15 Comments
Sana
4/29/2015 01:03:04 am
The readers first confront Macbeth in the battlefield-where the play begins and ends, and where Macbeth is most successful as he relies on his psychical strength rather blind confidence in Lady Macbeth or the witches. This is the place where he first inherits the title of thane of Cawdor putting in to motion his treachery and the events of the play. The battlefield is also what first distinguishes Macbeth from pure evil as we first see Macbeth as loyal solider protecting for his country from treacherous individuals such as McDonwald –he is a butcher with reason, to cleanse his country from betrayal, an ironic idea seeing as Macbeth will also become the very things he battles. This is then overturned as Macbeth ‘ov’ erleaping’ ambition leads to his eventual unjustified killings of Macduff’s family. The witches meet on a ‘heath’ a barren, uncivilised wasteland, connoting further death and destruction. Furthermore the emptiness of the heath foreshadows the seed of ambition that the witches will plant, which will be watered by lady and ultimately harvested by Macbeth. In addition the uncivilised nature of the heath mirrors the destructive nature of this ambition as nothing beneficial or nutritional can grow there, indicated by the lack of plants. Alternatively another setting is Macbeths castle which when Banquo first arrives with King Duncan he says ‘the temple-haunting Martlett does approve’. A Marlett is used in a coat of arms, appearing footless and beakless thus is not a natural creature, this in conjunction with various other very bird imagery it foreshadows the tragedy that will occur-Kind Duncans murder.Futhermore according to tradition a martlett will not build a nest in or near unjust houses, thus it is ironic that Banquo approves of the very place that will facilitate the subsequent murder of King Duncan.
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Hannah
4/29/2015 05:57:05 am
Within the Bloody Chamber, Carter does make hints to the setting to make an interesting atmopshere, leading the heroine into an 'unknown', 'never to be visited' place, allowing for a crucial setting, creating a hostile environment to place the seemingly innocent and naive heroine. However, it soon becomes clear that within the story, characters become far more interesting than the setting due to unseemingly revelations into the true intentions and personas of the Marquis. The Marquis initially depicts ambiguity and mystery through his 'motionless' eyes, causing the heroine to question her husband and whether his 'real face' was under a mask, hiding 'the face that truly refleted all the ife he had led in the world' before he met her. Through this, Carter builds up a intrigue into the interesting amiguity surrounding the initial character of the Marquis. This is made interesting as the reader is then met with the shocking revelation of his interest in sadist pornography of which the herorine, 'turned pages with the aniticipation of fear,' sparking the ultimate complex character who in turn shocks and confuses, condescending his wife,' Have the nasty pctures scared Baby? Baby musnt't play with grownups' toys until she's learned how to handle them must she?' The entertained tone the Marquis holds while condescending his young wife allows for further complexity in hs charachter as such images excite him, a shocking revelation to his character, sparking interest in the character rather than the 'unknown' setting.
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Mate, where on earth is your critical interpretation reinforcing and evidencing the points you have made? This is a key feature of any self-respecting answer to a question about the gothic! I won't even talk about the fact that your answer lacks gusto, or any kind of meaningful interpretation. I know some Year 7s that could write something just as, if not more exciting than this pile of trash. Even then I feel disrespectful even comparing your work to theirs, as they are actually levels above what ever this 'answer' is. Normally I don't feel the need to comment on posts online, but this one takes the cake for the single worst answer I have ever had the misfortune of laying my eyes upon. You should be ashamed of yourself. Do. Better.
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Iman H
4/29/2015 06:04:47 am
The characters are depicted as being far more interesting than the presentation of places within Macbeth.The character of Lady Macbeth is particularly intriguing as she is not what is expected of a female at the time.She is depicted as a ruthless woman who is committed to strive for the glory of her husband.Also,there is an aspect of Lady Macbeth’s character which is very reminiscent of the witches ‘i may pour my spirits in thine ear’ suggesting that she will fill him with the strength in order for him to become king,and she is successful in doing do as she is seen as the catalyst.Furthermore,she also echos very similar words as the witches ‘Great Glamis! Worthy Cawdor,all hail hereafter’ showing her immediate connection to the witches and her evil manipulative nature.Her character is interesting as she is very shocking in her speech,she states that she would ‘have plucked my nipple from his boneless gums and dash'd the brains out.’This is quite a sinister image,as it insinuated that she is a mother ‘i know how tender it is to love the babe that milks me’ so you would expect her to feel some sort of motherly tendencies but she is consumed with evil.
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Anisha
4/29/2015 06:56:36 am
The first use of gothic settling that Carter uses can initially described as the castle. Cater has the castle alternating between two settings, the first description being from the narratives view point described like a fairytale castle ‘floating garland of light’ This is used to emphasise the innocence and naivety of the narrator as this is the way she chooses the view the castle rather than facing the true reality of it. The Bloody Chamber itself is described like a ‘tomb’ which can be seen to represent the bodies’ deepest desires that could be seen as Carter’s use of the gothic genre.
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Sade
4/29/2015 08:19:56 am
Within 'The Bloody Chamber', the presentation of settingserves as an interesting introspective insight into the true, complex nature of the Marquis and the extent of his 'carnal avarice'. The castle is a representation of the complexity of the Marquis, being 'neither on land nor sea', just as the predatorial 'gravity' of the Marquis creating mystery to whether he himself is man or beast. The setting of the bloody chamber provides an answer to the ambiguity and mystery surrounding the Marquis- just as his 'mask' was breifly removed his violent sexual act with the young girl, compared to 'a dozen husband's impaling a dozen wives', the chamber removes the Marquis' mask completely and reveals the true depths of his sadistic sexual desires. The walls of the torture chamber were 'sweating with fright' as if they too were fearful of the contents inside. The room itself is described by the Marquis as his 'enfer' (French word for hell) and it indeed lives up to the label- the decor is extravaggent, with the catafalque in the middle of his 'hideaway' being described as a 'bier of Renaissance workmanship'. The 'pools' of blood that consumed the room bear a striking contrast to the extravaggent design of his apparatuses of terror, just as the Marquis sadism bears contrast to his social ranking, and the extravaggence behind his title. Incence filled the room with a 'sacerdotal reek', himself the offerer of sacrifice to his perverse, sadistic persona. It can be said however, that whilst interesting, it is ultimately an effective contribution to the characterisation of the Marquis, however, that it is the truely shocking revalation of his character as it is Carter's means of providing the audience with the true weight of his predatoral nature, and his ravenous appeitite for sadistic gratification.
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Sade
4/29/2015 08:23:14 am
Within 'The Bloody Chamber', the presentation of settingserves as an interesting introspective insight into the true, complex nature of the Marquis and the extent of his 'carnal avarice'. The castle is a representation of the complexity of the Marquis, being 'neither on land nor sea', just as the predatorial 'gravity' of the Marquis creating mystery to whether he himself is man or beast. The setting of the bloody chamber provides an answer to the ambiguity and mystery surrounding the Marquis- just as his 'mask' was breifly removed his violent sexual act with the young girl, compared to 'a dozen husband's impaling a dozen wives', the chamber removes the Marquis' mask completely and reveals the true depths of his sadistic sexual desires. The walls of the torture chamber were 'sweating with fright' as if they too were fearful of the contents inside. The room itself is described by the Marquis as his 'enfer' (French word for hell) and it indeed lives up to the label- his wives are 'embalmed' and 'impaled' by the Marqui's many tools of terror and torture. The decor is extravaggent, with the catafalque in the middle of his 'hideaway' being described as a 'bier of Renaissance workmanship', illustrating the degree of value he places on the objects of his sadistic desires. The 'pools' of blood that consumed the room bear a striking contrast to the extravaggent design of his apparatuses of terror, just as the Marquis sadism bears contrast to his social ranking, and the extravaggence behind his title. Incence filled the room with a 'sacerdotal reek', himself the offerer of sacrifice to his perverse, sadistic persona. It can be said however, that whilst interesting, it is ultimately an effective contribution to the characterisation of the Marquis, however, that it is the truely shocking revalation of his character as it is Carter's means of providing the audience with the true weight of his predatoral nature, and his ravenous appeitite for sadistic gratification.
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Sade
4/29/2015 08:27:23 am
*it is the Carter's truely shocking revalation of his character through her presentation of the turture chamber that provides the aurdience with teh answer to the true weight of his predatorial nature and the extent of his ravenous appetite for sadistic gratification.
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Sadiya Momaya
4/29/2015 08:33:33 am
Presentation of places is not necessarily far more interesting than the presentation of the characters. In ‘The Werewolf’, Carter successfully creates an eerie atmosphere by setting the story in a ‘northern country’ where ‘they have cold weather…cold hearts’ in fact, ‘the Devil is as real as you’ in this place. However, the young girl in the story is much more complex and interesting compared to the weather. She is first described as ‘the good child’ who ‘does as her mother bids’, but later in the forest ‘dropped her gifts, seized her knife and turned on the beast’ and eventually ‘prospered’ in the end. Unlike the ‘cold weather’ which seems to be present at all times in this country; the narrator has different sides to her which tends to reveal in different situations. For example, being able to ‘slash off’ the werewolf’s ‘right forepaw’ (‘masculine’ side), to ‘make the old woman a cold compress’ (‘feminine’ side) and to cry ‘out so loud’ that ‘the neighbours heard her and come rushing in’ (deceptive/cunning side).
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Sade
4/29/2015 08:52:07 am
Within Frankenstein, the Arctic is presented by Shelley as a representation of scientific enquiry and it's limitless bounds. It's described by Walton in his journals as a 'land surpasing in wonders and beauty', a land 'never before imprinted by man' in which he shall be able to 'accomplish some great purpose'. The actual vastness of the Arctic fits into the Gothic theme of desolation, however, to the audience, it is filled seemingly with nothingness and emptiness, it is a land of 'eternal light'- Walton states how 'the cold is not excessive if you are wrapped in furs', with Shelley perhaps implying that the fear of the harshness of the unknown Artic cannot penetrate his hope as he is protected by the blanket of science. It is therefore this use of setting that provides an interesting perspective into the exploration of science, and its ability to 'mock the invisible world witin its own shadow'.
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Jaspreet
4/29/2015 09:46:33 am
The character of Macbeth is far more interesting than the presentation of the settings in that the presence of evil is undoubtedly linked to Macbeth in some way or other, with acts of evil occurring as a result of Macbeth such as the murderers that plague the play, and serving to illustrate tragic character of Macbeth who is unable to fully comprehend the consequences of his actions, with his inherent struggle between morality and ambition between his between the idea of morality and ambition. Thus suggesting how he is flawed but also human: full of ambition, played by conflicting emotions, eager to please the woman he loves, terrified of his inability to control events as they spin out of his control. It is Shakespeare’s illustration of Macbeth as a complex character that transgresses the very boundaries of the gothic genre that enables the reader to view Macbeth in an ambiguous light with the idea that he can both be described as villainous “Stars, hide your fires; Let not light see my black and deep desires” but also a slave to his desires “I am in blood/Stepp’d in so far”. What makes the character of Macbeth far interesting than the setting is Shakespeare’s ability to explore the dark side of human psyche through Macbeth by having the internal conflict that Macbeth has before planning as to whether to kill Duncan in which he states irrational nature of such act arguing that it would be “deep damnation” with the consequences of the action only “return[ing] to plague the inventor”, and the aftermath of the killing in which he expresses alludes the killing as almost devil-like; representing the psychological battle of an individual in terms of the idea of darkness and light. With the darkness of the mind representing the leaning of the human soul to evil, the part of the soul that is deprived of any attachment to morality due to the absence of light that exposes the soul to the idea of the possibilities of achieving ambitions through goodness. It can possibly be argued that in interacting with the witches, Macbeth is undoubtedly exposed to the darkness of his human psyche, and it is through this that Macbeth undergoes a path of total destruction, one in which the darkness of Macbeth’s psyche is manifested in the darkness of setting in which the acts of evil take place and are then concealed, by the fact that Macbeth is able to switch between two opposite personas by the means of manipulation. In this sense, it possible to argue that the different dimensions of Macbeth’s character, illustrate him as more interesting than the presentation of places within the play.
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Jaspreet
4/29/2015 09:57:08 am
Sorry about the other post
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Nasra
4/29/2015 10:29:21 am
The Bloody Chamber:
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Muna
4/29/2015 05:31:50 pm
Macbeth:
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Maninderjit
4/29/2015 06:06:27 pm
In Frankenstein, Shelley has the characters interact with the natural setting to enhance their character and reveal the emotions that are not clear by their character description. This is evident in Frankenstein when Victor is out at sea and says that he 'was tempted to plunge into the silent lake, that the waters might close over me and my calamities for ever.' Victor's awareness of the 'silent lake' and its ability to 'close over (him) and (his) calamities forever' makes the setting more significant as his intentions to escape from his problems by killing himself are revealed and it shows that Gothic characters look to nature most of the time to ease their pain and solve their problems.
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