Characters in The Road

The Man- Symbol of Survival

Appearance 

• beard
• scraggy clothes
• long hair
• thin 

Speech

• blunt
• unloving
• straight to the point 
• only talks if spoken to 

Actions

• instinct to protect him and the boy
• use binoculars to see further into their route
• carries a gun with 2 bullets, one for him and one for The boy

Interactions

• The boy
• The woman 
• Ely
• Road Rat

Role

• Been appointed to protect The boy 

The boy- Symbol of hope and light

Appearance

• Thin
• Young
• Dirty
• Coat 

Speech

• Curious 
• Questioning the man 
• "Ok"
• "good guys"

Actions

• instinct to help others
• provides hope
• finds a new family

Interactions

• The man
• Ely 
• The new family 

role

• To provide hope and restoration in humanity 

The Woman-Symbol of Temptation 

Appearance 

• seductive 

Speech

• talks mostly of the temptation of death
• how The man will not be a good father and protect the boy

Actions

• kills herself and gives in to the temptation of death 

Interactions

• The man
• flash backs
• dreams
• vivid imagination

Role

• To challenge the man to give in with the seduction and temptation of choosing the easy way out

Ely- The symbol of a Prophet 

 

Appearance 

• Cardboard shoes
• old
• dirty 
• thin 
• scraggy clothes

Speech

• Riddles
• wise
• crazy
• Religious

Actions

• Camps with The man and The Boy
• The first person along the road that The boy is allowed to be good too 
• Tells the Man and Boy his name is not Ely , but doesn't give his real name 

Interactions

• The man
• The boy

Role

• To encourage The mans journey by telling him that "death itself would be lonely"

The Road Rat-The symbol of Danger

Appearance

• dirty
• stereotypical American clothes- Baseball cap
• Bird tattoo

Speech

• violent
• threatening

Actions

• Separates himself from the rest of the group
• threatens to kill The man and The boy
• grabs The boy
• Gets shot by The man 

 Interactions 

• The man
• The boy
• The rest of the cannibals 

Role

• To show the corruption in the world 

How does Browning tell the story in My Last Duchess?

 'My Last Duchess' tells the story of a proud, possessive and selfish Duke Ferrara who out of jealousy and insecurity kills his "last" wife. This is told through a dramatic monologue of his voice. The Duke begins to case build in order to receive a new wife and innocence.

 Browning sets the dramatic monologue in Renaissance Italy, this is known through the subtitle "Ferrara". The specific time period of the monologue is not mentioned, however the name of the painter " Fra Pandolf" hints towards the period that it is set in. The period is renowned for great artwork and the production of artistic talents. But also for violence and murder which these ideas create the heart of the story which is told. The setting for the monologue is an upper chamber in the ducal palace, away form the 'company below'. By browning doing this it characterises the narrator to be more intimidating. One of Browning's key aspects of narrative is to amplify the Duke's power, he does this by the setting he has used.

 Even before the dramatic monologue has begun the title characterises the Duke as possessive by referring to his last wife as "My Last Duchess". This begins to build the characters personality as neurotic and obsessive which is then further developed by explaining to the envoy that she is "painted on the wall" of the palace in order for him to be able to own her forever. As the monologue continues we begin to figure that his control isn't what he figures it is, for he has to keep his painting behind a "curtain" so she can not "look" at people coming to visit. This drives the Duke insane as he obsesses about his wealth, this links into the period in which the monologue is set of the renounce of artistic and wealthy painters. He can not show off his wealth as she is "looking as if she were alive". This line can be interpreted to suggest that his former wife was seen to be flirtatious. Therefore this resulted in him having to keep her locked away.

 The rhythm of the dramatic monologue uses an iambic pentameter which mimics the Duke's heart beat as he becomes more infuriated of the Duchess' apparent flaws, however this meter is not present throughout the whole of the monologue, this shows the Dukes inability to control everything in his life even though he desires to. The rhythm of the monologue uses the form of AABB rhyming couplets. The organisation of this shows the Duke's desire for control. "How such a glance came there;so, not the first Are you to turn and ask thus. Sir, 'twas not" The stops and pauses in the narrators speech indicates trying to get back into control of his anger

Narrative Codes

Enigma- A question which must be resolved.

Symbolic- Signs or signals which represent a larger idea.

Action-An event/action which dictates a set/known response.

Cultural-Signs or symbols unique to a specific culture.

Semantic- What something is- connotation\denotation.

Dogberry and his watch

Dogberry highlights the serious problem of the inability to question authority of wealth and class. 

 In the previous scene of much ado about nothing, Don John has tricked Claudio into thinking his future wife to be is being unfaithful to him. To try and shame her Don John, Don Pedro and Claudio plan to catch her being unfaithful. If girls were unfaithful they were shamed and disowned by their families. 

 Whilst talking to his watchmen, Dogberry uses a series of malapropisms. He does this to try and achieve status and power. " first, who think you the right desert less man to be constable?" Instead of using desert less he meant deserving, he uses malapropisms by accident to achieve the status of power by looking more educated then he is. 

 We know Dogberry isn't well educacatued of how he talks to seacoal about being able to read and write " make no boast of it; and for your reading and writing" he is saying how people for need to over exaggerate their education and how it " come naturally". 

 This questions authority because Seacoal, who is more educated meaning he has a higher class and status, is a lower portion then Dogberry who has little or no education. 

 Dogberry also questions wealth by saying " they are to meddle non but the princes subjects" he is saying that if go against the princes name you will be commiting treason by accusing the name of the prince a thief. Treason was a very serious matter in Shakespearean times . In which your life could be in danger if you went against royalty or God.

 Much ado about nothing was set at the time the puritans were ruling. The puritans didn't believe in dancing, Christmas or theater and banned them. They believed if you went against God or didn't support the church you were going to hell. 

 Shakespearean audiences would find Dogberry comedic through his malapropisms. The higher class audiences would find it absurd someone of a lower class trying to achieve status and power. Where as the lower classes would find him comedic because Shakespeare is mocking the upper classes power and authority by the big words they use. 

 Critic Coleridge, expresses his option that Dogberry has no reason in the play other then to look stupid. However I believe he raises some important issues about class, status and wealth. 

Act 1 scene 3

Camille Wells Slights-

" This play is centerally concerned with social nature of language, with the power of language and with language as an articulation of power"

Metaphors for a dog 

Muzzle 

Cage 

Bite 

Resurrected and prevented from speaking 

Canker 

Clog 

How is language presented as being centeral to power in this scene?

Don Jon the bastard feels like he has to be controlled in the way he speaks. He can only speak when spoken to because he is the bastard son. He has no authority over the other characters. Don Jon is the illegitimate son of Leonardo. 

The unpleasantness 

Reynard the fox 

A carving at st st Augustine's abbey Camterbury 

A Victorians valentines card 

Much Ado About Nothing

Old Comedy- BC old- Proper old

Greek 

Bawdy 

Scatological

Set pieces and sketches 

A catch phrase 

Short stories put together  

New Comedy- Still old 

Greek 

Romance 

Reuniting 

plot

Happy Ending 

Fast paced 

Witty 

New Comedy- Characters 

Love struck- love at first sight 

cunning yet cowardly soldier

angry father

bragging soldier

kind hearted prostitute

Shakespearean Comedy 1580+ 

Young love

Difficulty

marriages solve everything 

Doesn't have to be funny

mixed comedy bawdy, slapstick with seriousness

Bawdy for the lower class audience and serious for the upper class audience 

William Shakespeare's Sonnet 129

"The expense of spirit in a waste of shame 
Is lust in action; and till action, lust 
Is perjured, murderous, bloody, full of blame, 
Savage, extreme, rude, cruel, not to trust, 
Enjoy’d no sooner but despised straight, 
Past reason hunted, and no sooner had 
Past reason hated, as a swallow’d bait 
On purpose laid to make the taker mad; 
Mad in pursuit and in possession so; 
Had, having, and in quest to have, extreme; 
A bliss in proof, and proved, a very woe; 
Before, a joy proposed; behind, a dream. 
   All this the world well knows; yet none knows well 
   To shun the heaven that leads men to this hell.  

                                        "

William Shakespeare wrote a sonnet expressing his desire for a woman. The sonnet showed how desire can be mistaken for love. 
 Shakespeare  uses 7 Rhetorical devices to engage readers top read the sonnet. 
 The seven devices are; Asyndeton, antithesis, anaphora, anadiplois, pun, metaphor and similies. 
 The rhetorical devices create an effect on the reader. They make the reader think what the text is about. This introduces new ideas and draws the readers to the text to carry on reading. It is a ext that can not be answered.