Preview

Discovery Essay

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1290 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Discovery Essay
Discovery Essay
Discoveries have the opportunity to cause a domino effect, where that one event sets off a chain of similar events and effects each individual that it impacts and eventually a broader society. This notion of a domino effect is evident in William Shakespeare’s The Tempest which is a magical play about people being lost and found and what they find is who they were all along and Bernhard Schlink’s semi-autobiographical novel The Reader a poignant meditation on love, loss, guilt, human frailty and making peace with the past. Through texts authors can project an idea that can offer new understandings and renewed perceptions of ourselves and others. Through discovery individuals can achieve metamorphosis which can impact those around them.
Authors can make discoveries and through their texts present these ideas to an audience who then come out with new understandings and renewed perceptions of their world. Shakespeare had a great understanding of humanism and through the tempest passed on his ideas. He created an island that was a microcosm for society, which amplified all the characters flaws. Through the character of Prospero Shakespeare can illuminate his ideas. This is done through the dramatic action focusing on different characters being on different parts of the island. This dramatic structure of the play is an important vehicle for discovery. The contrived effect of all these characters being on the island together and being effectively unable to escape takes the audience to a position of uncertainty and ambiguity, inviting us to question humanity, ourselves and the world so that we arrive at a deeper understanding of the human condition. Through the discoveries and understandings that Shakespeare had on humanism, by portraying them in a play he invites his audience to make discoveries and thus represents a domino effect.
Similarly Bernard Schlink portrays his ideas of being a ‘second generation’ German in his novel The Reader. Schlink paints

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    New Essay Discovery

    • 959 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The comparison of Ang Lee‘s film Life of Pi and William Ernest Henley’s poem Invictus presents the reconciliation of contemporary concepts in which conflict arises along the way. Thanks to composers’ skilful manipulation of various literary devices, audience are made aware of the profound impact of dissmilar contexts on the discoveries being made. However, these two texts embody that the ramifications of one’s discovery is capable of ……

    • 959 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Discovery, is the act or process of learning new information or reconsidering old information. There are several variants of discovery including physical discovery, emotional discovery and mental discovery. Two excellent examples of texts about the theme of discovery are the Tempest and Frankenstein. Both texts have many similarities…

    • 261 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Tempest by William Shakespeare was written in the 17th century, a time where exploration and colonialism were of high priority in Europe and the people were fascinated with the discovery of new lands. In the play, Propsero, once the Duke of Milan, resides on a remote island in the Caribbean with his daughter Miranda where he has spent many years ever since his brother Antonio dethroned him. Prospero possesses magical powers which allow him to control the entire island. Caliban, the only native to the island, exchanged his knowledge of the land for the knowledge of language. Prospero takes advantage of his inherit powers and makes Caliban his slave. The story begins when Prospero uses his magic to coordinate a storm called, The Tempest, which causes a shipwreck that leaves his brother Antonio and the rest of the crew abandoned on the same island. All members of the ship end up in different areas of the island. Assuming it is unsettled, the characters become power hungry and aim towards ruling the island themselves until they find out the daunting news that Prospero resides there. This play addresses colonization and prejudice towards the indigenous people, the dependance of the native people to the survival of the colonizer, and can relate to today's endeavors the West has in the Middle East.…

    • 1186 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    discovery- Tempest

    • 966 Words
    • 3 Pages

    In The Tempest this sense of discovery is primarily evoked through the use of the Island as a metaphor, creating a sense of isolation and realisation in order for characters to consolidate with ones self. As Prospero states, “thy father was Duke of Milan and a prince of power” , his diminished isolating environment allows him to evaluate his past as he were and realise the great potential he lost. But as he undergoes the isolation, he learns to accept his past consequences , “ i embrace thy…company, i bid a hearty welcome”, thus appreciating his at first demeaning setting for allowing for his understanding of a need of forgiveness within him to allow him to fulfil his future requests.…

    • 966 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Keys to discovery

    • 767 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Discovery is a crucial element for the future of society. The actions that lead to new advances, however, are questionable. Science and new discovery almost always go hand in hand, and mistakes are bound to happen when they are paired together. New innovations, findings, and advancements happen every day, and whether or not mistakes are key to that fact is in question. The unearthing of the city of Troy, for example, was discovered by archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann and was said to be one of the greatest historical discoveries in history. The truth was, though, that the city was disturbed more than it should have been due to Schliemann’s mistake. New advances are a crucial part of our world today, but mistakes along the way hardly ever result in good things.…

    • 767 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    King Lear

    • 1906 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Tragedies and comedies tend to be widely dismissed by contemporary critics as completely separate entities of work; two distinct genres that categorize an ideological oeuvre unrelated to one another. However, in the realm of William Shakespeare, key similarities exhibited between a comedy and tragedy, particularly those described in King Lear and The Tempest, prove to transcend genre limitations due to the distinguished vision presented in both plays. Although a similar vision of justice is encompassed within King Lear and The Tempest, both protagonists receive a fate strikingly dissimilar from one another; as a direct result of the relationship shared between their respective daughters, which ultimately distinguishes the plays from the similar concepts (compassion, nature, monarchy, and usurping) found within them. In King Lear, the nature of mercy and redemption are unobtainable elements, as the form of a Shakespearean tragedy is established on the foundation of chaos and pity, which arguably conceals the subtle (or blatant) relationship between both plays. Both plays include a tempest; a violent thunderstorm that symbolize a life-changing moment for the introspective protagonists. Prospero’s magic conjures the violent storm described in The Tempest, which destroys the boat of his royal enemies and prompts the pilot of the play. Unlike Prospero, Lear is a victim of the tempest described in his tragedy, but Shakespeare purposely uses this scene to ‘ cleanse’ the drenched king as he makes a revelation through an emotional soliloquy, thus humanizing him. This concept of nature's fury, although mutually significant in both respective plays, also discloses the dissimilarity shared between the two protagonists. Prospero, from the opening scene, was described as wise and empathetic, specifically using the storm to confront his enemies, not to cause harm. Prospero was already introduced to the audience as…

    • 1906 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Tempest: Manipulation

    • 1242 Words
    • 5 Pages

    As a final farewell to theatre, William Shakespeare wrote The Tempest. In this tragicomedy, Prospero and his daughter, Miranda, have been stuck on an island for twelve years with their slave, Caliban, and Prospero’s secret servant, Ariel. To get revenge on his brother, Antonio, for overthrowing him from rule, Prospero concocts a tempest to bring him, his entourage, and Alonso, a conspirator, to the island, where he plans to regain his throne. The constant struggle and desire for power results in manipulation. Consequently, one theme illustrated is that manipulation can be seen in three forms: physical, verbal, and musical. For instance, physical control is seen when Prospero subjects Caliban to serve him with harsh threats. Then, verbal manipulation is seen when Antonio persuades Sebastian to kill Alonso in order to gain his throne. Finally, Ariel manipulates a drunken group with melodic tunes in order to lead them to Prospero, which is seen as musical control.…

    • 1242 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Miss

    • 1234 Words
    • 5 Pages

    The characterisation in The Tempest is used to present a relationship between innate benevolence and artificial nurturing. This can be directly linked to his agreements and critiques of Montaignei and his thinking. Shakespeare presents several characters who enact a savage-like role and several who enact civilisation in a variety of ways. However, it is far more complex than a single character being civilised or savagery: Shakespeare uses different situations to bring out different degrees of savagery and civilisation within each character of the play.…

    • 1234 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Illusion And Magic

    • 705 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Shakespeare used his characters, their actions, dialogue, settings, and references to the real world to create many layers of illusion. He illustrates the idea of illusion primarily through Prospero, who is an illusion himself, to manipulate and control the island and the people who chance upon it. Prospero demonstrates powers of illusion time and time again with his magic, and it first appeared after the shipwreck he caused. The people on board the ship were all separated across the island and each thought that they were the only survivors. Prospero allowed the reality that all of the passengers were safe, to escape the awareness of all the other characters but himself and his servant Ariel.…

    • 705 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    The Tempest

    • 1956 Words
    • 8 Pages

    The Tempest, most likely written in 1610-1611 and staged for the first time at the royal marriage of Princess Elizabeth around 1612, is the final play that Shakespeare's wrote on his own. It is shrouded in the classic ambiguity that is unique to Shakespeare's work and thus allows for multiple interpretations. For over a century, and particularly in the past twenty years, one of the more popular approaches to The Tempest is the influence of colonialism and it's representation in Shakespeare's last play. In 1818 the English critic, William Hazlitt, was the first to actually point out that Prospero had usurped Caliban from his position of rule on the island, therefore placing Prospero in the role of an agent of imperialism (T. Vaughan). Caliban's character is thus identified as the European symbol of the colonized. Since Hazlitt's first account of supposed colonialism, the theme has remained more or less a mainstream theory, albeit a slippery one.…

    • 1956 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Antonio’s greed for power, Prospero’s quest for knowledge and perfection as well as his spirit of adventure form the Renaissance elements of the play. The use of magic as a means for gaining perfection and the colonization of the island also makes The Tempest a typical Renaissance drama.…

    • 332 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Tempest is the last play Shakespeare wrote. The play is about Prospero who has been overthrown from his dukedom in a very unfair and ruthless faction by his brother Antonio. Prospero has magical powers. I try to show the relationship between Prospero, Miranda, Ariel, Caliban and Ferdinand.…

    • 1411 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    i. William Shakespeare, in his play, The Tempest, demonstrates the clash of passion and intellect through the development and contrast of Prospero and Caliban.…

    • 1341 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Tempest explores the complex and problematic relationship between the European colonizer and the native colonised people through the relationship between Prospero and Caliban. Prospero views Caliban as a lesser being than himself. As such, Prospero believes that Caliban should be grateful to him for educating Caliban and lifting him out of "savagery." Shakespeare uses Prospero and Caliban's relationship to show how the misunderstandings between the coloniser and the colonised lead to hatred and conflict, with each side thinking that the other is at fault.…

    • 426 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Tempest Play Review

    • 945 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The tempest is a comedy even though the play is filled with moments that can end in chaos but are greatly avoided. The story begins with the ship of Alonso king of Naples in a huge storm, which is called a “Tempest”. Which is conjured by the story’s protagonist Prospero who is the resident witch of the island and who is also the rightful duke of Milan.…

    • 945 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays