Evidence

I will be focusing on sex/ gender roles and how they relate to the progress of the story.

The first piece of evidence I chose is that the men and women are place in traditional roles. Both Caroline and Elizabeth were described with motherly feature more than once through out the story. During the creature’s story, Agatha is only seen taking care of the women’s work at the house, while Felix took care of the heavy work, like bringing in firewood. Also, Victor is given the opportunity to leave his family to go study, while Elizabeth is not allowed the chance.

My second piece of evidence is the male ego and selfishness in the story. Walton’s first letter starts by mocking his sister for being afraid of his adventures as he stated, “You will rejoice to hear that no disaster has accompanied the commencement if an enterprise which you have regarded with such evil forebodings” (5). While Victor is constructing the creature, he submits himself completely into his work and all but forgets about his family that awaits his return

The third piece of evidence is the need for women to complete the male happiness. Felix is sad until Safie comes to him in the creature’s story. Victor also expresses great happiness when he is finally married to Elizabeth. Even before they are married, he expresses that he loves and would not be able to live with anyone else. The creature also asks for a woman or companion so that he could live happily and not bother Victor any longer.

These three pieces of evidence show that Mary Shelley created her characters to fit the society that she lived in. But if one is to dig in deeper, these characterizations are the reason that Victor’s whole life is destroyed. Were it not for the ego of the men and the submissive behavior of the women, perhaps none of this would have happened. Although Victor only sees himself as the culprit, society in general and their “ideal” life of the family life contributed greatly. Yes, he created the creature, but if it were fine for the men to have motherly affection, perhaps Victor would not have left the creature on his own. Maybe if was not so selfish and superficial, he would have

What the narrative does... Assignment#4

“An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” by Ambrose Bierce is split into three different sections, each subsequent section becoming more personal than the first. The first section sets up to the scene for the reader in a third person narrative. It is impersonal and gives it a sort of historical context to it. Making it seem as if the story was an actual even in history. The fact that the story begins so formally and without much detail as to how the scene came to be keeps the reader interested. It made me want to know what this man had done to be killed, being that he was a “gentleman”.

The second section gives a change in chronology. It takes the reader back to where and how this whole incident began. Although it also gives the reader more contexts on the situation, like stating that Peyton Farquhar is a slave owner and that he was a secessionist. This tells us that we are in the civil war times. But it also becomes more personal. We find out about who the man being hung is. We learn about his family, where he lives and his beliefs. The author still keeps a third person narrative and personal. For example, Peyton Farquhar is referred to as Farquhar as if referencing someone that is not a friend.

The final section was the most exciting. It returns to the original scene, beginning where the first section had left off. Even though it returns to the original spot, the feeling of this section is more personal. The reader can feel the panic of the main character to try to escape after the rope broke and he fell into the water. It is more personal since it is written in the first person. His thought process, the unexplainable miracles of Farquhar survival keeps the reader holding on to dear life as well. At the end, Bierce makes an abrupt return to the formal, third person narrative, making it the bearer of bad news.