Beyond Good and Evil

joy in the victory of, say, a manipulative, power-hungry murderer? In his play Richard III, Shakespeare puts this idea to the test, not only by creating a villain so despicably brilliant that even the audience gets swept along in the mastery of his evil-doing, but also in giving him the voice closest to that of “Narrator” within his tale. While there are many scenes in which Richard’s villainy—most…

In today’s society, much like throughout history, forces of both good and evil are inherently present. However, unlike in past centuries, the goodness evident in modern times is the result of free will. Today’s basis of what is considered right or wrong has essentially transpired from the heroic code that characterized Anglo-Saxon culture several centuries ago. The code encompasses ideals of heroism and chivalry that are particularly prominent in Anglo Saxon literature, most notably in the poem…

see to others. Hulga Hopewell met a seemingly innocent Bible salesman, Pointer Manley. Manley portrayed himself as a good country person with a heart condition just trying to be a missionary. Hulga did not see past the illusion he was painting for her and she began to trust him. No sooner did she start to open up, did Manley shed his façade and reveal his lying and thieving ways. “Good Country People” by Flannery O’Connor gives us a glimpse into reality vs illusions. O’Connor used a third person…

goes to college a year earlier, Adam brags to Lee and with pride about Aron says, “’I guess you’re right. Do you know, Lee? ____ I’m proud of him. Terribly proud. This makes me feel good. I wish Cal had some ambition’” (Steinbeck 488). Steinbeck writes the word proud twice, which shows Adam is not proud, but beyond proud for Aron. After saying all the commendable accomplishment that Aron achieves, Adam denigrates Cal to nothing and wishes that Cal has more life in him, even though Cal shows…

Søren Kierkegaard, a 19th century a philosopher, once said, “God…does what is still more wonderful: he makes saints out of sinners.” While Richard J. Mouw, in his book When the Kings Come Marching In, would agree that God redeems sinners he would also argue that God desires to redeem the entire cosmos. God desires to redeem both human souls and the cosmos because both have been infected and distorted by sin. After a careful reading of Mouw’s book, it is possible to piece together a summary of…

In Crime and Punishment, the murderer is really a saint, and the prostitute is really an angel, and the husband is really a specter, and the punishment for confessing a crime is actually liberating, and the perfect beauty is within the accepting of one’s own loving, social nature. But the unattainable is living a self-oriented existence that rejects both human companionship and the loving qualities of one’s human nature. Although the narrator at first appears to depict Raskolnikov as the…

Hulga Hopewell of "Good Country People" is a unique character in O'Connor's fictional world. Although O'Connor uses the intellectual, or the pseudo-intellectual, in one of her novels and in seven of her short stories, Hulga is the only female in the bunch. Her gender, however, does not keep her from suffering the common fate of all the other O'Connor intellectuals. In every instance, the intellectual comes to realize that his belief in his ability to control his life totally, as well as control…

The Heart of the Matter is an exploration of same existential issues as have been found in Brighton Rock and The Power and the Glory. In The Power and the Glory. Greene deals with the dehumanizing elements in modern life, and shows the importance of faith rising from man’s personal experience. It hints at Greene’s dissatisfaction with organized religion as it limits the individual’s freedom. The ideological conflict between the lieutenant and the priest forms the central pattern of the book. The…

151). The Prince is disgusted by their behavior and is sick of his-overindulgence lifestyle, so he departs from his home leaving his wife and son behind. By describing that the women are bad people because of their behavior, he presents himself as a good person. The Prince so easily puts himself in this self-righteous spot and paints the others as dirty and bad. He does this to show that he is indeed better than the women. Although, he judges the others’ behavior as distorted and out of the…

meaning, the meaning of “Young Goodman Brown” is humanity’s struggle between good and evil. Thus, dividing it into three facets: the innate goodness of man, deception, and faith. From birth to early adolescence, people are generally innocent. They do not perceive what is right from what is wrong. In, “Young Goodman Brown”, Nathaniel Hawthorne draws a light on this subject, that is the fact that every individual is born good, and to a certain extent they hold on to that quality. In the first…