Romantic Heroes Essay - 808 Words

The Romantic hero, fashioned by the Romantics, is portrayed as a paradigmatic, random individual with a particular purpose. The Romantic hero begins his mission by following his inner light, in order to achieve his goal. He will not rest until it is consummated. Through two of Longfellows works, A Psalm of Life, and Excelsior, Longfellow illustrates the full picture of a Romantic hero. The description that Longfellow gives is so precise, that it can cause a reader to question Hawthornes, another Romantics character, Young Goodman Brown, as an actual romantic hero. In both Excelsior and A Psalm of Life, Longfellow creates the two different Romantic heroes with specific inner lights. Although the two different characters have†¦show more content†¦Human life, he declares, would not be life without the dream of life after death. Setting an example is also an integral part of being a Romantic hero. Longfellow believes that man creates his own fate through the choices he makes. A person can find the purpose, or even his purpose, of life through the decisions he makes. Not everyone will end up happy, but leading a life of achievement will offer an ending to an existence well worth living. Longfellow discusses this in his work. The boy in Excelsior tries to fulfill his destiny when he, half buried in the snow was found, still grasping in his hand of ice, that banner with the strange device. Longfellow wants the readers to learn from this boy. The youth was sent to complete a task and with every last breath of air he attempts to fulfill his destiny. The boy in the poem dies on the mountain but his spirit still goes on. Even though the boy never reached his goal, Longfellow wants the reader to note that he died trying. The poem tells the reader that the boy is serene and far, or in other words, he chooses to still climb. A Psalm of Life has a different kind of message that can be le arnt from. Not enjoyment and not sorrow is our destined end or way but to act that each tomorrow find us farther than today. This line in particular provides an imagery of people trying to find their way on their own, but being too afraid to do so. Longfellows Romantic hero is explainingShow MoreRelatedSatan Is Evil Or Evil?1330 Words   |  6 Pagessecond chance. Other Scholars have also had this idea of Satan not being the true antagonist of Paradise Lost. In the John M. Steadman article â€Å"The Idea of Satan as the Hero of ‘Paradise Lost†, stating that â€Å"because there are multiple definitions of heroes, such as Homeric, Christian Theological Hollywood, Byronic, and Personal, Satan can’t be contained to just one particular idea† (254-5). According to the traditional definition, God himself cannot be categorized as a hero because of how he is portrayedRead MoreIrony and Sarcasm in A Mystery of Heroism and War is Kind Essay examples947 Words   |  4 Pagesaccurately portray real life. One of those Realist writers was Stephen Crane (1871-1900). In the short story A Mystery of Heroism and his poem War is Kind Stephen Crane uses irony and sarcasm to effectively portray his attitudes about war and to mock Romantic heroism. In the story, at first sight no one could be called a hero. There are many characteristics that mark a true hero, someone that stands up for his beliefs and dies for it if he has to, not just dying in war or in a horrible way. The motiveRead MoreAnalysis Of The Prelude And Lord Byron s Biting Epic1202 Words   |  5 PagesThe Romantic poets sought to write epic poems that incorporated new philosophies, ideals, and literary trends, while also parodying, satirizing and deconstructing the epic poem itself. Rather than merely extend the epic tradition, the Romantic poets subverted the characteristics and tropes attributed to epic poetry, in turn creating an interesting revision of the epic. 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This new epoch established generations of new music advancement as composers, performers, and artists setout to create a new legacy of music development with the ideas of emotion, expression, and enlightenmentRead MoreClassic Medieval Romanticism in La Belle Dame sans Merci Essay examples1497 Words   |  6 Pages Romanticism can be broadly defined as that which is `the fabulous, the extravagant, the fictitious and the unreal. The words Romantic and Romanticism were applied to or used for a literary trend in English literature of the last quarter of 18th and mid-nineteenth century to refer to various tendencies. Later the term Romanticism was applied to `resurgence of extinct and emotion which could not be suppressed by the `rationalism of the 18th century and a low key revolt could be heard in some literaryRead MoreByronic Hero In Dostoevskys Crime And Punishment1347 Words   |  6 PagesByronic hero is characterized by his/her cunning, arrogant, violent, and often intellectually unstable behavior. First developed in the 19th century by English Romantic poet, Lord Byron, a Byronic hero deviates from the traditional Romantic hero archetype (Byronic). Although both archetypes â€Å"rebel against traditional modes of behavior†, Byronic heroes have greater psychological burdens. This resu lts in morbid sensibilities. Dostoevsky s Crime and Punishment explores a variety of characters’ psyche andRead MoreHow am I a Romantic?546 Words   |  2 Pages Dear 11th Grade Student, You may of heard of a time called the American Romanticism Period, but i’m sure you dont know the whole story. The Romantic period was a time in history that symbolised Romance and different Characteristics you might of felt in the stories. Some of the Characteristics might be Focus on an Individual, Supernatural, Intuition over Fact, Imagination over Reason, Emphasis on Emotion, Love of Childhood, Awareness of Past, Belief in Democracy, and Love of Nature. ThereRead MoreArgumentative Essay On Survivors1927 Words   |  8 Pagesof fear and excitement, for example the fight or flight response. Often times contestants wrongly attribute these intense feelings, leading to extreme love or hatred of another contestant (Gerrig 83-86). For example, occasionally, contestants form romantic relationships with each other. Most of the time the relationships don’t last long outside of the game due to them misattributing the reason for what they’re feeling and experiencin g. Physiological arousal isn’t the only thing affecting the way contestants

Roman Army - Recruitment, Legions, Siege Warfare More

The Roman army (exercitus) did not start out as the superlative fighting machine that came to dominate Europe to the Rhine, parts of Asia, and Africa. It began like the part-time Greek army, with farmers returning to their fields after a quick summer campaign. Then it changed into a professional organization with long terms of service far from home. The Roman general and 7-time consul Marius is considered responsible for the change of the Roman army into its professional form. He gave the poorest classes in Rome the opportunity to be career military, gave land to veterans, and changed the composition of the legion. Recruitment of Soldiers for the Roman Army The Roman army changed over time. The consuls had the power to recruit troops, but in the last years of the Republic, provincial governors were replacing troops without the approval of the consuls. This led to legionaries loyal to their generals rather than Rome. Before Marius, recruitment was limited to citizens enrolled in the top 5 Roman classes.  By the end of the Social War (87 B.C.) most of the free men in Italy were entitled to enlist and by the reign of Caracalla or Marcus Aurelius, it was extended to the entire Roman world. From Marius on there were between 5000 and 6200 in the legions. Legion Under Augustus The Roman army under Augustus consisted of 25 legions (according to Tacitus). Each legion consisted of about 6000 men and a large number of auxiliaries. Augustus increased the time of service from 6 to 20 years for legionaries. Auxiliaries (non-citizen natives) enlisted for 25 years. A legatus, supported by 6 military tribunes, led a legion, composed of 10 cohorts. 6 centuries made a cohort. By the time of Augustus, a century had 80 men. The leader of the century was the centurion. The senior centurion was called the primus pilus. There were also about 300 cavalry attached to a legion. Contubernium of Soldiers in the Roman Army There was one leather sleeping tent to cover a group of 8 legionaries. This smallest military group was referred to as a contubernium and the 8 men were contubernales. Each contubernium had a mule to carry the tent and two support troops. 10 such groups made up a century. Every soldier carried 2 stakes and digging tools so they could set up camp each night. There would also be slaves associated with each cohort. Military historian Jonathan Roth estimated there were 2 calones or slaves associated with each contubernium. The Size and Organization of the Roman Imperial Legion, by Jonathan Roth; Historia: Zeitschrift fà ¼r Alte Geschichte, Vol. 43, No. 3 (3rd Qtr., 1994), pp. 346-362 Legion Names Legions were numbered. Additional names indicated the place where the troops were recruited, and the name gemella or gemina meant the troops came from the merger of two other legions. Roman Army Punishments One way to ensure discipline was the system of punishments. These could be corporal (flogging, barley rations instead of wheat), pecuniary, demotion, execution, decimation, and disbandment. Decimation meant one in 10 soldiers in a cohort was killed by the rest of the men in the cohort by clubbing or stoning (bastinado or fustuarium). Disbandment was probably used for mutiny by a legion. Siege Warfare The first great siege war was waged by Camillus against the Veii. It lasted so long he instituted pay for the soldiers for the first time. Julius Caesar writes about his armys sieges of towns in Gaul. Roman soldiers built a wall surrounding the people to prevent supplies from getting in or people from getting out. Sometimes Romans were able to cut off the water supply. Romans could use a ramming device to break a hole in the city walls. They also used catapults to hurl missiles inside. The Roman Soldier De Re Militari, written in the 4th century by Flavius Vegetius Renatus, includes a description of the qualifications of the Roman soldier: Let, therefore, the youth who is to be chosen for martial tasks have observant eyes, hold his head up, have a broad chest, muscular shoulders, strong arms, long fingers, not too extended a wait measure, lean hams, and calves and feet not distended with superfluous flesh but hard and knotted with muscles. Whenever you find these marks in the recruit, do not be troubled about his height [Marius had set up 510 in Roman measurement as the minimum height]. It is more useful for soldiers to be strong and brave than big. Roman soldiers had to march at an ordinary pace of 20 Roman miles in 5 summer hours and at a fast military pace of 24 Roman miles in 5 summer hours carrying a 70-pound backpack. The soldier swore an oath of loyalty and implicit obedience to his commander. In war, a soldier who violated or failed to carry out the generals order could be punished by death, even if the action had been advantageous to the army. Sources Polybius (c. 203-120 B.C.) on the Roman MilitaryTraining Soldiers for the Roman Legion, by S. E. Stout. The Classical Journal, Vol. 16, No. 7. (Apr., 1921), pp. 423-431.Josephus on the Roman ArmyThe Antiqua Legio of Vegetius, by H. M. D. Parker. The Classical Quarterly, Vol. 26, No. 3/4. (Jul. - Oct., 1932), pp. 137-149.Roman Legionary Fortresses and the Cities of Modern Europe, by Thomas H. Watkins. Military Affairs, Vol. 47, No. 1. (Feb., 1983), pp. 15-25.Roman Strategy and Tactics from 509 to 202 B. C., by K. W. Meiklejohn. Greece Rome, Vol. 7, No. 21. (May, 1938), pp. 170-178.

In what way is American TV culture satirised in The Simpsons TV Violence Free Essays

Satire is an extensive form of mockery. The Simpsons uses exaggeration and comedy to mock the TV culture of America. In America, at the moment most children tend to go home from school and spend the rest of the night watching TV. We will write a custom essay sample on In what way is American TV culture satirised in The Simpsons TV Violence? or any similar topic only for you Order Now This episode is trying to show that TV is killing children’s imagination and influencing them negatively. When the children stop liking the cartoons they start going out and playing traditional games like hopscotch, marbles and fishing. In this episode Maggie is influenced negatively by the Itchy and Scratchy cartoons, Marge realises and starts protesting to get them banned. The children then find the new style of the cartoons boring and they go out to play rubbing their eyes, as they are not use to playing outside. The producers use parody, as a form of satire by copying the Psycho scene when Janet Leigh is killed. In the episode, Maggie is watching violent cartoons that influence her. The cartoon shows a mouse and a cat that are endlessly beating each other up. The opening song is catchy, â€Å"We fight, we bite, we fight, we bite, we fight†. In the episode of Itchy and Scratchy, the characters are hitting each other over the heads with mallets. Immediately after she goes down to the basement were Homer is doing some DIY, picks up a mallet and hits Homer with it. This proves that the Itchy and Scratchy Show is influencing the children. The producers of The Simpsons use parody as a technique to satirise the TV culture of America by including the Psycho scene. When Maggie attacks Homer for the first time the directors include the same music and camera angles. This is because Psycho is a well-known horror film, which is easily recognised. From then on, every time Maggie goes to attack Homer they include the same music as if to say she’s about to do something evil. This is satire as you just laugh at the thought of a little baby beating her over weight father up and trying to kill him. The Simpsons copies many techniques to parody the Psycho scene but the two most noticeable are the music and camera angles. It uses the same kind of camera angles during the attack to try and make it more dramatic. There is a close up of Homer’s mouth just as he realises that Maggie is about to hit him, this is the same as when Janet Leigh is just about to be killed. Also the directors copy the overhead shot of the plug which is faded out to become the eye once the victim had been hit. The music is easily recognisable, as most of the audience have seen the film or would recognise that it is out of a horror film. The audience will hear the music and think that something bad is about to happen. This is because the music is quite slow and quiet, and when there is a quick sudden movement it makes you jump. These techniques combine to make the scene recognisable and easy to relate to. Although it does this, it manages to put its point across in a humorous way. This means that if you were just watching you probably wouldn’t think about the meaning behind it, as you know what kind of programme The Simpsons is so would just laugh which is the designed effect. In the second episode of Itchy and Scratchy, the cat and mouse are still trying to beat each other up and so are still influencing in a negative way. Itchy is trying to stab Scratchy and kill him. Immediately afterwards Maggie picks up a pencil and walks over to Homer, Marge spots this and stops her. She looks over at the TV and realises that the cartoon is what is influencing her and wants to do something about it. Marge writes a letter to the producers of Itchy and Scratchy telling them she wants the cartoons changed. In return she receives a letter calling her a â€Å"screwball† and that â€Å"one person cannot make a difference†. This is ironic as America is meant to be a democracy where everyone has freedom of speech and expression. She starts protesting and is invited onto a chat show. The title of the show was â€Å"Are cartoons to violent for children?† which the host replied to by saying, â€Å"of course not, what sort of stupid question is that†. Her they are using parody to satirise talk shows. The host is meant to be neutral but this host is obviously more one sided in the argument. She is given nine seconds to put her point across. So she is not aloud substantial time in order to put her point across. She ends up winning though and the cartoons are changed. The cartoon now begins with the song, â€Å"We love, we share, we love, we share, we care†. The Itchy and Scratchy cartoons are now about happy things and in the one Maggie is watching they are sharing the lemonade. Maggie is once again influenced and she goes over to Homer to give him a glass of lemonade. At first he doesn’t know what she is doing and backs off and then he realises that her intentions are good and only wants to give her dad a drink. This shows that she is still being influenced but this time for the better. Once the cartoons have changed the kids do not like them and start going out to play. The music slows down and changes into a piece of happy classical music by Beethoven. The children started playing traditional games such as hopscotch, dancing round the maypoles and used their imagination and spirits to make them fun. Homer referred to this time as â€Å"the golden age† and told Marge that she had â€Å"changed the world for the better†. The children ate their dinner with manners and were polite to their parents. This shows that when children don’t spend as much time watching TV they spend their time doing positive, worthwhile thing and are more obedient as TV is no longer poisoning their minds. At the end of the episode Marge lost the argument and the TV went back to having lots of violence. This was because the people did not understand how she could be â€Å"for one form of expression, but not for another†. She didn’t feel that anything was wrong with Michel Anglos David, where as the other women in the town felt nudity was evil. The cartoons went back to being more violent than ever and all the children went back inside leaving the playground empty and the music becomes slower and less cheerful. Maggie was again influenced by the cartoons and picked up a toy gun and shoot it at a picture of Homer. In conclusion The Simpsons uses many ways to satirise the TV culture. They use music, parody, and exaggeration. They try to do it in a comic way and get their point across well. It could be argued that the September 11th attack could also have been caused by violence on TV. It may be that the attackers would never have got the ideas if it wasn’t for films such as Independence Day. Although The Simpsons is only a cartoon it highlights the influence TV has on the actions of people. How to cite In what way is American TV culture satirised in The Simpsons TV Violence?, Papers