Shylock Is a Jew in a Predominantly Christian Society Just as Othello Is… Essay Example for Free

Shylock Is a Jew in a Predominantly Christian Society Just as Othello Is†¦ Essay Question: ‘Shylock is a Jew in a predominantly Christian society just as Othello is†¦living in a predominantly white society. But unlike Othello, Shylock rejects the Christian community as firmly as it rejects him. ’ (W. H. Auden, ‘The Dyer’s Hand’, 1963. Quoted in ‘Shakespeare’s Comedies’, edited by Lerner, Penguin 1967. ) In light of the above quotation, compare and contrast Shakespeare’s presentation of prejudice, considering how audiences of different periods might react to it. (2000 words) Shylock’s presentation of prejudice has been received in immeasurably different ways by audiences of different generations, and the portrayal of the attitudes of Shylock and Othello towards their intolerant societies are ones that still arguably offer a valuable view towards prejudice in our present-day societies. ‘Shylock is a Jew’. Four words from the above quotation which arguably encapsulate the main running theme throughout the whole of The Merchant of Venice. From a Venetian viewpoint, Shylock is a Jew; therefore he is different; therefore we will exclude him. Shakespeare shows this through many different examples, from the racist views expressed by ‘good Antonio’, to the expressions used by the high courts of Venice; the Christian community expressing a certain divide and prejudice towards Shylock and the Jewish minority. This ‘rejection’ of the Jews is notably explored in the views expressed by Antonio early on in the play, when the loan of ‘three thousand ducats’ is negotiated. Bassanio attempts to convince Shylock through kind words and offers of dinner- the ‘Christian’ way of kindness; possibly the only instance of kindness offered to Shylock throughout the entire play. However, as soon as Antonio enters, the tone changes; Shylock goes from being referred to as ‘sir’ by Bassanio to ‘The devil’ by Antonio. Antonio would ‘spit on thee again’, and this particular example highlights that, despite the fact Antonio is attempting to receive a loan from Shylock, prejudice is still inherent in his every word and action. The Christian community ‘rejects’ Shylock, no matter what he may do of benefit to them; and, as a result, is rejected in like. The harsh treatment Shylock receives (such as curfew and a barrage of cuss-words) is reflected in the way that he ‘rejects the Christian community as firmly as it rejects him’; for example, when offered dinner, Shylock launches into an expletive, hate-fuelled speech about Christianity, claiming that pork is ‘the habitation which your prophet the Nazarite conjured the devil into’, and firmly stating that he ‘will not eat with you, drink with you, nor pray with you’. Shylock is rejecting the Christian community with every moral fibre in his body, and seems to only take the bond of Antonio to hold some kind of leverage above him, namely the term of ‘the forfeit/ Be nominated for an equal pound/ Of your fair flesh’; a foolishly agreed term that is taken full advantage of. Shylock is treated harshly, and as a result takes full advantage of the fact that legally he can kill Antonio; thus rejecting the Christian community. Othello, however, is the polar opposite of Shylock’s ‘stand-alone’ attitude; though being the outsider ‘in a predominantly white society’, he attempts to fit in, and be loved by the aristocratic Venetians. Shakespeare presents the prejudice inherent in Venetian society in a slightly different way; though Shylock and Othello both are used by the ‘majorities’, and thrown out when not needed, Shakespeare presents a play that explores the prejudice through a different angle. Othello is the war-hardy soldier needed by the whole of Venetian society to fight the Turkish aggressors, who angers Venetian society by taking a white woman; Shylock is a Jew whose possessions are needed by Antonio alone, who angers Venetian society by daring to claim what is rightfully his. In Othello the audience receives an impression that, though Iago is manoeuvring everybody towards his own aims, Othello is clearly in the wrong when murdering his wife; therefore he is rejected by the ‘society’, and this is morally ‘right’. In The Merchant of Venice the audience feels that, actually, Shylock is morally wronged by the Christians; and this rejection by society leaves a bitter taste. An audience in Elizabethan times would have been left with (in both plays) a feeling of discontentment in the treatment of the two key characters; despite the obvious inherent prejudice in society at this time towards ‘moors’ and Jews, Shakespeare’s manipulations of stereotypes in his works (e. g.the ‘kind’, Christian Antonio is an oppressive character who almost gets his comeuppance) were aimed to alter (or at least make the audience question) their views on minorities. Shakespeare’s portrayal of Shylock can easily be seen as a plea for tolerance towards the Jewish community in England at the time. For example, Shylock’s famous ‘If you prick us, do we not bleed? ’ speech is designed to throw a human perspective on the matter; that the ‘Jews’- peoples that have been so discriminated against that any racism against Jews has its own nametag are human too. Shylock’s most memorable speech is a cry for humanity and equality, which has resounded down the ages. As Alexander Granach (a German actor who portrayed Shylock in the 1920s) in his autobiography ‘From the Shtetl to the Stage: The Odyssey of a Wandering Actor’ writes; Shakespeare ‘gave Shylock human greatness and spiritual strength and a great lonelinessthings that turn Antonios gay, singing, sponging, money-borrowing, girl-stealing, marriage-contriving circle into petty idlers and sneak thieves. ’ This will undoubtedly have had a slight effect on the audience, showing them that the supposed ‘villain’ of the piece is simply following a twisted, unmerciful version of the ‘Golden Rule’, an ethic of reciprocity that is cited in Christianity; ‘do unto others as you would have them do unto you’. In this play, Shylock is indeed doing ‘unto others’ how they do unto him. Shylock’s actions, instead of being a stereotypical cruel, vengeful Jew who only cares about his ‘diamond gone (that) cost me two thousand ducats’, are transformed by Shakespeare into an often-misinterpreted statement about the hypocrisy inherent in both society and religion at this time. Shakespeare’s magic lies in the fact that he managed to change two persecuted minorities, who prior to being dramatically personified by Shakespeare had been held up in plays as mockeries of creatures, to human beings with the emotional capacity to feel love and hate. Othello is no longer a ‘black ram’ held up by Iago as crudely ‘topping (the) white ewe’, he has become a symbol of the outsider used for other’s purposes. In Othello’s doing of ‘ta’en’ of Desdemona, he turns Venetian society against him, and is only needed for the purposes of defeating the Ottomans. 300 years on, and this example is still relevant; Paul Robinson, a black actor who went on to portray Othello on Broadway in 1943, drew comparisons between Othello’s situation and the situation of a coloured man in America in the 1930s; ‘while (Othello) could be valuable as a fighter he was tolerated, just as a negro who could save New York from a disaster would become a great man overnight†¦however, as soon as Othello wanted a white woman†¦everything was changed, just as New York would be indignant if their coloured man married a white woman’. In this way, Shakespeare’s portrayal of minorities is relevant for all societies where ethnical persecution takes place, no matter what the time period. However, Shakespeare’s underlying meaning of equality has been twisted. David H. Lawrence famously quoted ‘Never trust the artist, trust the tale’; and indeed, this ha what happened with Shakespeare’s intentions for Shylock and the grim reality. For example, the character of Shylock was used in anti-semetic propaganda by Hitler in Nazi Germany to promote the scapegoating of the Jews; Shylock is held up by a local newspaper in Konigsberg, Germany in 1935 as ‘cowardly and malicious’ when ‘properly understood’, a line that undermines both the intelligence and self-esteem of local people upon reading (in that they did not read enough into the play), and the true meaning of The Merchant of Venice. Upon saying that the deeper meaning is that Shylock is cowardly and malicious, they are mistaking the shallow, surface meaning for a deeper one. As Harold Bloom commented in 1999, ‘It would have been better for the Jewish people had Shakespeare never written this play’; here, Bloom is obviously commenting on the fact that people only took away the shallow meaning, not the deeper, politically-charged (for the times) meaning that Shakespeare is attempting to convey. In a manner seemingly parallel to that of Nazi Germany, Shakespeare’s messages are being sorely misunderstood even nowadays. Shakespeare and his plays (in present-day, less inherently racist society) are being taken away from younger generations, such as in British schools whose teaching is becoming impeded by the P.C nature of today’s ‘Big Society’. Texts and plays key to British education (such as ‘Of Mice and Men’ and ‘Othello’) are being considered to blatent in their language (eg. ‘whore’, ‘moor’) to be studied at an age of 15/16; in an age when arguably the anti-racist messages of Shakespeare need to be implemented. In this way, whilst previous generations of audiences may have held up Shakespeare’s ‘Othello’ and ‘Merchant of Venice’ as examples of injustice and hypocrisy, today’s audiences are holding them up as too blatent in their use of ‘inappropriate language’. Shakespeare’s messages of equality are, once again, being misunderstood; especially if people do not understand the messages that ‘the Great Bard’ is attempting to convey. For example, in 2008, nine students at the Yesodey Hatorah Senior Girls School (a Jewish comprehensive school) in Hackney in East London refused to sit an exam on ‘The Tempest’ purely because they felt that Shakespeare was anti-semetic owing to his severely-misunderstood portrayal of Shylock. Othello has also often been held up and received down the centuries as purely a negative stereotype; even as recently as 2008. Robert Fisk writes in ‘The Guardian’ that ‘Othello was a Moor, a black Muslim, a mercenary (in the service of Venice) – and a wife killer’. One can assume that this is how he would have been viewed in most predominantly-white countries up until the fall of racism and the increase of diversity; thus missing the fact that Iago is both the catalyst and trouble-starter. The mannerisms and attitudes of the characters provide a key insight into the prejudices inherent in society, through both the actions and thought-processes provided by Shakespeare. For example, Othello almost unconsciously uses racist terms to describe himself, providing a derogatory edge to his words. This is shown best in the soliloquys given to Othello, especially when he doubts the good nature of Desdemona; he feels that his ‘name, that was as fresh As Dians visage, is now begrimed and black, As mine own face’, i. e. that his previously good nature is now smeared. However, Othello associates his own face as ‘begrimed and black’, in that he sees his very self as something dirty- and that white (i. e. ‘Dian’s visage’, a marble-white Greek goddess) as something good, clean, and pure. Othello appears to have internalised the racist ideologies preached by Venetians such as Brabantio, and this especially comes to heed in the murder of Desdemona. Seeds planted by Iago act as a catalyst to the problem put in the open by Brabantio at the start of the play; that Desdemona would never ‘Run from her guardage to the sooty bosom Of such a thing as thou’. This, ultimately, is something that the entire play relies on; this comment, made in the heat of the moment by Brabantio, ultimately delivers death unto his daughter. Othello begins to doubt Desdemona’s love and honour due to the fact that he has internalised such racist opinions as ‘blacks and whites should not mix’, and is driven crazy by this. As already mentioned, Robert Fisk spoke of the ways in which Othello would have been viewed; not as somebody noble, but as somebody ‘different’, and (though many in the Elizabethan audience may have been able to sympathise with the beating of Desdemona) a ‘wife killer’; and indeed, this is a way in which some still see him today. Shakespeare, just like Othello and Shylock, lived in a predominantly white and Christian society, and recognised the prejudices inherent in English society; indeed, his plays reflected society. However, as Chung-hsuan Tung wrote, ‘Shakespeare recognizes the existence of racial differences but he is not a racist. Shakespeare is†¦an impartial, humanitarian dramatist preaching interracial liberty, equality, and fraternity. ’ Bibliography. Alexander Granach ‘From the Shtetl to the Stage: The Odyssey of a Wandering Actor’ Paul Robinson – ‘My Fight for Fame; How Shakespeare Paved My Way to Stardom’ The Merchant of Venice, Edited by John Russell Brown, ‘the Arden Shakespeare’, 2007 Othello, edited by E. A. J. Honigman, ‘the Arden Shakespeare’, 1997 John Gross – ‘Shylock: A legend and its Legacy’ Robert Fisk – ‘Offended by Shakespeare? Let’s ban him. ’ Guardian, 8th March 2008. Harold Bloom ‘It would have been better for the Jewish people had Shakespeare never written this play’, 1999. Chung hsuan-Tung – ‘The Jew and the Moor: Shakespeare’s Racial Vision’, 2008.

The Effects of Political and Demographic Variables on Christian Coalition Scores :: Christianity Christian Religion Essays Research

The Effects of Political and Demographic Variables on Christian Coalition Scores One of the most interesting phenomena in American politics is the recent rise of the Christian right. First termed the "Moral Majority" by Jerry Falwell in the late 1970s, the Christian Right has undergone a name and a leader change. The Christian Coalition is currently led by Pat Robertson who seeks to continue much of the early work pioneered by the Moral Majority. The Moral Majority sought to reintroduce Christian principles into the political sphere. The Christian Coalition focuses on continuing these efforts in an attempt to reverse "the moral decay that threatens our great nation" (Christian Coalition, 1996). The purpose of this research is to measure the political and demographic variables on House representatives' frequency of voting with the Christian Coalition agenda. This is measured by the Christian Coalition's Congressional Scorecard as the percentage a representative supports the position held by the Coalition. The independent variables used in this research include: party affiliation of the representative, how the district voted in the 1988 presidential election, the percent minority in the district of voting age, percentage of district who had attended some college, and the median household income of the district. These are examined to analyze their independent and collective effect on the representative's frequency of supporting the Christian Coalition (CC) agenda. The following hypotheses are the expected empirical patterns based upon logic and conventional wisdom. It is expected that party affiliation will be a major factor in the frequency of a representative voting with the CC agenda, regardless of the non-partisan claim made by the CC organization. Specifically, if a representative were a Republican, she or he would vote more consistently with the CC agenda than a Democrat. Additionally, it is hypothesized that the greater a district's vote for Republican George Bush in the 1988 presidential election, the higher their representative's support for the CC agenda. This assumption is based on the belief that a Republican vote for president would generally translate into the election of a Republican or at the least, a conservative Democrat representative. With regard to the percent minorities in a district, it is hypothesized that because high concentrations of minorities tend to live in urban areas, which tend to receive a large portion of social services and entitlements, the elected representative would not vote in favor of the CC agenda which often seeks to limit federal spending in these areas.

Marketing to Baby Boomers

The Baby Boomers generation is generally classified by the children born after World War II; specifically anyone born between 1946 and 1964. The veterans, as we know them today came back from war, settled down, got married and had children. This was a great time in America as their economy was improving vastly as opposed to other nations of the world. It was a time of affluence, particularly in the Western side of the world. The â€Å"boom† describes the greatly increasing birth rate at these times. As seen in the following diagram, birth rates were higher than ever during 1946 and 1964, with a very close second in the late 1980’s and very early 1990’s. Currently, there are 78 million baby boomers in America, accounting for 40% of the adult population. This gives motivation to marketers to want to sell to this age segment. Persons 45 and older are responsible for 55% of the total consumer spending in the U. S. Marketers are striving to segment the market in such a way, that they will be able to target this age group and market directly to them. There is a vast difference in the ages of Baby Boomers. 1946 to 1964 accounts for a maximum age difference of 18 years. It is important to notice that those who are the older boomers, also called the ‘Golden Boomers’ would have different needs to be satisfied that those that are younger. This age segment can then be further segmented into the golden boomers who, today would be between the ages of 65 and 56, and the younger baby boomers being 55 and 47. Sub-Segmented Baby Boomers The maturing market segment as classified by Moschis, Lee, Mathur, & Strautman, in their book â€Å"The Maturing Marketplace; Buying Habits of Baby Boomers and Their Parents†, can be broken down into four main categories. Firstly, there are the Healthy Indulgers (18%) who are the more affluent and focus more on enjoying life than their careers. They tend to engage in purchasing activities that revolve around their own independence. Secondly are the Healthy Hermits (36%) who have experienced some attitude-changing occurrence in life such as the death of a spouse, and are in turn socially withdrawn. Marketing strategies that focus on conformity work well amongst this segment as they try not to stand out. The following two categories are less affluent than the previously mentioned segments. They are also the segments that look forward to their own house or appartment, as opposed to the previous that intend to move into a retirement home or a nursing home. The third group are the Ailing outgoers. These represent 29 % of the baby boomers. These are people who have accepted their â€Å"old age† but are still willing to get the most out of life and tend to be influenced by money-saying incentives. Lastly are Frail Recluses (17%) who are very similar to the ailing outgoers, however they have accepted spirituality into their lives and keep high spirits through their strengthened faiths. Information that is very interesting to the marketer is that not all individuals stay in one group in their life time. A healthy hermit might be influenced to join a church and increase their knwoledge of faith, thus leading to a switch to be more likfe frail recluses. Also, these segments don’t have set boundaries, and persons are more likely to be classifed by one of those four sub-sections by leading, defining characteristics, rather than completely defined through all the expected qualities. The experiences that each person goes through is what really puts them in any particular group. The Baby- Boomer Misconception A problem that many companies face is their set perception of older generations. There is a stigma that they don’t really have an opinion on what they buy and they will buy the products anyway. This is a sure way to failure when having goods produced for this age segment. Another mistake commonly made by firms is the misconception that â€Å"Baby Boomers have never grown up. † They believe that when targeting to younger generations, the marketing will reach the baby boomers as well. Though baby boomers have been recently showing tendencies of younger generations that do not fit the general description of their age group, such as openness to new experiences, and engaging in activities that are health and fitness revolved, this is not a reason to assume they will be influenced by the same marketing schemes targeted at younger generations. What Nyren suggests from his text is that infomercials is the upcoming media for marketing toward baby boomers. This age segment has a longer attention span, and they want to know more information on the products they buy. More times than not, the television ads that last 30 seconds are perceptively dismissed, and would not have had any impact on them. Perhaps then, the companies that market to this segment, should redirect their marketing efforts toward 30 minute commercials. There is a stigma attached to infomercials that they are long air-time wasting nonsense that no one watches, and for the most part, it’s true; these are not the infomercials that would grab the attention of the baby boomer. They want to gain more knowledge. They want to be informed before making purchasing decision, and infomercials tend to give the time needed for explanations. The trick is indeed to find a way to captivate the target market’s attention. According to the authors of â€Å"The Maturing Marketplace†, the baby boomers are heavily influenced by price specials and reductions. These are likely to be in the their top considerations when making several types of purchases such as hotels, airlines or cruises. On the topic of travel, they majority notion is that they enjoy travelling, but do not have the funds for it. Also, they are concerned that if they do have the funds for it now, after the recession, and they spend it on this leisurely experience, that they may not have funds for future necessities like their own health care, and funds to take of their families. In theory, an infomercial about a cruise that is targeted toward this age segment, that focuses on getting value for your money and having readily available medical attention is likely to be very effective. Purchasing Behaviour of Baby Boomers Marketers have to accept that marketing to any group with all the greatest efforts will still not always be as effective as one would like it to be. This is again because of one’s predisposition toward a product or message because of one’s experiences. A person who might have had a bad experience with a Russian individual may be inclined to stay away from products manufactured in Russia. However, marketers must still try to market these groups directly by attempting to find out their values and market their product in a way that would appeal to these values. Through much research, several values have been found that relate to baby boomers more than any other age segment. The first of many values is independence. This generation throughout time has redefined that age group at that time; they never stuck to their elder’s traditional values and beliefs. Whereas older generations tended to be more party-loyal with regards to politics, the baby boomer generation always had to know more about the parties, and the issues that affected them and that the parties stood for. Their independence also stemmed from the availability of options given to them that were not offered to their elders. They grew up in a time of affluence, and this ability for choice stuck with them throughout the years. This is an interesting value to be known by marketers as they would want to appeal to this. Positioning products in the minds of these consumers as giving them their independence, especially as they are now getting to a stage in their lives where they may require help, would be quite effective. A value that is held so dearly to the baby boomer is individualism. Again, stemming from their years being brought up, they were able to create their own paths, and basically be whoever they so chose. This is why life- insurance companies that offer customized plans do quite well. The individual wants to feel that their status is being considered, and that that they have choices with regards to costs and other aspects of a life- insurance plan. Another value is humanity. This is reflected in their desire for better customer service. A company with friendly, helpful staff is definitely much more appreciated than those without. Though this group highly upholds independence, they also want to know that when they go to purchase an item at a store, that they will be given the appropriate attention, and that the sales person would be competence in their field. The invention of the automated answering machine that are so popularly used by companies today are abhorred by this generation. They want to talk to a real person, who would assist them as necessary. These companies have implemented these answering machines to save on salaries. However, they are losing out on a lot more than that amount because people are straying away from that. They are taking their business elsewhere. Comfort is a value that is upheld by the baby boomers. They want products that will fit well into their lives. They want commodities that will be compatible with their routines. The marketer of a product such a diabetes testing machine, a product that would be necessary in their lives once diagnosed with diabetes, should position the product as easy to use, and quick. This is extended to other related values such as easily read literature on drugs. A marketer of a pharmacy should market his pharmacy as convenient for all their pharmaceutical needs. This then leads to the next value. Convenience is very important those in this age segment. Most of these values go hand in hand, though many marketers, as mentioned before, have the belief that this age segment is going to buy their products anyway. Baby boomers want the added convenience that they can be offered. When choosing a housing arrangement, they would to know that if needed, medical attention would be readily available and easy to attain. As mentioned previously, baby boomers take a lot of time when considering prices. Special deals and price reductions appeal to them a lot; money- saving incentives such as coupons, rebates and acceptance of various discount cards are considered by the baby boomers when deciding on what product to purchase. Youthfulness seems to be quite important today to the baby boomers. This however is sometimes misunderstood. The Baby boomers want to be healthy, and fit at their age. They are comfortable with the age that they are at, however, they want to be able to enjoy their lives to the fullest. This is why many belong to health and fitness clubs. The misconceptions lies in the thought that they want to dress like younger generations, and involve themselves in activities typical of generation xers and younger; this is certainly not true. They don’t want to engage in the activities, but they want the feeling of being younger. They want that their age not be a limitation to the sense of thrill and excitement that they would have felt when they were younger. The baby boomers want to feel secure. Security is a great need of baby boomers. However, they require different types of security; financial security, home security, security of mind with regards to their health. Financial services marketed to the baby boomers have to take into consideration the various segments of baby boomers. For example, brokerage firms specifically target healthy hermits. The home security marketers would target the more affluent of the baby boomers because they would have their homes and their valuable items to secure. Again, health security is one that is gained through comfort of mind. Firms targeting baby boomer health would be successful with tactics employing round- the- clock ambulance services. Life Alert is a company that does quite well because of its attention to the security that that age segment requires. Though older generations than baby boomers would be more appealed to such an item, the older baby boomers are retiring and want that peace of mind that comes that is satisfied by Life Alert. A value that is well- known through the Maslow’s hierarchy of needs if self-actualization. Baby boomers tend to be intrinsically motivated; they are interested in engaging in activities that will give them insight to themselves. They are still searching for what makes them them and they are impacted by advertising focused on this need. Future Expectations of The Baby Boomer Segment By 2029, the last of the baby boomers would turn 65 and are likely to represent 16% of the population. Currently, the oldest baby boomers are entering retirement, and as they represent 25% of the population, 18 years of pension payments are to be paid. The concern of many is that the payment of these pensions would be a burden on younger generations. Marketing toward their independence would bring great returns as they would feel like burdens to society. Health- insurance companies and financial service companies should target this segment now, in a way that would appeal to their secure futures. Beachbody and Baby Boomers The image above is one of the many that are found in the testimonials for Beach Body’s well-known fitness program, P90X. The woman seen above is Mary Crawford, who was a 61 year old out of shape, complacent woman. She used the beachbody products over the course of two years, starting with the Power 90 series, then on to the Power 90 Master series, and then started the P90X program. The infomercial for this program can be seen on a variety of cable stations that describe how high- impact it really is. Typically, one would not assume that a woman of 60+ would want to engage in such an activity. However, that is the view that is making marketers failures. Those were the opinions of baby boomer’s elders. Today’s 47- 65 year old cohorts are willing to do what it takes to be fit and healthy. Team Beach Body is appeals to the baby boomers in several ways. Firstly, it appeals to their desire for the feeling of youth. Being healthy and fit is a major need for these people and they are able to attain this through beachbody’s programs. Secondly, it appeals to their value of comfort. Beachbody offers an array of products for different levels of fitness. Like Ms. Crawford, someone would be able to go from very low fitness to an able- bodied, fit person. The infomercials are highly effective among this group because of its expansion on the product. It gives detailed descriptions of how the program works and how it is different from other programs. Also, Tony Horton, the creator of P90X has a sense of care to him. He seems to truly care about the people he is helping with his product, and this is important to the baby boomers. He too, being born in 1958 is a baby boomer as such is an inspiration to other baby boomers. He is a sought after trainer to many. His infomercial is one that was able to catch the attention of many because unlike other infomercial that promise quick results with little effort, Tony Horton explains how the P90X program is a high intensity one that requires time and effort. At first, to a marketer, this seems almost blasphemous. However, it has proven to be effective. The baby boomers, being information seekers, want to gain information on products before purchasing. Tony Horton was able to present his program with extensive information and be honest, and that is what caught the attention of many. References https://www.beachbody.com/text/success/2008/gamewinners/ss_maryc.html http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-11-18/beachbody-thinking-beyond-the-infomercial.html

Disillusionment In The Jungle - 1399 Words

In the politically righteous book, The Jungle by Upton Sinclair, a newly wed’s feeling of innocence and happiness after their beautiful wedding in their homeland come to an end following the reality of discovering their new life in America. The notion comes from the disillusionment of American freedom and the twisted advertisement of a capitalist system. America was systematically built to be corrupt and dehumanized the significance of individual existence. This was done by easily replacing, deceiving and exploiting people for the self-interest of the wealthy. The Jungle depicts the exploitation of immigrant lives in Packingtown, a town near Chicago. The small industrialized town is filled with oppressing poverty, dangerous and†¦show more content†¦He becomes a tireless advocate for socialism and gets a job as a porter in a socialist-run hotel. People s lives matter more than the meat and food industry. The world does not revolve around taking advantage of the poor working class and treating them like active robots. Humans are living, not inanimate. Humans are the equivalent to animals in the meat industry for the purpose of profit. Jurgis tours the slaughterhouse. He describes the detachment in the work environment with the slaughtering and packaging of hogs. The hogs are not treated kindly or even thought of as animals just as sales. â€Å"There was a long line of hogs, being simultaneously swung up and then another, and another squealing] and lifeblood ebbing away together.† (Sinclair 39) There is an orderly way to set up the slaughterhouse to distract the poor immigrants of the American lifestyle. The worker wants to give more to their family and add to their financial status even if it means being away from their home country. Businesses take advantage of workers valuing their work ethic more than the idea of being miserable at work so it is done continuously with no remorse. This social construct was built and implied because no one could protest against a life that helps them survive in the America s capitalism. People and animals areShow MoreRelated Heart of Darkness, Hollow Men, and Apocalypse Now Essay1398 Words   |  6 Pagescollapsed under the force of the savage and barbaric darkness. He visits the Congo and is transformed into this man of the jungle. The character of Kurtz is similar in Apocalypse Now; he is a highly decorated general in the vietnam war and Kurtz goes into the jungle leading him to turn into a man of the jungle. Mr. Kurtz one day loses it and goes crazy. He goes off into the jungles of Vietnam and starts terrorizing villages with his crazy actions and beliefs. In Coppolas Apocalypse Now there is a sceneRead MoreEssay on Heart of Darkness981 Words   |  4 PagesVictorian era, yet when he travels into the Congo, where these qualities are of no consequence, he abandons them to become wild. To understand how Kurtz fell to this emotional corruptness, a reader must be aware of three main elements that caused his disillusionment: power, greed, and isolation. When Kurtz was living in England, he was a follower of the island’s ruling party and conducted tasks amongst the supervision of its magistrates. Under these conditions, most of his actions were in abidance toRead MoreThe Illusions Of American Dream1448 Words   |  6 Pagesraces or countries) join the community, and give them equal rights to these â€Å"outsiders† to what they think fit. Human will naturally tend to protect their own circles and remain vigilance to the outside world, thus, it is not an easy thing to do. The Jungle described the tragic experience of the Jurgis family who are immigrants from Lithuania. In order to make a living in America, the Jurgis and his fiancà ©e, Ona, moved to America and came to Chicago to find a job. However, what they are facing is theRead MoreThe Jungle by Upton Sinclair: Fame for the Wrong Reason Essay2798 Words   |  12 Pagesthe immigrants living in Packingtown, the meatpacking district of Chicago. Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle portrays life through the eyes of a poor workingman struggling to survive in this cruel, tumultuous environment, where the desire for profit among the capitalist meatpacking bosses and the criminals makes the lives of the working class a nearly unendurable struggle for survival. The novel The Jungle is a hybrid of history, literature, and propaganda. Sinclair, a muckraking journalist of the earlyRead MoreThe 1950s : A Decade Of Prosperity, Conformity, And Consensus1470 Words   |  6 PagesKylie Suitum Hist 406 Final Paper 12/11/15 Historians tend to portray the 1950’s as a decade of prosperity, conformity, and consensus, and the 1960’s as a decade of turbulence, protest, and disillusionment. Do you agree or disagree with this view? Show evidence to support your argument. With the overwhelming amount of Levittown houses, the obsession to obtain the perfect American â€Å"ideal family† as seen on TV and the unspoken agreement to fear any and all foreign ideas and values, the 1950s wereRead More Loss of Innocence in Heart of Darkness Essay1723 Words   |  7 PagesLoss of Innocence in Heart of Darkness      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Heart of Darkness is Joseph Conrads tale of one mans journey, both mental and physical, into the depths of the wild African jungle and the human soul. The seaman, Marlow, tells his crew a startling tale of a man named Kurtz and his expedition that culminates in his encounter with the voice of Kurtz and ultimately, Kurtzs demise. The passage from Part I of the novel consists of Marlows initial encounter with the natives of this placeRead MoreLack of Morality in War Depicted in Tim OBriens The Things They Carried1017 Words   |  5 Pagesno chance of survival if they did not kill any opposing soldier that stepped in their way. In this sense, their morality is completely shifted to serve the war itself; they become dehumanized and serve as vessels to kill or become lost in Vietnam’s jungle. While on this mission, when confronted with a traumatic event, instead of a typical reaction like crying, the men would resort to violence to express their pain. For ex ample, when Curt Lemon, Rat Kiley’s best friend stepped on a mine and was killedRead More Oppositions in Joseph Conrads Heart of Darkness Essay1209 Words   |  5 Pagespsychologically, avoiding having to admit that everyone needs some illusions.   No one can deal with the complete unadorned truth, not even men.   Kurtz entered the jungle with illusions of civilizing the natives; later, when he realizes what has actually happened and exclaims, The horror!   The horror! he dies (86).   The disillusionment kills him.   Marlow, also, loses some illusions; however, he manages to create some others for himself, like the idea that he does not need illusions after all.   ThisRead More Light and Dark in Apocalypse Now and Heart of Darkness Essay1677 Words   |  7 Pagesis beyond the bounds of normal society as he begins narrating Apocalypse Now from his hotel room in Saigon. He explains: When I was here [at the war] I wanted to be there [back home]. When I was there al l I could think of was getting back into the jungle(AP). Willard is outside of society but is hanging on slightly by his connection to the Army. This connection is a weak one, because of the nature of war and the fact that in war the laws of normal society are not applicable. Kurtz though, has takenRead MoreBritish Literature Essay1614 Words   |  7 PagesHolmes and he makes one of the greatest detective story writers of all times. Rudyard Kipling – he was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature as a first British author. He wrote the shot stories about Indian, the sea, the jungle and its animals – The Jungle Book, the Second Jungle Book. John Galsworthy – he got the Nobel Prize for literature in 1932, he was a critical novelist, dramatist and shortstory writer. His most known book is Forsyte saga – describes upper middle class family. James Joyce