The Nightingale in "Laustic"

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S10027031 The Nightingale in “Laustic” The nightingale in “Laustic” contains many symbols which awaken readers to deeper meanings. The story is telling us that there’s an elegant lady who married a violent knight; however fell in love with her neighbor, another knight who held a good reputation lived in next door. They proceeded their affair secretly and prudently, still be aware of the husband. Here comes the point, the woman used nightingale which always sang the sweetest songs that seized her heart at night as an excuse of her insomnia. The husband clutched the bird, and slain it cruelly in front of his wife. The woman was despairing and quickly decided to send the dead bird to caution her beloved. At the end of the story, her lover sadly accepted the truth and preserved the nightingale in a dainty casket forever. As we can see, the nightingale symbolizes various things in this story. First of all, the nightingale can be considered sincerity between the lady and her beloved. Two lovers tryst with each other under the pretext of the nightingale’s singing. When the bird was killed, their relationship turned into a fond dream without happy ending. Secondly, middle class’s women often oppressed by their education, family and social expectation, lacking of independence and hope at that time. However, in this story the author created an active and strong female character contrast with the nightingale which I regard as an epitome of the women of that time. The nightingale is fragile, weak and indecisive that are exactly the traits which middle class’s women possess in middle ages. Thirdly, the above-mentioned lacking hope that I have talked about is also the sorrowful social oppression toward women. The women at that time were often compelled to marry a man whose family of equal standing with her, no matter whom they really fall for. Therefore, the
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