Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead Analysis

Setting: Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead takes place in the woods in Elsinore around the 14th and 15th centuries.

Plot: The play starts out with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern wandering aimlessly in the woods, flipping the coin. The story goes on about their journey, they meet tragedians, get an assignment by King Claudius to take Hamlet on a ship to London where he is supposed to be killed but ultimately and end up meeting their own ends.

Characters

Rosencrantz: Rosencrantz is caught copying what Guildenstern says. He has trouble showcasing his own ideas and thought the process and finds it hard to generate his own opinion. He never knows what is going on and waits for Guildenstern to make up his mind before agreeing.

Guildenstern: He is the brightest one out of the two. Guildenstern gets bothered by Rosencrantz always following him.

Player King: He brings a different perspective of reality to the play. He brings thought to provoke ideas for Ros. and Guild. to think over. He is one of the only ties between the audience and the world that Guild. And Ros. are adventuring through.

Significant Quotes

• “Uncertainty is the normal state. You’re nobody special”

This quote demonstrates the malapropisms that we encounter in the dialogue that is exchanged between Ros. and Guild. they often try and go beyond their own understanding by using larger words but they have no idea what they actually mean.

• “I like to know where I am. Even if I don’t know where I am, I like to know that. If we go there’s no knowing”

This is another quote that I thought really highlighted what Stoppard wanted the reader to see in the characters. They are always confused and in this case, they’re trying to help their situation but are really just making it worst. Half the time they don’t know where they are or what their mission is but here we can see that Guil. wants to know where he is. He wants to feel in control for once and not feel uneasy by the constant sense of uncertainty that is always clouded around them.

Narrative Voice and Style:

• the POV is Rosencrantz and Guildenstern’s
• Allusion is used throughout Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead by the use of being a play within a play. The play alludes to Shakespeare’s great work Hamlet. 
• The coin at the beginning of the play symbolizes how the world is random and how random things can happen that doesn’t make sense. This happens to Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. They didn’t plan on being killed because they didn’t see why they would be killed for what reason. Also when they find the letter ordering for Hamlet’s assassination, they find it weird and random because why would they be put in a situation like that. That’s why the coin represents randomness because of all the random situations the two characters went through.
• The two protagonists tone are complete opposites of each other. Rosencrantz’s tone is optimistic while Guildenstern’s tone is pessimistic. The overall tone of the play is absurd. The conversations make no sense and are not said to come to a conclusion. They just continue to ramble on.

Thesis Statement 

In Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, through Rosencrantz and Guildenstern’s deliberations on their circumstance, Stoppard ruminates on his existentialist views on life.

We chose this as our theme statement because our class noticed that Ros. and Guil. spend a lot of time thinking and analyzing every situation they’re in and are about to accomplish. They have to stop and take everything in for a while until they come to a conclusion of what they are about to do.This idea of constantly being confused and out of touch with reality shows us that when writing the play, Stoppard is reflecting on his own existential thoughts about life and brings forth the real question of whether or not it has meaning.

Response to Course Materials

I feel as a class we really analyzed every aspect of Hamlet that we could have. With us reading not only Hamlet but also reading Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead and watching different adaptations of the play through the film we saw more versatile takes on the classic piece. When it comes to Hamlet I think after seeing the movie and the other adaptations of the film it was a lot easier to understand, language wise. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead was easier to understand plot and scene wise once there was a visual representation.

We then started to practice multiple choice questions for the AP Lit Exam in the form of analyzing a poem. It is a lot easier coming up with the questions myself than answering the ones given to us when we practice with the exercises are from the book also coming up with the questions clarifies what they are looking for in terms of tone, sentence structure, etc. After doing all these exercises it’s clear I still have a lot of work to do.

Open Prompt 1

Student 1A’s introductory paragraph was really clear and clever the moment they started their introductory paragraph which showcased their unique style of wordplay. I thought their  thesis statement was precise and accurate. The writer really opened up the discussions of the poems by comparing and contrasting the two. This creates multiple ideas to the essay which helps draw in the reader. I like how they brought up all the different elements of literature and gave examples. Overall, I think this student did a really good job answering the prompt, and not going off topic. I would give them an 8.

Student 1B’s response really focuses in on the imagery aspect of the poems. I thought it lacked some detail, and made a lot of claims about the meaning without using evidence to back it up. For example, saying “Nora’s acts were completely submissive”  may have been accurate and true, but they gave no example from the text to represent their point. In the following paragraph they say how she wants more independence and almost starts to contradict themselves. Even though there was a lack of evidence, the claims were analytical and could certainly bring up good discussion I thought this essay deserves a 5.

1C’s responses was a mess. It lacked any signs of evidence, but also failed to make any claim. Their idea that “Her husband shifted  from having any independent ideas” was not backed up and felt like it was the first thing that popped into their head. While reading through the prose I had a feeling that maybe they hadn’t prepared for this well and maybe struggled with coming up with a good thesis which is the most crucial part of any prose. The execution needs work so I give this a 4.

Summary and Analysis of Hamlet

Setting: Hamlet takes place in a palace in Elsinore, Denmark. The time period it is set in is around the 14th or 15th centuries.

Plot: the late death of Hamlet’s father, King Hamlet, brings forth the rushed marriage of his mother, Queen Gertrude, and, his uncle, King Claudius.The play feeds off the internal struggle and tension of wanting revenge as it eats away at Prince Hamlet and shows the results of betrayal in close quarters and the lack of trust surrounding the nuclear family unit affects one’s mindset.

Main Characters

 

• Hamlet is the main protagonist. A reflective and thoughtful man who is prone to be indecisive and hesitant, but at other time to be rash and go through with impulsive acts.

• Queen Gertrude is Hamlet’s mother and Queen of Denmark. She cares for his wellbeing and enlists the help of his friends when she sees he has derailed into madness. She doesn’t understand the vast affect her quick marriage has had on her son and also doesn’t know the secrets her Brother- in- Law/ Husband is keeping from her regarding her 1st husband’s death. telling her so.

• Claudius is Hamlet’s Uncle and Stepfather. He is the new King of Denmark now that he has killed his brother by poisoning him. He is doing everything in his power to keep Hamlet and his mother from discovering the truth.

• Ophelia is the daughter of the King’s advisor and Hamlet’s supposed “love interest”. She is a sweet and innocent young girl, who obeys her father, Polonius, and her brother, Laertes. She isn’t very independent and is in turn very dependent on the men in her life to tell her how to behave and often just plays into their demands such as when she gives in to Polonius’s schemes to spy on Hamlet. She eventually lapses into madness and death as well.

 

Narrative Voice

POV: Hamlet

Imagery: used throughout Hamlet. A good example of imagery is when Claudius relates Hamlet to being a hectic in his blood because he is ruining his plans.

Symbolism: can be found at the beginning and end of Hamlet. At the beginning Marcellus and Horatio swear by the sword to keep what they have seen a secret. This symbolizes trust and loyalty. Near the end of the play, Yorick’s skull further symbolizes Hamlet’s infatuation with death. Since throughout the play he questions taking his own life.

Tone: Hamlet’s tone in the play is a mixture of anger, sadness, and hate. We know that he is mad because of how sarcastic he is throughout the play. Especially towards Polonius. His tone is sad when he finds out about Ophelia’s death up until his own death. His tone is solemn. His tone is hateful during the bulk (middle) of the play.

Important Quotes

“To be or not to be—that is the question:  Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune”

This line is one of the most referenced lines in all of history. Everyone knows this line whether they’ve read Hamlet or not. It gives a completely different meaning now that I have read the play and see that this scene really signifies the turmoil that Hamlet was going through as he was contemplating suicide. Hamlet doesn’t know if suffering through his life is worth it, but he knows that death will not fix the problems around him.

“Something is rotten in the state of Denmark”

This quote shows the death and destruction that is plaguing Denmark for a while now. Which makes you think if this might’ve been a cleansing process of some kind to rid the state of the ruthless, rotten rulers or if it really was just a case of bad luck.

Theme Statement

Shakespeare portrays the consequences of violence and betrayal through the result of the character’s own demise.

• King Claudius betrays his brother, sister-in-law and nephew and soon ends up dead.
• Queen Gertrude ignores her son and soon ends up dead also.
• Hamlet doesn’t see the vast impact his actions have from him trying to prove a point and ends up losing his love, Ophelia, and his life

Response to Course Materials

I found the story of Oedipus to be quite intriguing and funny in how everything worked out settled by the end of the play. The story is centered around the idea that there is no such thing as free will, everything happens for a reason, and there is not a choice that is not already predetermined. To support this idea of the main play we also read articles such as “Fate, Freedom, and Tragic Experience”  which helped my understanding of the real struggle of fate and free will against what the Gods had already had set up for the characters. I enjoyed reading both Oedipus and the articles that were related to the same concepts the play brought up because it made me really think about how people live their lives, and how they mold their actions to try to create different outcomes.

The final exam project really tested our knowledge and understand of 3 main pieces. It was one of my easier exams due to the fact that we were really able to choose the way we wanted to present the pieces and evidence. It was nice to see what everyone else took from the 3 plays that we had gone so far in depth about and see what they saw as the main concepts and the research they put into relating these same plays to everyday topics that we would understand.

 

Open Prompt 2

2006, Form B. In many works of literature, a physical journey – the literal movement from one place to another – plays a central role. Choose a novel, play, or epic poem in which a physical journey is an important element and discuss how the journey adds to the meaning of the work as a whole. Avoid mere plot summary.

In Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Finn the journey is the main event of the story but it is just the opener for the real intellectual and emotional journey that the characters endure that gives great meaning behind the simple ride up and down the river.

The journey that Huckleberry Finn and Jim take is much more than a simple ride up and down the river. On this journey Huckleberry learns about the issues that surround slavery that plague the nation at this time. On the journey up the river Huckleberry Finn is given conflicted perspectives of the impact that slavery has on everyday life. On one hand he sees the benefits that white America has obtained from the labor but it coincides with the torment and sadness he sees that haunts the slaves.

At the end of the trip when Huckleberry returns back home he is left with the major decision of turning Jim in back to his slave master or giving him his freedom. On one end he has run into “civilized society” that doesn’t understand life without slaves and see them as a prime need in the production growth of the country while “uncivilized society” doesn’t understand why they cant be treated equal.Throughout the journey Huckleberry Finn’s character matures and shows great compassion for slaves through his budding friendship with Jim. Huckleberry Finn decides to drop all his previous knowledge about how life should be and now puts his personal experiences and friendships into account when he lives his life.

The actual journey that surrounds story adds to the meaning behind the it which is comparing the civilized and uncivilized ideals in society at the time by placing an adolescent boy and a slave on a raft as they cruise up the Mississippi River both looking for their sense of freedom.

 

Open Prompt 1

Student 3A started the prose very weak and the thesis wasn’t really that supportive but as the prose went on the student became more clear and precise and brought up very helpful and important warrants to support their thesis. An example of his detailed analysis can be seen through his thought about how Greggers compares himself to the dog that pulled the duck out of the reeds. The prose goes on to be very clear and concise and easy to understand. Student 3A ends sort of weak but the “meat” of the prose is clear and concise while the introduction and the conclusion needs more work. I would give this essay an 8.

Student 3B demonstrates a level of understanding of what the lamp demonstrates in the play. The explanation of how the lampshade is “more than just a vain attempt [for Blanche] to hide her obsession about aging”. The essay got better as it went along but it still didn’t go into great detail. It scratched more than just the surface but Student 3B held back. I would give this a 5.
Student 3C didn’t go into great detail about the significance of one symbol and instead gave a long analysis of what the novel consisted of. The essay is coherent but it lacks the highlight if a specific symbol but has a lot of quotes and evidence from the novel. I would give this a 4.

Summary and Analysis of Heart of Darkness by Conrad

Plot: Heart of Darkness starts out with Marlow telling a story to the narrator and others about his life when he was a captain of a boat that traveled to the Congo. Throughout his sailing career, Marlow heard a lot about a man named Kurtz who happened to be the head of the inner station on the Congo River. As Marlow travels, he learns about the dark secrets of the company he is working for. The men in the company have greedy ways and have been enslaving the natives of the Congo to get that ivory. Marlow continues to hear about Kurtz and wants to meet him and speak with him. When he finally arrives at Kurtz’s location Kurtz turns out to have lost his mind and is crazy about ivory. At the end Kurtz dies of illness and  leaves behind the natives who worshipped him, his fiancee, and his mistress. Marlow then returns to London where he is unhappy with hoe people choose to live in the dark when it comes to the truth but he eventually meets up with Kurtz’s fiancee and lies straight to her face.

Setting: 1800s and in London, Brussels but majority in the Congo.

Characters

The Intended

• Marlow lies to her face to spare her feelings
• similar to Conrad’s idea of women

Marlow

• curious about Kurtz so he tries to find him so they can talk

Kurtz

• renown ivory collector that has lost his mind
• “God” to the natives around him

Native Woman

• Kurtz’s mistress
• strong
• is referred to as the “Black Athena”
• natives respect her
• complete opposite of Conrad’s idea of women

Narrative Voice and Author’s Style

POV: HOD is told from Marlow’s perspective of him telling a story to his shipmates  although it is debatable wether he is reliable or not

Imagery: Conrad uses darkness and light to create the images of the story. Darkness is used to describe the natives and their “backwards ways” while Light is used for the Europeans and their innovative ideas.

Tone: Heart Of Darkness is very dark and gloomy and gives a very downhearted and sorrow filled vibe when reading it. You can tell by the imagery.

Symbolism:

• The Intended is seen as Conrad’s perception of women in society which displayed their ignorance of the world around them
• The Congo river represents the Europeans to always remain separate from the natives

Quotes

“The horror! The horror!”

These are Kurtz’s last words and it just resonates the final moments when Kurtz looks back on his life and really sees all the things he has done and how it has affected him and the people around him now.

“In a few days the Eldorado Expedition went into the patient wilderness, that closed upon it as the sea closes over a diver. Long afterwards the news came that all the donkeys were dead. I know nothing as to the fate of the less valuable animals. They, no doubt, like the rest of us, found what they deserved. I did not inquire.”

This is when we really see Marlow’s views shift. Through out the book it seems as though he battles with wether the natives are less or equal and here we see that Marlow sees the white men as the lesser of the two. I see this as the first time we see him really get out of this safe bubble that the company has put him in that makes him blind to all the bad happening around him.

Thesis Statement 

In Heart of Darkness, Conrad’s depiction of Kurtz’s shift from light to darkness challenges commonly held beliefs about imperialism and human nature.

Conrad uses Kurtz as a representation of the basic European man that is ripped of his precious ideals and then thrown into the jungle where he has to strategize to survive. The shift from his civilized disposition to an unruly, and opportunistic man is due to his obsession and greediness soon leads to his downfall. The natives who he once thought were below him are now his only way of survival. The imagery throughout the book is used to describe the changing mood in Kurtz where the light is supposed to be the imperialistic, innovative side of things while the dark is the greedy, selfish part that has completely consumed Kurtz.

Course Material Blog Post

Heart of Darkness was a book I struggled with through out the first time reading it. I never noticed until the second time reading it when I had to annotate just how much writing little notes to yourself that point significant things out helps you as a reader. Heart of Darkness is the most confusing book when you look try to think about it all together. The themes and significance associated and portrayed within it were hard for me to see at first but after group discussions and hearing things that my other classmates read and made connections too  made it a lot easier to understand. This book really did need more than one day to talk about.

I also think that by reading T.S. Elliot’s poems The Hollow Men and The Wasteland helped to understand Conrad’s writing style with the central atmosphere of dark, gloomy vibe that all there materials gave off.

Although Apocalypse now wasn’t an exact replica of the Heart of Darkness it was a lot easier to follow and understand. After reading HOD once and seeing Apocalypse now it was easy to compare and contrast the two but all in all it had the same central theme along with the motifs and symbols. I think that watching the movie before reading the book a second time really helped me understand the book better because it helped clear confusion by incorporating a clear picture.

Closed Prompt 2

In both poems there is a sense of curiosity but by the tone and sentence lengths of the poems we can see the differences between the two authors approaches of bringing answers of of Eros.

Robert Bridges’ starts his poem out with a question “Why hast thou nothing in thy face” the fact that he started the poem with a question shows that his whole idea derived from curiosity. Bridges seems genuinely curious to about Eros and love. Bridges brings a sense of respect and flattery as he speaks to Eros calling him “Flower of lovely youth that art”, “an image of eternal truth” and “king of joy”. Bridges’ long sentences means that his poem has well thought out ideas that trigger curiosity while reading them also.

In Anne Stevenson’s Poem she gives a feeling of rude and irate as she describes Eros. In the beginning she refers to him as a “ this thug with a broken nose and squinty eyes”. When she describes him as a “thug” that is a clear sign of slang. The use of slang throughout the poem shows a level of disrespect she showed towards him. Along with name calling such as when she calls him she call him her “bully boy” in the beginning of the stanza Stevenson also says Eros has “patchy wings”. Stevenson then takes a more defensive side when she addresses Eros and explains the result his love has had on her “my face that so offends you/ is the sum/ of blows your lust delivered”. Throughout the whole poem Stevenson’s sentence length were short and sharp they didn’t leave much for the imagination of the reader because she gave direct hits to the points she was trying to make.