Bard High School Early College Queens Rafia Islam
Literature of the Americas November 19, 2015 "Tartarus of Maids" by Herman Melville In Melville's "Tartarus of Maids" the setting is described in elaborate detail. It is set in New England, which is now known as the United States. In the first page of the text, the narrator describes a paper mill in the middle of the mountains. This is a very peculiar place for a mill and it seems hard to get to because the narrator describes it as an "adventure" (84). This not only shows the eagerness of the narrator to embark on his journey, but the naiveness behind his interest about the world. In "Tartarus of Maids", the setting is shown through harsh imagery of the path to the paper mill …show more content…
The buffalo and wolf are powerful animals, especially the wolf which represents royalty. The author includes these details to show how the clothing and habits of the narrator and the factory workers clash. They will deeply contrast with each other, creating a gap between the social classes. When he finally gets to the mills, the narrator immediately notices something is wrong with the girls who work there. They are thin and freezing from the cold. Nevertheless, he does nothing to help them. At the factory, there is a very machine-like way that the girls move. They are slowly transforming into machines as they continue to work at the mills. The narrator can see the girls losing their essence to the influence of the machines but he is too ignorant. After all, it is not his concern how the girls are treated. Even still, it is horrifying how the mill takes in fresh and innocent girls and spits out the shells of who the girls used to be. Inside the mill, the narrator sees two girls working at the machines. One is putting blank paper into the machine. She is very innocent and young. The second girl retrieves the paper after it has been ruled. This girl has lines and wrinkles on her face. These are the before and after effects of working in the factory. The appearance of the girls reflect what positions they have in the process of making the
Literature of the Americas November 19, 2015 "Tartarus of Maids" by Herman Melville In Melville's "Tartarus of Maids" the setting is described in elaborate detail. It is set in New England, which is now known as the United States. In the first page of the text, the narrator describes a paper mill in the middle of the mountains. This is a very peculiar place for a mill and it seems hard to get to because the narrator describes it as an "adventure" (84). This not only shows the eagerness of the narrator to embark on his journey, but the naiveness behind his interest about the world. In "Tartarus of Maids", the setting is shown through harsh imagery of the path to the paper mill …show more content…
The buffalo and wolf are powerful animals, especially the wolf which represents royalty. The author includes these details to show how the clothing and habits of the narrator and the factory workers clash. They will deeply contrast with each other, creating a gap between the social classes. When he finally gets to the mills, the narrator immediately notices something is wrong with the girls who work there. They are thin and freezing from the cold. Nevertheless, he does nothing to help them. At the factory, there is a very machine-like way that the girls move. They are slowly transforming into machines as they continue to work at the mills. The narrator can see the girls losing their essence to the influence of the machines but he is too ignorant. After all, it is not his concern how the girls are treated. Even still, it is horrifying how the mill takes in fresh and innocent girls and spits out the shells of who the girls used to be. Inside the mill, the narrator sees two girls working at the machines. One is putting blank paper into the machine. She is very innocent and young. The second girl retrieves the paper after it has been ruled. This girl has lines and wrinkles on her face. These are the before and after effects of working in the factory. The appearance of the girls reflect what positions they have in the process of making the