The Open Boat

1. “None of them knew the colour of the sky. All of them knew the colour of the sea”
2. “diabolical punishment”
3. “Funny they don’t see us”
4. “She cannot drown me. Not after all this work”
5. “She was indifferent, flatly indifferent”
6. “the tower was a giant facing its back to the plight of the ants”
7. “How in the name of all that is sane was there people in the world who thought it was amusing to row a boat?”
8. “If I am going to be drowned, why am I allowed to come thus far and contemplate the sands and trees”
9. “It was difficult to describe the subtle brotherhood established on the seas”
10. “snarling and hissing”

There will come soft rains

1. This was the one house left standing; radioactive glow
2. The five spots of paint—the man, the woman, the children, the ball—remained. The rest was a thin charcoaled layer.
3. With self protection that bordered on mechanical paranoia. 
4. The ritual of religion had been continued senselessly, uselessly
5. its bared skeleton cringing 
6. The dog ran “wildly in circles, biting its tail, spun in a frenzy and died”
7. “regiment” “electrical wind” “psychopathic rate”
8. “yellow giraffes, blue lions, pink antelopes, lilac panthers”
9. “not one would mind, either bird not tree. If mankind perished utterly”
10. At ten o’clock the house began to die. The house tried to save itself.

1) “Gods have gone away” is a metaphor showing the devotion of technology to its function. It religiously carries on its tasks. However, the idea that technology seemed to surpass humans is a symbol of the plight of humans in today’s world, where with the power of our minds, we are progressing relentlessly, heedless of the state of the world and of nature around us. 

2) The menial tasks that the electronic objects perform depicts the witless development of technology that humans require it for simple tasks like opening doors, filling the bath with water, etc

3) It has human attributes; it “shuddered,” has “nerves,” and when it begins to fall apart in the heat of the fire, it is described as being “revealed as if a surgeon had torn the skin off.” It cries for “help,” it “[tries] to save itself,” but to no avail. Like the humans who are absent from this world, it must ultimately perish. 

4) Title is ironic since there is no rain when it is needed

5) title signifies how the world will continue to turn and new days will continue to come, whether or not there are humans here to witness it

6) The house is a representation of mankind

7) Ambivalence is prevalent as although the writer creates an apparent disparity between humans and technology, it also bridges the gap between them by representing them both as perishable, and the multitude of instances where the house is personified draws a link between the two.

8)the world will continue to turn and new days will continue to come, whether or not there are humans here to witness it

9) The silhouette signifies the inevitability of the doom that humans have subjected upon themselves

The Fall House of Usher (1839)

English Literature

Context

• Edgar Allan Poe had a stormy forty years which influenced his writing style. Often tragic circumstances that occured in his life haunted his writing. The death of his parents that he witnessed in his early years and emotionally turbulent relationships with his adoptive parents shaped his writing style. His name soon became synonymous with macabre tales. 
• He introduced British gothic/horror genre to American Literature. Poe became a key literary figure in American literature and letters.
• He received several views from critics. Although he was known to be one of the original writers in America, only the latter half of the 20th century considered him to be a crucial contributor to American Renaissance
• Gothic literature is a genre that rose with Romanticism and explores the dark side of human experiences such as death, alienation, nightmares and haunted landscapes. American Gothic Literature dramatises a culture through characters afflicted with various forms of insanity and melancholy. 
• Poe’s gothic is a potent brew, best served in small doses such as the Fall House of Usher.

Key facts

• Genre- Gothic literature/ supernatural/ short horror story. We tend to deal with the supernatural genre as bizarre happenings occur. The inexplicable diseases that the twins deal with stimulates a horror genre. 
• Narrator- In these tales of criminal insanity, the narrators are often unreliable and unnamed. He is an enigma. They claim their sanity and proceed to describe the pathological madness. They control the narrative and we only see the progression of the story from their eyes. They are absorbed in the madness and meticulously described insanity. We see that he is nameless to show that his only job is to narrate as the events unfold in the manor. One of the most peculiar aspects is that the narrator goes to lengths to convince that the weird happenings in the manor are completely futile. He renders the pathological madness and cannot be trusted as he might have lost his sanity himself. One more thing to notice is the fact that as he narrated the story out loud to Usher, it was prophetic in nature. He protests that his words cannot describe reality, however it comes true. His only purpose in the story was to introduce us to the House of Usher. 
• Diction- The narrator often uses polished, ornate, highly decorated language to exaggerate the criminal insanity. It is also to bury the tense atmosphere between the lines. It is melodramatic macabre as the diction is over the top
• Tense- They often begin with present tense narration and count back to flashbacks to recount the memories.
• Tone- The story is recited in retrospect (a study of past course of events). The frantic mania of the horrified narrator seeps into the tone of narration. Poe unfolds horrifying, supernatural events in a calm and composed manner which adds to the sense of horror in the story.
• Epigraph- The epigraph in stories usually hints to the readers on how to interpret their work. The epigraph in this story is a quote from a French song which says His/her heart (gender ambiguity) is a polished lute and as soon as it touched, it resounds. This epigraph could be hinted to be a work of Usher himself in the story. It speaks about the theme of isolation as well as Usher’s “acuteness of senses”. Loneliness is seen as his/her heart is waiting to be touched but as soon as it is, it echoes. 
• Title- The title can be literally interpreted to a foreshadowing of the ending. The Fall of the House was evident with the narrator’s arrival as he saw a small fissure which later caused the house to break into two. There is also a more symbolic meaning to this title as it hints the metaphorical fall of the twins. The siblings were the last ones of the family and when they died, the bloodline ended with them. We are reminded that we are not in a realistic world as the pieces of the story fit too well to shape a conclusion and action is too dramatic. For example- just as Roderick falls to his death, his sister falls on him and the house collapses on them as a full stop for their blood line. This adds to the fantastical nature of the story.
• Setting- The setting of the house is carefully crafted to heighten a tense atmosphere throughout the story. The sentient house, dreary landscape and mysterious sicknesses adds to the horror element of the story. The idea of “grim phantasm” is constantly played with as we abandon the idea of reason in the story. The setting forebodes something ominous. The character’s psychological decay and the deteriorating mansion adds to the effect. All the events unfold under the moonlight. Aiming to give you frisson( thrill) 
• The gothic element of the story describes the house to be of a grander kind.
• The story consists of quintessential aspects of a gothic novel such as the dreary landscape, a dark moat, an ethereal glowing cloud, ancient furnishings, creepy tapestries, small fissure, ebony blackness, inclement weather, etc.
• Although, the narrator is one of the most intimate boyhood friends of Usher, he does not know basic facts about him like he has a sister. Poe allows us to question the timing Usher decided to reconnect with his friend and the bizarre tenacity of his acceptance. The sister’s peculiar disease might also be the cause of his madness. The incestuous relationship he might have had with her might be why he buried her alive. 

Summary

An unnamed narrator approaches the “melancholy” house of Usher on a “dull, dark, and soundless day.” This house—the estate of his boyhood friend, Roderick Usher—is gloomy and mysterious. The narrator observes that the house seems to have absorbed an evil and diseased atmosphere from the decaying trees and murky ponds around it. He notes that although the house is decaying in places—individual stones are disintegrating, for example—the structure itself is fairly solid. There is only a small crack from the roof to the ground in the front of the building. He has come to the house because his friend Roderick sent him a letter earnestly requesting his company. Roderick wrote that he was feeling physically and emotionally ill, so the narrator is rushing to his assistance. The narrator mentions that the Usher family, though an ancient clan, has never flourished. Only one member of the Usher family has survived from generation to generation, thereby forming a direct line of descent without any outside branches. The Usher family has become so identified with its estate that the peasantry confuses the inhabitants with their home.

The narrator finds the inside of the house just as spooky as the outside. He makes his way through the long passages to the room where Roderick is waiting. He notes that Roderick is paler and less energetic than he once was. Roderick tells the narrator that he suffers from nerves and fear and that his senses are heightened. The narrator also notes that Roderick seems afraid of his own house. Roderick’s sister, Madeline, has taken ill with a mysterious sickness—perhaps catalepsy, the loss of control of one’s limbs—that the doctors cannot reverse. The narrator spends several days trying to cheer up Roderick. He listens to Roderick play the guitar and make up words for his songs, and he reads him stories, but he cannot lift Roderick’s spirit. Soon, Roderick posits his theory that the house itself is unhealthy, just as the narrator supposes at the beginning of the story.

Madeline soon dies, and Roderick decides to bury her temporarily in the tombs below the house. He wants to keep her in the house because he fears that the doctors might dig up her body for scientific examination, since her disease was so strange to them. The narrator helps Roderick put the body in the tomb, and he notes that Madeline has rosy cheeks, as some do after death. The narrator also realizes suddenly that Roderick and Madeline were twins. Over the next few days, Roderick becomes even more uneasy. One night, the narrator cannot sleep either. Roderick knocks on his door, apparently hysterical. He leads the narrator to the window, from which they see a bright-looking gas surrounding the house. The narrator tells Roderick that the gas is a natural phenomenon, not altogether uncommon.

The narrator decides to read to Roderick in order to pass the night away. He reads “Mad Trist” by Sir Launcelot Canning, a medieval romance. As he reads, he hears noises that correspond to the descriptions in the story. At first, he ignores these sounds as the vagaries of his imagination. Soon, however, they become more distinct and he can no longer ignore them. He also notices that Roderick has slumped over in his chair and is muttering to himself. The narrator approaches Roderick and listens to what he is saying. Roderick reveals that he has been hearing these sounds for days, and believes that they have buried Madeline alive and that she is trying to escape. He yells that she is standing behind the door. The wind blows open the door and confirms Roderick’s fears: Madeline stands in white robes bloodied from her struggle. She attacks Roderick as the life drains from her, and he dies of fear. The narrator flees the house. As he escapes, the entire house cracks along the break in the frame and crumbles to the ground.

Plot Analysis

– “The Haunted Palace”

• Poe creates the theme of entrapment in this story. The narrator, Roderick and Madeline are trapped in this story till it collapses completely. The house has a mind of its own and creates confusion with living things and inanimate objects. He also intertwines the biological fate of the bloodline to the house (internal breeding)
• Initial Situation- Narrator enters the house
• Rising action- Narrator gets to know about sickness
• Conflict- Madeline dies
• Climax- Madeline re-appears
• Falling action- Narrator fled
• Denouement- The house collapses
• Conclusion- No trace of the house seen
• As Madeline rushes to Roderick at the end, he dies of fear. This could be because Madeline is a physical embodiment of Usher’s fear. She does not appear in the end till he exclaims. His works are usually prophetic so whatever he says comes true.

Roderick Usher

• His “acuteness of senses”- physically and emotionally ill
• Does not know why he is ill till Rising action where he finds out the house affects his emotions/ Superstitious
• Close connection with sister and yet buries her alive. Did he bury Madeline because he was guilt stricken after incest? He tries to kill himself by killing his other half? Wanted to end the bloodline?
• Plausible that Usher invited the narrator to witness the horrors. Why did he call for companionship after so many years?
• His close connection with his sister might also be why she returned to him from death or to take revenge 
• Hypochondriac- abnormally anxious about his health
• Psychological decay is introduced through him
• Madeline Usher is his spiritual doppelgänger and they are one person split into two. She might be a physical manifestation of his fear which might be why the narrator rarely meets her and she does not reply to him.

Themes

1. Identity- Split personality disorder
2. Fear and inexplicable sickness
3. Family and house
4. Isolation
5. Gothic and Supernatural 
6. Entrapment

Important quotes

1. “The House of Usher- an appellation which seemed to include, in the minds of the peasantry who used it, both the family and the family mansion”
2. ‘dull, dark and soundless day” “acuteness of senses” “first personal friend” “eye-like windows” “depression of soul” -opium addict
3. “reeked up from the decayed trees, and the grey wall and the silent tarn”
4. “A striking similitude now first arrested my attention”- “scarcely intelligible nature had always existed between them”
5. “the windows were long, pointed and narrow, and at so vast a distance from the black oaken floor as to be altogether inaccessible from within”

Symbols

1. Reality vs Art
2. The House
3. Small Fissure
4. The idea of a doppelgänger is seen in the brother and sister where they are completing each others lives. The male and female half have a role rehearsal where the brother is soft, weak and fragile whereas the female shows action, stronger than the brother, majestic and ghastly to overpower despite the catalepsy. This shows that there is a case of completing each other. There is a role reversal of masculine and feminine characters. This role rehearsal speaks of incest. 
5. He is also, it turns out, a very superstitious fellow. Usher hasn’t left his house in several years, and he’s under the impression that his family’s mansion has obtained an influence over his spirit, that it’s the house’s fault he feels so gloomy

The Lemon Orchard (1962)

English Literature

Context

• Alex La Guma is a South African fiction writer who was active in anti-apartheid politics. He voices out the cruelty and horrors of Apartheid which banned him from writing stories in South Africa. He and his wife struggled with house arrest, confinement and several punishments for standing up against Apartheid.
• Apartheid– A former social system in South Africa where the blacks did not share the same economic and political rights as the whites. They were forced to live separately in ghettos away from the whites as they were segregated. The ghetto lifestyle was inhuman as the space was insufficient and the amenities were primitive. Simultaneously, the whites invented themselves. This lead to violence. 

1. QUOTES
2. “moon is hidden behind long, parallel of cloud”
3. “angled branches”, “tips and edges”, “quivering shine of shattered quicksilver”, 
4. “dirty cotton wool in the sky”
5. “sharp bitter sweet citrus smell”
6. “gently on the night air” “pleasant scent” 
7. “dog stopped barking” “monotonous creek-creek-creek”
8. “shooting jacket” “loaded shotgun”
9. “two frozen lakes” “myriad lines” 
10. “fear mixed with stubbornness” “speaking with a mixture of dignity and contempt”
11. “this is as good place as any”
12. “blended into solid strips of high pitched sound”
13. Active verbs such as “crouched” “harsh whispering”
14. “one who had complained about the cold and one who had spoken of his fear”
15. “educated bushmen” “slim hotnot” “donders” “verdomte” “kaffir”
16. “i would like to take care of such a dog”

A Raisin in the Sun- 1959

English Literature

Context

• The modern play is an agent for social change which captures the need for African expression and the inevitability and impossibility to do so due to American expression. It not only questions the strain in the society but the disparity between the society

• The play revolves around the matriarchy of the Younger family and how they face day to day conflicts which ignite from the disparity in the society. The author delves into various issues of the world and voices them out to the audience through the conflicts that the family faces. She throws a montage of conflicts and explores the themes of family, racial prejudice, assimilation, disparity between the rich and the poor and dreams vs reality. This makes it a revolutionary work with difficult questions. 

• The play stems from the harsh segregated life of Hansberry and thus involves autobiographical elements. Lorraine Hansberry grew up in an African- American middle class family with activist foundations. Being the granddaughter of a slave and the niece of an esteem professor allowed her to have keen awareness on the ongoing civil rights battle. In 1938, her family moved into an all white community and faced numerous attacks from her neighbours. This was because the community signed a restricted covenant to exclude all black families. It went all the way to Supreme Court which gave the verdict in their favour. 

• She pursued her interest in social activism and writing making her the first female African American playwright to hoist a play to broadway. 

• The sheer strength of the characters and the uniqueness of the plot set it apart from the rest of the plays selling full houses. It captured the essence of the universal theme of the right to dream which gives a unifying message to the audience. She explores different issues of the world in strong African flavours making it one of the most realistic enactments of the African American lifestyle.

Title and Epigraph

• The epigraph of the play sets the atmosphere, mood , genre and foreshadows the action of the play. It is the poem, Harlem by the revolutionary writer, Langston Hughes. 

• The epigraph of the play connects to the plot as each member of the Younger family has a dream, however lack the support to implement it. Harlem discusses the state of the dream when it lacks support. 

• Harlem describes the different stages a postponed dream would go through. Since the first step is lack of nourishment, he compares it to a Raisin in the sun which is where the title was inspired from. A postponed dream might dry you without any nourishment, spread around trying to convince everyone, might be bitter sweet or loads of regret. At the end, he hints and foreshadows that it might explode also which allows us to anticipate the ending

• Throughout the play, each character has a dream and would go lengths to fulfil it. The suspenseful question is that will it dry up or bloat against the sun’s prowess. 

Setting, Style and Genre

• The genre of the play is social realism and family drama. The African American classic is set in the South side of Chicago and unfolds in the Younger family household. 

• The Younger family’s apartment is portrayed to be the living proof of the harsh conditions of poverty they thrive in. “Weariness, has in fact won over this room” shows the clutches of poverty and what it can do to a place. The place was called a “rat trap” and “beat up hole” several times by the characters. It shows the living conditions of the poor, low class and how they cope up everyday. 

• Hansberry uses black vernacular and the African dialect to bring out the authenticity of the play. She describes their lifestyle and actions through stage directions and since it is a drama, their dialogues provide an insight in character and plot development. 

Walter Lee Younger

• Walter Younger is portrayed to be the protagonist and antagonist of the play. He is the representative of everyman in the mid-20th century in African American’s perspective. He is introduced as “mismated, erratic speech habits and quality of indictment”. He also enacts as the belligerent brother of Beneatha, the ambitious son of Mama and the defiant husband of Ruth. 

• He is defined by his flaws, his ambitious personality and his mistakes which hurt the family greatly, however in the end acts as the “rainbow after the rain”. He is torn between the African lifestyle of providing importance to family and love and the American obsession of materialistic success. 

• He is the protagonist who is constantly searching for his manhood and believes that the key to success and happiness is money itself. So he intertwines both the American and African values and chases his dreams. 

• He wants to serve as the breadwinner of the family and is ashamed that he cannot provide for them or lift them from this pitiful lifestyle. He wants to keep his family happy and healthy however, fails to do so.Thus searches for a way to have overnight success
• The reason why the women of the family does not trust him is because actions speak louder than words and his actions were not according to his words. His carelessness and laid-back attitude clashes with his desire for money. So, it is portrayed as it he does not want to work hard for the money. 

• He is a typical exemplar of the men in the 90s as he does not understand why Beneatha wants to “express herself” or have a thirst for education. Another reason between the sibling rivalry is that both of them have strong dreams that they want to pursue. With Walter wanting to open a liquor store and Beneatha wanting the become a doctor, the only way to achieve their dreams is the money that they both are competing for. Their personalities clash which also adds fuel to the fire. 

• He is also the representative of all the youth with ambitions and dreams, however without action it cannot be true. Far from being a good listener, he is constantly arguing with the members of the family thus, shows that he does not know what they want. He stresses himself with the burden of lifting them from poverty. However, when he goes to extreme measures to ensure this occurs, he loses the trust and the money he gained, making him an antagonist. Towards the end, he finally becomes the man of the family by standing up to Linder. 

Themes

1. The disparity between the society: Poverty vs Affluent
2. Racial prejudice 
3. The importance of family
4. Pride and Race 
5. Dreams and Hopes
6. Gender, generation and assimilation

Important quotes

1. “Not scrambled”
2. “moaning and groaning all the time” “this beat up hole” “rat trap”
3. “See there, that just goes to show what women understand about the world.”
4. “Your eggs is getting cold” 
5. “We, one group of men tied to a race of women with small minds”
6. “Express herself”
7. “mutilated hair”
8. “Assimilationism is so popular in your country”
9. “Let’s face it baby, your heritage is nothing but a bunch of raggedy assed spirituals and some grass huts”
10. “So you butchered up a dream of mine”
11. “You sure are one proud acting bunch of coloured folks”
12. “That I ve been doing to you, what the rest of the world been doing to you”
13. “you just name it son, and I hand you the world”
14. “i put my life in your hands”
15. “that money is made out of my father’s flesh”
16. “Then, isn’t there something wrong a house- in the world where all the dreams, good or bad, depend on the death of a man?”

In the face of the loss of the money, Mama’s idealism about family falters.

Willy remains a faceless symbol for Walter’s negligence and risky handling of the money. 

Symbols

1. Willy Harris 
2. Beneatha’s hair
3. Insurance payment
4. Mama’s plant

The home is a galvanizing force for the family, one that Mama sees as crucial to the family’s unity.

Questions

• How does Walter change from the beginning of the play towards the end?
• How is Beneatha different from other Younger family members?
• How is the theme of assimilation and entrapment treated in the play?
• What are the greatest strains on Walter and Ruth’s marriage?
• In what ways is Hansberry challenging stereotypes of African Americans in the play?
• What does the new house signify to each of the Youngers?
• Who is the main character in the play?
• The play was written and produced over 40 years ago. To what extent do you think that conflicts and issues presented in the play are still relevant?
• To what extent do you think Hansberry is critiquing traditional sex roles in the play?
• The play is prefaced by a Langston Hughes poem. How does the play illustrate the theme of the poem?
• How is idea of Africa and Heritage perceived in the play by different characters
• What is the role of Asagai and George in shaping Beneatha’s character?
• The American dream means something different to each character in A Raisin in the Sun. Discuss these differences and how they conflict with one another.
• What are the dreams of the main characters—Mama, Ruth, Beneatha, and Walter—and how are they deferred?
• What does Mama’s plant represent, and how does the symbol evolve over the course of the play?
• How does the description of the Youngers’ apartment contribute to the mood of the play?
• Within the Younger household, there are three generations of women. Compare and contrast how the characters each form their unique identities.
• The role of minor characters and gender roles

Journey (1980)

English Literature

Context- 

• Patricia Grace is a New Zealander writer who is a founding figure of Maori fiction
• She is a key literary figure in the contemporary world of literature. Her short stories resemble the theme of upholding strong values of the self sufficient Maori community. 
• The purpose of this story is to convey the rapid pace of technological advancementand its adverse impacts on our lives. The author provides a contrast in the olden days of simplicity to the modern day of advancement through the protagonist who has witnessed the change in his life. 
• The story voices out the change that the government tries to bring about in the country and how it affects the commoners. It talks about the lack of respect the government has for the Maori
• The Maori are indigenous Polynesian people of New Zealand or Natives.
• Genre- Realistic Maori Fiction
• Historical Content- During the 1980s, Immigration flourished in New Zealand as the population was rapidly increasing and was ethically diverse. In order to accommodate the growth, the government took various steps to develop the country. These changes affected the Maoris and commoners like the protagonist and fled the country to Australia. 
• Title- The title ‘Journey’ hints the entire plot of the story with many pitfalls and ultimate failure of the protagonist. The literal significance of the title is that the journey undertaken by the old man is actually a short trip to bequeath his land before his death. Metaphorically, the author tries to convey the society’s journey through his. It criticises the ultimate progression of society through the journey of the old man. The journey acts as a symbol of discovering the changes that the government has made to create a better place, however impacts the citizens. 

Form and Structure- 

• The prose incorporates the genre of Maori Fiction through the form and structure. The tone used expresses inevitable simplicity to match the protagonist’s age. 
• The colloquial style is quintessential as it Maori Fiction. The writing style is very colloquial to showcase the New Zealand culture and does not have decorations. Numerous repetitions are used to affirm a thought to the readers and to the protagonist himself. The use of “good” and “funny” are simplistic however convey a lot of meaning in the text. The colloquial language of “sourpuss” and “fusspots” shows animosity towards those who assimilate to the change and show unnecessary care towards him.
• It is in the form of an internal monologue with various flashbacks to provide a distinct contrast between the past and the present. The readers are provided with an insight through the eyes and the thought process of the protagonist.
• Intentionally plays with modern English and native words to show the contrast between the modern government and the natives. 
• The social issue of displacement and loss of native land is voiced out through the caustic remarks in third person view. The dialogues are embedded into the view point- a struggle to identify. Short dialogues– fraught with emotion, implicit criticism. The change in modern era is voiced through the grumpy old man
• Characters are nameless to imply the generality to all
• Setting- The setting is constantly changing as he undertakes a journey. The constant change in setting and visual imageries allows the old man to comment on the progression of the society.

Summary

A seventy –one year old man is going on a journey in a taxi to the train station. The purpose of his journey to the town is to claim his family land back and to build houses for his family before he dies. On the way, he sees the familiar shops and the old man strikes a conversation with the driver- “young fulla”. The train station has changed from the time he was last there. The man at the ticket office is new; the old man feels a flash of animosity.

The coach that he enters is warm and comfortable. He is happy that he is the only passenger. He is quite capable of doing his own things. It irks him when people assume that he needs help. He watches the scenes change as the train speeds past. He remarks that the train is travelling over reclaimed land. All the “land” used to be the sea earlier. He wouldn’t be perturbed if the train were to crash into the ocean as it is time for his life to end anyway.

The scenery changes again. Two young children enter the carriage wearing strange looking clothes that rustle when they move. It is a crowded part of the town now. Everything is new to him. Earlier one saw only a few farms along the railway line. As the train moves into a tunnel, the man ponders on the way the Pakehas have changed the lie of the land. They have cut through the land; nothing is an obstacle for them. Land was just something to be exploited for mankind.

 He understands that it is necessary to have roads and houses. But he rues the lack of feeling for land. The Pakehas are always looking to fix things. Looking at the kids, he remembers his childhood friend, George. 

When he gets off the train, he finds the station much the same. Though the trains no longer run on coal, the station is no cleaner than the “soot days”. In the older days, the stations used to be full of hungry starving people. But his family never went hungry as his father was an able farmer who tended his land carefully. They had surplus food that they either sold or bartered.

He has arrived early so decides wait and enjoy being alone without anyone interfering. He recollects an incident where a cemetery somewhere was 

“re sited” to make way for roads. People’s remains were all mixed up. When the headstones were replaced, it was done haphazardly. It was all beautiful but meaningless.

Time has elapsed and now he has to set out for home. He again wonders whether he should go looking for George. He is conscious of his aching feet by now. The story goes back to the visit he made to the government agency. That is what he had come to the town for. He tells the official that he is planning to divide his land among his family. But the officer explains that that is is not possible. The authorities will not permit sub-division of land. Land is to be pooled so that more housing can be constructed on it. The old man explains that it is his ancestral land. The functionary shows him plans and blueprints that the old man cannot relate to. Frustrated the old man kicks the table before he leaves.

At the end of the train ride, he takes another taxi and chats with its driver. When he gets home, his family wants to know what happened at the office. His answer disheartens them. And then he tells them that when he dies he wants his body cremated and not buried as cemeteries are no longer safe. Someone may dig up his bones and transfer it somewhere else. The story ends with the old man feeling frustrated and angry.

Plot Analysis 

1. Initial Situation- Undertakes a Journey 
2. Rising Action- Train ride
3. Complication- Land cannot be given back
4. Climax- Kicks the desk
5. Falling action- Returns home
6. Denouement- Not to bury him but to burn him
7. Conclusion- looks at his empty hands

Symbols

1. Land- Symbol for rights in the country. The natives try to protect their heritage but lack of power to do so
2. Train ride- How fast advancement occured
3. Desk- Victim like the old man kicked by the government 
4. Small garden- Self sufficient/ Provide for themselves
5. Asylum and Graveyard- Nothing is lasting

Characterisation

• The protagonist of the story is an old man shaped by strong Maori values and the story follows him on his criticism towards the adoption of change
• He is sarcastic, grumpy yet energetic
• Self serving; Does not need anyone to look after him
• Hates being called old and pampered
• Does not like the change around him
• Animosity towards those who ill-treat people like the one in the train station. 
• Resistant to modernity 
• Keeps trying to repeat a point to make himself digest it
• Reflection of strong, old values 
• Vociferous towards change/ Determined
• Straight forward/ close minded/ Has opinions formulated
• Ending- unsure of the future as he looks at his bare hands
• Opposes old school themes
• Family tied man/ embodiment of experiences

Themes

1. Land 
2. Change and Time
3. Powerlessness
4. Generational differences

Quotes

“Not a Journey; Not what you really call a journey”

“sourpuss” “fusspots”

“They’d rather stare at the television and talk about this and that coming over because there is nothing else to believe in”

“Yes he knows this place like his own big toe”

Its what we want and we want nothing more than ours

Funny people those town people”

 “Doing his talking for him, made him sick”

“It’s only paper and you can change it”

The Journey shows the life’s journey of progress

Mistreatment of natives

Looks at his hands to show powerlessness

A View From The Bridge-1955

English Literature/Own Notes

Context 

• The concept of the play was inspired from a local story in the docks where the longshoremen worked where long ago, a longshoreman rattled on his relatives to the Immigration Bureaucracy to stop a wedding between one of his brothers and his niece. He was ostracised from the society and was rumoured to be killed by one of the brothers. Working on the docks, Arthur Miller was inspired by this story which emerged to be the main plot of the play. 
• Arthur Miller also took a key interest in complex relationships and portraying realistic characters which perhaps stemmed from his personal love life. 
• Genre of the play is Greek Tragedy. At the earlier stages, we might think it is about a family drama, however once the problems of the family spills out to the entire community, it elevates to another level. The play becomes a “tragedy of a common man” which echoes the format of greek tragedies. Furthermore, it also discusses psychological realism. 

Title

• The title of the play symbolises the link between the two cultures or two kinds of people referred to in the play, the Italian Immigrants and the Americans. It is the only connection between the land of opportunities (America) and the poor community where law plays an important role (Italy)
• None of the characters actually visit the Bridge in the play, however are close to it by living in Red Hook. This comes to only one answer to why the title of the play is focused on the Bridge. Miller wants the readers to view the play from a larger context. Instead of focusing on the petty melodrama of the protagonist, Miller wants us to see the great panoramic view. Questions such as “What are the moral implications of Eddie’s actions”, “What is justice?” and “How does Eddie’s actions affect the Italian culture?” can only be answered with a view from the bridge. 

Tone and Writing Style 

• The tone of the play is objective. It is not biased towards any character and shares sympathy for all, even the characters which deserve the least. 
• The writing is very colloquial as the play is portrayed with Brooklyn dialect. This colloquial language connects with the slum like and inferior setting. 
• The writing style gives us emotional views on the character. It is written in dialogue form as it is a drama but also includes stage directions, dramatic pauses and double negatives to vary the emotion through writing. 
• The narrator, Alfieri provides the readers with intellectual ideas, themes of justice and even poetry language. He is honest and impartial and only comments on the action of the play
• Catharsis- Fear purged by the readers that the protagonist feels. Feeling of pity through human compassion (pathos) 
• There are numerous metaphors and similes used to relate to the scenario. 

Setting

• The play is set in the slum like and inferior setting of Red Hook, Brooklyn. It unfolds in the Carbone household which is a “clean, homely and sparse” apartment.
• The household is near the Brooklyn Bridge (the sea) where the longshoremen work in the docks. However an important detail is that the men of the play do not think of their job as inferior. Eddie thinks of it as a duty and is proud to be one whereas the Italians migrate to America to work on the docks. They are proud working class men who understand the struggle of poverty and know to not take things for granted. 
• The Carbone household resembles the 90’s with the phonograph and the pediment. The space at front shows that the family drama spills to the community. 
• We can see the tragedy waiting for him. It was inevitable. He was propelled to his fate helplessly. 

Introduction 

• The play begins with Alfieri’s commentary about the community and the setting. As he passes by the longshoremen pitching, they “uneasily nod” to him. This shows the lack of trust they have on lawyers as they connect them with something bad. Trust is the first theme introduced as it is hard to gain in this community. 
• Justice and Law is a very important theme to be look into in this play. He talks about several allusions such as Al Capone ( the greatest Carthaginian)  who used to be America’s best known gangsters and Frankie Yale. Carthage was an ancient city which fought several wars against Rome. He compares this challenge to the Romans to the gangsters challenging the bureaucracy. 
• He reveals that their society has the same values even though the violence has reduced. They were forced to accommodate the Sicilian culture with American law. Alfieri also foreshadows that there is always a case about illegal immigrations which is beyond the help of lawyers. He also introduces the protagonist of the play, Eddie Carbone. 
• There is a difference between civil law and old school moral law

Alfieri

• Alfieri is the chorus or the narrator of the play who comments on the actions of the characters and plot development as the play unfolds. Alfieri is a ‘portly, good humoured and thoughtful’ man who is in his 50s. Alfieri is portrayed to be a lawyer, a well educated man who follows the American laws as well as takes the Italian customs into consideration. 
• Alfieri is the embodiment of the Brooklyn Bridge which is the symbolic link between the two cultures. He is the difficult stretch between small, ethnic communities with dock workers and the intellectual Manhattan and the cosmopolitan rich. 
• Being the narrator of the play, his commentary is unbiased and objective and focuses on the larger moral implications from the family squabble. He is also inconsequential to the actions of the story. Although Eddie Carbone comes to him for advice, that is the maximum of what Alfieri can do. He cannot stop it from running “its bloody course” and is powerless even though he knows how it is going to end from the start. He powerlessly watches as tragic event unfolds which shows there is no illusion to reality. Thus, in the last act, he breaks the wall and speaks to the audience. 
• Alfieri is just like Arthur Miller, the teller of tales who cannot change what has happened. Alfieri describes himself as powerless several times, emphasizing his inability as a man of law to stop the tragic events of the play.

Eddie Carbone, The Euripidean greek hero

• Eddie Carbone is the tragic protagonist of the play. He is described as forty, a husky, slightly overweight longshoreman
• At the earlier stage, he is portrayed to be a good, hardworking longshoreman who supports his family consisting of a wife and his niece. Pride and duty are two values he holds close to his heart. 
• Although he was born poor, we see that he worked his way up to the docks and adopted his niece after her mother died from the kindness in his heart. He raised her despite the harsh conditions of poverty by taking ‘food from my own mouth to give her’. He is considered to kind, generous and a normal working class man as he says it is ‘an honour, Bea’ to let the Italian immigrants stay with them
• However, with the progression of the play this is not how he stays. Eddie is not a flat character but a round one filled with problems and unexplored emotions which lead to most of the problems in the play. He is selfish and constantly interested in promoting his innocence. 
• He creates his own fictional fantasy world where his absurd decisions make sense. The entire play is largely about discovery. Throughout the play, he has two secrets which he has to protect above and beyond; His incestuous desires towards Catherine and the illegal entry of the immigrants. As the play unfolds, we see that he cannot control or accept his desires and is incapable of dealing with either secrets being revealed. Thus, reveals the latter in hope that no one finds out about his desires
• However, we see that Eddie is completely unaware of his desires or pushes them far behind hoping it would not be revealed. Eddie is solely a tragic protagonist due to his veiled desires and troubles in relationships. He alone, searches his identity and along with him, we do too. He is defined by his desires and problems. 
• At the start of the play, we see that Eddie is portrayed as a fatherly figure to Catherine, with the advice to not talk to Louis and “walking wavey”, “their heads are turning like windmills”. He is assumed to be a possessive fatherly figure in the niece’s life. However, with the entry of a young man who seizes the attention of Catherine, Eddie’s ugly emotions are revealed. His actions with the niece has a sexual undertone such as ‘Turn around, let me see the back’ and lighting the cigar. 
• Even though, Eddie is unaware of his feelings till the end, others are aware. Alfieri warns him to let her go and Rodolpho sees his feelings with his possessiveness and lack of acceptance towards him. It is not until the end when Eddie realises his feelings as Beatrice makes a remark about his inarticulate desires saying ‘ You want somethin’ else, Eddie, and you can never have her!’
• To see why Eddie is unaware of feelings, we find out that Eddie has constructed a world where his suppressed urges make sense. He hides behind the law and wants a factual reason to justify his actions. Since, he does not have any outlet for his emotions, he transforms it to hatred towards Rodolpho and Marco.
• Since pride is very important for him and the community, he also bases his actions on it such as avenging Marco. The main flaw of Eddie is his deranged love and fictional world which he is unable to recognise or escape from. 
• His deranged love for Catherine affects all his relationships. As he is unable to recognise his feelings for her, his marital relations with Beatrice is affected, his frustration is released as anger towards Rodolpho and he has a power play with Marco who he initially liked. His flaws lead to his self destruction.
• Ironic that Eddie kisses Rodolpho to emasculate him. We are following a greek drama’s characteristics in this play where a noble man has one flaw and that flaw leads to his destruction. Many characters have to face the repercussions due to the whimsical character of the lead role
• Although Eddie harbours feelings for Catherine and snitches on his own family, his death grants him a modicum of dignity. A quality of pathos allows us to empathise Eddie.

Marco and Rodolpho 

• Rodolpho is air of liberty in the play. He is the embodiment of youth and filled with dreams that the world is a better place than it actually is. He is carefree and light hearted which draws Catherine’s attention. The budding romance between these two characters becomes the spear which unravels all the problems. He is effeminate 
• Throughout the play, we see that Eddie suspects that Rodolpho is interested in Catherine only for American citizenship. This is not answered in the play which allows us to also think the same. More than portraying him as a full person, Miller defines him as a montage of conflicts. 
• His light spirit and outgoing personality is in contrast to his brother’s strict behaviour
• Marco is more of a realist than Rodolpho himself. Both of them have survived the depths of poverty and hunger. Since Marco has a family to support and older, he is more mature than his brother.
• Marco is said to be a ‘regular bull’/ ‘regular slave’. He is more devoted to his family and his kids. Has strong objectives and goals to fulfil in America. 
• At the start of the play, we see Marco’s personality to be more liked by Eddie, However as there is a clash in power, Eddie’s frustration changes its direction to Marco. He is a peacemaker and is oblivious to Eddie’s intentions as he tries to defuse the tension between Eddie and his brother. 
• Eddie’s hatred towards Rodolpho initially stems Catherines attention shifting from him to the young and dreamy character. It gradually develops with the behaviour of Rodolpho being different from other, stereotypical men who are manly. He is called as a‘chorus girl’, ‘blonde’, ‘whacky hair’ and ‘like a weird’. Eddie’s hatred towards Rodolpho maybe justified as there is high suspicion he wants Catherine for the citizenship and also does not fit into the stereotypical confinement.
• His hatred is channeled through the punch, when he tries to “teach” Rodolpho how to fight. This punch reveals Eddie’s ulterior motives to Marco who takes offence and decides to show his sheer prowess to suppress Eddie. A power play occurs between them.
• Both Marco and Eddie try to hide behind the law as they want the law to side their notions. When Eddie hurts Marco’s way of earning money, he unleashes his ruthless, barbaric attitude saying that ‘He killed my children. That one stole the food from my children’

Beatrice and Catherine

• The play stages the times of 1950s where woman were submissive and oppressed by the men of the household. The exemplar of such kind of women are Beatrice and to a lesser extent, Catherine. 
• Beatrice is portrayed to be a devoted housewife who is ruled by affection and protecting her loved ones. She is described to be a woman who is interested in taking care of her loved ones such as her cousins from Italy. She raises Catherine like her own daughter along with Eddie Carbone
• One of the main aspects which allows us to sympathise over is the fact that Eddie’s unruly desires clouds his vision towards Beatrice. However, Beatrice knows her husband better than he knows himself. From an earlier stage, she sees the hints of Eddie’s incestuous urges towards Catherine and tries to put a full stop to it. Might be jealous also that she doesn’t receive half of the attention Eddie showers on Catherine. Thus, she encourages Catherine to her seize her life in her own hands and be more independent. 
• She is extremely satisfied when Rodolpho comes into the picture and swoops Catherine away (because of a motherly attitude and also because her husband is saved). She points out from the beginning and reprimands Eddie for his feelings towards his niece. 
• Throughout the play, we see that even though Beatrice does not side with Eddie’s intentions, she still sticks with him (devoted) like when despite the fact that she wanted to go, she stuck with Eddie who did not want to go when Catherine was going to get married.
• She also serves as a mediator who everyone can talk to. She is patient, caring, giving and supportive. However, she becomes the victim in the end as she loses her husband to his destruction, her cousins from the disrespect her husband gave them and her niece through marriage. 
• When she recognises Eddie’s feelings, she immediately warns Catherine to not be a child in front of him anymore, and that she has grown up and cannot play around anymore. “a little more independent” “you still walk around in front of him with a slip” 
• Just like Alfieri, She knew from the start on how it was going to end but had to watch it run its bloody course. And for that, she becomes a very sympathising character. The ending is very dramatic and powerful as Eddie dies in her hands, saying ‘My Bea’ as if finally at the end he understands what he had done and has come to her yearning for forgiveness which gives closure for a deranged character like Eddie. It is a massive development from the fact that in Act I she asked her husband, ‘When am I gonna be wife again?’
• Catherine is a smart, independent and young character who is subconsciously the reason behind all the problems. Her close relationship with Eddie seemed fatherly to her but the otherwise to Eddie. We see that Eddie’s opinion matters a lot to her when she still asked him to come to the wedding and said ‘You like it?’ several times. She is modern and has a good fashion sense making her popular with the opposite gender. 
• The character’s reference to ‘Madonna’ symbolises her innocence and pure nature. We can see that Eddie’s opinion matters a lot to her as he has done so much for her. Struggling to maintain distance between a fatherly figure to a new character in her life, she invites Rodolpho saying ‘Teach me’
• Towards the end of the play, we can see that her submissive behaviour disappears and she lives the way she wants to, or at least tries. Her character lacks complexity due to her naive nature which changes towards the end. 
• Although Beatrice warns her to be more independent, towards the end of the play, Catherine berates Eddie more than Beatrice found appropriate.
• The idea of independence correlates with finding a man. The women of the play are fairly two dimensional. The Madonna complex: where a man is not able to have a full sexual relationship due to the wife becoming a mother of someone and is not a sexual partner
• Beatrice is the one who draws sympathy from the modern audience as she takes the burden of the tragedy

Important events 

1. The kiss between Catherine, Rodolpho and Eddie
2. Vinny Bolzano’ story
3. Marco lifting the chair to exert power
4. Beatrice and Catherine’s talk
5. Eddie and Marco fight after Eddie calls the Bureau on him
6. Eddie’s death in Bea’s arms

Important quotes

1. “Just remember, kid, you can quicker get back a million dollars that was stolen than a word that you gave away.” – Miller sets us Eddie as a person so vehemently against betrayal and it seems illogical for him to betray at the end. This demanded a drastic change in his priorities and values which was triggered through his deranged desires. 
2. “His eyes were like tunnels; my first thought was that he had committed a crime, but soon I saw it was only a passion that had moved into his body, like a stranger.” – The suppressed and unleashed passion for his niece is a stranger in his body as he actively rejects the idea. 
3. “Eddie: My B.!” – Beatrice is a tirelessly forgiving character in the play who is extremely jealous of her niece. This is the only time when Eddie honestly needs Beatrice in the play and she forgives him. 
4. You want somethin’ else, Eddie, and you can never have her!
5. And so I mourn him—I admit it—with a certain alarm. – Ends the play
6. “All the law is not in a book.” ‘He killed my children. That one stole the food from my children’ “where’s the law for that?”
7. “You like it?” “Listen, you’ve been giving me the willies the way you walk down the street” “Their heads are turnin’ like windmills” (Almost in tears because he disapproves)
8. “Eddie, I wish there was one guy you wouldn’t tell me things about”
9. “Listen, they’ll think its a millionaire’s house compared to where they live” “What kind of work did yiz do? Whatever there is, anything”
10. “You got too big a heart”“You lived in a house all your life, what do you know about it? You never worked in your life.”
11. “Its an honour, Bea. I mean it”
12. “I don’t understand you; she’s seventeen years old, you are gonna keep her in the house all her life?”
13. (He is coming more and more to address Marco only) “What’s the high heels for, Garbo?”
14. (his face puffed with trouble) (He looks away)“heeby-jeebies” “whacky hair; chorus girl; like a weird”
15. “When am I gonna be wife again, Eddie?”“I cant talk about it”- Eddie exemplifies the trait of self-denial.
16. “He’s a regular slave” “a regular bull”
17. “You still walk around in front of him in your slip”
18. (imperious demand)
19. “ Oh Jesus, no, I wouldn’t do nothing about that, I mean”
20. “I am a patsy”- He is cheated on or blamed for something or easily taken advantage of 
21. “ I was so powerless to stop it”
22. (glare of warning to a smile of triumph)
23. “He’s a rat. He belongs in the sewer”

Themes 

1. Justice and law- The ending of the play shows that American laws are inadequate. The play raise the question of whether the law is an adequate or ultimate authority on what is right and wrong.
2. Clash of culture and power
3. Dreams, Hopes and Plans
4. Love and desires
5. Womanhood and feminity 
6. Men and masculinity 
7. Respect and Pride
8. Betrayal
9. Maturity and Independence
10. In this manner, all the characters of the play—and perhaps all people—must undergo forms of immigration during their lives, whether literally leaving one country for another or moving out of a family home to one’s own, or transitioning from one stage in life to another. Everyone is simply seeking a place where he or she can comfortably belong.

Symbols and Motifs

1. The Brooklyn Bridge
2. Italy
3. High heels
4. Homosexuality, Womanhood and Community

Italy is the basis of the cultural traditions in Red Hook and unites the community in common social practices and religion.

Analysis

1. The play is largely about discoveries. Just because Eddie did not want anyone to know about his deranged love for Catherine, he blurted the second secret which caused his death. He is no afraid of anyone but the inarticulate feelings he has bottled up which drives him to his madness.
2. An unconscious sexual taboo
3. In the ending, for the first time Eddie is seeking for Beatrice’s approval 
4. All of his flawed decisions lead him to a fatal conclusion 
5. The main character is helplessly propelled to his destruction where his framework of reason breaks and he releases his subconscious emotions

Written in 1955 by a prolific playwright 

The tragic play 

Is psychological drama which revolves around the conflicts and issues that the characters of the Carbone household deal with which is set in Red Hook, Brooklyn. 

Genre 

Purpose

Topic sentence 

Tone

Context

Title

Questions

ESSAY 

• How does Miller make the differences between the characters of Marco and Rodolpho such a dramatic part of the play?
• Do you think that Miller portrays Beatrice as a completely admirable character?
• How does Miller make Eddie’s feelings for Catherine such a disturbing part of the play?
• What do you find particularly striking about Miller’s portrayal of Catherine?
• To what extent does Miller make you feel that Eddie is responsible for his own death at the end of the play?
• What does Miller’s portrayal of Marco add to the dramatic impact of the play?
• How does Miller make Alfieri’s role in the play so significant?
• How does Miller make the relationship between Beatrice and Catherine such a memorable part of the play?
• How does Miller make two moments in the play particularly moving for you?
• How does Miller powerfully convey to you the rules Eddie’s community lives by?
• What does Miller’s portrayal of him make you feel about Rodolpho?

EXTRACTS

• PG 29 to PG 31- Katie!- How does Miller make this such a striking moment in the play?

• PG 36-37 (Till Alfieri’s monologue)-In what ways does Miller make this such an emotionally intense moment in the play?

• PG 41 “He’s lucky believe me” to “Sure, he’s terrific! Look at him go!”- What does Miller’s writing make you feel about Eddie at this moment in the play?

• Pg 11- 13 “I’m the best student, he says, and if I want, I should take the job and the end of the year he’ll let me take the examination and he’ll give me the certificate” to (After a moment of watching her face, EDDIE breaks into a smile, but it almost seems that tears will form in his eyes) – In what ways does Miller make this a striking and revealing moment in the play?

• PG 50 to PG 51- Alfieri’s line to The phone is glowing now- In what ways does Miller make this a striking and revealing moment in the play? 
•                      

The Moving Finger

English Literature

In what ways does the author makes the readers sympathise with the character, Grancy and Claydon?

Rising action: Grancy’s first wife dies

She was overbearing and Grancy was always in her shadows. He blossomed in with his wife holding his hand. He always needed someone in life

• The second wife dies before his life could even bliss. Thus, she was a short lived conjugal bliss. The story progresses to see where this man goes
• He tries to constantly fight back with fate and his heroic streak of not giving up makes him a round character
• He does not brood as a widow but moves away to upgrade himself to a public sector job where he represents the country. This government job shows that he is constantly trying to upgrade himself instead of accepting what fate has in hold for him
• The author evokes sympathy through the character, Grancy as he is constantly beaten by fate
• Another reason to why he evokes sympathy is when he finds out Clayton has painted the intimate look of Mrs Grancy in the commissioned portrait. The social responsibility and aristocracy is represented by Grancy. Even though, he thrives in a patriarchal society and he is a social man, a good husband, a wonderful friend, he was still cheated by fate, his friends and wife.
• Touch on key events, plot, narrative techniques, evidences (3-4) and strong, superfluous diction
• Evidences needed for diction used to describe Mr. Grancy 
• This man is powerfully portrayed in the society. A strong figure in the society upholding strong Victorian and patriarchal values. 
• How he is portrayed? Why is he portrayed like this?
• At some point, the author makes you question the Victorian values of this male. He objectifies the need for women in his life. Objectification of women seen in the story. It is more of a greed, a want than a need. 
  • The author portrays Claydon as a periphery in the story, thus evokes more curiosity in him than Claydon. This character is made more dynamic as he views society from his paintbrush. Claydon evokes more curiosity than sympathy, thus intrigues the readers. 
  • For the five years she was dead, he did not think of her as such. He still engages in a conversation with the dead wife’s portrait. 
  • Techniques used is supernatural. The constant change in the narrator evokes suspense in the story. 
  • The denouement in the story provides sympathy for Claydon
  • The suspense in the rising action is built when Claydon refuses to meet with Grancy. The portrait in the wall is another character in the story.
  • The painting in the wall is more of a character than the objectified woman.
  • As it is feminist writer, she portrays Mrs. Grancy as a painting for revenge as if Victorian objectification is not allowed. A lot of power is seen to subjugate her as a painting. They want power over her even after her death (her painting). So, she is subjected and objectified. A power play seen for her. They do not want her, but the power they get from having her.
  • The central conflict in the story comes the artist painted her with intimacy. The look of hers that he painted could only be done if he was in love with her as there is intimacy seen. But this relationship is not sanctified in the Victorian society.
  • Claydon provides a more artistic love whereas Grancy provides a more mundane love. The clash of love is the central conflict. 
  • The reign of the story occurs with the constant flow of events and actions of the story. 
  • Our sympathy has been taken away from Claydon as his character is tarnished. He is the one who betrayed the friendship as he reaches out for the lady his friend possesses. 
  • Grancy’s death is the fourth failure in his life. We are left with the mystery on who killed fancy? Possessiveness? Greed? His wife?
  • The husband and wife joked about the fact if he got sick of her. So she got sick of him and found a way out of the relationship. However, he did not like her for her character but what she symbolised. He objectified her, thus does not value her presence. 

In what ways does the author makes the readers sympathise with the character, Grancy and Claydon?

• When you answer a question, give thesis statements, narrative techniques and characterisation
• In the question, we discuss protagonist and antagonist’s actions
• How does he hold the plot?
• How complex is characterisation?
• The story is an allegory to show the male entities subjugate the female characters. 
• Give your own perspective as a modern reader/ audience 
• In a drama, YOU HAVE TO TALK ABOUT EMOTIONS, CONFLICT ON STAGE AND STAGE DIRECTIONS IN AN ESSAY/ EXTRACT QUESTION
• How a modern reader looks as a Victorian society?
• Narrator/ Voice- evoked sympathy 
• Ethos, Pathos
• Background of writer, writer, author’s purpose, motifs and symbols, characterisation, narrative techniques 
• Motif- Triangular love
• WRITER- Victorian American writer
• The characters are rich, opulent people who are aristocracy
• There characters undergo psychological decay
• In this backdrop of aristocracy making way for democratic principles in America, Wharton questions the pride and morality of the patriarchal Victorian society. 
• The death of one woman can be so impactful on the men even if they objectify them

THEMES

1. Loneliness

• Mr Grancy felt lonely and went insane with the need of woman. Loneliness makes lose balance in life
• Seen in abject misery in both the deaths
• The repainting of the portrait stems from the loneliness of Mr. Grancy
• The character was insecure that he was older than her and he wanted her to make a part of the house as a presence
• “It was only a picture lost to you, it was my life regained”
• The men try to contain her by repainting her