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DoctorWho:

--- Quote from: shootersid on October 16, 2013, 03:59:31 pm ---Doesn't that come down to the interpretation? Because at our school, we looked at the text with a Marxist perspective, whereby Scrooge belongs to the bourgeoisie part of Victorian London, and characters like Bob Cratchit + family are considered a part of the proletariat class.

--- End quote ---

Bourgeoisie refers to the upper, middle class and the proletariat is the working class... So I guess that would be accurate.

DoctorWho:
A Christmas Carol in more a social commentary than it is a moral tale. Discuss.

Charles Dickens', A Christmas Carol, presents an exploration of differing ideas and values through an enthralling tale of morality. In A Christmas Carol, Dickens demonstrates the idea that a life of ignorance towards morals will lead to an inevitable doom in the afterlife. In addition to this, Dickens also shows that that a lack of ethics can lead to an inner suffering that plagues one’s life. Furthermore, Dickens suggests that morality is the helping hand that society so desperately needs. Conversely, Dickens makes a social commentary on society by pointing out the hardship of the poorer classes which paints the wealthier classes in an extremely poor light.

Dickens insinuates that an existence which involves ignorance to morals eventually leads to anguish in the afterlife. Dickens demonstrates this idea through the character of Jacob Marley who comes to warn Scrooge of his eternal suffering, should he continue to be ignorant towards human morality. The character of Jacob Marley serves as a harbinger for the punishment awaiting those who live selfishly like Scrooge does. The ghost of Jacob Marley tells Scrooge of the chain he ‘forged in life’ that is now forced to wear. Dickens symbolizes Marley’s chain as a remnant of our past wrongdoings, thereby warning his readers of the doom they will suffer if they do not choose to live by principles such as generosity, compassion and sympathy for others. Moreover, this reinforces the moral points that Dickens wishes to get across.

In addition to this, a lack of morals can lead to an inner suffering which leaves the individual isolated and alone. Dickens emphasises this through the character of Ebenezer Scrooge who is seen to be an ‘odious’ and ‘stingy’ old man. Scrooge’s life is shown to be one of innate suffering and loneliness. Dickens uses the life of Scrooge to reinforce the idea of the woe that those who lack morals face. Although Scrooge is depicted as a greedy man who does not care for that company of others, he serves as an example of all that we wish to avoid in this world. By emphasising Scrooge’s anguish, Dickens provides his readers with a lesson of morality, by showing them the miserable life that one will face if they lack values.

Furthermore, Dickens suggests that morality is the saviour of mankind and can help ease the despair of others. Dickens reinforces this idea through the character of Tiny Tin who is foretold that he will ‘surely die’ if another person does not intervene to ease his suffering. The character of Tiny Tim is a clever ploy by Dickens to strike sympathy and guilt in the hearts of his readers and to demonstrate to them that their selfish ways do impact others. Moreover, Dickens emphasises this idea by showing the impact of Scrooge’s moral transformation and the effect this has on Tiny Tim’s life. He does not die, and lives a happier and more comfortable life. Hence, Dickens uses his tale of morality to encourage readers to think about their morals and the effect they have on others.

Conversely, Dickens does make a social comment on society by depicting the corruption and exploitation present in Victorian society. Dickens demonstrates the attitudes of the wealthier class through the selfishness of Scrooge. When Scrooge refers to the poorer classes as the ‘surplus population’ Dickens uses this sentence to embody the attitude that many of the wealthier classes hold against the poor. Thereby, he makes an elusive critique of societal values and ideas. This is further shown as he contrasts the lives of Bob Cratchit and Scrooge. Clearly they are both of different social standings and therefore live very different lives. However, Bob is shown is shown to be happier and loving than Scrooge, regardless of the fact that he is significantly poorer. This suggests that Dickens wished to demonstrate to readers that the wealthier classes were not as well off as one would think. Therefore, Dickens does make evasive critiques of society within his novella but continues to centralize the story around the morality of individuals.

In essence, A Christmas Carol is more a tale of morality rather than a social commentary. The ideas that Dickens presents in the novella are intended to enlighten and educate the reader of the importance of morals and values in one’s life. Dickens highlights many ideas that are centred on morality such as the detrimental effect of ignorance towards morals. Likewise, this is reinforced by the idea that a lack of morals leads to an individual’s inner suffering. Furthermore, Dickens suggests that our morals have a significant impact on the lives of others.  Conversely, Dickens also makes allusive comments on societal issues but A Christmas Carol is mainly a tale of morals.

sin0001:
@John__Doe: I haven't read A Christmas Carol but your introduction feels too formulaic, it's like you've taken 4 dot points and just stuck them in a paragraph by just placing conjunction words like 'Furthermore, In addition & Conversely; you'll be better off improving the flow. Also, same deal with the start of your body paragraphs. Try linking to your previous ideas better, when you begin another body para., don't let words like 'conversely' & 'furthermore' do the talking for you!
Hope that helps.

ahat:
Ransom essay - feedback appreciated :)
“The characters’ identity is not defined by their names, but who they are.”

Malouf demonstrates how Priam, relinquishing himself of the asphyxiating epithet of king, was able to humble himself before an “implacable enemy” and be the agent of change. Surpassing his title and realising the beauty of life by inadvertently sharing in the experiences of Somax, the common carter, was Achilles also exonerated of his grief and his role as the “hero”. Malouf narrates the stories of these characters to exemplify the power of words and human nature in causing such an elementary change.

Priam, freeing himself of any “kingly trappings”, liberated himself from the confines of his sobriquet and ponders a life “aloof from the feelings of the common man”. It was Priam’s journey with Somax that highlighted that true courage lay away from the battlefield, in small acts of kindness and selflessness. Being finally made aware of a world that was constantly “pattering” by sharing in the experiences of a Somax, a “poor day labourer” whose position in society was antithetical to his own, did Priam realise the “intimacy” between men that he’d never had the chance to share in. Sharing in the experiences of Somax, Priam discovered the depth of the human connection, that despite the social spectrum, every man had an intertwined fate in a “story…that had not found its end”. It was this realisation that allowed him to break away from the “obligation of always being the hero” and led to his catharsis, allowing him to beseech Achilles for his son’s body as a “father” and “man”; not a king. Priam realised that like Achilles, both were fathers who shared in the subtle love and tumultuous grief of every man, intrinsic emotions of human nature that defined one’s characters but they had never considered. These decidedly masculine men recognised the shared humanity of Greek and Trojan and consequently, broke free of their titles and transcended the impositions set upon them by the war and their roles.

“It is the office and name that matters, not the person.” Certainly Somax feels that his name is important and he does not welcome the change. He fears that it may be presumptuous to put aside a name he has adorned so long and which “fits him” as the name Idaeus does not. Of course, by making Idaeus the name of an office, the king’s royal herald, rather than that of an individual, Malouf is able to introduce new characters into the narrative, but this is not without complications within the story. (would it be better if I started this paragraph here?) Somax, as the reader inevitably thinks of him, is “very much divided” about the new name and as time passes, will find that his word is doubted because his listeners know that “what he has to tell did happen” but the man in the story was “King Priam’s herald.” Hence, Malouf demonstrates the dual nature of words and titles. Paradoxically, it is precisely because Somax is not Priam’s customary herald that he can assist Priam’s education on the world of ordinary men. It is as Somax, not Idaeus, that the carter makes his impact on the king. Whilst the name of an office can have profound impacts on a person’s status and image, there is nothing to suggest that one’s experiences are left to lament as a cause. Somax, relishing the thought of “what a tale he’ll have to tell”, finds that no one is prepared to believe him, and is dismissed as a “known liar” and a “man who is a hundred years old and drinks too much”. His flair for telling a story counts against him, and his peers will, ironically, refuse the significance of his original name by refusing to credit any connection between him and the name Idaeus. By reinstating his identify as Somax, they will deny the reality of perhaps the most telling events of his life, despite the reader knowing the truth. Thus, Priam will win fame in death while Somax lingers on to watch the script of his life being rewritten by others.

 Malouf’s deliberate retention of Achilles name in the introduction of his novella allows the audience to have a first impression of the character without judging him based on their knowledge of the Iliad. The first few pages show Achilles' more sensitive, feminine side and it is a shock when his name is finally revealed that a character known to be so strong, is subject to such emotional thoughts, even tentatively susceptible to the human comfort of being “tenderly enfolded” in a mother’s grasp. This astonishing revelation demonstrates the power of names and words. The expectations of an immortal man, on par with gods, subject to intrinsic human emotions highlights that experience and humanity are not contained within a name. Whilst Achilles is expected be a fearless warrior, it is as if he lacks a true identity beyond this role. When, for example, he desecrates Hector’s corpse, he does so that he may believe “there was a living man at the centre of it, and that man himself”. But as the story progresses, Achilles relishes the opportunity “to take on the lighter bond of being simply a man” and discover his true identity. When presented with a golden opportunity to capture or kill the king of Troy, Achilles puts to one side his “hard manly qualities” and acts instead with compassion and kindness. Achilles and his Myrmidons act on instinct and are “unacquainted with second thoughts”, so when Priam enters Achilles’ tent his attendants expect their leader to “take the interloper by the throat”. Yet, Achilles sees the chance for change and discovers that it does not matter who he is underneath, but what he does that defines him.

Ransom depicts the rough world of men where a man’s act him in the form of a story. Despite the cataclysm of war and role conflict, many of the characters are able to reconcile with their true identities. Malouf writes these events so that the audience may reflect upon the layers of distortion which may overlay the core of reality at the heart of a story. Expectation of roles and name often overshadow the true character that lies underneath.

ahat:

--- Quote from: Brencookie on October 16, 2013, 02:39:56 pm ---You're a skilled writer. Honestly, I think someone more familiar with War Poems would be able to give you much better feedback. You're a good enough writer than I can't suggest big improvements simply without reading the text. It seems like a really great essay though, but I'm not sure how strongly it connects to the prompt. It seems to gloss over it slightly.

--- End quote ---

Thanks for the feedback man - I didn't even realise someone had marked it. I've moved onto Ransom though, because like you said, with Owen, I can never seem to be able to truly relay my essay back to the prompt (but hopefully I get better with Ransom). Really though, it's because I read Sugarminted's essay a while back and just gave up, because it was damn good:P

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