Alice Walker and Toni Morrison are two prominent African-American female writers. Both their stories reflect their concerns with racial‚ sexual‚ and political issues—particularly the subject of oppression. Oppression runs through our language and will shape the way we act and do things in our culture. They are built around what is understood to be the norms in our society. A norm signifies what is acceptable and desirable. It is also a given position of dominance‚ privilege and power over what is
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Rat Song Introduction ”Rat Song” is a poem written by Margaret Atwood and is part of Selected Poems from 1976. What is interesting about the poem is that it is written from the point of view of a rat. And by looking through the eyes of a rat (which many people see as a primitive and inferior animal) the poem shows how judgemental‚ hateful‚ hypocritical and “unnatural” the human race is. The poem furthermore advocates that humans are a much greater parasite than the rats they are so desperately
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author‚ Alice Walker uses the backdrop of a small town family using characters Maggie and Dee and Mama to symbolize the dynamics of the greater African American color‚ educational and class struggle in America. She uses the family because it is an institution that every reader can identify with. This is a story of what it really means to “make it” in the Black family and Black community. Mama typifies the single parent who is functioning in the dual role of mother and father. Walker makes no mention
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In "Everyday Use‚" the author Alice Walker tells the story of a mother and her two daughters’ conflicting ideas about their identites and heritage. She demonstrates different sides of culture and heritage through the characters of Mama‚ Dee‚ and Maggie whom portray different opinions on the qualities and outlooks of life. The author uses the conflict to make the point that the make up of an object or of a person is more important than the looks. In Alice Walker’s story "Everyday Use‚" she uses the
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Margaret Atwood’s poem “Siren Song” is a story that has been retold for generations; a tale of beauty‚ distress‚ and the ultimate betrayal. Margaret Atwood’s allusion‚ and the title of the poem itself set the stage for a story in which the readers already know the ending. As the siren leads her victims to their death‚ she seems bored‚ unamused‚ and ultimately unhappy. However‚ the siren uses her appearance‚ and her ability to gain sympathy in the minds of her targets‚ to lead them to their demise
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The duality of human nature between the characters; Tom Walker‚ Young Goodman Brown‚ and Connie are revealed vastly contrarily and similarly throughout the each short stories. Tom Walker‚ a greedy‚ lazy‚ materialistic man throughout the short story “Devil and Tom Walker” by Washington Irving as he makes his way through the muddy unpleasant swamp. Young Goodman Brown‚ an innocent‚ guilty‚ follower who is a victim of the Devil‚ in the story “Young Goodman Brown” written by Nathaniel Hawthorne. He has
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NAME: LORANNA LAING DATE: October 25‚ 2010 SUBJECT: LITERATURES IN ENGLISH AN ANALYSIS OF THE POEMS “ORPHEUS”AND “EURYDICE” BY MARGARET ATWOOD The poems “ORPHEUS “and “EURYDICE” by Margaret Atwood speaks of the love shared by a Grecian Male called Orpheus and his wife Eurydice. It tells the readers how Eurydice was manipulated into loving Orpheus through his singing which was used to hypnotize both gods and man.The story then goes on to Say that they were married soon after but before
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Throughout the story‚ “My Last Duchess” by Margaret Atwood‚ there exists vast dissimilarities between stereotypical women and women opposing stereotypes‚ and society. These dissimilarities are shown evidently through the characters. Margaret Atwood uses her characters to supply detailed examples of individuals who embody these stereotypes‚ those who do not‚ and the conflicting tones she uses in regards to these characters display her feminist ideals. A few of the characters representing stereotypical
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announcement of a donation made by Matthew Vassar for the foundation of a women’s college (Ray 1). Advances during the 1860’s like the one made by Matthew Vassar were a huge improvement for women. Margaret Fuller takes us on a tour of the treatment of women in her essay The Great Lawsuit. Margaret Fuller was America’s first true feminist. Today she holds a distinctive place in the cultural life of the American Renaissance (Hampson). Fuller was a transcendentalist‚ literary critic‚ editor‚ journalist
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Letter to America In Margaret Atwood’s “Letter to America” she expresses her disappointment over the current state of America. She mentions how much America has changed throughout her years and goes on to compare the America of her youth. This essay discusses the changes that America goes through. Margaret is trying to show how people are feeling about watching America begin to decline. This essay discusses Americas faults from a Canadian perspective. Atwood moved from Canada to America to attend
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