The Hero’s Journey
The Mono-Myth
Text Adapted from Coverage by Chris Vogler
The Mono-Myth
• a community is threatened by evil
• a selfless hero emerges to renounce temptations and carry out the task
• aided by fate and a mentor, his victory restores the community to its paradisiacal condition
– These mythic elements are common to the legends, folklore and fairy tales of all cultures
THE HERO IS INTRODUCED IN HIS ORDINARY WORLD.
• The writer creates a contrast by showing him in his ordinary world first
• Most stories take place in a special world, a world that is new and alien to its hero
THE CALL TO ADVENTURE
• The hero is presented with:
– a problem,
– challenge,
– or an adventure
HERO IS INITIALLY RELUCTANT
• Often at this point, the hero balks at the threshold of adventure.
• After all, he or she is facing the greatest of all fears -- fear of the unknown
THE HERO IS ENCOURAGED BY A MENTOR
• The mentor gives advice and sometimes magical weapons
• The mentor can only go so far with the hero
• Eventually the hero must face the unknown by himself
• Sometimes the mentor has to give the hero a swift kick in the pants to get the adventure going
THE HERO PASSES THE FIRST THRESHOLD
• He fully enters the special world of his story for the first time
• This is the moment at which the adventure gets going
• The hero is now committed to his journey... and there's no turning back
THE HERO IS TESTED AND GETS NEEDED HELP
• The hero makes allies and enemies in the special world
• and faces challenges and tests that are part of his training
THE HERO REACHES THE INNERMOST CAVE
• The hero comes at last to a dangerous place, often deep underground, where the object of his quest is hidden.
• He must confront his or hers worst fears... and overcome them
THE HERO ENDURES THE SUPREME ORDEAL
• He faces the possibility of death. This is a critical moment in any story, an ordeal in which the hero appears to die and is born again.
• We are temporarily depressed, and then we are revived by the hero's resurrection
THE HERO SIEZES THE “SWORD”
• The hero now takes possession of the treasure he's come seeking
– a special weapon
– an elixir which can heal the wounded land
– knowledge and experience that leads to greater understanding and a reconciliation with hostile forces
• The hero may settle a conflict
– with his father
– with nemesis.
– may also be reconciled with a woman. Often she is the treasure he's come to win or rescue, and there is often a love scene or sacred marriage at this point
THE ROAD BACK
• The hero is pursued by the vengeful forces from whom he has stolen the elixir or the treasure
• If the hero has not yet managed to reconcile with his father or the gods etc., they may come raging after him at this point
RESURRECTION
• The hero emerges from the special world, transformed by his experience.
• There is often a replay here of the mock death-and-rebirth as the hero once again faces death and survives
• He is transformed by his experience
RETURN WITH THE ELIXIR
• The hero comes back to his ordinary world, with the elixir, treasure, or some lesson from the special world
• Unless he comes back with the elixir or some boon to mankind, he's doomed to repeat the adventure until he does
• Many comedies use this ending as a foolish character refuses to learn his lesson and embarks on the same folly that got him in trouble in the first place
• The hero earns:
• treasure
• or love
• or knowledge
• or a good story to tell
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Notes on Invisible Man
Written in the politically and socially turbulent 1940s, Invisible Man is one of the definitive novels of the African-American experience; it is also one of the definitive novels for all Americans. The issues Ellison so powerfully addresses are those that confront everyone who lives in the modern world: not only racism but the very question of personal identity, our frustrated impulse to assert ourselves in a world which is metaphorically blind. Ellison's hero is invisible within the larger culture because he is black, but his feelings can easily be understood by all those who experience the anonymity of modern life. Shortly before his death Ellison acknowledged the fact that his novel had expanded the very meaning of the word "invisible." Invisibility, he said, "touches anyone who lives in a big metropolis." (New Yorker, 5/2/94)
The novel's nameless narrator (the Invisible Man) is representative of many intelligent young African-Americans of his generation. Born and raised in the rural South, he is a star pupil at a college for black students. He dreams of racial uplift through humility and hard work, a doctrine preached by the school and the larger Southern culture. When his innocent idealism lands him in trouble, he comes to understand the hypocrisy behind the school's professed philosophy.
The naive young man is "educated" by being slowly disabused of all his ideals. Despite this, in the end he chooses to reject cynicism and hatred and to embrace a philosophy of hope. Ellison wanted his novel to transcend the rage and hopelessness of the protest novel and assert a world of possibility, however remote. It is surreal because "life is surreal," and it is funny—often hilariously so—because "what else was there to sustain our will to persevere but laughter?" [p. xv]. The novel also reflects the rhetorical richness of the African-American culture, using a wide range of idiomatic styles. Ellison's anti-realism stood out at a time when realism was the dominant fictional style, particularly in the protest novel. Through it he asserts the excitement of human experience in a world in which the unexpected is always happening.
“In our society, it is not unusual for a Negro to experience a sensation that he does not exist in the real world at all. He seems rather to exist in the nightmarish fantasy of the white American mind as a phantom that the white mind seeks unceasingly, by means both crude and subtle, to slay.” (“An American Dilemma: A Review,” Shadow and Act)
Often described as a bildungsroman, or coming-of-age story, Invisible Man is the tale of a black man’s search for identity and visibility in white America. Convinced that his existence depends on gaining the support, recognition, and approval of whites—whom he has been taught to view as powerful, superior beings who control his destiny—the narrator spends nearly 20 years trying to establish his humanity in a society that refuses to see him as a human being. Ultimately, he realizes that he must create his own identity, which rests not on the acceptance of whites, but on his own acceptance of the past.
Published in 1952, more than a decade before the Civil Rights Act of 1964 declared racial segregation illegal, Invisible Man spans approximately 20 years, tracing the narrator’s life from his high school graduation in Greenwood, South Carolina, to his involvement in the Harlem Riot of 1943. By tracing the narrator’s journey from the rural South to the urban North, the novel emulates the movement of the slave narratives, autobiographies written by formerly enslaved black Africans that trace their escape routes from bondage in the South to freedom in the North. This fact is important to our understanding of Invisible Man, because allusions to Frederick Douglass (like the narrator’s grandfather) symbolize the ghost of slavery alluded to at several critical points in the novel.
The narrator’s path also traces the path of thousands of Southern blacks who moved to the North during the 1930s and 40s in search of better jobs and new opportunities during the Great Migration.
Call and response—a concept rooted in the traditional Negro sermons in which the pastor’s impassioned call elicits an equally impassioned response from the congregation—is one of the defining elements of African American literature. With this in mind, Invisible Man can be read as a response to Langston Hughes’ poem, “Harlem,” which poses the question, “What happens to a dream deferred? . . . Does it explode?” According to Ellison, who also explores the myth of the American Dream, the answer is a resounding, “Yes!” In addition to Langston Hughes, the two authors who had the greatest influence on Ellison’s writing style were T. S. Eliot and Richard Wright. Ellison was especially intrigued with Eliot’s Wasteland, a poem that explores the spiritual wasteland of contemporary society, and with Wright’s acclaimed protest novel, Native Son, and his nonfiction work, 12 Million Black Voices, which Ellison felt was even more powerful than Native Son. Ellison was also influenced by H.G. Wells’ science fiction novel, The Invisible Man, and Richard Wright’s short story, “The Man Who Lived Underground.”
A complex, multi-layered novel, Invisible Man can be read as an allegory (a story with both a literal and symbolic meaning that can be read, understood, and interpreted at several levels) that traces the narrator’s perilous journey from innocence to experience and from blind ignorance to enlightened awareness. Invisible Man can also be read as a quest narrative (mono-myth). Like Homer’s Odyssey and Dante’s Divine Comedy—both of which are alluded to in the novel—Invisible Man involves a symbolic journey to the underworld, where the narrator must meet and defeat various monsters—such as Brother Jack—and overcome seemingly impossible trials in order to return home.
Ellison’s use of inverted reality, creating a world that mirrors the reality of the white world, is a key structural element in Invisible Man. In the narrator’s world, black is white, up is down, light is darkness, and insanity is sanity. This structural device is used to illustrate that blacks, due to their perceived inferior status in American society, often experience a radically different reality than whites, creating the illusion that blacks and whites live in two different worlds. The white man’s American dream is the black man’s nightmare, and behavior deemed normal for whites is deemed abnormal (or crazy) for blacks. A key example is the novel’s closing scene: The narrator returns to his underground home, the basement (coal cellar) of a whites-only apartment building. Although this can be viewed as a physical move down into darkness and despair, in the narrator’s inverted reality, his return to his underground habitat illustrates a psychological move up towards awareness and enlightenment.
Unlike conventional novels that present a series of related sequential events, Invisible Man consists of a series of seemingly unrelated scenes or episodes—often expressed in the form of stories or sermons—linked only by the narrator’s comments and observations. In this way, the structure of the novel mirrors the structure of a jazz composition, players stepping forward to perform their impromptu solos, then stepping back to rejoin their group.
The structure also emulates the oral tradition of preliterate societies. Passed down orally from generation to generation, their stories embodied a people’s culture and history. In the novel, each character’s story can be viewed as a lesson that contributes to the narrator’s growth and awareness, bringing him closer to an understanding of his own people’s culture and history.
(Notes)
The novel's nameless narrator (the Invisible Man) is representative of many intelligent young African-Americans of his generation. Born and raised in the rural South, he is a star pupil at a college for black students. He dreams of racial uplift through humility and hard work, a doctrine preached by the school and the larger Southern culture. When his innocent idealism lands him in trouble, he comes to understand the hypocrisy behind the school's professed philosophy.
The naive young man is "educated" by being slowly disabused of all his ideals. Despite this, in the end he chooses to reject cynicism and hatred and to embrace a philosophy of hope. Ellison wanted his novel to transcend the rage and hopelessness of the protest novel and assert a world of possibility, however remote. It is surreal because "life is surreal," and it is funny—often hilariously so—because "what else was there to sustain our will to persevere but laughter?" [p. xv]. The novel also reflects the rhetorical richness of the African-American culture, using a wide range of idiomatic styles. Ellison's anti-realism stood out at a time when realism was the dominant fictional style, particularly in the protest novel. Through it he asserts the excitement of human experience in a world in which the unexpected is always happening.
“In our society, it is not unusual for a Negro to experience a sensation that he does not exist in the real world at all. He seems rather to exist in the nightmarish fantasy of the white American mind as a phantom that the white mind seeks unceasingly, by means both crude and subtle, to slay.” (“An American Dilemma: A Review,” Shadow and Act)
Often described as a bildungsroman, or coming-of-age story, Invisible Man is the tale of a black man’s search for identity and visibility in white America. Convinced that his existence depends on gaining the support, recognition, and approval of whites—whom he has been taught to view as powerful, superior beings who control his destiny—the narrator spends nearly 20 years trying to establish his humanity in a society that refuses to see him as a human being. Ultimately, he realizes that he must create his own identity, which rests not on the acceptance of whites, but on his own acceptance of the past.
Published in 1952, more than a decade before the Civil Rights Act of 1964 declared racial segregation illegal, Invisible Man spans approximately 20 years, tracing the narrator’s life from his high school graduation in Greenwood, South Carolina, to his involvement in the Harlem Riot of 1943. By tracing the narrator’s journey from the rural South to the urban North, the novel emulates the movement of the slave narratives, autobiographies written by formerly enslaved black Africans that trace their escape routes from bondage in the South to freedom in the North. This fact is important to our understanding of Invisible Man, because allusions to Frederick Douglass (like the narrator’s grandfather) symbolize the ghost of slavery alluded to at several critical points in the novel.
The narrator’s path also traces the path of thousands of Southern blacks who moved to the North during the 1930s and 40s in search of better jobs and new opportunities during the Great Migration.
Call and response—a concept rooted in the traditional Negro sermons in which the pastor’s impassioned call elicits an equally impassioned response from the congregation—is one of the defining elements of African American literature. With this in mind, Invisible Man can be read as a response to Langston Hughes’ poem, “Harlem,” which poses the question, “What happens to a dream deferred? . . . Does it explode?” According to Ellison, who also explores the myth of the American Dream, the answer is a resounding, “Yes!” In addition to Langston Hughes, the two authors who had the greatest influence on Ellison’s writing style were T. S. Eliot and Richard Wright. Ellison was especially intrigued with Eliot’s Wasteland, a poem that explores the spiritual wasteland of contemporary society, and with Wright’s acclaimed protest novel, Native Son, and his nonfiction work, 12 Million Black Voices, which Ellison felt was even more powerful than Native Son. Ellison was also influenced by H.G. Wells’ science fiction novel, The Invisible Man, and Richard Wright’s short story, “The Man Who Lived Underground.”
A complex, multi-layered novel, Invisible Man can be read as an allegory (a story with both a literal and symbolic meaning that can be read, understood, and interpreted at several levels) that traces the narrator’s perilous journey from innocence to experience and from blind ignorance to enlightened awareness. Invisible Man can also be read as a quest narrative (mono-myth). Like Homer’s Odyssey and Dante’s Divine Comedy—both of which are alluded to in the novel—Invisible Man involves a symbolic journey to the underworld, where the narrator must meet and defeat various monsters—such as Brother Jack—and overcome seemingly impossible trials in order to return home.
Ellison’s use of inverted reality, creating a world that mirrors the reality of the white world, is a key structural element in Invisible Man. In the narrator’s world, black is white, up is down, light is darkness, and insanity is sanity. This structural device is used to illustrate that blacks, due to their perceived inferior status in American society, often experience a radically different reality than whites, creating the illusion that blacks and whites live in two different worlds. The white man’s American dream is the black man’s nightmare, and behavior deemed normal for whites is deemed abnormal (or crazy) for blacks. A key example is the novel’s closing scene: The narrator returns to his underground home, the basement (coal cellar) of a whites-only apartment building. Although this can be viewed as a physical move down into darkness and despair, in the narrator’s inverted reality, his return to his underground habitat illustrates a psychological move up towards awareness and enlightenment.
Unlike conventional novels that present a series of related sequential events, Invisible Man consists of a series of seemingly unrelated scenes or episodes—often expressed in the form of stories or sermons—linked only by the narrator’s comments and observations. In this way, the structure of the novel mirrors the structure of a jazz composition, players stepping forward to perform their impromptu solos, then stepping back to rejoin their group.
The structure also emulates the oral tradition of preliterate societies. Passed down orally from generation to generation, their stories embodied a people’s culture and history. In the novel, each character’s story can be viewed as a lesson that contributes to the narrator’s growth and awareness, bringing him closer to an understanding of his own people’s culture and history.
(Notes)
Mono-Myth Archetypes
ARCHETYPES
I. Hero - The Hero affects change through invention or discovery. The Hero is called out to embark on a Sacred Journey which will forever change his or her world. It is through the eyes of the Hero that we experience the Journey.
II. Herald - The Herald announces the Call to Adventure and/or issues the Challenge to our Hero. The Herald can take virtually any possible form or incarnation. Once the call and/or challenged has been made by the Herald, the Hero must then choose to accept, reject, or pause in reluctance to consider the Call to Adventure and/or Challenge.
It is important to note that the Herald can appear at any point during the Hero's Journey.
III. Wise Man/Woman - The Wise Man/Woman (usually supernatural/otherworldly in nature) guides the Hero towards his or her Path. The Wise Man/Woman offers instruction and insight, and may even equip the Hero with a magical gift/tool/weapon that will aid in the Hero in his or her Journey.
The Wise Man/Woman is a mentor who can/will only journey so far with the Hero before he or she must take their appropriate absence. Their purpose is to guide the Hero toward his or her Call to Adventure.
IV. Threshold Guardian - The Threshold Guardian guards the Gate to the Unknown. This Guardian must be challenged and defeated through bargaining or death in order for the Hero to move forward in his Journey.
The Guardian's defeat and the crossing of the Threshold represent the Point of No Return. The Hero has accepted his Call and must now see it through.
V. Magical Helper - The Magical Helper or Helpers are allies that the Hero gains along his Journey into the Unknown/Abyss. These Helpers can offer insight into the local terrain, grant magical assistance/aid, offer magical gifts, and/or simply offer a Ministry of Presence.
VI. Shapeshifter - The purpose of the Shapeshifter is to bewilder, confuse, help, delay, progress, regress, and otherwise leave a Hero dumbfounded. The Shapeshifter contributes uncertainty, doubt, and tension to the Journey. Often the true intentions of the Shapeshifter are never known or understood until the last possible moment, if ever at all.
The Shapeshifter can be an ally, an enemy, or even part of the Hero himself.
VII. The Shadow - The Shadow is the reflection of the Hero's Darkest desires, rejected attributes, and repressed/untapped energies/resources. Often it is the mirrored image of Darkest parts of the Hero's being. However, the Shadow is not always a completely negative force. It can reveal redeeming and humanizing qualities that the Hero (or other caster of the Shadow) has rejected, feared, or otherwise avoided.
The Shadow can be symbolized through physical manifestation/incarnation or an internal struggle. The Shadow's defeat (or in some cases it's embrace) is pinnacle to the Hero being able to rise above his or her Self, so that he or she may find the strength/skill/ability to complete their Journey.
VIII. The Trickster - The Trickster is much like the Shapeshifter. It is the purpose of the Trickster to bring all accepted ideologies into question through disruption and apparent chaos. The Trickster breaks down the Ego of the Hero and (many times) all else he or she (or it) encounters. The Trickster is to affect lives; to cause the Hero to challenge, question, and break down his or her Understanding and Expectations.
IX. The Dragon - The Dragon is the Arch-Enemy of the Hero. The Dragon is that which must be slain in order for the Hero to complete his or her tasks. It is the barrier that attempts to prevent the birth of the important, significant, necessary change and progress that the Hero was meant to affect. The Dragon must be killed, or otherwise overcome, by the Hero.
I. Hero - The Hero affects change through invention or discovery. The Hero is called out to embark on a Sacred Journey which will forever change his or her world. It is through the eyes of the Hero that we experience the Journey.
II. Herald - The Herald announces the Call to Adventure and/or issues the Challenge to our Hero. The Herald can take virtually any possible form or incarnation. Once the call and/or challenged has been made by the Herald, the Hero must then choose to accept, reject, or pause in reluctance to consider the Call to Adventure and/or Challenge.
It is important to note that the Herald can appear at any point during the Hero's Journey.
III. Wise Man/Woman - The Wise Man/Woman (usually supernatural/otherworldly in nature) guides the Hero towards his or her Path. The Wise Man/Woman offers instruction and insight, and may even equip the Hero with a magical gift/tool/weapon that will aid in the Hero in his or her Journey.
The Wise Man/Woman is a mentor who can/will only journey so far with the Hero before he or she must take their appropriate absence. Their purpose is to guide the Hero toward his or her Call to Adventure.
IV. Threshold Guardian - The Threshold Guardian guards the Gate to the Unknown. This Guardian must be challenged and defeated through bargaining or death in order for the Hero to move forward in his Journey.
The Guardian's defeat and the crossing of the Threshold represent the Point of No Return. The Hero has accepted his Call and must now see it through.
V. Magical Helper - The Magical Helper or Helpers are allies that the Hero gains along his Journey into the Unknown/Abyss. These Helpers can offer insight into the local terrain, grant magical assistance/aid, offer magical gifts, and/or simply offer a Ministry of Presence.
VI. Shapeshifter - The purpose of the Shapeshifter is to bewilder, confuse, help, delay, progress, regress, and otherwise leave a Hero dumbfounded. The Shapeshifter contributes uncertainty, doubt, and tension to the Journey. Often the true intentions of the Shapeshifter are never known or understood until the last possible moment, if ever at all.
The Shapeshifter can be an ally, an enemy, or even part of the Hero himself.
VII. The Shadow - The Shadow is the reflection of the Hero's Darkest desires, rejected attributes, and repressed/untapped energies/resources. Often it is the mirrored image of Darkest parts of the Hero's being. However, the Shadow is not always a completely negative force. It can reveal redeeming and humanizing qualities that the Hero (or other caster of the Shadow) has rejected, feared, or otherwise avoided.
The Shadow can be symbolized through physical manifestation/incarnation or an internal struggle. The Shadow's defeat (or in some cases it's embrace) is pinnacle to the Hero being able to rise above his or her Self, so that he or she may find the strength/skill/ability to complete their Journey.
VIII. The Trickster - The Trickster is much like the Shapeshifter. It is the purpose of the Trickster to bring all accepted ideologies into question through disruption and apparent chaos. The Trickster breaks down the Ego of the Hero and (many times) all else he or she (or it) encounters. The Trickster is to affect lives; to cause the Hero to challenge, question, and break down his or her Understanding and Expectations.
IX. The Dragon - The Dragon is the Arch-Enemy of the Hero. The Dragon is that which must be slain in order for the Hero to complete his or her tasks. It is the barrier that attempts to prevent the birth of the important, significant, necessary change and progress that the Hero was meant to affect. The Dragon must be killed, or otherwise overcome, by the Hero.
Jim Crow in America Notes
Jim Crow in America
A depiction of Thomas D. Rice's "Jim Crow"
The term Jim Crow comes from the minstrel show song "Jump Jim Crow" written in 1828 and performed by Thomas Dartmouth "Daddy" Rice, a white immigrant to the U.S. and the first popularizer of blackface performance. in 1828 Rice appeared on stage as "Jim Crow" -- an exaggerated, highly stereotypical Black character.The song and blackface itself were an immediate hit. A caricature of a shabbily dressed rural black, "Jim Crow" became a standard character in minstrel shows. He was often paired with "Zip Coon," a ridiculous and flamboyantly dressed urban black who mimicked white culture in a foolish way. White audiences were receptive to the portrayals of Blacks as singing, dancing, grinning fools. Rice, and his imitators, by their stereotypical depictions of Blacks, helped to popularize the belief that Blacks were lazy, stupid, inherently less human, and unworthy of integration. During the years that Blacks were being victimized by lynch mobs, they were also victimized by the racist caricatures propagated through novels, sheet music, theatrical plays, and minstrel shows. Ironically, years later when Blacks replaced White minstrels, the Blacks also "blackened" their faces, thereby pretending to be Whites pretending to be Blacks. They, too, performed the “Coon Shows” which dehumanized Blacks and helped establish the desirability of racial segregation. By 1837, the term “Jim Crow” was being used to refer to racial segregation.
Minstrel Performers in blackface in the tradition of Jim Crow
Jim Dandy
Zip Coon
Jim Crow Laws
Voting: Blacks were denied the right to vote by
• Grandfather clauses (laws that restricted the right to vote to people whose ancestors had voted before the Civil War)
• Poll taxes (fees charged to poor Blacks)
• White primaries (only Democrats could vote, only Whites could be Democrats)
• Literacy tests ("Name all the Vice Presidents and Supreme Court Justices throughout America's history").
Examples of Jim Crow Laws by State
Alabama
• "Nurses. No person or corporation shall require any white female nurse to work in wards or rooms in hospitals, either public or private, in which Negro men are placed.
• "Buses. All passenger stations in this state operated by any motor transportation company shall have separate waiting rooms or space and separate ticket windows for the white and colored races."
• "Restaurants. It shall be unlawful to conduct a restaurant or other place for the serving of food in the city, at which white and colored people are served in the same room, unless such white and colored persons are effectually separated by a solid partition extending from the floor upward to a distance of seven feet or higher, and unless a separate entrance from the street is provided for each compartment."
Arkansas
• Intermarriage/Cohabitation: Various laws from 1884 to 1947 prohibited marriage or sexual relations between whites and blacks or “mulatoes,” providing for specific fines and even imprisonment up to three years.
• Public Accommodations: Various laws from 1891 to 1959 segregated rail travel, streetcars, buses, all public carriers, race tracks, gaming establishments, polling places, washrooms in mines, tuberculosis hospitals, public schools and teachers' colleges.
• Poll tax imposed in 1947.
Florida
• Intermarriage. All marriages between a white person and a Negro, or between a white person and a person of Negro descent to the fourth generation inclusive, are hereby forever prohibited.
• Cohabitation. Any Negro man and white woman, or any white man and Negro woman, who are not married to each other, who shall habitually live in and occupy in the nighttime the same room shall each be punished by imprisonment not exceeding twelve (12) months, or by fine not exceeding five hundred ($500.00) dollars.
• Education. The schools for white children and the schools for Negro children shall be conducted separately.
o 1865: Railroad [Statute] — Negroes or “mulattoes” who intruded into any railroad car reserved for white persons would be found guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, sentenced to stand in the pillory for one hour, or to be whipped, not exceeding 39 stripes, or both, at the discretion of the jury." Whites faced the same penalty for entering a car reserved for persons of color.
• 1895: Education [Statute] — Penal offense for any persons to conduct any school, any grade, either public or private where whites and blacks are instructed or boarded in the same building, or taught in the same class by the same teachers. Penalty: Between $150 and $500 fine, or imprisonment in the county jail between three and six months.
o 1927: Education [Statute] — Criminal offense for teachers of one race to instruct pupils of the other in public schools.
o 1927: Race classification [Statute] — Defined the words "Negro" or "colored person" to include persons who have one eighth or more Negro blood.
• 1967: Public accommodations [City Ordinance] — Sarasota passed a city ordinance stating that "Whenever members of two or more…races shall…be upon any public…bathing beach within the corporate limits of the City of Sarasota, it shall be the duty of the Chief of police or other officer…in charge of the public forces of the City...with the assistance of such police forces, to clear the area involved of all members of all races present."
• Amateur Baseball. It shall be unlawful for any amateur white baseball team to play baseball on any vacant lot or baseball diamond within two blocks of a playground devoted to the Negro race, and it shall be unlawful for any amateur colored baseball team to play baseball in any vacant lot or baseball diamond within two blocks of any playground devoted to the white race.
• Housing. Any person...who shall rent any part of any building to a Negro person or a Negro family when such building is already in whole or in part in occupancy by a white person or white family, or vice versa when the building is in occupancy by a Negro person or Negro family, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and on conviction thereof shall be punished by a fine of not less than twenty-five ($25.00) nor more than one hundred ($100.00) dollars or be imprisoned not less than 10, or more than 60 days, or both such fine and imprisonment in the discretion of the court.
Georgia
• Burial: The officer in charge shall not bury, or allow to be buried, any colored persons upon ground set apart or used for the burial of white persons.
Virginia
• Theaters. Every person...operating...any public hall, theatre, opera house, motion picture show or any place of public entertainment or public assemblage which is attended by both white and colored persons, shall separate the white race and the colored race and shall set apart and designate...certain seats therein to be occupied by white persons and a portion thereof , or certain seats therein, to be occupied by colored persons.
Wyoming
• Intermarriage. "All marriages of white persons with Negroes, “Mulattos,” Mongolians, or Malaya hereafter contracted in the State of Wyoming are and shall be illegal and void." The term 'Mongolian' included Aboriginal Americans as well as Asians.
The Etiquette of Jim Crow or How to Navigate the System
• A Black male could not offer his hand (to shake hands) with a White male because it implied being socially equal. Obviously, a Black male could not offer his hand or any other part of his body to a White woman, because he risked being accused of rape.
• Blacks and Whites were not supposed to eat together. If they did eat together, Whites were to be served first, and some sort of partition was to be placed between them.
• Under no circumstance was a Black male to offer to light the cigarette of a White female -- that gesture implied intimacy.
• Blacks were not allowed to show public affection toward one another in public, especially kissing, because it offended Whites.
• Jim Crow etiquette prescribed that Blacks were introduced to Whites, never Whites to Blacks. For example: "Mr. Peters (the White person), this is Charlie (the Black person), that I spoke to you about."
• Whites did not use courtesy titles of respect when referring to Blacks, for example, Mr., Mrs., Miss., Sir, or Ma'am. Instead, Blacks were called by their first names. Blacks had to use courtesy titles when referring to Whites, and were not allowed to call them by their first names.
• If a Black person rode in a car driven by a White person, the Black person sat in the back seat, or the back of a truck.
• White motorists had the right-of-way at all intersections.
Stetson Kennedy, the author of Jim Crow Guide, offered these simple rules that Blacks were supposed to observe in conversing with Whites:
1. Never assert or even intimate that a White person is lying.
2. Never impute dishonorable intentions to a White person.
3. Never suggest that a White person is from an inferior class.
4. Never lay claim to, or overly demonstrate, superior knowledge or intelligence.
5. Never curse a White person.
6. Never laugh derisively at a White person.
7. Never comment upon the appearance of a White female.
Blacks who violated Jim Crow norms, for example, drinking from the White water fountain or trying to vote, risked their homes, their jobs, even their lives. Whites could physically beat Blacks with impunity. Blacks had little legal recourse against these assaults because the Jim Crow criminal justice system was all-White: police, prosecutors, judges, juries, and prison officials. Violence was instrumental for Jim Crow. It was a method of social control. The most extreme forms of Jim Crow violence were lynchings.
Lynching 1930, Marion Indiana
A mob of 10,000 whites took sledgehammers to the county jailhouse doors to get at these two young blacks accused of raping a white girl; the girl’s uncle saved the life of a third by proclaiming the man’s innocence. Lynching photos were sometimes made into postcards.
Lynchings were public, often sadistic, murders carried out by mobs.
• Between 1882 & 1968 there were 4,730 known lynchings, including 3,440 Black men and women.
• Most of the victims of Lynch-Law were hanged or shot, but some were burned at the stake, castrated, beaten with clubs, or dismembered
• Lynching was used as an intimidation tool to keep Blacks "in their places.”
Under Jim Crow any and all sexual interactions between Black men and White women was illegal, illicit, socially repugnant, and within the Jim Crow definition of rape. The popular belief was that lynchings were necessary to protect White women from Black rapists.
In actuality, most Blacks were lynched for
• demanding civil rights
• violating Jim Crow etiquette or laws
• or in the aftermath of race riots.
A depiction of Thomas D. Rice's "Jim Crow"
The term Jim Crow comes from the minstrel show song "Jump Jim Crow" written in 1828 and performed by Thomas Dartmouth "Daddy" Rice, a white immigrant to the U.S. and the first popularizer of blackface performance. in 1828 Rice appeared on stage as "Jim Crow" -- an exaggerated, highly stereotypical Black character.The song and blackface itself were an immediate hit. A caricature of a shabbily dressed rural black, "Jim Crow" became a standard character in minstrel shows. He was often paired with "Zip Coon," a ridiculous and flamboyantly dressed urban black who mimicked white culture in a foolish way. White audiences were receptive to the portrayals of Blacks as singing, dancing, grinning fools. Rice, and his imitators, by their stereotypical depictions of Blacks, helped to popularize the belief that Blacks were lazy, stupid, inherently less human, and unworthy of integration. During the years that Blacks were being victimized by lynch mobs, they were also victimized by the racist caricatures propagated through novels, sheet music, theatrical plays, and minstrel shows. Ironically, years later when Blacks replaced White minstrels, the Blacks also "blackened" their faces, thereby pretending to be Whites pretending to be Blacks. They, too, performed the “Coon Shows” which dehumanized Blacks and helped establish the desirability of racial segregation. By 1837, the term “Jim Crow” was being used to refer to racial segregation.
Minstrel Performers in blackface in the tradition of Jim Crow
Jim Dandy
Zip Coon
Jim Crow Laws
Voting: Blacks were denied the right to vote by
• Grandfather clauses (laws that restricted the right to vote to people whose ancestors had voted before the Civil War)
• Poll taxes (fees charged to poor Blacks)
• White primaries (only Democrats could vote, only Whites could be Democrats)
• Literacy tests ("Name all the Vice Presidents and Supreme Court Justices throughout America's history").
Examples of Jim Crow Laws by State
Alabama
• "Nurses. No person or corporation shall require any white female nurse to work in wards or rooms in hospitals, either public or private, in which Negro men are placed.
• "Buses. All passenger stations in this state operated by any motor transportation company shall have separate waiting rooms or space and separate ticket windows for the white and colored races."
• "Restaurants. It shall be unlawful to conduct a restaurant or other place for the serving of food in the city, at which white and colored people are served in the same room, unless such white and colored persons are effectually separated by a solid partition extending from the floor upward to a distance of seven feet or higher, and unless a separate entrance from the street is provided for each compartment."
Arkansas
• Intermarriage/Cohabitation: Various laws from 1884 to 1947 prohibited marriage or sexual relations between whites and blacks or “mulatoes,” providing for specific fines and even imprisonment up to three years.
• Public Accommodations: Various laws from 1891 to 1959 segregated rail travel, streetcars, buses, all public carriers, race tracks, gaming establishments, polling places, washrooms in mines, tuberculosis hospitals, public schools and teachers' colleges.
• Poll tax imposed in 1947.
Florida
• Intermarriage. All marriages between a white person and a Negro, or between a white person and a person of Negro descent to the fourth generation inclusive, are hereby forever prohibited.
• Cohabitation. Any Negro man and white woman, or any white man and Negro woman, who are not married to each other, who shall habitually live in and occupy in the nighttime the same room shall each be punished by imprisonment not exceeding twelve (12) months, or by fine not exceeding five hundred ($500.00) dollars.
• Education. The schools for white children and the schools for Negro children shall be conducted separately.
o 1865: Railroad [Statute] — Negroes or “mulattoes” who intruded into any railroad car reserved for white persons would be found guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, sentenced to stand in the pillory for one hour, or to be whipped, not exceeding 39 stripes, or both, at the discretion of the jury." Whites faced the same penalty for entering a car reserved for persons of color.
• 1895: Education [Statute] — Penal offense for any persons to conduct any school, any grade, either public or private where whites and blacks are instructed or boarded in the same building, or taught in the same class by the same teachers. Penalty: Between $150 and $500 fine, or imprisonment in the county jail between three and six months.
o 1927: Education [Statute] — Criminal offense for teachers of one race to instruct pupils of the other in public schools.
o 1927: Race classification [Statute] — Defined the words "Negro" or "colored person" to include persons who have one eighth or more Negro blood.
• 1967: Public accommodations [City Ordinance] — Sarasota passed a city ordinance stating that "Whenever members of two or more…races shall…be upon any public…bathing beach within the corporate limits of the City of Sarasota, it shall be the duty of the Chief of police or other officer…in charge of the public forces of the City...with the assistance of such police forces, to clear the area involved of all members of all races present."
• Amateur Baseball. It shall be unlawful for any amateur white baseball team to play baseball on any vacant lot or baseball diamond within two blocks of a playground devoted to the Negro race, and it shall be unlawful for any amateur colored baseball team to play baseball in any vacant lot or baseball diamond within two blocks of any playground devoted to the white race.
• Housing. Any person...who shall rent any part of any building to a Negro person or a Negro family when such building is already in whole or in part in occupancy by a white person or white family, or vice versa when the building is in occupancy by a Negro person or Negro family, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and on conviction thereof shall be punished by a fine of not less than twenty-five ($25.00) nor more than one hundred ($100.00) dollars or be imprisoned not less than 10, or more than 60 days, or both such fine and imprisonment in the discretion of the court.
Georgia
• Burial: The officer in charge shall not bury, or allow to be buried, any colored persons upon ground set apart or used for the burial of white persons.
Virginia
• Theaters. Every person...operating...any public hall, theatre, opera house, motion picture show or any place of public entertainment or public assemblage which is attended by both white and colored persons, shall separate the white race and the colored race and shall set apart and designate...certain seats therein to be occupied by white persons and a portion thereof , or certain seats therein, to be occupied by colored persons.
Wyoming
• Intermarriage. "All marriages of white persons with Negroes, “Mulattos,” Mongolians, or Malaya hereafter contracted in the State of Wyoming are and shall be illegal and void." The term 'Mongolian' included Aboriginal Americans as well as Asians.
The Etiquette of Jim Crow or How to Navigate the System
• A Black male could not offer his hand (to shake hands) with a White male because it implied being socially equal. Obviously, a Black male could not offer his hand or any other part of his body to a White woman, because he risked being accused of rape.
• Blacks and Whites were not supposed to eat together. If they did eat together, Whites were to be served first, and some sort of partition was to be placed between them.
• Under no circumstance was a Black male to offer to light the cigarette of a White female -- that gesture implied intimacy.
• Blacks were not allowed to show public affection toward one another in public, especially kissing, because it offended Whites.
• Jim Crow etiquette prescribed that Blacks were introduced to Whites, never Whites to Blacks. For example: "Mr. Peters (the White person), this is Charlie (the Black person), that I spoke to you about."
• Whites did not use courtesy titles of respect when referring to Blacks, for example, Mr., Mrs., Miss., Sir, or Ma'am. Instead, Blacks were called by their first names. Blacks had to use courtesy titles when referring to Whites, and were not allowed to call them by their first names.
• If a Black person rode in a car driven by a White person, the Black person sat in the back seat, or the back of a truck.
• White motorists had the right-of-way at all intersections.
Stetson Kennedy, the author of Jim Crow Guide, offered these simple rules that Blacks were supposed to observe in conversing with Whites:
1. Never assert or even intimate that a White person is lying.
2. Never impute dishonorable intentions to a White person.
3. Never suggest that a White person is from an inferior class.
4. Never lay claim to, or overly demonstrate, superior knowledge or intelligence.
5. Never curse a White person.
6. Never laugh derisively at a White person.
7. Never comment upon the appearance of a White female.
Blacks who violated Jim Crow norms, for example, drinking from the White water fountain or trying to vote, risked their homes, their jobs, even their lives. Whites could physically beat Blacks with impunity. Blacks had little legal recourse against these assaults because the Jim Crow criminal justice system was all-White: police, prosecutors, judges, juries, and prison officials. Violence was instrumental for Jim Crow. It was a method of social control. The most extreme forms of Jim Crow violence were lynchings.
Lynching 1930, Marion Indiana
A mob of 10,000 whites took sledgehammers to the county jailhouse doors to get at these two young blacks accused of raping a white girl; the girl’s uncle saved the life of a third by proclaiming the man’s innocence. Lynching photos were sometimes made into postcards.
Lynchings were public, often sadistic, murders carried out by mobs.
• Between 1882 & 1968 there were 4,730 known lynchings, including 3,440 Black men and women.
• Most of the victims of Lynch-Law were hanged or shot, but some were burned at the stake, castrated, beaten with clubs, or dismembered
• Lynching was used as an intimidation tool to keep Blacks "in their places.”
Under Jim Crow any and all sexual interactions between Black men and White women was illegal, illicit, socially repugnant, and within the Jim Crow definition of rape. The popular belief was that lynchings were necessary to protect White women from Black rapists.
In actuality, most Blacks were lynched for
• demanding civil rights
• violating Jim Crow etiquette or laws
• or in the aftermath of race riots.
Ralph Ellison Biography Notes
Ralph Ellison Biography
Novelist and essayist, 1914—1994
Ralph Waldo Ellison, born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma was the son of Lewis and Ida Ellison who had each grown up in the South to parents who had been slaves. The couple moved out west to Oklahoma hoping the lives of their children would be fueled with a sense of possibility in this state that was reputed for its freedom. Ellison, who first thought he might be a professional musician, played several instruments including the trumpet, which he played in his school band beginning at age eight. During his teenage years, Ellison and his friends imagined being the eclectic combination of frontiersmen and Renaissance Men. The ideal they created gave them the courage to expect anything out of life. They believed that they had the ability and power to do whatever they wanted in life as well as or better than men of any race. At Tuskegee, Ellison excelled in his music program as well as taking a particular liking to his sociology and sculpture classes and the outside classroom which Alabama provided. Though not pleased with the desire of the state's people, black and white, to categorize him as he had never experienced at home, he did appreciate the chance to raise his own consciousness concerning the rest of the country he lived in. Literature would also influence his stay at Tuskegee as he again delved into the expansive libraries at his disposal.
He began reading writers like Hemingway, Gertrude Stein, and James Joyce. Especially inspired by Eliot’s poem “The Waste Land,” Ellison became interested in using the forms of modern literature to describe the daily life of American blacks.
When scholarship money ran out in his third year of college, Ellison moved to New York City, and began living and working in the Harlem YMCA., still hoping to return to Tuskeegee, he never did. Meeting the poet Langston Hughes, and the French writer André Malraux, had a great influence on him, and Ellison also became friendly with another young, struggling writer named Richard Wright. Wright later helped Ellison get a job with the Federal Writer’s Project, where he spent time assembling a wealth of material on black folklore, games, and children’s rhymes.
During the last three years of World War II Ellison served as a cook in the Merchant Marine. In his spare time aboard ship, he wrote short stories and the beginnings of a novel set in a prisoner of war camp. In 1946, he married Fanny McConnell. His novel changed form when, one day, he typed out the words, “I am an invisible man.” After seven years of work, his epic novel Invisible Man, the story of an anonymous black youth growing up in racist America, was published in 1952 to universal acclaim.
Ellison wrote dozens of essays describing the African-American experience, but his second novel was still unfinished when he died 42 years later. On the basis of his first novel, the writer won many honors including the National Book Award, election to the National Institute of Arts and Letters, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom. In 1965 a survey of 200 prominent literary figures judged Invisible Man “the most distinguished single work” published in America in the previous 20 years. Ellison spent a great deal of time teaching in various colleges. In 1970, he became the Albert Schweitzer Professor of Humanities at New York University. Ellison continued until the day he died spreading and cultivating his vision of America and art: the conscious protagonist and the use of blackness to break categories instead of sustaining them.
Novelist and essayist, 1914—1994
Ralph Waldo Ellison, born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma was the son of Lewis and Ida Ellison who had each grown up in the South to parents who had been slaves. The couple moved out west to Oklahoma hoping the lives of their children would be fueled with a sense of possibility in this state that was reputed for its freedom. Ellison, who first thought he might be a professional musician, played several instruments including the trumpet, which he played in his school band beginning at age eight. During his teenage years, Ellison and his friends imagined being the eclectic combination of frontiersmen and Renaissance Men. The ideal they created gave them the courage to expect anything out of life. They believed that they had the ability and power to do whatever they wanted in life as well as or better than men of any race. At Tuskegee, Ellison excelled in his music program as well as taking a particular liking to his sociology and sculpture classes and the outside classroom which Alabama provided. Though not pleased with the desire of the state's people, black and white, to categorize him as he had never experienced at home, he did appreciate the chance to raise his own consciousness concerning the rest of the country he lived in. Literature would also influence his stay at Tuskegee as he again delved into the expansive libraries at his disposal.
He began reading writers like Hemingway, Gertrude Stein, and James Joyce. Especially inspired by Eliot’s poem “The Waste Land,” Ellison became interested in using the forms of modern literature to describe the daily life of American blacks.
When scholarship money ran out in his third year of college, Ellison moved to New York City, and began living and working in the Harlem YMCA., still hoping to return to Tuskeegee, he never did. Meeting the poet Langston Hughes, and the French writer André Malraux, had a great influence on him, and Ellison also became friendly with another young, struggling writer named Richard Wright. Wright later helped Ellison get a job with the Federal Writer’s Project, where he spent time assembling a wealth of material on black folklore, games, and children’s rhymes.
During the last three years of World War II Ellison served as a cook in the Merchant Marine. In his spare time aboard ship, he wrote short stories and the beginnings of a novel set in a prisoner of war camp. In 1946, he married Fanny McConnell. His novel changed form when, one day, he typed out the words, “I am an invisible man.” After seven years of work, his epic novel Invisible Man, the story of an anonymous black youth growing up in racist America, was published in 1952 to universal acclaim.
Ellison wrote dozens of essays describing the African-American experience, but his second novel was still unfinished when he died 42 years later. On the basis of his first novel, the writer won many honors including the National Book Award, election to the National Institute of Arts and Letters, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom. In 1965 a survey of 200 prominent literary figures judged Invisible Man “the most distinguished single work” published in America in the previous 20 years. Ellison spent a great deal of time teaching in various colleges. In 1970, he became the Albert Schweitzer Professor of Humanities at New York University. Ellison continued until the day he died spreading and cultivating his vision of America and art: the conscious protagonist and the use of blackness to break categories instead of sustaining them.
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Crime and Punishment Epilogue
Crime and Punishment Epilogue
Thematically, the epilogue is superfluous to the novel; it only tidies up loose ends.
Factors Contributing to Raskolnikov’s Light Sentence of Only Eight Years in Siberia
• Raskolnikov made a voluntary confession.
• There was testimony that he was on the verge of a mental breakdown.
• He never counted the money.
• He did not profit from the crime.
• There was testimony of his many charitable acts and good character.
Resolution
• Pulcheria dies in ignorance of the crime.
• Dounia and Razumihin marry and open a translation publication company.
• Svidrigalov’s money enables Sonia to follow Raskolnikov to Siberia.
• In prison through his suffering, Raskolnikov is truly redeemed.
• Raskolnikov and Sonia plan a future together.
Thematically, the epilogue is superfluous to the novel; it only tidies up loose ends.
Factors Contributing to Raskolnikov’s Light Sentence of Only Eight Years in Siberia
• Raskolnikov made a voluntary confession.
• There was testimony that he was on the verge of a mental breakdown.
• He never counted the money.
• He did not profit from the crime.
• There was testimony of his many charitable acts and good character.
Resolution
• Pulcheria dies in ignorance of the crime.
• Dounia and Razumihin marry and open a translation publication company.
• Svidrigalov’s money enables Sonia to follow Raskolnikov to Siberia.
• In prison through his suffering, Raskolnikov is truly redeemed.
• Raskolnikov and Sonia plan a future together.
Crime and Punishment Part VI
Crime and Punishment Part VI
Porfiry knows that Raskolnikov is the murderer. He comes to this conclusion based upon the following points:
• The pledges (all who were listed in Alyona’s pledge book were suspected). This list includes Raskolnikov.
• Porfiry had previously read a publication of Raskolnikov’s theory. His ideas mark him as a suspect.
• Raskolnikov’s illness makes him suspect because according to his theory, illness always accompanies crime.
• A witness saw him when he returned to the scene of the crime.
Even though Nikolay confessed, he knows that he belongs to a group that believes that suffering is a means of self purification and therefore he does not believe the confession. Porfiry gives Raskolnikov several days to confess. He needs to understand that his theory is wrong so that from this confession he can go on, face life, and become one of the important minds of Russia. Arresting him now would ruin Raskolnikov’s intellectual redemption through self-realization. If he recognizes his own error, and then suffers for his crime, then he can achieve intellectual greatness in his own right. As Porfiry states thematically, “For suffering, Rodion Romanovitch, is a great thing.”
Points to Remember
• Raskolnikov confession to Sonia only reconnects him to others. His redemption is incomplete because he has not been intellectually redeemed through rejection of his theory. Note: “he has taken up his cross” but he refuses to “kiss the ground that he has defiled” for fear of ridicule and damage to his pride.
• Svidrigalov’s suicide is part of the author’s theme: There can be no superman who transgresses the law. Sooner or later every person needs human warmth and companionship. He could have raped Dounia had self-gratification been enough, but he wanted her to want him. He cannot will her to love him. He cannot go back. He does not believe that there is a God who will punish him and therefore the only thing left to will is his own death.
• Raskolnikov’s confession to Porfiry serves to redeem his intellectual, calculating side. This marks the second climax and the thematic end of the story. However, the story continues in the epilog.
Porfiry knows that Raskolnikov is the murderer. He comes to this conclusion based upon the following points:
• The pledges (all who were listed in Alyona’s pledge book were suspected). This list includes Raskolnikov.
• Porfiry had previously read a publication of Raskolnikov’s theory. His ideas mark him as a suspect.
• Raskolnikov’s illness makes him suspect because according to his theory, illness always accompanies crime.
• A witness saw him when he returned to the scene of the crime.
Even though Nikolay confessed, he knows that he belongs to a group that believes that suffering is a means of self purification and therefore he does not believe the confession. Porfiry gives Raskolnikov several days to confess. He needs to understand that his theory is wrong so that from this confession he can go on, face life, and become one of the important minds of Russia. Arresting him now would ruin Raskolnikov’s intellectual redemption through self-realization. If he recognizes his own error, and then suffers for his crime, then he can achieve intellectual greatness in his own right. As Porfiry states thematically, “For suffering, Rodion Romanovitch, is a great thing.”
Points to Remember
• Raskolnikov confession to Sonia only reconnects him to others. His redemption is incomplete because he has not been intellectually redeemed through rejection of his theory. Note: “he has taken up his cross” but he refuses to “kiss the ground that he has defiled” for fear of ridicule and damage to his pride.
• Svidrigalov’s suicide is part of the author’s theme: There can be no superman who transgresses the law. Sooner or later every person needs human warmth and companionship. He could have raped Dounia had self-gratification been enough, but he wanted her to want him. He cannot will her to love him. He cannot go back. He does not believe that there is a God who will punish him and therefore the only thing left to will is his own death.
• Raskolnikov’s confession to Porfiry serves to redeem his intellectual, calculating side. This marks the second climax and the thematic end of the story. However, the story continues in the epilog.
Crime and Punishment Theories
Extraordinary Man/Superman Theories in Crime and Punishment
Raskolnikov’s theories about the ordinary man versus the extraordinary man are often blurred and indistinct in his own mind. If one is to assume that the crime was committed in order to prove a theory, then the flaws in the crime indicate the flaws or incompleteness of the theory.
If the theories seem to be contradictory at times, it is not a result of Dostoevsky’s carelessness; quite the contrary, Dostoevsky intentionally made the theory contradictory at times. Raskolnikov had to commit the murder before he had completely formulated the theory. Dostoevsky wanted to show the young intellectual being influenced by various theories and then using these theories before he had had a chance to analyze them. For example, a typical contradiction would be that Raskolnikov will at one time maintain that the murder was committed to benefit mankind, but then he will maintain that the extraordinary man must be above mankind and not be concerned with what mankind will think of him. Such an incomplete understanding of his own thoughts and such contradictory statements are the rationale that leads Raskolnikov to the possibility of redemption. A brief analysis of the various ideas will partly show what aspect of the theories are borrowed and what aspects are the result of Raskolnikov’s own thinking.
The German philosopher Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770-1830)
Hegelian Superman Theory:
1. The Hegelian Superman exists for noble purposes; if the ends are noble, then the means can be justified. The emphasis is always on the ends rather than the means..
• The old pawnbroker is an evil person who is actually harming the poor people who come to her for pawning.
2. According to Hegel, any harmful segment of society should be removed.
• Therefore, Raskolnikov reasons that by murdering the old pawnbroker, he will be removing a harmful “louse” from society.
If the ends are noble, the means can be justified. The old pawnbroker has a lot of money that will be “wasted” upon useless requiem services for her soul after her death. With that money, Raskolnikov will be able to complete his education and devote himself to the service of humanity, or he could distribute the money among needy and starving families, thus saving hundreds of people from ruin and destitution.
German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900)
The Nietzschean Superman Theory:
1. The Nietzschean Superman exists for his own self gratificiation
• Svidrigailov was born from these ideas of self-gratification. Svidrigailov would reason:
2. Since he believes that “God is dead” there is no will (or power) beyond that of my own, I must completely assert my own will until it is totally free of all restraint against it. Since there is no power beyond me that functions to punish, I am free to assert completely my own will.
3. Therefore, the Nietzschean Superman is one who possesses the strongest will and is able to make his desires and his power dominant over others.
• Svidrigailov can rape a 15-year-old girl and cause the death of a servant without any fear of punishment. He asserts his own will in order to gratify his own desires.
4. The test of this type of Superman is that he must stand completely alone and must not allow his will to be influenced by the wishes of others. Thus, this assertion of the will isolates man from society.
• When Raskolnikov attempts to assert his will, he finds himself cut off from the rest of humanity. It is this dreadful solitude that Raskolnikov cannot stand and that makes him confess to become part of humanity again.
Raskolnikov’s Extraordinary Man Theory
Raskolnikov’s own theory adopts some of all of the above ideas with certain touches of his own. For Raskolnikov,
1. All men are divided into two categories: ordinary and extraordinary.
2. The ordinary man has to live in submission and has no right to transgress the law because he is ordinary.
3. On the contrary, the extraordinary men have the right to commit any crime and to transgress the law in any way.
4. They are extraordinary because they are the men who have the gift or talent to utter a New Word. It is the extraordinary men who forge civilization onward to new heights of achievements.
5. The extraordinary man has this inner right to decide whether to overstep the law or any obstacle that stands in the way of the practical fulfillment of his idea, or New Words.
6. All great men capable of giving something new to society must not submit to the common law because if they do they cease to be great.
7. Great men create new laws by their discoveries and therefore should have the right to eliminate a few men in order to make their new discoveries known to all of humanity.
• Thus, Raskolnikov “sanctions bloodshed in the name of conscience.” (Raskolnikov constantly refers to Napoleon because Napoleon had the daring to commit various acts in order to complete his plans.)
Again it should be emphasized that, at the time of the murder, Raskolnikov had not worked these various theories into a consistent whole. All the individual parts were there, but some of the connecting details were missing. The murder was committed to see whether he dares commit a murder and therefore proves his will is strong, that he in fact is an extraordinary man. Am I a real man of power? (This ideas comes partly from Nietzsche). From this premise, Raskolnikov reasons that a man may commit a crime if it serves a noble end. (This part comes from Hegel). Then he chooses his victim from the “ordinary” class; he chooses someone who he considers to be a louse, the pawnbroker, Alyona.
Crime and Punishment Part III
Raskolnikov’s Extraordinary Man Theory
1. Crime is always accompanied by illness.
2. Men are either ordinary or extraordinary
3. Ordinary men have no right to transgress laws.
4. Extraordinary men have an inner right to decide whether or not to step over any law or obstacle standing in the way of fulfillment of their ideas.
5. All great men have the right to eliminate a few men in order to make their discoveries known to all mankind.
6. Ordinary, inferior men can only reproduce their own kind. Extraordinary men have the talent to utter “a new word.”
7. All great men capable of giving something NEW “a new word,” must not submit to common law or they will cease to be great.
What is important in this section:
* What is new and original in Raskolnikov’s theory (thereby making him one of the extraordinary) is that he “Sanctions bloodshed in the name of conscience.” Raskolnikov says that the great will suffer in their own conscience. “Pain and suffering are always inevitable for a large intelligence and a deep heart.”
Raskolnikov’s theories about the ordinary man versus the extraordinary man are often blurred and indistinct in his own mind. If one is to assume that the crime was committed in order to prove a theory, then the flaws in the crime indicate the flaws or incompleteness of the theory.
If the theories seem to be contradictory at times, it is not a result of Dostoevsky’s carelessness; quite the contrary, Dostoevsky intentionally made the theory contradictory at times. Raskolnikov had to commit the murder before he had completely formulated the theory. Dostoevsky wanted to show the young intellectual being influenced by various theories and then using these theories before he had had a chance to analyze them. For example, a typical contradiction would be that Raskolnikov will at one time maintain that the murder was committed to benefit mankind, but then he will maintain that the extraordinary man must be above mankind and not be concerned with what mankind will think of him. Such an incomplete understanding of his own thoughts and such contradictory statements are the rationale that leads Raskolnikov to the possibility of redemption. A brief analysis of the various ideas will partly show what aspect of the theories are borrowed and what aspects are the result of Raskolnikov’s own thinking.
The German philosopher Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770-1830)
Hegelian Superman Theory:
1. The Hegelian Superman exists for noble purposes; if the ends are noble, then the means can be justified. The emphasis is always on the ends rather than the means..
• The old pawnbroker is an evil person who is actually harming the poor people who come to her for pawning.
2. According to Hegel, any harmful segment of society should be removed.
• Therefore, Raskolnikov reasons that by murdering the old pawnbroker, he will be removing a harmful “louse” from society.
If the ends are noble, the means can be justified. The old pawnbroker has a lot of money that will be “wasted” upon useless requiem services for her soul after her death. With that money, Raskolnikov will be able to complete his education and devote himself to the service of humanity, or he could distribute the money among needy and starving families, thus saving hundreds of people from ruin and destitution.
German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900)
The Nietzschean Superman Theory:
1. The Nietzschean Superman exists for his own self gratificiation
• Svidrigailov was born from these ideas of self-gratification. Svidrigailov would reason:
2. Since he believes that “God is dead” there is no will (or power) beyond that of my own, I must completely assert my own will until it is totally free of all restraint against it. Since there is no power beyond me that functions to punish, I am free to assert completely my own will.
3. Therefore, the Nietzschean Superman is one who possesses the strongest will and is able to make his desires and his power dominant over others.
• Svidrigailov can rape a 15-year-old girl and cause the death of a servant without any fear of punishment. He asserts his own will in order to gratify his own desires.
4. The test of this type of Superman is that he must stand completely alone and must not allow his will to be influenced by the wishes of others. Thus, this assertion of the will isolates man from society.
• When Raskolnikov attempts to assert his will, he finds himself cut off from the rest of humanity. It is this dreadful solitude that Raskolnikov cannot stand and that makes him confess to become part of humanity again.
Raskolnikov’s Extraordinary Man Theory
Raskolnikov’s own theory adopts some of all of the above ideas with certain touches of his own. For Raskolnikov,
1. All men are divided into two categories: ordinary and extraordinary.
2. The ordinary man has to live in submission and has no right to transgress the law because he is ordinary.
3. On the contrary, the extraordinary men have the right to commit any crime and to transgress the law in any way.
4. They are extraordinary because they are the men who have the gift or talent to utter a New Word. It is the extraordinary men who forge civilization onward to new heights of achievements.
5. The extraordinary man has this inner right to decide whether to overstep the law or any obstacle that stands in the way of the practical fulfillment of his idea, or New Words.
6. All great men capable of giving something new to society must not submit to the common law because if they do they cease to be great.
7. Great men create new laws by their discoveries and therefore should have the right to eliminate a few men in order to make their new discoveries known to all of humanity.
• Thus, Raskolnikov “sanctions bloodshed in the name of conscience.” (Raskolnikov constantly refers to Napoleon because Napoleon had the daring to commit various acts in order to complete his plans.)
Again it should be emphasized that, at the time of the murder, Raskolnikov had not worked these various theories into a consistent whole. All the individual parts were there, but some of the connecting details were missing. The murder was committed to see whether he dares commit a murder and therefore proves his will is strong, that he in fact is an extraordinary man. Am I a real man of power? (This ideas comes partly from Nietzsche). From this premise, Raskolnikov reasons that a man may commit a crime if it serves a noble end. (This part comes from Hegel). Then he chooses his victim from the “ordinary” class; he chooses someone who he considers to be a louse, the pawnbroker, Alyona.
Crime and Punishment Part III
Raskolnikov’s Extraordinary Man Theory
1. Crime is always accompanied by illness.
2. Men are either ordinary or extraordinary
3. Ordinary men have no right to transgress laws.
4. Extraordinary men have an inner right to decide whether or not to step over any law or obstacle standing in the way of fulfillment of their ideas.
5. All great men have the right to eliminate a few men in order to make their discoveries known to all mankind.
6. Ordinary, inferior men can only reproduce their own kind. Extraordinary men have the talent to utter “a new word.”
7. All great men capable of giving something NEW “a new word,” must not submit to common law or they will cease to be great.
What is important in this section:
* What is new and original in Raskolnikov’s theory (thereby making him one of the extraordinary) is that he “Sanctions bloodshed in the name of conscience.” Raskolnikov says that the great will suffer in their own conscience. “Pain and suffering are always inevitable for a large intelligence and a deep heart.”
Crime and Punishment Part V
Crime and Punishment Part V
Major Events:
1. Luzhin frames Sonia
2. The Marmaladov funeral party
3. The Marmaladov family is evicted and homeless
4. Raskolnikov’s confession to Sonia, first attempts to justify the murders:
Stated reason Flawed reasoning
Needed the money Never used it, counted or even looked at it
To keep himself in Never used the money
School
To prove himself He was unable to stand
Extraordinary like alone
Napolean
Alyona was a louse Sonia reminds him, she
And deserved death was a human being
Calls himself vain, All true but does not
Envious, malicious excuse the act
Base, vindictive with
A tendency towards
Insanity
The actual reason for murders
To see if he dared, if He proves himself a
He was extraordinary louse, that he murdered himself more than anyone else
Points to remember?
1. Confession to Sonia ends his social isolation (because crime separates man from society
2. He confesses because he can not stand alone.
3. His confession redeems his warm caring side but not his intellectual, calculating side.
4. This is the first of two climaxes because it marks a turning point for the character.
5. Sonia tells Raskolnikov to accept his punishment “because suffering is a great thing.” Raskolnikov does not wish to confess because he does not believe that his theory was wrong, only that he was not “extraordinary” enough to prove it.
Major Events:
1. Luzhin frames Sonia
2. The Marmaladov funeral party
3. The Marmaladov family is evicted and homeless
4. Raskolnikov’s confession to Sonia, first attempts to justify the murders:
Stated reason Flawed reasoning
Needed the money Never used it, counted or even looked at it
To keep himself in Never used the money
School
To prove himself He was unable to stand
Extraordinary like alone
Napolean
Alyona was a louse Sonia reminds him, she
And deserved death was a human being
Calls himself vain, All true but does not
Envious, malicious excuse the act
Base, vindictive with
A tendency towards
Insanity
The actual reason for murders
To see if he dared, if He proves himself a
He was extraordinary louse, that he murdered himself more than anyone else
Points to remember?
1. Confession to Sonia ends his social isolation (because crime separates man from society
2. He confesses because he can not stand alone.
3. His confession redeems his warm caring side but not his intellectual, calculating side.
4. This is the first of two climaxes because it marks a turning point for the character.
5. Sonia tells Raskolnikov to accept his punishment “because suffering is a great thing.” Raskolnikov does not wish to confess because he does not believe that his theory was wrong, only that he was not “extraordinary” enough to prove it.
Crime and Punishment Part IV
Crime and Punishment Part IV
Theme: “Suffering leads to salvation.” Through suffering, man’s sins are purified. Raskolnikov goes to Sonia because he sees her as a symbol of “all the suffering of humanity.” He goes to her to see if she can take his confession upon herself and help him to “bear his own cross.” Because she bears the sins of others (like Christ), Sonia is a “Christ like figure.”
Allusion: A reference to a well known person, place, historical event, piece of literature, music or art, etc. that the author expects the reader to be familiar. An author may use an allusion as a sort of short hand to suggest ideas, themes or views. The most often alluded to items in English/American literature are the Bible, Shakespearean plays and Greek and Roman mythology.
Lazarus allusion: Raskolnikov asks Sonia to read the story of Lazarus from the Bible. By speaking of Lazarus, Dostoevsky is saying that in some ways Raskolnikov and Lazarus are alike.
Raskolnikov & Lazarus Allusion Comparison
Lazarus Raskolnikov
Literally dead Spiritually & therefore
Figuratively dead through sin
Needs physical rebirth Needs spiritual rebirth
Jesus raises him from Sonia raises him from
Physical death spiritual death
Physically reborn Spiritually reborn by the ending of isolation through confession
Points to Remember
1. Svidrigalov is ease dropping on the conversation between Raskolnikov and Sonia.
2. Sonia’s purpose is to redeem Raskolnikov through her suffering for him (like Christ suffered for the sins of others); she will help him “bear his cross” (a Biblical allusion).
3. Porfiry’s purpose is to redeem Raskolnikov’s intellectual side. Point: He could have arrested Raskolnikov by this time. He has enough evidence, but he does not because:
• He has a sincere liking for him.
• (and most important) If arrested now, Raskolnikov would never come to a realization about the error of his theory. This is important because punishment without understanding is not beneficial nor corrective. Without understanding, the talents Raskolnikov has would be wasted and would not benefit him or Russia.
4. Nikolay’s confession is thematic and is a result of his belief that suffering (even without sin), leads to redemption.
Theme: “Suffering leads to salvation.” Through suffering, man’s sins are purified. Raskolnikov goes to Sonia because he sees her as a symbol of “all the suffering of humanity.” He goes to her to see if she can take his confession upon herself and help him to “bear his own cross.” Because she bears the sins of others (like Christ), Sonia is a “Christ like figure.”
Allusion: A reference to a well known person, place, historical event, piece of literature, music or art, etc. that the author expects the reader to be familiar. An author may use an allusion as a sort of short hand to suggest ideas, themes or views. The most often alluded to items in English/American literature are the Bible, Shakespearean plays and Greek and Roman mythology.
Lazarus allusion: Raskolnikov asks Sonia to read the story of Lazarus from the Bible. By speaking of Lazarus, Dostoevsky is saying that in some ways Raskolnikov and Lazarus are alike.
Raskolnikov & Lazarus Allusion Comparison
Lazarus Raskolnikov
Literally dead Spiritually & therefore
Figuratively dead through sin
Needs physical rebirth Needs spiritual rebirth
Jesus raises him from Sonia raises him from
Physical death spiritual death
Physically reborn Spiritually reborn by the ending of isolation through confession
Points to Remember
1. Svidrigalov is ease dropping on the conversation between Raskolnikov and Sonia.
2. Sonia’s purpose is to redeem Raskolnikov through her suffering for him (like Christ suffered for the sins of others); she will help him “bear his cross” (a Biblical allusion).
3. Porfiry’s purpose is to redeem Raskolnikov’s intellectual side. Point: He could have arrested Raskolnikov by this time. He has enough evidence, but he does not because:
• He has a sincere liking for him.
• (and most important) If arrested now, Raskolnikov would never come to a realization about the error of his theory. This is important because punishment without understanding is not beneficial nor corrective. Without understanding, the talents Raskolnikov has would be wasted and would not benefit him or Russia.
4. Nikolay’s confession is thematic and is a result of his belief that suffering (even without sin), leads to redemption.
Crime and Punishment Part III
Extraordinary Man/Superman Theories in Crime and Punishment
Raskolnikov’s theories about the ordinary man versus the extraordinary man are often blurred and indistinct in his own mind. If one is to assume that the crime was committed in order to prove a theory, then the flaws in the crime indicate the flaws or incompleteness of the theory.
If the theories seem to be contradictory at times, it is not a result of Dostoevsky’s carelessness; quite the contrary, Dostoevsky intentionally made the theory contradictory at times. Raskolnikov had to commit the murder before he had completely formulated the theory. Dostoevsky wanted to show the young intellectual being influenced by various theories and then using these theories before he had had a chance to analyze them. For example, a typical contradiction would be that Raskolnikov will at one time maintain that the murder was committed to benefit mankind, but then he will maintain that the extraordinary man must be above mankind and not be concerned with what mankind will think of him. Such an incomplete understanding of his own thoughts and such contradictory statements are the rationale that leads Raskolnikov to the possibility of redemption. A brief analysis of the various ideas will partly show what aspect of the theories are borrowed and what aspects are the result of Raskolnikov’s own thinking.
The German philosopher Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770-1830)
Hegelian Superman Theory:
1. The Hegelian Superman exists for noble purposes; if the ends are noble, then the means can be justified. The emphasis is always on the ends rather than the means.
• The old pawnbroker is an evil person who is actually harming the poor people who come to her for pawning.
2. According to Hegel, any harmful segment of society should be removed.
• Therefore, Raskolnikov reasons that by murdering the old pawnbroker, he will be removing a harmful “louse” from society.
If the ends are noble, the means can be justified. The old pawnbroker has a lot of money that will be “wasted” upon useless requiem services for her soul after her death. With that money, Raskolnikov will be able to complete his education and devote himself to the service of humanity, or he could distribute the money among needy and starving families, thus saving hundreds of people from ruin and destitution.
German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900)
The Nietzschean Superman Theory:
1. The Nietzschean Superman exists for his own self gratificiation
• Svidrigailov was born from these ideas of self-gratification. Svidrigailov would reason:
2. Since he believes that “God is dead” there is no will (or power) beyond that of my own, I must completely assert my own will until it is totally free of all restraint against it. Since there is no power beyond me that functions to punish, I am free to assert completely my own will.
3. Therefore, the Nietzschean Superman is one who possesses the strongest will and is able to make his desires and his power dominant over others.
• Svidrigailov can rape a 15-year-old girl and cause the death of a servant without any fear of punishment. He asserts his own will in order to gratify his own desires.
4. The test of this type of Superman is that he must stand completely alone and must not allow his will to be influenced by the wishes of others. Thus, this assertion of the will isolates man from society.
• When Raskolnikov attempts to assert his will, he finds himself cut off from the rest of humanity. It is this dreadful solitude that Raskolnikov cannot stand and that makes him confess to become part of humanity again.
Crime and Punishment Part III:
Raskolnikov’s Extraordinary Man Theory
Raskolnikov’s own theory adopts some of all of the above ideas with certain touches of his own. For Raskolnikov,
1. All men are divided into two categories: ordinary and extraordinary.
2. The ordinary man has to live in submission and has no right to transgress the law because he is ordinary.
3. On the contrary, the extraordinary men have the right to commit any crime and to transgress the law in any way.
4. They are extraordinary because they are the men who have the gift or talent to utter a New Word. It is the extraordinary men who forge civilization onward to new heights of achievements.
5. The extraordinary man has this inner right to decide whether to overstep the law or any obstacle that stands in the way of the practical fulfillment of his idea, or New Words.
6. All great men capable of giving something new to society must not submit to the common law because if they do they cease to be great.
7. Great men create new laws by their discoveries and therefore should have the right to eliminate a few men in order to make their new discoveries known to all of humanity.
• Thus, Raskolnikov “sanctions bloodshed in the name of conscience.” (Raskolnikov constantly refers to Napoleon because Napoleon had the daring to commit various acts in order to complete his plans).
Again it should be emphasized that, at the time of the murder, Raskolnikov had not worked these various theories into a consistent whole. All the individual parts were there, but some of the connecting details were missing. The murder was committed to see whether he dares commit a murder and therefore prove his will is strong, that he in fact is an extraordinary man. Am I a real man of power? (This idea comes partly from Nietzsche). From this premise, Raskolnikov reasons that a man may commit a crime if it serves a noble end. (This part comes from Hegel). Then he chooses his victim from the “ordinary” class; he chooses someone who he considers to be a louse, the pawnbroker, Alyona.
Crime and Punishment Part III
Raskolnikov’s Extraordinary Man Theory
1. Crime is always accompanied by illness.
2. Men are either ordinary or extraordinary
3. Ordinary men have no right to transgress laws.
4. Extraordinary men have an inner right to decide whether or not to step over any law or obstacle standing in the way of fulfillment of their ideas.
5. All great men have the right to eliminate a few men in order to make their discoveries known to all mankind.
6. Ordinary, inferior men can only reproduce their own kind. Extraordinary men have the talent to utter “a new word.”
7. All great men capable of giving something NEW “a new word,” must not submit to common law or they will cease to be great.
What is important in this section:
* What is new and original in Raskolnikov’s theory (thereby making him one of the extraordinary) is that he “Sanctions bloodshed in the name of conscience.” Raskolnikov says that the great will suffer in their own conscience. “Pain and suffering are always inevitable for a large intelligence and a deep heart.”
Raskolnikov’s theories about the ordinary man versus the extraordinary man are often blurred and indistinct in his own mind. If one is to assume that the crime was committed in order to prove a theory, then the flaws in the crime indicate the flaws or incompleteness of the theory.
If the theories seem to be contradictory at times, it is not a result of Dostoevsky’s carelessness; quite the contrary, Dostoevsky intentionally made the theory contradictory at times. Raskolnikov had to commit the murder before he had completely formulated the theory. Dostoevsky wanted to show the young intellectual being influenced by various theories and then using these theories before he had had a chance to analyze them. For example, a typical contradiction would be that Raskolnikov will at one time maintain that the murder was committed to benefit mankind, but then he will maintain that the extraordinary man must be above mankind and not be concerned with what mankind will think of him. Such an incomplete understanding of his own thoughts and such contradictory statements are the rationale that leads Raskolnikov to the possibility of redemption. A brief analysis of the various ideas will partly show what aspect of the theories are borrowed and what aspects are the result of Raskolnikov’s own thinking.
The German philosopher Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770-1830)
Hegelian Superman Theory:
1. The Hegelian Superman exists for noble purposes; if the ends are noble, then the means can be justified. The emphasis is always on the ends rather than the means.
• The old pawnbroker is an evil person who is actually harming the poor people who come to her for pawning.
2. According to Hegel, any harmful segment of society should be removed.
• Therefore, Raskolnikov reasons that by murdering the old pawnbroker, he will be removing a harmful “louse” from society.
If the ends are noble, the means can be justified. The old pawnbroker has a lot of money that will be “wasted” upon useless requiem services for her soul after her death. With that money, Raskolnikov will be able to complete his education and devote himself to the service of humanity, or he could distribute the money among needy and starving families, thus saving hundreds of people from ruin and destitution.
German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900)
The Nietzschean Superman Theory:
1. The Nietzschean Superman exists for his own self gratificiation
• Svidrigailov was born from these ideas of self-gratification. Svidrigailov would reason:
2. Since he believes that “God is dead” there is no will (or power) beyond that of my own, I must completely assert my own will until it is totally free of all restraint against it. Since there is no power beyond me that functions to punish, I am free to assert completely my own will.
3. Therefore, the Nietzschean Superman is one who possesses the strongest will and is able to make his desires and his power dominant over others.
• Svidrigailov can rape a 15-year-old girl and cause the death of a servant without any fear of punishment. He asserts his own will in order to gratify his own desires.
4. The test of this type of Superman is that he must stand completely alone and must not allow his will to be influenced by the wishes of others. Thus, this assertion of the will isolates man from society.
• When Raskolnikov attempts to assert his will, he finds himself cut off from the rest of humanity. It is this dreadful solitude that Raskolnikov cannot stand and that makes him confess to become part of humanity again.
Crime and Punishment Part III:
Raskolnikov’s Extraordinary Man Theory
Raskolnikov’s own theory adopts some of all of the above ideas with certain touches of his own. For Raskolnikov,
1. All men are divided into two categories: ordinary and extraordinary.
2. The ordinary man has to live in submission and has no right to transgress the law because he is ordinary.
3. On the contrary, the extraordinary men have the right to commit any crime and to transgress the law in any way.
4. They are extraordinary because they are the men who have the gift or talent to utter a New Word. It is the extraordinary men who forge civilization onward to new heights of achievements.
5. The extraordinary man has this inner right to decide whether to overstep the law or any obstacle that stands in the way of the practical fulfillment of his idea, or New Words.
6. All great men capable of giving something new to society must not submit to the common law because if they do they cease to be great.
7. Great men create new laws by their discoveries and therefore should have the right to eliminate a few men in order to make their new discoveries known to all of humanity.
• Thus, Raskolnikov “sanctions bloodshed in the name of conscience.” (Raskolnikov constantly refers to Napoleon because Napoleon had the daring to commit various acts in order to complete his plans).
Again it should be emphasized that, at the time of the murder, Raskolnikov had not worked these various theories into a consistent whole. All the individual parts were there, but some of the connecting details were missing. The murder was committed to see whether he dares commit a murder and therefore prove his will is strong, that he in fact is an extraordinary man. Am I a real man of power? (This idea comes partly from Nietzsche). From this premise, Raskolnikov reasons that a man may commit a crime if it serves a noble end. (This part comes from Hegel). Then he chooses his victim from the “ordinary” class; he chooses someone who he considers to be a louse, the pawnbroker, Alyona.
Crime and Punishment Part III
Raskolnikov’s Extraordinary Man Theory
1. Crime is always accompanied by illness.
2. Men are either ordinary or extraordinary
3. Ordinary men have no right to transgress laws.
4. Extraordinary men have an inner right to decide whether or not to step over any law or obstacle standing in the way of fulfillment of their ideas.
5. All great men have the right to eliminate a few men in order to make their discoveries known to all mankind.
6. Ordinary, inferior men can only reproduce their own kind. Extraordinary men have the talent to utter “a new word.”
7. All great men capable of giving something NEW “a new word,” must not submit to common law or they will cease to be great.
What is important in this section:
* What is new and original in Raskolnikov’s theory (thereby making him one of the extraordinary) is that he “Sanctions bloodshed in the name of conscience.” Raskolnikov says that the great will suffer in their own conscience. “Pain and suffering are always inevitable for a large intelligence and a deep heart.”
Crime and punishment Part II
Crime and Punishment Part II
Guilt and Obsession
• Raskolnikov’s theory says that there is a failure of will in every crime. This is evidenced by careless mistakes. He leaves the door open; he does not get rid of the evidence immediately etc., which causes fear of discovery.
• Raskolnikov’s theory states that illness accompanies crime. His illness (chills, fever and delirium are psychosomatic and the beginning of his punishment).
Raskolnikov’s theory states that crime isolates one from human contact. The extraordinary man must stand alone and need no one. He realizes that the crime has isolated him from society. That he can never be open and free with another person if he is to avoid discovery, yet he yearns for human contact. (duality). Suspicious Behavior
• Raskolnikov’s obsession with the bloody sock
• Fear of discovery
• Delirium
• Raskolnikov’s illness after the crime ties in with his published theory.
• He is extremely lethargic only showing interest in the crime.
• Hypothetical confession to Zametov
• Returns to the scene of the crime.
Important Points in Part II
• Raskolnikov does not count the money. This indicates that the crime was not committed for financial gain.
• Raskolnikov vacillates between the dual desire to confess (and thereby end his isolation from society) and the desire to hide his guilt (and avoid punishment).
• Sonia is revealed as a symbol of great suffering and shame (revealing a Christ-like nature).
Guilt and Obsession
• Raskolnikov’s theory says that there is a failure of will in every crime. This is evidenced by careless mistakes. He leaves the door open; he does not get rid of the evidence immediately etc., which causes fear of discovery.
• Raskolnikov’s theory states that illness accompanies crime. His illness (chills, fever and delirium are psychosomatic and the beginning of his punishment).
Raskolnikov’s theory states that crime isolates one from human contact. The extraordinary man must stand alone and need no one. He realizes that the crime has isolated him from society. That he can never be open and free with another person if he is to avoid discovery, yet he yearns for human contact. (duality). Suspicious Behavior
• Raskolnikov’s obsession with the bloody sock
• Fear of discovery
• Delirium
• Raskolnikov’s illness after the crime ties in with his published theory.
• He is extremely lethargic only showing interest in the crime.
• Hypothetical confession to Zametov
• Returns to the scene of the crime.
Important Points in Part II
• Raskolnikov does not count the money. This indicates that the crime was not committed for financial gain.
• Raskolnikov vacillates between the dual desire to confess (and thereby end his isolation from society) and the desire to hide his guilt (and avoid punishment).
• Sonia is revealed as a symbol of great suffering and shame (revealing a Christ-like nature).
Friday, March 20, 2009
Crime and Punishment Part 1
Crime and Punishment Part I
Conflict:
External – man vs. a hostile society
(poverty, crime)
Internal – man vs. himself
(Raskolnikov’s battling dual natures calculating and caring sides)
The purpose of the novel is to unite the two factions of Raskolnikov’s personality into one whole functioning person.
Theme: Suffering leads to redemption.
The whole story is developed through duality, dual conflicts as well as dual characterization
Roskolnikov
Calculating
Cold
Uncaring
Intellectual
Caring
Warm
Compassionate
Humane
Humble & Meek
Other characters
Calculating Characters
Alyona
Svidrigalov (evil)
Porfiry
Caring Characters
Lizaveta
Sonia ("Christ like")
Conflict:
External – man vs. a hostile society
(poverty, crime)
Internal – man vs. himself
(Raskolnikov’s battling dual natures calculating and caring sides)
The purpose of the novel is to unite the two factions of Raskolnikov’s personality into one whole functioning person.
Theme: Suffering leads to redemption.
The whole story is developed through duality, dual conflicts as well as dual characterization
Roskolnikov
Calculating
Cold
Uncaring
Intellectual
Caring
Warm
Compassionate
Humane
Humble & Meek
Other characters
Calculating Characters
Alyona
Svidrigalov (evil)
Porfiry
Caring Characters
Lizaveta
Sonia ("Christ like")
Reflections of Dostoevsky in Crime and Punishment
• Influenced by the radical new ideas from the West that were entering Russia during the 19th century
• He became involved in some liberal, revolutionary movements and wanted Russia to catch up with the rest of Europe
• He began writing and publishing contraband articles on a variety of political questions. This was illegal because printing was controlled and censored by the government
• He (along with 14 others) was arrested in 1849 and sentenced to death before a firing squad. Moments before his execution they were reprieved. He never forgot the experience and it haunted him for years
• Dostoevsky spent the next 5 years in a Siberian prison under horrible conditions.
• In Siberia, Dostoevsky changes his life
1. Had first epileptic seizure
2. Rejects blind acceptance of new ideas
3. Becomes a Slavophil (believes the salvation of the world was in the hands of Russia and eventually Russia would rise to dominate the world, therefore each Russian must contribute his utmost to the development of Russian ideas and culture) like Porfiry
4. Formulates his ideas about suffering as the means of salvation
• His first wife is a tubercular young widow with a young son by her first marriage. The marriage was short because she dies of her disease (like Katerina)
• He became involved in some liberal, revolutionary movements and wanted Russia to catch up with the rest of Europe
• He began writing and publishing contraband articles on a variety of political questions. This was illegal because printing was controlled and censored by the government
• He (along with 14 others) was arrested in 1849 and sentenced to death before a firing squad. Moments before his execution they were reprieved. He never forgot the experience and it haunted him for years
• Dostoevsky spent the next 5 years in a Siberian prison under horrible conditions.
• In Siberia, Dostoevsky changes his life
1. Had first epileptic seizure
2. Rejects blind acceptance of new ideas
3. Becomes a Slavophil (believes the salvation of the world was in the hands of Russia and eventually Russia would rise to dominate the world, therefore each Russian must contribute his utmost to the development of Russian ideas and culture) like Porfiry
4. Formulates his ideas about suffering as the means of salvation
• His first wife is a tubercular young widow with a young son by her first marriage. The marriage was short because she dies of her disease (like Katerina)
Crime and Punishment: Historical Perspective
Historical and Literary Setting for
Crime and Punishment
The Age of Realism, generally considered the culmination of the literary synthesis of earlier generations, began in around 1850. The writers of this period shared important qualities: great attention to realistic, detailed descriptions of everyday life; the lifting of the taboo on describing the vulgar, unsightly side of life; and a satirical attitude toward mediocrity and routines. Although varying widely in style, subject matter, and viewpoint, these writers stimulated government bureaucrats, nobles, and intellectuals to think about important social issues. This period of literature, lasted from about mid-century to 1905.
The best Russian prose writers of the Age of Realism were Ivan Turgenev, Feodor Dostoyevsky, and Leo Tolstoy. Because of the enduring quality of their combination of pure literature with eternal philosophical questions, the last two are accepted as Russia's premier prose artists; Dostoyevsky's novels Crime and Punishment and The Brothers Karamazov , like Tolstoy's novels War and Peace and Anna Karenina , are classics of world literature.
During the 19th century, Russia was ruled by autocrats, or czars, who ruled with absolute power.
1825, Czar Nicholas I came to power. Nicholas is remembered for his much harsher treatment of the people and constant striving for more power. Nicholas was a strong conservative in his beliefs about serfdom, and did not tolerate the 500 peasant revolts following his ascension to the throne. He tried to preserve his power by restricting education so that revolutionary ideas would not spread. However, a new educated group, the Intelligentsia, rose to fight for democracy. In his struggle for more power, Nicholas's actions led to the beginning of the Crimean War.
Ruler of Russia during the events of Crime and Punishment
Nicholas was succeeded by Alexander II, a much more liberal czar, in 1855. After Russia's defeat in the Crimean War, he realized that he needed to modernize his country. His first reform was to free the serfs. Alexander II issued the Emancipation Manifesto in 1861, abolishing *serfdom. This liberal reform helped reestablish Russia as a great power. Alexander II was killed in 1881 when a student and member of the revolutionary group the Narodnaya Volya (People's will) threw a bomb at him. The Narodnaya Volya was a populist group formed by the Intelligentsia who opposed Alexander's insufficient domestic reforms.
*serf (sûrf)
definition:
n.
1. A member of the lowest feudal class, attached to the land owned by a lord and required to perform labor in return for certain legal or customary rights.
2. An agricultural laborer under various similar systems, especially in 18th- and 19th-century Russia and Eastern Europe.
3. A person in bondage or servitude.
Crime and Punishment
The Age of Realism, generally considered the culmination of the literary synthesis of earlier generations, began in around 1850. The writers of this period shared important qualities: great attention to realistic, detailed descriptions of everyday life; the lifting of the taboo on describing the vulgar, unsightly side of life; and a satirical attitude toward mediocrity and routines. Although varying widely in style, subject matter, and viewpoint, these writers stimulated government bureaucrats, nobles, and intellectuals to think about important social issues. This period of literature, lasted from about mid-century to 1905.
The best Russian prose writers of the Age of Realism were Ivan Turgenev, Feodor Dostoyevsky, and Leo Tolstoy. Because of the enduring quality of their combination of pure literature with eternal philosophical questions, the last two are accepted as Russia's premier prose artists; Dostoyevsky's novels Crime and Punishment and The Brothers Karamazov , like Tolstoy's novels War and Peace and Anna Karenina , are classics of world literature.
During the 19th century, Russia was ruled by autocrats, or czars, who ruled with absolute power.
1825, Czar Nicholas I came to power. Nicholas is remembered for his much harsher treatment of the people and constant striving for more power. Nicholas was a strong conservative in his beliefs about serfdom, and did not tolerate the 500 peasant revolts following his ascension to the throne. He tried to preserve his power by restricting education so that revolutionary ideas would not spread. However, a new educated group, the Intelligentsia, rose to fight for democracy. In his struggle for more power, Nicholas's actions led to the beginning of the Crimean War.
Ruler of Russia during the events of Crime and Punishment
Nicholas was succeeded by Alexander II, a much more liberal czar, in 1855. After Russia's defeat in the Crimean War, he realized that he needed to modernize his country. His first reform was to free the serfs. Alexander II issued the Emancipation Manifesto in 1861, abolishing *serfdom. This liberal reform helped reestablish Russia as a great power. Alexander II was killed in 1881 when a student and member of the revolutionary group the Narodnaya Volya (People's will) threw a bomb at him. The Narodnaya Volya was a populist group formed by the Intelligentsia who opposed Alexander's insufficient domestic reforms.
*serf (sûrf)
definition:
n.
1. A member of the lowest feudal class, attached to the land owned by a lord and required to perform labor in return for certain legal or customary rights.
2. An agricultural laborer under various similar systems, especially in 18th- and 19th-century Russia and Eastern Europe.
3. A person in bondage or servitude.
Crime and Punishment Character List
Russian Names
The middle name of all male characters end in “ovitch” and of all female characters in “ovna.” This ending simply means “son of” or “daughter of” the father whose first name is converted into their middle name and is called a patronymic. For example, Rodya and Dunya’s father was named Roman Raskolnikov. Thus, Rodya’s middle name Rodion Romanovitch means son of Roman and Dunya’s middle name, Avdotya Romanovna, means daughter of Roman.
If you remember to give strong stress to the syllable marked with an accent in this list, to give the vowels their “continental” value, and pronounce the consonants as in English, a rough approximation to the Russian pronunciation will be obtained. The consonant “kh” sounds rather like the Scottish “ch” in “loch”; the “zh” represents a sound like “s” in “measure”; and the final “v” is pronounced “f.”
`Rodion Ro`manovitch Ras`kolnikov: “raskol”=schism or split.
Svidri`gailov
Razu`mikhin: “razum”=reason or common sense.
Marme`ladov: “marmelad”= jam or jelly.
Al`yona I`vanovna
Character List
Rodion Romanovitch Raskolnikov (Rodya, Rodenka, or Rodka) A poverty-stricken student who conceives of a theory of the “Ubermensch” or extraordinary man who has the right and/or obligation to transgress the laws of the ordinary man in order to give a New Word or idea to all of humanity. He uses this theory as a justification or rationalization to commit murder.
Sonya Marmeladov (Sofya Semyonovna Marmeladov) A quiet, modest, suffering prostitute who will become Raskolnikov’s chief redemptive figure.
Porfiry Petrovitch An official of the investigating department who is in charge of the “crime.”
Svidrigailov (Arkady Ivanovitch) A sensualist and vulgarian who asserts his own will in order to achieve his personal goals.
Dunya (Avdotya Romanovna Raskolnikov) Raskolnikov’s devoted sister who was previously Svidrigailov’s employee and who was propositioned by him.
Razumihkin (Dmitri Prokofitch) One of Raskolnikov’s student friends who will become enamored of his sister Dunya.
Semyon Zakharovitch Marmeladov A dismissed government clerk who is an alcoholic.
Katerina Ivanovna Marmeladov Marmeladov’s consumptive wife had been previously married to an army officer by whom she had three children.
Pulcheria Alexandrovna Raskolnikov Raskolnikov’s mother who is frightened of her moody and intellectual son.
Alyona Ivanovna The sadistic and nasty moneylender whom Raskolnikov murders.
Lizaveta Ivanovna The mild, likable half sister to Alyona who is brutalized by her.
Polenka, Lyona, Kolya (Kolka) Katerina Ivanovna’s children by a previous marriage. Sonyas greatest fear is that Polenka might have to enter into prostitution—Raskolnikov plagues her with this thought.
Marfa Petrovna Svidrigailov’s wife who once assumed Dunya had designs on her husband.
Luzhin (Pyotr Petrovitch) A petty and miserly clerk in government who wants a poor person for his bride so that she will be indebted to him.
Lebezyatnikov (Andrey Semyonovitch) Luzhin’s roommate who calls himself an “advanced liberal.”
Praskovya Pavlovna Raskolnikov’s shy and plump landlady.
Nastasya Praskovya Pavlovna’s maid who befriends Raskolnikov and looks after him when he is ill.
Amalia Fyodorovna The Marmeladov’s landlady who is particularly disliked by Katerina Ivanovna Marmeladov.
Kapernaumovs Sonya and Svidrigailov rent rooms from these rather depressed people.
Zossimov The doctor who cares for Raskolnikov during his illness.
Nikodim Fomitch A handsome police officer who was also at Marmeladov’s death scene and reports this fact to Porfiry.
Zametov (Zamyotov), Alexander Gigorevitch The chief clerk at the police station.
Ilya Petrovitch A loud and somewhat overbearing police official to whom Raskolnikov makes his confession when there was no one else to confess to.
Nikolay (Milkolka) and Dmitri (Mitka) The painters who were working in the flat below the pawnbroker’s flat at the time of the crime
(Cliff’s Notes)
The middle name of all male characters end in “ovitch” and of all female characters in “ovna.” This ending simply means “son of” or “daughter of” the father whose first name is converted into their middle name and is called a patronymic. For example, Rodya and Dunya’s father was named Roman Raskolnikov. Thus, Rodya’s middle name Rodion Romanovitch means son of Roman and Dunya’s middle name, Avdotya Romanovna, means daughter of Roman.
If you remember to give strong stress to the syllable marked with an accent in this list, to give the vowels their “continental” value, and pronounce the consonants as in English, a rough approximation to the Russian pronunciation will be obtained. The consonant “kh” sounds rather like the Scottish “ch” in “loch”; the “zh” represents a sound like “s” in “measure”; and the final “v” is pronounced “f.”
`Rodion Ro`manovitch Ras`kolnikov: “raskol”=schism or split.
Svidri`gailov
Razu`mikhin: “razum”=reason or common sense.
Marme`ladov: “marmelad”= jam or jelly.
Al`yona I`vanovna
Character List
Rodion Romanovitch Raskolnikov (Rodya, Rodenka, or Rodka) A poverty-stricken student who conceives of a theory of the “Ubermensch” or extraordinary man who has the right and/or obligation to transgress the laws of the ordinary man in order to give a New Word or idea to all of humanity. He uses this theory as a justification or rationalization to commit murder.
Sonya Marmeladov (Sofya Semyonovna Marmeladov) A quiet, modest, suffering prostitute who will become Raskolnikov’s chief redemptive figure.
Porfiry Petrovitch An official of the investigating department who is in charge of the “crime.”
Svidrigailov (Arkady Ivanovitch) A sensualist and vulgarian who asserts his own will in order to achieve his personal goals.
Dunya (Avdotya Romanovna Raskolnikov) Raskolnikov’s devoted sister who was previously Svidrigailov’s employee and who was propositioned by him.
Razumihkin (Dmitri Prokofitch) One of Raskolnikov’s student friends who will become enamored of his sister Dunya.
Semyon Zakharovitch Marmeladov A dismissed government clerk who is an alcoholic.
Katerina Ivanovna Marmeladov Marmeladov’s consumptive wife had been previously married to an army officer by whom she had three children.
Pulcheria Alexandrovna Raskolnikov Raskolnikov’s mother who is frightened of her moody and intellectual son.
Alyona Ivanovna The sadistic and nasty moneylender whom Raskolnikov murders.
Lizaveta Ivanovna The mild, likable half sister to Alyona who is brutalized by her.
Polenka, Lyona, Kolya (Kolka) Katerina Ivanovna’s children by a previous marriage. Sonyas greatest fear is that Polenka might have to enter into prostitution—Raskolnikov plagues her with this thought.
Marfa Petrovna Svidrigailov’s wife who once assumed Dunya had designs on her husband.
Luzhin (Pyotr Petrovitch) A petty and miserly clerk in government who wants a poor person for his bride so that she will be indebted to him.
Lebezyatnikov (Andrey Semyonovitch) Luzhin’s roommate who calls himself an “advanced liberal.”
Praskovya Pavlovna Raskolnikov’s shy and plump landlady.
Nastasya Praskovya Pavlovna’s maid who befriends Raskolnikov and looks after him when he is ill.
Amalia Fyodorovna The Marmeladov’s landlady who is particularly disliked by Katerina Ivanovna Marmeladov.
Kapernaumovs Sonya and Svidrigailov rent rooms from these rather depressed people.
Zossimov The doctor who cares for Raskolnikov during his illness.
Nikodim Fomitch A handsome police officer who was also at Marmeladov’s death scene and reports this fact to Porfiry.
Zametov (Zamyotov), Alexander Gigorevitch The chief clerk at the police station.
Ilya Petrovitch A loud and somewhat overbearing police official to whom Raskolnikov makes his confession when there was no one else to confess to.
Nikolay (Milkolka) and Dmitri (Mitka) The painters who were working in the flat below the pawnbroker’s flat at the time of the crime
(Cliff’s Notes)
Crime and Punishment Dostoevsky Biography
Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky
• Born: 11 November 1821
• Birthplace: Moscow, Russia
• Died: 28 January 1881
• Best Known As: Author of Crime and Punishment
• 19th century Russian author who wrote the classic novels Crime and Punishment (1866) and The Brothers Karamazov (1880).
• Dostoevsky turned to writing as a profession after a brief military career
• In 1849 he was arrested for his participation in a literary/political group and sentenced to prison.
• He narrowly escaped execution, having been stood before a firing squad
• He spent nearly ten years isolated in Siberia (four of them in prison) before returning to St. Petersburg.
• His novels explored the psychology and moral obligations of modern man
• He is famous for creating the "underground hero," a protagonist alienated from society and in search of redemption.
• One of Russia's greatest authors and a strong influence on 20th century literature
• His other works include House of the Dead (1862), Notes from the Underground (1864) and The Idiot (1868).
• Born: 11 November 1821
• Birthplace: Moscow, Russia
• Died: 28 January 1881
• Best Known As: Author of Crime and Punishment
• 19th century Russian author who wrote the classic novels Crime and Punishment (1866) and The Brothers Karamazov (1880).
• Dostoevsky turned to writing as a profession after a brief military career
• In 1849 he was arrested for his participation in a literary/political group and sentenced to prison.
• He narrowly escaped execution, having been stood before a firing squad
• He spent nearly ten years isolated in Siberia (four of them in prison) before returning to St. Petersburg.
• His novels explored the psychology and moral obligations of modern man
• He is famous for creating the "underground hero," a protagonist alienated from society and in search of redemption.
• One of Russia's greatest authors and a strong influence on 20th century literature
• His other works include House of the Dead (1862), Notes from the Underground (1864) and The Idiot (1868).
Tuesday, February 17, 2009
[From Contemporary Authors & other on line sources]
BRIEF BIOGRAPHY: Albert Chinualumogu Achebe was born the son of a Christian churchman, November 16, 1930 in Ogidi, Nigeria. He married and had four children. He attended Government College in Umuahia from 1944 to 1947 and University College in Ibadan from 1948 to 1953. He then received a B.A. from London University in 1953 and studied broadcasting at the British Broadcasting Corp. in London in 1956.
Since the 1950's, Nigeria has witnessed "the flourishing of a new literature which has drawn sustenance from both traditional oral literature and from the present and rapidly changing society," writes Margaret Laurence in her book Long Drums and Cannons: Nigerian Dramatists and Novelists. Thirty years ago Chinua Achebe was one of the founders of this new literature, and over the years many critics have come to consider him the finest of the Nigerian novelists. He is considered by many to be one of the best novelists now writing in the English language.
Achebe has been able to avoid imitating the trends in English literature. Rejecting the European notion "that art should be accountable to no one, and [needs] to justify itself to nobody," as he puts it in his book of essays, Morning Yet on Creation Day, Achebe has embraced instead the idea at the heart of the African oral tradition: that "art is, and always was, at the service of man. Our ancestors created their myths and told their stories for a human purpose." For this reason, Achebe believes that "any good story, any good novel, should have a message, should have a purpose." As Bruce King comments in Introduction to Nigerian Literature: "Achebe was the first Nigerian writer to successfully transmute the conventions of the novel, a European art form, into African literature." In an Achebe novel, King notes, "European character study is subordinated to the portrayal of communal life; European economy of form is replaced by an aesthetic appropriate to the rhythms of traditional tribal life." Anthony Daniels writes in Spectator, "In spare prose of great elegance, without any technical distraction, he has been able to illuminate two emotionally irreconcilable facets of modern African life: the humiliations visited on Africans by colonialism, and the utter moral worthlessness of what replaced colonial rule." Set in this historical context, Achebe's novels develop the theme of "traditional verses change," and offer, as Palmer observes, "a powerful presentation of the beauty, strength, and validity of traditional life and values and the disruptiveness of change." Even so, the author does not appeal for a return to the ways of the past. Palmer notes that "while deploring the imperialists' brutality and condescension, [Achebe] seems to suggest that change is inevitable and wise men...reconcile themselves to accommodating change. It is the diehards who resist and are destroyed in the process."
Things Fall Apart focuses on Nigeria's early experience with colonialism. "Chinua Achebe creates a coherent picture of coherence being lost, of the tragic consequences of the African-European collision," offers Robert McDowell in a special issue of “Studies in Black Literature”. Things Fall Apart, Achebe's first novel, was published in 1958 in the midst of the Nigerian renaissance. It tells the story of an Igbo village of the late 1800's and one of its great men, Okonkwo, who has achieved much in his life. He is a champion wrestler, a wealthy farmer, a husband to three wives, a title-holder among his people, and a member of the select egwugwu whose members impersonate ancestral spirits at tribal rituals. However, "The most impressive achievement of Things Fall Apart..." maintains David Carroll in his book Chinua Achebe, "is the vivid picture it provides of Igbo society at the end of the nineteenth century." The order is disrupted, however, with the appearance of the white man in Africa and with the introduction of his religion. "The conflict of the novel, vested in Okokwo, derives from the series of crushing blows which are leveled at traditional values by an alien and more powerful culture causing, in the end, the traditional society to fall apart," observes G.D. Killam. Okonkwo is unable to adapt to the changes that accompany colonialism. In the end, in frustration, he kills an African employed by the British, and then commits suicide, a sin against the tradition to which he had long clung. Achebe achieves a balance in recreating the tragic consequences of the clash of two cultures. Killam notes that "in showing Igbo society before and after the coming of the white man he avoids the temptation to present the past as idealized and the present as ugly and unsatisfactory."
LANGUAGE AND CULTURE
The crowning glory of Achebe's novels is undoubtedly his use of the language and aphorisms of oral culture. What sets him apart from other African writers is the fact that he is, by far, more successful than others in flawlessly translating the working of African psyche from one medium to another, from an indigenous oral tradition to an alien form of European origin without obliterating the freshness and vigor of the former, and despite the vast difference separating the two cultures. His characteristic mode of writing, in other words, fulfills Achebe's own idea that the "English of the African will have to be a new English, still in communion with its ancestral home but altered to suit its new African surroundings." In his own fiction, he succeeds in creating an English that is not only, as critics have pointed out, "detached," "stately," and "impassive" but also singular in its ability to bring a whole range of human experience before our mind's eye by his consummate use of imagery drawn from both native and alien sources. He makes use of devices like proverbs, folktales, and religious tenets conveyed through prayer, speeches and song sequences. His language a major component of his artistic strategy, which not only enriches the English language but gives the reader the experience of a whole culture. As Lloyd W. Brown aptly says Achebe's fiction demonstrates his preoccupation with language, not simply as a communicative device, but as a total cultural experience. At this level, language is not merely technique. It is the embodiment of its civilization and therefore represents or dramatizes modes of perception within its cultural grouping.
The artistic interplay of form and content in his novels also contributes to our understanding of Igbo cultural ethic and aesthetics. Achebe thus fulfills the writer's responsibility, which according to Samuel Johnson , is to instruct by pleasing. Achebe's novels provide an accurate picture of the African past and present -- of life with all its pains, pleasures, and puzzles. As he affirmed, Achebe wanted to convey through his novels [AUTHOR’S PURPOSE] that, African people did not hear of culture for the first time from Europeans; that their societies were not mindless but had a philosophy of great depth and value and beauty, that they had poetry and above all they had dignity. This is a response to a Euro-centric stereotype expressed in other works of literature. (Conrad for example) and the reason for which he writes. Achebe's novels also provide the world a way of perceiving Black Aesthetics, the wisdom and philosophy, the poetry and beauty, of traditional Africa. For example, according to Igbo culture, a good speaker is he who uses traditional proverbs, with skill and wisdom. In deed, for the Igbos the core of conversation is the appropriate use of proverbs, and they believe: "Proverbs are the palm oil with which words are eaten." In all his novels Achebe makes prolific use of proverbs and popular adages. They reflect the good and the lean times through which their societies pass.
PROVERBS OR APHORISMS
The society of Umuofia holds achievement and success in high regard. This attitude is well expressed in many passages in Things Fall Apart, such as those that tell the reader: "You can tell a ripe corn by its look" and "If a child washed his hands, he could eat with kings". A number of proverbs embody Igbo beliefs about spirituality. For example, "When a man says yes, his 'chi' says yes also". The chi in Igbo cosmology is the guardian spirit granted to every individual at the time of birth and is part of the individual's supreme creative essence. According to Igbo belief, the chi is entirely responsible for the fortunes and misfortunes of individuals. Thus, when Okonkwo strived for prosperity, his chi agreed. But when he started becoming aggressive, his chi disagreed and precipitated his downfall. Other proverbs, such as "mother is supreme" communicate Igbo views of society. In traditional society mothers are accorded respect. When a man falls into misfortune, as in the case of Okonkwo, he seeks solace at his mother's place. Thus during his exile, Okonkwo takes refuge in Mbanta, his mother's village. A great many of Achebe's proverbs concern matters of power and politics, particularly where related to the effects of colonization. Thus, "If one finger brought oil, it soiled the others" shows the effortless spreading of anarchy among the natives after the advent of the white man. For his apparent arrogance Okonkwo is compared to, "the little bird Nza who so far forgot himself after a heavy meal that he challenged his chi".
FOLKLORE
Achebe, who believes that cultures use folklore to pass on great cultural richness, thinks such folklore can provide solutions to a people's questions and problems. Hence folklore, which is an important feature of the Igbo culture, finds ample and appropriate place in the novels of Achebe. Achebe's characters make use of folklore to make their arguments forcefully and effectively illustrate moral values.
The story of the little bird Nza occurs in Things Fall Apart. It brings home the fact that a man should never provoke his fate. He should know where to draw a line of limit in his pursuit of power. The same wisdom is evident in the story of the bird Eneke-nti-Oba. Among the Igbos an excellent wrestler is one who wins not only in the human world but also in the world of spirits. Thus Okonkwo's ability at wrestling is aptly compared to that of "the founder of the town" who according to folktale "engaged a spirit of the wild for seven days and seven nights."
The Didactic Animal Tale
The didactic animal tale appears in almost all Achebe's novels. In Things Fall Apart. The tales of the wily tortoise expose the wicked nature of beings, and the story of the mother kite shows the folly of the people of Abame. Men's and women's stories illustrate male and female values. While Okonkwo's stories exemplify warfare and violence in order to inculcate courage in children, Ekwefi's stories of the mosquito, are meant for entertainment.
Legend
Legend is one of the many elements that lend fascination to Things Fall Apart. The legends of Egwugwu is an example. The popularity of the legends shows that the traditions of the clan are kept alive.
Ceremonies
The elaborate description of various ceremonies gives us a chance to have a closer look at the well-developed symbolic view of religion in ancient societies. They also lend charm to the narrative. Some interesting ceremonies include the appearance and proceedings of the Egwugwu.
Customs
An example of Achebe's use of customs appears in the description of the treatment given to a guest. Upon entering a friend's Obi, a guest is seated either on a goatskin mat or on an earthen stool. Then he is given a piece of chalk with which he draws his emblem on the floor and paints his toe or face. The bond of goodwill is complete with the passing of the kola around, and sharing its contents.
The description of Okonkwo's obi and shrine, tells us of their architecture. Simultaneously there are human sacrifices, mutilation of a diseased Ogbanje child, the Osu practice, the belief in juju medicine, the spirit possession, the belief in the divinity of a python.
Salutation Names
Closely aligned to oratory are the salutation names. The naming system is important to the Igbo. Its importance is especially evident in Ekwefi's attempts to save the children by the name she gives. Nine die before one daughter Ezinma survives. She names the children in such a way as to break the cycle of Ogbanje children. A few were Onwumbiko, Death, I implore you," Ozoemena, May it not happen again," and finally Onwumna, Death may please himself". Name calling such as ant-hill nose," long throat," descriptive phrases such as the tongue with which to tell the story” contribute to give the reader a new experience of reading the same language.
The use of idioms lends Achebe's language and style a native flavor and force. Besides giving us a close and convincing picture of a society in transition, this technique helps his characters sound natural while speaking an alien tongue. A few such idioms deserve our attention.
References to Nature
Frequent references to flora and fauna imply the proximity of the Igbos to nature. Here are examples from Things Fall Apart: Okonkwo's fame had grown like a bush-fire in the harmattan", and he "drank palm wine from morning till night and his eyes were red and fierce like the eyes of a rat when it was caught by the tail and dashed against the floor". "He felt like a drunken giant walking with the limbs of a mosquito". "Okonkwo felt as if he had been cast out of his clan like a fish onto a dry sandy beach, panting". "Obierika's house is as busy as an ant hill." "The earth burned like hot coals."
Yam is also used as a metaphor for manliness, as in "Yam the king of crops was a man's crop", and "yam stood for manliness, and he could feed his family on yams from one harvest to another was a very great man indeed". "Ikemefuna grew rapidly like a yam tendril in the rainy season". Similarly, kola symbolizes prosperity: "He who brings kola brings life". Imagery of fire is used for a greater effect. Okonkwo is called Roaring Flame" and a flaming fire", while his son is cold, impotent ash".
Achebe's characters make use of folklore to make their arguments forceful and effective. It also helps in criticism and mockery. It illustrates the moral values of the culture.
BRIEF BIOGRAPHY: Albert Chinualumogu Achebe was born the son of a Christian churchman, November 16, 1930 in Ogidi, Nigeria. He married and had four children. He attended Government College in Umuahia from 1944 to 1947 and University College in Ibadan from 1948 to 1953. He then received a B.A. from London University in 1953 and studied broadcasting at the British Broadcasting Corp. in London in 1956.
Since the 1950's, Nigeria has witnessed "the flourishing of a new literature which has drawn sustenance from both traditional oral literature and from the present and rapidly changing society," writes Margaret Laurence in her book Long Drums and Cannons: Nigerian Dramatists and Novelists. Thirty years ago Chinua Achebe was one of the founders of this new literature, and over the years many critics have come to consider him the finest of the Nigerian novelists. He is considered by many to be one of the best novelists now writing in the English language.
Achebe has been able to avoid imitating the trends in English literature. Rejecting the European notion "that art should be accountable to no one, and [needs] to justify itself to nobody," as he puts it in his book of essays, Morning Yet on Creation Day, Achebe has embraced instead the idea at the heart of the African oral tradition: that "art is, and always was, at the service of man. Our ancestors created their myths and told their stories for a human purpose." For this reason, Achebe believes that "any good story, any good novel, should have a message, should have a purpose." As Bruce King comments in Introduction to Nigerian Literature: "Achebe was the first Nigerian writer to successfully transmute the conventions of the novel, a European art form, into African literature." In an Achebe novel, King notes, "European character study is subordinated to the portrayal of communal life; European economy of form is replaced by an aesthetic appropriate to the rhythms of traditional tribal life." Anthony Daniels writes in Spectator, "In spare prose of great elegance, without any technical distraction, he has been able to illuminate two emotionally irreconcilable facets of modern African life: the humiliations visited on Africans by colonialism, and the utter moral worthlessness of what replaced colonial rule." Set in this historical context, Achebe's novels develop the theme of "traditional verses change," and offer, as Palmer observes, "a powerful presentation of the beauty, strength, and validity of traditional life and values and the disruptiveness of change." Even so, the author does not appeal for a return to the ways of the past. Palmer notes that "while deploring the imperialists' brutality and condescension, [Achebe] seems to suggest that change is inevitable and wise men...reconcile themselves to accommodating change. It is the diehards who resist and are destroyed in the process."
Things Fall Apart focuses on Nigeria's early experience with colonialism. "Chinua Achebe creates a coherent picture of coherence being lost, of the tragic consequences of the African-European collision," offers Robert McDowell in a special issue of “Studies in Black Literature”. Things Fall Apart, Achebe's first novel, was published in 1958 in the midst of the Nigerian renaissance. It tells the story of an Igbo village of the late 1800's and one of its great men, Okonkwo, who has achieved much in his life. He is a champion wrestler, a wealthy farmer, a husband to three wives, a title-holder among his people, and a member of the select egwugwu whose members impersonate ancestral spirits at tribal rituals. However, "The most impressive achievement of Things Fall Apart..." maintains David Carroll in his book Chinua Achebe, "is the vivid picture it provides of Igbo society at the end of the nineteenth century." The order is disrupted, however, with the appearance of the white man in Africa and with the introduction of his religion. "The conflict of the novel, vested in Okokwo, derives from the series of crushing blows which are leveled at traditional values by an alien and more powerful culture causing, in the end, the traditional society to fall apart," observes G.D. Killam. Okonkwo is unable to adapt to the changes that accompany colonialism. In the end, in frustration, he kills an African employed by the British, and then commits suicide, a sin against the tradition to which he had long clung. Achebe achieves a balance in recreating the tragic consequences of the clash of two cultures. Killam notes that "in showing Igbo society before and after the coming of the white man he avoids the temptation to present the past as idealized and the present as ugly and unsatisfactory."
LANGUAGE AND CULTURE
The crowning glory of Achebe's novels is undoubtedly his use of the language and aphorisms of oral culture. What sets him apart from other African writers is the fact that he is, by far, more successful than others in flawlessly translating the working of African psyche from one medium to another, from an indigenous oral tradition to an alien form of European origin without obliterating the freshness and vigor of the former, and despite the vast difference separating the two cultures. His characteristic mode of writing, in other words, fulfills Achebe's own idea that the "English of the African will have to be a new English, still in communion with its ancestral home but altered to suit its new African surroundings." In his own fiction, he succeeds in creating an English that is not only, as critics have pointed out, "detached," "stately," and "impassive" but also singular in its ability to bring a whole range of human experience before our mind's eye by his consummate use of imagery drawn from both native and alien sources. He makes use of devices like proverbs, folktales, and religious tenets conveyed through prayer, speeches and song sequences. His language a major component of his artistic strategy, which not only enriches the English language but gives the reader the experience of a whole culture. As Lloyd W. Brown aptly says Achebe's fiction demonstrates his preoccupation with language, not simply as a communicative device, but as a total cultural experience. At this level, language is not merely technique. It is the embodiment of its civilization and therefore represents or dramatizes modes of perception within its cultural grouping.
The artistic interplay of form and content in his novels also contributes to our understanding of Igbo cultural ethic and aesthetics. Achebe thus fulfills the writer's responsibility, which according to Samuel Johnson , is to instruct by pleasing. Achebe's novels provide an accurate picture of the African past and present -- of life with all its pains, pleasures, and puzzles. As he affirmed, Achebe wanted to convey through his novels [AUTHOR’S PURPOSE] that, African people did not hear of culture for the first time from Europeans; that their societies were not mindless but had a philosophy of great depth and value and beauty, that they had poetry and above all they had dignity. This is a response to a Euro-centric stereotype expressed in other works of literature. (Conrad for example) and the reason for which he writes. Achebe's novels also provide the world a way of perceiving Black Aesthetics, the wisdom and philosophy, the poetry and beauty, of traditional Africa. For example, according to Igbo culture, a good speaker is he who uses traditional proverbs, with skill and wisdom. In deed, for the Igbos the core of conversation is the appropriate use of proverbs, and they believe: "Proverbs are the palm oil with which words are eaten." In all his novels Achebe makes prolific use of proverbs and popular adages. They reflect the good and the lean times through which their societies pass.
PROVERBS OR APHORISMS
The society of Umuofia holds achievement and success in high regard. This attitude is well expressed in many passages in Things Fall Apart, such as those that tell the reader: "You can tell a ripe corn by its look" and "If a child washed his hands, he could eat with kings". A number of proverbs embody Igbo beliefs about spirituality. For example, "When a man says yes, his 'chi' says yes also". The chi in Igbo cosmology is the guardian spirit granted to every individual at the time of birth and is part of the individual's supreme creative essence. According to Igbo belief, the chi is entirely responsible for the fortunes and misfortunes of individuals. Thus, when Okonkwo strived for prosperity, his chi agreed. But when he started becoming aggressive, his chi disagreed and precipitated his downfall. Other proverbs, such as "mother is supreme" communicate Igbo views of society. In traditional society mothers are accorded respect. When a man falls into misfortune, as in the case of Okonkwo, he seeks solace at his mother's place. Thus during his exile, Okonkwo takes refuge in Mbanta, his mother's village. A great many of Achebe's proverbs concern matters of power and politics, particularly where related to the effects of colonization. Thus, "If one finger brought oil, it soiled the others" shows the effortless spreading of anarchy among the natives after the advent of the white man. For his apparent arrogance Okonkwo is compared to, "the little bird Nza who so far forgot himself after a heavy meal that he challenged his chi".
FOLKLORE
Achebe, who believes that cultures use folklore to pass on great cultural richness, thinks such folklore can provide solutions to a people's questions and problems. Hence folklore, which is an important feature of the Igbo culture, finds ample and appropriate place in the novels of Achebe. Achebe's characters make use of folklore to make their arguments forcefully and effectively illustrate moral values.
The story of the little bird Nza occurs in Things Fall Apart. It brings home the fact that a man should never provoke his fate. He should know where to draw a line of limit in his pursuit of power. The same wisdom is evident in the story of the bird Eneke-nti-Oba. Among the Igbos an excellent wrestler is one who wins not only in the human world but also in the world of spirits. Thus Okonkwo's ability at wrestling is aptly compared to that of "the founder of the town" who according to folktale "engaged a spirit of the wild for seven days and seven nights."
The Didactic Animal Tale
The didactic animal tale appears in almost all Achebe's novels. In Things Fall Apart. The tales of the wily tortoise expose the wicked nature of beings, and the story of the mother kite shows the folly of the people of Abame. Men's and women's stories illustrate male and female values. While Okonkwo's stories exemplify warfare and violence in order to inculcate courage in children, Ekwefi's stories of the mosquito, are meant for entertainment.
Legend
Legend is one of the many elements that lend fascination to Things Fall Apart. The legends of Egwugwu is an example. The popularity of the legends shows that the traditions of the clan are kept alive.
Ceremonies
The elaborate description of various ceremonies gives us a chance to have a closer look at the well-developed symbolic view of religion in ancient societies. They also lend charm to the narrative. Some interesting ceremonies include the appearance and proceedings of the Egwugwu.
Customs
An example of Achebe's use of customs appears in the description of the treatment given to a guest. Upon entering a friend's Obi, a guest is seated either on a goatskin mat or on an earthen stool. Then he is given a piece of chalk with which he draws his emblem on the floor and paints his toe or face. The bond of goodwill is complete with the passing of the kola around, and sharing its contents.
The description of Okonkwo's obi and shrine, tells us of their architecture. Simultaneously there are human sacrifices, mutilation of a diseased Ogbanje child, the Osu practice, the belief in juju medicine, the spirit possession, the belief in the divinity of a python.
Salutation Names
Closely aligned to oratory are the salutation names. The naming system is important to the Igbo. Its importance is especially evident in Ekwefi's attempts to save the children by the name she gives. Nine die before one daughter Ezinma survives. She names the children in such a way as to break the cycle of Ogbanje children. A few were Onwumbiko, Death, I implore you," Ozoemena, May it not happen again," and finally Onwumna, Death may please himself". Name calling such as ant-hill nose," long throat," descriptive phrases such as the tongue with which to tell the story” contribute to give the reader a new experience of reading the same language.
The use of idioms lends Achebe's language and style a native flavor and force. Besides giving us a close and convincing picture of a society in transition, this technique helps his characters sound natural while speaking an alien tongue. A few such idioms deserve our attention.
References to Nature
Frequent references to flora and fauna imply the proximity of the Igbos to nature. Here are examples from Things Fall Apart: Okonkwo's fame had grown like a bush-fire in the harmattan", and he "drank palm wine from morning till night and his eyes were red and fierce like the eyes of a rat when it was caught by the tail and dashed against the floor". "He felt like a drunken giant walking with the limbs of a mosquito". "Okonkwo felt as if he had been cast out of his clan like a fish onto a dry sandy beach, panting". "Obierika's house is as busy as an ant hill." "The earth burned like hot coals."
Yam is also used as a metaphor for manliness, as in "Yam the king of crops was a man's crop", and "yam stood for manliness, and he could feed his family on yams from one harvest to another was a very great man indeed". "Ikemefuna grew rapidly like a yam tendril in the rainy season". Similarly, kola symbolizes prosperity: "He who brings kola brings life". Imagery of fire is used for a greater effect. Okonkwo is called Roaring Flame" and a flaming fire", while his son is cold, impotent ash".
Achebe's characters make use of folklore to make their arguments forceful and effective. It also helps in criticism and mockery. It illustrates the moral values of the culture.
Culture (Things Fall Apart Background)
Culture
Culture - The total way of life held in common by a group of people, including technology, traditions, language, and social roles. It is learned and handed-down from one generation to the next by non biological means. It includes the patterns of human behavior (i.e. ideas, beliefs, values, artifacts, and ways of making a living) which any society transmits to succeeding generations to meet its fundamental needs.
Cultural traits - Distinguishing features of a culture such as language, dress, religion, values, and an emphasis on family; these traits are shared throughout that culture.
(The University of the State of New York The State Education DepartmentAlbany, New York 12234 www.nysed.gov 2006)
These are learned behavior patterns that are shared by all of humanity collectively. No matter where people live in the world, they share these universal traits. Examples of such "human cultural" traits include:
1.
communicating with a verbal language consisting of a limited set of sounds and grammatical rules for constructing sentences
2.
using age and gender to classify people (e.g., teenager, senior citizen, woman, man)
3.
classifying people based on marriage and descent relationships and having kinship terms to refer tothem (e.g., wife, mother, uncle, cousin)
4.
raising children in some sort of family setting
5.
having a sexual division of labor (e.g., men's work versus women's work)
6.
having a concept of privacy
7.
having rules to regulate sexual behavior
8.
distinguishing between good and bad behavior
9.
having some sort of body ornamentation
10.
making jokes and playing games
11.
having art
12.
having some sort of leadership roles for the implementation of community decisions
While all cultures have these and possibly many other universal traits, different cultures have developed their own specific ways of carrying out or expressing them. For instance, people in deaf subcultures frequently use their hands to communicate with sign language instead of verbal language. However, sign languages have grammatical rules just as verbal ones do.
Culture is created and transmitted to others in a society. Cultures are not the product of lone individuals. They are the continuously evolving products of people interacting with each other. Cultural patterns such as language and politics make no sense except in terms of the interaction of people. If you were the only human on earth, there would be no need for language or government.
O’Neil, Dennis. What Is Culture. © 2002-2006.<>
Cultural Transmission- “The primary channel of transmission of culture is the family: [including] …a piety towards the dead, however obscure, and a solicitude for the unborn, however remote. No man wholly escapes from the kind, or wholly surpasses the degree, of culture which he acquired from his early environment. It would not do to suggest that this can be the only channel of transmission: in a society of any complexity it is supplemented and continued by other conduits of tradition…”
T. S. Eliot, Notes towards the Definition of Culture in Christianity and Culture (New York: Harcourt, Brace and Company, 1949), 115-16.
Culture - The total way of life held in common by a group of people, including technology, traditions, language, and social roles. It is learned and handed-down from one generation to the next by non biological means. It includes the patterns of human behavior (i.e. ideas, beliefs, values, artifacts, and ways of making a living) which any society transmits to succeeding generations to meet its fundamental needs.
Cultural traits - Distinguishing features of a culture such as language, dress, religion, values, and an emphasis on family; these traits are shared throughout that culture.
(The University of the State of New York The State Education DepartmentAlbany, New York 12234 www.nysed.gov 2006)
These are learned behavior patterns that are shared by all of humanity collectively. No matter where people live in the world, they share these universal traits. Examples of such "human cultural" traits include:
1.
communicating with a verbal language consisting of a limited set of sounds and grammatical rules for constructing sentences
2.
using age and gender to classify people (e.g., teenager, senior citizen, woman, man)
3.
classifying people based on marriage and descent relationships and having kinship terms to refer tothem (e.g., wife, mother, uncle, cousin)
4.
raising children in some sort of family setting
5.
having a sexual division of labor (e.g., men's work versus women's work)
6.
having a concept of privacy
7.
having rules to regulate sexual behavior
8.
distinguishing between good and bad behavior
9.
having some sort of body ornamentation
10.
making jokes and playing games
11.
having art
12.
having some sort of leadership roles for the implementation of community decisions
While all cultures have these and possibly many other universal traits, different cultures have developed their own specific ways of carrying out or expressing them. For instance, people in deaf subcultures frequently use their hands to communicate with sign language instead of verbal language. However, sign languages have grammatical rules just as verbal ones do.
Culture is created and transmitted to others in a society. Cultures are not the product of lone individuals. They are the continuously evolving products of people interacting with each other. Cultural patterns such as language and politics make no sense except in terms of the interaction of people. If you were the only human on earth, there would be no need for language or government.
O’Neil, Dennis. What Is Culture. © 2002-2006.<>
Cultural Transmission- “The primary channel of transmission of culture is the family: [including] …a piety towards the dead, however obscure, and a solicitude for the unborn, however remote. No man wholly escapes from the kind, or wholly surpasses the degree, of culture which he acquired from his early environment. It would not do to suggest that this can be the only channel of transmission: in a society of any complexity it is supplemented and continued by other conduits of tradition…”
T. S. Eliot, Notes towards the Definition of Culture in Christianity and Culture (New York: Harcourt, Brace and Company, 1949), 115-16.
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