The Death of a Moth Essay -- Literary Analysis, Virginia Woolf

What started out as an ordinary day turned out to be one if the worst tragedies in the history of Bangladesh – the fire at Nimtoli in Dhaka. I sat in shock as I saw the news reports of the tragic incident showing numerous buildings on fire burning mercilessly, people running in havoc with no idea where loved ones are and yet others trapped inside the buildings, screaming, being burned alive. However, nothing seemed to have any effect on the ruthless fire which kept on burning, claiming as many lives as it could, turning a deaf ear to the desperate cries of hundreds of people. The blazing flames simply devoured everything in their path, burning them to ash. It finally subsided in the early hours of dawn, but the damage it left behind was monumental – piles of debris and dead bodies scattered in buildings which were burned charcoal black. As the police and firemen recovered countless bodies from the ruins, I wondered about the strange nature of life and death. In her essay, â€Å"The Death of a Moth†, Virginia Woolf contemplates how life and death are separated by a single thread of â€Å"energy† and how eventually the force of death snaps the thread, overpowering life and proving its superior strength (385). Woolf reflects how life and death are two mutually exclusive forces of nature, yet they are intertwined by the law of nature itself. In the essay, Woolf observes a moth, an â€Å"insignificant creature† at his attempts to â€Å"[enjoy] his meager opportunities† of a particularly vibrant morning bustling with life, energy and activity (385). However the moth is soon faced with a force which Woolf deems to be far superior to life’s energy. It is a force â€Å"which would, had it chosen, have submerged an entire city, not merely a city, but masses of hu... .... They are also echoed by humans in an attempt to delay death. However, as Woolf claims, death indeed is the ultimate destination of all living things. It is how we reach that destination that matters the most. All rational living creatures â€Å"diverge ever more widely from [their] original course of life and to make ever more complicated detours before reaching [their] final aim of death† (Freud 32). Robert Frost in his poem â€Å"Nothing Gold Can Stay† writes: â€Å"Nature’s first green is gold, Her hardest hue to hold.† The fact that life is a â€Å"hue† that we want to hold questions Woolf’s supposed claims; if death is indeed the stronger force of nature and life the weaker, then why do all living beings choose the weaker force? Perhaps there is a force stronger than the force of life and death, one that governs life and death, and that I believe is the force of nature.

Modernism in “A passage to India”

Modernism refers to a classification of literature that was written between 1914 and 1965.   E. M. Forster's A Passage to India was published in 1924, placing it in the early years of the Modernist Period as well as within the Georgian Age (Harmon 597).   In art and literature, Modernism paralleled the rise of industrial technology and advances in science. In music, atonalism – that is, music which deliberately avoids key centers and is often dissonant – was produced by composers such as Arnold Schoenberg. Visual art found expression in cubism. Theories by Sigmund Freud also had a powerful influence on this movement. In literature, the Modernistic writing style is characterized by breaking with tradition.   It is inner-self oriented, and that inner-self is often explored using a stream of consciousness manner.   Modernism rejects traditional values and assumptions.   The individual takes pride of place while the social and outward are cast aside.   Some scholars see Modernism as a reaction to the practical and systematic sensibilities of Realism and Naturalism (Harmon 326). Not surprisingly, the Modern Era was also when Existentialism came into prominence – a related philosophy in which human beings are expected to create their own meaning for existence.   Forster's â€Å"Oriental-leaning† characters in this novel provide examples of a Modernistic mindset contrasting with the traditional English Imperialist mindset provided by other characters. Forster uses the symbol of water to represent the idea of renewal in the â€Å"Temple† chapter. There is an event in which the Hindus are â€Å"preparing to throw God away† (Forster 308), and part of the ceremony involves a replica of the village of Gokul that is placed on a tray and is to perish.   Meanwhile, the British and others are in boats out in the water, observing the festivities, and the boats collide, expelling the passengers.   The symbolic village perishes so that it can be renewed, and is representative of the renewal of mindsets of some of the passengers in the boats. Aziz in particular in the latter portion of the â€Å"Temple† section, exhibits several examples of stream of consciousness thinking.   In one instance Fielding asks Aziz to meet with Stella and Ralph, and Aziz does not reply.   Instead, the reader is allowed into his thoughts, which are not linear but circular, and is one example of how a human mind jumps around from topic to feeling to emotion and back (Forster 314). Because Forster is examining traditional values through a Modernistic lens in this novel, material detail is much less important than what the characters are thinking.   The action in this story is in each character's mind, and how they grapple with new ideas concerning culture, religion, and morality. Professor Godbole and Mrs. Moore express their inner character and the workings of their minds in an â€Å"Oriental† manner, embodied in the Hindu sensibility.   Mrs. Moore, although a Christian, is accepted into Oriental culture, and she clashes with Heaslop prior to Aziz's trial.   Heaslop does not understand his mother because he does not recognize her spirituality, and he sides with the English Imperialist mindset against Aziz, the Oriental.   Mrs. Moore will have no part in helping her son succeed to the detriment of an Oriental.   She ultimately leaves India and the trial (Forster 201). In A Passage to India, Forster uses Modernism to explore the inclusive attitude of the â€Å"Oriental† and how diverse people make their passages in coming to terms with this sensibility.   Forster makes use of a Modernistic approach to help him tell a story with great depth, complexity and surprise. Works Cited Forster, E. M.   A Passage to India.   New York:   Harcourt, 1924. Harmon, William and C. High Holman.   A Handbook to Literature. 7th ed.   Upper Saddle River, New Jersey:   Prentice Hall, 1996.   

Movies in american culture

â€Å"Sweet Home Alabama† is a movie about Melanie Smooter played by Reese Witherspoon who is engaged to Andrew Hennings played by Patrick Dempsey and was out to go back to her hometown to divorce with her husband Jake Perry played by Josh Lucas. Melanie is a fashion designer who is with Patrick, a son of the mayor in New York. When Patrick asked Melanie to marry her, Melanie decided to go back to her hometown in Alabama to divorce with her husband Jake. Jake didn’t give her what she wants and so she was trap for a wile in the town so as to insist Jake to finally sign the paper of divorce. The story started on a beach with two kids, a boy and a girl. That was Melanie and Jake running on the beach while it’s raining. Jake tells Melanie that he wanted to marry her and Melanie asked why. From that flashback scene comes the present time with Melanie being engaged with her boyfriend and about to face her past with Jake.   It wasn’t easy for Melanie to convince Jake to sign the divorce paper. During her stay in Alabama, she had the chance to visit her family. Melanie soon realizes that a part of her was still on that place. And even if she tries to go on with her new life, there is unfinished business that she needs to settle. Going back to her hometown seems to be an awkward situation for Melanie, especially when she joins her high school friends and reminisced about their old days. Those scenes will provide the viewers a wide understanding of the movie and how the sequence relates to another one. There were less flashbacks but the film provides scenes that will give better understanding to the past where it is important to show how things  happened after Melanie left Jake in Alabama and went to New York. As the film progresses, it clearly showed how a scene is related to another and its viewers will get to understand and appreciate the film more so. The film relates to us a story of a girl who found her new life outside her old hometown and forgets that she is still in that hometown whether she likes it or not. Melanie thinks she got everything she wished for but she didn’t realized that what he left in that hometown will give her more than what she needs in life. Jake on the other hand still loves Melanie and is man enough to accept that Melanie wanted to call everything quits. Jake strived hard to make a good living and Melanie didn’t realize that. A true love story that is romantic on its own, comedy and light.   â€Å"Sweet Home Alabama† is a film that will teach us to appreciate what we had and to learn that it wont hurt us to look back on out past once in a while. Personally, I liked the movie because of its simple and natural attack to its viewers. It will make you relate yourself to the characters of the film and will make you think of a possible situation in your own life. The film thought me that no matter how decided we are on one thing that we thought could make us happy, there is a thing that lies around us that will make us realized how important it is to our life. Regardless of the fact that Melanie has already found her new life and love, she didn’t realize that she left something more valuable and important than any other things in her life and that is Jake. The film also showed us that there are mistakes that could be done right and that no matter how painful your past is, you will never erase the fact that it will always be a part  of whom you are and what you have become. Nonetheless, the film provides us the understanding of how life gives us challenges that we can surpass. That sometimes even if we get out of the life we have and create a new one with others, we will still feel the need to go back to our old life and make it right. The film is beautifully made that is why I recommend this movie to be watched by other people. It showed the very meaning of love and it addresses to its viewer how love is sweeter the second time around. The film should be watched by young adults and as well as by the not so young and old people who is fond of romantic and comedy film. The characters of the film will surely make an impact to the life of its viewer and it will teach a good lesson in life. Indeed, the film gives us the chance to see a good story comes with a good cast of actors with remarkable acting skills. â€Å"Sweet Home Alabama† is a movie that I will not get tired of watching over and over again. It is a movie that will make you smile in the beginning from end. It is a movie with a taste of love, life and second chances put into one masterpiece that will satisfy its viewer to the end. Definitely, â€Å"Sweet Home Alabama† is a great movie to watch with your friends and/or special someone. Keep in mind to just enjoy watching the movie and try to create a story in your mind same as the movie for you to be able to relate your self more to the movie. But the movie is very easy to understand, you just need to take a good look of it and listen to the lines very well. Nevertheless, it is a movie that will share a wonderful life of success, share of pain and a happy ending that will make it even better for you to watch it again. References Sweet Home Alabama (2002). The Internet Movie Database. Retrieved November 26, 2007, from http://www.imdb.com. Sweet Home Alabama Facts.   Movies.Com. Retrieved November 26, 2007, from http://movies.go.com