Through descriptions of the chivalrous snake, the conflicted man and the twilit setting, the author creates sympathy for the rattler and feelings of anger, pity, and disappointment for the man. When the author describes the
Therefore, the snake can represent Delia’s protector, sin, death, or devil but it most certainly is a mirrored reflection of Sykes. Sykes routinely shows his lack of respect for Delia. One morning Delia, sorting laundry and wondering where Sykes has gone with her horse, becomes paralyzed by fear when suddenly something “long, round, limp, and black falls upon her shoulders and slithers to the floor beside her.” Again Delia is reminded of what a malicious man Sykes can be. He uses a bullwhip to scare her; she believes it is a snake. Delia
Jessica Burcham Advanced Comp Prof. Koelling October 1, 2013 Sweat By: Zora Neale Hurston Sweat is a short story written with a southern dialect. I think the story is about karma and how one should respect others at all times. Delia shows Sykes that he should have respected her in the beginning. There is a snake involved in the story that symbolizes evil and death. (this sentence seems a little odd or out of place) “Sykes, what you throw dat whip on me like dat?
I believe the snake symbolized freedom to Delia, a new life. Throughout this obstacle Delia was unharmed and did not budge. I believe she stood her ground to prove to Sykes that she is no fool. Just how Sykes believed the house to be his, Delia knew the house was hers. The snake who was supposed to be Delia’s demised turned around and bit Sykes in the neck.
There was something disturbing in the way he described their love though. “He compared their love to a pair of snakes he's seen along a trail near Pinkville, each snake eating the other's tail, a bizarre circle of appetites that brought the heads closer and closer...’That's how our love feels’ ”
In Fahrenheit 451, Bradbury presents technology as integrating so well into everyday life that the characters begin to rely on it. One example, the “electric-eyed snake” tool, is used on Mildred to revive her after she takes a pill overdose. In this scenario, Bradbury could be presenting his characters as openly accepting the new technology into their lives even though they have perfectly good solutions already. The negative image of this piece of technology is emphasised through both its name and description; the term ‘snake’ connoting a feeling of untrustworthiness, whilst it’s grim portrayal of “suck(ing) all of the poisons” out of Mildred’s body with an “occasional sound of inner suffocation” makes its use seem unnatural and undesirable – precisely what Bradbury seems to be persuading the reader to feel about the growing role of technology in his society. Bradbury’s inclusion of
Sykes is constantly talking to Delia as if, he is communicating to one of his boys, he shows this by saying, “You sho is one aggravatin’ nigger women!” (Hurston 105). Sykes likes to scare Delia, knowing very well that she is afraid of snakes. One evening when he came home, and she was washing some dishes, “Sweating” like always. Sykes decides to put his black whip on her to make it seem like, it was an snake, getting ready to attack her. “Just something long, round, limp and black fell upon her shoulder and slithered to the floor beside her.
Barrett 1 Larissa Barrett Brooke Hallinan A.P. English 18 September 2012 Desert Solitaire The Ritual of Two Lovers In his book Desert Solitaire, Edward Abbey describes the glorious dance he observed between two gopher snakes. Then living in the desert, Abbey was observing nature when he came across the two snakes and excitedly ran outside to watch them. Though he had seen another gopher snake before, the story continues as he describes what he observed: a ritual of two “lovers”, swaying to unheard music, their passionate embrace and graceful motion instilling stupefaction in the shameless onlooker. As Abbey recounts the awe of the tale of the two snakes dancing, he relies upon the use of several literary devices within his work to
In opening and closing his novel in nature, Steinbeck is able to connect and compare the actions of his characters with the natural world. George and Lennie disrupt a peaceful scene in the opening; the killing of a snake by a heron prefigures the tragedy in the final chapter. Not only does this way of structuring the novel give it a feeling of wholeness, it also reinforces Steinbeck's central point about Lennie's incompatibility with the social world. He doesn't fit in the shared spaces - the bunk house, etc. - while, in contrast, he romanticizes
However, Steinbeck quickly follows this image with the description of the “sandy bank under the trees the leaves lie deep and so crisp that a lizard makes a great skittering if he runs among them.” (1) The image of the trees in Autumn that can drop thousands of leaves where they can crumple up and died out symbolizes how our dreams will eventually die out once we face reality. Additionally, the portrayal of the lizard running over the leaves symbolizes the hope and dreams that eventually get trampled over by the ugly reality. Therefore, Steinbeck uses the description of the sceneries to visualize the promise of the American Dream, but that dream should remain only dream as it eventually will die out. Furthermore, Steinbeck uses the bunkhouse on the ranch to symbolize the difficult struggle to try to achieve the American Dream while facing the cold harsh reality of life. From the description, the bunkhouse “was a long, rectangular building.