The Madding Crowd Essay Example for Free

The Madding Crowd Essay One of the great strengths of ‘Far From The Madding Crowd’ is Hardy’s contrasting portrayals of Gabriel Oak and Sergeant Frank Troy. Discuss this observation on the novel’ Perhaps the greatest strength of Hardy’s novels is the excellent portrayals of his main characters. There are, however, many other strengths in ‘Far From the Madding Crowd’. For example, there are many descriptions of scenery that punctuate the action in the novel. These show Hardy’s skill as a writer by painting the scene so clearly in the reader’s mind that the characters can really flourish against their backdrop. The themes of love, persistence and nature permeate the novel and give it depth, even when the plot slows down. The greatest strength, then, is likely to fall to the characters who drive both the plot and the action. Two of these characters, Oak and Troy, fall in love with Bathsheba Everdene and soon find themselves competing for her hand in marriage. The portrayal of the differences between the characters is clearly an example of Hardy’s strongest work in the novel. Gabriel Oak is a simple man who is very clear on who he is. Whilst Oak is shy, he is also honest and always tells the truth. Oak is described by Bathsheba as ‘honest and true’ and he often tells her how he feels, ‘I love you far more than common’. He doesn’t have the words and the education to express himself properly to Bathsheba, but he is steadfast, keeping to his bottom line, making Bathsheba happy. Oak is unlucky in love and in life. He fails time and time again to get Bathsheba to marry him, and when he loses his livelihood she is his first, unselfish thought: ‘â€Å"thank God I’m not married: what would she have done in the poverty now coming upon me! †Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ This shows that Oak puts other people first and is optimistic. He does not focus on the loss of his money and his farm, but on the good fortune that Bathsheba had not married him. It takes a strong personality to think in this way. Oak is described as a â€Å"young man of sound judgment†¦and general good character† very early on in the novel. He makes his intentions clear with regard to marrying Bathsheba within a few days of meeting her, and proposes a simple life to her, which reflects his own simplicity and honesty. He says: And at home by the fire, whenever you look up there I shall be— and whenever I look up, there will be you†, asking her in simple terms to accept him and love him always for who he is. Oak is very modest: ‘I was never very clever on my inside’ but he shines underneath his dull extremities, taking charge in the fire and saving Bathsheba’s farm, and again in the storm. The author Jane Bailey says that: â€Å"Gabriel is the only character to really master the forces of nature†. I agree with her in this statement because the other characters don’t deal with the problems nature gives them as well as Gabriel. In the storm, Gabriel knows the rain is coming because of the formation of the sheep, he manages to cover the bales of hay alone, and he is able to save the farm. Boldwood doesn’t get his hay covered and he loses his harvest; Troy gets drunk in the warmth of the barn. This shows that Gabriel has control over Hardy’s main theme, nature. He is a natural leader, but he prefers to sink into the world of the rustics where he feels he fits in. Oak is a kind man, taking pity on a stranger in the night and giving her a shilling, which would have been a significant sum of money. The stranger turns out to be Fanny, and he helps her a second time in death, rubbing out ‘and child’ on her coffin, although it can be debated as to whether Oak did this out of kindness to Fanny or to Bathsheba. Oak is very self-sacrificial, giving everything to Bathsheba, and telling her: â€Å"I love you and I shall love you always†. He does not change much over the course of the novel, showing how good Hardy believed him to be in the first place. Oak is not, however, a puritan. He drinks with the rustics and criticises Troy and Boldwood, who are both his class superiors. Oak is determined and Hardy rewards him in the end with a happy marriage to Bathsheba, proving, in Hardy’s mind, that perseverance pays off. Even in Oak’s steadfast protection of Bathsheba, he is never faulted. He leaves quietly when she dismisses him and comes back to save her when she needs him. Even his first name, Gabriel, signifies his long-standing protection over Bathsheba- Gabriel is an Archangel, a protector of humans so his name is very apt. From Oak’s actions and from Hardy’s descriptions of him, we can tell that Oak is a kind hearted, ideal man who loves Bathsheba more than Troy or even Boldwood could imagine.

Macbeth, Act 4 Scene 2 Importance :: essays research papers

ACT IV SCENE 2   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  This scene plays a very important piece of the play. This is when we see how cold hearted and evil Macbeth is, and also how this action that Macbeth performs will change the outcome of his life later on in this play. For this scene Macduff swears revenge on Macbeth and as we know this is why Macbeth dies in the play.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  In this scene Lady Macduff and Macduff's son are arguing on why Lady Macduff believes that her husband is a traitor and deserves the worse punishment. She believes that Macduff left them unprotected without caring of their well being, which turns out to be some what true. The son of Macduff, even do his age was too young to understand, believes otherwise of his dad and defends him until his death.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The Lady Macbeth and her son receive a very strange and unexpected visit from an unknown man which tells them that they are in danger and that they should leave somewhere safer. The message, as important as it is, was treated like a joke by Lady Macbeth which we know must have regretted it.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The murders appear and kill all of Macduff's family leaving no one alive. When Macduff receives the message he gets raged and swore to kill Macbeth. This is how the fate of Macbeth is written and how Macbeth kind of wrote his own death warrant by doing a point less evil act of greed and lust of power. Macbeths power went so high into his head, which he couldn't keep control of it and finally ended with his life.

Modernization Essay

Modernization is a process of modernizing a way of life. South Africa and China both attempted to modernize for a beneficial outcome. China was successful at modernizing and benefited greatly. South Africa resisted modernization and in the end suffered from harmful effects. South Africa and China both modernized in their own way. China attempted to modernize from the struggles that were present in the country. In China, modernization occurred later than then most countries; this allowed the Chinese to use other countries as a model. China began to focus on important industry’s that would help their country prosper. They began to advance in military, science, and technology, and established a strong economy by selling products to other nations. As a result of modernization China became urbanized, and industrialized. The nation also became economically stronger which made the growing nation prosper. Modernization benefited China in all aspects of a great nation. China modernization process started to begin after the Qing dynasty fell, with this the country wanted to reform which led to modernization. Modernization was a very beneficial process to china as a whole. South Africa did not benefit from the process of modernization. Modernization caused a loss of culture and society to African culture. The British came to South Africa hoping they could take over the country and modernize the country as a hole. The people of South Africa were known as the Zulus, the Zulu’s resented modernization of the British and wanted to modernize on their own. The British attempted to convert South Africans to Christianity to create modernization in the country. The Zulu’s lost the war to the British and their freedom; natives were forced to provide cheap labor to the British to make money for food. The British benefitted more from modernization then South Africans did. Modernization was not beneficial to the South Africans. Modernization was beneficial to China and was harmful to South Africa. China took years to modernize and was late in modernization but did eventually modernize and greatly befitted from it. South Africa did not benefit from modernization; they had a loss in society and culture. Modernization will always ether help a country or be harmful to the country. This will depend on how the country attempts this process as a hole and what they go off of.

The American Media s Influence On The Italian American

The American media has had a substantial influence on the Italian-American stereotype, especially that regarding mobsters. The American cinema has created movies and TV shows such as The Godfather, Goodfellas, The Sopranos, and more. The media has the power to influence how people think and see things, including ethnic groups and races. This was seen extensively in the 2016 United States Presidential election. Hollywood has always had the strength to have ethnic groups be seen in a positive or negative light. In the twentieth century, the media had a negative portrayal of Italian-Americans that has evolved as time passed. The reason for the views changing with each passing decade is the fact that foreigners and their future generations became more â€Å"Americanized.† First, Hollywood and the media had a negative portrayal of Italian-Americans compared to other ethnic groups. In the article Family, Gang, and Ethnicity in Italian-themed Hollywood Gangster Films, the author Silv ia Dibeltulo states that in movies where both Italian-American and Irish-American gangsters were portrayed, Italian-American gangsters were portrayed as more â€Å"alien† whereas their Italian-American counterparts were portrayed as more â€Å"assimilated† . This led to Italians being negatively associated with the stereotypes from these movies, which led to anxiety across the country. The article goes on to state more differences between the depictions of Italian-American and Irish-American gangs in films. TheShow MoreRelatedItalians Perception Of The American West1516 Words   |  7 PagesHistory 105 Final 12/12/16 Italians Perception of the American West When people think of the American West they get this dangerous, rich, savage-like idea of what it might be like. In reality the American West is very different in contrast to its perception. 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