The Spanish Tragedy

Antigone, written by Sophocles, is a tragic play that deals with three main ideas which are: whether Polyneices ought to be given burial rituals, whether someone who buried him in defiance of state ought to be punished and whether Creon’s actions are just or thoughtless. Written around 441 BC, the play is known to have been very controversial at the time, not only because of the plot it presented but rather because the themes it dealt with challenged Ancient Greek ideals. However, not all themes…

Deceptions Downfall Shakespeare’s characters use deception unlike any other author ever in the play Othello. One of his most deceptive characters ever was Iago, Shakespeare makes the reader feel as if Iago is trying to deceive them. Iago’s mind tricks on unreal he turns lovers on each other even friends however, this deception has a price. Iago’s deceptive nature drive’s him to destroy Othello, Desdemona, Emilia, and himself. Iago’s lack of faith in his companions leads him to deceive…

Dr. Harald Sala once said, “Understanding yourself is a step towards inner peace, and a step nearer achieving your unfulfilled ambitions.” This quote is seen throughout the play Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller, however there are characters in the play that know the meaning of understanding yourself and the happiness of success. Ben in the play is Willy’s older brother and is a form of guidance in Willy’s life, so he has a major impact on Willy and unlike his brother, he is very ambitious.…

Hanna Roan Mrs. Kelly AP Literature Period 2 2 December 2014 Hamlet Essay In the tragic play, Hamlet, by William Shakespeare, honesty and deception is a prevalent theme throughout. The consequences of deception are revealed in many instances throughout the play including characters such as Claudius, Polonius, and Hamlet himself. Claudius is one of the most deceptive characters throughout the entire play. His most important example of deception would be when he lied to everyone about the…

Persuading someone into murdering the king is no doubt about it, that it is a big tragedy. Would you be the one to blame; or the person who committed the crime? In Shakespeare’ - Macbeth there are many answers posed to the question, why Macbeth killed Duncan. Some would say that it was his own quest for power that drove him to kill, while others would say that it was the influence of his power hungry wife. Lady Macbeth is to be blamed because she pushed Macbeth to kill Duncan, when she comes…

Blame defines when someone or something holds the responsibility of a wrong committed by another person. People assign blame to feel better about themselves and the mistake they made, using it as an excuse. As shown in the play, Romeo and Juliet, a series of faults are executed by multiple people unwilling to accept responsibility, causing a chain of events that conclude in the total death of six Capulets and Montagues. Two factors to blame for the untimely death of Romeo and Juliet are…

that the two main emotions that a tragedy seeks to invoke are pity and fear, but Clytaemnestra appears to be a fully pitiable character. Furthermore, her death by the hands of her son seem to emphasize the pitiable state she is in, but she isn’t simply a character worthy of sympathy. Clytaemnestra’s death is not only justifiable, but also deserved, and she is not a character which should be related to Aristotle’s concept of catharsis. The cathartic nature of tragedy that Aristotle writes of in…

Shakespeare play Romeo and Juliet. Considering, Shakespeare invokes feelings of anxiety and makes many students want to shudder in fear, this task was not to be taken lightly. A movie critic Mick LaSalle argues that the modern-day remake is a complete tragedy and eliminates all emotion that the play has to offer, I am going to argue that Baz Luhrmann's modernization of the play still proves it to be a timeless classic and that William Shakespear is a storyteller for all time. Ethics and…

Water is the ultimate contradiction. Its serene at times, while at others it wields devastating power. It is the source of all life, yet it can rip it away with one swift swell. For this reason alone, I find the oceans, lakes, and rivers offer such an array of enjoyment while it commands my respect for its authority. Water not only has the ability to drift from natural states, but it also brings pleasure and pain from its temperature. On a recent vacation I had the pleasure of experiencing…

The Art Form of Humor The Different Views Of Punching Up And Down In “Why Punching Down Will Never Be Funny” by Schaach Koul, she argues that punishing down as in making jokes of those with less power is not funny. I both agree and disagree with her. Comedy has become such a controversial topic. Can a joke be considered funny depending on who is telling the joke or is it based off the intensity of the joke? In my opinion comedy is for entertaining purposes. People should…