Kailash Kher once said, "The worst affected from corruption is the common man." Kher's quote encompasses the idea that not even the beautiful, renowned, or rich are exempt from the problems that come from living and from ignoring reality, as these are shared human struggles. In the play Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Tennessee Williams attempts to make understood the corruption suffered by three members of the seemingly ordinary Pollitt family, Brick, his father, Big Daddy, and Brick's wife, Maggie, as they struggle through familial tension and arguments that intertwine with lies and warped perceptions. Human nature's worst traits befall the Pollit family and create insatiable greed and resistance to discrepancies from the norm. William's play is …show more content…
Brick's wife, Maggie, attempts to twist morality so that she appears more likable. Maggie is suffering because Brick will not make love to her, and during a discussion with Brick she "steps out of her dress" and "stands in a slip of ivory satin and lace" (18). Maggie's undergarment is ironic, it is white, the color of purity and virginity, yet she describes how she misses making love with Brick. The white garment is worn under Maggie's normal clothes because her real intentions are innocent and pure and not exposed to the rest of the world, she only wants love from her husband. Although her intentions are clean and righteous, her only goal is to have the undergarment removed, exploiting the idea of purity. Like his wife, Brick also has a slurred sexual symbol, the crutch, which alludes to the reason he cannot love Maggie. Brick's crutch is a symbol of his own phallus which is being restrained due to the possibility of his homosexuality. During an intense conversation with Big Daddy Brick attempts to leave the room so Big Daddy "jerks (Brick's) crutch from under (him)" which is met by the cries of Brick saying, "Big Daddy! give me my crutch" and upon receiving it, Brick "flees in horror" (103,105). Big Daddy taking away Brick's crutch symbolizes Brick's homosexuality being repressed. As he continuously denies to Big Daddy that he and Skipper had anything but a close friendship Big Daddy steals his sons crutch. Big Daddy does not wish to see his son for what he truly is and would rather take pull away the possibility that his son as a homosexual than contrast the ideal family values. Brick begs for the crutch back he wants to fit in and not be exposed for who he truly is, which is something he cannot bring himself to accept. Maggie's perversion of innocence and Brick's repression show the couple attempting to mask themselves in order to fit in
The main character of the book, Allison Mackenzie, came from a middle-class family that owned a home off Chestnut Street. Her mother, Constance, owned a shop in town called the Thrifty Corner Apparel Shoppe. Allison was born out of wedlock and her father was out of the picture. Constance was ashamed of this fact and hide her secret past from society. The situation surrounding Allison was an example of the time period’s denial of family dysfunction.
When someone has committed a crime, they are put on trial and they go through the motions of the judicial system. In 12 Angry Men, Reginald Rose creates a play that displays the judicial system in its truest form. It tells the story of the jury, as they have to come to a unanimous verdict of whether the defendant is guilty, innocent, guilty beyond a reasonable doubt, of murder. The main conflict that the jurors face in the play is whether to charge him as guilty or not. Through the conflict in the book, the flaws in the justice system are illustrated and reasonable doubt appears.
Throughout history and literature, symbols have been used to represent the bigger picture or main ideas. This allows the reader to illustrate the symbol in their head and have a much better overall understanding of the book. A number of times during Golding’s Lord of the Flies, he uses symbols to illustrate the boys’ destruction and fall from order into savagery. The regression of the boys’ civilization is evident through Golding’s symbolic use of the conch shell, the signal fire and the beastie. All are critical for expressing Golding’s overall message.
Mark Twain once said, “No country can be well governed unless its citizens as a body keep religiously before their minds the guardians of the law, and the law officers are only the machinery for its execution, nothing more.” In the Gilded Age, which was from 1869 to 1896, politicians ignored their obligation to execute and protect the laws of this nation in favor of lining their own pockets. Presidential administrations and presidential candidates were often time could in corruption scandals that showed how they were stealing the American people’s money. The Grant administration probably being the most notable example of this corruption. Low-level political officers were also a party in the corruption of the gilded age, with corrupt big bosses
One can understand that corruption can be the reason for many downfalls within a country. This can be seen through many different perspectives, such as through dishonesty, fraud, or even criminality. The novel, Sula, by Toni Morrison, takes this idea to a new concept by reflecting on world wide issues that have previously occurred from around the world. It uses real life issues in order to help readers relate back to the text, and have a stronger comprehension of what the author is trying to have the readers understand. In this best selling novel, the characters convey the ways that social corruption has caused a lack of equality and human rights to be developed, and established in the society that they live in.
Throughout the novel, If Beale Street Could Talk, written by James Baldwin, there is a common theme of corruption of the police and the racism against African-Americans in the criminal justice system. The main character Fonny, is accused multiple times of crimes he did not commit and because of this, his fate cannot be determined and he slowly loses hope for himself. The way that Baldwin writes this novel shows how much African-Americans suffered even after the civil rights movements in America. Fonny is wrongfully arrested and charged with rape as a result of the corruption of the police. For example, he was not even in the same area as where the rape was supposedly committed and when they did the police lineup he was the only African-American, which proves that there was
Title The Great Gatsby is a book that contains an abundance of motifs. F Scott Fitzgerald uses these motifs very masterfully to enhance the novel The Great Gatsby. One of the motifs that he uses is that money corrupts. The corruption is shown in many different ways and through many different people.
The thugs looked over to find where the howling was coming from and Lemon Brown lunged himself at them, causing himself to roll down the stairs. The thugs went outside of the house and after awhile they left. After seeing how much Lemon Brown adored his treasures, Greg realized that his dad caring so much for him meant everything. Greg now appreciates the lectures about decisions he was trying to make. Greg’s treasure was his relationship with his father all because of Lemon Brown’s story.
Of the numerous themes from Harper Lee’s famous novel, To Kill A Mockingbird, one stands out, injustice. This subject appears multiple times throughout the book. Firstly, Mr. Ewell demonstrates injustice towards the Finch family by insulting them and harming them. Again injustice shows itself in Tom Robinson’s false accusation. Lastly, this horrible topic becomes apparent in Aunt Alexandra’s actions towards Calpurnia.
Throughout the play, readers can unquestionably witness the
She deliberately avoids her and her new sense of self-righteousness. Maggie's lack of exposure to society makes her weak in her sister's eyes and vulnerable to her sister's pretentious attitude toward what is owed to Maggie. Dee disturbs the peace by proclaiming, "Maggie can't appreciate these quilts!” It is clear that Dee believes that she deserves to receive whatever she wants, yet Maggie never fights for what she is already entitled
John Webster, the great Elizabethan dramatist was little admired during his life time. The Elizabethans failed to appraise his genius as a dramatist and after his death he fell for nearly two hundred years into the lap of oblivion to be brought back into the limelight by the criticism of such distinguished critics as Lamb, Swinburne, Rupert Brooke, who popularised his works and establised his claim to be recognised as a great dramatist of Elizabethan age. But now the tide has turned in Webster 's favour and he is recognised today not as a dramatist who carried forward the revenge theme in drama but as a great poet, and above all, a great moralist, who held aloft the moral vision of life at a time when the dramatists of the age were piling horror and glorifying murder into a fine art. This tragedy THE DUCHESS OF MALFI, the revenge is further degraded and the moral motive of the dramatist come to the forefront. There are some influences of other Elizabethan authors.
Repressed Homosexuality in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof In the play, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, American play writer and author, Tennessee Williams, creates a piece that brings attention to a very dysfunctional, Southern family due to dishonesty, greed and concealed emotions. This story takes place around the 1950s and is centered on a broken, alcohol-loving man named Brick, his vivacious wife named Maggie, and their extremely… unusual family, but this isn’t the typical 1950s type of play. Most of the story and its conflict centers around one main topic: repressed homosexuality. This play was eventually cut down, altered and turned in to a film created by director, Richard Brooks.
This scene is vital for understanding the play’s exploration of the politics of the nobility and the interpersonal relationships of men. Our group considered Act 3 Scene 2 essential to the comprehension of the development of Prince Hal in relation to his father, King Henry IV. However, more context is needed to understand the pair’s progression throughout the play. In the opening scenes, both Henry and Hal establish their views of the
Perhaps the strongest character in the play is the politician, played by Chigozie Ijeoma, whose character is mindless and corrupted by overbearing pressure by society and he finds himself trapped within a system built on bribery and temptation. Strachan captures the inner workings of our small communities as they implode in decay, incest, single-parenthood and explode in rape, violence and exploitation. Moreover, all because we have come to the point where there is no longer the ability to empathize with our