Compare and contrast of the knight and wife of baths tale from the Essay

Compare and contrast of the knight and wife of baths tale from the canterbury tales - Essay Example The family institution is grounded by marriage; the institution of two individuals or partners with an aim of procreating and nurturing the wellbeing of their children while observing the set standards by the society. Romance on the other hand strengthens the marriage institution as a subset of love; a virtue necessary for the coexistence of family members and society at large. Majority of the society members will always look forward to love from family members and society at large and romance from their partners with which not only serves as the basic course of occupations but basis of identification and a sense of belonging. Romance and love comes with responsibilities for each of the stakeholders which vary with gender and the aspirations of the specific unit that is the family or the society (Heng, 2). The Wife of Bath and the Knight’s tales revolve around romance, love, relationships and the responsibilities that come with each set of relationships; appreciative and punit ive and this paper will seek to compare and contrast the two tales with reference to thematic presentation, morals and responsibilities, love and romance. Socially, the two tales bring out the importance of love and romance to the survival of the society in that lack of romance and love can lead to social vices which have long term repercussions to the errant and the society. For instance, in the Wife of Bath’s tale a knight who had raped a fair young maiden is faced with death penalty according to the society’s set standards and which sets path for the repercussions he faces in the tale. In the Knight’s tale the importance of love and romance in for social identity and sense of belonging is brought out whereby cousins Arcite and Palamon; who were imprisoned by Theseu, the Duke of Athens after inventions against Creon, falls in love with the same girl, Emelye. The power and value relationships, romance, love and the quest for identity and sense of belonging are brought out in the hate that these two cousins develop for each other over the girl and the â€Å"mass judicial tournament† that they engage in all for the winner to give the girl a hand in marriage. Though the scenarios in the two tales differ in the perspective of the responsibilities, they converge to one point of romance and love and the need for identity. For instance, in the Wife of Bath’s tale responsibilities assigned to the knight are punitive compared to the Knight’s tale which though punitive in the sense of mass tournament, they are appreciative in that the end results are explicitly defined. Thematically the two tales differ in that the Wife of Bathcritically evaluates the value of romance and details aspects of society’s aspirations such as antifeminism, behavior in marriage, economics of love and female dominance unlike the Knight’s tale which focuses much on romance. For instance, in the Wife of Bath, when the Knight was about to be prosecuted, Queen Guinevere intercedes and passes the judgment instead of the king; a move that introduced the aspects of female dominance, sought out to bring out the role of women in the society and their influence in matters of love and marriage, and sexuality themes. For example, when the knight was asked to discover for the queen what women desire most, for exchange of death penalty he was to receive; it is

Banner in the Sky by James Ramsey Ullman Essay -- essays research pape

The book that I have read chose to review is Banner in the Sky by James Ramsey Ullman. James ramsey Ullman was born in New York City in 1907. His highest-honored book was Banner in the Sky, but four of his books, including this one, were made into major motion pictures.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  The main characters of this story are Rudi Matt, Franz Lerner, Frau Matt, John Winter, and Emil Saxo. Rudi is the son of the legendary mountain guide of the Alps, Josef Matt. He has mountain climbing in his blood and is destined to become a guide. He is the main character of the story. Franz Lerner is Rudi’s uncle. He was with Josef Matt hours before he died while trying to climb the Citadel, and now he is looking out for Rudi. Frau Matt is Rudi’s mother. She does not want Rudi to become a guide like his father because she fears that he will die the same way. John winter is a famous guide in Switzerland. Rudi saved his life and now Winter wants him to climb the Citadel with him. Emil Saxo is a famous Swiss guide form the village of Broli. Winter asks him to be the guide for the journey up the Citadel.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Rudi Matt has been given a chance to avenge his father’s death when Capt. John Winter asks him to climb the Citadel, the last unconquered peak in the Alps, along with him. Rudi is eager to do it but he cannot get consent from his mother, so he lies and tells Winter that he can go. They start up the Citadel with the famous guide Emil Saxo, who is also ve...

History of Greek Theatre Essay

Greek theatre took place in large amphitheaters. The actors were a chorus and their leader. There was not multiple characters as we now have today. The leader was the main and only character. At this time the lines were more chanted than spoken. Masks were worn to represent characters and high-soled boots worn to add height to actors. Greek drama was dominated by the works and innovations of five playwrights for over 200 years. The first three of these wrote tragedies. In these ancient tragedies many new innovations came to light that are still used today in theatre. One was the concept of a second actor, expanding the possibilities for plot and interactions with characters. Then came the third actor which expanded this even more. The role of the chorus in Greek drama shrunk so that the characters could more develop. The last two Greek playwrights focused on comedies. Throughout the history of theatre, comedies, made up of current standards for humor, have not survived the ages as well as tragedy. The popularity of these first comedies and the diminishing appeal of tragedy to the audiences of the time, can also be seen as a comment on the role which theatre plays in society at large. Tragedy was at its height in Greek society when that society was at its height. Comedy was most popular during the decline of Greek government The Romans took much from Greek theatre. Although Roman theatre may not be held in the same high esteem as that of the Greeks, we have inherited much from the influence of the Roman Theatre. One odd example is the word â€Å"play† itself, which came from Latin translation of the word ludus, which means recreation or play. Roman theatre had two parts: Fabula Palliata and Fabula Togata. Fabula Palliata consisted of mostly translations of Greek plays into Latin. It was here that the idea of subplot was introduced. This helped plays contrast the reactions of different sets of characters to the same events or circumstances. The Fabula Togata were more about broadly absurd situations and humor of a physical nature. Rome theatre consisted primarily of Fabula. Plays of a more serious literary nature continued to be written, but these were not intended to be performed. They were more to be read or recited. The influence of the Roman world on the form of the stage is one  which had a more lasting effect. The greatest impact Rome may have had on the theatre was to lower it in the esteem of the Church, an impact that would slow the growth of the dramatic arts for several centuries. The inclination toward low comedy combined with its association and the entertainment of the arena contributed to its disfavor by officials of the early Christian Church. Plays were associated with either comedy of a coarse nature, or with pagan rituals and holidays. It was the latter that accounts for the survival of theatre through the Middle Ages. It was written that theatre died following the fall of the Roman Empire, and its memory was kept alive only in the performances of roving bands of street players, jugglers, acrobats and animal trainers. However, while such groups did help to maintain certain aspects of theatrical art, the Church was a major contributor to the preservation of theatre. It is ironic that the Church, which caused theatres to be outlawed as the Roman Empire declined, was one of the primary means of keeping theatre alive through the Middle Ages. This resulted from the Church’s need to establish itself in the community. The Church began to use dramatic form to illustrate the stories underlying holidays so as to reinforce their religious origins and to better communicate the stories to an illiterate congregation. At first the parts played in these simple religious re-enactments were acted out by priests in the sanctuary of the church. The members of the congregation clearly enjoyed and were moved by these presentations. The dramas continued to grow, moving out of the sanctuary and into the open air in front of the Church. Ultimately, the members of town began to contribute to these dramas. Which continued to grow more elaborate with time. Known as passion plays, miracle plays and morality plays, they continued their close connection with the Church and church holidays, but began to introduce elements of characters that were more contemporary in nature.

Understanding Race and Racism