses the imagery with the fox again towards the end of Ulysses. A hallucination that brings his riddle back to the surface: "A stout fox drawn from a covert, brush pointed, having buried his grandmother, runs swift for the open, brighteyed, seeking badger earth, under the leaves." This is the physical and relatable explanation of the events that could have linearly led to the formulation of the riddle; however, it is presented in this reverse fashion. "The foxhunt represents the absolute disjoining of Stephen's two selves." The trouble is that Joyce, through the progression of Stephen from Portrait into, and eventually, out of Ulysses, has gradually brought about the loss of his hero's sovereignty."
Abstract The paper contrasts different critics' approaches to analyzing the book and its protagonist. The paper works its way through Stephen's life, at each stage offering the opinions of contrasting critics and reviewers of the book, such as Walton A. Litz, John V. Kelleher and Robert Adams. The paper also analyzes the novel's structure, again comparing different critics' opinions, in this case Harry Levin's division of the book into three sections with William T. Noon's separation of the book into five parts, along the lines of Joyce's five chapters. Finally, the paper contrasts Joyce's style and structure with Stephen's aesthetic theory: Stephen's destiny seeks wholeness, his personality desires harmony, and Joyce strives for clarity. In conclusion, the writer speculates that if Thomas Aquinas was alive in 1914, he probably would have enjoyed meeting James Joyce.
From the Paper "Another turning point for Stephen's development occurs during his studying of the Litany of the Blessed Virgin. Stephen reads the words that he has read many times, but this time he examines the words for their actual meaning (Zimbaro 31). When Stephen begins to evaluate words for their meaning, he opens up a whole new world of symbolism. The repeated use of words like "dark," "cold," "pale," and "strange" to describe Clongowes Wood College represents Stephen's true feelings. Stephen even recalls words from his past, like the childhood poem "O, the wild rose blossoms/ On the little green place" (Joyce 19), and brings them into his world of imagery: "Perhaps a wild rose might be like those colours and he remembered the song about the wild rose blossoms on the little green place. But you could not have a green rose. But perhaps somewhere in the world you could" (Joyce 24). Stephen's imagination allows him to deal with reality in a way that he can accept. Words and symbolism become the key to all of Stephen's experiences. For example, when Father Dolan hits Stephen with the pandybat, the words "hot," "burning," "stinging," "tingling," "crumpled," "flaming," "livid," "scalding," "maimed," "quivering," "fierce," and "maddening" all occur in less than half a page (Adams 235)."
This paper explores the question of similarities or links between the characters in the same novel, as well as in completely different novels, in the works of novelist Stephen King.
Abstract This paper explains that Stephen King is a most prolific writer in one genre, horror books; therefore, there cannot help but be similarities in some of the characters in his dozens of published works. The author points out that every time Stephen King writes or develops a character that is to represent complete and undeniable evil, he gives that character the initials R. F., such as, in "The Stand", he named the epitome of evil, Randall Flagg. The paper relates that another commonality is that several of the characters in Stephen King's novels and short stories are social misfits, which naturally make them prime candidates to experience the horrors of King's innermost imaginative thoughts, as in "IT" or the writer in "Delores".
From the Paper "In the "Gunslinger", Roland, the main character, is practical and intelligent, which is the path most of King's characters take on. However, that is not an obvious "link" because very few people would read a novel in which the main character was not intelligent. It would make a boring book; therefore, King may not have purposely made this character as intelligent and practical as other "Dark Tower" characters. He may instead have created characters that were intelligent and practical because that is what sells books, and by coincidence, they all appear intelligent and practical."
Abstract This paper examines Realism and Naturalism movement and how Mark Twain, Henry James and Stephen Crane captured the spirit of their times. The author discusses how writers sought to preserve a distinct way of life threatened by industrialization, immigration, the after effects of the Civil War, and the changes in society. The paper focuses on three books, The Adventure's of Huckleberry Finn, Daisy Miller, and The Open Boat.
From the Paper:
"Writing periods have certain characteristics that mark them as unique. Local Color, Realism, and Naturalism are no exception, but they also have one thing in common. Just as a facet of a jewel reflects whatever light it may receive, so too do the works of Mark Twain, Henry James, and Stephen Crane reflect a distinctive aspect of their time period."
Abstract An examination of the work of Mark Twain, Henry James and Stephen Crane and a look at how their work reflects a distinctive aspect of their time period. The author looks at how these authors aimed to preserve and to convey a picture of the distinct ways of life at the time of their writings. From the paper: "Writing periods have certain characteristics that mark them as unique. Local Color, Realism, and Naturalism are no exception, but they also have one thing in common. Just as a facet of a jewel reflects whatever light it may receive, so too do the works of Mark Twain, Henry James, and Stephen Crane reflect a distinctive aspect of their time period."
Abstract This paper presents a candid account of the writer's opinion of the author, Stephen King. The paper provides examples from some of his literary works, illustrating his claimed genius. King's substance abuse is discussed, pointing out the influence it had on some of his novels. The writer concludes that, despite what anyone might say - King himself included, Stephen King is a master of literary form and, most of all, a master of the game of storytelling.
From the Paper "The genius that is Stephen King exists on many levels. The fact that he completed one of his highest praised novels, Cujo, well, higher than a kite, is brilliance in itself. If the man can write that well stoned out of his gourd, what could he do sober? Just looking at the cross-section of novels, short stories and even his new serial e-book, your average Stephen King fan will tell you ? the man can do anything. He is a literary god. But why? His alter ego, Richard Bachman, did not enjoy the level of success that Stephen King did. As the man, himself, asked, was it because the stories "sucked like an Electrolux"? Of course not. We?re talking about Stephen King ? or Dicky Bachman, as he called himself. The entire idea of the pseudonym brings forth the question, why do some authors achieve the level of success that Stephen King has? Is it really their writing? Well, Richard Bachman or no Richard Bachman, Stephen King's genius is evident in his every word ? ?luded, loaded or otherwise."
Abstract This paper focuses on aspects of Stephen King's writing and life. The paper examines how others see Stephen King as a master of the macabre, but King himself has an aversion to being labeled by any single genre. It shows how, in all his novels, King seems to echo the 20th century obsession with horror, where, rather like in "Frankenstein", the initial progress brought on by the Industrial Revolution has waned, and its darker side, like the horrors of nuclear war, hang over the earth like a threatening sword with a kind of doomsday scenario. It discusses that, if we trace the evolution of King as a writer from his early macabre days to his later fantasy novels, he seems to echo deep fears within us all, as we ultimately struggle through the darkness to reach love and light.
From the Paper "Stephen Edwin King was born in September 21 st., 1947, Portland, Maine and soon after his birth his mother Nellie Ruth and his father Donald, separated. A product of a broken home, Stephen was brought up by his mother. His early life was spent shuttling between his father's family in Indiana and his mother's family in Massachusetts and Maine. The young Stephen graduated from high school in 1966 and showed early signs of his talent as a writer in the University of Maine from where he wrote a weekly column for the school newspaper. As a student, he became a supporter of the anti-war movement and supported a peaceful solution to the war in Vietnam. His mother encouraged him to be a writer, but she was also insistent that he get a teaching certificate, so that he could have a job to rely on, in case his writing career did not progress well. (The Observer, 17 September 2000). He married Tahita Bruce in 1971 and they both had to struggle hard for a livelihood. During this time he taught, worked as a janitor and wrote short stories-Later to be published in the book, ?Night Watch.?"
Abstract This paper summarizes and analyzes Stephen Crane's short story, "The Blue Hotel", and explains how Crane used his own personal life experiences to create the character of the Swede in the story. The paper describes the parallels that can be drawn between the Swede's life experiences and Crane's own life experiences.
From the Paper "The Swede is the first mentioned of three male characters that are venturing to the West. They come from the East and the Swede is by far the "wisest" of them all because he has taken the time to read the dime novels that describe in depth the dangers that exist in the wild, Wild West. The novels were highly exaggerated by propagandist type writers to help "sell" the west to adventurous types who could be lured to establish settlements and populate the area."
Tags: religious, christian, wild, west, propaganda, territory, selling, misconceptions, hotel
Abstract The paper explains that Stephen King's abounding popularity has come from his mastery of modern horror fiction, especially in his nonfiction book "Dance Macabre." The paper discusses how Stephen King has managed to adapt an old literary genre - horror and gothic fiction - into a form that modern audiences have appreciated in the millions. The paper reveals that this, more than anything else, accounts for his fame and his longevity in the world of fiction. The paper describes King's background and his literary successes. The paper relates that currently, King is working on expanding his "Dark Tower" series into a Marvel Comic series due to be released in 2007.
From the Paper "Born on September 21, 1947 in Portland Maine, King was raised by his mother--Nellie Pillsbury--after his father abandoned them when he was just two years old; "Ruth raised King and his adopted older brother David by herself, sometimes under great financial strain," (Wikipedia 2006). Nevertheless, King began his writing at a very early age; in fact, he is known to have written short stories on movies that he had seen, and for having sold these stories to fellow students. Once he was caught doing this, his teachers forced him to return the money. Still, already by grade school, King had partially satisfied his own measurement of what it means to be talented; he later wrote, "If you wrote something for which someone sent you a check, if you cashed the check and it didn't bounce, and if you then paid the light bill with the money, I consider you talented," (Wikipedia 2006). Clearly, King was well on his way to becoming a literary talent even by his own judgment."
Abstract This paper presents a comparison and rhetorical analysis of the speeches of Jesus and Stephen which shows that the purpose of both speeches harmonizes, but their structures differ to some degree.
From the Paper "Typical of Greco-Roman literature of the history genre, Luke fills approximately one fourth of his books with speeches. Like other Greco-Roman historians, Luke could not have actually heard the speeches that he recorded, nor could he even accurately know the contents of such speeches, if they occurred. Indeed, Luke writes more than 50 years after the death of Jesus; not only is Luke not contemporary to the events that he records as if he were immediately physically present, but most others contemporary to the event, potential eye-witnesses, are also dead (Ehrman 44). Luke, therefore, contrived the text of the speeches presented in Luke-Acts; in his capacity as a historian, Luke strove for a sense of verisimilitude. Thus, the speeches recorded in Luke-Acts, written to reflect Luke's estimation of the character of the speaker and the occasion, reveal Luke's literary purpose as much as they reveal actual historical information. Jesus? speech in the Nazarene synagogue, as well as Stephen's speech before the Sanhedrin, serve to advance Luke's perception of Jesus: the rejected prophet. Luke implicitly compares Stephen to Jesus to validate the mission to the Gentiles, which had become the focus of the Apostles. The speeches of Jesus and Stephen do differ, in certain respects, in structure. However, the purposes of each speech ultimately harmonize; Luke employs different structures for disparate actors to achieve a common function."
Abstract This essay depicts Joyce's rejection of religious dogmas in favor of self discovery. It provides much literal supporting evidence for its claim that the main character, Stephen Dedalus must lose his religious shackles in order to truly find himself as a person.
From the Paper "In his A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, Joyce continually and actively seeks to chronicle his protagonist's struggle to discover the truth of life, and his rebellion from politics and religion. It is his struggle to emancipate his mind from the ingrained religious ideals of Catholicism that stifles and frustrates Stephen Dedalus in his quest to "forge" in his soul his own ?uncreated conscience.? Joyce attempts to argue for the artist's quest for existential truth through many different literary devices; the most important of these being the limited omniscience of the narrator."
Abstract This paper analyzes Stephen Crane's Maggie: A Girl of the Streets. The author examines how the book is a reflection of the writer's childhood and childhood experiences.
From the Paper "Many of Stephen Crane's life experiences are also expressed in his writings, but not in the way casual readers would expect. Many people believe that "The Red Badge of Courage" is the result of Crane's personal acquaintance with the Civil War and "Maggie: A Girl of the Streets" was written following a time spent living in the slums of New York. This is not true in either case. Stephen Crane was born after the Civil War and according to Benfey, "Maggie: A Girl of the Streets" was started prior to Crane moving to New York (63). Although, the deterministic theme in "Maggie: A Girl of the Streets" is not a result of Stephen Crane's personal experience in the slums, it is a reflection of a dark period in his childhood, his unpleasant experiences with Christianity, and parental deprivation."
