Crime and Punishment -- Revised Essay

Everyone allows their personal desires to get the best of them. Humans are selfish by nature. This is prominent in the novel Crime and Punishment. The main character, Ras, allows his inner most desires to control his actions. He does not stop to think about how it could affect other or even himself. In reality, his actions affect himself the most in a negative way rather than the positive way that he had hoped it would. This goes to show that humans act upon impulse based on their desires to get what they want.

            Money is a huge driving factor for everyone especially for those who do not have money such as Ras, in Crime and Punishment. However, it just pushes people like Ras to act on their impulses to get something they desire. At the start of the novel he is described as wearing tattered clothing and rags, things such that the poor would wear. In actuality, Ras is poor which is why it is not a big deal that he is wearing such clothing however he is in dire need of money so he pawns off some of his trinkets to a pawnshop. Pawning off goods is not such a bad deed-- even though his responsibilities are to work and earn an honest living-- especially if it is compared to what he starts to contemplate doing, which is murder. His one desire that is prominent in the beginning of the novel is to murder the Pawnshop lady and take her goods however it was not all about money. He hated the lady with a burning passion and learns that others do too. It takes several of chapters until he settles this internal conflict of whether or not he should kill her but he finally follows his personal desires and kills the lady. Once she is dead he rummages through her belongings and snatches some money and some trinkets. However he had left the door opened and the Pawnshop lady’s sister entered and he slaughtered her just as mercilessly. He had allowed his yearnings of committing a crime to easily obtain money get the best of him and murdered two people.

            After committing such a crime, Ras starts to feel horrible about it that he sleeps fitfully for several of nights. It would be morally correct to attempt to correct such a horrid mistake by confessing your sins or crimes to the proper authority however his fear prevented him from doing so. With his fear not allowing him to come clean, his conscience constantly attacks his mind, weakening it causing him to go mad in the eyes of some. That is what the conscience is for to remind you constantly that you have done something wrong. It is your moral obligation to listen to your conscience and right a wrong you have done. However, Ras was too preoccupied with trying to protect himself from punishment to obey his conscience.

            Many things have happened as Ras tries to fight with his conscience and one of them is that his mother announced that his sister, Dun, is getting married to a government worker named, Luz. Normally, if one hears that their sister is getting married one is usually excited and tries to like whomever their sister is marrying. For Ras, that was not the case. Due to his hatred of Luz after their confrontation in the Café which almost caused Ras to confess his murder and his love for his sister, or at least his attempt to show such love, he tries to break off their marriage. He is successful in breaking off the marriage however it was not the right thing to do because Ras had his own ulterior motives for the break-up. He acted in a way to rid himself of any threats and since his meeting with Luz at the Café, he saw him as an active threat.

            Why do humans act upon impulse like Ras has done? It is quite simple. Due to the fact that something such as “impulse” is the most primal of all instincts that humans have not lost, humans act upon such an instinct to protect themselves and obtain their raw desires. One can classify the actions taken by Ras to be savagely and selfish but one must also understand that he is human and humans are still animals. They will continually try to get whatever they want without yet thinking about the consequences. 

Hamlet Essay

The play Hamlet, written by William Shakespeare, envelopes many thematic elements however the most prominent ones are the ones of madness, and existentialism which is evident throughout Act 5 Scene 1. The first part of the scene with the clowns demonstrates “madness” and existentialism. When the clown is singing while he is digging the grave is a good example because when Hamlet hears this he starts to question the clown’s “sanity”. Just as well is when Hamlet picks up the skull and starts to play with it. But the major theme is of existentialism. Everyone from the Clowns to Hamlet question the existence of individuals and of their choices.

Here lies the water; good: here stands the man; good; if the man go to this water, and drown himself, it is, will he, nill he, he goes,--mark you that; but if the water come to him and drown him, he drowns not himself: argal, he that is not guilty of his own death shortens not his own life.

This was said by one of the Clowns to try to present the possibilities of what could have happened to Ophelia; if it was an accident or suicide. Then also with Hamlet as he plays with the skulls, questioning who they could have belonged to. Shakespeare ties in these elements to try to present the idea that everything fades and nothing is as strong as it seems.

In the beginning of Scene 1 of Act 5, there are two clowns, or grave diggers, who begin to discuss why they are digging a grave for a person who committed suicide, because in Christian belief one who has committed suicide has sinned therefore is not deserving of a proper burial. They believe that because she, Ophelia, was of the upper echelon she is allowed to have this burial but if she was a peasant she would not be allowed to have a burial. This shows that the clowns believe that one’s status follows you even in death. Later one of the clowns poses the question, “'Who builds stronger than a mason, a shipwright, or a carpenter?” The other clown responds with, “The gallows-maker, for that frame outlives a thousand tenants.” The second clown turns down the other clown’s response and when asked for the answer, he does not reply. This retort back and forth between the clowns as to who builds the strongest is to show that nothing lives on forever. This portion of the scene goes to prove the ambiguous nature the afterlife and if things live on.

As the scene progresses Hamlet enters and approaches the Clown who is digging the grave. As he walks he notices some skulls lying beneath his feet, and feels compelled to pick one up. He fiddles with the skull in his hand and starts to wonder who it could have belonged to. Hamlet comes up with several possibilities as to who the skull could have belonged to: a courtier, a lord, or a lawyer. This is a great breakthrough for Hamlet. He comes to the realization that no matter what you were or what you did while you were alive; when one dies they get stuck in the ground to rot just like everyone else. He then alludes to Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar mentioning that they were these great men of history yet they too were reduced to rotting in the Earth’s soil. So what does it matter what one does in this life if everyone is going to end up in the same place? He even mentions the lawyer saying, “Where be his quiddities now, his quillets, his cases, his tenures, and his tricks? Why does he suffer this rude knave now to knock him about the sconce with a dirty shovel, and will not tell him of his action of battery?” In other words he is saying he is a sly man, one who has many arguments and tricks but where are they now that he has died? This shows that while dead, stature means nothing.

            Throughout this scene it is evident that existentialism is a major element. Furthermore it goes to show how life can easily fade away to nothingness. Ideas one may develop or even physical objects that one creates can just as easily fade with life. That is why when the clown, who first posed the question as to who builds stronger, was asked the same question did not respond because he knew that none of them builds the strongest and even their creations will fade away. The ideas and cases that a lawyer may have or the arguments and tricks that he may present will do him no good once he has died. And life is the most fragile thing; one slip or fall may cause the end of one’s life, whether they mean to end it or not. In the end, everything dies away and returns to its roots.  

Next set of 16 words

This link contains secrets only AP English students may gaze upon.

Grendel Chapter 9

16 Poetic Literary Terms

Click Here
 Or was it here
or Here?

It is the first link by the way.....

Grendel

            In many novels, there are protagonists and antagonists who are two completely separate people or two separate groups of people with their own separate resolve. However, in Grendel the antagonist and the protagonist are one in the same, Grendel, himself. Grendel shifts between being a protagonist and an antagonist throughout the story. Those shifts are caused by his confusion and his encounters with other characters. Grendel also had many things that he set out to do, a resolve to fulfill however that constantly changes as he changes back and forth from protagonist to antagonist. This is apparent throughout the story.

            In the beginning of Grendel, Grendel acts like a child learning of the harsh world of humans for the first time. At this point, Grendel has the innocence of a child which paints him as the protagonist of the story as he faces the “evils” of the worlds, the humans. Grendel not only has the innocence of a child but he has the ability to observe the world in such a careful way, different than that of most creatures, and see the “evil” and stupidity of humans and their actions. Grendel decides to just observe the behavior of man however, as time goes by, Grendel becomes confused especially when he meets the Dragon. The Dragon tells Grendel that his “purpose” was to push the humans to advancements in their society by killing and scaring them. He also adds that even if Grendel does not do this and acts in a “good” manner towards them, e.g., help them or at least try to help them, something else will just replace his role. Upon hearing this, Grendel becomes lost in his thoughts and accidentally encounters the humans when he realizes that the Dragon has enchanted him with a spell rendering him impervious to attacks from weapons. This realization that he could now go face to face with humans causes him to become more violent and attack in such a periodic manner thus shifting to be the antagonist.

            Grendel slowly reverts back to being the protagonist as the story comes to an end. His meeting with Unferth can be taken as a sign of his change back to a protagonist because Unferth tries to fight Grendel knowing that he will lose. Grendel noticing that Unferth is prepared to die decides to take pity on Unferth and lets him live. This shows a glimpse at Grendel’s more human side. The major scene was the encounter between Grendel and Beowulf. Grendel attacks Herot after seeing that the Geats have arrived and expected a simple victory like the last times he attacked however this time was different. Grendel manages to only eat one person before Beowulf catches and twists Grendel’s arm. Grendel becomes so frightened that he sees fiery wings sprout from Beowulf’s back, much like a demon. Beowulf then bashes Grendel’s head into the wall cracking his skull. Grendel bellows out that his defeat is merely an accident then dies. In this case, Grendel is the protagonist and Beowulf becomes the antagonist as the one who opposes Grendel.

            In conclusion, Grendel’s shifts back and forth from protagonist to antagonist not only show his indecisive and confused nature but his weak resolve as well. Throughout his travels as aforementioned he had a resolve but was never really able to fulfill it. For example, in the beginning he had the resolve to just observe humans not interact with them however that changed after his first meeting with man and the meeting with the dragon as well. Then he wanted to kill the humans in an orderly manner, only once a year at a certain time but that too changed with the coming of Beowulf. He was able to focus on his goal for a small amount of time before something else swayed him off his path. However, the ultimate failure of his goals and actions shows that he is played both the antagonist and protagonist role in this novel because usually it is the antagonist who fails but the protagonist who is the main focal point of the story.

Evil

Why does Evil exist in the world? That is one of the major questions of the world that bewilders many people. The problem with this one question is that it is such a vague question that there are no real answers as to why Evil exists. One can argue that Evil exists as God’s test to man and their faith. Others might say that Evil exists to balance out the Good, much like Yin and Yang; where one exists the other must as well. However, there are no real answers to this difficult question for these are all theories and speculations, so one cannot really properly define Evil. Nevertheless, individuals like to create their own reason to fill the void of the unknown, due to the fear of the unknown. I, for one, do the same but I like to think of it more in the scientific and mathematical point of view.

I do not believe in God so much but I believe in the Yin and Yang; that for one to exist, the opposite must exist as well. If good people exist bad people must exist. For how can you define what is good if you do not know what bad is? Without fear, how can there be fear? How can light exist without darkness? It is imperative to balance out the negative with a positive or vice versa. Take it from a scientific view point for example. In an atom there are positives and negatives, the protons and the electrons. Without either one, the other’s existence would be almost worthless. If there were no protons in the atom, the negatively charged electrons would have no point in reacting with other atoms because it would no longer have any properties to combine and form an entirely new property. Conversely, if there were no electrons the positively charged protons that are accumulated in the nucleus would constantly repel one another, following the law that like charges repel and opposite charges attract, and the nucleus would shatter with no atom remaining. Even in the world of science there are things to balance each other out; as aforementioned, the electrons and protons, and also for matter to exist anti-matter too exists. Through mathematics is it vague but the concept is similar to the scientific one. In math there are both positive and negative numbers and zero is considered a “neutral” number. Add a positive and negative number of supposedly “equal” values, e.g., -7+7, and you get zero. In laymen terms, everything must be balanced to achieve a neutral state.

So why exactly does Evil exist? No one really knows. Or rather there really is no answer as to why Evil exists; it just does. But people will constantly search for the nonexistent reason just as many people have tried to search for the meaning of life or some other unbelievably difficult philosophical question that has not been answered. As they search they will also develop many theories to answer the question but that will be enough to satisfy many because as long as people have something, whether or not they really believe it, to quell the fear of the unknown they will be fine and able to live out their life trying to find their purpose or fulfill the purpose they have already found.