2005. In Kate Chopin's The Awakening (1899), protagonist Edna Pontellier is said to possess "That outward existence which conforms, the inward life that questions."
In a novel or play that you have studied, identify a character who outwardly conforms while questioning inwardly. Then write an essay in which you analyze how this tension between outward conformity and inward questioning contributes to the meaning of the work. Avoid mere plot summary.
During the Cold War era, fear of communist and totalitarian government was widespread in western democracies. George Orwell's novel 1984 is an illustration of what those government systems could one day mean. The novel's protagonist, Winston Smith, follows the codes and conventions expected of him by Big Brother, his world's totalitarian regime, while his consciousness starts to rebel. Winston's struggle and ultimate capitulation to the power of Big Brother were Orwell's warnings of absolute tyranny.
1984's Big Brother had control over its subjects' minds and bodies alike. Winston, for the most part, had no choice between conformity and rebellion.
Winston's outward conformity progressively deteriorates as his inward rebellion grows more prominent.
Big Brother reconditions Winston both physically and mentally. At the novel's end, Winston "love[s] Big Brother" truly and completely.
No comments:
Post a Comment