There are three significant reasons that the theme of madness is such a dominant recurrence in these pieces of ancient literature. The three reasons are that it tells an interesting story that will entertain the majority of its readers, shows the audience how far humankind is capable of going, and tells the common person why we should be afraid of our inner self. These stories present viable elements to that to tell an interesting story. The audience is able to witness a character get passionate over another character. In addition to that the audience is able to get and account of the character's emotions running wild. These characters have to do these over the top rampages to teach us lessons. The audience is able to see Achilles enter …show more content…
Even though this stories are classics and they teach valuable lessons. They also show humankind to be afraid of one another, for example we have Odysseus who killed everyone just because they tried to marry his wife. Even though he was presumed dead for many years and they were not even that ignorant to him when he appeared as a beggar. In the heat of the moment he slaughtered a vast quantity of unarmed men. These men did nothing to offend him, but they sought to marry a widow. There is Goddess, Ishtar, who represents human emotions, she wanted to kill a whole city just because Gilgamesh told her the truth of what she has done to men. Achilles thrashes Hector’s dead body and refuses to allow the body to have a proper burial. Hector even asks Achilles whoever wins will give the other one a proper burial. This is honorable request, but Achilles wants none of it, he wants to let the dogs tear into Hector’s dead body. These acts showcase how cruel humans can become, and show the reader how humans can throw out all rational thoughts and become wild animals that want nothing but to harm another. Although these moments of madness can be contributing to make a story entertaining and show how far humans are capable of going; they should be remembered to show the dark parts of human nature the most. Human can be loving creatures that wants to help out one another, but under the right circumstances can become wild animals and do unimaginable horrible actions to one
Sometimes, human beings can become murderers or monsters to each other when driven by their inner feelings. In the play "The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street," a normal neighborhood in the USA, we can see how suspicion among the residents leads to cruelty toward one another. It starts with a resident's car starting up without him there, and suspicion rises to the point where people start yelling, throwing things, and even shooting. Through suspicion, blame, and violence, we can see how human beings can act irrationally and self-destruct when they are driven by fear or panic.
Insanity vs. Sanity: Sometimes Being Ignorant is the Intelligent Choice In the book One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest, Ken Kesey utilizes literary devices, irony, tone and conflict to achieve the theme of the difference between being sane but ignorant and being insane but intelligent. The tone, irony, and setting of this book helps the reader create a mental image of the real location and the situations the characters were at times. Symbolism is added as well in order to further understand the way the characters think.
This then provides great strength to succeed in the highest during the Trojan War to persevere with the responsibilities associated in the texts as Achilles quotes “I chose nothing. I was born and this is what I am”. Some may argue that these individuals are as to why the events occurred events right from the beginning. This consistently draws the audience in to replicate the involvement within men and women, through exploring the classifications of each god or goddess. Through reading and watching the extracts, I became to comprehend the understanding of key features that are displayed using the characters and the way they react to certain effects and how their actions are perceived by others around them.
This is demonstrated through the contrast between the dependence that various mortal characters exhibit in their ‘devotion’ to a higher power, and the way in which the gods themselves react to the loss of a mortal being. In particular, the death of ‘noble Hector’, illustrates a divide between the gods who merely ‘pity’ and the god (Apollo) who ‘rages’ at those who ‘shame’. Thus, accentuating the influence the gods have over humans, and the way in which their favouritism and judgement ultimately seals their fate. This is further reinforced through Homer’s negative connotations of Achilles: ‘barbaric’, ‘murderous’, brute’, which consequently guide the god Apollo to preclude the mutilation of Hector’s body, causing Achilles great frustration and revulsion and therefore influencing his sense of ‘wild pride’ In the film Troy, it is evident that both Achilles and Hector are sceptical about the sovereignty of divine intervention, and in the case of Achilles, whether their existence is merely a fable.
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, by Ken Kesey, considers the qualities in which society determines sanity. The label of insanity is given when someone is different from the perceived norm. Conversely, a person is perceived as sane when their behavior is consistent with the beliefs of the majority. Although the characters of this novel are patients of a mental institution, they all show qualities of sanity. The book is narrated by Chief Brodmen, an observant chronic psychiatric patient, who many believe to be deaf and dumb.
Ken Kesey’s One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest, is a novel that dramatically portrays insanity. Chief Bromden is a Native American who pretends to be deaf and mute, in order to narrate the novel. This novel begins with the coming of a new admission Raddle McMurphy he is introduced to an insane asylum where chief has been a patient longer. McMurphy is intelligent and observant. He stirs up the ward immediately by introducing friendly competition, gambling and encouraging the men to rebel.
Ken Kesey uses his novel, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, to describe the lives of patients in a mental institution, and their struggle to overcome the oppressive authority under which they are living. Told from the point of view of a supposedly mute schizophrenic, the novel also shines a light on the many disorders present in the patients, as well as how their illnesses affect their lives during a time when little known about these disorders, and when patients living with these illnesses were seen as an extreme threat. Chief Bromden, the narrator of the novel, has many mental illnesses, but he learns to accept himself and embrace his differences. Through the heroism introduced through Randle McMurphy, Chief becomes confident in himself, and is ultimately able to escape from the toxic environment Nurse Ratched has created on the ward. Chief has many disorders including schizophrenia, paranoia, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder, and, in addition to these illnesses, he pretends to be deaf and dumb.
In the epic poem, the Iliad written by Homer, several characters taking part in the warfare between the Achaeans and the Trojans are portrayed as embodying the heroic code of courage, physical strength, leadership, arete of value of honour, and the acceptance of fate. The heroic code is illustrated by the actions of the Trojan prince, Hector and the Achaeans strongest warrior, Achilles. Both of these characters display the Greek’s image of a hero, and can also let the reader discern what the society admires, looks up to and aspires to in its heroes. There are also characters who fail to be heroic, such as the Trojan “vivid and beautiful” prince, Paris. These characters in the Iliad illustrate the qualities that Ancient Greek society values.
The Mask of Madness Jake was a younger, he was a boy of riches. A boy of power. Some people believe he was an evil wizard, but he was just a boy. One day he made a mask that changed him forever. It turned him into a monster.
Have I gone Mad? Madness can be defined as: a state of severe mental illness (Webster n.p.). This can involve behavior or thinking that is quite foolish and dangerous. That being stated, both the main characters in “The Tell-Tale Heart” and “The Black Cat” are perceived to be mad in their own personal traits. In “The Tell-Tale Heart”, the narrator murders the old man that he resides with because he is troubled by the man’s vulture eye.
The Iliad is a riveting tale of violence and rage amongst heartbreak and tragedy, where a range of emotions are evoked through various events and decisions made by the characters throughout. Some of these characters act on impulse, while others think over with others and themselves to find the best course of action and do what they feel would be the best, be it for their families or their people, or for themselves alone. Through such feelings, certain events play out that either work out to the favor of the characters, or the exact opposite. Characters like Achilles and Agamemnon act on their anger, often going beyond what would be deemed reasonable and even affecting the events following. Achilles’ anger was triggered by Agamemnon’s arrogance
In the play Oedipus, Oedipus’ action affect everyone around him, his wife, children, his brother-in-law Creon, the city. The problem does not end with Oedipus’ banishment, it extend to the death of Creon’s, wife and son, then later his daughter and himself, in the plays Antigone and Medea. It seems almost ironic that with each member who takes the throne seem to instantly becomes ignorant and rash, resulting in the death of several members of the family, including himself. Ignorance is a personal problem that has a tendency of spreading like a virus, infecting one after another leading to their great harm or
Macbeth and Madness Imagine the President of the United States admitting to having mental instability. This scenario may rattle some, but it clearly plays out in William Shakespeare’s tragedy, Macbeth. The play’s title character uses violence to maintain power but gradually plummets into mental illness. Before Macbeth and his wife, Lady Macbeth, conspire to murder his cousin Duncan, the King of Scotland, in order to attain authority, Macbeth foreshadows the possible repercussions; afterward, he experiences an immediate sense of remorse. The subsequent murder of a friend displays his progressive unsteadiness, but the massacre of an entire family demonstrates his transformation from instability to deviance.
Iliad is recognized as one of the most famous ancient monuments of literature. The full understanding of this epic poem is hardly possible without thorough analysis of its main characters. Among all the episodes of the Trojan War, Homer chooses the moment of Achilles’ wrath and thus creates a poem in which he becomes the central figure. From the Ancient Greeks’ point of view, Achilles represents the ideal of manliness and pure heroism, for he is brave and fights for heroics, not profits. Today, one can agree with this interpretation, yet Achilles is probably the most controversial character because he combines various personality traits and acts in accordance with his ambiguous nature.
In book 2 Plato is concerned that arts mainly poetry are a problem when it comes to creating the ideal city. One of his concerns is that myths about gods are false and provide false representations of gods. He argues that telling children lies and stories about gods murdering, running away from a battle and committing bad deeds can stir up emotions in young brains. It allows children who will grow up to become guardians feel that committing bad deeds is not wrong because gods and heroes in stories have down so. It also allows them to be vulnerable encouraging them to be fearful.