The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon

Chapter 3.

One of my favourite bits of the play is Chapter 3. This is still the opening of the novel, as we get introduced to Christopher for the first time. "My name is Christopher John Francis Boone" creates a sense of punctuality and even naiveness for not knowing that it would be enough if he only mentioned his first name. The first paragraph leaves a feeling that Christopher is a clever boy, especially in maths. Throughout the novel, a prime number is given to each of the chapters, showing his way of thinking.

The chapter introduces us to the world of Christopher - a boy suffering from Asperger's Syndrome. He talks about his meeting with Siobhan and his way of understanding or not understanding certain emotions. I think it is quite sad that he was only able to recognize happiness and sadness, both related to his own experience, but the rest of the emotions didn't make any sense to him. He even asked Siobhan to write down what each face means and took the paper out when he didn't understand what someone was saying, but still got confused as faces moved too fast. It seems so easy for us to recognize emotions, but for him it wasn't anywhere near simple. The whole chapter shows his complicated mind, his way of dealing with things based on his own experience and his view on the world, all of which are extraordinary, and this is why I liked it.

How far can we say that "All My Sons" is a tragedy?

I think Arthur Miller's play "All My Sons" perfectly fits with most of the definitions of tragedy. The first thing that makes this play a tragedy is the tragic event that has happened before the play stars - Larry's death. Joe has made a terrible mistake and he has to cope with the consequences. He is the tragic character as his family gets destroyed. "All My Sons" also fits a definition of tragedy because of the belief in stars and fate - Frank has made a horoscope and Kate wants to believe in it. Another fact that this is a tragedy is the time scale - all the events happen within 24 hours time. Even though Larry's character or ghost never appears, his presence can be felt all the time. Justification is another thing which makes "All My Sons" a tragedy. Joe knows he has done a terrible mistake, but he wants everyone to believe he has done it for the sake of his family. The play has a death theme in it - first, Larry kills himself, but at the end Joe takes his life away. The connection between the deaths is very strong, since Larry killed himself because he couldn't face his father anymore, but Joe commited a suicide after he got to know the reason of his son's death.

Tragic and dramatic elements in Arthur Miller's play "All My Sons".

Act One.

In act one we get introduced to all of the characters, but George is the only one who doesn't appear till the second act. This builds up tension and leaves the reader suspicious, wondering what exactly is George about to bring into the play. Right at the beginning we get introduced to Joe Keller, who is the main character, and he is described as uneducated. Miller is paying much attention to the stage settings and describes a tree that has recently broken down. As we later get to know, the tree has been a memorial to Joe's son Larry who went missing on November 25th, at that time - three and a half years ago. So now we know that the tragedy of the family has begun before the play has started. When Chris tells Joe his plans to marry Ann, a conflict begins. Before Larry went missing, Ann was his girlfriend and since Kate believes her son is alive, she still sees Ann as Larry's girl. Joe thinks the marriage would pronounce Larry as dead and feels it would be too tough for his wife, Kate, to cope with it. A drama strikes when Chris almost forces Joe to tell Kate the truth - nobody believes that Larry is going to come back. Later in the play Kate appears and tells about her nightmare of Larry falling from his plane and calling her name. She also believes Ann is still waiting for Larry and refuses to believe her son's words. When Ann appears she convinces Kate she doesn't believe Larry is coming back and ruins Kate's hopes. It is later revealed that Ann's father Steve is serving a sentence in prison being guilty for the deaths of 21 men. He and Joe Keller shipped faulty cylinder heads causing airplane crashes, however Joe was released and named innocent. This is a dramatic element of the play, as it reveals the causes of tragedy. Act one ends with a telephone conversation and news that George is about to visit the Keller's for the first time after he visited his father in prison. This leaves everyone worried and we now that there is some darker secret which the family is hiding.

Act Two.

Act Two starts with Chris removing the broken tree, and, perhaps, trying to forget his long-missing brother forever and is hoping for his mother to do the same. Mother(Kate) reveals her fears of George bringing the pas backt. She leaves everyone suspicious, as she acts like Joe really is guilty. Later on, there's a conversation between Sue and Ann. Sue reveals that everyone knows Joe is guilty, but has escaped. She also suggests Ann and Chris to go away if they decide to marry. When Chris appears, Sue leaves, leaving Ann confused and even scared. She doesn't want to believe Keller is guilty and asks Chris to convince her. The drama and tragedy is growing, as nobody wants to believe Keller is guilty, because it would mean that he has killed his own son. When George arrives, Jim gives an advice not to bring him to the Kellers. Neither Ann or Chris understands why till the final tragedy begins. George tells his thoughts on who was guilty for shipping the damaged cylinders - he thinks Joe is to blame. When he meets Joe and Kate, they seem friendly at first, but then start talking about Steve who's in prison. Joe forces George to believe he's innocent, leaving everyone suspicious and worried. Ann then calls a taxi and tells George to leave, hoping the family could still be saved. As mother approaches, she suggests George to stay. Then the conversation turns to its worse - Kate reveals Joe hasn't been sick in fifteen years, which means that the whole thing of Joe being ill and not being able to come over when the faulty cylinder heads were about to be shipped was a lie. Kate then tries to correct her own words by saying she doesn't remember every time someone is sick. The drama continues when Frank appears and says he has finished Larry's horoscope. He insists Kate's son could still be alive since November 25th was his favorable day, which means he couldn't die. The situation gets even worse when Kate again insists Larry is alive. She has already called a cabin and packed Ann's things when George reminds of the fact that Joe has never been ill. When Chris gets fed up with the situation, he starts fighting with his mother and then reveals his plan to marry Ann. As everyone had predicted before, Kate is against the marriage and the events keep getting worse. Act two ends with Joe's that he is guilty. Chris feels devastated and doesn't know what to do now. Overall, act two is very dramatic and full of tragedy. It's amazing how many bad events can happen in few hours. A strong family has been destroyed completely by the return of Ann and George.

Act Three.

Act Three tells about the following morning when Chris has drove away to gather his thoughts. Jim and Kate is having a conversation where Jim admits he has always known Joe's guilty. Kate on the other hand admits she thought Chris knows the truth at some points. She didn't expect his reaction to be like it was. When Joe comes in the play, he has a fight with Kate. She suggests Joe to tell Chris he is willing to take blame and go to the prison, thinking that Chris would never send his father away. Ann comes in and demands Kate to tell Chris Larry is dead, so everyone can move on. They start another fight and Ann is about to reveal a secret that's been hidden for three and a half years. She sends Joe in and then tells Kate about the letter Larry has sent to her. While they are arguing, Chris comes back and informs everyone he's going away alone, because he is unable to cope with the embarrassment of his father. Ann turns to Kate and wants her to tell the truth. When Joe enters, he starts arguing with Chris and then another tragedy happens - Chris starts reading the letter Larry wrote to Ann. It says he has taken his own life because he couldn't face his own dad anymore. This brakes Joe completely and he decides to go to the prison. He then goes inside the house. Kate is begging Chris to convince his father not to go to the prison and finally admits Larry is dead. Few moments later, a shot is heard. Chris enters the house, then comes out crying. Joe has killed himself.

Hamlet : Act III

The dramatic elements of Act III.

Act Three starts with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern trying to speak with Hamlet about his madness, as this turns out to be unsuccessful, they go to Claudius. By that time Polonius informs the King that Hamlet invites him and the Queen to a play, so we now know that Hamlet's plan is moving forwards. The play continues with Hamlet's famous soliloquy "To be or not to be...", as he sees Ophelia, he turns to her. It doesn't take long for Hamlet to realise that he is being watched, which was the Kings plan, and he turns his anger towards Ophelia, feeling that she has betrayed him. He says Ophelia should have never believed him when he said he loves her, then he sends her to the nunnery. By asking "Where's your father?", we know that Hamlet is pretty certain about Polonius' presence. The next scene starts with Hamlet talking to one of his players and giving him guidance on how to act properly, then he turns his madness towards Ophelia again. A dumb show follows, but it makes no sense to anyone. As the real play starts, King realises that something is wrong, which proves Hamlet's plan to be successful. He now knows that the King is guilty and can move his plan to the next stage. When the Queen asks Hamlet to go to her room for a chat, Polonius decides to hide behind the curtain and do his usual spying. He leaves the King to pray, then Hamlet enters. This seems to be a perfect moment for killing the King, but Hamlet decides not to do it, just because he doesn't want Claudius to go to heaven since he is praying. When Hamlet goes to his mother, he starts acting angry and turns his madness to the other woman of his life, feeling betrayed. The Ghost appears, Hamlet now truly believes that it is his father, but then vanishes. The Queen sees her son full of madness, as she screams for help, Polonius, who is behind the curtain, also starts screaming. Hamlet then stabs him thinking he is the King. The act ends with Hamlet's and Queen's conversation, Hamlet leaves some letters and informs the Queen he must go to England.

I think this is a very dramatic Act, the events seem to happen faster. At some points, Hamlet's madness isn't even acting, he really is mad. He acts angry towards Ophelia and his mother. Now, when he knows the truth about his father's death, we can only wait for the moment he kills the King.

My opinion of Ophelia

"Ophelia" by John Millais

Ophelia is a character almost everyone feel sorry about. She is being bullied by her father, brother and Hamlet, the one that she thought to be in love with. At first, her father Polonius and brother Laertes insists her not to meet Hamlet, then Hamlet says he doesn't love her anymore and sends her to the nunnery. I think we all agree, it's a bit too harsh.

In my Ophelia is an important character, as she is one of the tragic elements in the play. She brings the play closer to the readers through her pain because of the ones she love, at some points her life seems to be a complete mess and she has no one to trust. We can draw parallels between Hamlet and Ophelia, they both have lost their fathers and both get crazy afterwards. Without her, they play would be bald, as she also brings romantic elements in.

The death of Ophelia is one of the main questions to think about - did she kill herself or was it an accident? Also, the way it is being told by Gertrude leaves me suspicious. After all that had happened in Ophelia's life, it wouldn't be a surprise if she really took her own life away, we don't know what was in her head at the moment she drowned, but we can imagine it. On the other hand, at the time of her death she was mad and maybe didn't realise what's happening so it was an accidental death.

There are lots of discussions to rise whether Ophelia is a needed character or whether she committed suicide or not, but I don't think there's only one right answer to those questions.

"Hamlet" : Act I and II

By the end of Act two comment on Hamlet's character. What is he doing? Why? How have the tragic elements of the play been established?

Act I.

Act I shows us Hamlet's grief, which is because his father has died. Another tragic element is the marriage of Hamlet's mother and uncle, which is held shortly after the death.
Since these two things have happened in a short amount of time, Hamlet's state of mind is unstable and at some points we can clearly see his craziness, he feels as though his father has been forgotten. Hamlet meets a Ghost, who says that he is the dead father and reveals that he has been killed by his brother, Hamlet's uncle, the new king of Denmark. The Ghost asks Hamlet to revenge his death and Hamlet together with Marcellus and Horatio swear that they will not tell anyone about what they had seen. At the end of Act I, Hamlet is left wondering whether the Ghost he had seen really is his father or maybe it's a devil's trick. Hamlet writes down some things the Ghost says so we are thinking "Why is he doing it?"

Act II.

This act introduces us to Hamlet's plan for revenge, which turns out to be tricky because he wants to kill the uncle but doesn't want to hurt his mother. Even though Hamlet still doubts whether the Ghost had told the truth, he is planning to make a play reflecting the way his father died. He is hoping that the uncle starts acting strange while seeing the play, suggesting that he isn't feeling comfortable and is the one to blame.
Hamlet is acting mad at some points, but this is probably a part of his plan. He also feels a bit relieved because of his plan.
The tragic element in this act, as well as the rest of the play, is the lack of trust between the characters. The only person Hamlet can trust is himself.

The Great Gatsby : Chapter VIII and IX

Chapter VIII.

• Narrative style:

The narrator of this chapter, as well as it is in the rest of the book, is Nick Carraway. This chapter tells us about the events which follow Myrtle's death. At first, Nick tries to warn Gatsby to go away for a while, so no one could find him. Since Gatsby isn't even considering the leaving, he takes the blame on himself. Meanwhile George Wilson starts to think about Myrtle's death and comes to a conclusion that Gatsby was the one who drove the car. He then goes to Gatsby's house, enters his garden and kills him while he's in the pool. George Wilson later kills himself. Chapter VIII starts with the day after Myrtle's death, then there's a description of Daisy, followed by Gatsby's life during the war and Gatsby's thoughts about Tom. This chapter has parallel actions, one is Nick in New York, receiving a phone call from Jordan, another one is Gatsby planning to use his pool for the first time in the summer, getting ready and putting his bathing suit on and another one is George Wilson sitting in his garage and coming to the thought of killing Gatsby, then going to his home.

• Characters:

Gatsby is the main character, he gets shot by George Wilson in Chapter VIII. This event is almost like an ending of the book. Gatsby tells Nick about his youth and about Dan Cody.
We can see that Nick's and Gatsby's friendship is getting stronger, as Nick reveals that he doesn't want to leave Gatsby and also says "They're a rotten crowd" to cheer Gatsby up.
There's a description of Daisy through Gatsby's point of view. She is "the first nice girl he had ever known"

• Themes:

Death - Gatsby's and Wilson's death
Love - Gatsby's love for Daisy
Sacrifice - Gatsby decides to take the blame on himself
Revenge - As Wilson starts thinking, he comes to a wrong conclusion that Gatsby has killed Myrtle so he goes to Gatsby's house and shoots him before shooting himself

• Settings:

Gatsby's house that seems so enormous after Myrtle's death. This house symbolises the emptiness of Gatsby's life and it also contrasts with Myrtle's apartment. Daisy's house and her life was an inspiration to Gatsby, he knew that he wants to have a life like hers. Some action is set in Wilson's garage as it is the place where he remains after Myrtle's death.

• Language:

Colour - yellow is used to warn the readers that something is about to happen, for example, Gatsby has a yellow car and it hits Myrtle, then, right before Gatsby is killed, there's a sentence "Once he stopped and shifted it a little, and then the chauffeur asked him if he needed help, but he shook his head and in a moment disappeared among the yellowing trees."
"It was after we started with Gatsby toward the house that the gardener saw Wilson's body a little way off in the grass, and the holocaust was complete." - the death of three people is compared to the holocaust, which is quite unusual because, as we know, millions of people were killed during it. The word "holocaust" is probably used to show just how significant this event was in Nick's life.

Chapter IX.

• Narrative style:

Written from Nick's point of view, this is the last chapter in "The Great Gatsby". Chapter IX is a reflection of Nick's memories from the day Gatsby died. He tells about how he tried to get people to come to Gatsby's funeral. This chapter also reveals just how careless the rich people are, because no one wanted to come and Daisy together with Tom had gone somewhere without leaving a message, they didn't care at all what they had done. Nick contacted Meyer Wolfshiem, but he answered he couldn't come because he "cannot get mixed up in this thing right now". Nick Carraway later meets Gatsby's father Henry C. Gatz who shows him a book that belonged to Gatsby. Few days later, the funeral is held, but the only persons to come is the Owl Eyes and Mr Gatz.

• Characters:

Meyer Wolfshiem is a friend of Gatsby, probably the closest one. Nick asks him to attend Gatsby's funeral, but he says that he doesn't want to "get mixed up with this thing".
We learn about Myrtle's sister Catherine, as people are trying to contact her.
Gatsby's father, Henry C. Gatz, appears in this chapter. He tells Nick he read about Gatsby's death in a newspaper. He is described as an "old man". Henry also shows Nick a book which belonged to Gatsby when he was younger, showing Gatsby's plans for self development.
Daisy and Tom appear in this chapter as Nick tells about them. They are a great example of just how careless can people be. Daisy hasn't left any message, nor sent flowers.
Owl Eyes is the only person to attend Gatsby's funeral together with Mr Gatz.

• Themes:

Death, as Gatsby's funeral is held. Carelessness, lack of friendship. We learn that Gatsby has no real friends.

• Settings:

Gatsby's house, the room where his body was lying(the drawing room), the cemetery where his funeral was held.

• Ideology:

Henry C. Gatz ideology, his belief in Gatsby. He always thought that Jay's future is going to be bright, "If he'd of lived, he'd of been a great man", he said.

• Language:

A precise time is used, "About five o'clock our procession of three cars reached the cemetery" and "at six o'clock of a December evening". At the time of the funeral it's raining, showing the sadness and misery of the characters. This also links with another chapter from the book.