...The Confession of a White Widowed Male; it’s the book that inspired an entire subculture of fashion and sexual fetishism. Better known as Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov, the novel is an example of how society condemns the victims of abuse and excuses the abusers based on their reputations and how they are perceived in the society. The novel makes a statement about the way people use how they are perceived in society conceal their true nature. In likelihood, CNN reports on how two rapists of Steubenville High School, with “promising futures” had their lives destroyed as they were convicted of rape. The reporters glaze over the victim, preferring instead to discuss how tragic the crime was for the rapists. Both Nabokov and the video prove the way...
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...have been educated about all of this? Something that happens every day and most of us don’t have a clue that it’s going on. Vladimir Nabokov greatly explained situations like these in his novel, Lolita. Nabokov was born in St. Petersburg, Russia in 1899. He spent most of his childhood reading in French, English and Russian. After they Bolshevik revolution, his family went into exile while he attended Cambridge university. After many years spent in Berlin and Paris, he wrote many novels, poems, and short stories in Russian. In 1940, he moved to the United States with his wife and son where he taught Russian. He wrote Lolita in 1955 and shortly after, moved to Switzerland and died in 1977. Many people would say he has something wrong with his head after reading Lolita, but in my opinion he is just stating the truth that most people are too careless to see. Lolita is a novel about an older man named Humbert who has an obsession with the innocence of little girls. He seduces “nymphs” which are young girls between the ages of 14 and 17 who have sexual appeal. When he meets a 12 year old girl named Lolita, he falls in love and does anything and everything to be with her. It is the most disturbing book I have ever read but it shows exactly what goes through a man’s head when he sees little girls. One of the main themes in Lolita is innocence. Nabokov shows this because Humbert takes away the innocence of the little girls. “She groped for words. I supplied them mentally “he...
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...reading is the foundation of literary analysis. Russian writer Vladimir Nabokov famously noted in an interview that, “Curiously enough, one cannot read a book: one can only re-read it. A good reader, a major reader, and active and creative reader is a re-reader.” Essentially, he contends that one cannot fully appreciate a book’s artistic subtleties and thematic nuances because initial readings require more rigorous information processing. Nabokov believed that only upon further reading and re-reading could one interpret the significance of an author’s style. His 1955 classic, Lolita, is a veritable case study on literature as art. Ever the writer’s writer, Nabokov uses language as a means of artistic expression. In Lolita, shocking subject matter is effectively assuaged by means of literary invention. Nabokov, referencing his novel, once noted: There are gentle souls who would pronounce Lolita meaningless because it does not teach them anything. I am neither a reader nor a writer of didactic fiction…For me a work of fiction exists only insofar as it affords me what I shall bluntly call aesthetic bliss, that is a sense of being somehow, somewhere, connected with other states of being where art (curiosity, tenderness, kindness, ecstasy) is the norm (Azevedo 2). The story itself is replete with abhorrent topics: rape, murder, and pedophilia, to name a few. Through his protagonist Humbert Humbert, however, Nabokov enchants an otherwise grim tale. Lolita is the story of Humbert’s obsession...
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...In Vladimir Nabokov "Signs and Symbols" the main character is a twenty two year old man who is mentally deranged, also known as Referential Mania. A person with Referential Mania may have the mindset of imagining everything around them is a disguised allusion to the patients personality and presence. Set in a 1947 time frame, the short story begins with an elderly couple whose world is falling apart due to grieving, acceptance, and denial. Vladimir portrays the couples son as a fatality prototype because first he wants no devotion to liking people, second, coming from a lower class family, and lastly having mental problems. Vladimir Nabokov's first novel, Mashenka, published in 1926, however Vladimir did not reach success until the publication of a novel called "Lolita." Alongside with "Signs and Symbols" Nabokovs novel "Lolita" is a top selling novel of all time, as many as 50 million copies sold in 1955. The plot of "Signs and Symbols" outlines the parents aspects towards their son who is suicidal, observant, and mentally disordered....
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...Vladimir Nabokov, also known as Vladimir Sirin, was a renowned novelist. His poetic prose writing and unorthodox and complex plots, helped pave the way for his success; whether he was writing poetry or novels. Although some of his earliest works are in Russian, when they were translated, he became a distinguished author in English as well. (Vladimir Nabokov Biography) Vladimir Nabokov was born into a rich, old aristocratic family of minor nobility. He was an only child and lived a peaceful and happy childhood until his father died. His father was the leader of a pre-Revolutionary Democracy Party and was assassinated while shielding another man. His family, then fled to England. While in England he studied at Trinity College, Cambridge. At Cambridge, he originally studied zoology but then switched to literature, specifically, French and Russian. During his studies at Cambridge his family moved to Berlin. After he finished College in 1922, he followed them. (Albert) In 1923, he...
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...In Franz Kafka’s novel ,The Metamorphosis, the author pertains to his character, Gregor Samsa,with uncontrollable circumstances such as isolation caused by outside forces. Gregor Samsa, upon waking one morning finds himself transformed into what he already feels like, an insect. His parents deem him unworthy of their love and throw him away like the rest of their junk. Gregor’s father chooses a job for him that dismisses all hopes of forming human connections because of its time consuming nature. Experiences such as theses parallel with Kafka. Born into an anti Semitic community, along with a very opinionated father Kafka’s life is filled with people pushing him away. Kafka truly lives through his characters, especially Gregor, in this short novel. Parents are meant to guide and help their children, this is not the case for Gregor and Kafka. During his metamorphosis, Gregor is met with disgust; locked in his room and shunned by his entire family. His family does not even consider how their son needed their support in this difficult time, instead they force him to be out of their sights. “No plea of Gregor's helped, no plea was even understood; however humbly he might turn his head, his father merely stamped his feet more forcefully” ( The Metamorphosis 11). Gregor’s objections to these harsh treatments are ignored as his father hurts him until he concedes and leaves. Kafka parallels with his character by sharing a similar situation ,“ Particularly vivid to Kafka was his childhood...
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...Franz Kafka is the author of the book Metamorphosis. He was born in Prague on July 3, 1883. Born a German-speaking Jewish boy. Lived with his parents for most his life. He is best known for describing absurd situations with simple, cold words. Franz Kafka’s Metamorphosis could fall under a couple of genres in literature, they would include: classic, fiction, and fantasy. The way that Gregor changes illustrates that the theme would be the absurdity of life. In the beginning Gregor wakes up as a bug and is kind of scared along with his family. Towards the middle he is used to his body and isn’t scared anymore. His family is starting to get used to the idea that the bug is Gregor and that’s what he looks like now. At the end though all of that changes, his sister wants to get rid of the idea that that’s Gregor and they want him out of the house so they can be free from fear again. Change can happen at anytime and it can be very destructive and life changing. This story takes place in the Samsas’ house but mostly in Gregor's room/mind. It starts with him waking up in his bed finding out that he is a bug. His parents and boss get involved in it, he can no longer work so he has to stay home all the time now. His can’t come out of his room because his family is afraid of him and what could happen. He is isolated in his lonely, “crowded” room all by his lonesome self. His sister wants to “clear out his room so he has more room to crawl around and so he won’t hurt himself, but his mom...
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...Gregor’s Sacrifice In the story, The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka, the main character’s death can be seen as either an unintentional or self-sacrifice. However one sees it, although, Gregor’s death impacted family due to his role as a member and his personality. Unintentionally, Gregor could have been a man whose life wasn’t supposed to change, but unfortunately did. On the other hand, Gregor’s actions from his entire life may have been leading up to his last moments of life. Gregor’s characterstics, actions, and his whole life have been leading up to the days and weeks before his death. One who views this story in more of a meaning and symbolic way would see that Gregor was a coward of a man who, although took care of his family, suppressed their goals and desires. When his transformation took place it became more evident the role Gregor played in the family. The fact that his family never talked to him once meant that they never truly thought it was he still in the animal’s body. Just as he was as a bug, in his human form he was considered a burden. Kafka never commented on how Gregor felt about his upcoming death, which means one can interpret Gregor’s feelings as surrender to his situation and insignificance. One would say that, with his family in mind, he would finally relieve them of their stress and let them start a metamorphosis of their own. The entire ending scene was dedicated to the daughter and her future ahead, “as soon as they reached their destination Grete...
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...Virginia Woolf was an essayist, novelist, publisher, critique, especially famous for her novels and feminist writings. She is considered to be one of the leading figures of modernist literature of the twentieth century. “The Russian Point of View” is Virginia Woolf’s most outstanding essay devoted to Russian literature. Within the essay, Woolf shares her point of view on three Russian writers: Chekhov, Dostoevsky, and Tolstoy. Woolf opens her essay by foregrounding the problem of understanding Russian literature. Language is the largest and most obvious obstacle. While reading translation, we read a text that is fundamentally different from the original. The translators have to face lots of difficulties. They must be skilled enough to translate cultural aspects, humour and other delicate elements. They must know something about the country, its traditions. Woolf points out that the reader cannot blindly depend upon the work of translators. According to the Woolf's point of view, difficulties in understanding Russian literature appear not only due to the barrier of language, but because of cultural difference. Then the author speaks about Chekhov's works. Chekhov is recognized for his originality. On the one hand, he wrote about ordinary events and the relationship of people in small towns and villages. On the other hand, Chekhov’s unusual plots attract many readers. Chekhov’s plots generally lack resolution. He wanted his works to ask the reader questions, not to provide answers...
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...“In Kafka’s stories dehumanization is an inevitable side-effect of society” To what extent do you agree with this statement? It is very clear in the beginning of The Metamorphosis that the transformation of the main character into a large bug is used to symbolize that he is controlled by his job, and quite literally dehumanizes him. The author talks about his transformation early on in the book when he had just woken up in the morning. “He found himself changed in his bed into a monstrous vermin”. It is unclear what this transformation symbolizes at first, but soon we begin to realize that he has worked like a "bug" for much of his life and his work dehumanizes him. It is arguable that that the author may be indicating that a bugs life is more desirable than a humans life. An animal’s life would stereotypically be to sleep, eat and reproduce, different from the stresses of a human’s life if work and stress. The author may view dehumanization in a positive light, as the book progresses and the main character become more content with the changes to him. “One could breathe more freely”. Dehumanization as a physical sense allows for more freedom and less restriction upon the character. The author may be implying that the main character turning into a giant bug has been stripped off his human qualities which are the result on over working. The dehumanization on the main character is evident in the first thoughts of his, “oh God, what an exhausting job I’ve picked on!” The...
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...Through the interactive orals, my understanding of the cultural and contextual considerations of Kafka’s novella, The Metamorphosis deepened. I learned about Kafka’s life, the social structure of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in the late nineteenth century, as well as the interpretations of his work, which helped me understand the themes of oppression and alienation, and how it influenced Kafka’s writing of The Metamorphosis. Although the novel is not a representation of Kafka’s life, parallels between Gregor and Kafka can be noted throughout the novel. The Metamorphosis may have been a metaphorical allegory written to expresses Kafka’s unvoiced antipathy with his life and authoritarian father. According to the presentation over Kafka’s biography, Kafka had a strained relationship with his father, Hermann. Kafka’s father’s dominating nature subjected Kafka to emotional abuse and a life of oppression because his father believed he was a failure. The responsibilities and obligations Kafka had to fulfill for his family kept him from leaving. Although Kafka deeply cared about his family, his relationship with his parents and many of his siblings were distant. My understanding of the novel was enhanced because I was able to connect Kafka’s life to the novel as similar circumstances were reflected in Gregor’s relationship with Mr. Samsa and his family. The influence of the Jewish culture during the anti-Semitism period affected Kafka’s work greatly. In the late nineteenth century of...
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...Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis” and Morrison’s Beloved explore the idea of de-humanization. Morrison explores how the institution of slavery is reinforced by de-humanizing its subjects. This is accomplished by Morrison fleshing out how slavery perpetually de-humanizes slaves by denying their free will. Franz Kafka uses the same language to describe how the institution of modernity de-humanizes its participants. Kafka explores how modern society only values the person monetarily. By comparing modernity to slavery, Kafka reveals how society depends on the willingness of its participants to be dehumanized. Morrison’s use of characters like Sethe and Paul D reveals how slavery ignores the humanity of a person, whereas Kafka uses Gregor to explore how modernity strips humanity away from a person to the point where they no longer lay claim to it. Stripping away the ability to own self is an important step in dehumanization. Kafka reveals how modernity removes ownership of self by setting up Gregor’s life before he turned into a bug: “He sits with us at the table and reads the paper quietly or studies times tables” (Kafka 16). Just to support his family, Gregor had to prepare for work, thus losing out on any time he could have spent on himself. However, when Gregor turns into a bug, his family imprisons him: “stamping his feet, began to drive Gregor back into his room by brandishing the walking stick and the paper” (Kafka 23). Gregor is forced back into the room immediately after escaping...
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...Mary Whiton Calkins Natalie Scrivens Katrina Ramos The field of psychology is one that seems to be dominated with the presence of men especially in the 18th and 19th century. The world was not focused on equal rights for women. Psychology did however have women who contributed greatly to the study and focus of theories and ideas that we still use today. In this paper I will discuss the life of Mary Whiton Calkins, theoretical prospective, and contributions to the field of psychology. Mary Whiton Calkins was born in Hartford, Connecticut in 1863. She was the daughter of a Presbyterian minister and was the oldest of five children. Mary had a very close relationship with her family. She was especially close with her mother. Mary was very much the strong and independent type. She moved to Newton, Massachusetts at the age of 17. Her family built her a house and she would remain in that house throughout her life. Mary’s father was very adamant about her education. He knew that without him overseeing and designing and education plan that Mary would not get the education that she needed to be successful in a male dominated world. Her father made sure that she got the best education possible and he gave her education privately. Mary’s father’s dedication and supervision of her education would reap great benefits for her. All of his instruction allowed her to enter Smith College in 1882 with an advanced standing as a sophomore. Mary would however face a crushing...
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...5. Chris McCandless was a very important man to Ronald Franz. Franz lost his wife and son in a car accident to a drunk driver on new year's eve and had nothing else in life to live for until Chris came along. Franz lived a simple life and had no one to care for and nothing to do. Chris filled a void in Franz’s heart. Chris is like Franz’s replacement for his lost family members; Chris and Frans start to develop a father-son relationship. Franz missed his family, he missed being able to care for them and look out for them. Franz was genuinely hurt when Chris decided to leave for San Francisco; Franz made up an excuse to go with Chris so he could spend more time with him “‘No. You don’t get it. I’m going to San Diego. And I’m leaving on Monday’ ‘OK. I’ll drive you there.’ ‘Don’t be ridiculous,’ McCandless scoffed. ‘I need to go anyway,’ Franz lied, ‘to pick up some leather supplies.’”(52). This quote demonstrates how Franz didn’t want Chris to leave, Franz made up excuses to go to San Francisco so he had more time with Chris. This quote also shows how Chris did not have feelings (or wanna develop feelings) for Franz. Chris does not want to get attached to someone considering he is always on the move. Chris is very assertive with the way he says he is leaving monday. This is Franz and Chris’ father-son relationship. 6. Chris states that flying would cheating because he wants to hitch north. Chris does live by his own words. Throughout his entire trip Chris hitchhikes and never does...
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...Kafka’s World W. Clement Stone said, “You are a product of your environment.” This theory can be used to understand the meaning behind Franz Kafka’s nonsensical writings. The politics, literature, and science present during Franz Kafka’s lifetime reflects in his stories’ characters. Kafka grew up in a challenging time period at the end of the nineteenth century, in the middle of Prague. At that moment in history, Prague was a part of the Austrian-Hungary Empire before World War I. “Kafka was born into a middle-class, German-speaking Jewish family (Nervi).” The empire was a mix of ethnicities and languages which led to a confused country. For families like Kafka’s, “they faced many special restrictions: they were not free to choose...
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