Thomas Hardy's Wessex

In the context of the years 875-975 how valid were the claims of Alfred the Great and his successors to be kings of all England? The extent of the authority of the Anglo Saxon kings varied between them, and depended on many factors within their reign including unity within their kingdom, challenges to their authority and what they controlled on a geographical scale as well as social. We have to consider these factors whilst making a well rounded judgement on whether they could claim to be kings of all England. The only King I feel comfortable in supporting of that claim is King Edgar, who enjoyed unwavering authority on a greater extent compared to the others. When considering the claim to legitimacy and who issued them, Edgar’s coronation in 973 is a symbolic event as he was the first Saxon king to be crowned as ‘the king of all English’ rather than label themselves that without ceremony. This already makes Edgar’s claim more valid, as it shows this title was recognized by the clergy that crowned him, and the people under his rule (which included Northumbria and Mercia.) Furthermore, this event hold much symbolism and shows the attitudes towards Edgar, and therefore his authority. In the ‘Chronicon ex chronicis’ it accounts that after eight kings swore fealty to Edgar at Chester, including the king of Scotland and the king of Northumbria, they then rowed him along the river Dee as a show of Edgar’s superiority. Most notably, it is mentioned that Edgar simply steered…

Thomas Hardy is a name well known when it comes to classic literature. Some of his most notable works may include Jude the Obscure, The Return of the Native, The Woodlanders, Wessex Poems, and Under the Greenwood Tree. Thomas Hardy was born on June 2, 1840 in Bockhampton, England, where he grew up in an isolated cottage with his family. He was the oldest of four children and a hard worker, but was often found to be sick. His father was a stonemason and builder while his mother was well-educated…

Freedoms such as being able to vote, express them-selves, and gain a sense of respect from others. Not only was fashion a piece of material back in the 1920’s, but also a form of movement. With the turn of the decade and fashion, women were able to speak for them-selves whether their voices were seen or heard as negative or positive. The Flapper image became negative for the elders but the image allowed young women to be able to grow out of that stage into mature women. Wanting to move out due…

Hobbe’s Claim that the State of Nature is a State of War. Noah Park Ever since the existence of a civilization, the fundamental question of how and why; to identify and explain the human’s nature and how man is ought to live, has been the key element in philosophical world. Many philosophers provided and made public of how they viewed this world as, and the human in it, and experimented themselves with their approaches, however, no philosophers could possibly bring forth the same views as…

Not only did it pave the way for independence for the Americans but it also set the precedent for the end of the traditional royal rule in Europe, even inspiring the French allies of the Americans during the American Revolution to lead their own revolt against their own king. Today, the document is often just known to have declared that the colonies wanted their independence from Britain; however, it expressed much more than just the desire for independence. With true eloquence, Thomas Jefferson…

Founding Brothers by Joseph Ellis is based upon the men and woman who helped build America as to what it is today. They fought hard and long to share their opinions about how they wanted America to run. Throughout this book, we see different stories that show what these men and woman went through to set a foundation for the United States. These men and woman were a significant part in keeping the young republic alive and their friendships and disagreements show why they play a part in this. From…

As humans, we make choices every single day from the moment we wake up each morning. Some of these choices do not seem to affect our lives with much significance, such as what we choose to eat for breakfast. On the other hand, some may change our lives forever, like deciding where to attend college. The choices we make lead to the experiences we have. The texts of Antigone, Saint Augustine: Of Choice and Free Will and Into the Wild contain instances of decisions that led to experiences, which…

capitalistic, trade economy while the South maintained a feudalistic, agrarian economy. Slavery and Western expansion created tensions between the smaller, abolitionist Northern states and the expanding, economically slave-driven Southern states. The “Anti-Federalist 1” document complained about the South’s continued growth as it expanded with Western frontier and continued to gain population through their use of slaves. Many Northern states feared the South would eventually gain political…

The Election of 1800 was monumental: it was the first peaceful transition of power. Never before in history had a transition between two opposing groups occurred without warfare. However, in the United States, this election was the start of opposition, and the transition of power between two separate groups would continue from here, beginning with the transfer of power from Federalist John Adams to Democratic Republican Thomas Jefferson. From this original conflict between the Federalists and…

radical like Alexander Hamilton (1755-1804) who believed that the government should be run by the wealthy to protect the interests of the wealthy. He was the biggest contributor to the Federalists Papers which were written to persuade people over to their side. Now his arch nemesis in politics was Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826) a Democratic Republican who thought that the government should be in place to protect the interests of all of the people. He was probably the most important Democratic…