Suport Curs Literatura

7/25/2019 Suport Curs Literatura

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CUPRINS(autori semnificativi din literatura si cultura Britanic siAmerican)

William Shakeseare! The Sonnets, Romeo and Juliet, Hamlet, Macbeth, A Midsummer NightsDream

"aniel "efoe!Robinson Crusoe#onathan S$ift! Gullivers Travels

#ohn %eatsS& '& Coleride! The Rime o the Ancient Mariner#ane Austen!!ride and !re"udiceCharles "ickens! Great #$%ectations, David Co%%erielde$is Carroll!Alices Adventures in &onderland'homas *ard+! Tess o the D'rbervilles

Nathaniel *a$thorne! The Scarlet (etterWalt Whitman!(eaves o Grass,mil+ "ickinson-ark '$ain! The Adventures o Huc)leberr* +inn*erman -elville!Mob* Dic)

*enr+ #ames! The !ortrait o a (ad*#oseh Conrad!Heart o Dar)ness, (ord Jim#ames #o+ce! 'l*sses.& B& Sha$! Caesar and Cleo%atra, !*gmalion/irinia Woolf!Mrs Dalloa*0& S& 0it1erald! The Great Gatsb*,rnest *emin$a+! Short Stories,uene 23Neill!Mourning -ecomes #lectraWilliam 0aulkner!Absalom. Absalom.'&S& ,liot! &aste (andWilliam .oldin!(ord o the +lies

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Jonathan Swift! Gullivers Travels

C2N',4'#onathan S$ift5 son of the ,nlish la$+er #onathan S$ift the elder5 $as 6orn in "u6lin5 Ireland5on Novem6er 785 9::;& *e re$ u there in the care of his uncle 6efore attendin 'rinit+Collee at the ae of fourteen5 $here he sta+ed for seven +ears5 raduatin in 9: and S$ift5 desite hisfame for his $ritins5 fell out of favor& S$ift5 $ho had 6een hoin to 6e assined a osition inthe Church of ,nland5 instead returned to "u6lin5 $here he 6ecame the dean of St& Patrick3s&"urin his 6rief time in ,nland5 S$ift had 6ecome friends $ith $riters such as Ale?ander Poe5and durin a meetin of their literar+ clu65 the -artinus Scri6lerus Clu65 the+ decided to $ritesatires of modern learnin& 'he third vo+ae ofGullivers Travelsis assem6led from the $orkS$ift did durin this time& *o$ever5 the final $ork $as not comleted until 9;@:5 and thenarrative of the third vo+ae $as actuall+ the last one comleted& After his return to Ireland5S$ift 6ecame a staunch suorter of the Irish aainst ,nlish attemts to $eaken their econom+

and olitical o$er5 $ritin amhlets such as the satiricalA Modest !ro%osal,in $hich hesuests that the Irish ro6lems of famine and overoulation could 6e easil+ solved 6+ havinthe 6a6ies of oor Irish su6ects sold as delicacies to feed the rich&Gullivers Travels$as a controversial $ork $hen it $as first u6lished in 9;@:& In fact5 it $asnot until almost ten +ears after its first rintin that the 6ook aeared $ith the entire te?t thatS$ift had oriinall+ intended it to have& ,ver since5 editors have e?cised man+ of the assaes5

articularl+ the more caustic ones dealin $ith 6odil+ functions& ,ven $ithout those assaes5ho$ever5Gullivers Travelsserves as a 6itin satire5 and S$ift ensures that it is 6oth humorousand critical5 constantl+ attackin British and ,uroean societ+ throuh its descritions ofimainar+ countries&ate in life5 S$ift seemed to man+ o6servers to 6ecome even more caustic and 6itter than he had

6een& 'hree +ears 6efore his death5 he $as declared una6le to care for himself5 and uardians$ere aointed& Based on these facts and on a comarison 6et$een S$ift3s fate and that of hischaracter .ulliver5 some eole have concluded that he raduall+ 6ecame insane and that hisinsanit+ $as a natural outro$th of his indination and outrae aainst humankind& *o$ever5 thetruth seems to 6e that S$ift $as suddenl+ incaacitated 6+ a aral+tic stroke late in life5 and that

rior to this incident his mental caacities $ere unimaired&Gullivers Travelsis a6out a secific set of olitical conflicts5 6ut if it $ere nothin more thanthat it $ould lon ao have 6een forotten& 'he sta+in o$er of the $ork comes from itsdeiction of the human condition and its often desairin5 6ut occasionall+ hoeful5 sketch of the

ossi6ilities for humanit+ to rein in its 6aser instincts&

Gullivers Travelsrecounts the stor+ of emuel .ulliver5 a racticalminded ,nlishman trainedas a sureon $ho takes to the seas $hen his 6usiness fails& In a deadan firsterson narrativethat rarel+ sho$s an+ sins of selfreflection or dee emotional resonse5 .ulliver narrates theadventures that 6efall him on these travels&

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.ulliver3s adventure in illiut 6eins $hen he $akes after his shi$reck to find himself 6ound6+ innumera6le tin+ threads and addressed 6+ tin+ cators $ho are in a$e of him 6ut fiercel+rotective of their kindom& 'he+ are not afraid to use violence aainst .ulliver5 thouh theirarro$s are little more than inricks& But overall5 the+ are hosita6le5 riskin famine in their land

6+ feedin .ulliver5 $ho consumes more food than a thousand illiutians com6ined could&.ulliver is taken into the caital cit+ 6+ a vast $aon the illiutians have seciall+ 6uilt& *e is

resented to the emeror5 $ho is entertained 6+ .ulliver5 ust as .ulliver is flattered 6+ theattention of ro+alt+& ,ventuall+ .ulliver 6ecomes a national resource5 used 6+ the arm+ in its $araainst the eole of Blefuscu5 $hom the illiutians hate for doctrinal differences concerninthe roer $a+ to crack es& But thins chane $hen .ulliver is convicted of treason for

uttin out a fire in the ro+al alace $ith his urine and is condemned to 6e shot in the e+es andstarved to death& .ulliver escaes to Blefuscu5 $here he is a6le to reair a 6oat he finds and setsail for ,nland&After sta+in in ,nland $ith his $ife and famil+ for t$o months5 .ulliver undertakes his ne?tsea vo+ae5 $hich takes him to a land of iants called Bro6dinna& *ere5 a field $orkerdiscovers him& 'he farmer initiall+ treats him as little more than an animal5 keein him foramusement& 'he farmer eventuall+ sells .ulliver to the ueen5 $ho makes him a courtl+diversion and is entertained 6+ his musical talents& Social life is eas+ for .ulliver after his

discover+ 6+ the court5 6ut not articularl+ eno+a6le& .ulliver is often reulsed 6+ theh+sicalit+ of the Bro6dinnaians5 $hose ordinar+ fla$s are man+ times manified 6+ theirhue si1e& 'hus5 $hen a coule of courtl+ ladies let him la+ on their naked 6odies5 he is notattracted to them 6ut rather disusted 6+ their enormous skin ores and the sound of theirtorrential urination& *e is enerall+ startled 6+ the inorance of the eole hereDeven the kinkno$s nothin a6out olitics& -ore unsettlin findins in Bro6dinna come in the form ofvarious animals of the realm that endaner his life& ,ven Bro6dinnaian insects leave slim+trails on his food that make eatin difficult& 2n a tri to the frontier5 accoman+in the ro+alcoule5 .ulliver leaves Bro6dinna $hen his cae is lucked u 6+ an eale and droed intothe sea&

Ne?t5 .ulliver sets sail aain and5 after an attack 6+ irates5 ends u in auta5 $here a floatin

island inha6ited 6+ theoreticians and academics oresses the land 6elo$5 called Balni6ar6i& 'hescientific research undertaken in auta and in Balni6ar6i seems totall+ inane and imractical5and its residents too aear $holl+ out of touch $ith realit+& 'akin a short side tri to.lu66du6dri65 .ulliver is a6le to $itness the conurin u of fiures from histor+5 such as #uliusCaesar and other militar+ leaders5 $hom he finds much less imressive than in 6ooks& Aftervisitin the unaians and the Struld6rus5 the latter of $hich are senile immortals $ho

rove that ae does not 6rin $isdom5 he is a6le to sail to #aan and from there 6ack to ,nland&0inall+5 on his fourth ourne+5 .ulliver sets out as catain of a shi5 6ut after the mutin+ of hiscre$ and a lon confinement in his ca6in5 he arrives in an unkno$n land& 'his land is oulated

6+ *ou+hnhnms5 rationalthinkin horses $ho rule5 and 6+ Eahoos5 6rutish humanlike creatures$ho serve the *ou+hnhnms& .ulliver sets a6out learnin their lanuae5 and $hen he can seak

he narrates his vo+aes to them and e?lains the constitution of ,nland& *e is treated $ith reatcourtes+ and kindness 6+ the horses and is enlihtened 6+ his man+ conversations $ith them and

6+ his e?osure to their no6le culture& *e $ants to sta+ $ith the *ou+hnhnms5 6ut his 6ared6od+ reveals to the horses that he is ver+ much like a Eahoo5 and he is 6anished& .ulliver isriefstricken 6ut arees to leave& *e fashions a canoe and makes his $a+ to a near6+ island5$here he is icked u 6+ a Portuuese shi catain $ho treats him $ell5 thouh .ulliver cannothel no$ seein the catainDand all humansDas shamefull+ Eahoolike& .ulliver thenconcludes his narrative $ith a claim that the lands he has visited 6elon 6+ rihts to ,nland5 asher colonies5 even thouh he uestions the $hole idea of colonialism&.ulliver 'he narrator and rotaonist of the stor+& Althouh emuel .ulliver3s vivid anddetailed st+le of narration makes it clear that he is intellient and $ell educated5 his ercetions

are naFve and ulli6le& *e has virtuall+ no emotional life5 or at least no a$areness of it5 and hiscomments are strictl+ factual& Indeed5 sometimes his o6session $ith the facts of naviation5 fore?amle5 6ecomes un6eara6le for us5 as his fictional editor5 Richard S+mson5 makes clear $henhe e?lains havin had to cut out nearl+ half of .ulliver3s ver6iae& .ulliver never thinks that

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the a6surdities he encounters are funn+ and never makes the satiric connections 6et$een thelands he visits and his o$n home& .ulliver3s naFvetG makes the satire ossi6le5 as $e ick u onthins that .ulliver does not notice&'he emeror 'he ruler of illiut& ike all illiutians5 the emeror is fe$er than si? inchestall& *is o$er and maest+ imress .ulliver deel+5 6ut to us he aears 6oth lauha6le andsinister& Because of his tin+ si1e5 his 6elief that he can control .ulliver seems sill+5 6ut his$illinness to e?ecute his su6ects for minor reasons of olitics or honor ives him a frihteninasect& *e is roud of ossessin the tallest trees and 6iest alace in the kindom5 6ut he isalso uite hosita6le5 sendin a fortune on his cative3s food& 'he emeror is 6oth a satire of theautocratic ruler and a stranel+ serious ortrait of olitical o$er&'he farmer .ulliver3s first master in Bro6dinna& 'he farmer seaks to .ulliver5 sho$in thathe is $illin to 6elieve that the relativel+ tin+ .ulliver ma+ 6e as rational as he himself is5 andtreats him $ith entleness& *o$ever5 the farmer uts .ulliver on disla+ around Bro6dinna5$hich clearl+ sho$s that he $ould rather rofit from his discover+ than converse $ith him as aneual& *is e?loitation of .ulliver as a la6orer5 $hich nearl+ starves .ulliver to death5 seemsless cruel than simleminded& .enerall+5 the farmer reresents the averae Bro6dinnaian of noreat ifts or intellience5 $ieldin an e?traordinar+ o$er over .ulliver siml+ 6+ virtue of hisimmense si1e&

.lumdalclitch 'he farmer3s nine+earold dauhter5 $ho is fort+ feet tall& .lumdalclitch6ecomes .ulliver3s friend and nursemaid5 hanin him to slee safel+ in her closet at niht andteachin him the Bro6dinnaian lanuae 6+ da+& She is skilled at se$in and makes .ulliverseveral sets of ne$ clothes5 takin deliht in dressin him& When the ueen discovers that no oneat court is suited to care for .ulliver5 she invites .lumdalclitch to live at court as his sole

6a6+sitter5 a function she erforms $ith reat seriousness and attentiveness& 'o .lumdalclitch5.ulliver is 6asicall+ a livin doll5 s+m6oli1in the eneral status .ulliver has in Bro6dinna&'he ueen 'he ueen of Bro6dinna5 $ho is so delihted 6+ .ulliver3s 6eaut+ and charmsthat she arees to 6u+ him from the farmer for 95888 ieces of old& .ulliver areciates herkindness after the hardshis he suffers at the farmer3s and sho$s his usual fa$nin love forro+alt+ 6+ kissin the ti of her little finer $hen resented 6efore her& She ossesses5 in

.ulliver3s $ords5 Hinfinite $it and humor5 thouh this descrition ma+ entail a 6it of .ulliver3scharacteristic flatter+ of sueriors& 'he ueen seems enuinel+ considerate5 askin .ulliver$hether he $ould consent to live at court instead of siml+ takin him in as a et and inuirininto the reasons for his cold ood6+es $ith the farmer& She is 6+ no means a hero5 6ut siml+ a

leasant5 o$erful erson&'he kin 'he kin of Bro6dinna5 $ho5 in contrast to the emeror of illiut5 seems to 6e atrue intellectual5 $ell versed in olitical science amon other discilines& While his $ife has anintimate5 friendl+ relationshi $ith the diminutive visitor5 the kin3s relation to .ulliver islimited to serious discussions a6out the histor+ and institutions of .ulliver3s native land& *e isthus a fiure of rational thouht $ho some$hat refiures the *ou+hnhnms in Book I/&ord -unodi A lord of aado5 caital of the underdeveloed land 6eneath auta5 $ho hosts

.ulliver and ives him a tour of the countr+ on .ulliver3s third vo+ae& -unodi is a raree?amle of racticalminded intellience 6oth in aado5 $here the alied sciences are $ildl+imractical5 and in auta5 $here no one even considers racticalit+ a virtue& *e fell from race$ith the rulin elite 6+ counselin a commonsense aroach to ariculture and land manaementin aado5 an aroach that $as reected even thouh it roved successful $hen alied to hiso$n flourishin estate& ord -unodi serves as a realit+ check for .ulliver on his third vo+ae5an o6ectiveminded contrast to the theoretical delusions of the other inha6itants of auta andaado&Eahoos Unkemt humanlike 6easts $ho live in servitude to the *ou+hnhnms& Eahoos seem to

6elon to various ethnic rous5 since there are 6lond Eahoos as $ell as darkhaired andredheaded ones& 'he men are characteri1ed 6+ their hair+ 6odies5 and the $omen 6+ their lo$

hanin 6reasts& 'he+ are naked5 filth+5 and e?tremel+ rimitive in their eatin ha6its& Eahoos arenot caa6le of overnment5 and thus the+ are ket as servants to the *ou+hnhnms5 ullin theircarriaes and erformin manual tasks& 'he+ reel .ulliver $ith their lascivious se?ualaetites5 eseciall+ $hen an eleven+earold Eahoo irl attemts to rae .ulliver as he is

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6athin naked& Eet desite .ulliver3s revulsion for these disustin creatures5 he ends his$ritins referrin to himself as a Eahoo5 ust as the *ou+hnhnms do as the+ reretfull+ evict himfrom their realm& 'hus5 HEahoo 6ecomes another term for human5 at least in the semideranedand selfloathin mind of .ulliver at the end of his fourth ourne+&*ou+hnhnms Rational horses $ho maintain a simle5 eaceful societ+ overned 6+ reason andtruthfulnessDthe+ do not even have a $ord for Hlie in their lanuae& *ou+hnhnms are likeordinar+ horses5 e?cet that the+ are hihl+ intellient and deel+ $ise& 'he+ live in a sort ofsocialist reu6lic5 $ith the needs of the communit+ ut 6efore individual desires& 'he+ are themasters of the Eahoos5 the savae humanlike creatures in *ou+hnhnmland& In all5 the*ou+hnhnms have the reatest imact on .ulliver throuhout all his four vo+aes& *e is rievedto leave them5 not relieved as he is in leavin the other three lands5 and 6ack in ,nland herelates 6etter $ith his horses than $ith his human famil+& 'he *ou+hnhnms thus are a measureof the e?tent to $hich .ulliver has 6ecome a misanthroe5 or HhumanhaterJ he is certainl+5 atthe end5 a horse lover&.ulliver3s *ou+hnhnm master 'he *ou+hnhnm $ho first discovers .ulliver and takes himinto his o$n home& War+ of .ulliver3s Eahoolike aearance at first5 the master is hesitant tomake contact $ith him5 6ut .ulliver3s a6ilit+ to mimic the *ou+hnhnm3s o$n $ords ersuadesthe master to rotect .ulliver& 'he master3s domestic cleanliness5 roriet+5 and tranuil

reasona6leness of seech have an e?traordinar+ imact on .ulliver& It is throuh this horse that.ulliver is led to reevaluate the differences 6et$een humans and 6easts and to uestionhumanit+3s claims to rationalit+&"on Pedro de -ende1 'he Portuuese catain $ho takes .ulliver 6ack to ,uroe after he isforced to leave the land of the *ou+hnhnms& "on Pedro is naturall+ 6enevolent and enerous5offerin the halfcra1ed .ulliver his o$n 6est suit of clothes to relace the tatters he is $earin&But .ulliver meets his enerosit+ $ith reulsion5 as he cannot 6ear the coman+ of Eahoos& B+the end of the vo+ae5 "on Pedro has $on over .ulliver to the e?tent that he is a6le to have aconversation $ith him5 6ut the catain3s overall Eahoolike nature in .ulliver3s e+es alienates himfrom .ulliver to the ver+ end&Bro6dinnaians .iants $hom .ulliver meets on his second vo+ae& Bro6dinnaians are

6asicall+ a reasona6le and kindl+ eole overned 6+ a sense of ustice& ,ven the farmer $hoa6uses .ulliver at the 6einnin is entle $ith him5 and olitel+ takes the trou6le to sa+ ood

6+e to him uon leavin him& 'he farmer3s dauhter5 .lumdalclitch5 ives .ulliver erhas themost kindhearted treatment he receives on an+ of his vo+aes& 'he Bro6dinnaians do note?loit him for ersonal or olitical reasons5 as the illiutians do5 and his life there is one ofsatisfaction and uietude& But the Bro6dinnaians do treat .ulliver as a la+thin& When hetries to seak seriousl+ $ith the kin of Bro6dinna a6out ,nland5 the kin dismisses the,nlish as odious vermin5 sho$in that dee discussion is not ossi6le for .ulliver here&illiutians and Blefuscudians '$o races of miniature eole $hom .ulliver meets on his firstvo+ae& illiutians and Blefuscudians are rone to consiracies and ealousies5 and $hile the+treat .ulliver $ell enouh materiall+5 the+ are uick to take advantae of him in olitical

intriues of various sorts& 'he t$o races have 6een in a lonstandin $ar $ith each over theinterretation of a reference in their common hol+ scriture to the roer $a+ to eat es&.ulliver hels the illiutians defeat the Blefuscudian nav+5 6ut he eventuall+ leaves illiut andreceives a $arm $elcome in the court of Blefuscu5 6+ $hich S$ift satiri1es the ar6itrariness ofinternational relations&autans A6sentminded intellectuals $ho live on the floatin island of auta5 encountered 6+.ulliver on his third vo+ae& 'he autans are arodies of theoreticians5 $ho have scant reardfor an+ ractical results of their o$n research& 'he+ are so in$ardl+ a6sor6ed in their o$nthouhts that the+ must 6e shaken out of their meditations 6+ secial servants called flaers5$ho shake rattles in their ears& "urin .ulliver3s sta+ amon them5 the+ do not mistreat him5 6utare enerall+ unleasant and dismiss him as intellectuall+ deficient& 'he+ do not care a6out

do$ntoearth thins like the dilaidation of their o$n houses5 6ut $orr+ intensel+ a6out a6stractmatters like the traectories of comets and the course of the sun& 'he+ are deendent in their o$nmaterial needs on the land 6elo$ them5 called aado5 a6ove $hich the+ hover 6+ virtue of amanetic field5 and from $hich the+ eriodicall+ raise u food sulies& In the larer conte?t of

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.ulliver3s ourne+s5 the autans are a arod+ of the e?cesses of theoretical ursuits and theuselessness of urel+ a6stract kno$lede&-ar+ Burton .ulliver .ulliver3s $ife5 $hose erfunctor+ mention in the first ararahsof Gullivers Travelsdemonstrates ho$ unsentimental and unemotional .ulliver is& *e makes noreference to an+ affection for his $ife5 either here or later in his travels $hen he is far a$a+ fromher5 and his detachment is so cool as to raise uestions a6out his a6ilit+ to form humanattachments& When he returns to ,nland5 she is merel+ one art of his former e?istence5 and herecords no emotion even as she hus him $ildl+& 'he most imortant facts a6out her in.ulliver3s mind are her social oriin and the income she enerates&Richard S+mson .ulliver3s cousin5 selfroclaimed intimate friend5 and the editor and

u6lisher of Gullivers Travels/It $as in Richard S+mson3s name that #onathan S$ift arranedfor the u6lication of his narrative5 thus some$hat mi?in the fictional and actual $orlds&S+mson is the fictional author of the refator+ note to Gullivers Travels,entitled H'hePu6lisher to the Readers& 'his note ustifies S+mson3s elimination of nearl+ half of the oriinalmanuscrit material on the rounds that it $as irrelevant5 a statement that S$ift includes so as toallo$ us to dou6t .ulliver3s overall $isdom and a6ilit+ to distinuish 6et$een imortant factsand trivial detailsames Bates An eminent ondon sureon under $hom .ulliver serves as an arentice after

raduatin from Cam6ride& Bates hels et .ulliver his first o6 as a shi3s sureon and thenoffers to set u a ractice $ith him& After Bates3s death5 .ulliver has trou6le maintainin the6usiness5 a failure that casts dou6t on his cometence5 thouh he himself has other e?lanationsfor the 6usiness3s failure& Bates is hardl+ mentioned in the travels5 thouh he is surel+ at least asresonsi6le for .ulliver3s $elfare as some of the more e?otic fiures .ulliver meets&

Nevertheless5 .ulliver fleshes out fiures such as the ueen of Bro6dinna much morethorouhl+ in his narrative5 underscorin the shar contrast 6et$een his reticence reardin,nland and his lon$indedness a6out foreiners&A6raham Pannell 'he commander of the shi on $hich .ulliver first sails5theSallo/'ravelin to the evant5 or the eastern -editerranean5 and 6e+ond5 .ulliver sendsthree and a half +ears on Pannell3s shi& /irtuall+ nothin is mentioned a6out Pannell5 $hich

heihtens our sense that .ulliver3s fascination $ith e?otic t+es is not matched 6+ an+ interest inhis fello$ countr+men&William Prichard 'he master of theAntelo%e, the shi on $hich .ulliver em6arks for theSouth Seas at the outset of his first ourne+5 in 9:==& When theAntelo%esinks5 .ulliver is $ashedashore on illiut& No details are iven a6out the ersonalit+ of Prichard5 and he is not imortantin .ulliver3s life or in the unfoldin of the novel3s lot& 'hat .ulliver takes ains to name himaccuratel+ reinforces our imression that he is o6sessive a6out facts 6ut not al$a+s relia6le inassessin overall sinificance&0limna 'he ord *ih 'reasurer of illiut5 $ho conceives a ealous hatred for .ulliver$hen he starts 6elievin that his $ife is havin an affair $ith him& 0limna is clearl+ aranoid5since the ossi6ilit+ of a love affair 6et$een .ulliver and a illiutian is $ildl+ unlikel+&

0limna is a ortrait of the $eaknesses of character to $hich an+ human is rone 6ut that6ecome eseciall+ danerous in those $ho $ield reat o$er&Reldresal 'he Princial Secretar+ of Private Affairs in illiut5 $ho e?lains to .ulliver thehistor+ of the olitical tensions 6et$een the t$o rincial arties in the realm5 the *ih*eelsand the o$*eels& Reldresal is more a source of muchneeded information for .ulliver than a$elldeveloed ersonalit+5 6ut he does disla+ ersonal courae and trust in allo$in .ulliverto hold him in his alm $hile he talks olitics& Within the convoluted conte?t of illiut3sfactions and consiracies5 such friendliness reminds us that fond ersonal relations ma+ still e?isteven in this overheated olitical climate&Sk+resh Bololam 'he *ih Admiral of illiut5 $ho is the onl+ mem6er of the administrationto oose .ulliver3s li6eration& .ulliver imaines that Sk+resh3s enmit+ is siml+ ersonal5

thouh there is no aarent reason for such hostilit+& Arua6l+5 Sk+resh3s hostilit+ ma+ 6e merel+a tool to divert .ulliver from the larer s+stem of illiutian e?loitation to $hich he issu6ected&

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'ramecksan Also kno$n as the *ih*eels5 a illiutian olitical rou reminiscent of theBritish 'ories& 'ramecksan olicies are said to 6e more areea6le to the ancient constitution ofilliut5 and $hile the *ih*eels aear reater in num6er than the o$*eels5 their o$er islesser& Unlike the kin5 the cro$n rince is 6elieved to s+mathi1e $ith the 'ramecksan5 $earinone lo$ heel and one hih heel5 causin him to lim slihtl+&Slamecksan 'he o$*eels5 a illiutian olitical rou reminiscent of the British Whis& 'hekin has ordained that all overnmental administrators must 6e selected from this art+5 much tothe resentment of the *ih*eels of the realm& 'hus5 $hile there are fe$er Slamecksan than'ramecksan in illiut5 their olitical o$er is reater& 'he kin3s o$n s+mathies $ith theSlamecksan are evident in the slihtl+ lo$er heels he $ears at court&'hemes5 -otifs K S+m6ols-iht /ersus RihtGullivers Travelsimlicitl+ oses the uestion of $hether h+sical o$er or moralrihteousness should 6e the overnin factor in social life& .ulliver e?eriences the advantaesof h+sical miht 6oth as one $ho has it5 as a iant in illiut $here he can defeat theBlefuscudian nav+ 6+ virtue of his immense si1e5 and as one $ho does not have it5 as a miniaturevisitor to Bro6dinna $here he is harassed 6+ the hueness of ever+thin from insects tohousehold ets& *is first encounter $ith another societ+ is one of entrament5 $hen he is

h+sicall+ tied do$n 6+ the illiutiansJ later5 in Bro6dinna5 he is enslaved 6+ a farmer& *ealso o6serves h+sical force used aainst others5 as $ith the *ou+hnhnms3 chainin u of theEahoos&But alonside the use of h+sical force5 there are also man+ claims to o$er 6ased on moralcorrectness& 'he $hole oint of the e controvers+ that has set illiut aainst Blefuscu is notmerel+ a cultural difference 6ut5 instead5 a reliious and moral issue related to the roerinterretation of a assae in their hol+ 6ook& 'his difference of oinion seems to ustif+5 in theire+es at least5 the $arfare it has sarked& Similarl+5 the use of h+sical force aainst the Eahoos is

ustified for the *ou+hnhnms 6+ their sense of moral sueriorit+! the+ are cleaner5 6etter6ehaved5 and more rational& But overall5 the novel tends to sho$ that claims to rule on the 6asisof moral rihteousness are often ust as ar6itrar+ as5 and sometimes siml+ disuises for5 simle

h+sical su6uation& 'he autans kee the lo$er land of Balni6ar6i in check throuh force6ecause the+ 6elieve themselves to 6e more rational5 even thouh $e miht see them as a6surdand unleasant& Similarl+5 the rulin elite of Balni6ar6i 6elieves itself to 6e in the riht in drivinord -unodi from o$er5 althouh $e erceive that -unodi is the rational art+& Claims tomoral sueriorit+ are5 in the end5 as hard to ustif+ as the random use of h+sical force todominate others&'he Individual /ersus Societ+ike man+ narratives a6out vo+aes to none?istent lands5 Gullivers Travelse?lores the idea ofutoiaDan imainar+ model of the ideal communit+& 'he idea of a utoia is an ancient one5oin 6ack at least as far as the descrition in Plato3sRe%ublicof a cit+state overned 6+ the$ise and e?ressed most famousl+ in ,nlish 6+ 'homas -ore3s 'to%ia/S$ift nods to 6oth

$orks in his o$n narrative5 thouh his attitude to$ard utoia is much more sketical5 and one ofthe main asects he oints out a6out famous historical utoias is the tendenc+ to rivilee thecollective rou over the individual& 'he children of Plato3sRe%ublicare raised communall+5$ith no kno$lede of their 6ioloical arents5 in the understandin that this s+stem enhancessocial fairness& S$ift has the illiutians similarl+ raise their offsrin collectivel+5 6ut its resultsare not e?actl+ utoian5 since illiut is torn 6+ consiracies5 ealousies5 and 6acksta66in&'he *ou+hnhnms also ractice strict famil+ lannin5 dictatin that the arents of t$o femalesshould e?chane a child $ith a famil+ of t$o males5 so that the maletofemale ratio is erfectl+maintained& Indeed5 the+ come closer to the utoian ideal than the illiutians in their $isdomand rational simlicit+& But there is somethin unsettlin a6out the *ou+hnhnms3 indistinct

ersonalities and a6out ho$ the+ are the onl+ social rou that .ulliver encounters $ho do not

have roer names& "esite minor h+sical differences5 the+ are all so ood and rational thatthe+ are more or less interchanea6le5 $ithout individual identities& In their a6solute fusion $iththeir societ+ and lack of individualit+5 the+ are in a sense the e?act oosite of .ulliver5 $ho hashardl+ an+ sense of 6elonin to his native societ+ and e?ists onl+ as an individual eternall+

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$anderin the seas& .ulliver3s intense rief $hen forced to leave the *ou+hnhnms ma+ havesomethin to do $ith his lonin for union $ith a communit+ in $hich he can lose his humanidentit+& In an+ case5 such a union is imossi6le for him5 since he is not a horse5 and all the othersocieties he visits make him feel alienated as $ell&Gullivers Travelscould in fact 6e descri6ed as one of the first novels of modern alienation5focusin on an individual3s reeated failures to interate into societies to $hich he does not

6elon& ,nland itself is not much of a homeland for .ulliver5 and5 $ith his sureon3s 6usinessunrofita6le and his father3s estate insufficient to suort him5 he ma+ 6e riht to feel alienatedfrom it& *e never seaks fondl+ or nostalicall+ a6out ,nland5 and ever+ time he returns home5he is uick to leave aain& .ulliver never comlains e?licitl+ a6out feelin lonel+5 6ut theem6ittered and antisocial misanthroe $e see at the end of the novel is clearl+ a rofoundl+isolated individual& 'hus5 if S$ift3s satire mocks the e?cesses of communal life5 it ma+ alsomock the e?cesses of individualism in its ortrait of a misera6le and lonel+ .ulliver talkin tohis horses at home in ,nland&'he imits of *uman Understandin'he idea that humans are not meant to kno$ ever+thin and that all understandin has a naturallimit is imortant in Gullivers Travels/S$ift sinles out theoretical kno$lede in articular forattack! his ortrait of the disareea6le and selfcentered autans5 $ho sho$ 6latant contemt

for those $ho are not sunk in rivate theori1in5 is a clear satire aainst those $ho ridethemselves on kno$lede a6ove all else& Practical kno$lede is also satiri1ed $hen it does notroduce results5 as in the academ+ of Balni6ar6i5 $here the e?eriments for e?tractin sun6eamsfrom cucum6ers amount to nothin& S$ift insists that there is a realm of understandin into$hich humans are siml+ not suosed to venture& 'hus his deictions of rational societies5 likeBro6dinna and *ou+hnhnmland5 emhasi1e not these eole3s kno$lede or understandin ofa6stract ideas 6ut their a6ilit+ to live their lives in a $ise and stead+ $a+&'he Bro6dinnaian kin kno$s shockinl+ little a6out the a6stractions of olitical science5 +ethis countr+ seems roserous and $ell overned& Similarl+5 the *ou+hnhnms kno$ little a6outarcane su6ects like astronom+5 thouh the+ kno$ ho$ lon a month is 6+ o6servin the moon5since that kno$lede has a ractical effect on their $ell6ein& Asirin to hiher fields of

kno$lede $ould 6e meaninless to them and $ould interfere $ith their hainess& In suchconte?ts5 it aears that livin a ha+ and $ellordered life seems to 6e the ver+ thin for $hichS$ift thinks kno$lede is useful&S$ift also emhasi1es the imortance of selfunderstandin& .ulliver is initiall+ remarka6l+lackin in selfreflection and selfa$areness& *e makes no mention of his emotions5 assions5dreams5 or asirations5 and he sho$s no interest in descri6in his o$n s+cholo+ to us&Accordinl+5 he ma+ strike us as frustratinl+ hollo$ or emt+5 thouh it is likel+ that his

ersonal emtiness is art of the overall meanin of the novel& B+ the end5 he has come close to akind of t$isted selfkno$lede in his deraned 6elief that he is a Eahoo& *is revulsion $ith thehuman condition5 sho$n in his sha66+ treatment of the enerous "on Pedro5 e?tends to himselfas $ell5 so that he ends the novel in a thinl+ disuised state of selfhatred& S$ift ma+ thus 6e

sa+in that selfkno$lede has its necessar+ limits ust as theoretical kno$lede does5 and that if$e look too closel+ at ourselves $e miht not 6e a6le to carr+ on livin hail+&-otifs,?crementWhile it ma+ seem a trivial or lauha6le motif5 the recurrent mention of e?crement in .ulliver3s'ravels actuall+ has a serious hilosohical sinificance in the narrative& It s+m6oli1esever+thin that is crass and ino6le a6out the human 6od+ and a6out human e?istence in eneral5and it o6structs an+ attemt to vie$ humans as $holl+ siritual or mentall+ transcendentcreatures& Since the ,nlihtenment culture of eihteenthcentur+ ,nland tended to vie$ humansotimisticall+ as no6le souls rather than vular 6odies5 S$ift3s emhasis on the common filth oflife is a sla in the face of the hilosohers of his da+& 'hus5 $hen .ulliver urinates to ut out a

fire in illiut5 or $hen Bro6dinnaian flies defecate on his meals5 or $hen the scientist inaado $orks to transform e?crement 6ack into food5 $e are reminded ho$ ver+ little humanreason has to do $ith ever+da+ e?istence& S$ift suests that the human condition in eneral isdirtier and lo$lier than $e miht like to 6elieve it is&

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0orein anuaes.ulliver aears to 6e a ifted linuist5 kno$in at least the 6asics of several ,uroeanlanuaes and even a fair amount of ancient .reek& 'his kno$lede serves him $ell5 as he isa6le to disuise himself as a "utchman in order to facilitate his entr+ into #aan5 $hich at thetime onl+ admitted the "utch& But even more imortant5 his linuistic ifts allo$ him to learn thelanuaes of the e?otic lands he visits $ith a da11lin seed and5 thus5 ain access to theirculture uickl+& *e learns the lanuaes of the illiutians5 the Bro6dinnaians5 and even theneihin tonue of the *ou+hnhnms& *e is meticulous in recordin the details of lanuae in hisnarrative5 often ivin the oriinal as $ell as the translation& 2ne $ould e?ect that such detail$ould indicate a crosscultural sensitivit+5 a kind of anthrooloist3s a$areness of ho$ thinsvar+ from culture to culture& Eet surrisinl+5 .ulliver3s master+ of forein lanuaes enerall+does not corresond to an+ real interest in cultural differences& *e comares an+ of theovernments he visits to that of his native ,nland5 and he rarel+ even seculates on ho$ or $h+cultures are different at all& 'hus5 his facilit+ for translation does not indicate a culturall+comarative mind5 and $e are erhas meant to +earn for a narrator $ho is a 6it less a6le toremem6er the Bro6dinnaian $ord for Hlark and 6etter a6le to offer a more illuminatin kindof cultural anal+sis&Clothin

Critics have noted the e?traordinar+ attention that .ulliver a+s to clothes throuhout hisourne+s& ,ver+ time he ets a ri in his shirt or is forced to adot some native arment torelace one of his o$n5 he recounts the clothin details $ith reat recision& We are told ho$ his

ants are fallin aart in illiut5 so that as the arm+ marches 6et$een his les the+ et uite ane+eful& We are informed a6out the mouse skin he $ears in Bro6dinna5 and ho$ the finest silksof the land are as thick as 6lankets on him& In one sense5 these descritions are o6viousl+ an eas+narrative device $ith $hich S$ift can chart his rotaonist3s roression from one culture toanother! the more raed his clothes 6ecome and the straner his ne$ $ardro6e5 the farther he isfrom the comforts and conventions of ,nland& *is ourne+ to ne$ lands is also thus a ourne+into ne$ clothes& When he is icked u 6+ "on Pedro after his fourth vo+ae and offered a ne$suit of clothes5 .ulliver vehementl+ refuses5 referrin his $ild animal skins& We sense that

.ulliver ma+ $ell never full+ reinterate into ,uroean societ+&But the motif of clothin carries a deeer5 more s+choloicall+ comle? meanin as $ell&.ulliver3s intense interest in the state of his clothes ma+ sinal a deeseated an?iet+ a6out hisidentit+5 or lack thereof& *e does not seem to have much selfhood! one critic has called him anHa6+ss5 a void $here an individual character should 6e& If clothes make the man5 then erhas.ulliver3s o6session $ith the state of his $ardro6e ma+ suest that he deseratel+ needs to 6efashioned as a ersonalit+& Sinificantl+5 the t$o moments $hen he descri6es 6ein naked in thenovel are t$o deel+ trou6lin or humiliatin e?eriences! the first $hen he is the 6o+ to+ of theBro6dinnaian maids $ho let him cavort nude on their mountainous 6reasts5 and the second$hen he is assaulted 6+ an eleven+earold Eahoo irl as he 6athes& Both incidents suest morethan mere ruder+& .ulliver associates nudit+ $ith e?treme vulnera6ilit+5 even $hen there is no

real daner resentDa reteen irl is hardl+ a threat to a ro$n man5 at least in h+sical terms&'he state of nudit+ ma+ remind .ulliver of ho$ none?istent he feels $ithout the reassurincover of clothin&S+m6ols/illiutians'he illiutians s+m6oli1e humankind3s $ildl+ e?cessive ride in its o$n un+ e?istence& S$iftfull+ intends the iron+ of reresentin the tiniest race visited 6+ .ulliver as 6+ far the mostvainlorious and smu5 6oth collectivel+ and individuall+& 'here is surel+ no character moreodious in all of .ulliver3s travels than the no?ious Sk+resh& 'here is more 6ack6itin andconsirac+ in illiut than an+$here else5 and more of the ettiness of small minds $ho imainethemselves to 6e rand& .ulliver is a naFve consumer of the illiutians3 randiose imainins!

he is flattered 6+ the attention of their ro+al famil+ and co$ed 6+ their threats of unishment5forettin that the+ have no real h+sical o$er over him& 'heir formall+ $orded condemnationof .ulliver on rounds of treason is a model of omous and selfimortant ver6iae5 6ut it$orks uite effectivel+ on the naFve .ulliver&

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'he illiutians sho$ off not onl+ to .ulliver 6ut to themselves as $ell& 'here is no mention ofarmies roudl+ marchin in an+ of the other societies .ulliver visitsDonl+ in illiut andneih6orin Blefuscu are the si?inch inha6itants ossessed of the need to sho$ off their

atriotic lories $ith such disla+s& When the illiutian emeror reuests that .ulliver serve asa kind of makeshift Arch of 'riumh for the troos to ass under5 it is a athetic reminder thattheir rand aradeDin full vie$ of .ulliver3s nether reionsDis suremel+ sill+5 a 6asicall+a6surd $a+ to 6oost the collective eo of the nation& Indeed5 the $ar $ith Blefuscu is itself ana6surdit+ srinin from $ounded vanit+5 since the cause is not a material concern like disutedterritor+ 6ut5 rather5 the roer interretation of scriture 6+ the emeror3s fore6ears and the hurtfeelins resultin from the disareement& All in all5 the illiutians s+m6oli1e mislaced human

ride5 and oint out .ulliver3s ina6ilit+ to dianose it correctl+&Bro6dinnaians'he Bro6dinnaians s+m6oli1e the rivate5 ersonal5 and h+sical side of humans $hene?amined u close and in reat detail& 'he hilosohical era of the ,nlihtenment tended tooverlook the routines of ever+da+ life and the sordid or tedious little facts of e?istence5 6ut inBro6dinna such facts 6ecome ver+ imortant for .ulliver5 sometimes matters of life and death&An eihteenthcentur+ hilosoher could afford to inore the fl+ 6u11in around his head or theskin ores on his servant irl5 6ut in his shrunken state .ulliver is forced to a+ reat attention to

such thins& *e is forced take the domestic shere seriousl+ as $ell& In other lands it is difficultfor .ulliver5 6ein such an outsider5 to et limses of famil+ relations or rivate affairs5 6ut inBro6dinna he is treated as a doll or a la+thin5 and thus is made riv+ to the urination ofhousemaids and the se?ual lives of $omen& 'he Bro6dinnaians do not s+m6oli1e a solel+neative human characteristic5 as the autans do& 'he+ are not merel+ ridiculousDsome asectsof them are disustin5 like their iantic stench and the e?crement left 6+ their insects5 6utothers are no6le5 like the ueen3s ood$ill to$ard .ulliver and the kin3s commonsense vie$sof olitics& -ore than an+thin else5 the Bro6dinnaians s+m6oli1e a dimension of humane?istence visi6le at close rane5 under close scrutin+&autans'he autans reresent the foll+ of theoretical kno$lede that has no relation to human life and

no use in the actual $orld& As a rofound cultural conservative5 S$ift $as a critic of thene$fanled ideas srinin u around him at the da$n of the eihteenthcentur+ ,nlihtenment5a eriod of reat intellectual e?erimentation and theori1ation& *e much referred the traditionalkno$lede that had 6een tested over centuries& auta s+m6oli1es the a6surdit+ of kno$ledethat has never 6een tested or alied5 the ludicrous side of ,nlihtenment intellectualism& ,vendo$n 6elo$ in Balni6ar6i5 $here the local academ+ is more inclined to ractical alication5kno$lede is not made sociall+ useful as S$ift demands& Indeed5 theoretical kno$lede therehas roven ositivel+ disastrous5 resultin in the ruin of ariculture and architecture and theimoverishment of the oulation& ,ven u a6ove5 the ursuit of theoretical understandin hasnot imroved the lot of the autans& 'he+ have fe$ material $orries5 deendent as the+ areuon the Balni6ar6ians 6elo$& But the+ are tormented 6+ $orries a6out the traectories of comets

and other astronomical seculations! their theories have not made them $ise5 6ut neurotic anddisareea6le& 'he autans do not s+m6oli1e reason itself 6ut rather the ursuit of a form ofkno$lede that is not directl+ related to the imrovement of human life&*ou+hnhnms'he *ou+hnhnms reresent an ideal of rational e?istence5 a life overned 6+ sense andmoderation of $hich hilosohers since Plato have lon dreamed& Indeed5 there are echoes ofPlato3sRe%ublicin the *ou+hnhnms3 reection of liht entertainment and vain disla+s of lu?ur+5their aeal to reason rather than an+ hol+ $ritins as the criterion for roer action5 and theircommunal aroach to famil+ lannin& As in Plato3s ideal communit+5 the *ou+hnhnms haveno need to lie nor an+ $ord for l+in& 'he+ do not use force 6ut onl+ stron e?hortation& 'heirsu6uation of the Eahoos aears more necessar+ than cruel and erhas the 6est $a+ to deal

$ith an unfortunate 6lot on their other$ise ideal societ+& In these $a+s and others5 the*ou+hnhnms seem like model citi1ens5 and .ulliver3s intense rief $hen he is forced to leavethem suests that the+ have made an imact on him reater than that of an+ other societ+ he has

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visited& *is deranement on "on Pedro3s shi5 in $hich he snu6s the enerous man as a Eahoolike creature5 imlies that he stronl+ identifies $ith the *ou+hnhnms&But $e ma+ 6e less read+ than .ulliver to take the *ou+hnhnms as ideals of human e?istence&'he+ have no names in the narrative nor an+ need for names5 since the+ are virtuall+interchanea6le5 $ith little individual identit+& 'heir lives seem harmonious and ha+5 althouhuite lackin in vior5 challene5 and e?citement& Indeed5 this aarent ease ma+ 6e $h+ S$iftchooses to make them horses rather than human t+es like ever+ other rou in the novel& *ema+ 6e hintin5 to those more insihtful than .ulliver5 that the *ou+hnhnms should not 6econsidered human ideals at all& In an+ case5 the+ s+m6oli1e a standard of rational e?istence to 6eeither esoused or reected 6+ 6oth .ulliver and us&,nlandAs the site of his father3s disaointinl+ Hsmall estate and .ulliver3s failin 6usiness5 ,nlandseems to s+m6oli1e deficienc+ or insufficienc+5 at least in the financial sense that matters most to.ulliver& ,nland is assed over ver+ uickl+ in the first ararah of Chater I5 as if to sho$that it is siml+ there as the startin oint to 6e left uickl+ 6ehind& .ulliver seems to have ver+fe$ nationalistic or atriotic feelins a6out ,nland5 and he rarel+ mentions his homeland on histravels& In this sense5 Gullivers Travelsis uite unlike other travel narratives like the0d*sse*,in$hich 2d+sseus misses his homeland and laments his $anderins& ,nland is $here .ulliver3s

$ife and famil+ live5 6ut the+ too are hardl+ mentioned& Eet S$ift chooses to have .ulliverreturn home after each of his four ourne+s instead of havin him continue on one lon tri tofour different laces5 so that ,nland is ket constantl+ in the icture and iven a stead+5unsoken imortance& B+ the end of the fourth ourne+5 ,nland is 6rouht more e?licitl+ intothe fa6ric ofGullivers Travels$hen .ulliver5 in his neurotic state5 starts confusin*ou+hnhnmland $ith his homeland5 referrin to ,nlishmen as Eahoos& 'he distinction 6et$eennative and forein thus unravelsDthe *ou+hnhnms and Eahoos are not ust races oulatin afara$a+ land 6ut rather t+es that .ulliver roects uon those around him& 'he ossi6ilit+ thusarises that all the races .ulliver encounters could 6e versions of the ,nlish and that his travelsmerel+ allo$ him to see various asects of human nature more clearl+&

-AR% 'WAIN '*, A"/,N'UR,S 20 *UC%,B,RE 0INNC2N',4'Christened as Samuel anhorne Clemens5 -ark '$ain $as 6orn on Novem6er 785 9


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'$ain died on Aril @95 9=985 havin survived his children andon5 Susan and #ean as $ell ashis $ife5 2livia& In his lifetime5 he 6ecame a distinuished mem6er of the literati5 and $ashonored 6+ Eale5 the Universit+ of -issouri5 and 2?ford $ith literar+ derees& With his death5man+ volumes of his letters5 articles5 and fa6les $ere u6lished5 includin! The (etters o1uintas Curtius Snodgrass(9=>:)J Simon &heeler, Detective(9=:7)J The &or)s o Mar) Tain2&hat is Man3 An 0ther !hiloso%hical &ritings (9=;7)J and Mar) Tains Noteboo)s and

Journals(9=;L ;=)& Perhas more than an+ other classic American $riter5 -ark '$ain is seenas a henomenal author5 6ut also as a ersonalit+ that defined an era&AB2U' '*, N2/,! 'hrouhout the t$entieth centur+5 The Adventures o Huc)leberr* +innhas 6ecome famous not onl+ as one of '$ain3s reatest achievements5 6ut also as a hihl+controversial iece of literature& In certain Southern states5 the novel $as 6anned due to itse?tensive criticism of the h+ocris+ of slaver+& 2thers have arued that the novel is racist du tothe man+ aearances of the $ord Hnier& Unfortunatel+5 the connotations of this $ord tend tooverride the novel3s deeer antislaver+ themes5 and revent readers from understandin '$ain3strue ersective& In '$ain3s time5 this $ord $as used often and did not carr+ as o$erful a racistconnotation as it does currentl+& 'herefore5 in usin the $ord5 '$ain $as siml+ roectin arealistic ortra+al of Southern societ+& Undou6tedl+5 'he Adventures o Huc)leberr* +inn ishihl+ sinificant due to its dee e?loration of issues surroundin racism and moralit+5 and

continues to rovide controvers+ and de6ate to this da+5 evidencin the continued relevance ofthese concets&-A#2R '*,-,S! Conflict 6et$een civili1ation and Hnatural life! 'he rimar+ theme of thenovel is the conflict 6et$een civili1ation and Hnatural life& *uck reresents natural life trouhhis freedom of sirit5 uncivili1ed $a+s5 and desire to escae from civili1ation& *e $as raised$ithout an+ rules or disciline and has a stron resistance to an+thin that miht Hcivili1e him&'his conflict is introduced in the first chater throuh the efforts of the Wido$ "oulas! she triesto force *uck to $ear ne$ clothes5 ive u smokin5 and learn the Bi6le& 'hrouhout the novel5'$ain seems to suest that the uncivili1ed $a+ of life is more desira6le and morall+ suerior&"ra$in on the ideas of #ean#acues Rousseau5 '$ain suests that civili1ation corruts5 ratherthan imroves5 human 6eins&

*onor! 'he theme of honor ermeates the novel after first 6ein introduced in the secondchater5 $here 'om Sa$+er e?resses his 6elief that there is a reat deal of honor associated$ith thievin& Ro66er+ aears throuhout the novel5 secificall+ $hen *uck and #im encounterro66ers on the shi$recked 6oat and are forced to ut u $ith the %in and "auhin5 6oth of$hom Hro6 ever+one the+ meet& 'om3s oriinal ro66er 6and is aralleled later in the novel $hen'om and *uck 6ecome true thieves5 6ut honora6le ones5 at the end of the novel& 'he+ resolve tosteal #im5 freein him from the 6onds of slaver+5 $hich is an honora6le act& 'hus5 the concet ofhonor and actin to earn it 6ecomes a central theme in *uck3s adventures&0ood! 0ood la+s a rominent role in the novel& In *uck3s childhood5 he often fihts is forfood5 and eats out of Ha 6arrel of odds and ends& 'hus5 rovidin *uck $ith food 6ecomes as+m6ol of eole carin for and rotectin him& 0or e?amle5 in the first chater5 the Wido$

"oulas feeds *uck5 and later on #im 6ecomes his s+m6olic caretaker5 feedin and $atchinover him on #ackson3s Island& 0ood is aain discussed fairl+ rominentl+ $hen *uck lives $iththe .ranerford3s and the Wilks3s&-ocker+ of Reliion! A theme '$ain focuses on uite heavil+ on in this novel is the mocker+ ofreliion& 'hrouhout his life5 '$ain $as kno$n for his attacks on orani1ed reliion& *uck0inn3s sarcastic character erfectl+ situates him to deride reliion5 reresentin '$ain3s ersonalvie$s& In the first chater5 *uck indicates that hell sounds far more fun than heaven& ater on5 ina ver+ rominent scene5 the H%in5 a liar and cheat5 convinces a reliious communit+ to ivehim mone+ so he can Hconvert his irate friends& 'he reliious eole are easil+ led astra+5$hich mocks their 6eliefs and devotion to .od&Suerstition! Suerstition aears throuhout the novel& .enerall+5 6oth *uck and #im are ver+

rational characters5 +et $hen the+ encounter an+thin slihtl+ suerstitious5 irrationalit+ takesover& 'he o$er suerstition holds over the t$o demonstrates that *uck and #im are childlikedesite their aarent maturit+& In addition5 suerstition foreshado$s the lot at several ke+

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hideout and meetin lace& *o$ever5 man+ soon ro$ 6ored $ith their make6elieve 6attles5 andthe 6and falls aart&Soon thereafter5 *uck discovers footrints in the sno$ and reconi1es them as his violent5a6usive Pa3s& *uck reali1es Pa5 $ho *uck hasn3t seen in a ver+ lon time5 has returned toclaim the mone+ *uck found5 and he uickl+ runs to #ude 'hatcher to Hsell his share of themone+ for a Hconsideration of a dollar& Pa catches *uck after leavin #ude 'hatcher5 forceshim to hand over the dollars5 and threatens to 6eat *uck if he ever oes to school aain&Uon Pa3s return5 #ude 'hatcher and the Wido$ tr+ to ain court custod+ of *uck5 6ut a ne$

ude in to$n refuses to searate *uck from his father& Pa steals *uck a$a+ from the Wido$3shouse and takes him to a lo ca6in& At first *uck eno+s the ca6in life5 6ut after receivinfreuent 6eatins5 he decides to escae& When Pa oes into to$n5 *uck sei1es the oortunit+&*e sa$ his $a+ out of the lo ca6in5 kills a i5 sreads the 6lood as if it $ere his o$n5 takes acanoe5 and floats do$nstream to #ackson3s Island& 2nce there5 he sets u cam and hides out&A fe$ da+s after arrivin on the island5 *uck stum6les uon a still smolderin camfire&Althouh slihtl+ frihtened5 *uck decides to seek out his fello$ inha6itant& 'he ne?t da+5 hediscovers -iss Watson3s slave5 #im5 is livin on the island& After overhearin the Wido$3s lanto sell him to a slave trader5 #im ran a$a+& #im5 alon $ith the rest of the to$nseole5 thouht*uck $as dead and is frihtened uon seein him& Soon5 the t$o shar their escae stories and are

ha+ to have a comanion&While *uck and #im live on the island5 the river rises sinificantl+& At one oint5 an entire housefloats ast them as the+ stand near the shore& *uck and #im clim6 a6oard to see $hat the+ cansalvae and find a dead man l+in in the corner of the house& #im oes over to insect the 6od+and reali1es it is Pa5 *uck3s father& #im kees this information a secret&Soon after$ards5 *uck returns to the to$n disuised as a irl in order to ather some ne$s&While talkin $ith a $oman5 he learns that 6oth #im and Pa are susects in his murder& 'he$oman then tells *uck that she 6elieves #im is hidin out an #ackson3s Island& Uon hearin hersusicions5 *uck immediatel+ returns to #im and toether the+ flee the island to avoid discover+&Usin a lare raft5 the+ float do$nstream durin the nihts and hide alon the shore durin theda+s& In the middle of a stron thunderstorm5 the+ see a steam6oat that has crashed5 and *uck

convinces #im to land on the 6oat& 'oether5 the+ clim6 a6oard and discover there are threethieves on the $reck5 t$o of $hom are de6atin $hether to kill the third& *uck overhears thisconversation5 and he and #im tr+ to escae5 onl+ to find that their raft has come undone from itsmakeshift moorin& 'he+ manae to find the ro66ers3 skiff and immediatel+ take off& Within ashort time5 the+ see the $recked steamshi floatin do$nstream5 far enouh 6elo$ the $aterlineto have dro$ned ever+one on 6oard& Su6seuentl+5 the+ reclaim their oriinal raft5 and continuedo$n the river $ith 6oth the raft and the canoe&As #im and *uck continue floatin do$nstream5 the+ 6ecome close friends& 'heir oal is toreach Cairo5 $here the+ can take a steamshi u to the 2hio River and into the free states&*o$ever5 durin a dense fo5 $ith *uck in the canoe and #im in the raft5 the+ are searated&When the+ find each other in the mornin5 it soon 6ecomes clear that in the midst of the fo5 the+

assed Cairo&A fe$ nihts later5 a steam6oat runs over the raft5 and forces *uck and #im to um over6oard&Aain5 the+ are searated as the+ s$im for their lives& *uck finds the shore and is immediatel+surrounded 6+ dos& After manain to escae5 he is invited to live $ith a famil+ called the.ranerford3s& At the .ranerford home5 *uck is treated $ell and discovers that #im is hidin ina near6+ s$am& ,ver+thin is eaceful until an old famil+ feud 6et$een the .ranerford3s andthe Sheherdson3s is rekindled& Within one da+ all the men in the .ranerford famil+ are killed5includin *uck3s ne$ 6est friend5 Buck& Amid the chaos5 *uck runs 6ack to #im5 and toetherthe+ start do$nriver aain&0urther do$nstream5 *uck rescues t$o hum6us kno$n as the "uke and the %in& Immediatel+5the t$o men take control of the raft and start to travel do$nstream5 makin mone+ 6+ cheatin

eole in the various to$ns alon the river& 'he "uke and the %in develo a scam the+ call theRo+al Nonesuch5 $hich earns them over four hundred dollars& 'he scam involves ettin all themen in the to$n to come to a sho$ $ith romises of reat entertainment& In the sho$5 the %in

arades around naked for a fe$ minutes& 'he men are too ashamed to admit to $astin their

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mone+5 and tell ever+one else that the sho$ $as henomenal5 thus makin the follo$in niht3serformance a success& 2n the third niht5 ever+one returns lottin revene5 6ut the "uke and%in manae to escae $ith all their ill otten ains&0urther do$nriver5 the t$o con men learn a6out a lare inheritance meant for three recentl+orhaned irls& 'o steal the mone+5 the men retend to 6e the irls3 British uncles& 'he irl are soha+ to see their Huncles that the+ do not reali1e the+ are 6ein s$indled& -ean$hile5 the irlstreat *uck so nicel+ that he vo$s to rotect them from the con men3s scheme& *uck sneaks intothe %in3s room and steals the lare 6a of old from the inheritance& *e hides the old in PeterWilks3s (the irls3 father) coffin& -ean$hile5 the hum6us send their time liuidatin the Wilksfamil+ roert+& At one oint5 *uck finds -ar+ #ane Wilks5 the oldest of the irls5 and sees thatshe is cr+in& *e confesses the entire stor+ to her& She is infuriated5 6ut arees to leave the housefor a fe$ da+s so *uck can escae&Riht after -ar+ #ane leaves5 the real Wilks uncles arrive in to$n& *o$ever5 6ecause the+ losttheir 6aae on their vo+ae5 the+ are una6le to rove their identities& 'hus5 the to$n la$+erathers all four men to determine $ho is l+in& 'he %in and the "uke fake their roles so $ellthat there is no $a+ to determine the truth& 0inall+5 one of real uncles sa+s his 6rother Peter had atattoo on his chest and challenes the %in to identif+ it& In order to determine the truth5 theto$nseole decide to e?hume the 6od+& Uon diin u the rave5 the to$nseole discover

the missin mone+ *uck hid in the coffin& In the ensuin chaos5 *uck runs straiht 6ack to theraft and he and #im ush off into the river& 'he "uke and %in also escae and catch u to reointhe raft&0arther do$n the river5 the %in and the "uke sell #im into slaver+5 claimin he is a runa$a+slave from Ne$ 2rleans& *uck decides to rescue #im5 and darinl+ $alks u to the house $here#im is 6ein ket& uckil+5 the house is o$ned 6+ none other than 'om Sa$+er3s Autn Sall+&*uck immediatel+ retends to 6e 'om& When the real 'om arrives5 he retends to 6e his +ouner

6rother5 Sid Sa$+er& 'oether5 he and *uck contrive a lan to hel #im escae from his Hrison5an outdoor shed& 'om5 al$a+s the trou6lemaker5 also makes #im3s life difficult 6+ uttin snakesand siders into his room&After a reat deal of lannin5 the 6o+s convince the to$n that a rou of thieves is lannin to

steal #im& 'hat niht5 the+ collect #im and start to run a$a+& 'he local farmers follo$ them5shootin as the+ run after them& *uck5 #im and 'om manae to escae5 6ut 'om is shot in the le&*uck returns to to$n to fetch a doctor5 $hom he sends 'om and #im3s hidin lace& 'he doctorreturns $ith 'om on a stretcher and #im in chains& #im is treated 6adl+ until the doctor descri6esho$ #im heled him take care of the 6o+& When 'om a$akens5 he demands that the+ let #im ofree&At this oint5 Aunt Poll+ aears5 havin traveled all the $a+ do$n the river& She reali1edsomethin $as ver+ $ron after her sister $rote to her that 6oth 'om and Sid had arrived& AuntPoll+ tells them that #im is indeed a free man5 6ecause the Wido$ had assed a$a+ and freedhim in her $ill& *uck and 'om ive #im fort+ dollars for 6ein such a ood risoner and lettinthem free him5 $hile in fact he had 6een free for uite some time&

After this revelation5 #im tells *uck to sto $orr+in a6out his Pa and reveals that the dead manin the floatin house $as in fact *uck3s father& Aunt Sall+ offers to adot *uck5 6ut he refuses onthe rounds that he had tried that sort of lifest+le once 6efore5 and it didn3t suit him& *uckconcludes the novel statin he $ould never have undertaken the task of $ritin out his stor+ in a

6ook5 had he kno$n it $ould take so lon to comlete&

W& S*A%,SP,AR, *A-,'C2N',4'William Shakeseare3s father5 #ohn Shakeseare5 moved to the id+llic to$n of StratforduonAvon in the midsi?teenth centur+5 $here he 6ecame a successful lando$ner5 mone+lender5 $ool

and aricultural oods dealer5 and lover& In 9LL;5 he married -ar+ Arden& #ohn Shakesearelived durin a time $hen the middle class $as ro$in and 6ecame increasinl+ $ealth+5 thusallo$in its mem6ers more freedoms and lu?uries5 and a stroner voice in the local overnment&*e took advantae of the oortunities afforded him throuh this social ro$th5 and in 9LL;

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6ecame a mem6er of the Stratford Council5 an event that marked the 6einnin of an illustriousolitical career& B+ 9L:9 he $as elected one of the to$n3s fourteen 6uresses5 and servedsuccessivel+ as consta6le5 one of t$o cham6erlains5 and alderman& In these ositions5 headministered 6orouh roert+ and revenues& In 9L:; he $as made 6ailiff 5 the hihest electedoffice in Stratford the euivalent of a modernda+ ma+or&'he to$n records indicate that William Shakeseare $as #ohn and -ar+3s third child& *is 6irth isunreistered5 6ut leend laces it on Aril @75 9L:>5 artiall+ 6ecause Aril @7 is the da+ on$hich he died L@ +ears later& In an+ event5 his 6atism $as reistered $ith the to$n on Aril @:59L:>& Not much is kno$n a6out his childhood5 althouh it is safe to assume that he attended thelocal rammar school5 the %in3s Ne$ School5 $hich $as staffed $ith a facult+ that held 2?fordderees5 and $hose curriculum included mathematics5 natural sciences5 atin lanuae andrhetoric5 loic5 Christian ethics5 and classical literature& *e did not attend a universit+5 6ut this$as not unusual at the time5 since universit+ education $as reserved for rosective cler+menand $as not considered a articularl+ mindoenin e?erience& *o$ever5 the education hereceived in rammar school $as e?cellent5 as evidenced 6+ the numerous classical and literar+references in his la+s& *is earl+ $orks eseciall+ dre$ on such .reek and Roman reats asSeneca and Plautus& -ore imressive than his formal education is the $ealth of eneralkno$lede e?hi6ited in his $orks5 from a $orkin kno$lede of man+ rofessions to a

voca6ular+ far reater than an+ other ,nlish $riter&In 9L


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7ing (earin 9:85 seems to have used Shakeseare3s

hand$ritten draft5 and is sinificantl+ larer and more comrehensive& 'he third main edition isthat of the 0irst 0olio in 9:@7& 'his version of the la+ seems to have used the romt6ook as itssource5 and thus more accuratel+ ortra+s the la+ as Shakeseare3s audience $ould have seen it&"ue to discreancies in the 9:8> and 9:@7 te?ts5 man+ modern editors have conflated the t$oversions into a unified te?t&'he narrative 6ehind *amlet derives from the leendar+ stor+ of *amlet (Amleth) recounted inthe "anish *istor+ from the t$elfth centur+5 a atin te?t 6+ Sa?o the .rammarian& 'his version$as later adated into 0rench 6+ 0rancois de Belleforest in 9L;8& An unscruulous 0en kills his

6rother *or$endil and marries his 6rother3s $ife .erutha& *or$endil3s and .erutha3s sonAmleth5 althouh still +oun5 decides to avene his father3s murder& *e retends to 6e a fool inorder to avoid susicion5 a strate+ $hich $orks& With his mother3s active suort5 Amleth

succeeds in killin 0en& *e is then roclaimed %in of "enmark& 'here is no uncertaint+ in thisstor+5 althouh Belleforet3s version claims that .erutha and 0en are havin an affair& In fact5 inthis version the murder of *or$endil is uite u6lic5 and *amleth3s actions are considered to 6ea dut+ rather than a moral sin&'his version of *amlet is likel+ $hat Shakeseare kne$5 alon $ith another la+ done in 9L


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*amlet as a character remains tantali1inl+ difficult to interret& 'he .erman oet #ohannWolfan von .oethe descri6ed him as a oet5 a sensitive man $ho is too $eak to deal $ith the

olitical ressures of "enmark& 'he t$entieth centur+ has had Simund 0reud5 $ho vie$ed*amlet in terms of an 2edius comle?5 a se?ual desire for his mother& 'his comle? isassociated $ith the $ish to kill his father and slee $ith his mother& 0reud oints out that*amlet3s uncle has usured his father3s rihtful lace5 and therefore has relaced his father as theman $ho must die& *o$ever5 0reud is careful to note that *amlet reresents modern man

recisel+ 6ecause he does not kill Claudius in order to slee $ith his mother5 6ut rather kills himto revene his mother3s death& Political interretations of *amlet also a6ound5 in $hich *amlethides the sirit of olitical resistance5 or reresents a challene to a corrut reime&Stehen .reen6latt5 the editor of the Norton ,dition of Shakeseare5 vie$s these interretiveattemts of *amlet as mirrors for the interretation in the la+ itself& Polonius attri6utes*amlet3s madness to his reection 6+ 2helia5 Rosencrant1 and .uildenstern feel *amlet suffersfrom am6ition5 a desire to succeed his father on the elective throne of "enmark& *amlet3smadness is itself dou6tful at times5 *amlet claims to retendin& Claudius dou6ts his nehe$3smadness5 6ut at the same time *amlet3s melanchol+ nature is clearl+ e?ressed in the 6einnin

6+ his continued mournin for his father& In Shakeseare3s time e?cessive melanchol+ $as oftenassociated $ith forms of madness5 and so *amlet5 alread+ e?hi6itin 6outs of melanchol+5 makes

himself a natural candidate for madness&'he solilouies are dramaticall+ rhetorical seeches of selfreflection& 'hese have alread+ 6eenseen in the characters of Brutus inJulius Caesarand Prince *al in *enr+ I/5 Part& 9 *amlet is aculmination of these characters5 caa6le of far more comle?it+ and s+choloical introsection&Indeed5 in order to allo$ *amlet to 6rin his mind to full e?ression5 Shakeseare alleedl+introduced over :88 ne$ $ords into the ,nlish lanuae in this la+ alone&S*2R' SU--ARE! *amlet starts $ith soldiers chanin the uard outside of ,lsinore Castlein "enmark& 'he ne$ uards have 6rouht alon a scholar named *oratio 6ecause the+ claim tohave seen a host& *oratio is sketical of their stor+ until the host actuall+ aears& *e thentries to seak to it5 6ut the host remains silent until it stalks a$a+&*oratio tells the uards that the host $as dressed the same $a+ 2ld *amlet (the former %in of

"enmark and *amlet3s father) $as dressed $hen he defeated %in 0ortin6ras of Nor$a+& *efurther tells them that +oun 0ortin6ras5 the son5 has athered toether an arm+ to attack"enmark& At this oint the host reaears and *oratio aain 6es it to seak to him& 'he hostseems a6out to sa+ somethin 6ut at that moment a cock cro$s and the host vanishes& 'heuards and *oratio decide to tell *amlet $hat the+ have seen&%in Claudius5 $ho is *amlet3s uncle and $ho assumed the throne after *amlet3s father died5 isin the castle& *e has recentl+ married Tueen .ertrude5 $ho is *amlet3s mother and the $ido$ to2ld *amlet& Claudius is $orried a6out the fact that +oun 0ortin6ras has raised an arm+ aainst"enmark5 and so he sends out messeners to the uncle of +oun 0ortin6ras askin him to stohis nehe$& Claudius5 then turns to aertes5 the son of Polonius5 and asks him $h+ he reuestedan audience& aertes asks the kin for ermission to return to 0rance5 $hich he is ranted&

Claudius finall+ turns his attention to *amlet5 $ho is standin in 6lack ro6es of mournin for hisfather& *e tells *amlet that it is unnatural for a man to mourn for such a lon eriod of time&Tueen .ertrude arees5 and asks *amlet to $ear normal clothes aain& Both the kin and ueenthen 6e *amlet to sta+ $ith them at the castle rather than return to his studies in Witten6er&*amlet arees to sta+5 and 6oth his mother and his uncle rush out of the alace to cele6rate theirne$ $eddin&*oratio arrives $ith the uards and tells *amlet that the+ have seen his father3s host& *amlet ise?tremel+ interested in this5 and informs them that he $ill oin them for the $atch that niht&aertes is finishin his ackin and is also ivin his sister 2helia some 6rotherl+ advice 6eforeh leaves& *e $arns her to $atch out for *amlet $hom he has seen $ooin her& aertes tell2helia to inore *amlet3s overtures to$ards her until he is made kin5 at $hich oint if he still

$ants to marr+ her then she should consent& Polonius arrives and orders his son to hurr+ u andet to the shi& Polonius then ives aertes some fatherl+ advice5 tellin him to 6ehave himselfin 0rance& aertes dearts5 leavin 2helia $ith Polonius& Polonius then turns to her and asks$hat has 6een oin on 6et$een her and *amlet& She tells him that *amlet has rofessed his

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love to her5 6ut Polonius onl+ lauhs and calls her inorant& *e then orders her to avoid *amletand to not 6elieve his rotestations of love& 2helia romises to o6e+ her father&*amlet5 *oratio and a uard meet outside to see $hether the host $ill aear& It soon arrivesand silentl+ 6eckons *amlet to follo$ it& *amlet ushes a$a+ *oratio5 $ho is tr+in to hold him

6ack5 and runs after the host& 'he uard tells *oratio that the+ had 6etter follo$ *amlet andmake sure he is alriht&'he host finall+ stos and turns to *amlet& *e tells *amlet that he is the host of 2ld *amlet5$ho has come to tell his son the truth a6out ho$ he died& *e tells *amlet that he $as sittin inthe arden one da+5 aslee in his chair5 $hen Claudius came u to him and oured oison into hisear& *e $as killed immediatel+5 and 6ecause he $as not allo$ed to confess his sins5 he is no$sufferin in Purator+& 'he host of 2ld *amlet then orders his son to seek revene for this foulcrime 6efore deartin&*amlet is confused a6out $hether to 6elieve the host or not5 6ut he makes *oratio and theuard s$ear to never reveal $hat the+ have seen& *e decides that he $ill retend to 6e mad inorder to fool Claudius and .ertrude until he is a6le to kno$ $hether Claudius reall+ killed hisfather or not&Polonius sends his servant Re+naldo to 0rance in order to s+ on aertes& *e order Re+naldo toask the other "anes $hat sort of reutation aertes has in order to make sure his son is 6ehavin&

Re+naldo romises to do this and leaves for 0rance& 2helia enters lookin e?tremel+ frihtenedand informs her father that *amlet has one mad& She tells him that *amlet entered the room$here she $as se$in and took her $rist& After startin into her e+es for a lon $hile he $alkedout of the room $ithout ever takin his e+es off of her& Polonius concludes that *amlet musthave one mad 6ecause he ordered 2helia to reect *amlet3s affections&Claudius and .ertrude have invited t$o friends of *amlet to come and s+ on *amlet& 'he+ area$are that *amlet is actin stranel+ and $ant the friends to fiure out $hat the ro6lem is&Rosencrant1 and .uildenstern5 eaer to lease %in Claudius5 aree to tr+ and find out $hat is$ron $ith *amlet& 'he+ leave5 and Polonius enters $ith ne$s that the messeners are 6ackfrom Nor$a+& Claudius tells him to 6rin the messeners in&'he messeners inform Claudius that after the+ arrived5 the uncle of 0ortin6ras sent his nehe$ a

summons& Eoun 0ortin6ras o6e+ed5 and the uncle chastised him for attemtin to attack"enmark& 0ortin6ras aoloi1ed for his 6ehavior and received an annual allo$ance from hisuncle as a token of ood$ill& 0urther5 the uncle ave 0ortin6ras ermission to attack Poland&Since 0ortin6ras $ould have to march throuh "enmark in order to reach Poland5 the uncle sentClaudius a letter askin for safe assae& Claudius5 overo+ed 6+ this ne$s5 assents to ive

ermission&Polonius then tells him that he kno$s the reason for *amlet3s madness& *e reads Claudius and.ertrude one of the letters *amlet sent to 2helia in $hich *amlet rofesses his love for her&Claudius is not entirel+ convinced5 and so he and Polonius aree to set u a meetin 6et$een*amlet and 2helia that the+ $ill 6e a6le to s+ on&*amlet enters the room and cuts their lottin short& Polonius asks the kin and ueen to leave

him alone $ith their son5 to $hich the+ assent& Polonius then tries to talk to *amlet5 $ho5feinin madness5 calls him a fishmoner and asks him if he has a dauhter& *amlet continues toinsult Polonius until Polonius finall+ ives u in frustration&Rosencrant1 and .uildenstern arrive and *amlet reconi1es them& *e reets them $arml+ andasks $hat 6rins them to "enmark& 'he+ onl+ ive an am6iuous ans$er5 from $hich *amletinfers that Claudius asked them to come& *amlet then reveals to them that he has 6een ver+melancholic latel+5 and ives that as the reason he has 6een actin mad& 'he+ tr+ to cheer him u

6+ tellin him some actors arrived $ith them on their shi& *amlet is overo+ed to hear thisne$s5 and he immediatel+ oes to find the actors&*e succeeds in findin the la+ers and asks them to erform a seech from "ido and Aeneas forhim& 2ne of them arees and erforms the art $here Priam5 the father of Aeneas5 is killed& *e

then continues $ith the art $here *ecu6a5 Priam3s $ife5 sees her hus6and 6ein murdered andlets out a cr+ that rouses even the ods& *amlet tells him it is enouh $hen Polonius 6es theactor to sto& *e then asks the actors if the+ can erform the murder of .on1ao as $ell somee?tra lines that he $ill $rite for them& 'he+ aree and leave to rehearse their arts& *amlet

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mean$hile has comared the murder of Priam to his o$n father3s murder and has 6ecomeoutraed $ith Claudius5 $hom he hoes to reveal as the murderer throuh the la+ that he askedthe actors to erform that niht&Rosencrant1 and .uildenstern tell Claudius and .ertrude that the+ reall+ do not kno$ $hat thematter $ith *amlet is& 'he+ can onl+ sa+ that he seems distracted5 6ut that arrival of the actorsmade him haier& Polonius then tells Claudius that *amlet is uttin on a la+ that niht andreuested that the+ attend& Claudius arees to o&Polonius hears *amlet comin and he and Claudius uickl+ made 2helia stand in clear vie$$hile the+ hide themselves& *amlet enters and ives his H'o 6e or not to 6eJ that is the uestion(7&9&L=L)&*amlet then oes to see his mother& *e immediatel+ insults her for havin married Claudius so

soon after his father3s death& She ets scared and calls for hel5 causin Polonius ($ho is hidden6ehind a curtain s+in on them) to make a sound& *amlet ulls out his daer and kills Poloniusthrouh the curtain5 6ut he is disaointed $hen her reali1es it is not the kin& *amlet thensho$s his mother t$o ictures of 6oth Claudius and 2ld *amlet5 comarin them for her& She isalmost at the oint $here she 6elieves him $hen the host aears and *amlet starts to seak toit& .ertrude5 una6le to see the host5 concludes that *amlet must 6e trul+ mad and starts to aree$ith ever+thin he sa+s in order to et him out of her room&Claudius5 once .ertrude tells him $hat has haened5 orders Rosencrant1 and .uildenstern to

reare to take *amlet $ith them in ,nland& *e then orders the 6od+ of Polonius to 6e foundsince *amlet has hidden it& *amlet eventuall+ reveals the location of the 6od+ and then leavesthe castle that niht&

While travelin a$a+ from ,lsinore5 *amlet encounters 0ortin6ras3 arm+& 0ortin6ras has ustsend Claudius a messae tellin him that the Nor$eian arm+ is there and reuestin safe

assae& *amlet asks one of the catains $hat art of Poland the+ are attackin& 'he catainrefuses to reveal the e?act location5 and there remains the ossi6ilit+ that "enmark is the truetaret5 althouh this is not revealed in the la+&2helia has mean$hile one mad at the death of her father& *oratio tries to take care of her5 6utfinall+ asks .ertrude to hel him& Claudius and .ertrude order *oratio to kee an e+e on her&Soon thereafter aertes arrives $ith a mo6& *e has returned from 0rance once he learned ofPolonius3 death and is intent on killin the murderer of his father& Claudius calms him do$n andtells him that *amlet is the murderer5 and since *amlet has 6een sent to ,nland there is no onethere to kill& aertes then sees 2helia5 $ho fails to reconi1e him and instead ives him a

flo$er&*amlet send letters 6ack to "enmark& *e tells *oratio that the shi $as attacked 6+ irates andthat he manaed to escae in the rocess 6+ oinin the irates for a short $hile as their risoner&*e also tells *oratio that he sent Rosencrant1 and .uildenstern on to ,nland5 6ut that he $ill 6e

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returnin shortl+& Claudius also receives a letter from *amlet informin hm that *amlet $illsoon return home& Claudius immediatel+ lots a $a+ to kill *amlet 6+ havin aertes fiht himin a fencin match& aertes decides to ut oison on the ti of his raier so that an+ small scratch$ill kill *amlet5 and Claudius tells him he $ill also oison a cu of $ine and ive it to *amletas a 6acku measure& At that moment .ertrude enters and tells the men that 2helia has dro$nedherself in a 6rook& She and Claudius follo$ aertes5 $ho is once more riefstricken&*amlet and *oratio come across t$o ravediers $ho are diin a fresh rave& 'he+ areenaed in $ordla+ until one of the men sends the other a$a+ to fetch him some liuor& *amlet$atches as the remainin man tosses u skulls and sins $hile he $orks& *e finall+ aroachesthe man and asks $ho the one skull 6eloned to& 'he ravedier tells him it $as Eorick3s5 acourt fool $hom *amlet kne$ from his +outh& *amlet is shaken 6+ the skull and onders thefact that all of them return to the earth& *e and *oratio are forced to run and hide $hen aertes5Claudius and .ertrude arrive $ith the coffin&'he+ lace the coffin into the round 5 6ut the riest refuses to sa+ an+ ra+ers for the dead

6ecause 2helia committed suicide rather than die a natural death& aertes arues $ith him5 6utfinall+ ives u and ums into the rave in rief& *amlet5 $hen he reali1es $ho is dead5 comesout of hidin and also ums into the rave& aertes ra6s him 6+ the throat and Claudius isforced to order the other men to intervene and searate them&

Back in the castle *amlet tells *oratio that 6efore he o off the shi he stole the letters Claudiushad iven to Rosencrant1 and .uildenstern& 'he letters asked the ,nlish kin to kill *amlet&*amlet5 furious at this 6etra+al5 $rote ne$ letters in $hich he asked the kin to kill themesseners5 namel+ Rosencrant1 and .uildenstern&A lord named 2sric enters the room and informs *amlet that aertes has challened hm to afencin match& Claudius has 6et aertes that he cannot defeat *amlet 6+ more than three hitsdurin t$elve enaements& *amlet arees to the dual even thouh *oratio tells him he cannot$in& 'he+ enter the match room5 and Claudius announces that if *amlet scores a hit durin thefirst5 second5 or third 6out5 then he $ill dro a valua6le earl into a cu of $ine and ive it to*amlet&aertes and *amlet choose their foils and roceed to fiht& & *amlet scores a hit $hich 2sric

uholds5 and Claudius dros his earl into some $ine $hich he offers to *amlet& *amlet5 e?cited6+ the match5 refuses to drink it and asks for the ne?t round& 'he+ fiht aain5 and *amlet $insthe ne?t hit as $ell& .ertrude5 thrilled at ho$ $ell her son is fihtin5 takes the cu of $ine fromClaudius and drinks it to cele6rate *amlet3s hit& Claudius turns ale $hen he reali1es that she hasdrunk the oisoned $ine5 6ut he sa+s nothin&'he+ fiht aain5 and aertes slashes *amlet out of turn $ith his oisoned foil5 causin *amletto 6leed& *amlet is infuriated and attacks him viciousl+5 causin him to dro the foil& *amlet ets

6oth raiers and accidentall+ tosses his raier over to aertes& *e then slashes aertes $ith theoisoned foil5 dra$in 6lodd as $ell& 'he+ sto fihtin $hen the+ reali1e that Tueen .ertrudeis l+in on the round&.ertrude reali1es that she has 6een oisoned and tells *amlet that it $as the drink& She dies5 and

aertes tells *amlet that he too is oin to die from the oisoned ti& *amlet5 even more furiousthan 6efore5 slashes Claudius $ith the oisoned ti& *e then takes the $ine chalice and forces the

oison into Claudius3 mouth until Claudius falls dead into the round& aertes is also on theround at this oint and he forives *amlet for killin Polonius 6efore he too dies&*amlet sees *oratio a6out to drink the remainin oisoned $ine and orders him to sto& *e tells*oratio that onl+ he can tell the eole $hat reall+ haened and thus reveal the truth& 2sriccomes in at that moment and informs them that 0ortin6ras and some am6assadors from ,nlandhave arrived& *amlet3s final $ords are to ive 0ortin6ras his vote to 6ecome the ne?t %in of"enmark&0ortin6ras arrived and looks over the scene of dead 6odies& 'he am6assadors also enter the roomand inform *oratio that Rosencrant1 and .uildenstern have 6een ut to death& *oratio asks

0ortin6ras to order the 6odies laced in the u6lic vie$ so that he can tell the eole $hathaened& 0ortin6ras3 final act is to order his soldiers to ive *amlet a militar+ salute 6+ firintheir uns&

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AB2U' S*A%,SP,AR,AN '*,A',R! Before Shakeseare3s time and durin his 6o+hood5troues of actors erformed $herever the+ could in halls5 courts5 court+ards5 and an+ other oensaces availa6le& *o$ever5 in 9L;>5 $hen Shakeseare $as ten +ears old5 the Common Council

assed a la$ reuirin la+s and theaters in ondon to 6e licensed& In 9L;:5 actor and futureord Cham6erlain3s -an5 #ames Bur6ae5 6uilt the first ermanent theatre5 called H'he'heatre 5 outside ondon cit+ $alls& After this man+ more theaters $ere esta6lished5 includinthe .lo6e 'heatre5 $hich $as $here most of Shakeseare3s la+s remiered&,li1a6ethan theaters $ere enerall+ 6uilt after the desin of the oriinal 'heatre& Built of $ood5these theaters comrised three tiers of seats in a circular shae5 $ith a stae area on one side ofthe circle& 'he audience3s seats and art of the stae $ere roofed5 6ut much of the main stae andthe area in front of the stae in the center of the circle $ere oen to the elements& A6out 9L88audience mem6ers could a+ e?tra mone+ to sit in the covered seatin areas5 $hile a6out


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IUIUS CA,SAR

C2N',4''he onl+ authoritative edition of #ulius Caesar is the 9:@7 0irst 0olio5 $hich aears to haveused the theater coman+3s official romt6ook rather than Shakeseare3s manuscrit& Someanomalies e?ist5 most nota6l+ in Act 0our $here there is confusion concernin the arts of theminor characters& Also its $ritins from 9:9> and 9:@L Shakeseare3s contemorar+ Ben #onsonmakes fun of a line from 7&9 $here Caesar sa+s5 Hkno$ Caesar doth not $ron 6ut $ith ustcause& 'he 0irst 0olio omits the final four $ords5 +et the fact that #onson $as $ritin in 9:@Laears to indicate that the $ords ma+ have 6een used in roductions of the la+ even after the

u6lication of the 0irst 0olio& 'he 2?ford edition chose to add the four $ords 6ack into the la+5aruin that the aarent contradiction hels to more full+ ortra+ Caesar3s characteristic odlike asirationsulius Caesar oens in >> B&C&5 at a time $hen Rome ruled territories stretchin from as far northas Britain to as far east as Persia& *o$ever5 Rome3s militar+ success had come at a serious costto the olitical situation in the home cit+5 $hich $as overned 6+ a senate& Rome3s senators

6ecame increasinl+ factionali1ed causin internal disarra+5 $hich allo$ed the more successful

militar+ enerals ain o$er& 0urthermore5 the state suffered from class divisions5 and thele6eians had manaed to $in the riht to elect Htri6unes5 or reresentatives5 ivin them someolitical o$er& *o$ever5 $omen and most of the le6eian men remained e?cluded from thisfranchise& 'hus5 althouh the reu6lic sho$ed some sins of democrac+5 the maorit+ did not

articiate in the eneral olitics&Several men attemted to take over the overnment durin this tumultuous eriod5 most failinin the endeavor& #ulius Caesar $as a Roman eneral $ho had made a name for himself throuhhis successful camainin of north$est ,uroe& *is advantae la+ not onl+ in $innin 6attles5

6ut also in his oularit+ amon the oorer classes in Rome& *e ossessed innate talent5charisma5 am6ition5 and luck5 $hich5 $hen com6ined5 allo$ed his olitical o$er to increase&Suorters of the traditional form of overnment reali1ed that men like Caesar osed a serious

threat to the reu6lic5 and $hen leal and militar+ attemts failed to sto him5 consirators led 6+Caius Cassius and -arcus Brutus assassinated him&'he death of Caesar undermined the ver+ olitical institution it $as meant to defend& Rome $assoon slit 6+ civil $ar5 and the armies of the consirators $ere defeated 6+ Caesar3s friend -arkAnton+ and his heir5 2ctavius& 'he culmination of these events $as the defeat of the senate andthe installment of 2ctaviu3s as emeror Auustus&Contemoraries of Caesar uickl+ rased the imortance of these events5 documentin them$ell& 'hrouhout the centuries since5 the events of Caesar3s time have 6een interreted anddiscussed at lenth5 and continue to 6e alluded to even in resent da+ olitics& Politicalcommentators have interreted the actions of the main fiures differentl+& 0or e?amle5-ichelanelo vie$ed Brutus as a defender of human li6ert+5 $hile "ante laced him (and

Cassius) into the deeest circle of hell in his Inferno& 0or Shakeseare5 this historical dramaresented numerous ossi6ilities for anal+1in and e?lorin conflictin ersective of theseevents5 and thus $as a loical choice for one of his la+s& 'he stor+ of Caesar3s death and the resultin olitical uheaval $as eseciall+ salient inShakeseare3s time& 'he la+ is thouht to have 6een $ritten in 9L==5 $hen Tueen ,li1a6eth $assi?t+si? +ears old& ,uroe and ,nland $ere ruled 6+ monarch strulin to consolidate their

o$er& In ,nland5 the monarch+ ran into oosition from the esta6lished aristocrac+ and electedreresentatives in the *ouse of Commons& Since ,li1a6eth had no direct heirs5 man+ feared,nland miht deca+ into civil chaos similar to that of the fifteenth centur+& 0ear of censorshi

revailed in matters relatin to olitical discourse5 and so for Shakeseare5 the stor+ of JuliusCaesarrovided a safe $a+ to comment on man+ of the imortant uestions of the time&

Shakeseare3s main source in $ritin the la+ $as 'homas North3s ,nlish translation ofPlutarch3s ives of the No6le .reeks and Romans& Plutarch $rote in the first centur+ A&"& andrecorded his 6iorahies as an historian& *is descrition of the Roman Reu6lic stated that it $asruled 6+ at least one or more o$erful men5 +et rarel+ more than a fe$ men& Shakeseare adots

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this concet of Rome for Julius Caesar5 focusin on the actions and influences of a fe$remarka6le individuals rather than dealin $ith larer social movements& *o$ever5 this aroachdoes not iml+ a limited a$areness of Rome3s social ro6lems5 as the la+3s oenin scenesclearl+ address Rome3s social divisions&Shakeseare condenses the action inJulius Caesar as in man+ of his historical dramas5 6reakinslihtl+ from historical accurac+& 0or e?amle5 Shakeseare laces Caesar3s triumh overPome+3s sons $ith the uercalia in 0e6ruar+5 $hereas Plutarch indicates the victor+ took lacein 2cto6er& With this time chane5 the assassination on the Ides of -arch aears to 6e inresonse to Caesar3s ro$in influence and arroance& 0urthermore5 in Shakeseare3s version5Brutus and Cassius flee from Rome immediatel+ after Anton+3s seech to the Roman mo65 6utPlutarch descri6es them $ithdra$in from the cit+ over a +ear after Caesar3s funeral& 'hesedifferences cause Roman leader3s ersonal fla$s and strenths to aear far more imortant inshain the action of the lot&Shakeseare3sJulius Caesaris comosed of several characters5 none of $hom dominate the lotJeven the titular hero is merel+ one of the several ersonalities in the la+& Indeed5 Shakesearecreates onl+ a limited deth to Caesar3s characteri1ation5 mainl+ rel+in on the neative reortsfrom those most hostile to him& *o$ever5 $hen onstae5 Caesar does not live u the reutationhis enemies claim for him5 there6+ underminin his a6ilit+ to dominate the lot at an+ oint&

Brutus is a much fuller character& AS the friend and murderer of Caesar5 he rovides tremendousinsiht into his ersonalit+ throuh solilouies in $hich he discusses his motives and theconseuences of his actions& Brutus also is ortra+ed in man+ different roles5 includin hus6and5militar+ leader and assassin& 'hese different roles allo$ us to see the internal strife inherent inBrutus3 characterJ he is a man $ho must ustif+ his e?traleal murder $hile simultaneousl+remainin a faithful and ood hus6and&InJulius Caesar5 Shakeseare utili1es one of his reat techniues5 often called Hradual release5slo$l+ rovidin ertinent lot information as the la+ roresses5 forcin the audience tocontinuall+ revise its interretation of the action& A ood e?amle of this is $hen Anton+clima?es his famous eulo+ 6+ readin Caesar3s $ill and seakin of the enerosit+ Caesar hassho$n to the common eole5 mentionin that Caesar has left them all some mone+& *o$ever5

onl+ t$o scenes later $e see him tr+in to minimi1e the cost of this enerosit+ 6+ reducin theamount of mone+ that needs to 6e iven out& 'he com6ination of the t$o scenes forces theaudience to reevaluate ever+thin $e kno$ a6out Anton+5 and denies us the a6ilit+ to fi? firmmotives on an+ of the la+3s characters&Shakeseare never intended the la+ to 6e historicall+ accurate& In fact5 he clearl+ e?ected theactors to aear in ,li1a6ethan dress& 0urthermore5 he ives Rome the medieval inven

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