Character Analysis of Hedda from Henrik Ibesens Hedda Gabler Essay

Character Analysis of Hedda from Henrik Ibesen's Hedda Gabler Henrik Ibsen's play Hedda Gabler portrays the life of a young newlywed woman named Hedda and her attemps to overpower the people around her. Ibsen succsessfully depicts the very masculine traits that Hedda displays throughout the play with not wanting to conform to the feminine ways or the accepted stereotypes of her gender in her society. Hedda's marriage to her husband, Mr. Tesman, only increases her desire for power because it is a constant re- minder that she now "belongs" to Mr. Tesman which Hedda resents. Hedda considers her life to be boring and finds solace in playing with her father's pistols, which is considered not a thing for a young lady to do and a very inappropriate form of entertainment for a woman. Hedda is a person that displays characteristics of masculinity and jealousy, and is shown to be very unconcerned about the fellings of others she may incounter. The play begins with Miss. Tesman, Mr. Tesman's Aunt, greeting her nephew after his six month wedding-tour. They speak briefly about his journey, and Miss. Tesman comments several times about his new beautiful wife and how lucky he is to have been the one that was choosen out of all her other suitors to carry off the lovely Hedda Gabler. Soon after Hedda enters the room, she has already insulted Tesman's Aunt by implying that her bonnet is the servants: Hedda-"Look there! She has left her old bonnet lying on the chair" Tesman-"But Hedda, thats aunt Julia's bonnet" Miss Tesman-"Yes, indeed it's mine. And, what's more it's not old, Madam Hedda" (Act I). Hedda again shows her disconcern when her husband tries to show her the slippers that his aunt has made for him as a gift: Hedda- "Thanks, I really don't care about it" Tesman- "Only think-as ill as she was, Aunt Rina embroidered these for me. Oh you can't think of how many associations cling to them" Hedda - "Scarcely for me"(Act I). Hedda pretends to befriend Mrs. Thea Elvsted ( a schoolmate from her youth) in order to solicit her confidence about her situation with an old friend of Mr.Tesman and an old flame of hers, Eilert Lovborg, who was a drunk back in the day, but has cleaned up his act and has recent... ... manuscript and burns it, thus destroying Lovborg and Thea's work and altamitly their relationship. Lovborg arrives at the Tesman house where Thea has stayed the night. He lies and tells her that he has torn the manuscript into pieces because he has torn his own life into pieces, after hearing this Thea, in a state of dispare, leaves the house. Once alone with Hedda, Lovborg confesses that he has lost the Manuscript, but could not bring himself to tell Thea because her pure soul was in that book. As he begins to leave, Hedda gives him one of her pistols as a "momento" and tells him to do it beautifully, as though she knew he felt he had nothing to live for. Brack arrived later that day with the news that Lovborg was dead, and that he still had the pistol on him when he was found, and that he knew it was one of Hedda's pistols. He tells her that she would be able to avoid scandal only if he did not tell the police he knew who the gun belonged to, but that meant being in his power, at his beck and call, his slave, and that is something Hedda just could not live with, so she excuses herself, goes in the next room and shoots herself dead. Character Analysis of Hedda from Henrik Ibesen's Hedda Gabler Essay Character Analysis of Hedda from Henrik Ibesen's Hedda Gabler Henrik Ibsen's play Hedda Gabler portrays the life of a young newlywed woman named Hedda and her attemps to overpower the people around her. Ibsen succsessfully depicts the very masculine traits that Hedda displays throughout the play with not wanting to conform to the feminine ways or the accepted stereotypes of her gender in her society. Hedda's marriage to her husband, Mr. Tesman, only increases her desire for power because it is a constant re- minder that she now "belongs" to Mr. Tesman which Hedda resents. Hedda considers her life to be boring and finds solace in playing with her father's pistols, which is considered not a thing for a young lady to do and a very inappropriate form of entertainment for a woman. Hedda is a person that displays characteristics of masculinity and jealousy, and is shown to be very unconcerned about the fellings of others she may incounter. The play begins with Miss. Tesman, Mr. Tesman's Aunt, greeting her nephew after his six month wedding-tour. They speak briefly about his journey, and Miss. Tesman comments several times about his new beautiful wife and how lucky he is to have been the one that was choosen out of all her other suitors to carry off the lovely Hedda Gabler. Soon after Hedda enters the room, she has already insulted Tesman's Aunt by implying that her bonnet is the servants: Hedda-"Look there! She has left her old bonnet lying on the chair" Tesman-"But Hedda, thats aunt Julia's bonnet" Miss Tesman-"Yes, indeed it's mine. And, what's more it's not old, Madam Hedda" (Act I). Hedda again shows her disconcern when her husband tries to show her the slippers that his aunt has made for him as a gift: Hedda- "Thanks, I really don't care about it" Tesman- "Only think-as ill as she was, Aunt Rina embroidered these for me. Oh you can't think of how many associations cling to them" Hedda - "Scarcely for me"(Act I). Hedda pretends to befriend Mrs. Thea Elvsted ( a schoolmate from her youth) in order to solicit her confidence about her situation with an old friend of Mr.Tesman and an old flame of hers, Eilert Lovborg, who was a drunk back in the day, but has cleaned up his act and has recent... ... manuscript and burns it, thus destroying Lovborg and Thea's work and altamitly their relationship. Lovborg arrives at the Tesman house where Thea has stayed the night. He lies and tells her that he has torn the manuscript into pieces because he has torn his own life into pieces, after hearing this Thea, in a state of dispare, leaves the house. Once alone with Hedda, Lovborg confesses that he has lost the Manuscript, but could not bring himself to tell Thea because her pure soul was in that book. As he begins to leave, Hedda gives him one of her pistols as a "momento" and tells him to do it beautifully, as though she knew he felt he had nothing to live for. Brack arrived later that day with the news that Lovborg was dead, and that he still had the pistol on him when he was found, and that he knew it was one of Hedda's pistols. He tells her that she would be able to avoid scandal only if he did not tell the police he knew who the gun belonged to, but that meant being in his power, at his beck and call, his slave, and that is something Hedda just could not live with, so she excuses herself, goes in the next room and shoots herself dead.

Literary criticism Essay

Literature represents a language or a people: culture and tradition. But, literature is more important than just a historical or cultural writing. Literature introduces us to new worlds of experience. We learn from books and literature; we enjoy the triumphs and the tragedies of poems, stories, and plays; and we may even grow through our literary journey with books. In conclusion, we may discover meaning in literature by looking at what the author says and how he/she says it. We may interpret the author’s message. However we interpret literature, there is still an artistic quality to the works. Literature is important to us because it speaks to us, it is both universal and individual, and in many ways it affects us, for the better. When some people think of the word â€Å"Literature† they think of books like, Walden, Old man and the Sea, Tom Sawyer, Great Expectations, or Moby Dick. These are what some call â€Å"the classics. † While these few books are indeed literature do we subconsciously judge other books based on the styling’s of these few? People believe that the true meaning of â€Å"Literature,† is a literary work in which the readers mind is opened to new concepts and ideals. For a writing to be called â€Å"Literature† it doesn’t have to be considered a â€Å"Classic† nor does it need to follow the same construct as these so called â€Å"Classics†. The book, 11/23/63, is much more of a form of â€Å"Literature† than A Tale of Two Cities. Based solely on the fact that in the Stephen King novel, he places the thought of, â€Å"What if? † into your mind.. Whereas, â€Å"A Tale of Two Cities†, depicts the plight of the French peasantry in the years leading up to the revolution, as opposed to opening your mind. While A Tale of Two Cities, shows you what life was like in those times. Stephen King shows you an alternate universe in which there was but one change, and how that one change affects how history takes its course. When the author helps your mind, explore worlds of endless possibility, or sheds light on a new way to perceive things. That is when the author has created a â€Å"True† work of literary merit. The thing about the term, â€Å"Literature†, is that it doesn’t have just one meaning. Literature is comprised of many things, but while Webster definition of â€Å"Literature† is, â€Å"the production of literary work especially as an occupation. † The â€Å"True† meaning is open to interpretation, meaning that one person’s definition of the word may be completely different than another person’s definition. This is both the great and horrid thing about the term. When scholars classify writing as literature, they often consider it a book or writing that has stood the test of time and despite its age it has surpassed many other great works through history by receiving merit from the scholars, based on their description of the word, influential. You may agree that it should be considered a piece of â€Å"Literature†, if it has done this, and you would be right, but what if it was a great piece of literary art that didn’t become a best seller? And thus was cast into the abyss to be forgotten until stumbled across one day by a mind ready to take in what the author wanted to say. Would you consider it â€Å"Literature? † Or would you just leave it in the abyss because it never became a best seller? Take Moby Dick for example, it is considered to be one of the Great American Novels and a treasure of world literature. However, it never received enough credit to title it a â€Å"Best seller. †One literary work, also helps define my idea of the word Literature, is The Hobbit by J. R. R Tolkien. The reason I consider this a piece of â€Å"Literature† is because of the amount of imagery Tolkien uses to bring his world to life in the imagination of the reader. In this excerpt from that book, he describes every thought of the characters and his use of imagery helps create the scene in the mind of the reader. â€Å"The dark came into the room from the little window that opened in the side of The Hill; the firelight flickered-it was April-and still they played on, while the shadow of Gandalf’s beard wagged against the wall. The dark filled all the room, and the fire died down, and the shadows were lost, and still they played on. And suddenly first one and then another began to sing as they played, deep-throated singing of the dwarves in the deep places of their ancient homes; and this is like a fragment of their song, if it can be like their song without their music. † (The Hobbit, Page 15) Tolkien’s powerful use of imagery in that passage painted a clear picture of what happens while the dwarves sing. However, Splatterpunk also uses powerful imagery to paint pictures. The key difference between the imagery used Splatterpunk and the imagery used in The Hobbit, is how the imagery is used. In the novel, The Cipher, which combined intensely poetic language and lavish grotesqueries, the author, uses imagery to place the pictures into the mind of the reader using powerful and descriptive words. As opposed to Tolkien, who draws upon the reader’s imagination with basic descriptions to help create a sketch in his mind. Now, many would not consider this a form of â€Å"Literature† due to the lack of personal connection between the story and the reader. However, I consider this book, and even this passage alone, to be a form of â€Å"Literature† solely because it opens my mind to a new world full of adventure and intrigue, while keeping the reader glued to the book during the time he reads. Imagery is a powerful tool for both the author and the reader, for if the author isn’t clear with his use of imagery it breaks the reader’s attention and allows him to be lost within the story, and not in a good way. Tolkien also uses diction to place an image into the readers mind, and he does this in such a way the reader begins to sing the song in his own head. Far over the misty mountains cold To dungeons deep and caverns old We must away, ere break of day, To claim our long-forgotten gold. Goblets they carved there for themselves And harps of gold; where no man delves There lay they long, and many a song Was sung unheard by men or elves. The pines were roaring on the height, The winds were moaning in the night. The fire was red, it flaming spread; The trees like torches blazed with light (The Hobbit, Page 16) Literature is important to us because it speaks to us, it is both universal and individual, and in many ways it affects us, for the better. In ways we sometimes may never understand. Ultimately, we may discover meaning in literature by looking at what the author says and how he/she says it. We may interpret the author’s message in one way, while someone else finds the message a different way. In this way we see how the definition of â€Å"Literature,† is subjective to both the readers own interpretation, and the overall meaning of the work. Because even when it is ugly, literature is beautiful. Sources Cited Tolkien, John R. R. The Hobbit. N. p. : George Allen & Unwin, 1937. 15. Web.

Essay on Alcoholism - 564 Words

Alcoholism Alcoholism is perhaps the most common form of drug abuse in North America today. Scientists report that the reason alcohol is so popular to people is because it is pleasant, relaxing, and is considered a social beverage. But what individuals often do not take in to consideration is the fact that alcohol dulls the brain and confuses physical reactions. This can lead to numerous injuries, accidents, and death. Alcohol affects every part of an alcoholics life: their body, their mind and their family life. The body has a natural chemical that gives a feeling of a natural high. It happens in the presence of a life-endangering situation. This chemical is adrenaline, which is meant to prepare the body for defense in†¦show more content†¦After alcohol reaches the brain, it numbs the frontal lobe, which has direct control over the judgment, visual perception and decision making skills. Scientists believe this is what makes alcoholics believe they can conquer any task put before them . After drinking a good number of drinks everyday over a long period of time, many things can happen. Cirrhosis of the liver can occur, which means the liver tissues become hardened. Scientists also report that irreversible brain damage can occur before cirrhosis of the liver is even detected. Also, cancer of the liver, mouth, esophagus as well as lungs and pancreatic cancer often occur as a result of alcoholism. Alcohol also has an affect on the mind as well as the body. Alcoholics often report that they feel inferior to people and believe they can do anything. Many people believe that alcohol acts as a social lubricant. Increased social pleasures, assertiveness talkativeness and even happiness are all expected by many, when they drink in these situations. Alcohol is said to reduce tension and anxiety. 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