Death Themes in American Literature - Research Paper Example

Death Themes in American Literature Introduction Mortality and immortality are terminals of philosophy which determine most of the s of human life on earth. All the religions, civilizations, epistemology, ontology, ethics, civics and humanities are rooted in a consideration of mortal nature of human being. Tales from Bible, Quran, Geeta and Torah talks of things and possibilities beyond earthly life which are perhaps biggest considered ethics around the world. A death is an end of life beyond which, nothing is knows to human race. When a death occurs, it posits a reflection around. It leaves unsolved questions to every consciousness. In all fields of philosophy and art, there are artifacts that entail a view on death and mortality of human being. Literature, being most widely known form of art, has dealt with the issue of death on numerous levels. Evidently, soul of literature resides in philosophy. And in philosophy, there are large numbers of attitudes towards death. However, the questions itself restricts to the idea of immortality. Immortality provides hope which showers happiness on humanly life. It assures a meaning of life and a reason to live. On the other hand, a complete mortality and a dreadful possibility of turning into zero after death always haunts human consciousness. Those concepts and theme are widely utilized and analyzed by the literal artists of United States. Chuck Palahniuk, Fitzgerald, Upton Sinclair and Josef Heller are a few names of American Literature that has been dealing with American society from upfront. Themes of death and mortality are significantly recurring in some of their works which encloses the view of American society towards death and its significance over individuals and societies. Considering American society and culture some of the major works and their dealings with the idea and theme of death are following onwards. Earlier American Society Native American society is evolved over a long period of history after the colonial British residents had arrived to inhabit in America. Earlier society and culture of America was somehow derived from British culture along with conciliation with the demands of domestic conditions. Anyway, Christianity has almost always been a primary religion among the native Americas. Over a long period, America had been inhabited of natives from different lands who turned in domestic natives over the course of time. Other religions like Islam, Jew and Hinduism also made significant impression over American consciousness. Any society around the world has its conception of death somehow derived out of religious mythology, theology and philosophy of human conditions. As America has seen a number of wars, homicides, recessions, riots and civil-wars a large variety of literature came out of American artists after the development of civilization. In the dawn of civilization, American society had been devised by the internal conflicts of social and political interests. A lack of proper governing authorities continued till the time when radical capitalist powers took over the fates of society in America. Production and business became soul religion which demanded a large number of sacrifices from the proletariats. When Sinclair (1906) takes this issue in Jungle, he finds out socialism as an answer to dominations. However, socialist idea could never sustain in America on its own feet until and unless it was supported by republican and democratic representatives. In the age of radical capitalist domination, Upton Sinclair portrays a society which has to take death as its destiny. It is tale of Jurgis Rudkus who faces death of every member of his family one by one. Crushed by the organized domination, he finds out no hope to let them survive. The concept of death in The Jungle represents the fate of lower class inhabitants. In Jungle the protagonist and his family are immigrants which support the fact that they are quite unaware of the norms followed in American society for livelihood. It is depicted in the novel that how those outsiders had seen America as a place that will provide them their life for sure. However, what happens is quite opposite to their consideration, native society takes away everything they had. Gradually it thrusts them towards death. Deaths in The Jungle are dry deaths which are not followed by heavy tears and cries. Those are deaths which were predefined by the system. The family is waiting for the death to and when it comes, it comes with no surprise. Post world war Society Another masterpiece of American literature is Catch-22 by Heller (1961) which deals with the wartime deaths contrasting to The Jungle that takes radical capitalism of earlier era. In Catch-22, Heller has portrayed the indifference of army from the nationalism and patriotism which are thrust over soldiers to consider their deaths as a forfeiting to society. Almost laughingly and satirically, Heller’s masterpiece seems to mock at society and for its demand from individuals to forfeit their lives for a cause which has no clear aims and targets. Death is probably taken most causally in Heller’s work. And in fact, the environment Heller has chosen belongs to army where death of a man next to you is very obvious and regular event. In Catch-22 while Heller has depicted soldiers as the puppets of politics, he also depicts the indifference that they develop towards deaths of their mates. Acceptance of the conditions and a complete surrender is clouding Heller’s work. Subsequently, acceptance of death is also taken quite obviously among soldiers. How dry human emotions can go, it comes out in Catch-22 when news of a death is nothing else but a routine news. In such conditions Yossarian sees the importance of his life and decides that he must find a security as he says –‘they are trying to kill me’ and ‘they are trying to kill everyone’. In recent era American society is known for its individual and freedom oriented structure around the world. America has built up economically and socially as world’s most powerful country during last century. All around the world American society is taken as a rich and powerful society that can govern its fate in whatever manner it likes too. However, inside truth of America is somehow different as power and economy both comes on a heavy price of social thought-control. Wars and crisis have left an unavoidable impression over American consciousness. Now, death in wartime is matter of concern for the family but in longer span of time those events are taken somehow as a determined fact. There had been deluding doctrine such as ‘war is necessary evil’ and people of America has taken it as their fate. Similarly, they have taken it as a fate that wars do take place and people die in wars. Religious perspective in Catch-22 is also quite strange as the novel starts out with a phrase – ‘It was love at first sight’. The talk is about Yossarian: the protagonist and the Chaplin. Now Chapin puts up the representation of immortality and belief in God, which is quite a dry topic for most of the soldiers as they do not give anything to consider but what they are ordered to. Recent Society and latest works Another major novelist who had gained cult popularity among new age Americans is Chuck Palahniuk. His major work Fight Club is considered disturbing by many of the critics as it depicts a character Tyler Durden, openly supporting destruction as an ethical way of life. How Palahniuk (1996) takes on death is perhaps most straightforward acceptance of mortality. Whole novel Fight Club is clouded by the fact that lead characters are interested in facing the truth of destructions as a naked reality. All the possible ways to escape – as characters define in the novel- are barred. The idea of destruction is accepted for self. A membership of fight club requires one to lose his hope in afterlife and the delusion of immortality. Initial member of Fight Club, Bob is suffering from testicular cancer and is sure to die within some time. Protagonist Jack starts out sitting among the people who are suffering from incurable diseases and are going to die soon. Self-reflection of Jack comes out as Tyler and teaches him to live a life with complete rejection of hope, with acceptance of soon coming death and with an open will to face death straightly whenever it comes. In Fight Club unlike Catch-22 acceptance of death is not taken casually but it is taken as an ethic which is quite heretical in nature as opposing to the normal religious society which preaches not to fall in grief on death. Rather, in Fight Club, grief is taken as a normal and regular fact which must be overcome to face the life as it is. Looking to the American society, it would seem a rather rare opinion as religious population may well exceed the number of atheists. However, when we look at the overall character and mentality of American natives we come to know that younger population has a very strong opposition towards political thought control. Religious concepts are also not that firm in younger minds as they used to dwell in older population. Violence in schools and colleges, a confrontation with social norms and a distress towards America’s international policies also work in turning young kinds to be dry towards the natural and joyous life that they could perceive only in a healthy society away from over-facilitated luxurious environment which supports only given structures. Death in such a society becomes a very regular event even if it is coming out of a homicide or a war. When it comes to a death that is caused by old-age, a car accident or some incurable disease, attitude of society would obviously be straight as those events cannot be altered or controlled. However, there are deaths in different circumstances like war, crime, sadism, abuse, psychological pressure, social distress and individual tension. In those cases society has its responsibility to understand its role in causing and preventing such deaths. Quite evidently, there are a number of deaths that occur as suicides due to pressure that society exerts on individuals regarding the economic status-based pressure. A number of students opt for suicide as they find themselves unable to perform over the desired criterion. Lehane (2003) in his book Shutter Island presents world of mentally disturbed people who had somehow been trapped in social structure so much that their inability to deal with the worldly reality led them to lose their mental balance. In Puzo’s (1969) Godfather, Mafia takes death of a family member as a part of business. Although Godfather couples a good amount of sentiment with the death but the attitude is quite clear: within business they have to live with such possibilities. Most of those pieces of literature often talk about the death being an essential part of social life. Acceptance is regarded as obvious. Anyway, in most cases deaths lose its effect after a time as society and people get engaged in their lives further. However, there are cases when a death is so prevalent on a mind that it turns whole course of life of someone. In Godfather, a death of Veto Corleone leads to change the arrangement of whole family. In literature it is mostly the weight of the characters which entails the effect of a death. For example, there is a great depiction of social loneliness in The Great Gatsby where, bring a millionaire, Gatsby’s funeral is accompanied by very few people: a death which matters to very few people. Somehow Fitzgerald (1925) comes very straight to portray the truth of life in American society as society has only a momentarily opinion or sympathy to a death. In longer times it is nothing more than a news of past. If it matters, it matters only to the individuals who have accompanied the life of a person. Conclusion Death is anyway a universal phenomenon. All societies of all times had to face deaths. As in American society so in any other society deaths require attention when caused out of some unusual reasons. A natural death is accepted by everyone as it is a truth of life itself. However homicides, terrorism and wars often lead to mass deaths which leave an impact on parallel society. In American society such events have left a significant impact. Politics has also played a role to assure people that deaths in war are just fine and those are somehow necessary. In action movies like Die-hard and Mission-Impossible spectators can see large numbers of death within two-three hours. In video games like Mortal-Combat a death of opponent is an achievement. As a result American society has developed a dry attitude towards compassion and sympathy. If there are any authorities which still try to reestablish those virtues those are religious charities and missionaries. In such environment, literature also comes up as the mirror of society to reflect various norms and attitudes of society which sometimes make people afraid and sometime provoke them to think about the attitude they have opted for war, murders and homicides. References Fitzgerald, S. Francis (1925). The Great Gatsby. U.S.A.: Charles Scribners Sons. Print. Heller, Josef (1961). Catch-22. U.S.A.: Simon & Schuster. Print. Lehane, Denis (2003). Shutter Island. U.S.A.: Harper Collins. Print. Palahniuk, Chuck (1996). Fight Club. U.S.A.: W.W. Norton. Print. Puzo, Mario (1969). Godfather. U.S.A.: G. P. Putnams Sons. Print. Sinclair, Upton (1906). The Jungle. U.S.A.: Doubleday. Print. Read More