Wednesday, November 7, 2012

Argumentative Essay Willy Loman Tragic Hero Final

Isra Syed
Barnes
Honors English 3
3 November 2012

                                                                A Tragic American Hero: Willy Loman
                Willy Loman, the protagonist in the tragic Arthur Miller play, Death of a Salesman, can be exemplified as a tragic hero due to the perimeters set by the notable Aristotle. According to him, a tragic hero can be defined as someone who is of noble stature, isn’t perfect, and their downfall is partially his/her own fault. Also, a tragic hero can be characterized as someone whose punishment exceeds their crime, their increase in awareness on part of the hero, and their tragedy doesn’t leave its audience in a state of depression.  According to critics, Arthur Miller’s play Death of a Salesman, represents Miller’s “most powerful dramatization of the clash between the individual and materialistic American society, chronicles the downfall of Willy Loman, a salesman whose misguided notions of success result in disillusionment and, ultimately, his death,” (N.P).  At the time that this play was written, which was in the 1940’s, the Second World War had just ended and many were getting back on their feet and trying to lead a normal life again. Through these difficult times, many found it hard to adjust to their previous life styles after the many losses and pain each individual endured. And as many others, the Loman family faced these hardships as well. Although many believe that Willy Loman is not what is called a tragic hero due to his many failures as a father and husband, this protagonist is a good example of what would be entitled a tragic hero due to his imperfectness, his own faults leading to his downfall, and his punishment isn’t completely “deserved”. These elements prove how although possessing many common qualities that are of a normal everyday man, he still can be characterized as a true tragic hero.
                There are varying viewpoints on whether a common man can be considered a tragic hero. Some argue that, “Death of a Salesman is of crucial importance to literature because it once again raises the question whether tragedy is possible with a common hero. The Aristotelian concept of tragedy, which dominated dramatic literature until the nineteenth century, insists that only characters of noble birth or soul can be tragic heroes. In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, however, an increasing number of plays with tragic endings were written about common people.” However, a common person can be a victim of a tragedy as well as any noble being. Willy Loman fulfills every characteristic that is required of a tragic hero. Being of common status helps the audience to fully understand the details and issues that are encompassed in the play’s plot.
It is not necessary for a tragic hero to be of a noble status.  Willy Loman, a common man who is easily relatable by ordinary people, helps prove that everyone makes mistakes and are not expected to be superior in every manner. Willy Loman, who can also be considered a product of society, made many mistakes in the 63 years of his life. For example, he lost trust in his elder son Biff, when he realized that Willy hid a secret affair away from his family. After a shocking discovery, Biff was appalled and instead of understanding his son’s emotions and reaction, he replied, “Now stop crying and do as I say. I gave you an order.” …. “Now look, Biff, when you grow up you’ll understand about these things. You mustn’t—you mustn’t overemphasize a thing like this,” (Miller, 120). And later as justification for his affair he defended himself by saying that [he] was lonely, [he] was terribly lonely,” (120). That was the day when Willy’s respect in the eyes of Biff dropped significantly and the hatred towards his father began to escalate. In addition to losing his son’s trust and faith in his father, Willy is not perfect due to the evidence of his craving for success and fame. Many people in the world want to make a reliable stature in society and desire to earn respect from people. Willy also became a victim of these cravings and let them get the better of him. He expresses his wishes when speaking to his boss Howard and informs him, “Cause what would be more satisfying than to be able to go, at the age of eighty-four, into twenty or thirty different cities, and pick up a phone, and be remembered and loved and helped by so many different people?”…. “—when he died, hundreds of salesmen and buyers were at his funeral.” (81). Willy, as well as many other people, wishes to have the same admiration as those who were paid respect at their funerals. And to achieve this, he worked his life off to be the best salesman as there could be and tried to provide for his family in every shape and form. Yet, unsuccessful and depraved, he lost his pride that was obtained in his previous years. Also, the love and pride once earned long ago is something that he still fantasizes about when in those days everything was well off. Many critics evaluate Willy as someone who is obsessed not only with financial success but also, more specifically, with appearances and impressions and with being considered important and “well-liked” by others,” (N.P). Aside from these desires, another event that shows how Willy isn’t perfect is the way that he is unable to succeed in being the understanding and supporting father that Biff and Happy probably wanted. This is seen with the continuous fights that arise between Biff and Willy recurrently throughout the play. Willy wants his son to follow in his footsteps and become a successful salesman, whereas, Biff longs to work in his own agricultural environment and work on a farm. Finally, when the peak of these arguments is reached, Biff blows up at Willy and strictly replies, “I am not a leader of men, Willy, and neither are you. You were never anything but a hard-workings drummer who landed in the ash can like all the rest of them!” (132). Not holding back his grudges, Biff makes Willy realize his true identity.  He continues to say, “Will you let me go, for Christ’s sake? Will you take that phony dream and burn it before something happens?” (133). Biff is fed up with all of the heated arguments on how Willy wants to force his own dreams on his son and wants to see them come true. When he realizes that it won’t happen, he loses hope and finds himself staging a car accident leading to his demise. His qualities as a struggling everyday man who is trying to be successful as a salesman, father, and husband, Willy shows how he is a tragic hero by showing that he is not always perfect and that his flaws shouldn’t be used against him in the argument that common men can’t be the typical Aristotelian tragic hero.
In addition to the imperfectness that trailed in Willy’s life, he was also someone who was the major reason for his downfall in the end due to his many flaws and faults. Willy was essentially a product of society who chased after material goods and was after the “American Dream”, which was, in the end, proven as an empowering and destructive force. Willy not only wanted financial achievements, he also wanted to be famous among his colleagues and other whom he knew. He lives in the past which is characterized by the in-between conversations of Willy and his elder deceased brother Ben. Critics are impressed by the works of Arthur Miller by the way he enhances the theme of self-awareness by using techniques to distort time and space and to represent the working of Willy’s mind,” (N.P.).  When Willy and his buddy Charley are playing cards, Willy imagines that his brother Ben is here and he begins a conversation with him as well as with Charley. For example, when Ben first enters, Willy exclaims, “I’m getting awfully tired, Ben,” (44). Charley, his neighbor, continues on to say, “Good, keep playing; you’ll sleep better. Did you call me Ben?” (44). Miller’s techniques that were incorporated to have the audience swing in and out of Willy’s imagination in order to gain a better understanding of how Willy has begun to lose some sense of reality is a tremendous work of literature which many critics agree upon.  For so many years, Willy’s chase after gaining all of the fame and pride in life was in the end what led him to commit suicide. Because of being too caught up in his own desires, he forgot his family which was more important, and he let his sons and wife down. As his success was declining, he started to decline in financial status as well, and in the end, he wasn’t able to support his family due to his job loss. Grief-stricken, Willy found his life taking a turn for the worse and his own chase led him to commit suicide with all of the pain, guilt, and regret left buried in his heart.  
Lastly, Willy Loman’s punishment clearly exceeds the real wrongdoing that was committed. After all the efforts to fulfill his imperative obligations in providing for his family, being a good father to Biff and Happy, and to be a prosperous salesman, Willy couldn’t avoid the one fact: He failed in life. Although Willy believed that he failed in his life, it is true that his punishment over exceeded the true crime committed. Normally, people view that taking their life solves problems and are this action is usually the way people tackle hard problems faced in life. Similarly, Willy found that committing suicide was his last resort in order to help his family and end his daily suffering and he left his son Biff with financial prosperity by leaving them the $20,000 in insurance money after his demise.  This could be seen as a heroic action by leaving the world in such a way that he would still leave the people he loved in a good state of mind. Although he sensed himself as a disappointment to his family, he didn’t deserve this end to his life. There were many more ways that could have been taken into account in order to put life back into control. He could have tried to solve his differences with his son Biff and try to create a better relationship with his wife, whom he cheated and the guilt of it was drilled in his heart.  It can be argued that Willy has faced enough problems with the delusions that he frequently experienced, his son’s hatred towards him, and his guilt from his previous affair, which is why he may have done such a thing. But, there were many more ways that could have been taken into account in order to put his life back into control.  
                Therefore, an example of a true tragic hero would be exemplified in the character of Willy Loman.  Due to his imperfectness, his faults causing his own downfall, and his punishment exceeding his crime, he is able to meet the criteria of Aristotle’s tragic hero. Even with the opposing critics that respond to his character as too common and that the common man cannot be a tragic hero, Willy proves them wrong by displaying these heroic qualities that make his tragedy more enhanced and realistic for the audience.

                     

                              Citations
Johansson, David. "Death Of A Salesman." Masterplots II: Juvenile & Young Adult Literature Series, Supplement (1997): 1-3. MagillOnLiterature Plus. Web. 5 Nov. 2012.
Nienhuis, Terry. "Death Of A Salesman." Masterplots, Fourth Edition (2010): 1-3. MagillOnLiterature Plus. Web. 5 Nov. 2012.
Rosefeldt, Paul, and R. Baird Shuman. "Death Of A Salesman." Magill’S Survey Of American Literature, Revised Edition (2006): 1. MagillOnLiterature Plus. Web. 5 Nov. 2012.
"Death Of A Salesman." Recommended Reading: 500 Classics Reviewed (1995): 1. MagillOnLiterature Plus. Web. 6 Nov. 2012.


 

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Short Story essay final draft

Isra Syed
Barnes
+English 3
2 October 2012
    Edgar Allan Poe
The notorious dark romantic author Edgar Allan Poe has depicted himself as an unusual, yet pleasing writer that incorporates petrifying elements to add zest into his stories. Critics have asserted the idea that his disturbed attitude, depicted in his writings, are due to unfortunate events which stretch out throughout his life influencing his writings. Such an event took place around the time of his infancy where his family was torn apart due to the unfortunate death of his parents (Charles, N.P.). These conflicts greatly impacted Poe’s writing by forcing him to write using negative connotations and by perceiving the world as an atrocious environment for human development. This is illustrated amongst the several works he has contributed for society. Amid these works are the components of his style of writing and symbolism. Poe portrays the characters in his story as morally corrupt and he clearly expresses his general perception on the conflicts that overtake us in the world, thus illustrating that humans are insane and have a cynical behavior which leads to a demoralized society.
                Edgar Allan Poe demonstrates many essential styles of writing as he descriptively represents the characters by supporting the argument that humans are morally corrupt. For instance, in The Black Cat, Poe vividly enhances a new meaning behind the man by painting an illusion of how the man is kindhearted and compassionate by showing at first that he “ was especially fond of animals, and was indulged by [his] parents with a great variety of pets” (Poe, 59). This exposes the better side of the man by cleverly, at first showing that he is a good and normal man who adores animals and pleasures their accompaniment. As the story progresses, Poe surreptitiously gives indications that the man is losing all sense of consciousness and is forming into a new ghastly and malicious person. This is shown when we see that the man has taken up a new hobby of drinking alcohol which makes his attitude “more moody, more irritable, more regardless of the feelings of others.”… “But my disease grew upon me –for what disease is like Alcohol!...” (Poe, 60). It is evident that Poe cleverly describes the transition from a gentle, animal-loving man into a new form of a monster that is engulfed in the intoxication of alcohol. This evolution of the man shows how people are susceptible to making wrong decisions that in the end cause them much suffering, consequently resulting in a more corrupt society. Through this style of writing, Poe uses his characters to illustrate how the attitude of contemptuous humans causes the destruction of humanity.
Also, Poe vividly exposes the intensity of the certain conditions in which the man was compelled to brutally murder his cat. He describes the owner’s emotions when he expresses that he “…hung it because [he] knew that in doing so [he] was committing a sin-a deadly sin that would be so jeopardize [his] immortal soul as to place it- if such a thing were possible-even beyond the reach of the infinite mercy of the Most Merciful and Most Terrible God,” (Poe, 61). It is evident how the man has clearly admitted to obligating to a sin and soon after feels no remorse for his actions. The author emphatically describes the emotions running through the man’s mind as he is committing the horrible sin which represents how his insanity takes the better of him and his love and devotion he once had for the feline has vanished. It is seen that Poe, through describing his characters, creates a visual emphasizing the fact that people are bad with in the end leads to a corrupted society.
                In addition to demonstrating multiple writing techniques, Poe efficiently expresses various examples of symbolism throughout his works. For example, in the story “The Tell Tale Heart”, the heart takes the role of symbolizing the ignorance of the man by disregarding his fear of guilt for slaughtering the old man. As the heart continues to beat through the floor boards of the house, the man grows more anxious and anxiety-filled as he tries to advance with a normal life. “No doubt I now grew very pale; --but I talked more fluently, and with a heightened voice,” (Poe, N.P.). The man grows more impatient and this reveals how people, under guilt and pressure are definitely going to react in a more nerve-wrecking way compared to a state of tranquility. Yet, each beat of the heart reminds him of each moment contributed into killing the innocent old man and therefore, creates the build-up of guilt within his own heart. He “paced the floor to and fro with heavy stride, as if excited to fury by the observations of the men—but the noise steadily increased.” (Poe, N.P) In a continued manner, the man “foamed—[he] raved—[he] swore! [He] swung the chair upon which [he] had been sitting, and grated it upon the boards, but the noise arose over all and continually increased. It grew louder—louder—louder! And still the men chatted pleasantly, and smiled. Was it possible they heard not?”(Poe, N.P.). The man is clearly showed as a man losing his temperament and sense of being as he is encompassed into the state of anger. Along with the heart, the black cat also is significant in showing symbolism in the story The Black Cat. For instance, the black feline is portrayed as “a remarkably large and beautiful animal, entirely black, and sagacious to an astonishing degree,” (Poe, 60). This alludes to the fact that Poe greatly emphasized on the beauty yet devilish appearance of the cat which represented its character of a friendly presence and also the cause of a great misfortune. Critics have argued that in this story, “Despite the narrator’s explicit claim of sanity in the story’s first paragraph, he immediately shows himself self-deceived by terming his story ‘a series of mere household events.’” (Prinsky, N.P.) This evidently expresses the man’s true insanity in believing that the dreadful that has been committed by his own hands is only a “series of mere household events” (Prinsky, N.P.) which means that he believes that this would happen in anyone’s home and it is a normal thing. We can see here how the man has no morals and completely proves himself to be crazy in having such a belief.  It is seen in society how the black cat is visualized as bad luck. It is clearly portrayed in this story as it seen that the man transforms into a horrible who murders the cat.  Throughout the stories, Poe shows how symbolism plays an affective role into representing humans as corrupt and demoralized. The black cat, seen as bad luck seems to transfer into the man’s life as he becomes more distraught and frustrated due to his alcoholic intoxications, therefore making him do a horrible sin by killing the cat. The heart, with each beat, makes the man realize how guilty he is and his approach on trying to disclose his fear of guilt.
                With his elements of writing techniques and the way he includes meaningful symbolism shows how Poe, in most of his works, represents the human as a person that has contributed to disheartening the society around him due to their disparaging behavior and their own ethical corruption.  Although Poe has faced many obstacles in his life which forced him to become such a dark romantic author, his works that have been displayed in society has brought much pleasure to the public.

                                                                               












                                                                                                Works Cited
May, Charles E. “Edgar Allan Poe.” Magill’S Survey Of American Literature, Revised Edition (2006): 1-10. MagillOnLiterature Plus. Web. 2 Oct. 2012.
Prinsky, Norman. “The Black Cat.” Masterplots II: Short Story Series, Revised Edition (2004): 1-3. MagillOnLiterature Plus. Web. 3 Oct. 2012.

Top of Form

Monday, October 1, 2012

Catcher in the Rye Timed Write

Isra Syed
Barnes
English 3
24 August 2012
                                                                       Timed Write
A member of the Nuevos Amigos organization solely relies on the student to respect themselves and others, to accept the diversity and views among others, and to optimistic about your new responsibility. In the book The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger, Holden Caulfield can be viewed as someone who lacks the potential to be a member due to the fact that he doesn’t possess any of the true characteristics of a Nuevos Amigos participant. Holden should not be affiliated with the Nuevos Amigos group because of the absence of his acceptance towards others, his immature attitude. Yet he can be described as someone able to participate in the Nuevos Amigos program because of his care and consideration for children.
                Holden can not be able to participate in such a group as Nuevos Amigos because he sees everyone with flaws and he fails to accept their differences, which is an essential part of being a Nuevos Amigos. When Robert Ackley, the boy that roomed next to Holden appeared in front of his sight, he described him saying, “…he had a lot of pimples. Not just on his forehead or his chin, like most guys, but all over his whole face. And not only that, he had a terrible personality. He was also sort of a nasty guy,” (Salinger 26). Although in the end of the book he seems to admit that he actually missed this “nasty guy”, Holden is seen as someone who doesn’t care about the character of someone within; instead he judges them as what they look like. Describing Ackley’s physical appearance also shows how Holden somewhat views himself as better in appearance and attitude, which is actually the total opposite. Accepting and appreciating people’s differences would be hard for Holden to do in since he never seems to look deeper into a person and understand their true personality. And because Holden lacks this trait, it would be impossible for him to join into the Nuevos Amigos group because he would have to encounter many kids that would be of all different types of personalities and viewpoints.
                As well as being able to approve diversity among people’s personalities, being able to teach students about how to act and have a positive outlook on life can be difficult if you are a person who is always immature and insolent in behavior. Holden possesses this quality which can have a negative impact in the lives of arising high school students. When Holden arrived back at his hotel, he agreed to have a prostitute come up to his room. He apparently figured that “if she was a prostitute and all, I could get in some practice on her, in case I ever get married or anything,” (121). This quote directly displays Holden’s immature behavior and decisions that he makes. Being a Nuevos Amigos also advocates the importance of being responsible and being able to be a role model to younger kids. Holden obviously proves that he cannot be a true role model seeing that he asked for a prostitute to come to his room.  In addition, Holden also shows how he is not a liable candidate to take part in the program when he got into a fight with Stradlater. Even though Holden knew that calling Stradlater a “moron” really irritated him and he disliked being called that, Holden pursued this reckless behavior and repeatedly called him a moron. “He hated it when you called him a moron. All morons hate it when you call them a moron,” (57).He represents a bad example to follow and knowing that children associated and enrolled in this program look forward to high school, they should not be given the example of such an irresponsible person. In a way, he promotes violence and sets a bad example to the children.
                Overlooking Holden’s bad examples, he could be recommended for Nuevos Amigos merely because he, in his own way, protects children from losing their innocence. In high school this is a key concern with kids because they can easily lose their vulnerability in their years at high school. For example, when Holden is asked by his littler sister Phoebe what he liked, he explained his desire to be the catcher in the rye. “Anyway, I keep picturing all these little kids playing some game in this big field of rye and all. Thousands of little kids, and nobody’s around- nobody big, I mean- except me. And I’m standing on the edge of some crazy cliff. What I have to do, I have to catch everybody if they start to go over the cliff -…,” (224). He expresses that even though he is immature and shares different views on people, he still has this element of protecting these children and having the longing to be able to save them if harm comes their way. Also, when he is visiting the school, he saw something that “drove [him] crazy. “Somebody’d written “Fuck you” on the wall. It drove me damn near crazy. I though Phoebe and all the other kids would see it, and how they’d wonder what the hell it meant,… and how they’d all think about it and maybe worry about it for a couple of days,” (260). Even though Holden utilizes vulgar in almost every one of his sentences, he understands that these kids are too young to be able to be exposed to horrible things like this. That is why he then “rubbed it out anyway, finally,” (261). In this way, Holden could be seen as someone that could be considered to be a part of the Nuevos Amigos program, and might be successful at it too.
                Therefore, a boy who himself has been expelled from high school can not really give good output on what it is like and what to expect. Holden’s negative views on the teachers and students really pushed him farther and farther from the desire to attain a good education. That is why he should not be a part of Nuevos Amigos because of his not being able to accept differences, his immature behavior and decisions, yet his soft side towards children should not be overlooked as well.

Saturday, September 29, 2012


Isra Syed
Barnes
+English 3
25 September 2012
                                                                        Rough Draft
            The notorious dark romantic author Edgar Allan Poe has depicted himself as an unusual yet pleasing writer that incorporates petrifying elements that add zest into his stories. Critics have categorized Poe’s writing as ambivalent and terrifying. This is illustrated among the several works he has contributed for society. Amid these works are the components of his style of writing, symbolism, and the focused theme throughout the story.  Poe depicts the characters in his story as morally corrupt and he clearly expresses his general perception on the conflicts that overtake us in the world thus illustrating that humans are insane and have a cynical behavior which leads to a demoralized society.
            Edgar Allan Poe demonstrates many essential styles of writing as he descriptively represents the characters, plot, and the general atmosphere of the story. For instance, the black feline in “the Black Cat” is portrayed as “a remarkably large and beautiful animal, entirely black, and sagacious to an astonishing degree,” (Poe, 60). This alludes to the fact that Poe greatly emphasized on the beauty yet devilish appearance of the cat which represented its character of a friendly presence and also the cause of a great misfortune. Poe is criticized on his disturbed behavior due to unfortunate events that stretched throughout his life. His family was torn apart due to ill-fated circumstances such as his father and mother passing away while he was still an infant. He was then taken into the hands of a foster father John Allan, from which he generated his middle name from. (Charles, N.P.).
These conflicts greatly impacted Poe’s writing styles by forcing him to write in negative ways and by perceiving the world as an atrocious environment for human development. Also, Poe vividly exposes the intensity of the certain conditions in which the man was compelled to brutally murder his cat. He describes the owner’s emotions when he expresses that he “…hung it because [he] knew that in doing so [he] was committing a sin-a deadly sin that would be so jeopardize [his] immortal soul as to place it- if such a thing were possible-even beyond the reach of the infinite mercy of the Most Merciful and Most Terrible God,” (Poe, 61). It is evident how the man has clearly admitted to obligating to a sin and soon after feels no remorse for his actions. The author emphatically describes the emotions running through the man’s mind as he is committing the horrible sin which represents how his insanity takes the better of him and his love and devotion he once had for the feline has vanished.