Laurence Fishburne

A natural satisfaction is always wrought when anyone fully accomplishes something that they set out to do. The ending to The Alchemist was a very fulfilling conclusion featuring the two-part completion of Santiago’s Personal Legend and featuring a comical instance of irony leading up to the final achievement of his search for his treasure that has more than just a humorous tone, reiterating the lessons Santiago has learned from the inner transformation of alchemy. Santiago’s viewing of the…

It’s soon revealed in the play that he only plays the fool so that he can seem all the better when he redeems himself, though Feste’s character in Twelfth Night seems content to let the others continue to believe him a fool, with the exception of Viola who sees through his illusion: “[Feste] is wise enough to play the fool, and to do that well craves a kind of wit” (3.1.59). Viola and Feste’s confrontation magnifies the theme of illusion versus reality that appears in both Hamlet and Henry IV-…

One great writer by the name of Leo Tolstoy once wrote “All happy families are alike; each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.” In a similar light Shakespeare seems to have a similar view on family, if his plays are any reflection on his personal ideologies. As probably the most successful playwright in history, it is surprising to see that Shakespeare’s plays were not too different from each other. Once broken up into the there four genres, the tragedies are alike, the comedies are alike…

decisiveness is truly a prominent trait. In Act Four, Juliet takes up the offer to drink a poison concocted by Friar Laurence. However, the poison isn’t deadly, it just puts Juliet in a coma-like state. As Shakespeare remarks, “Shall, stiff and stark and cold, appear like death. And in this borrow'd likeness of shrunk death Thou shalt continue two and forty hours”(4.1.106-108). Friar Laurence and Juliet hope to use this poison to prevent the wedding between Juliet and Paris. Juliet realizes…

The settings of each of Shakespeare’s plays play a huge role in the plot and the play as a whole. For example, in Othello, the play starts off in Venice but takes place in Cyprus for a majority of the play. The people of Venice were mostly white, so Othello was definitely an outcast. If it weren’t for his position in the military and his service in the war, he more than likely would have been criticized by the Venetian people. When the setting shifts to Cyprus, known for its love, the love…

Biography: Laurence Kerr Olivier was born in Dorking, in Southern England, on May 22, 1907. His family was one with strong religious beliefs. He is known for his outstanding performances of Shakespearean roles that pathed the way for his stardom (Laurence Olivier, 2015). Despite him living in England, he gave many contributions to the Hollywood film industry. For instance, modern classics such as Wuthering Heights and Marathon Man (Laurence Olivier, 2015). Starring as Heathcliff in Wuthering…

The presence of the supernatural is in The Tragedy of Macbeth, is common like the one to The of Tragedy Hamlet. Hamlet and Macbeth were both pressured into going against the natural social order that they lived in; Hamlet had the heavy task to cast justice with his own young hands, at the request of his deceased father. Macbeth was told his fate by three witches; as well was haunted by the ghost of Banqo. The presence of the supernatural influenced both of the actions of Macbeth and Hamlet. The…

Unfortunately, it is simply beyond the scope of this paper to analyze the entirety of these two productions of A Doll’s House. As a result, three scenes will be compared, contrasted, and analyzed through Butler’s theory in order to examine these gender performances. The three scenes chosen for this endeavor are as follows: Nora’s discussion with Torvald in the very beginning of Act I, Nora practicing the tarantella dance before the party in Act II, and Nora and Torvald’s final confrontation in…

For my book review I read the book Shakespeare And The Problem Of Meaning written by Norman Rabkin. This book was published in 1981 by the University of Chicago Press. In this book Rabkin looks at several Shakespeare plays including The Merchant of Venice, Henry V, and The Tempest as well as many others. Rabkin uses these to support his argument that the plays do mean something more than can be conveyed by description alone. He shows that there are many complex paradoxical elements present in…

Ignorance is the lack of knowledge towards a certain subject and it can cause great conflict. This idea is presented often in the play Romeo and Juliet. Shakespeare wrote Romeo and Juliet, a play about a pair of star crossed lovers who fall in love and secretly get married. As problems come their way, they decide to take hasty actions. This is all due to their lack of knowledge. Ignorance caused love, violence, and poor decisions that ultimately led to Romeo and Juliet’s deaths. Ignorance…