Not So Sure It’s Ernest Essay Example for Free

Not So Sure It’s Ernest Essay In The Importance of Being Earnest (1985) by Oscar Wilde (1854 – 1900) and Sure Thing (1988) by David Ives (1950 ) we witness characters attempting to negotiate personal relationships under the heavy weight of contemporary perceptions. The Importance of Being Earnest takes place in Victorian England, roughly between 1850 and 1900, and Sure Thing is a contemporary play that debuted in 1988. In both plays we are forced over and over again to take an honest look at what is important in the lives of two people who hope to make a love connection. In the Oscar Wilde play in the end we discover that all was not, or rather that all was what it seemed, even if it was not really meant to be. In David Ives one act play we go through the rigors of what we all have come to believe is considered acceptable and end up being forced to look inside of ourselves as the play evolves. Both plays present a brilliant satire on pompousness and the expectations of society. Not So Sure It’s Ernest Although born and raised an entire century apart from one another, both Oscar Wilde and David Ives hit upon a similar note of social cynicism in their respective celebrated plays; The Importance of Being Earnest (1895), and Sure Thing (1988) Both deal with the heavy impact that social mores contemporary to their day seem to have upon the intimate union of man and woman. They both feature characters that seem to question the earnest nature of their own relationships. While Wilde’s London characters appear to be more deeply involved, and to have perhaps more at sake in their remotely settled Eighteenth Century Victorian lives, Ives on the other hand presents an almost transient view of contemporary Post Modern urban life in the mid 1980’s. Make no mistake about it, his is a view poised from the super-charged post-Future Shock-internet age. Yet, together they present a vision of society that is often rather similar in its critique. These are characters whose only options seem to be raw cynicism or stark narcissism, as if the weight of life leaves them with no other choice. Ultimately, both narratives involve a world where the characters try their best to reinterpret what is truly important in their own lives; in order to escape the neurosis that surrounds them. In each plot, comedy plays a fascinating role as if to help us adjust to the psychological dilemma that we witness unfolding before our eyes. As the characters on the stage embark upon a mission to reinvent themselves, triggered either by a startling revelation that all is not quite what it actually seems or simply by the ringing of a bell, we see that happiness is all about what you are willing to believe. These are plays about relationships, and the sometimes overwhelming influence that social and class perceptions have upon whether that ‘love connection’ actually happens or not. Both playwrights take direct satirical aim at male-female relationships and the often bogus nature of courtship and just what it may entail. It is as if love and marriage, or perhaps the respective contemporary mores governing love and marriage is viewed by both of these men with a fundamental contempt. The women appear for the most part strong and somewhat liberated. However, this is satire by the way, and the language involved helps to construct two moral universes with a vision of life that is actually deserving of mockery. In Sure Thing this is aided with the immediacy of a bell which interrupts and determines the success or failure of each exchange. For the cast of The Importance of Being Earnest, we are led to believe that there is actually much more at stake; simply because we are taken through a narrative that is about much more their lives. Wilde wrote during one of Great Britain’s celebrated golden ages. It was the Victorian Age, a time when England commanded the sea and had very few rivals in the world. It was a time of great economic consolidation for the UK, and a time of great expectation and upward mobility for a bourgeoning English middle class. The Germans were often considered crude, and the French were frequently called vulgar in their appetite for free expression. This was the dawn of the modern industrial age, and in Great Britain unlike the character in Wilde’s play, it was really deemed improper in polite company for a man to directly propose marriage to a young woman. Usually, her parents would be the first to know of a man’s intentions for their child, and for the young woman this was actually supposed to come as quite a surprise. Oscar Wilde was one to write narratives that poked fun at English culture and ran contrary to these notions of propriety. This is what much of his literature is all about. The short one-act play Sure Thing, takes place in a post-modern urban American setting. We are simply led into a coffee shop where a prototypical rendezvous takes place between a man and a woman. It is one generation after the sexual revolution, and the nature of boy meets girl is summed up for us in a series of one-liners or pick up lines from Bill to Betty. His success or failure is determined by a bell and also by his and our relative proximity to current perceptions of what is actually socially acceptable and perhaps politically correct. So it is that everything, from his knowledge of literature, to where he grew up, his grade point average, and where he went to school, all elicit relative scrutiny from the overly cynical bell ringer. This is done well within ear shod of an audience that is quickly fit to express its own cynicism as well. It is as if we become Betty’s parents as we look on, in the hopes that Bill will finally get it right and make a proper connection. In the end, Ives is cleverly allowing us to poke fun at ourselves.

Internet and Education - Internet as Teacher Essay -- Exploratory Ess

The Internet as Teacher    The Internet is here to stay. Whether one lives in a backwoods shack or Silicon Valley, the potential of online communication cannot be ignored. In facing the twenty-first century, a fearless inventory of the role that the World Wide Web will play in global culture must be taken. This "phantom resource," where web sites can shift and vanish like ghosts, should not lend itself to widespread application without careful examination of the specific functions it will be utilized to perform. The Internet is an entity without a master, and censure and discretion on the Web are left to the responsibility of the individual publisher. This means a student searching the vast fields of information that have flowered on-line may find pay dirt or fertilizer. Overzealous use of computers, even in innocence, to ease the burden of solid research in favor of convenience or for the sinister purpose of cutting costs, will reduce learning from a creative process to a point-and-click procedure , effectively diminishing students from social-learners to a cyber-tribe of hunters-and-gatherers relying on the ability of machines and the rote memorization of monitors' displays.    The blank countenance of the computer screen, the faceless teacher, is a frightening prospect of education's on-line future. Information is present as print, yet the medium of transference is missing. The student may be receptive and the information relevant; however, learning takes place not by passive observation but in a dynamic whirlwind of uncertainty and intent. A student enters the classroom to learn, and another human being must provide the nuance, the animation, and the conscious feedback--in short, the simple bi... ...runching ability of a calculator, it would be highly difficult to learn algebra directly from this device. In the same respect, the World Wide Web is not a means to an end. It is not the magnificent force that is the human intellect. The mind is humanity's greatest asset and its refinement is humanity's greatest achievement. The evolution of such a device should not be left to anything less than its equal. The intangibles involved in the shaping and growth of human consciousness--the excitement of sharing knowledge, the drive to communicate in the most effective way, the value of having a person take a personal stake in the education of an individual-- are without parallel. In the complex chemistry of education, the computer is just a tool. The true energy and force is in the experiment itself; the teacher is the catalyst; and the student is the reaction.

Hamlet Essay

What have you come to understand about the intense human relationships of Hamlet? How has this understanding been affected by the perspectives of others? In you response you should focus on 3 scenes in the play and a range of perspectives. The intense human relationships of Hamlet have been viewed through numerous perspectives yet all have reached the same conclusions. With the exception of just one, the friendship of Hamlet and Horatio, all the relationships are dishonourable, dysfunctional and destined to fail. Being a revenge tragedy it is immediately clear this play is filled with lies, deceit and treachery. The exact time of Hamlet’s composition is unknown, however it is assumed to be between 1599 and 1602. This was a dark, melancholy time in Shakespeare’s life with the death of his father in 1601 and the death of his only son, Hamnet aged 11, in 1596. It is believed that these events had a significant impact on the writing of Hamlet as the play is heavy with death and has a great similarity with this son’s name. Some perspectives that have been adopted to view and understand the intense human relationships of Hamlet are a religious, psychoanalytic and feminist perspective. When Shakespeare first wrote Hamlet he lived in a strongly religious society where people could be fined for not attending church. Therefore, at this time in history many people had a religious attitude and perspective on the play. The psychoanalytical perspective focuses on the unconscious mind and how it dictates behaviour. This perspective became popular when Sigmund Freud, a well-known psychologist, began developing his psychoanalytic theory, The Oedipus Complex, in 1897. The feminist perspective is often centred around strong women and became particularly popular in the 1950’s being a post world war 2 period. Women were involved in many aspects of the war and made ground in their equality with men. However, when the war ended, women were encouraged to return to their household duties and this sparked much controversy. The family relationship between Hamlet and Gertrude is one of the most intense in the entire play. Their relationship reaches a climax in act 3 scene 4 when Hamlet confronts his mother about her relationship with Claudius and her involvement in the murder of King Hamlet, â€Å"mother, you have my father much offended†. Hamlet sees Gertrude as an adulteress for marrying her husband’s brother two months after his death and believes she is aware that Claudius killed King Hamlet, â€Å"Almost as bad, good mother, As kill a king and marry with his brother†. When exploring this scene from a feminist perspective it can be seen that Gertrude cares deeply for her son yet he scorns her for her recent actions, â€Å"You go not till I set you up a glass where you may see the inmost part of you†. Despite there being no evidence that Gertrude is aware of Claudius’s deed, Hamlet does not trust his mother and this consequently results in his inability to trust other women. The Oedipus Complex comes to the fore when the relationship of these two characters is examined with a psychoanalytical perspective. Freud’s complex suggests that every boy from the age of 3-4 years begins to have unconscious sexual desires for his mother and regards his father as his rival. Through studying this scene from a psychoanalytical perspective it is prominent that Hamlet has an obsession with his mothers sexual relationship with Claudius. He claims that she lives â€Å"In the rank sweat of an enseamed bed†. The scene takes place in Gertrude’s bedroom, which is important as its privacy and intimacy allows Hamlet to express himself fully to his mother and being a place where sexual activity occurs, suggests Hamlets repressed sexual desires. The scene ends with Hamlet possessively demanding her â€Å"but go not to my uncle’s bed† and uses multiple sexual references when he tells her to not let Claudius â€Å"Pinch wanton on your cheek, call you his mouse†. Relating this to the Oedipus complex, Hamlet appears to be more like a jealous lover than a concerned son. Examining act 3 scene 4 from different perspectives gives varied insights into Gertrude and Hamlet’s relationship, yet each perspective deduces that it is a dishonourable relationship with no mutual trust or respect. Another dishonourable family relationship in Hamlet is that between Ophelia and her father Polonius. Polonius manipulates Ophelia for his own benefit, treating her like a tool rather than a person. Their relationships becomes pitiful when she receives orders from her father and responds with â€Å"I shall bey, my lord†, implying that she is at the service of her father. Through the analysis of act 4 scene 5 a deeper understanding can be reached about Ophelia’s relationship with her late father. Following the death of Polonius, Ophelia’s mind becomes unhinged as she drifts into insanity, speaking in songs and rhymes. Considering this scene from a feminists perspective it can be thought that Ophelia went mad with guilt having her desire for Hamlet to kill her father so that they can be together fulfilled. This theory strongly supports the idea that the relationship between Ophelia and Polonius was dysfunctional as she felt she’d never be free to make her own choices until her father was dead. The friendship between Hamlet and Horatio is the only admirable one. Horatio is the one character that Hamlet speaks to openly and confides in. He remains loyal and swears himself to secrecy about the ghost and the pretence of Hamlets madness. He conspires with Hamlet to prove Claudius killed King Hamlet and he stands by him through Ophelia’s death. It is the final scene of the play when the true extent of their friendship is confirmed. Act 5 scene 2 begins with Hamlet confiding in Horatio and reciting the fate of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to him. This further validates their friendship and Hamlets trust in his loyal friend. The scene draws to a close with Horatio wishing to join Hamlet in death. This selfless declaration and his final words to Hamlet before he dies â€Å"good night sweet Prince, and flights of Angels sing thee to thy rest† convey his everlasting faithfulness to Hamlet. Through examining the friendship of Hamlet and Horatio from the beginning of the play to the end, it is clear that, unlike all the other relationships, there is never a doubt about the sincerity of their friendship. Through the close and critical analysis of Hamlet, you can come to the understanding that all but one of the intense human relationships within the play are dishonourable, dysfunctional and destined to fail. Considering this interpretation in the light of other perspectives the same conclusion can be drawn about the relationships.

Definition and Examples of Silent Letters in English