ASS. 1
The story “The Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka effectively uses characters and settings to portray isolation and helplessness, two major attributes brought about by any oppressive society. Through his work, Kafka examines alienation and the crushing weight of societal expectations upon the individual, using the metamorphosis of Gregor Samsa into an insect to extrapolate these themes.
Gregor’s character works very well to illustrate the pressures of society. A hardworking man who sells out his personal happiness because of his family, Gregor’s metamorphosis into a gigantic insect represents the dehumanization of self and personality. It represents what Kafka feels personally, that society is oppressive and humans are reduced to mere machines commuting in its treads. Gregor, as an insect, manifests an intrinsic fear of failing societal and familial expectations even after his transformation:
“What a strenuous career it is that I’ve chosen! Travelling day in and day out” (Kafka 4).
Gregor’s family members personify the different attitudes of society towards nonconformists. Their financial dependence on Gregor suddenly changes, and so do their attitudes towards him after the transformation. His father is the symbol of authoritarian control, and he reacts with violence. His sister Grete’s initial compassion turned to resentment, and she advocated for removing Gregor. This change proves how conditional the concept of acceptance is in society:
“We must try to get rid of it. It’ll be the death of you two, I can see it coming” (Kafka 32).
The setting of the Samsa household develops the theme of isolation. Gregor’s seclusion within his room is symbolic of his being ostracized, or cut off, from society and this family. His now familiar space becomes a prison for him, symbolic of the entrapment and desperation he feels within. The description of the room in detail portrays the pressurizing nature of the environment by Kafka:
“He was a tool of the boss, without brains or backbone” (Kafka 7).
The apartment itself seems to be claustrophobic and central, with societal restraints. The infiltration of the family’s apartment into Gregor’s space is incremental, and it symbolizes the deletion of Gregor’s identity and self-government. The apartment represents the much bigger society where the marginalized are locked up and forgotten:
“He would have to lie low and, by being patient and showing that he was not out to annoy anyone, he would be allowed to crawl around freely” (Kafka 15).
Gregor’s tragic end delivers a poignant commentary regarding the consequences of societal oppression: his death from neglect and abuse underlines the brutal realism of how society discards those no longer serving its purpose. The family’s relief at his death reveals the selfishness and lack of empathy in such oppressive societies:
“Well, said Mr. Samsa, now we can thank God” (Kafka 40).
Altogether, “The Metamorphosis” makes one reflect on isolation and helplessness from societies that are oppressive through character roles and settings. The metamorphosis of Gregor and his family’s reactions shows how dehumanization occurs in those conditioned within the expectations and acceptance given by society. Kafka indicates the entrapment and hopelessness of the oppressed within the confined household of the Samsas. Even today, this novella can serve as a powerful indictment against norms in society and the ways in which they impact individual identity and freedom.
ASS. 2
Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper” and Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour” both make use of character and setting to try to shed light on the oppressive nature of society toward women through their respective eras.
In “The Yellow Wallpaper,” the character of the narrator is used to point out the societal oppression of women. Locked into a bedroom by her husband, John, who invalidates her feelings with the diagnosis of hysteria, she undergoes a form of “rest cure” that forbids any sort of intellectual stimulation. This sort of treatment typified the era when women were considered fragile creatures incapable of mental pressure. The narrator’s descent into madness epitomizes the very aspect of destruction at the hands of such oppression. Her obsession with the wallpaper, on which she perceives imprisoned women, corresponds to her own entrapment as well:
“The front pattern does move, and no wonder! The woman behind shakes it!” (Gilman 648)
The story’s setting, mainly the room with the yellow wallpaper, is very significant in bringing out the issue of the narrator’s oppression. Described as a former nursery with barred windows, it signifies her infantilization and imprisonment:
“It was a nursery first and then playroom and gymnasium, I should judge; for the windows are barred for little children, and there are rings and things in the walls” (Gilman 644).
The wallpaper represents her insanity and oppression. The isolated mansion magnifies her loneliness and entrapment, which brings forth the smothering effect of treatment and society’s norms on her.
In the short story “The Story of an Hour,” Louise Mallard’s character portrays the smothering nature of society on women in marriage. From the first moment of sadness, upon being informed of her husband’s death, she feels the emotions of freedom. Chopin describes this aspect of her marriage:
“She was trying to realize what this thing was that was approaching to possess her, and she was striving to beat it back with her will. Free! Body and soul free!” Chopin 537
This thus indicates that marriage was a tool of social oppression that limited independence and self-expression among women.
The setting is cardinal in Chopin’s story since the scenes underline Louise’s internal transformation and external constraints within the plot. The bedroom—the comfortable armchair and the open window—speaks both of physical confinement and possible liberty. Of course, outside of that same window, Louise literally sees some signs of spring expressing her renewal and freedom:
” She could see in the open square before her house the tops of trees that were all aquiver with the new spring life” Chopin 537.
This contrast between her enclosed room, with its confined and oppressive atmosphere, and the outside living and lively world emphasizes the confrontation between a life of constraint and her hopeful glimpse of freedom. The staircase, wherein Louise dies suddenly, recalls, symbolically, the passage from a limited domestic life towards the possibility of independence, brutally cut short.
Both stories make extensive use of character and setting in condemning the oppressive social norms extant at the time and intersperse opinions about women’s autonomy and mental health. It is through the protagonists ‘ experiences within symbolic confined spaces contrasted with glimpses of freedom that Gilman and Chopin lay bare the psychological tolls of societal oppression on women.
ASS. 3
In “A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings,” Gabriel García Márquez merges magical realism with cultural and religious themes, putting forward his argument through symbolism and character development. It is an indictment of society for reacting to the miraculous and dominating role religion has over human lives.
Finally, the central symbol in the story is the old man with wings that embodies the intersection of the divine and the ordinary. Blended with their religious miracles, his emergence contrasts with a great deal of curiosity, exploitation, and Worldly neglect on the part of the villagers. Such attitude denotes superficial faith and commercialism of religious wonders:
“They did not have the heart to clobber him to death. Pelayo and Elisenda were happy with fatigue. and they both looked at the fallen body with a mute stupor” (Márquez 348).
Character development reflects cultural and religious influences. Pelayo and Elisenda evolve from humble villagers into extremely sharp entrepreneurs, which mirrors society’s nature and tendency to turn the sacred into a commodity. Elisenda embodies this change:
Then she hit upon the idea of fencing in the yard and charging five cents admission to see the angel” (Márquez 349).
The reaction of the villagers themselves points to more apparent disparities between authentic faith and nominal belief. Their curiosity turns to disappointment when the old man does not turn out to be the angel they had come expecting to see. This conditional faith is highlighted:
“The most unfortunate invalids on earth came in search of health, and the miraculous old man seemed to be everywhere except in the wings of the cripple” (Márquez 350).
The setting of the story adds to its symbolic dimension, whereby the rotten, banal environment brings forth opposition to the supernatural old man juxtaposed against earthly and divine aspects. His decrepit appearance, all dressed like a ragpicker, challenges conventional opinions of holiness and critiques superficial values.
These elements are described by Márquez in order to interlace the plot with cultural and religious themes. The old man has, first of all, the symbolic meaning of the miraculous and mundane in their conflict. At the same time, the characters’ reactions show the expression of social tendencies toward exploitation and misunderstandings of divine appearance. This way, Márquez criticizes the commercialization of religion and the superficiality of faith in modern society by this story.
The actual might of the narrative lies in the balancing of fantasy with the ordinary, in which it provokes questions about one’s beliefs and morals that a society holds. In offering up a miracle without clear expectations, Márquez invites reflection on faith—its nature—the human tendency to milk the extraordinary for all it is worth—and frequently, its disappointment with how one reacts to the divine within their midst.
In summary, “A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings” is a rich tapestry of meaning developed through symbolism and character development. It challenges the reader to reflect upon the yawning chasm between professed belief and actual behaviour, the commercialization of the sacred, and how the ordinary reception of miracles often happens in the normal mould of everyday life.
ASS. 4
In “This is What It Means to Say Phoenix, Arizona,” Sherman Alexie drives the action with the setting and uses it to underline the characters’ cultural and personal journeys. The action pendulates from Spokane Indian Reservation to Phoenix, Arizona—a counterpoint between agendas that epitomize heroes’ lives and identities.
The reservation stands for the cultural roots and problems of the community in that place—where poverty and limited opportunities are:
“Victor did not have any money. Who does have money on a reservation, except the cigarette and fireworks salespeople?” (Alexie 68)
Victor’s departure from his reservation to collect his father’s ashes in Phoenix creates a stir in the plot, symbolizing his urge to reconcile with his past.
Phoenix represents Victor’s feelings of confrontation and resolution. The heat and the feeling of being a stranger to the city are different from the reservation, which catapults Victor outside his comfort zone. It is here that he learns truths about his estranged father and starts to learn more about himself and his cultural background. Indeed, the journey becomes not only actual but also symbolic in taking Victor closer to Thomas and toward contemplating their common past:
“There were pine trees in Phoenix. Thomas and Victor sat on the ground and stared at the ashes and the pine trees that stood over them” Alexie 75
Alexie uses these contrasting settings to advance the plot and the characters’ journeys. By contrasting the reservation setting with that of Phoenix, the characters’ physical journeys demonstrate their emotional and cultural reconciliation by emphasizing what their heritage and experiences have done to them as identities.
ASS. 5
Denial of Actualization in Fiction
Generally, the authors evolve the theme of denial of actualization in fiction through the limitations the characters face because of their gender and socio-economic status. In “The Story of Hour” by Kate Chopin, Louise Mallard, on receiving the news about her husband’s death,. This realization, however, is curtailed by her sudden death, which nonetheless symbolizes how societal constraints against them actually curtain the potential that a woman can reach. Chopin writes, “When the doctors came, they said she had died of heart disease—of joy that kills” (538), emphasizing the ironic and tragic limit to her freedom.
In the same way, in Franz Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis,” Gregor Samsa’s metamorphosis into a bug represents the actual loss of his potential because of the overwhelming needs of the family and work. As a result of his inability to communicate and the eventual rejection by his family, Gregor is forever lost in attaining any personal fulfilment. Kafka’s portrayal of Gregor’s dehumanization and entrapment illustrates the destructive impact of societal expectations on actualization, “He felt a great pride that he was able to provide a life like that in such a nice apartment for his sister and parents” (Kafka 10).
In the short story “The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, the potential of the narrator is stifled by the male-dominated patriarchy of medical practitioners of the time. Confined to a room, she is forbidden from engaging in intellectual activities and slowly spirals into madness. The wallpaper represents her mental enclosure and serves as a metaphor for the broader social oppression of women. Gilman narrates, “I think that woman gets out in the daylight! And I’ll tell you why—privately—I’ve seen her! ” discussing the thwarted intellectual and emotional liberty, which causes a lapse in self-actualization.
Denial and Delusion in Fiction Through fiction, all the authors of these short stories unravel how denial and delusion have limited one’s development by unfolding characters who are ensnared in unreal existing worlds. In the short story titled “The Yellow Wallpaper,” Charlotte Perkins Gilman unfolds how the denial of her mental sickness by the narrator, enforced by the husband’s dismissive treatment, leads to her mental collapse. This delusion is epitomized by the fact that the narrator believes this wallpaper hides a woman who is trying to break free. “I’ve got out at last. And I’ve pulled off most of the paper, so you can’t put me back!
” 653 Gilman. This shows that sometimes the worst enemies to growth are, in fact, denial and delusion as coping mechanisms. In the “Metamorphosis,” Franz Kafka describes Gregor Samsa’s illusion of his value to his family and his denial of his own needs.
The fact that Gregor believes his family depends only on him keeps him enslaved to an undignified profession, which later becomes a means of his decline. Kafka writes, “He felt a great pride that he was able to provide a life like that in such a nice apartment for his sister and parents” (Kafka 10), showing how Gregor’s delusion of indispensability traps him. Similarly, in Sherman Alexie’s “This Is What It Means to Say Phoenix, Arizona,” Victor’s early disbelief in Thomas Builds-the-Fire’s worth handicaps his growth. Victor’s unwillingness to admit Thomas’s friendship and intuition is a sign of the illusion of his independence. However, in the course of their voyage, he begins to value Thomas’s tales and encouragement. Thus, if denial is conquered, there is hope for growth.
Alexie writes, “Victor knew that he couldn’t really be friends with Thomas, even after all that had happened” (Alexie 74).
This highlights how acknowledging and overcoming denial is essential for personal growth.