A Reading of My Papa’s Waltz Essay Example for Free

A Reading of My Papa’s Waltz Essay Theodore Roethke’s â€Å"My Papa’s Waltz† speaks of how a daughter is able to see past the defects of her father with such adoring calm and respect. The poem is playful and innocent, the choice of words child-like, and the rhyme measured at a pace of a child’s anxious breathing. Yet a sense of caution rings true throughout, right from the very first lines down to the end of the poem. There is the unmistakable obedient but anxious anticipation in the part of the child upon seeing his father coming home drunk again. Also, perhaps because of the regularity of her â€Å"waltz† with her father the speaker has committed the details to memory. Waltz as a metaphor for action in the poetry tallies with the words romp—a boisterous frolic; dizzy, slid, step, scraped, beat, time and cling to the shirt among others (Roethke). Literally, waltz is dancing to fast music. The steps are not measured, oftentimes wild but still remains rhythmic and moves to a tune. It is danced with both partners holding to each other for dear life—so to speak, lest one should be thrown off from the repetitive twirls. As it were, at first reading, the poem may admit of several interpretations, yet by giving color to every word that sense which will result from all of the parts taken together, along with death, battered, hard, dirt, whiskey and so on, there is enough that can be gathered to support the conclusion that the â€Å"waltz† as used in the poem, means the abuse of a daughter by a drunk father (Roethke). However, although the work may be largely read as a re-telling of an incident where a father beats his daughter, the way that Roethke plays with the words and imagery makes the work open to several readings: Ones that may not necessarily lean towards violence and abuse. It is easy to read the work with a different view altogether. Nevertheless, the freedom of interpretation is granted solely to the reader due to the multiple meanings that the words and imagery, used in the poetry, convey. At any rate, the use of waltz to describe the beating was a clever touch in that it subtly shows the young girl’s abject fear to a point where harsh and hostile words, from an otherwise meek and mild tone, would only lessen the claim that the beating is regular and harsh. The message is clear that because of the frequency and extent of violence, the young girl is rendered unable to speak ill of the father in this poem but instead is beaten to absolute dread and horror to which only forced obedience is her only weapon. Thus, it would seem that they have danced the â€Å"waltz† before and nothing that eventually happens in the poem is something new or is happening for the first time. The speaker’s recollection of the details is remarkable underscoring the fact that what happened is still fresh in her memory or so etched in her mind so deeply that missing out a fact is impossible. There is the possibility of repetition felt at the end since the speaker makes it a point to show that this shall not be the last time—whilst she clung (desperately) to her dad’s shirt. She knows that it she will have to â€Å"waltz† with her papa soon enough that she prostrates herself at the end of that violent episode, hoping against all hope that there shall no longer be any in the future (Roethske). In the same vein, the poem is addressed to the father, waxing poetry with a meek letter of demand for the beating to stop. The over-all tone and style is apologetic and wishful in manner and in part. It is a technique used to show the attempt of the girl to appeal to the father’s emotions without so much as being violent in the treatment if only not to anger her father in the process. Moreover, the use of the word â€Å"waltz† as an ironic imagery reveals the mental age of the speaker. Consequently, these are hints of the young girl’s age since her tenderness and impressionability as a child coincides with the average year that a girl normally dreams of becoming a princess who waltzes with her prince. Instead, in this instance, it is the young girl and her father—who reeks with alcohol; with the crammed kitchen space as their dance floor, the cluttering of falling pans as the resounding applause; and a helpless mother, whose â€Å"countenance could not unfrown itself† (Roethke), looking on.

Macbeth - Noble Soldier to Bloody Tyrant Essay -- Macbeth essays

Macbeth - Noble Soldier to Bloody Tyrant    The purpose of tragedy is to arouse in the audience emotions of fear or pity, and to produce a catharsis-a relieving cleansing-of these emotions. Macbeth is the most horrific of Shakespeare's tragedies because the protagonist commits such bloodthirsty acts. Apart from on the battlefield, however, this brutality is not evident when we first meet the hero.   General Macbeth is a man of military and political importance, the heroic Thane of Glamis and potential heir to the throne of Scotland.   By the end of the play he is an entirely different person than he was in the beginning. In the beginning he is a heroic, decent, and noble soldier, but by the end of the play he is a bloody tyrant.    A key ingredient in such a genre is the tragic flaw, an idea that goes back to an influential work of literary criticism called Poetics, by Aristotle.   Aristotle said that the tragic hero should be someone of rank or importance with a tragic flaw, who suffers a "reversal of intention" that eventually leads to his or her death.  Ã‚  Ã‚   Aristotle also said that in the process, the tragic hero should experience recognition of this failure and that by the end of the work our moral sense should be satisfied that right or justice has prevailed.  Ã‚  Ã‚   The tragic flaw is some weakness in character that is responsible for action or inaction on the part of the tragic hero and leads to the reversal of the hero's original intention.   Therefore, the reversal of intention is the turning point in the tragic hero's life when he or she experiences something that causes the tide to turn and previous success to turn to failure.   [The fourth soliloquy prepares us for the r eversal, and the climactic... ...ere is room for debate about his courage and nobility, and whether or not we feel any pity or compassion for him. Our feelings at the end constitute the expected catharsis.    Works Cited and Consulted: Greenblatt, Stephen. "Introduction to Macbeth." The Norton Shakespeare. New York: Norton, 1997. 2555-63. Hawkins, Michael. "History, politics, and Macbeth." Focus on Macbeth. Ed. John Russell Brown. London: Routledge, 1982. 155-88. Kermode, Frank. "Introduction to Macbeth." The Riverside Shakespeare. Boston: Houghton, 1974. 1307-11. Shakespeare, William.   Tragedy of Macbeth . Ed. Barbara Mowat and Paul  Ã‚   Warstine. New York: Washington Press, 1992.  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Notes: 1 Roman Polanski changes the ending in his film, when he has Donalbain visit the witches to determine his own fate as the brother of the new King Malcolm.   

History: Sociology and Karl Marx Essay

Sociology is the study of people within a society. Three important Modernist Thinkers; Karl Marx, Emile Durkheim, and Max Weber are the three important figures in sociology. During the time of the modernist thinkers, they played a role in sociology thinking. This paper will explore the importance on why these three figures are considered modernist thinkers. What there main focus was and how they are considered a modernist thinker. Karl Marx was born in 1818. He was a German philosopher who believed that material goods are part of the social world. Marx was committed to revolutionist. Marx was trying to influence the social movement. According to Marx, the ideal government would be a communist state where resources are equally shared. Marx was involved in political and social issues which later on lead to more a communist theory. Marx theory on history is focused on whether or not society will rise and fall. Based on this theory Marx was influenced by Hegel. Marx belief on history evolved from many unpredictable directions. Marx was trying to explain the analysis of capitalist within societies and the economic failures that were produced. He suggested different socialist remedies. In the article â€Å"Contribution to the Critique of Hegel’s philosophy of Right† by Karl Marx, â€Å"The foundation of irreligious criticism is: Man makes religion, religion does not make man. Religion is, indeed, the self-consciousness and self-esteem of man who has either not yet won through to himself, or has already lost himself again. But man is no abstract being squatting outside the world. Man is the world of man – state, society† in other words Marx was thinking about how a human being could exist. Religion is dependent on economics such as â€Å" state and society† Marx explained that capitalist takes more of our productive labor where as religion we believe there is a god or to be called that there is a god. Accordi ng to Karl Marx, alienated labor is the process of capitalism. We create dominates us. The difference of alienated labor is â€Å"the relationship of the worker to the product of labour, the second is the relationship of the labour to the act of production, and lastly is the difference is man is a species-being not only in that practically and theoretically he makes both his own and other species into his objects† (15) this is the consequences of man alienation of production from work. Therefore man is opposed from himself. Social change fits with Karl Marx perspective because Karl Marx believed there needed to be a better society and with a social change there was going to be conflict. One of the conflicts was the class conflict, the capitalist. With social change he was able to produce a better society even though there were going to be economic problems. Emile Durkheim was a French sociologist argued that society had to be studied on its own. He was the primary of society. In Durkheim’s perspective society influences individual through norms and social facts. The way an individual think or acts is constituted as a proper domain which is defined as a â€Å"constraint† in Durkheim perspective. â€Å"Constraint† is used to identify the reason behind social facts. A constraint holds power over an individual and becomes stronger over reaction. He believed that societies are held together by values. Durkheim main focus was the concern of social order, how does modern society hold together given the individualism of an individual. In the article Suicide Durkheim connects division of labour and anomie. In Suicide he connects the analysis of suicide, by exploring the different rates, different places and to explain how they are different. Emile Durkheim treats religion by according to the article â€Å"In the Human Meaning of Religion, Durkheim differentiates religion in the context of social life. It states: â€Å"religion is a mirror of society and that in fact what people take to be the realm of the sacred is society itself†(68), in other words religion is a reflection of society. The importance function of religion is to make us act. He states: â€Å"If among certain peoples the ideas of sacredness, the soul and God are to explain sociologically, it should be presumed scientifically that, in principle, the same explanation is valid from all the peoples among whom these same ideas are found with the same characteristics† (68). Based on this article religion is the meaning of life, it provides support and authority figures. Religion impacts and influences society and effects different social norms an individual. Based on my understanding social change does fit with Durkheim perspective. Therefore; in the article Division of Labour in Society, Durkheim focuses on the origin of connecting individual with one another with society, he analysis the social change and explains the conflict in modern society. In Durkheim perspective what unite us is called â€Å"social solidarity† which brings individuals together. In the article it states: â€Å"Society it not seen in the same aspect in the two cases. In the first, what we call society is more or less organized totality of beliefs and sentiments†¦ the society in which we are solidarity in the second instance is system of different, special functions which definite relations unite† (107) meaning solaridity is based on similarity because it binds us together but is different because we are different people. With Durkheim producing social change it was reduced by social reform. Max Weber was a German sociologist. Weber agreed with Marx that individuals had to fight to protect their own property and interest. He also agreed with French sociologist Durkheim; that people interest is determined by shared values. Weber believed in causality. There were multiple causes on why people behave the way they do according to him. He also believed that society is more of rationality and bureaucracy. Sociology should be more of a social action according to Weber. Weber work was the process of rationalization. Rationalization is where rules and laws dominate sectors of society in the model of a bureaucracy. According to Weber â€Å"Class, Status, Party; the way in which social honor is distributed in a community between typical grounds participating in this distribution we may call the ‘social order’. The social order and the economic order are, of course, similarly related to the ‘legal order’ (102), class, status and party was a source of social conflict that became a social difference. Class and status influences one another where as† ‘parties’ live in a house of power† (106) in other words Weber was trying to explain that these spheres are connected by distribution of power. Status makes up the social order and classes are the economic order each promotes power and social change In the article â€Å"Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism† focuses on the religions ideas and economic behavior as part of the rationalization of the economic system. It states: â€Å"We can treat ascetic Protestantism as a single whole. But Since that side of English Puritanism which was derived from Calvinism gives the most consistent religious basis for the idea of calling , we shall, following our previous method , place one of its representatives at the center of the discussion†(158).Weber explore the emergency of capitalism was by an ascetic spirit of sacrifice. The development of capitalism was influences by Calvinism. In the society of this time they had more highly capitalist who were Protestants. Social change fits with Weber perspective because in the article Bureaucracy, it states â€Å"The principles of office hierarchy and of levels of graded authority mean a firmly ordered system of super- and subordination in which there is a supervision of lower offices by the higher ones† (89) bureaucracy is a social order where as the authority who changes the order it becomes a social change to society. In conclusion three important figures of sociology were Marx, Durkheim, and Weber. Each three were considered modernist thinkers for sociology. Even though they all had different theories and ideas, Marx believed economics was the force of social change where Weber though religion was. Reference Emile Durkheim selections from â€Å"Division of Labor in Society† From Scott Appelrouth and Laura Edles (eds.) Classical and Contemporary Sociological Theory (Pine Forge Press, 2008) Emile Durkheim selections from â€Å"Suicide† From Scott Appelrouth and Laura Edles (eds.) Classical and Contemporary Sociological Theory (Pine Forge Press, 2008) Emile Durkheim â€Å"The Human Meaning of Religion† From Peter Kivisto (ed) Social Theory: Roots and Branches (Oxford University Press, 2008). Karl Marx â€Å"Alienated Labor† From Peter Kivisto (ed) Social Theory: Roots and Branches (Oxford University Press, 2008). Karl Marx â€Å"Contribution to the Critique of Hegel’s Philosophy of Right† From Christopher Hitchens (ed) The Portable Atheist (Nation Books, 2009) Max Weber â€Å"Bureaucracy† From Peter Kivisto (ed) Social Theory: Roots and Branches (OxfordUniversity Press, 2008). Max Weber â€Å"Class, Status, Party† From Peter Kivisto (ed) Social Theory: Roots and Branches Max Weber selections from â€Å"Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism† From Scott Appelrouth and Laura Edles (eds.) Classical and Contemporary Sociological Theory (Pine Forge Press, 2008).

Analysis Of Martin Luther Kings I Have A Dream Speech

Rosa Parks once said â€Å"Stand for something or you will fail for anything.† Being one of the influential quotes of all-time, Martin Luther King Jr. did not fail to expound on her statement. In his life as well as Martin Luther King Jr’s â€Å"I Have a Dream† speech, he was an avid and determined African American striving for racial equality. He allowed for others to follow his lead, and to continue his legacy as the U.S continues to live on as a nation of freedom, liberty, and a home of safe living. King’s presentation addresses the African American race, expressing a daring opinion for the whites of North America to consider them in the United States today, making the speech one of the most fascinating U.S jargons in history. King’s â€Å" I Have a†¦show more content†¦His influences bring about his determination, his will, his drive to begin an effort for equality. Rosa Parks, among others, inspired him to continue to strive others to engage in equality protests, for the freedoms of our country. This speech not only was based off influences, but of his previous actions and approaches as well. Esteeming others to attempt the same feat he accomplished allows for this speech to be considered â€Å"great† by this country. Martin Luther King Jr., when he spoke up for his race, allowed for others to prepare themselves to perform conquests similar to his. In his â€Å" I Have a Dream† speech, King Jr. exemplifies the possible future when he says â€Å" will be able to join hands and to sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual, Free at last, free at last: thank God Almighty, we are free at last.†(286). This quote here, stated in the last sentence, reveals a last hope to the generations to come. It guides the next generations to follow his lead, to show demonstrations of freedom. He is our counterpart, he is allowed for certain actions to based off him, negative and positive. Such things as the 1964 riots of New York, Jersey City, Chicago, and Philadelphia were a result of the African Americans having a belief, and exerting that belief to come true or else . This, however, diminished our country as people were killed, buildings were diminished, and police forces were brutally attacked. On the contrast, actions such as the 1963 marches inShow MoreRelatedRhetorical Analysis Of Martin Luther Kings I Have A Dream Speech1230 Words   |  5 Pages Rhetorical Analysis Essay on Martin Luther King’s â€Å"I have a dream† speech Professor Hailemarkos Worke ENGL 102 Sefra Belay September 29, 2017 Rhetorical Analysis Essay In Washington DC, on August 28, 1963 was the day that Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his â€Å"I have a dream† speech. According to Kennedy X.J., et al. in their book, The Brief Bedford Reader, Martin Luther King was an American Baptist minister who became the first president of the Southern Christian Leadership ConferenceRead MoreRhetorical Analysis Of Martin Luther Kings I Have A Dream Speech724 Words   |  3 PagesRhetorical Analysis M.L.K â€Å"I have a dream† Speech On August 28th 1963, Civil Rights activist, Martin Luther King Jr. made his infamous â€Å"I Have a Dream† speech. In the speech, King confronts the mistreatment of the African American community and the lack of free will they contain in society. Throughout the mid-1900s, the Civil Rights Movement took place, influenced by centuries of cruelty towards the African Americans.. The most influential speech in the modern era was said in front of thousands ofRead MoreAnalysis Of Martin Luther Kings I Have A Dream Speech989 Words   |  4 Pages† Because this is one of the most influential quotes of all-time, Martin Luther King Jr. did not fail to expound on her statement. In his life as well as Martin Luther King Jr.’s, â€Å"I Have a Dream† speech, he was an avid and determined African American striving for racial equality. He allowed for others to follow his lead and to continue his legacy as the U.S continues to live on as a nation of freedom, liberty, and se curity. King’s presentation addresses the African American race, expressing a daringRead MoreRhetorical Analysis of Martin Luther Kings I Have A Dream Speech810 Words   |  4 Pages Martin Luther King’s speech was made after the March on Washington on August 28, 1963. He delivered the â€Å"I Have a dream† speech on the Lincoln Memorial steps. He verbalized this speech to millions of people blacks and whites. This is one of the greatest speeches because it has many elements like repetition, assonance and consonance, pathos, logos, and ethos. Repetition in M.L.K.’s Speech Martin Luther King uses a lot of repetition in his speech. They are scattered throughout but veryRead MoreRhetorical Analysis of Martin Luther Kings I Have A Dream Speech1409 Words   |  6 Pages More than 40 years ago, in August 1963, Martin Luther King electrified America with his momentous ‘I Have A Dream’ speech, dramatically delivered from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. His soaring rhetoric demanding racial justice and an integrated society became a mantra for the black community and is as familiar to subsequent generations of Americans as the US Declaration of Independence. His words proved to be a touchstone for understanding the social and political upheaval of the timeRead MoreRhetorical Analysis of Martin Luther Kings I Have A Dream Speech852 Words   |  4 Pages I Have A Dream is a mesmerizing speech by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. It was delivered to the thousands of Americans on August 28, 1963, during the March on Washington. Aimed at the entire nation, King’s main purpose in this speech was to convince his audience to demand racial justice towards the mistreated African Americans and to stand up together for the rights afforded to African American under the Constitution. To further convey this purpose more effectively, King cleverly makes use of theRead More Rhetorical Analysis of Martin Luther Kings I Have A Dream Speech987 Words   |  4 PagesIn a period of time where few were willing to listen, Martin Luther King, Jr. stood proudly, gathered and held the attention of over 200,000 people. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s â€Å"I Have a Dream† speech was very effective and motivational for African Americans in 1963. Many factors affected Kings’ speech in a very positive manner; the great emotion behind the words, delivering the speech on the steps of the memorial of the President who defeated slavery. And not only was this message beautifully writtenRead More Rhetorical Analysis of Martin Luther Kings I Have A Dream Speech1751 Words   |  8 PagesMartin Luther King Jr.’s â€Å"I Have a Dream† speech was made to thousands of people at the Washington Monument while facing the Lincoln Memorial on August 28, 1963. Dr. King called upon Americas to consider all people, both black and white, to be united, undivided and free. His rhetoric harkened back a hundred years past when the Emancipation Proclamation was enacted during Abraham Lincoln’s term as president which abolished slavery and allowed all people living in America to be equal and have equalRead MoreRhetorical Analysis of Martin Luther Kings I Have A Dream Speech1089 Words   |  5 PagesThe famous â€Å"I Have a Dream† speech delivered by Martin Luther King, Jr. at the historic March in Washington in August 1963 effectively urged the US government to take actions and to finally set up equality between the black and white people in America. Although there were many factors that contributed to the success of the speech, it was primarily King’s masterly use of different rhetorical instruments that encouraged Kennedy and his team to take further steps towards racial equality. King effectivelyRead MoreRhetorical Analysis of Dr. Martin Luther Kings I Have a Dream Speech994 Words   |  4 Pages On August 28th, 1963, Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered a speech to more than 200,000 pe ople during the March on Washington. Kings speech was one of the most influential during the era of the Civil Rights Movement and is to this day recognized as a masterpiece due to its effect on the audience as well as for its eloquence and language. Many components went into this passionate speech that portrayed Kings hopes for racial equality and a brighter future made the speech as moving as it was. It