In Shakespeare’s King Lear, Edmund, the scheming son of Gloucester, is a lucid prototype of Niccolo Machiavelli’s philosophy. He exhibits characteristics of an aspiring Machiavellian prince. Edmund has a need for control and equality – that is, when ‘equality’ works to his favour. His moral principals stand as no obstacle to the sordid and inhumane actions he is willing to carry out in his pursuit of the throne and of power. This can be seen more specifically in Edmund’s scheming to overthrow the legitimate son of Gloucester, Edgar.
Later, he describes himself as "Deformed, unfinished, sent before his time into this breathing world, scarce half made up." The deformity, which has been shown to have been exaggerated or even deliberately faked in portraits of Richard III, is given as the source of his evil ways. He says that as he "cannot prove a lover" he is "determined to be a villain." While everybody makes fun of Richard, and thinks that he is not able to achieve anything, he shows everyone that even though he is handicapped, he can achieve the highest power, to be King. Richard overcompensates his inferiority.
Machiavelli would find Jefferson’s skepticism of immoral justification and Tyranny within the British government as antithetical towards his belief in successful power. He believes Jefferson’s opposition defies the principles of control, which is required to lead a successful power in his opinion. Here it is quoted, “The histoty of the present king of Great Britian is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations”(532) ;Thomas Jefferson states the government under the British crown is made up of flaws within the system and repeated abusement towards the people; he believes King George has stripped freedom and justice from the people, making him more than a mischievous king, but an absolute tyrant. In addition to his abusement in power, he has not only taken freedom from the people, but also their peace at mind; a ruler of this kind who breaks the laws of his own government and refuses to take any concern in protecting the physical and psychological security of his own people is unfit to be a ruler, according to Jefferson. Machiavelli believes security and freedom are unnecessary when ruling; if you give the people too much freedom, they will take advantage of it and they will possess the
Deadly sins The seven deadly sins are renowned for a reason, which is that just one of them can drive a person insane. Greed and envy together can lead a person into doing immoral and unjustified deeds. In the play "Hamlet" by William Shakespeare, Claudius is the villain who contradicts Knight's The Embassy of Death because Claudius's actions and behavior result from his innate greed for wealth and envy of true love that his brother King Hamlet had; on the other hand, Knight views that his actions were forced upon him due to Hamlet's unstable mentality. (wrap up the thesis statement, condense to the main point. You don't need to make a comparison, but pick which view you agree with, Knight or Shakespeare's, or make it into 2 separate sentences.
He blames Charlie as the one who caused him to lose his boxing career and he also blames himself for his lack of bravery to act according to his own will. Despite all these, with the support and guidance of Father Barry and Edie, and finally the death of Charlie, Terry is awakened and is confident enough to fight like a contender in accordance to his conscience. His actions no longer depend on others and he finally wins the respect of the other longshoremen. Kazan clearly shows that Terry has his brother Charlie to blame for making him a bum. In the cabin, while Charlie is meant to bribe Terry with a job so that he would keep quiet about the deeds of the union, Terry expressed his disappointment in Charlie.
He is, in fact, the victim—a victim of discrimination. By using the word “victim,” he has accepted the social perception that he is a perpetrator. With obvious disdain, he comes to realize the “unwieldy inheritance” of being born into a race with the unwarranted “ability to alter public space.” At this point in his life, he dislikes what he was born into because he is tired of people categorizing him as a mugger, rapist, and any other criminal without even knowing who he is truly. He thought of himself as a gentle and soft guy, and he is disgusted that people typecast him into this stereotype. In his first year away from home at the University of Chicago, he states that he became familiar with “the language of fear.” He is not referring to actually speaking it, but the behavior that is communicated through body language.
Iago from Shakespeare’s play Othello is also a power hungry villain who enjoys having people under his control, he is driven by extreme jealousy and the motivation, revenge. In order to accomplish these goals he manipulates his subjects in deceiving ways by utilizing their weaknesses against them. This differs from the Duke in “My last Duchess” by Robert Browning as the duke does not manipulate people in any way. Both Iago and the duke are driven by extreme jealousy to the villainous actions that they take. All three villains may differ in many ways, yet it seems they share a common urge for power, control and a use of sadistic measures.
The most prominent tension is presented between the older and younger generations. There is tension between Mr Birling and Eric throughout the play but their relationship is shown best in an exchange after Mr Birling discovers Eric is a thief, a drunkard and responsible for fathering Eva’s child "You damned fool – why didn’t you come to me when you found yourself in this mess." Eric’s reply that his father was not "the kind of chap a man could turn to when he’s in trouble" indicates that there is some connection missing between them, which has been harmed by tension. Mr Birling is portrayed as a neglectful and unapproachable father who would have used his position to prevent a family scandal rather than show sympathy for his son who is clearly unhappy with no direction in life. His treatment of Eric has led to Eric’s downfall so that ironically his
Unfortunately, Doodle was no match for his brother’s aggressive and selfish actions. In the end, Brother’s pride is to blame for Doodle’s untimely death. Brother’s pride was responsible for his opinion of Doodle. At times, Brother was kind and loving to Doodle, but the reader soon realizes that the narrator was mostly harsh and cruel to his brother. In the beginning of the story, Brother recounts the day Doodle was born, saying that he was a disappointment as soon as he entered the world.
Masculinity vs. femininity is the most compelling theme in the novel that reveals Okonkwo’s flaw. His relationship with his father is not good as he considers his father as weak, coward and irresponsible. He views his father as overly pensive, slow to act, effeminate. Therefore, he adopts opposite traits. He also associates violence with masculinity.