Literature as the Manipulation of Language - Assignment Example

?Essays on Novels Analysis of Quotes: a. "He spoke of A which is like a big fly with its wings folded eb rear of B's ??funny, with its two bellies, Cand D which are like the moon, crescent, half full, and O is the moon entirely in the dark sky. " The text is originally written by Jean-Marie Gustave Le Clesio, a French writer, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2008, in his book Mondo (Holden). The story was adapted into film by Tony Gatlif in 1995. Mondo narrates the life of a gypsy boy as he traversed the streets and sought help from strangers. The story portrays the ingenuity of the main character, Mondo, as he strives to survive in the streets, evade the police, and find a place to belong. The fisherman taught Mondo the alphabet in this manner as he believed in the interconnected of nature and the lives of human beings (Wilmington). This text contributes to the significance of the entire story as it signifies the positivism of Mondo, which enables him to see the brighter side of everything and people he encounters. b. "So for the first time, my sadness was no longer considered a punishable offense, but as an evil that had unintended official recognition as a nervous state that I was not responsible, I had relief have more qualms about mixing the bitterness of my tears, I could cry without sin.” The text is taken from the first volume (Swann’s Way) of Marcel Proust’s 7-volume novel Remembrance of Things Past, which narrates the childhood memories of the main character, Swann (McDonald). For the reason that the novel focuses on the memories of Swann, it can be said that the novel is full of philosophical ideas; it provides readers with insight on the main character’s perception of the world and himself. For instance, the quote tells Swann’s realization concerning his childhood. As the novel takes the reader to the memories of Swann, it also projects the significance of time. Lastly, the quote gives the reader an impression that the novel delves on themes concerning time such as memories and realizations. c. "I alone of all these counterfeiters, I know: I know nothing. This was my first discovery about it: do not know Lol was already known. You could, it seemed, to know even less, less and less of Lol V. Stein." This quote is taken form Marguerite Duras’s novel The Ravishing of Lol V. Stein. The novel is written in 1964 and is characterized with themes pertaining to understanding of oneself and of others as well as bewilderment, truth, and lies (Hecq n.pag.). In addition, the novel focuses on the conflict between knowledge and being. For instance, the quote suggests that Lol V. Stein is an interesting character as the other characters in the story are confused on his/her true identity. Additionally, the novel has psychological themes as Lol V. Stein’s character projects confusing physical and mental experiences as well as psychic pain, sensuality, and madness (Kristiansen 88). The quote is significant in the entire work as it gives the reader an impression that the novel delves on the psychological aspect of human experience. Compare the Child in Combray and the Mondo. How are they alike and how are they different? The child in Combray and Mondo are different in many ways. For instance, they have different social status. The child in Combray belongs to a wealthy family; he enjoyed his childhood life along with other members of the French aristocracy. Contrastingly, Mombo is a gypsy boy who grows up in the streets, without a home and survived only through the help from strangers. However, the child in Combray and Mombro have similarities in the sense that both of them fancied in their illusions. The child in Combray idealized women to the extent that his feelings toward them become a form of self-love and vanity. For instance, he sees women as art forms to satisfy his idealized woman. On the other hand, Mondo fancied that the world is a beautiful place regardless of all the cruelties that he saw around him. Mondo idealized the world; he sees beauty even in everything. While the illusions of the boy in Combray lead him to vanity, Mondo’s illusions enable him to survive the harsh realities of the world. Do the main characters in The Immoralist are free? How do they live the tension between freedom and responsibility? Do not summarize the story, show how they struggle with this notion In the sociological context, the main character in The Immoralist, Michel, is not free in the sense that he is bound by the standards of the society. For instance, Michel is bound by his responsibility to his wife as well as to his father in pursuing a scholarly life. However, as he is bound by these responsibilities, he also wants to explore life without bounds and standards to follow. The same sense of freedom is felt by Menalque as he supported Michel’s decision to enjoy his freedom through physical expressions. However, while the two characters exercise their freedom of expression, they put to risk their social responsibilities. Lastly, while the idea of freedom conflicts with responsibility, the two main characters were able to discover themselves amidst these conflicts. The rapture of Lol V. Stein and Blessed or private paradise more challenging literary conventions / "rules" of language "literary". According to you is that these innovations are important? Why or why not? In The Ravishing of Lol V. Stein, language plays a significant role as it is the medium of characterization. The way the characters are described helped in creating the overall meaning of the novel in the sense that the literary language used expresses the attitudes of the characters in the story. Furthermore, the constructive content of Duras’ language creates an impression that the novel delves on the attitudes of the characters. Aside from the narrative use of Duras’ language, her style of writing introduces readers to the mindset of the characters. Additionally, the language used in the dialogues enables readers to follow the character’s line of thinking, thus, giving way to psychoanalysis (Collington 125+). Lastly, the rules of language in this novel are effective in the sense that the symbols used in the story contribute to the entire meaning of the novel. The Mini Writing “it is not contradictory that “the dreams and the words” rather than “the fact and ideas” enrich our understanding of reality. Literature, when taken as a whole, does not merely serve as a form of entertainment, it also informs the reader as well as allows readers to think critically on the things that they read. Aside from this, literature also introduces the readers to different perspectives through the dialogues and events. While it can be said that most literary works aim to satisfy the reader in the aesthetic sense, these also aim to convey messages pertaining to life. In this sense, it can also be said that literatures, especially novels, are created to portray life, with fictionalized characters, events, and places. For the reason that novels may be seen as distorted realities, the messages that are contained in the stories are, oftentimes, neglected in favor of a more entertaining plot. In the linguistic view, literature is the content while language is the medium in which the content is expressed (Benjamin). Furthermore, literature is an expression of reality. For this reason, it can be said that it is also the reflection of the people’s every day living as the language commonly used in literary works comprises of the dialogues found in conversations overheard by the author in his/her surrounding. These conversations are put together to make a comprehensible and relevant narrative. The concepts of dreams and ideas are incorporated to conform to the aesthetic aspect of literature. However, as this language manipulations come into play, questions with regard to the truthfulness of literary works arise (Benjamin). These conflicts may include issues with regard to the extent to which the narrative reflects the reality, the overall social relevance of the story, and the aesthetic sense of the literature. Aside from the ambiguity of literature, it is also made according to the orientations of the author; it is an expression of the author’s reality as much as it represents other people’s reality. In this sense, it can be said that literature is subject to individual interpretations. On this account, it can be said that “dreams and words” and “facts and ideas” are conflicting ideas in creating literary works. For instance, the ability of the author to fictionalize historical events may create an impression that the author may not be entirely truthful in his/her representations. Thus, the idea that literary works is fictionalized events give rise to issues concerning subjectivity and stereotyping. While the concepts of dreams, realities, words, and facts do not coincide in some aspects in literature, those ideas agree in the context of Mimetic Theory. In Mimetic Theory, literature is seen as a reflection of reality. It is the author’s view of what is real in his own time and place (Zunshine 22-23). In addition, the author may take his/her inspiration from significant historical events, places and people. He/she may create fictional characters representing those elements to conform to the creative and ambiguous aspect of literature. However, in the light of fantasy literatures, realities may be found in the symbols and allusions present in the literary work. Thus, the concepts of dreams, words, facts, and ideas are integrated to form a literary work that is both based on reality but with a touch of creativity in the form of fictionalized characters. This integration of ideas spurs the imagination of the readers; it enables them to think along with the characters and predict the events in the story according to familiar events in history. Taken together, literature is the combination of the real and the fictional in the sense that real and fictional events are integrated in the story to make an interesting narrative. Literary works also aim to engage the reader in the cognitive aspect; it allows readers to interact with the text and pass their own judgment (Crane & Richardson). While writers and readers have the ability to see the significance of fictional events in light of their own gender and religious orientations, culture, and behaviour, literature may cease to become an expression of reality. In the light of subjective readings, the meaning of literary works may vary resulting to conflicting ideas and interpretations. Literature, as it strives to achieve balance between what is fictional and what is real achieve, enriches the readers’ understanding on what is real. Works Cited Benjamin, Abugu. “Literature as the Manipulation of Language for Creative Purposes.” Expertscolumn. Experts Column, 5 April 2010. Web. 19 Dec. 2011. . Collington, Tara. “Self and Narrative in le Ravissement De Lol V. Stein.” Mosaic 39.2 (2006): 125+. Print. Crane, Mary T., and Alan Richardson. “Literary Studies and Cognitive Science: Toward a New Interdisciplinarity.” Mosaic 32.2 (1999): 123+. Print. Hecq, Dominique. “The Truth Always Lies Elsewhere: The Case of The Ravishing of Lol V. Stein.” Double Dialogues Autumn (2008): n.pag. Web. 19 Dec. 2011. . Holden, Stephen. ”Mondo (1997): Gypsy Boy On The Run Sees Beauty In Every Raindrop.” New York Times. New York Times, 30 May 1997. Web. 19 Dec. 2011. . Kristiansen, Solvi. “The Absent Pain Of Lol V. Stein: Reflections On Psychic Pain Based On A Reading Of Marguerite Duras.” The Scandinavian Psychoanalytic Review 33 (2010): 87-95. Print. McDonald, John Q. “Swann’s Way: In Search of Lost Time.” Berkeley. Berkeley, 20 April 2002. Web. 19 Dec. 2011. . Wilmington, Michael. “Mondo Gives Us A Gypsy Boy’s View of the World.” Chicago Tribune. Chicago Tribune, 12 Sept. 1997. Web. 19. Dec. 2011. . Zunshine, Lisa. Why We Read Fiction: Theory of Mind And The Novel. Ohio: Ohio State University Press, 2006. Print. Read More