Gertrude Stein

Ophelia: When Suicide Makes Sense As long as people have existed there have been stereotypes and generalizations about the weakness and malleability of women, especially young ones. This extends from casual banter amongst friends to music, art, and literature. Reader-response criticisms are a way for academic people to share their opinions of a piece of work through the lense in which they saw it. It is a popular way to share ideas and comment on the styles and deeper meanings of plays, poetry,…

A revival of John Hughes’ 1985 The Breakfast Club, produced by Central Coast’s independent theatre company, Endless Night (Originally established in 2014), had the potential to be a scintillating delight or an utter disaster. From the creator of Pretty in Pink, Sixteen Candles and Ferris Buellier’s Day off, John Hughes’ coming of age classic, meant that Endless Night’s brave choice left them with a fairly big feat ahead of them. Performed in the Don Craig Room, of the Laycock…

In Hamlet, Ophelia is portrayed as a beautiful young woman. She is the young daughter of Polonius, the sister of Laertes, and Hamlet's love interest. In the play, Ophelia is trapped amongst her obedience to her father and her love for Hamlet, which comes with several tragic consequences. Ophelia tries to be “obedient”. Ophelia is the ideal obedient daughter, a role that is required entirely of all young women in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. Ophelia also happens to be the most innocent…

Giles Corey is wrongfully accused and tortured to death, despite having innocent and reasonable motives, filled with both resentment and curiosity. Giles is an old man, old enough to maintain a hateful relationship between the Putnams and him, which started a long time ago with Thomas Putnam’s grandfather and Giles fighting over land. He says to Proctor with Putnam in the room, “...he nearly willed away my north pasture but he knew I’d break his fingers before he’d set his name to it” (32).…

FINAL ESSAY Fatalism is based on the assumption that everything in the world and in peoples lives is predetermined by nature or supernatural forces, that there is a rational being which sets the goal for everything that happens in nature, and that this being is called God. Everything in the world is predestined and no one is responsible for what happens. We like to think that we have control over our destinies, but what if our fate was determined by our ancestors hundreds…

Everyone loves scary stories or tales. It makes us feel excited. Washington Irving was famous for his short stories. His most famous was the legend of sleepy hollow and Rip Van Winkle. “The legend of sleepy hollow” was set in a small town named Tarrytown in New York where the Dutch settled. The residents and visitors say that the sleepy hollow is known for its ghosts and the haunting atmosphere. Irving wrote this story in the early 1800’s. He was born in Tarrytown. The main purpose…

Adaptation of Our Town Of the three versions of Our Town that we viewed in class, the PBS 2003 version best portrayed what the author Thornton Wilder wanted. Our Town is quite a unique play due to the fact that unlike most play’s the Stage Manager is on the stage rather than behind the scenes. The Stage Manager is also a character in the play itself and acts as a narrator in the play, so he talks directly to the audience the majority of the time. This unique characteristic allows a director to…

In Hamlet, Shakespeare analyzes the relationship of thought to action, mostly through Hamlet’s perspective. Hamlet is a man of thought who attempts to completely understand events that occur in Denmark by questioning their motives. When Hamlet is informed that Fortinbras and his army are marching through Denmark towards Poland to “gain a little patch of ground” (Shakespeare 4.4.19), he is amazed by the countless number of lives that will be lost due to this insignificant conflict. Hamlet goes on…

The significance of Claudius not allowing Hamlet to return to Wittenberg is that Claudius wants to keep an eye on Hamlet as he does not want him to come up with any mischievous plans that may seek revenge and overthrow the King. “KING. For your intent In going back to school in Wittenberg, It is most retrograde to our desire. And we beseech you, bend you to remain Here in the cheer and comfort of our eye” (I.ii.112-116). This is really important because it shows that Claudius wants to…

Throughout time, love has led people to take daring risks and make impulsive decisions. This is evident in the works of Shakespeare, in Hallmark movies, and even in the Bible. In A Tale of Two Cities, by Charles Dickens, the characters Doctor Manette, Charles Darnay, and Sydney Carton all impulsively conceal some aspect of themselves for the sake of Lucie Manette, whom they love. How are these characters’ morals shown through their deception and how do the nuances of their motives impact both…