Monday 13th June 2022

PROSE
The Chrysalids
Conflict
Character vs. Self
David believes that having six toes is such a little thing, but he is very much aware of the
teachings he has received, "Beware thou of the Mutant!" The person versus self conflict is
reflected in the struggles of the oppressed characters to figure out how to navigate their
lives. For instance, Aunt Harriet's suicide can be interpreted as an expression of her
turning the conflict her society had with her in on herself.

Character vs Society (Power/ Authority/Identity

/Freewill/Death/Freedom/Survival)
The person versus society conflict exists by simple fact that the government
policy requiring genetic purity even exists. This policy shapes the way the
characters pass through the spaces they live in and means that institutional
power has the power to end their lives.The novel is a post-apocalyptic novel
that deals with the struggle between man and authority, as well as the
oppression of all things different. The main characters in the novel,
including David, are a group of telepathic individuals who are shunned by
society and oppressed by it for fear of their capabilities.The main conflict
comes from this struggle for freedom. As David and his fellow telepaths
attempt to just gain their own freedom and safety, they come into harsh
conflict with the authorities in society who want to eradicate or oppress
them. In this sort of novel, there is usually a point where the protagonists
have to strike out on their own and abandon society to form a better life for
themselves, which is typically more inclusive and utopian, which is what
David and the others do.

There is more than one conflict present in this novel. One of the conflicts is
a man vs. society conflict. David and the other telepathic children are
technically "Deviants" because their genetic code has given them a mutation
that is not considered normal. The Waknuk society believes that kind of
deviation in the gene pool should be expelled from the community by placing
them in the Fringes, sterilizing the person, or simply killing them. This
conflict also affects characters like Sophie with her sixth toe mutation. There
are also several man vs. man conflicts present in the novel as well. David is
on the run for his life from several members of the Waknuk society including
his father. David is also forced into man vs. man conflict with the people of
the Fringes, and David is even captured and imprisoned at one point by
these people. Internally, David struggles with having to hide his ability and
how far he and the other telepathic children need to go in order to keep their
ability a secret.

Character vs Character
The person versus person conflict emerges any time an individual—for instance Anne's
husband, Alan—chooses to act to give more power to those social institutions, like Alan did
by ratting them out. By choosing to participate in the social oppression, these individuals
bring themselves directly into the conflict at hand.
POETRY “DEATH BE NOT PROUD:
MAIN MESSAGE
In the sonnet "Death, be not proud" by John Donne, the poet argues with Death from a
Christian perspective. Death is personified as someone to whom Donne speaks directly.
However, the poet has no respect at all for Death. He scorns it, saying that it is not "mighty
and dreadful," that it has no power to kill Donne, and that it is in fact a "slave to fate" that
puts people to sleep the same way that "poppy or charms" do. To understand why Donne
derides Death so scornfully, it is important to know that he was a fervent Christian, a priest
in the Church of England. In this poem, he clearly expresses his belief in life after death.
For him as a Christian, death was but a short sleep, and he would then, as promised in the
Bible, wake to everlasting life. That's why he writes that after "one short sleep" he would
"wake eternally," and "death shall be no more."

According to Donne, a believing Christian never really dies. For this reason, he proclaims to
Death that "thou shalt die," because Christians overcome Death instead of being conquered
by it. As an educated priest, he is aware that numerous bible passages back him up in this.

For instance, in John 5:24, Jesus says,

He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life,
and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.

Many other passages in the New Testament of the Bible affirm the power of God's
everlasting life over death. Donne believed in this concept, and that's why he is able to
rebuke Death and argue against it with such confidence in his poem.

POETRY “DEATH BE NOT PROUD:

LITERARY DEVICE
Sonnet 10 begins famously with the opening line "Death, be not proud, though some have
called thee" (1). This personification of death continues through the rest of the sonnet, as
Donne basically calls out Death, as though to challenge him or to pick a fight with
him. When reading the first two lines, Donne basically says that, although some people
might consider Death to be "mighty and dreadful," he knows that Death is really not that
scary (2). To further downplay Death's menace, Donne likens Death to "rest and sleep"
which are really not frightening at all (5). The end of the poem argues that Death's power
over man is only temporary and fleeting, because God will resurrect His believers to "wake
eternally" (15). Donne's "Sonnet 10" challenges Death, and through the poet's cleverly
crafted argument, wins the fight! Donne's conclusion feels triumphant: "And Death shall be
no more ; Death, thou shalt die" (16). Death, consider yourself 'poem-slapped' by John
Donne...

If the poem is an example of apostrophe, naturally, there is

also personification. The speaker personifies Death, even telling it to not be
“proud,” “mighty,” or “dreadful,” even though people perceive Death this
way. Donne personifies Death to humanize it. When Death is humanized, it
loses some of the power that people naturally ascribe to it.

The most notable literary device Donne uses in this poem is personification.
Personification is when an author attributes human characteristics to non-
human things. He carries personification of death throughout the poem by
saying that death should not be proud because, contrary to what most
people think, death does not have the ability to kill. Instead, it delivers
eternal life to those it touches. At the end of the poem when he says, “Death,
thou shalt die,” Donne implies death has the ability to die like people do,
though we know death cannot literally die.
(THEME OF SURVIVAL)

DRAMA MERCHANT OF VENICE

The play is full of various themes, and different readers are going to find that different
themes resonate more strongly than others. For me, one of the main messages that I
always gravitate toward is the thematic emphasis on friendship. Antonio is a wonderful
friend to Bassanio, and I always think that Antonio is simply far too nice and forgiving.
Antonio knows that Bassanio is not a wise handler of money, yet Antonio decides to
take a great personal risk for his friend. To Bassanio's credit, Bassanio tells Antonio to
not go through with Shylock's deal. Bassanio is willing to give up (maybe temporarily)
his scheme to gain a potential rich trophy wife in order to protect Antonio. I think this
deep friendship between these two then can guide readers toward a different major
theme in the play—the theme of love. There is brotherly love between Antonio and
Bassanio, but the play also deals with romantic love between several of the characters.
The love theme is one that I really enjoy talking about with students because I enjoy
asking discussing whether Bassanio is ever truly in love with Portia.

The theme of friendship in The Merchant of Venice is best expressed through Antonio
and Bassanio's relationship. Antonio's strong feelings of affection for Bassanio motivate
him to take out a loan from Shylock to help his younger friend marry, setting the play
into motion. Portia and Nerissa also illustrate strong friendship.

Friendship is a critical theme of The Merchant of Venice, one most powerfully expressed in
the friendship between Antonio and Bassanio. However, what I find particular interesting
about Shakespeare's treatment of friendship in this play is how he depicts it in terms of
hierarchy (which is noteworthy, given that usually friendship is perceived as a relationship
between equals).

I think the friendship between Antonio and Bassanio is particularly murky, however (when
it comes to discussing these themes of hierarchy). On the one hand, given that Bassanio is
a noble, you would think he would occupy greater social status; but do not forget that he is
also depicted as financially ruined and desperate to advance his financial standings. With
this in mind, the merchant Antonio and Bassanio have a patron–client relationship of sorts,
with Antonio lending Bassanio money (and it is in this context that Antonio makes his
agreement with Shylock, in order to provide the funds Bassanio requires). With Bassanio's
marriage to Portia, however, and Antonio's bond to Shylock coming due, the power
dynamics reverse, with the now-wealthy and secure Bassanio attempting to intercede with
Shylock on Antonio's behalf (although it will be by Portia's intercession that Antonio's
release is ultimately secured).

That being said, I don't think you should discount the genuine bonds of friendship and
loyalty these characters have for one another. Antonio proves this when he takes on real
and genuine danger for Bassanio's sake, and Bassanio, in turn, is swift to rush to Antonio's
support when he learns how his friend's fortunes have turned. Similarly, you can point
towards the relationship between Portia and Nerissa to make a similar claim: theirs in
particular involves a clearly defined sense of hierarchy (with the wealthy Portia and Nerissa,
her servant), but this does not diminish the bonds they share, nor the loyalty they hold to
one another.
The most important friendship in the play is between Antonio and Bassanio. As the play
opens, Antonio's friends notice he seems preoccupied and depressed and assume this is
because he is worried about the ships he has out to sea. However, he is not anxious about
them at all: his depression is due to Bassanio's desire to marry Portia. Antonio, a successful
middle-aged merchant, has a great deal of affection for the younger man—so much so that
Bassanio's desire to wed is a blow to him that throws him into a funk. Nevertheless, he feels
such a strong bond to Bassanio that he is willing to borrow money from Shylock, a
moneylender he despises, to help Bassanio. All of this has led some critics to conclude that
Antonio' feelings, while they include friendship, are also stronger than friendship for his
younger friend.

Whatever the case, Antonio's strong sense of attachment leads him to take a risk to help
Bassanio, setting the action of the play into motion.

Another important friendship is that of Portia and her maid Nerissa. They are able to
transcend the servant–mistress bond to some extent, because they are so much alike.
Nerissa is a strong supporter of Portia, supporting both Portia's desire to wed Bassanio and
Portia's desire to defend Antonio in court while disguised as a man. Nerissa is also not
afraid to speak frankly to Portia, for example, reminding her that her father set up the
casket game to try to protect her.

I believe that the theme of friendship is best explored through the relationship that
exists between Antonio and Bassanio. Audiences find out right away that Antonio and
Bassanio are good friends, and I have always thought that Antonio is the far better
friend of the two characters. This is because I see Antonio as the far more selfless and
generous of the two men. By Bassanio's own admission, he isn't very good with money,
and Antonio knows this about his friend. I laugh every time I read Bassanio's plan to
woo Portia. He's so shallow. He desires Portia because she is rich enough to keep him
out of financial trouble, and she happens to be gorgeous. In order to do his wooing,
Bassanio needs money, and Antonio is completely on board with giving him the loan.
Basically, Antonio is the guy that will see his friends through thick and thin, no matter
the cost. He's the giver in the friendship, and Bassanio is the taker. To be completely
fair to Bassanio, though, he does care for Antonio. Bassanio definitely wants the loan,
and he wants to use it to win Portia's hand in marriage; however, when Bassanio hears
the huge risk that Antonio is taking, Bassanio doesn't want to go through with it
anymore. Bassanio may be more selfish than Antonio, but Bassanio understands that
protecting his friend is more important than pursuing Portia.

You shall not seal to such a bond for me!

I’ll rather dwell in my necessity.

The theme of friendship is indeed strong in this play; specifically, the friendship between
Bassanio and Antonio is significant because their relationship is the catalyst for many of
the play's major plot points. It is Antonio's love for Bassanio that prompts him to offer
Bassanio a loan to help him woo Portia. Antonio procures the money from Shylock, who in
turn levies a strict penalty for late repayment. Portia sees Antonio's stress resulting from
his friend's predicament, and vows to help him. It is Bassanio's capacity for friendship and
loyalty that insures even greater love from Portia.

Antonio is also quite possibly in love with Bassanio, perhaps in a platonic way, but the text
suggests deeper romantic feelings, as we see in this quote:
Commend me to your honourable wife:
Tell her the process of Antonio's end;
Say how I lov'd you; speak me fair in death;
And, when the tale is told, bid her be judge
Whether Bassanio had not once a love.

There is every indication that the deep brotherly love between the two men may in fact have
a latent homosexual context, at least from Antonio's perspective. But many productions of
the play do not emphasize this theme. The more general theme of male bonding and loyalty
is seen in Antonio's desire to convey his feelings to Bassanio in the event of his death.

These examples suggest that friendship is the more powerful force, and such a notion is
reinforced by incidents in the play that demonstrate fractures in the love relationships.
Portia confronts Bassanio about giving away the ring that symbolizes their relationship; to
Portia, Bassanio has shown extreme disloyalty to her by treating the ring so casually as to
give it away. Nerissa is just as angry with Gratiano for his mistake, for the same reason.

Though friendship and loyalty can exist between lovers, the loyalty the friends show each
other is far more impressive than the loyalty they show their romantic partners. Perhaps
Shakespeare is commenting on the fallibility of romance and marriage in this context,
encouraging the audience to protect their friendships well.