The Stranger #3 Analysis

            The author of The Stranger, Albert Camus, expresses the ideals of Absurdism through Mersault’s relationship to the external world. The symbolic relationship between Mersault and the sun that shadows him is a prime example of how Camus deliberately expresses the ideals of Absurdism. Mersault associates his attitude towards the external world through the symbolic representation of the sun, where the sun’s heat

“Was pressing down on me and making it hard for me to go on. And every time I felt a blast of its hot breath strike my face, I gritted my teeth, clenched my fists in my trouser pockets, and strained every nerve in order to overcome the sun and the thick drunkenness it was spilling over me” (Camus 57).

Mersault’s attitude is clear based on the sun’s continuous glaring stare, yet his unsolvable attitude seems to be true based on why Mersault cannot compose himself. The unbearable heat causes him to battle with the external world in the sense that Mersault cannot maintain his composer while faced with external aspects in the world. He strictly emphasizes on his own one-sided beliefs rather than showing any expression to the outer world. A world exists inside Mersault’s mind in which it ultimately conflicts him to reside into an isolated state in the external world. 

We Real Cool Analysis

Thesis: Gwendolyn Brooks, the poet of “We Real Cool”, illustrates the essence of troubled adolescents who will eventually succumb to the ill-fated possibility that life renders a human being if they continue the lifestyle of the streets.

            The short poem is specifically worded and formatted to accentuate the ill-fated possibility adolescents may suffer in life. The repetition in “We” (Brooks 1) throughout the entire poem is deliberately used to demonstrate how teenagers abide to not caring about education. Furthermore, the constant usage of “We” indicates that these boys are proclaiming their arrival at the pool facility as if they have never been there before. The tone throughout the poem is very monotonous yet upbeat as well, and the last line “We / Die soon” (7-8) summarizes the total meaning Gwendolyn Brooks attempts to illustrate throughout the poem. Brooks deliberately shortens the poem into fragmented phrases in order to highlight the poem’s frank meaning, which is that the poem highlights the students who drop out of high school, live on the streets, and ultimately die. Brooks’ poem idealizes upon an impressive and profound implication: no education and living a carefree lifestyle as a dropout—compounded with street life—will most likely yield death. 

The Stranger #2 Analysis

            Albert Camus’s The Stranger actively engages the principles of Absurdism through Salamano’s interaction with Mersault. The absurd is born out of the confrontation between human need and the unreasonable silence of the world. Absurdism correlates with Existentialism, where this philosophy is marked by a set of themes about the human conditions, struggles, and freedoms that humans must endure or embrace. The interaction between Mersault and Salamano explicates an example of Absurdism and Existentialism where Mersault describes that “Every night and every morning after the dog had gotten that skin disease, Salamano rubbed him with ointment. But according to him, the dog’s real sickness was old age, and there’s no cure for old age” (Camus 45). Salamano’s belief towards his dog’s skin disease suggests that no matter how he attempts to cure his dog, Salamano will not be able to. According to Absurdism, the universe will never truly care for humanity the way we truly want it to. Salamano wishes that the dog’s deterioration is caused by the disease, but instead, Salamano overcomes this fact to accept the tragedy: “the dog’s real sickness was old age, and there’s no cure for old age”. As much as Salamano desires for a simple solution, Absurdism takes its part by confronting Salamano with the unchangeable care for humanity and its desires. 

Crossing the Bar Analysis

Death, according to individuals today, is usually interpreted as an end to one’s life, the end of one’s twisted road through life, and individuals fearfully approach such a topic. However, Lord Tennyson describes in “Crossing the Bar” the captivity of an old man’s acceptance of death through Tennyson’s clear understanding of death. “Crossing the Bar” is about an old man’s firsthand account about realizing death is near, and after further examination, the true meaning of the poem becomes visible to the readers and provokes a rather unpleasant interpretation of death.

            Tennyson’s descriptive imagery is deliberately used to illustrate the speaker’s inevitable realization of death. The important image Tennyson provokes within the poem is highlighted in “I hope to see my Pilot face to face / When I have crossed the bar” (Tennyson 16-17). The fact that the speaker ultimately realizes him to have “crossed the bar” relates to how an individual crosses to the other side when exposed to death. The “crossing” refers both to crossing over into the next world, and to the act of “crossing” oneself in the classic Catholic gesture of religious faith and devotion. The cross itself was also where Jesus died; now as the speaker approaches death, he evokes the image again. This image is valuable for the speaker to recognize the inevitable perception of death individuals perceive as they are finally exposed to death. Once at that point, and in regards to Tennyson’s poem, the poet relates how the speaker approaches death as an inevitable, non-fearful part of life as he states “And may there be no sadness of farewell / When I embark” (11-12). The speaker shows no sign of despair or sadness while being faced with death. He simply wishes to “cross” to the other side, wishing to see the other world in life.  

PODG #8 Analysis

            Throughout Oscar Wilde’s fictional novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, Dorian is characterized as a character in which Dorian experiences a drastic personality change through Lord Henry’s influence. In the beginning, Dorian is viewed as a shy character and possesses a blank slate. Lord Henry, throughout the novel, attempts to shape Dorian’s behavior and constructs an avatar in which he sees Dorian as a perfection of art. Dorian, however, is faced with confrontations of sins in which they ultimately force Dorian to slowly lose control of his conscious.

            Throughout the novel Dorian has been viewed as a symbol of beauty, and an avatar of perfection. However, Lord Henry’s influence regarding perfection in beauty has caused Dorian to alter his conscious into a state of insanity. Dorian eventually realizes that Basil’s portrait is truly the basis for Dorian’s evil. In the middle of a conversation between Dorian and Lord Henry, Dorian reflects upon his beauty and how he wishes to escape the fear and guilt he has as a result of murdering Basil and states that “I have no terror of Death. It is the coming of Death that terrifies me” (Wilde 209). The fact that the word “Death” is capitalized suggests a deeper connection Dorian feels with it. He encompasses Death as an inevitable part of life, yet he fears of it because he “feel[s] as if something horrible were going to happen” (208) to him. Dorian predominantly fears of being assassinated by Sibyl Vane’s brother, James, since Dorian originally often reflects upon the death of Sibyl as an act of indirect murder. Although James is accidentally shot in the woods, Dorian feels a slight sense of satisfaction since he realizes that he is no longer hunted. Although Dorian is viewed as an avatar of beauty and perfection, he ultimately blames his conscious and his beauty for destroying his conscious. The author suggests that “It was his beauty that had ruined him, his beauty and the youth that he had prayed for” (226). Dorian, in the beginning of the novel, wishes that his beauty remained young and youthful as the portrait aged. However, the aging portrait at Dorian’s surprise caused Dorian to ultimately reflect upon his youthful status and eventually caused Dorian to conclude that the source of all his evil was simply his beauty. Given Lord Henry’s admiration and attraction for Dorian’s beauty, his influence of Dorian has in due course caused Dorian to destroy the portrait, thus being able to destroy a source of his sins along with the fact that Lord Henry manipulates Dorian with Dorian’s upmost beauty. Dorian wishes to start a new life and to throw away his own soul, which in his eyes, leads him to stab the portrait with the same knife used to murder Basil. By presumably destroying his conscious, Dorian is able to liberate himself from the grasp of evil he confronted as a result of Lord Henry’s influence over him. Dorian was basically an experimentation at Lord Henry’s free will.  

            

PODG #7 Analysis

            The sins Dorian have committed throughout the novel have created a representative façade of himself through his infamous position in society. The sole act of killing Basil Hallward established a devilish and fanatical identity, and as a result, Dorian’s corrupted soul is a direct product of the sins he has committed to both Basil and himself.

            The memory of murdering Basil evokes a fearful tangent Dorian pursues on in order to diminish the troubled, horror-stricken sins. As Dorian converses with Adrian Campbell in the outskirts of London, the memory of Basil Hallward has been continuously haunting Dorian ever since the act was committed. Oscar Wilde mentions that “Memory, like a horrible malady, was eating his soul away. From time to time he seemed to see the eyes of Basil Hallward looking at him” (193). Dorian recognizes his sins ever since he committed the murder, yet he wishes to escape these sins by the means of drugs. The fact that the “eyes of Basil Hallward” is periodically looking at Dorian symbolizes the foreshadowing of James Vane, Sibyl’s brother, and how he promised to kill the man that would destroy Sibyl.

The wish Dorian makes initially to Basil as he paints the portrait signifies the eventual degradation of Dorian. Dorian originally wishes for his youth to stay permanent while the picture altered. As a result, his wish is symbolized by what the prostitute exclaims to Dorian as he rushes out of the bar, saying “They say he has sold himself to the devil for a pretty face” (197). Dorian was originally willing to give his soul away to keep his natural, charming looks that society inevitably look up to. In reality, Dorian’s degradation altered his confidence, sanity, and more importantly, his view of what beauty is.

            Lord Henry ultimately relies on his sporadic comments in order to shed enlightenment on Dorian; instead, they cause Dorian to reflect upon his woeful sins. Lord Henry ultimately explains to Dorian that “Every effect that one produces gives one an enemy. To be popular one must be a mediocrity” (201). Henry indirectly describes Dorian’s infamous state in society by referring to it as an infamous figure in society. Dorian is well aware of his state in society due to the constant degradation he must face as the portrait dehumanizes itself in correspondence to Dorian’s sins. It must become clear to Dorian that the portrait will always dehumanize itself as long as Dorian stands true to his previously uttered wish. Unfortunately, Dorian is constantly reminded of his sins as Lord Henry and their guests are bewildered upon Dorian’s interesting charisma.

            

PODG #5 Analysis

            Lord Henry’s continuous influence over Dorian Gray clearly takes a toll on how Dorian views life; by presenting Dorian with the novel, Lord Henry is able to complete his ultimate mission of brainwashing Dorian into an avatar of misconstrued proportions. The book Lord Henry gives Dorian causes a sudden engagement into the book Dorian “never sought to free himself from it” (Wilde 130). The book had influenced him to aspire to new heights throughout the years. Dorian also mentions that he, on occasion, viewed himself through the main character of the book. Ultimately, Wilde relates that “Dorian Gray had been poisoned by a book. There were moments when he looked on evil simply as a mode through which he could realize his conception of the beautiful” (150). Through Lord Henry’s constant influence, Dorian remarks to Basil regarding Henry’s influence over Dorian, stating that “You have not realized how I have developed. I was a schoolboy when you knew me. I am a man now. I have new passions, new thoughts, new ideas” (114). Henry’s constant influence over Dorian has shaped him into a symbol of paradoxical elements. Dorian influences others by his sheer beauty, yet he hides his inner degradation by physically locking away Basil’s portrait. Previously, prior to Dorian witnessing the alteration in the portrait, Dorian was classified as a blank slate, or an individual who has not learned what life truly is. Lord Henry attempts to manipulate Dorian’s young mind into a misconstrued individual of misconstrued perfection. In other words, Dorian allows Lord Henry to cast over his dire influence while Dorian conflicts between the portrait and his physical being.