ENG 1120 O February 15‚ 2013 The Artifice of Life In Leo Tolstoy’s novella The Death of Ivan Ilych‚ Tolstoy criticizes several aspects of Russian middle class society. The artifice of middle class life - characterized by pettiness‚ selfishness‚ and materialism – was one of the main focal points of his criticism‚ as well as the lack of spirituality and meaning in that life. Of all the characters in The Death of Ivan Ilych‚ Gerasim is the most important‚ for he acts as a foil to the artificiality
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the 1900’s‚ the overall death rate of the population in Britain has decreased. For males‚ the death rate has dropped from 25829 in 1901 to a mere 8477 in 2000. The rate fell from 21705 to 5679 within the same period of time for females. It was noted that death rates increased during flu epidemics as well as in cold and hot weather. For example‚ about 200 000 people died in the year 1918 due to the influenza epidemic. Nowadays‚ more people die after the age of 65 while in the early 1900’s‚ only 20%
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The Death of Ivan Ilych by Leo Nikoleyevich Tolstoy Translated by Louise and Aylmer Maude During an interval in the Melvinski trial in the large building of the Law Courts the members and public prosecutor met in Ivan Egorovich Shebek’s private room‚ where the conversation turned on the celebrated Krasovski case. Fedor Vasilievich warmly maintained that it was not subject to their jurisdiction‚ Ivan Egorovich maintained the contrary‚ while Peter Ivanovich‚ not having entered into the discussion
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In the book The Compound by S.A. Bodeen‚ there are multiple themes being portrayed by the book. One of the main themes in the book is even if you think you may know someone‚ you may not. Throughout the book‚ many parts of the book show this‚ and talk about trust. Many elements of the book also play off of how well people know each other. The family all trust the father about why they are going into the compound‚ that there’s enough food and supplies‚ everyone is truthful‚ fine in their well being
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meets Miriam. Miriam then begins to dramatically change Mrs. Miller’s life. Miriam’s appearance is mysterious and appears in Mrs. Miller’s dreams. She also seems to have a connection to an old man Mrs. Miller sees on the street. Miriam is an angel of death. To start‚ Miriam’s façade gives her a supernatural and ominous look. At the beginning of the story‚ Mrs. Miller is waiting in line for a movie. She then notices Miriam and is mystified by her physical features. Capote writes‚ “Her hair was the longest
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In the work Frankenstein the Modern Prometheus‚ by Mary Shelley‚ the creation Dr. Victor Frankenstein creates is alienated and enriched in knowledge from his isolation. From this alienation‚ the “Creation” brings out the major themes of isolation and seclusion. Mary Shelley uses the creature’s unfortunate upbringing as a way to bring a sense of automatic isolation to the creature in their modern society. In the creatures journey he finds a place to hide and watch the cottagers where he learns
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the obsession of perfection within the individuals caught in its midst. It is this aspect of progress within modern society that negatively affects Ivan Ilych‚ Leo Tolstoy’s main character in The Death of Ivan Ilych. Ivan’s attempt to conform to modern society’s view of perfection takes away his life long before he dies. Furthermore‚ his fear of death and reactions towards it reflects modern society’s inability to cope with the ever present reminder that humans still suffer and die‚ despite all attempts
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The Metamorphosis‚ written by Franz Kafka is a prime example of magic realism. Magic realism is a fictional technique that combines fantasy with raw‚ physical or social reality in a search for truth beyond that available from the surface of everyday life. Also‚ reality becomes deformed and it is difficult for the reader to perceive the essential truths and tell the difference between what is real and what is unreal. The story‚ "The Metamorphosis" is about Gregor‚ a workaholic‚ who is changed into
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Wolfe 2 Wolfe J.L. Nason LIT 425 14 September 2012 Reflection 2 In The Death of Ivan Iliych‚ the root of Ivan’s suffering is illustrated by the passage‚ “He wept on account of his helplessness‚ his terrible loneliness‚ the cruelty of man‚ the cruelty of God‚ and the absence of God” (Tolstoy 47). He is unable to accept that decisions that he had made throughout his life had brought him to this point. He does not see that his selfishness; his inability to develop personal connections‚ and
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The stories of Rama‚ and the short stories by Leo Tolstoy offer moral teachings to their audience‚ but from two different points of moral models. Ramayana portrays the romanized parts of mankind ‚ while the writings of Leo Tolstoy emphasizes the harshness of life. Each difference is depicted in the characters Sita (from Ramayana)‚ showing devotion and patience‚ and Ivan Ilych (from “The Death of Ivan Ilych)‚ that shows pessimism and following the standards of society‚ each character representing
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