Ian Holm Essays

The Use and Abuse of Power in Measure for Measure and The Tempest William Shakespeare’s The Tempest and Measure for Measure are similar in that they both raise controversial questions on the theme of power. Shakespeare displays many forms of power in different ways through Prospero in The Tempest and through the Duke in Measure for Measure. These forms of power include the power of compassion, the desire for power amongst men, the power of an authority over his subjects, and the power of magic and

In act 5, the assigned scenes, the overall tone or mood is unexpected, dismal and relentlessly gloomy. Although, Cordelia who had just been reunited with Lear, her father, which gives the audience a sliver of hope and justice; Shakespear than rips the carpet right from under his readers, by writing that Cordelia loses the battle against her evil sisters, Goneril and Regan,who fought alongside Edmund and Albany. To make matters worse, Cordelia and Lear are then captured and have been taken as prisoners

With just a simple use of flattery, both Goneril and Regan’s are able to win over their father’s favor by receiving land and power as well as ignite a long and agonizing war of emotions within King Lear thus beginning the fight for the domination of King Lear’s mind. Greed is the first emotions in the play that begins as a tiny seed but continue to grow and engulf one’s heart so much so that it becomes an unstoppable force that pushes the daughters to create a battle for dominance over King Lear

The mistreatment of elders is a serious issue seen throughout “King Lear” by William Shakespeare. Children are seen abandoning their parents who have taken care of them for years. The elderly are manipulated in order to benefit others. There are a few loyal people who do stay to take care of the elderly. This mistreatment can be linked to America in the present. In “King Lear” both Regan and Goneril abandon their father who has sheltered them for years. Once the sisters take all of their inheritance

The background and the environment where a person lives in form his personality, behavior, actions and reactions. In the play Crucible Abigail was a victim of the society and the environment. Abigail was always under pressure by the rules the society enforces on her she got under pressure to the extent that she went completely to the opposite direction. Is she a true evil person? Was she born evil, or the society has changed her to an evil person. The actress preforming Abigail proved that Abigail

In Shakespeare’s King Lear, a tragic ending has been shown. The main character, Lear, as a king of a kingdom, he experiences lots of disasters in his life after he retires and divides the country to his two ungrateful daughters, Goneril and Regan. He begins to think that he is a poor man and a victim who suffers the great attack from his daughters and the people lives around him. He gets hurt from betrayed by his daughters and the people also do not show their respect to him as well. It seems like

King Lear’s three daughters Goneril, Regan and Cordelia are the storyline with King Lear’s illegitimate claim to power. Goneril and Regan side together as Cordelia, the youngest daughter, truly loves her father, while the other two just want the power of control (Davis, 2018). King Lear tests his daughters’ love to him. When testing his daughters, King Lear bans Cordelia from the kingdom because of his misjudgment and mindset. During this test Cordelia refuses to flatter her father causing her being

King Lear and A Thousand Acres may have been written in different times, and by different people, they are the same story sharing many connections. The main similarity and plot these two writings share are the two older sisters actions towards their father, King Lear and Larry Cook. Goneril and Regan from King Lear, and Ginny and Rose from A Thousand Acres, both share an ugly hatred towards their father. This dislike towards their father is the foundation for both the play and novel. Yet in King

I would change the dispute between Goneril and Regan in Act V, Scene III because it seems to have under developing flaws. For example, when Goneril slips the poison in the wine because she wants to harm her sister, it only takes a few minutes and/or lines until she begins to feel her body ache. In other words, Regan should have left the stage and returned when Albany gave the letter to Edmund because that would have given her more time to have felt the toxin. Not to mention that the “poison” in

In the play, King Lear, by William Shakespeare, the playwright employs the motif of disguise both figuratively and literally to characterize the good and evil nature of characters such as Kent and Lear’s daughters. Shakespeare shows Kent’s loyalty and also uncovers Goneril and Regan’s evil that they dissimulate with flattery and kindness. Throughout the tragedy, Kent shows time and time again his allegiance to Lear. A prime example occurs after Lear makes the brash decision to banish Kent from

At the beginning of the story, the readers are introduced to King Lear who is the ruler of Britain. He has decided to divide his kingdom among his three daughters. There was a completion, as see in my eyes, for whos going to get the larger amount of the kingdom. This was done through the daughters proclaiming their love to King Lear. Goneril states that she loves her father, "...more than words can wield with matter." Her expressions for her love, to me, seem very animated and almost too obsessive

She then hands him a letter to deliver to Edmund as well as telling Oswald that she would reward him of he were to find and kill Gloucester. The story then jumps back outside with a beggar aka Edgar helping glocester find his way to Dover. Back in Dover King Lear arrives however, is too embarrassed to put himself in front of his daughter Cordelia seeing as he kicked her out of the kingdom. Lear was hiding in a cornfield when Cordelia sent a small army to find him and bring him to her. While they

In this excerpt of Act 2, Scene 4, from William Shakespeare’s tragic play King Lear, Lear is angry that Cornwall and Regan refuse to see him after putting Caius in the stocks. His daughter and his son-in-law are supposedly too fatigued and ill from travel to see their father. Lear speaks with Gloucester and orders Regan and Cornwall to appear. At first, his anger is evident as he does not understand why his family will not come to see and talk to him. However, in the middle of his speech, Lear hesitates

Truth constitutes as a pivotal plot device throughout King Lear… (answer question). Lear’s banishment of Cordelia launches the norm of punishing truth, exclusive to the Fool, who in extremis signifies self-preservation, a voice of common sense and pragmatisms, causing his response to the mind-driven tempest of Lear of urging him to avoid the storm, self-confrontation and the failures of his tragic hubris. Consequently, Lear (“take my coxcomb”), Kent and Edgar attempt to usurp the Fool’s privileges

Alwin Nikolais (1910 - 1993) was had numerous of titles under his belt; he was a choreographer, dancer, composer, musician, teacher and innovator. In 1964 Nikolais’ won the Kennedy Center Honors award years later he then won the Guggenheim Fellowship for Creative Arts us Canada. With his accomplishments Nikolais soon became the "father of multi-media theater." According to the Dance Collection at Ohio University Alwin Nikolais', “vision and philosophy are represented in over 120 choreographic works

The short story “The Lottery” is written by Shirley Jackson. This story takes place in a small village where everybody knows each other. In this story all the villagers gather around town for their annual lottery. Everyone in the village is compelled to follow this tradition even if the outcome ends up with someone dying. In “The Lottery”, Shirley Jackson uses conflict, theme, and irony to develop this suspenseful short story. One literary device used by Jackson is conflict. A conflict is a problem

Motifs are recurring structures, contrasts, and literary devices that can help develop and inform the text's major themes. One of the prominent themes in the novel The Catcher in the Rye and one of great interest to the narrator himself, would be the omnipresent theme of death. It could be argued that the novel is not only full of references to death in the literal sense, physical disappearance, but also in the metaphorical, taking the form of spiritual disappearance, something which Holden often

Identity is composed of not only self-perception but also the perception of others. Consequently, relationships are vital in the forming and expressing of one’s identity. Healthy relationships allow for the expression of oneself without fear of consequences, whereas unhealthy relationships put pressure on one to change for one’s partner. Zora Neale Hurston’s novel Their Eyes Were Watching God explores the difference between healthy and unhealthy relationships, focusing on how each affects the expression

Tragic heroes always suffer from a tragic flaw in their character. Whether it be the refusal of help or unwavering pride, that tragic flaw always brings about the character’s downfall. In William Shakespeare’s play The Tragedy of Macbeth, readers witness the deterioration of both Scotland and its unjust leader. While the witches and Macbeth himself hold some responsibility for Macbeth’s downfall, Lady Macbeth holds the majority of the blame. At the beginning of the play, three witches make a plan

MOBY DICK AND SHAKESPEAREAN TRAGEDY Moby Dick is a revenge tale about the revengeful quest of a wounded man for the powerful force of nature; Moby Dick; and the perishing memories of the questors and the wounded questor into the deep perils of the sea, who engulfs all; leaving one as the sole survivor and witness to unveil and unfold the awful revenge tragedy of stubbornness that outlived the American imagination. Richard Chase in his book describes Moby dick as “the most startling and characteristic