As Delia states, “whatever goes over the Devil’s back, is got to come under his belly.” Maybe if Sykes were a faithful man and not so abusive, he would not be in the mess he is in now. Ironically Sykes having brought the snake home to kill Delia leads to his own demise. Therefore, the snake is not only Sykes but also Delia Jones’ protector in Zora Neale Hurston’s “Sweat”. “Sweat” is a perfect example of the sins that are committed will sooner or later be the death of those committing them. Sykes calls out to God in the end; however it is the Devil who seems to have a hold on
While reading, feelings of anger towards the man’s actions are developed. When the man tried to kill the snake, he “reached into the paper-bag bush with [his] hoe, hacking about, soon [dragging the snake] out of it with his back broken.” Although the reader may condole with the man’s decisions since it was for a reasonable cause, he should not have killed the snake since he was clearly inexperienced (expressed by the word “hacking”). The man could have just as easily shoed the snake away with the hoe rather than using it so ineptly. The man could have found an alternative way to rid the area of the snake and when he doesn’t, the reader is disappointed because he thinks there’s no other possible action that can be made. The man states that “[his] duty was to kill the snake.” When the man uses the word “duty” it gives a sense that there are no other options and that it’s imperative that he does it.
The Hydra is a snake that regenerates heads after you slice one off. This proved to be too much for Hercules. Luckily for him though, his nephew Iolaus was around to give him a helping head. Now that Iolaus was assisiting in this labor Hercules could cut off one of the heads and Iolaus could then cauterize it and it wouldn’t regenerate. This system they developed seemed to work until the immortal head of the Hydra emerged.
His devolution into an ape represents a change towards a more primitive nature, and possibly violent due to the lack of sentience. The metaphor "hiss" compares Jacks speech to a snake, an animal that commonly has negative connotations, such as lies, deceit and simple evil. These connotations are primarily derived from the genesis book of the bible, in which the snake tempts eve into sinning and results in both Adam and eve’s expulsion from the Garden of Eden. The snake in the genesis story is believed to be Satan taking the form of a snake; while extreme it is possible that Golding is comparing Jack to The Devil himself, the literal manifestation of evil and sin. Else the reference to the snake could be a comparison of Adam and Eves fall from grace to Jacks own fall.
The whole thing takes place just for Delia’s submissiveness. If Delia has been audacious from earlier the whole situation would not take place. At the end Delia needs to use violence to get rid from her cruel husband. Delia, who really cares for her beloved husband, finally lets the snake free in the house for Sykes and when Sykes lastly screams when the snake assails him, Delia does not pay any attention of his screaming. One of Hurston's central preoccupations in "Sweat" is the problem of oppression within the black community.
Reading Response 5 Isak Dinesen shoots an iguana with the intention of using the skin for aesthetic beauty. She fails to understand the reality of what she is trying to do. I feel the unequal distribution of power between the gun and the iguana may represent humanity's domination over animals. Dinesen alludes to the negative impact of humans on planet earth and our parasitic nature when she quotes a saying of a hero in a book she had read as a child: "I have conquered them all, but I am standing amongst graves" (73). My own experience in "shooting an iguana" involves hunting and capturing sand crabs.
“If God should withdraw his hand, by which they are restrained, they would in one moment fly upon their poor souls. The old serpent is gaping for them; hell opens its mouth wide to receive them; and if God should permit it, they would be hastily swallowed up and lost.” (Edwards 3) People tend to forget consequences after a long period of time, like a child would forget to wash his hands before dinner. Using words that are impactful and descriptive, will make the consequences more clear, and instil a picture in the listeners mind. In the sermon “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” He uses three specific writing tools that get his point across. Though imagery, similes, and metaphors, the qualities of his sermon are shown.
This was not how it was suppose to go. The voodoo leader sat down and started chanting, dissecting a snake that had poison all through it. She would not let her tribe lose out of weakness. She cursed the witches’ house, only thinking of that delivered box, and how the head of her beautifully created Minotaur was lying there; it’s eyes still
He also uses his strength to save a young girl from drowning. No matter what the monster does, he is always misinterpreted. The monster says, “Fatal prejudice clouds their eyes, and where they ought to see a feeling and a kind friend, they behold only a detestable monster” (pg.119). Felix and Agatha think he has come to attack their father, William Frankenstein thinks the monster is trying to kill him, and the man thinks he is trying to murder the girl rather than rescue her. The real turning point for the monster is when he is accused of trying to murder the girl.
Life is so tragic!! [ step right ] Athena turned me into a [ count to 2 ] mean, green, turning people to stone [ flail arms out ] machine!!!! Don’t [ lean on left leg ] forget the snake hair!!! Maybe [ rise left shoulder and lean on left leg ] I shouldn’t have been kissing in Athena’s “precious” temple, but it’s all [ flail both arms out ] Poseidon’s fault. First off, [ lean on left foot, put hand on hip ] he made me fall in love with him against my will.