Predestination

by greeks were all representatives of different forms of natural occurrences that were unexplained at the time. In the 17th century play Macbeth, William Shakespeare personifies nature as an omniscient entity to represent fate to emphasize the predestination of humans and the inescapability of destiny. Shakespeare warns audiences to listen when nature warns them that they will stray off a path of righteousness. Fate is the inability to prevent when/if something happens. Macbeth chronicles the…

During the 1600s, Puritans traveled across to the colonies, the Massachusetts Bay Colony, to get away from the Church of England and the Catholics. They wanted to purify the church and change it because they were Protestant and they had different beliefs/issues. Along with their change came many ideas and values. These ideas influenced colonies through their social, economical, political, and religious beliefs between the 1630s and the 1660s. Religion was a big deal during this time…

Socio-economic status plays a vital role in both Fences and A Doll’s House. Torvald and Nora hail from a high-status family with a greater level of economic buoyancy. Conversely, Rose and Troy have lower socio-economic status, they are a lower middle class African American living in America prior to the civil rights movement. Though, Troy and Torvald are different, they maintain a superiority complex due to the role of being the breadwinners. Similarly, Nora and Rose are initially painted as…

Calvinism is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice of John Calvin and other Reformation-era theologians. Calvinists broke with the Roman Catholic Church but differed with Lutherans on the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, theories of worship, and the use of God's law for believers, among other things. Calvinism can be a misleading term because the religious tradition it denotes is and has always been diverse, with a wide…

depicts. Both use a variety of resources to dissect the Last Judgement to determine what Michelangelo was trying to depict in his fresco scene. Marcia B. Hall argues in her article “Michelangelo’s Last Judgement: Resurrection of the Body and Predestination” that Michelangelo designed the fresco to represent the resurrection of Jesus, but not the judgement by Jesus (Hall, 89). Hall bases her claim on Jesus’ active presence. Rather than be “ the…

Life is a challenging phenomenon. Call it survival of the fittest, a miracle, destiny, predestination, or simply a biochemical reaction, one thing is for sure, everyone has their own battles to fight and insecurities to face. But what about the rest of us who are struggling with mental illness? Besides being haunted by our own inner demons, simple tasks like getting out of bed in the morning, or just to live in the present becomes a bloody battle. I cannot remember the last time I woke up and…

For past generations, Anne Hutcherson, has been perceived as an influential woman and religious advocate throughout history. Hidden beneath a world of male dominance, Anne overcame gender stereotypes, constantly challenging the submissive roles of women marked throughout the past. She begin to become recognized as a human being, more so than just a role in society or the kitchen. Not only did she have a huge influence on gender norms circulating the 1800’s, but she had huge impacts on the…

Sophocle’s Greek play Oedipus Rex tells the downfall of the tragedy`s namesake protagonist, Oedipus. As per the tragic nature of the story, Oedipus`s narrative is one of a tragic hero and as such, he fits all of the seven requirements for this literary character. To start off, the first attribute of a tragic hero is to be born noble, of which Oedipus obviously fulfills. He is (albeit unbeknownst to himself) the “offspring of Laius” and Jocasta, the rulers of Thebes. In addition to his…

We depend on many forms of communication in this world. Pictures. Sign language. Even everyday actions are a form of language. In the 1450’s Johannes Gutenberg had changed history forever with his invention the Printing Press. Gutenberg had gotten encouragement when he learned that the Chinese had introduced woodblock printing. Gutenberg thought of using metal letters instead so the printings would not wear out overtime. It was a success and by 1600 more than 200 million books had been printed…

The Allegory of the Cave and the Question of Philosopher’s Happiness Plato’s Allegory of the Cave presents the reader with perhaps one of the most beautiful and enlightening metaphors in literature. His depiction of the rise of a soul from the cave of intellectual deficiency to the light of knowledge serves as the perfect analogy for the intellectual and education ascension of Philosopher-Kings in his ideal city described in The Republic. Similarly, it depicts superbly the stages of his Simile…