Film Comparison - A Dolls House essays

Film Comparison - A Doll's House essays In class, we were shown two film versions of Ibsen's play, "A Doll's House." The first, starring Anthony Hopkins, was a more strict adaptation of the play. The second, featuring Jane Fonda, presented a broader vision of the play by using additional scenes and dialogue to expand the viewer's understanding of the characters and their dilemmas. For simplicity's sake, this essay shall refer to the films as "strict" or "broad" respectively, in order to identify them. First, the original play's impressions are quite different from the film versions in the reading. A reader is left only to the benefit of her own imagination while reading a play. It seems actually more like listening to an old fashioned radio show because it is mostly dialogue. But there aren't even tones of voice with which we interpret so much conversation. There are no rehearsed or measured pauses which create a very frenetic impression of many of the characters – especially Nora. Nora comes across as a top spinni ng out of control. Her husband reads as disinterested, his affections just that, affected. Christine is not anchored into the plot as well as she is in film. Strangely, Grogstad seems even more threatening on paper than on film. My conclusion, as one not accustomed to plays or theatre is that a script is the original physical reality of a play but that it takes the winds of theatrical talent to breathe life into it. The characters seem one-dimensional. The author may have his intentions but the soul of each performance and the spirit in which it speaks its truths to the audience varies. That variation depends on exactly what the director wants the audience to perceive. The strict film adaptation confined itself largely to a set approximating a stage set. It began literally at the beginning without embellishing. Without an introduction, the plot is hard to grasp and it is much easier to criticize the characters for surface impressions than to empathize or und...

Choosing the Right Philosophy Ph.D. Program For You

Choosing the Right Philosophy Ph.D. Program For You Choosing a philosophy  program can be extremely difficult. In the U.S. alone, there are over 100 well-established schools granting graduate degrees (M.A., M.Phil., or Ph.D.) in philosophy. Needless to say, Canada, the U.K., Australia, France, Spain, Holland, Belgium, Germany, and several other countries have advanced degree programs that are well-regarded, too. How should you decide which program is best for you? Length of the Degree and Financial Aid One of the most important factors to consider when choosing an academic program is the length. When it comes to Ph.D. programs, U.S. departments typically require a longer period of study (between roughly four and seven years) and usually offer multi-year financial aid packages. Other countries have different systems, and in the U.K., France, Germany, and Spain, it is more common to find three-year Ph.D. programs, some of which offer financial aid. The financial aid aspect can be a decisive factor for many students. Fresh graduates of philosophy Ph.D. programs can expect to face more challenges in the job market than graduates of law school and medical school programs. Even for graduates fortunate enough to obtain an academic job after completing their degree, it can be difficult to pay off thousands of dollars in loans. For this reason, it is not recommended to begin an advanced degree in philosophy without first securing proper financial aid. Placement Record Another important characteristic of an advanced degree program is its placement record. What sorts of jobs have the graduates from the program secured over the last few years? The placement record  can be an important indicator for prospective students. Keep in mind that placement records can improve or weaken on the basis of  changes in the reputation of the faculty members of the department and, to a smaller degree, of the institution. For instance, the philosophy departments  at  New York University  and  Rutgers University  significantly transformed their reputations since the early 2000s, and in 2017 their graduates were among the most sought-after on the market. Specialty It is, however, important to choose a program that suits the interests of the prospective student. In some cases, a relatively less-known program may actually be a students best choice. For instance, for someone interested in phenomenology and religion, the  University of Louvain  in  Belgium offers an excellent program.  Ohio State University  offers a top-notch program for students interested in the philosophy of mathematics. Because Ph.D. programs take years to complete and require a great investment on the part of the student, it is important to find a school where the student can engage intellectually with other students and faculty on the subjects that most interest them. That may be, in some cases, a prestigious name-brand school. It may also be a smaller school that happens to be less prestigious. Location Enrolling in a Ph.D. program often requires relocating- to a new country, a new city, a new neighborhood. Before making this drastic change, students should consider the location of the school and ask themselves whether they believe they can thrive in that environment. A sleepy college town may be the perfect study-zone for some students. Others may be more comfortable in a crowded city. Prestigious Departments Which schools have the most prestigious philosophy departments? It depends on how you measure prestige. Programs are always changing, and star faculty sometimes move from one program to another. Nevertheless, there are a number of schools that are known for the strength of their philosophy programs. They include Harvard University, Princeton University, the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, University of Pittsburgh, M.I.T., University of Pennsylvania, U.C.L.A., Stanford University, U.C. Berkeley, Columbia University and the University of Chicago. Department Rankings For more detailed information about how different schools compete, students can consult department rankings. The most influential ranking is probably the Philosophical Gourmet Report, edited by Professor Brian Leiter of the University of Chicago. The report, based on the evaluations of 300 faculty members, also contains a number of useful additional resources for prospective students. More recently, the Pluralist’s Guide to Philosophy Graduate Programs  has offered an alternative perspective on the strength of various philosophy departments. This guide focuses on a number of research areas that are not as prominent in Leiters report. Another ranking that deserves some attention is the Hartmann Report, edited by graduate student John Hartmann.

Critical Thinking Paper Draft and Self-evaluation Essay

Critical Thinking Paper Draft and Self-evaluation - Essay Example I am completely motivated and geared up to stop smoking, I remember I smoked for the very first time when I was young and I knew nothing about the damage which smoking could cause, I got to know about the damage only later on and I have been trying hard to quit but the temptation always lingers on and it is quite hard to stop it but this time around I am going to do it and I have already been quite successful. I do not even remember the last time that I smoked and this I think is really a big achievement for me and I am going to carry on and completely stop it because I have realized that it is really dangerous and can cause lung cancer, I have already seen enough pain and suffering in those videos. Those videos have been really useful and have motivated me to quit. Chewing gum has also helped me a ton, whenever I feel the urge to smoke I start chewing and this has been of great help to me, the urge to smoke goes away as soon as I pop it into my mouth and the urge to smoke instantly goes away. â€Å"Nicotine replacement therapies work by giving you a small amount of nicotine, but without the dangerous effects of inhaling tobacco smoke. This helps relieve the withdrawal symptoms and cravings for a cigarette that you get when you stop smoking, and allows you to get on with breaking the psychological habit of smoking. If you are physically addicted to nicotine, using NRT has been shown to almost double your chances of successfully quitting smoking.† (Nicorette Gum) This idea was first suggested to me by a good friend and I tried it and it works like a charm for me, the first time I tried it and I was very happy with the results and I knew this was going to save me, I have bought several gums to help me quit. These are a couple of ideas that have really helped me, discipline in life is really important and I have realized this very late but I am going to follow it till my last breath, I have also understood how difficult it is to give up on vices. Developing

Critical review of a social policy journal (article is available on Essay

Critical review of a social policy journal (article is available on sagepub) - Essay Example Janet attained all these academic qualifications in the University of Essex (The Open University, 2012). The article explains visual research, a form of research that uses photography to study a certain community. The article explains how photography can help in the collection of visual data, which helps in studying the aspects of a given community. The article is a guide on how visual data can help policy makers in obtaining information about the resources and the values that the community values. Janet’s article explains how the data collected using photographs to explain the differences among various communities in the contemporary England. In any society, there are clear issues that affect different communities that interact. There is that group of the society that does not enjoy benefits that other groups enjoy. For example, in Britain some communities are disadvantaged and marginalized in all aspects of life. A study of the experiences of community members and the areas that the communities views as problematic shows the actual gap between different communities in Britain. Visual research using photographs reveals the areas that account for the practices and problems that face the community. In addition, the research also shows the areas that the community members deem as good. ... Visual research is probably the best approach for decision-making about the welfare of a certain disadvantaged community. Critique of the article The article raises a number of issues concerning understanding the society. For instance, many marginalized communities face the problem of vandalism and destruction of property. This is due to the crash of ideas between different members of the society. Therefore, the communities are responsible for their problems in many instances. For instance, young people wanted the field for their own personal issues while other members of the community concerned themselves with protecting the field. The community divided itself along age and gender basis, but it is clear that the community has strong moral and social standards. The article brings to light how photography reveals some aspects that other people assume to be normal. For instance, the photographs on infrastructure indicate the local council's negligence in maintaining infrastructural fac ilities. Understanding the problems of disadvantaged members of the society needs complete masterly of all factors within their environment. Most of these factors, however, appear normal to many individuals, which hinders policy makers from making sense as well as interpreting the factors. The article stresses on the importance of visual data in analysing such information that may appear as irrelevant in the given communities (Fink, 2011). I agree with certain propositions of the article. The article stresses on the contributions of photography in studying various practices and experiences that influence the actions of marginalized communities. Visual research identifies aspects that affect the community and that appear normal in the eyes of many individuals. Policy makers need

Realism in Romantic poetry Essay Example for Free

Realism in Romantic poetry Essay Reality is abstract, as it depends on every individual’s own perspective. When Wordsworth says, â€Å"world is too much with us†, it depends on us how we look at the world, as every being has a world of his own. We acknowledge the events around us with whom we can relate, but ignore many other changes considerable for others. Most of the times, Romantics are considered escapist, and are alleged that their writings reflect an Imaginary world far from the reality surrounding us. But going through various poems of Wordsworth and Coleridge, I find it vice versa. â€Å"All bright and glittering in the smokeless air. Never did sun more beautifully steep In his first splendor, valley, rock, or hill; Ne’er saw I, never felt, a calm so deep! The river glideth at his own sweet will: Dear God! The very houses seem asleep; And all that mighty heart is lying still! † [Westminster Bridge; Wordsworth; Sept 3,1802] The allegation that Wordsworth moved from the harsh realities of the cities brought about by the industrial revolution initiated in 1765. This allegation was made relatively stronger by placing Wordsworth vis-a-vis Victorian realism. In my view such an allegation is a product of superficial readings of his poems. The poem composed upon ‘Westminster Bridge’ illustrates keen sense of socio-economy of the then London. It describes the urban landscape departing from his stock theme based on rural landscape. It talks about the landscape of the city which has been divested to its negative qualities. Like the smoke of the industries, the busy crowd, insensitive to its fellow man and the incessant desire in man to control nature. The term smokeless air is for him a matter to rejoice a state of the city distilled of the harmful effects of industrialization. The line, â€Å"the river glideth at his own sweet will† encapsulates the entire project of Wordsworth vis-a-vis the new call given by the middle class to conquer and exploit nature. In this sense his realism is much more pronounced and subtle than it is taken into account of. Citing from historical context, one can notice the involvement of the likes of Coleridge, Wordsworth and Lamb during French revolution. In 1798, the year ‘Lyrical Ballads’, a joint effort by Wordsworth and Coleridge, came out, was a turbulent period in England’s history. Hostilities had broken out between Her and France in 1793 (and was to last with unremarkable intermission for over twenty years), and by 1798, she was faring badly in the war. Wordsworth had, of course, visited France in 1791-92, and had been in Paris at perhaps the most critical of all the great moments of the French Revolution that began with the destruction of the notorious prison of the Bastille in July 1789. (Coleridge’s poem, An Ode on the Destruction of the Bastille). The political tussle between the Girondins and the Jacobins were at a height, and Wordsworth saw clearly the slow rise of the Jacobins under Robespierre. He felt a deep concern for the Girondin leaders whom he felt were the genuine revolutionaries. He believed in the â€Å"reasonableness† of human nature and also believed passionately that men were â€Å"worthy of liberty†. Wordsworth’s early republicanism, his concern for France and the Revolution is described memorably in his long and autobiographical Prelude: Bliss was it in that dawn to be alive, But to be young was very Heaven! O times, In which the meager, stale, forbidding ways Of custom, law and statute, took at once The attraction of a country in romance! The prelude testifies to the shock that Wordsworth felt in his â€Å"moral nature† when he saw the Revolution that was to redeem mankind, turn to dust. For many, Tom Paine, William Godwin, Coleridge and Wordsworth, the French Revolution was not simply as struggle of a people to be free- it was mankind’s struggle to achieve something better- a new age for the entire human race- when aristocracy and class privilege would give to democracy and â€Å"Reason† would destroy the fetters of superstition and tyranny. Coleridge, like Wordsworth, had been swayed by the ideals of the Revolution, but the savagery and unrestrained mob frenzy under the Terror disillusioned him as did the rise of Napoleon and France’s aggressive conquests of other European nations. In France, An Ode and Fears in Solitude, Coleridge describe his feelings with candour: O France, that mockest Heaven, adulterous, blind, And patriot only in pernicious toils! Are these thy boasts, Champion of humankind? To mix with kings in low lust of sway, Yell in the hunt, and share the murderous prey; To insult the Shrine of Liberty with spoils From freemen torn; to tempt and to betray? [France, An Ode] British sympathizers of the French Revolution like Wordsworth, Coleridge and Southey were lampooned in the conservative press. Coleridge was so much influenced by William Godwin’s idea (Political Justice, 1793) of rejection of authority, abolition of private property, creation of a just state that along with Robert Southey, he was ready to set sail for America to establish a perfect state along the lines charted by Godwin. The political ideas of Wordsworth and Coleridge was also strengthened by pursuing the ideological goals of Unitarianism (which verged on radical deism) and drew heavily on the ideas of English â€Å"Commonwealthman† of the seventeenth century. Side by side to these intellectual debates between the conservatives and the liberals, the economic and the human cost of the war proving to be enormous. In the country, rural poverty was becoming acute and the number of beggars, starving children, gypsies, wounded soldiers roaming the country lanes could be seen from early poetry. Wordsworth’s poetic capability to recreate the sorrows and hardships of these homeless, starving populace is one of his lasting achievement as a poet. The Old Cumberland Beggar in poem of the same name, the traveler of Guilt and Sorrow, the blind London beggar in The Prelude are all powerful figures of forsaken humanity who become permanent symbols of the human condition. The effect of industrialization was viewed by both Wordsworth and Coleridge with a mixture of excitement and distrust. The new industrial cities- Birmingham, Sheffield, Liverpool, Leeds, Manchester, by 1815, contained a large population that had come from the country to look for work, and both Wordsworth and Coleridge were increasingly worried about the rising number of poor. Against the expanding complexities of men living in an industrial wasteland, the destruction of old livelihoods and an increasing impossibility to believe in a benign Providence, harmony with Nature offered the Romantic poets another way of life. The disruptive force of the French Revolution added the impetus to romanticism. There are individual differences among the great romantic poets concerning the conception of nature. But all of them share a common objection to the mechanistic universe of the eighteenth century- even though Wordsworth admires Newton and accepts him, at least in the orthodox interpretation. All romantic poets conceived of nature as an organic whole, on the analogue of man rather than a concourse of atoms- a nature that is not divorced from aesthetic values, which are just as real (or rather more real) than the abstractions of science. My conclusion concerning the romantic poets may be unorthodox and even unconventional. On the whole political criteria seem grossly overrated as a basis for judging a man. References Blake, Wordsworth and Coleridge [Edited by Debjan Sengupta and Shernaz Cama; Worldview Critical Editions] The Prelude by William Wordsworth An Ode on the Destruction of the Bastille by Samuel Taylor Coleridge

How does neglect during infancy affect cognitive development in young c

Child maltreatment takes on many forms and child neglect is the most common. Studies have found that child neglect can be more detrimental to development than physical abuse (Colvert, E., Rutter, M., Kreppner, J., Beckett, C., Castle, J., Groothues, C. & Sonuga-Barke, 2008). Despite this fact, neglect is the least commonly reported form of maltreatment, as it does not leave bruises and marks like physical abuse (DiPanfilis, D., 2006). Neglect during infancy has been found to affect all aspects of development: physical, cognitive, and psychosocial (Hawley, T., Gunner, M., 2000). This paper will examine the effects neglect has on specific areas of cognitive functioning. According to Jean Piaget we all go through stages of cognitive development that aid us in constructing our knowledge of the world. During infancy we are in Piaget’s sensorimotor stage where we begin our construction of the world by coordinating what we think, touch, smell and taste with how we move (Santrock, J., 2011). When an infant is not given the opportunity to explore their world they are not able to progress through the sensorimotor phase effectively. Various factors may lead to the insufficient progression through the sensorimotor stage but this paper will focus specifically on neglect. Neglect is difficult to define in terms of a set of behaviors that are synonymous with neglect because what is considered neglect varies based on the age and developmental level of the child. For the purpose of this paper neglect will be defined as the denial of proper physical, educational, emotional and moral attention and care (DiPanfilis, D., 2006). In 2008 Child Protective Services received 3.3 million reports of child maltreatment and seventy-one percent of them we... ...uncil on the Developing Child, & National Forum on Early Childhood Policy and Programs. (2011). Building the Brain’s â€Å"Air Traffic Control† System: How Early Experiences Shape the Development of Executive Function. Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. Retrieved from http://developingchild.harvard.edu/ 8. Eigsti, I., & Cicchetti, D. (2004). The impact of child maltreatment on expressive syntax at 60 months. Developmental Science, 7(1), 88-102. doi:10.1111/j.1467-7687.2004.00325.x 9. Majer, M., Nater, U. M., Lin, J.-M. S., Capuron, L., & Reeves, W. C. (2010). Association of Childhood Trauma with Cognitive Function in Healthy Adults: A Pilot Study. BMC Neurology. Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdfviewer/ pdfviewer?sid=95e34d47-cde9-4f93-b9ba-82931731842d%40sessionmgr14&vid=1&hid=25

Marriage-Comparison Essay

Marriage, the union of two people, is satirically presented by Evelyn Waugh in the novel ‘A Handful of Dust’ and by Edward Albee in the play ‘Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?’ Both authors adopt a chilling approach to demonstrate the endemic of negative attitudes and pressures of 1930’s London and 1960’s American society placed on to moral institutions such as marriage, with the central protagonists exposed under a powerful ‘microscope’ to reveal the detrimental effects of society. Albee illustrates the emotional strains inflicted on to individuals and couples aspiring to the American Dream and more importantly the result of failing a dream that is unreachable by the majority. In Albee’s play, George and Martha are metaphysically exposed to the ‘peeling away’ of the illusion that surrounds their marriage to reveal the ‘murky opaque depths’ of reality. Waugh on the other hand shows the corrupt and barbaric upper class London society at the time of the Great Industrial Depression, evoking a story of Tony and his manipulative, ‘cat like’ wife Brenda’s failing marriage, and that of the culture and civilisation Waugh so admired. Both Albee and Waugh employ the use of irony in their chosen settings. In ‘Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?’ as ‘large, boisterous’ Martha turns on the light the audience are subjected to an emotional battlefield. Set in a success driven university campus which is a microcosm of society, it is soon made clear it is not a place of learning, achievement and sophisticated culture, one of lust, deceptions and sadness, a place where ‘musical beds is the faculty sport’. People like Martha are motivated by greed and self interest; this indicates the threat of America being New Carthage, destroyed not by another country but by internal corruption and spiritual emptiness, as George reads from ‘The Decline of the West,’ Albee’s Cold War subtext is clear. In contrast Waugh gently eases the reader in to the amicable setting of rural England, with an absence of ‘harsh words’ and ‘scenes of domestic playfulness’ between the Last’s, indicating an external picture of a content marriage. The setting is an extended metaphor of their marriage. Set in Hetton Abbey, named after Arthurian Legend, indicates their marriage is similarly illusionary. With irony, Brenda is appropriately placed in to the bedroom, Guinevere, wife of King Arthur burnt for adultery; this gives the reader an ominous feel from the outset about the subsequent events. The novel depicts Tony’s love for the ancestral, primogeniture home, which like his marriage is ‘devoid of interest.’ Tony is trapped by the ‘huge and quite hideous house’ as Brenda is in the marriage, suggested by Waugh’s use of death imagery used when describing the house ‘like a tomb.’ The ‘damp had penetrated in to one corner’ further indicates the internal decay of the Last’s ‘not in perfect repair’ marriage. The fact Brenda resents Hetton as she has moved there and left her family home- ‘I shouldn’t feel so badly about it if it were a really lovely house- like my house for instance,’ quickly weaves a negative undercurrent to their apparent happiness. Illusions versus reality feature in the marriages in both Waugh’s and Albee’s works. In ‘Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?’ George and Martha’s illusionary son provides escapism, acting as a ‘bean bag’ cushioning their tempestuous, ‘crushing’ marriage from reality. However as the son has been talked about the illusion has become reality too the extreme that the illusion now controls them. The son highlights the pretentious society in which George and Martha live, forced to create a son to fill societies illusions of perfection. The son is for Martha to feel she has fulfilled her role as a woman. However the ‘child’ is not only a desire for fecundity within their relationship but also a projection through which they expose their personal desires, needs and problems. Ironically the son that was supposed to bring the couple closer has become a reason to fight being used as a tool to undermine one another. By ‘killing the son,’ George is realising that the illusion has become out of control, Martha has broke the ‘rules’ by telling Nick and Honey, the ‘pawns’ in their games. The ‘child’s’ death signifies a milestone in their understanding of marriage, George no longer has to compromise his world of reality and Martha is no longer in danger of losing herself in a world of ‘Ilyria’. Symbolically this happens the day before the child would turn 21. Through the child, Albee as an absurdist is illustrating his view that a life of illusion was wrong because it created a false content for life. George and Martha’s empty marriage can clearly only survive if they abandon their illusions. Nick also embodies the illusion in ‘Who’s afraid of Virginia Woolf.’ Nick represents the Arian race with his ‘blondie’ hair and blue eyes are initially seen as†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ However his marriage to the slim- hipped ‘mouse’ is based upon pretence as the child they married for was only a phantom pregnancy. Added to this monetary gain, just as in the Polly Cockpurse of Waugh’s Belgravia, lies at the core of †¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦ Waugh’s ‘A Handful of Dust’ similarly is based on illusion. The barbaric characters and emotionless buildings provide the reader with an external falsity. Mrs Beaver represents the destructive forces of modernity with her suggestion of ‘chromium plating.’ Mrs Beaver’s character conflicts with Tony’s as she destroys old buildings, Tony clings to every ‘glazed brick or encaustic tile’ at Hetton. Tony’s nostalgic ‘feudal’ nature is arguably one of he main reasons for the breakdown of his marriage. Described as ‘stiff white collar’ suggests he has a refusal to change and ironically at the end is left reading Dickens showing inevitable he is stuck in the past. Tony has been blinded by Hetton which provides him with ‘constant delight and exultation,’ however is ‘formerly one of the notable houses of the country’ and not in ‘perfect repair’ therefore ‘dev oid of interest’ to anyone except Tony. Romanticism dominates through Tony, his search for ideals that his parents possessed ‘inseparable in Guinevere’ are unattainable by Tony. Similarly George and Martha can not reach the ideals set by the American dream. George is symbolic of the past who simply ‘sift(s) everything’ plunging him in to a world of history which is as important to him as Tony’s ‘shining city.’ He is a ‘bog in the history department’ unable to compete with the ‘direct threat’ imposed by ‘well- put- together’ Nick who represents ‘the new wave of the future.’ As a scientist he signifies clinical facts and evidence; he is emotionless like his marriage. At ‘twenty eight’ Nick is successful and a high achiever unlike George at ‘fifty something’ who is still ‘in the History department’ and only ran it ‘for four years, while the war was on, but that was because everyone was away.’ Albee seeks to emphasise the sense of alienation, in modern men. George thus attacks the decay of individualism: ‘You’re the one who’s going to make all that trouble†¦making everyone the same.’ History presents a cynical view, George prophesises as he reads out ‘the west must†¦eventually fall’ materialism dominates over culture resulting in sterile intellectualism. However George bares one key element that Tony realisation does not. George recognises the flaws in his ‘dump’ of a marriage whereas Tony similar to Honey is blinded and does not grasp the ‘sad, sad, sad’ truth embodying his marriage. Tony refuses to accept how ‘warped and separated’ he and Brenda have become. The illusion of George and Martha’s marriage is portrayed through language, for when language stops reality exists. George and Martha’s continual battle of incessant banter and ‘total war’ masks a more sinister and damaging reality and therefore, their fear of silence. Truth is shown through non verbal, theatrical devices ‘throwing flowers’ and the use of a toy gun, creating desperate humour through deep anxiety and expectations. Speech is used to gain power and control in order to deceive others. Ironically George comments ‘Martha’s a devil with language’ showing she is manipulative with her acerbic speech and has dominance in the relationship, ‘(Martha) wears the pants in this marriage because someone has to.’ This use of clichà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½s shows a loss of capacity to speak the truth, ‘Your in a straight line†¦.and it doesn’t lead anywhere†¦.except maybe the grave’ underlined by t he root of terror in the play, the notion of life being meaningless. The regressive language is symbolic of the Martha and George being trapped by their childhoods and therefore they acquire attacking roles in a childish manner. However in contrast the callous Martha uses beautiful language when talking about their child, ‘And his eyes were green†¦green with†¦if u peered so deep in to them†¦so deep†¦bronze†¦bronze parentheses around the irises†¦such green eyes’ showing that when sincerity and love exists the aggressive language stops. At the end the simple, basic language, stripped of all metaphors and clichà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½s reflects the simple, basic reality that George and Martha now face. In contrast to Albee’s use of vibrant and destructive language, in ‘A Handful of Dust’ conventional, banal and ordinary language dominates. Similarly to George and Martha, Brenda and Tony are shown in scenes of childlike playfulness. The alphabet diet is cute and endearing, but has an underlying tension as they are confined by the constraints the diet creates. The emptiness of the emotionless, large dining room they dine in which ‘even today mild elsewhere, it was bitterly cold in the dining hall’ further shows a lack of warmth between characters. The reader’s first encounter of the Lasts boosts a content marriage ‘While he ate breakfast Brenda read to him from the papers’ however the reader is aware of the negative undertones of the monotonous marriage ‘These scenes of domestic playfulness had been more or less continuous in Tony and Brenda’s life for seven years.’ Waugh stylistically and subtly reveals problems through his use of setting ‘There seemed to be no way of securing an even temperature in that room.’ The reader is also lead to question the stab ility of the Lasts marriage through Mrs Beaver comments ‘everyone thought (Brenda) would marry Jock,’ and ‘(Tony’s) a prig. I should say it was time that she began to be bored.’ George and Martha, the quintessentially dysfunctional couple are emotionally trapped by their respective childhoods, as a consequence they both are exposed to low self image and esteem. The history of the couples past is slowly revealed by Albee to the audience. Martha tells Nick and Honey in Act One that her mother died when she was young and she became very close to her father, she married briefly but her father had the marriage annulled. After college she fell in love with George which she thought would please her father. However George is not the high achiever that would satisfy her father. Martha is a lost ‘Daddy’s girl’ who hasn’t left behind the prospect of his unconditional love. George is also revealed to have had a troubled childhood. The revealed plot of his failed novel where a teenager kills both his parents is later publicised by Martha that George was in fact the teenager in his novel. Although the audience doesn’t know whether this is true it does explain George’s guilt about his parents. Albee is suggesting through these parental bonds that human relationships stem from human vulnerability. In ‘A Handful of Dust’ parental roles do not strive in adultous ‘fashionable’ London. Brenda and Tony are ineffectual as parents and as John Andrew reveals he prefers the groom ‘Ben far more.’ Waugh uses John Andrew as a satirical tool to expose the falsity of upper class society. He also reveals Tony’s ineffectualness in disciplining his son and the emotionless Brenda as a direct contrast to Jenny Abdul Akbar who John Andrew is ‘infatuated’ by the attention she provides him with. John Andrew’s death acts as a watershed in the novel. For Brenda the death symbolises her last link with Tony and a chance to escape the world she is trapped by and ironically highlights Tony misjudgement as he does not ‘know Brenda so well’. As Brenda ‘burst in to tears’ this is arguably the realisation that she has thought of John Beaver over her own son and goes to the extremes of immorality of ‘Oh thank God ’ when she is told her son has died, not a reaction expected from a mother that has been told her son has died. The death simply signifies the end of the Lasts marriage ‘Don’t you see Tony, its all over.’ Brenda with her manipulative, ‘cat like’ ways who utilises her female charms to her full advantage and is arguably more responsible for the breakdown of her marriage. As she applies her make up it acts as a symbolic ‘mask’ to cover up the reality of the deceit. In order to get her flat she ‘sat close to Tony on the sofa and ate some sugar out of his cup’ and ‘rubbed against his cheek in the way she had,’ this seductive way highlights the weakness of men. By getting the flat Tony is compromising the repairs he wants to make to Hetton. On the other hand Waugh suggests that it is Tony that it is pushing Brenda in to a society of adultery. Portrayed as an ‘imprisoned princess’ in a castle as though a character in a fairytale, Brenda is frustrated by her limited role and Beaver acts as a lifeline to get her out of the ‘big house.’ She is clearly eager for information of London and ‘jokes that have been going around for six weeks.’ Brenda however stays in control of the marital breakdown. The letter that Brenda leaves is merely a pencil note showing her lack of commitment and respect for Tony. The pencil is symbolic of the marital vows that can easily be erased and irretrievable like death vows ‘Ashes to ashes, dust to dust.’ Waugh uses Tony’s search for a ‘hidden city’ to show Tony’s transition from one period of his life to another. Similarly Brenda moves to London in search of a new chapter in her life. Although we can argue that Tony’s decision to go on the exploration shows courage and strength, someone else has planned the trip therefore it is ineffectual. His journey to enlightenment is made in intellectual darkness symbolically leading to his worst nightmare. Added to this the fever he acquires on his journey is representive of his whole life being a grotesque hallucination. Tony ‘had a clear picture in his mind’ that the city he was searching for would be like a ‘transfigured Hetton’ illustrating that Tony is still trapped in the past, inspiring pathos from the reader. When Tony is faced with the harsh reality of life, his real world is destroyed. Romanticism can not save Tony from reality, it is not a refuge and cannot save a near innocent man from being sacrificed because of his complacency. Arguable through a number of short scenes in the jungle and London, Waugh is trying to show similarities of the two settings ‘her ladyship has gone to live in Brazil’ both uncivilised worlds are ‘oceans apart’ yet are both uncivilised and animalistic, inhabited by ‘savages’. Religion is an occurring theme in both Albee’s play and Waugh novel. Albee uses blasphemy ‘Goddam’ at both the start and end of act one. The audience may not be surprised at this language in the godless environment we are introduced however we are more concerned about Martha’s comment that she was an atheist at school and furthermore the uncertainty of whether she still is. Marriage as a religious bond makes the audience doubt the importance of religion when presented with a ‘sewer’ of a marriage. Religion is represented through Honeys father although it is corrupted by the mention of him having money which further questions Nicks motives for marrying Honey. At the end of the play the mystery of religion begins when language ends through the use of ‘Jesus Christ.’ Injuxtaposition Waugh makes little references to religion. Tony attends church on Sundays from which he gained ‘great satisfaction.’ ‘On days of exceptional clearness, the spires of six churches’ could be seen from Hetton instigating that it is Tony who includes religion in to his life not Brenda. Hetton is a city of romantism and fantasy rather than a city of God. Animal imagery is referred to in both texts, to emphasise the moral crudity of events taking place. As Nick ‘mount(s) (Martha) like a goddam dog’ in order to gain status, it shows the need to succeed overcomes morality. Martha an ‘earth mother’ is tolerant of the ‘lunk heads’ who strive for promotion using her in ‘totally pointless infidelities.’ Waugh however uses animal imagery to further his satirical approach and emphasise the farcical characters. Polly Cockpurse is referred to as being similar to a ‘monkey’ by John Andrew. Money orientated, she is a predator only acting for her own interests, after rich men for their money. Mrs Beaver similarly extends the satirical animal imagery by suggesting she like a beaver, digging for gossip. Both of these characters are deliberately ridiculous, highlighting the absurdity of the glamorous Belgravia backdrop in which these people are created. Similarly Waugh uses pathetic fallacy to emphasise characters’ emotions and relationships. Directly after commenting on the Lasts’ marriage, Waugh makes references to the weather around Hetton ‘mist in the hollows and pale sunshine on the hills†¦..the undergrowth was wet, dark in the shadows’ which directly suggests an ominous feel surrounding the Lasts’ marriage. When Tony goes ‘In search of a city,’ Waugh is suggesting that similar to the waves, Tony is ‘plunging†¦in to the black depths.’ In the same way ‘the sky- over head was neutral and steely with swollen clouds’ symbolically showing that Tony is ‘exposed’ in a world that is unclear. However when Tony has a liaison with Thà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½rà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½se de Vitrà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ there was ‘A week of blue water that grew clearer and more tranquil daily, of sun that grew warmer’ presents the idea that Tony is happy although with no clear blue skies he is vulnerable and ‘lost.’ Likewise as Thà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½rà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½se de Vitrà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ ‘said goodbye to Tony’ the ‘Blue water came to an end’ and ‘rain fell continuously’ showing Tony’s emotions are as changeable as the weather. The ‘light breeze’ and ‘brilliant, cool sunshine’ at Tony’s funeral represents that the turbulent emotions have come to an end. In one ‘liquor ridden night’ Martha and George have been forced to face their worst fears. As Martha ‘chews on her ice cubes’ the faà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ade in which surrounds there marriage has been chipped away leaving inner truth and emotion that has previously been undisclosed. In the closing scene to the play, the audience endure a feeling of pathos for Martha and George, encouraged by the pace of the dialogue slowing down and the decrease in volume allowing the audience to reflect. The final images are of George and Martha left ‘just us’ in a state of unity. George sings at the end ‘Who’s afraid of Virginia Woolf?’ and Martha replies ‘I am.’ As the song represents being scared of life without illusion this response shows Martha is scared of a life of reality. In contrast ‘A Handful of Dust’ ends with a change of owner and the ending of the regime of tradition at Hetton that controlled Tony symbolising the end of Brenda and Tony’s tumultuous marriage. I agree with Rosa Flannery who suggests the breeding of silver foxes is ‘representative of the new breed of savages that roam England,’ Waugh is presenting a landscape of deceit and greed which prevails in a materialistic world; ‘They lived in pairs; some were moderately tame but it was unwise to rely upon them.’ It is not without sharp irony that Brenda survives, whilst Tony languishes in a†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. In both texts the marriages presented are encapsulated by society’s expectations that they are blinded by illusion. When faced with reality Martha and George can unite, however Tony and Brenda Lasts marriage is as unsubstantial as ‘A Handful of Dust.’