Open Prompt 6

1978. Choose an implausible or strikingly unrealistic incident or character in a work of fiction or drama of recognized literary merit. Write an essay that explains how the incident or character is related to the more realistic of plausible elements in the rest of the work. Avoid plot summary.

Authors often incorporate absurd events that do in fact fit well into their plot, but realistically do not make any sense. One example of a striking occurrence is the torture of the first adopted baby in Edward Albee’s American Dream. While the mutilation of the baby seems ridiculously improbable, the imagery and language Albee uses to illustrate it emphasize the realistic aspects of the American dream that he is critiquing. 

Albee’s use of vivid imagery of the harsh treatment to the child leaves us cringing and consequently detesting the American dream. We see how Albee critiques the consumeristic society by reducing the baby to a thing that is purchased through an adoption agency rather than loved and nourished by Mommy and Daddy. She gouges out the baby’s eyes when he only looks at daddy, cuts off his penis when he masturbates, and then cuts off his hands when he continues to reach for his crotch. Instead of being a reasonable adult, Mommy places her superficial needs of her own satisfaction above all else even if it is at the cost of the baby’s life. Through the heartless yet unrealistic mutilation of the innocent baby,  Albee effectively reflects upon society’s reality of consumerism and consequently shows it’s flaws. 

In addition to the imagery of the baby’s horrific death, the language in which Albee expresses through the characters’ dialogue also depict a negative image of the American Dream.  As mommy tells of how she gradually destroyed the baby’s body, she does so in a way that implies she did the right thing. Her language is extremely indignant, as she passionately recounts all the offenses the baby committed against her. The language Albee chooses to use for mommy seemingly gives justification for all her actions, making us as rational audience members extremely appalled at the entire situation and thus appalled at the American dream in general.

Albee’s use  of imagery and language incorporated within the dismembering of the baby successfully sway us readers in a direction against the American dream. Through the combined effect of the harrowing imagery and affronted language, we see how Albee emphasizes the reality of consumerism and self satisfaction in the American dream. The dream becomes a hollow lifeless corpse, just as the baby himself does. 

Open Prompt 5

Choose a character from a novel or play of recognized literary merit and write an essay in which you (a) briefly describe the standards of the fictional society in which the character exists and (b) show how the character is affected by and responds to those standards.

Characterized by a high tide of consumerism and prohibition, the roaring 20’s was a thriving time in American history with a strengthened difference between “old money” and “new money”. While many easily grew accustomed to these daunting societal norms, many including Jay Gatsby in F.Scott Fitzgerald’s Great Gatsby struggled to find their place in high society.  Through Fitzgerald's flowing syntax and vivid imagery, we follow Jay Gatsby as these increasingly strengthened standards shape him into a new character with significantly better social status.

Fitzgerald's syntax effectively provides important background information on our main character, smoothly easing us through Gatsby's past life. He chooses long flowing sentences to provide substantial amounts of detail, allowing for our minds to truly understand and see the situation. Rather than just telling the story of a man who was once named James Gatz, he brings us through James Gatz's terrible misfortunes as a young man and his woes as he was cheated out of a small entitlement. These details are necessary, as he then juxtaposes Gatz's former impoverished life with that of the society that James Gatz wishes to be a part of. We see the nice cars, beautiful homes, and pretty women that this society yields only to those of the upper class, and how it contrasts with Gatz's meager status. Fitzgerald's choice of these long flowing sentences really provide much expression, making everything very vibrant.  A poor young boy just deployed from World War One, as well as a beautiful gleaming mansion across a lake all come to life with the elegance of Fitzgerald's sentences.

Combined with this syntax, Fitzgerald candidly depicts every scene of our main character's new life as Jay Gatsby. As we keep up with Jay Gatsby in his attempt to gain the attention of one who is old money, Fitzgerald depicts lavish parties in ways that appeal to numerous senses. Not only can we picture a scene with numerous happy people drinking bootlegged alcohol, but we also can hear the symphonies and sonatas of the small orchestra that he chooses to incorporate. We must keep in mind though, that Gatsby has acquired his wealth through corruption and fraud. While he has gained the wealth to merit him social recognition, he still does not stack up to those who are considered "old money". As hard as he tries to win the attention of beautiful old money women, such as his early love Daisy Buchanan, he lacks the social status to do so. Although he does seemingly win Daisy's heart for a little while, we see his failure against society's challenges as he not only loses Daisy but also his own life in a graphic shooting by George Wilson.

Through Fitzgerald's syntax and imagery we can take away numerous details from this novel, which show us how Jay Gatsby's fictional society impacted him and caused his eventual death. Gatsby feels that he must resort to any means necessary to fit into high culture, and his struggles ultimately catch up to him as his plan to gain the attention of "old money" backfires. His death shows us that Fitzgerald thinks this is a society that is morally flawed and fundamentally broken.

Open Prompt 4

2009. A symbol is an object, action, or event that represents something or that creates a range of associations beyond itself. In literary works a symbol can express an idea, clarify meaning, or enlarge literal meaning. Select a novel or play and, focusing on one symbol, write an essay analyzing how that symbol functions in the work and what it reveals about the characters or themes of the work as a whole. Do not merely summarize the plot.

    Unfaithful men are often stereotyped to spend lavishly on their mistresses, buying items such as expensive jewelry and lingerie. In Death of a Salesman, however, the stockings Willy Loman purchases represent more than just a mere gesture of kindness. Arthur Miler uses the symbol of stockings to represent Willy's financial instability as well as unfaithfulness, significantly contributing to Arthur Miller's general critique of the American Dream. 

     Arthur Miller first brings the symbol into the play when Linda is patching up her old battered stockings. Upon seeing this, Willy is completely outraged and insulted by her actions. He insists that he can buy her new stockings, implying that he has the capability to buy her new stockings also. From the beginning though, we know that Willy hasn't had as many sales as years prior and that there definitely is financial insecurity. Therefore, we as an audience can easily draw some connections: their financial standing is patchy just like the stockings. Willy obviously has not been getting good sales, and consequently cannot purchase new stockings for his wife like he once did. Thus, Willy's incapability to produce stockings and income expose how faulty the American Dream truly is.
     Furthermore, these stockings are an emblem of his failure as a family man with the young mistress in Boston. Instead of buying new stockings for his wife, we see in a dramatic encounter that he hands his mistress two boxes of stockings as his son awkwardly watches. He then accuses Willy not of cheating on Linda, but simply that Willy gave Linda's stockings to the mistress. Miller uses the stockings to convey that Willy is not focusing his love and sexual attention towards his wife, the rightful recipient of the stockings. Using the stockings to illustrate sexual desire, we see the failure of the stereotyped family in the American Dream especially since Biff was there to watch as Willy's affair unfolded.
     In conclusion, Death of a Salesman is powerful in it's criticisms of the American Dream as it utilizes the symbol of stockings to do so. We see that the symbolism of the stockings are two fold, representing both Willy's incapability to provide income and also his adulterous activities with a young woman. Overall, the stockings help the audience really pinpoint specific details of the play to add to the belief of how false the American Dream is. 

Open Prompt 3

Literature often incorporates physical journeys not as a method of getting from point A to B, but rather as a symbol of emotional strength or development. Likewise, Vergil’s epic poem the Aeneid uses a physical journey to test the leadership and character of the main character Aeneas while also comprising the entire plot. By means of bold imagery and abundant details, Vergil uses the aspects of a physical journey to embody the great leadership attributes of the main character Aeneas and also to provide a driving force for plot development. 

The physical journey in the Aeneid tests Aeneas’ leadership as it throws many twists and turns at him, which prove to demonstrate both his great capabilities as the leader of the Trojan men. From the start, we learn that Aeneas’ destination is Italy, where he is fated to find a great powerful race. However, the founding of this nation is no easy job for the Trojans. They’re constantly thwarted by the wrath of Juno, as she tries to toy with fate by throwing the Trojans off course. Despite feeling heavy hearted himself, he provides motivation by exhibiting valiant strength in times of adversity. Even after Aeolus’ deadly storm that reduces his fleet by more than half, he still finds the courage deep within to offer some words of encouragement and inspiration. He kindly reminds them of how they’ve overcome past endeavors far more strenuous than a storm, and that they must continue on their journey. 

However, his determination and drive forward is not just the result of courage. He derives much of his courage from faith in the gods. We see that one of his attributes as a great leader is his strong unwavering piety. He, unlike Juno, knows that he cannot toy with fate and must trust in the gods to guide over him and his men. Though at times he seemingly is punished by the divine powers, his relentless face ultimately leads the Trojans to success.

As well as exposing Aeneas’ many characteristics, the physical journey keeps the long strenuous journey interesting and moving forward. Without the journey, we as readers have difficulty following along. The journey provides a nice linear method of organizing the significant events in the story. We can associate specific important events and people like Dido with specific places that the Trojans travel to. The very dense plot of the Aeneid would otherwise be heavily jumbled, leaving the readers to piece together the scattered elements of the plot.

In conclusion, the physical journey in the Aeneid nicely lays out the plot and exhibits his character. It significantly to the work of Vergil by enhancing its effects through organizing all the important elements of the poem, while also providing an easy way for readers to follow along. 

Open Prompt 2

As the Great Depression demolished the family funds and the Dust Bowl destroyed the family crops, plantation owners took full advantage of the desperate situations. Knowing that everyone was desperate for work, these owners compromised a fair wage to maximize corporate  profit. The Joad family in Grapes of Wrath was no exception to this selfishness, as they embarked on a strenuous journey to California where they believed they could find decent wages. Through alternating languages and numerous details of the story that recounts their journey, John Steinback masterfully blends the social issue of greed into his novel and makes his audience realize how superficial the American dream truly is. 

The plot includes few happy moments for the Joad family. The first Joad family member we meet is someone who has been convicted for homicide. As we follow him on his way back home, Tom Joad finds his old house empty. A neighbor tells him that they were evicted, and are at his Uncle’s house. Even from the start, we as readers are exposed to greed through the ousting of the Joads out of their home. With Steinback’s numerous details about how the landowners cut costs by replacing the Joad family with a large tractor, he makes us despise large wealthy landowners and sympathize with families like the Joads who have been cheated of their American dream. 

But things only escalate in difficulty as the actual voyage out west starts. The Joad family encounters numerous hardships, including the deaths of both grandparents. However, to heighten the struggle of the Joad family that the readers perceive, the narrator of the story often strays from telling the main story of the Joad family. The narrator changes from the neutral narrator to the lively language of a greedy car salesman, juxtaposing the poor families traveling out west with the people who are making a profit off of their struggles. By seeing both sides of the corrupter and the cheated, we as an audience feel even more pity for the families trying to earn enough to gain the stereotypical American dream of a house, car, and land. We see the disillusionment just as they see it. 

In conclusion, John Steinback criticizes the American dream by incorporating greed into his novel. By manipulating language, he masterfully portrays salesmen, landowners, and corporations as antagonizing forces against the common people. Steinback truly makes us question whether or not the American dream is an achievable goal or a shallow facade. 

Open Prompt 1

2007 Prompt: In many works of literature, past events can affect, positively or negatively, the present activities, attitudes, or values of a character. Choose a novel or play in which a character must contend with some aspect of the past, either personal or societal. Then write an essay in which you show how the character's relationship to the past contributes to the meaning of the work as a whole.

People often times wish to create a new image for themselves by completely severing ties with the past. However, despite Jay Gatsby’s recreation of his social status in The Great Gatsby does not free him from his enduring past that holds memories of his precious lover Daisy. Fitzgerald uses numerous details to shape symbols pertaining to the past and vivid imagery to provide an overall nostalgic tone throughout this novel that heavily incorporates Jay Gatsby’s past in the whole plot development. 

Starting as a impoverished young man named James Gatz, he falls in love with Daisy and lets her believe that he is of the same high social status as she. They fall deeply in love, but ultimately part ways after he leaves America to serve in World War One. Daisy loses patience, and ends up marrying Tom Buchanan. Upon learning this, Gatz devotes his life to reconstructing his social status. He resorts to bootlegging in a desperate attempt to completely terminate his sad past life of squalor and poverty so that maybe he has a chance of winning his dear Daisy back. By changing his name from James Gatz to Jay Gatsby, he both literally creates a new name for himself while also figuratively producing a completely new person.

Eventually, Gatsby reconnects with Daisy through his accquantaince Nick Carraway. While the three of them are conversing, the clock on the mantle falls. Fitzgerald accounts how Gatsby dramatically catches it, emphasizing how important this is symbolically by writing more than just a sentence or two about the occurrence. The clock falling is an emblem of the past, as Gatsby tries to rekindle the flame that was once there with Daisy. The falling clock also represents time that the two of them are losing, and Gatsby saving the clock demonstrates his effort to stop that by winning her back. 

Fitzgerald switches up the settings of his chapters, not keeping the typically expected chronological sequence of events. He frequently jumps from the past to present and back to past in order to give certain happenings more meaning. His imagery, such as that to describe the past moment of Daisy and Gatsby together, makes the past seem like a much more pleasant setting and makes readers just as nostalgic as Gatsby. Fitzgerald evokes feelings such as sadness and loneliness in the present that convinces readers how much better the past is. 

Throughout Fitzgerald’s timeless classic, his details and imagery make the readers of the novel look romantically on the past. But despite Gatsby’s recreation of himself as a wealthy upperclass gentleman, he does not successfully detach himself from his former life. His love for Daisy not only forces him to look backwards, but also serves as a constant reminder of how he truly does not belong to her social status.