Lord of the Flies Character Monolgues Essay Example for Free

Lord of the Flies Character Monolgues Essay Jacks monologue Oh god, what have I done? Simon, Piggy, its entirely my fault. I cant express what I feel, the pain, its overmastering and mind numbing. Ralph if only you could understand the grief that I am going through, in-fact maybe you do? Maybe youre hurting far more than me. Their deaths will get engraved in my conscience until the day I die. I would do anything Ralph, anything to get your forgiveness. At the moment I dont think you can bare to look at me, I can barely look at myself. I mean how can I? Im a murderer. Only if I had the courage to say all this to you, I know the old me would have. No-one will understand the desire and hunger I felt hunt, it was pure exhilaration. I guess that is when things began to get out of hand. My mind became warped by the desire to kill, spill blood and maim. It was over-powering I tried to control it but the day Simon died I let out all my rage. It felt good. Jealousy played its part as well; jealousy of you being leader and you liking Piggy more than me. Piggy was the easiest person to bully he was so vulnerable yet you Ralph kept sticking up for him. This made me even angrier towards him. I will pay for my sins by going to jail when I return to England but the pain in my head is nothing compared to jail. What more can I say? Only that Im sorry Ralphs monologue I cant even begin the express the feeling of loss I have for both Simon and Piggy. They were my friends and they lost their lives trying to keep order. I hate Jack and I wish every day that it was he who had perished on the island and not Piggy or Simon. I suppose that I am to blame as well. Only if I had stopped Jack earlier none of this would have happened. The mere fact that I was once friends with Jack makes me sick. The flashbacks of that awful dance and Piggy tumbling off that cliff regularly haunt me. I cant get them out of my head, maybe thats a good thing because it means I will never forget their deaths or who caused them. The thought of Jack disgusts me, I cannot lay eyes on him for he is a murderer, a murderer who ruthlessly used his power to kill my friends. Eternity in jail is not enough for Jack, how can it be? Someone who has taken the life of another person unlawfully does not deserve the right to live. I shall write a book about my experience so that no one else has any indecisiveness about what to do in that situation. Thank God that most of the littluns are safe, I suppose they werent a big enough trophy for Jack to conquer. Roger has to pay as well, although Jack controlled the actions of his tribe I was always uneasy with Roger because I felt that if Jack was not there, Roger would be the one to lead their tribe. Now I hope that Piggy and Simon are living happily in heaven and when Jack dies, there is only one place he should go Rogers monologue I shall blame Jack for killing Simon and Piggy. In court I will say that he forced me to dislodge the boulder and kill Piggy. Hahaha no one will know that it was my full intention to kill. I will play for the sympathy vote in court and put on my best act so that it is Jack who gets sent down, not me. I feel like I missed out, I couldve tortured so many more people during my stay on the island. Oh well now its back to civilisation and rules and laws. How boring! I long for a chance to do everything again but this time I would make myself chief. I wonder what has happened to the beast. Maybe it will haunt that island forever. Now I am free because there isnt any beastie where I live, hehe. I can do what I like. Ralph seemed a good leader at first but he was too preoccupied with the fire and rescue. Jack was a better leader but he never fully got to that stage of really wanting to cause pain to theto the other children on the island. Instead it was always hunting with him. He wasnt able to see that I was bored hunting pigs. I wanted to hunt littluns. Samnerics monologue We were scared of Jack, really really scared. We hope that Ralph doesnt think that we betrayed him. We couldnt help it Jack forced us to join him, he said that if we didnt he would torture us. Roger also kept making threats to us and eventually it slipped out that you were hiding nearby. Our time in Jacks tribe was really quite boring and scary. At all times we were frightened that if we did anything wrong, Jack or Roger would hurt us. Almost all of the boys felt that way, we only did what Jack told us to do because we were scared of him, there wasnt any other reason. Poor Piggy, he was really dear to us and we miss him loads. We shouldve pushed Roger of from the cliff in retaliation but we were too stunned at the time. The shameful nature of our actions when were with Jack cannot be excused, especially the night Simon died. We didnt leave early that night like we had told Ralph and Piggy but we saw and took part in the dance albeit on the outside. That island made fools out of us, we hope to never return their again. Looking back it is hard to see how things turned out so bad. Probably the main reason things got out of hand was Jacks need for leadership. Many a time we saw that Jack hated following the orders of someone else. We will try to forget this solemn event in our lives Evidence for the religious perspective: Evil within man , island= eden, forget previous life, lack of moral/spiritual guidance caused sin+ destruction, created a primitive tribe religion, only god can save 1) evil with man golding believes this otherwise why make the character of Simon?(he is the one who says the beast is themselves) 2) eden, hmm not always, described as scar, other island has jagged rocks etc, but simons hideaway eden like, fruit is mentioned a LOT. 3) god does not save, simon fails, message that Golding is saying we cannot use God as an excuse for this, we must change this ourselves 4) much evidence for lack of moral guidance, no parent to give this, children think it is ok to torture each other + all the other horrible acts committed on the island 5) jack creates a rival religion to Ralphs one, boys like jacks more due to the ancestral desire for meat, hunting. Ironically, there is a sort of order in Jacks religion because every1 is so scared of doing anything wrong, they dont do anything. This works against them when they are ordered to kill, etc The legal angle, Cannot be held wholly responsible due to age, did they understand right from wrong?, premeditated? 1) well, ofc they cannot be held wholly responsible, they were only 12 years old 2) they could be because certainly Roger knew right from wrong, yet still he chose wrong, jack on the other hand was blinded by his passion for hunting 3) some actions were premeditated, the trap thought of by Jack at their new hideout 4) he sed that they cud use it to kill any1 who comes 5) simons death was not really premeditated, the boys got swept up in a mad deep passion which caused them to kill him 6) Roger+Jack however can be convicted of Piggys death, not of simons if some1 sed that they shud be convicted of simons death then all of the boys including Ralph+Piggy wud be convicted because of the first death caused by the huge fire, hmm maybe Piggy exempt+ littluns, rest convicted The moral viewsimilar to psychiatrists view and parts of religious view. The other children slowly absorb Jacks views because he is the head of that particular family, jack however turned nasty due to a return to primeval instincts. Cruelty flourishes in conditions where there is much fear, lack of parental guidance, feeling of nothing to lose , despair Hard to see if Jack felt despair, but certainly Ralph and Piggy do, instead they do not give up hope golding says capacity for selflessness and love this is shown by Piggy (towards littluns + Ralph (when he helps the crying one talk bout beastie)) Simon shows love towards all of nature, but he is not understood by others and is called batty. Again lack of parental guidance to tell them right from wrong+ children not on island are going wrong so imagine the difficulty for children on an island Humanist view: Fear- no one escapes fear, shown by the beast not including simon (he is afraid of speaking out) Tyranny,- Jack becomes a servant of his own thirst for blood,he does not rule himself, the hunger does, gets power and the situation becomes worse, breaks away from Ralph

Gladiatorial Games in Ancient Rome

Gladiatorial Games in Ancient Rome Little doubt the gladiatorial games at Rome’s Colosseum would have been blood-fuelled, brutal spectacles. The knowledge of the games has been left through stories, letters and poems of great Roman politicians and writers. This essay will briefly examine how various Roman writers responded to the games, and how those reactions were similar or different. The conclusion will identify reasons why these writers may have held their opinions about the games. Seneca, a politician who died around 65 CE, has the same attitude as Cicero, displaying no satisfaction in the Roman gladiatorial shows. However, Seneca condemns the shows in a direct fashion. First, he declares no trust in one’s ability to retain their moral character when one is engulfed in a crowd. One’s moral character becomes damaged, becoming â€Å"more greedy, more ambitious, more self-indulgent†¦more cruel and inhuman.†[6] Second, Seneca proclaims that one does not find entertainment in the shows, only â€Å"sheer butchery.†[7] As any victor in one challenge is simply offered in the next fight, the shows teach lessons in cruelty to those who cannot benefit from it.[8] Martial, on the other hand, glorifies the gladiatorial games. Martial lived from 40 -103 CE and might have been connected to Seneca’s family. Martial’s â€Å"On the Spectacles† exalts Rome’s Colosseum to the highest level, comparing its greatness to the wonders of the world, such as Babylon’s gardens.[9] Martial believes that the fallen in the arena have a just end as only guilty criminals or animals fall in the arena. â€Å"On the Spectacles† vividly describes the gore and encourages those from far away to witness the spectacle for themselves, almost like a tourist advertisement.[10] Statius, who wrote around the same time as Martial, has a different view on the games in â€Å"The Tame Lion.† This poem mourns the death of one lion in the arena. So tragic is it that the king of hunters has been tamed that even Caesar sheds a tear for the fallen lion.[11] This directly contrasts Martial’s image of a â€Å"treacherous lion† that had dared to violate and harm his master.[12] Statius views the loss of the beast as tragic, Martial as deserved. â€Å"The Tame Lion† shows that Statius believes that the gladiatorial games diminish the glory of hunters. In a letter to Valerius Maximus, Pliny the Younger praises the politician for putting on a great spectacle for the people of Verona. Pliny was a politician who lived from 61-112 CE. Pliny declared it a suitable event for a funeral tribute to Valerius Maximus’s wife.[13] Pliny’s attitude about the games is neutral, expressing neither dislike nor affection for the spectacles, which is unsurprising in a document addressed to one who holds the games. What the letter does reveal is that Pliny believes the games are necessary gestures of generosity when the public demands such events. Thus, unlike many of the other Roman writers, Pliny finds value in the games in that they satisfy the desires of the public. St. Augustine lives much later than the other writers featured in this essay, between 354-430 CE. By this time Christianity had been accepted as a religion in the Roman Empire. St. Augustine was one of the great Christian philosophers. In â€Å"The Story of Alypius†, St. Augustine reveals a similar reaction to the games as Seneca’s reaction, that is, once surrounded in a crowd, one’s character will be irreparably damaged. In the story, Alypius attends the games believing he is strong enough to resist temptation of the cruel games. The problem, according to St. Augustine, is that Alypius trusted in himself instead of God, and he too falls prey to the savage games.[14] As St. Augustine was a Christian philosopher, there is little wonder that he declared those who viewed â€Å"the wickedness of fighting† as ones filled with â€Å"savage passion.†[15] St. Augustine would have linked the games with Rome’s Pagan past. Thus, most of the Roman writers believe that the games are bloodthirsty events, offering entertainment of little value. Pliny the Younger’s belief that the games are necessary for public goodwill stands out from the others. Many of them critique the games in a negative way, focusing on how being part of a crowd may harm one’s moral character. Martial is one of the few writers who directly praises the spectacles. Perhaps he was trying to gain favour from the Emperor, as â€Å"On the Spectacles† reads like a tourist advertisement for the games at the Colosseum. St. Augustine’s view on the games is not surprising. As a Christian philosopher, he would have wanted the Roman Empire to distance itself from events that were notable in its former Pagan past. Clearly, the writings show that the spectacles at the Colosseum were controversial affairs. References Augustine, St., â€Å"The Story of Alypius† in Resource Book 1, Open University. Cicero, â€Å"Pompey’s Shows† in Resource Book 1, Open University. _____. â€Å"Philosophical Discussion† in Resource Book 1, Open University. Martial, â€Å"On the Spectacles† in Resource Book 1, Open University. Pliny the Younger, â€Å"Letter to Valerius Maximus† in Resource Book 1, Open University. Seneca, â€Å"Letter 7† in Resource Book 1, Open University. Statius, â€Å"The Tame Lion† in Resource Book 1, Open University. 1 Footnotes [1] Cicero, Philosophical Discussion, 98. [2] Ibid. [3] Cicero, Pompey’s Shows, 97. [4] Ibid. [5] Ibid. [6] Seneca, Letter 7, 99. [7] Ibid. [8] Ibid. [9] Martial, On The Spectacles, 91-92. [10] Ibid., 93. [11] Statius, The Tame Lion, 98. [12] Martial, On The Spectacles, 92. [13] Pliny, Letter to Valerius Maximus, 96. [14] St. Augustine, The Story of Alypius, 100. [15] Ibid.

My special person essay :: essays research papers

MY SPECIAL PERSON â€Å"When I entered the classroom, for the very last time, I looked around at every little detail, many of which I’d probably ignored, for the past four years. Birds were singing in a synchronised melody as they flew past our classroom window. There was the natural aroma of fresh coffee coming from the teacher’s lounge next door. My classmates were sitting at their usual desk waiting for the first lesson to begin. But something was different today, something wasn’t right. And as I entered the classroom it hit me, like an unseen rocket headed to my heart†¦ †¦ The silence. All eyes were on me, some gave a sorry-you’re-leaving-smile, while others looked liked they were about to jump off the nearest window. These were my friends, not just any old friends of course, they felt like family, I grew up with these people and at that moment as I stared into each of their eyes I realized something, something which had always been staring back at me, these people were special. Each and everyone had something that made them unique and as they sat there shining like a thousand stars, one of them shined the brightest. Her long silky hair covered half of her face, but I knew she’d been crying, he chestnut coloured eyes tried to avoid meeting mine but when we did exchange glances, I have her a sympathetic smile and she returned the favour. The rest of that day was full of tears, hugs, a surprise party, games presents and goodbyes. That day will stay with me forever. However I am glad to say that wasn’t the last time I saw my friends and I’m even more glad to say that wasn’t the last time I saw my best friend. Its funny how two people, who are connected, become even closer when they’re apart. Fortunately Ginevra came to visit me in London twice after that, but I went back to see her in my hometown every year. As the years past, and as we grew, our friendship grew stronger, like an ever-growing tree, sending it’s roots deeper and deeper into the ground. Every year she would wait for me with open arms. Some people get worn-out with long distant friendship, but not her, she would always stick by me and never let me down. When I lived in Italy for all those nine years I never had the privilege to have any brothers or sisters so I considered her as my own flesh and blood.

Advertising :: essays papers

Advertising Nowadays, advertising is a very big business. Very often is the major means of competing among firms. Furthermore, supporters of advertising claim that it brings specific benefits for consumers. First off all, they claim that advertising provide information to consumers about the quality or the availability of several products. This is very important for consumers because they do not waste time for searching (search costs). If we suppose, that consumers want to shop at the lowest price shop but, they do not know which is the store with the lowest prices, then they gather information by reading and watching advertisements and TV commercials respectively or by visiting several stores. This action of consumers makes prices to fall, but only if consumers have the appropriate information. Otherwise the prices may rise. Supporters of advertising also claim that advertising may encourage price competition among the firms, if prices feature significantly in the advertisement. In addition to this, by increasing sales through advertising, firms can gain economies of scale, which means that it will help to keep prices down. As we can understand information is very essential for consumers, not only because it lowers the prices, but also because it improves the quality of several products. The problem here is that it is unlikely for all the consumers to have perfect information. This means that the information is either imperfect or asymmetric. Imperfect information, as well as asymmetric information, lowers quality. Advertising may solve this problem in most cases. Consumers can gather information for several products through advertisements and because of this, producers must improve the quality of their products. But why firms advertise so much? As I noted above advertising increases consumer ¡Ã‚ ¦s information. So we can suppose that a firm which advertise much, has high quality products. A very expensive advertising campaign is something like a signal to potential consumers, that the firm believes that its product has good quality. Furthermore the company believes that because of its good quality products, is going to make repeat sales for a long time in order to  ¡Ã‚ §recoup the fixed costs of initial advertising ¡Ã‚ ¨. On the other hand, firms with poor quality products  ¡Ã‚ §that know that consumers will soon discover they have been misled about quality ¡Ã‚ ¨, do not invest much in advertising.

The Scarlet Letter :: essays research papers

Symbolism is the practice of representing things by symbols. The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, is a book of much symbolism. Set in 16th century New England, the book starts with the public punishment of Hester Prynne, a convicted adulterer. One of the most complex and misunderstood symbols in the book is Hester’s illegitimate daughter, Pearl. Throughout the story, she develops into a dynamic symbol - one that is always changing. Pearl represents her mother’s punishment, a rose, and the scarlet letter. In The Scarlet Letter, the Puritans forced Hester to wear a scarlet letter â€Å"A† across for her chest, for the crime of adultery. The punishment continued as Hester was treated as outcast and mocked by the town. â€Å"Tomorrow would bring its own trial with it; so would the next day, so would the next,† the narrator explained. On the other hand, God’s treatment of Hester for her sin was quite different than just a physical token: he gave Hester a very unique child which she named Pearl. The child was a constant mental and physical reminder to Hester of what she had done wrong and how she could not escape it. In this aspect, Pearl symbolized God’s way of punishing Hester for adultery. â€Å"She named the infant Pearl as of being of great price-purchased with all her mother had,† the narrator says. Pearl grew to be a very passionate and lively young girl. She becomes a contradicting factor in her mother’s life. To her mother, Pearl symbolized the rosebush outside of the jail, because at some times she could be bright and vibrant. However at other times, she could be wilting. It was at these times when she was â€Å"wilting† that brought Hester the most grief. One final way in which Pearl symbolized something in the novel was her association with the scarlet letter. Hester began to think of the letter and her daughter as both â€Å"the object of her affection and the emblem of her guilt and torture.† Hester clothed the child in bright crimson dressed. That, combined with a vivid complexion, gave Pearl the appearance of the scarlet letter. The townspeople began to notice the similarities, also.

Ideas inside of us

Wearing headphones or earphones, turning on favorite songs are the best ways to escape from these distractions. Many studies show that some genres of music such as Jazz or Baroque could help the brain signals processing faster. For instance, when listening to a Jazz song, I feel happier, more relaxed and reducing stress. Music really helps my mind regain the energy that I easily continue focusing on the work. The human brain is very smart, but it is also lazy to concentrate for a long time. When doing one thing for a long time, the brain feel bored, hence it easily gets off the track.Some student share experiences that when they focus on study for two or three hours, they feel hardly to keep their mind going on the lesson. Different changes happened however, when they listen to music that helps everything back to its orbit. As a result, music really helps students kept their concentration on studying. Another advantage of listening to music is that music can helps students get creati ve ideas while studying. From joy to ad from happiness to despair, music really has a special ability to leading our emotions.If I need to write a sympathy essay sharing the sorrow with people dying on the war, I should choose a blues ballad song to listen while writing. If am solving an equation in algebra, I need to find a little hard rock of Linking park. Music can simulate students' creativity as a cup of coffee. Listening to music while studying could help students get ideas that they might not realize before. If you want to find something to boost your creative, do not think bout coffee but try some music, it is truly a healthy caffeine medicine for our students.Music leads the emotion and emotion paves the way for creative ideas inside of us. Sometime, you stuck with a problem, find no way to escape the cycle, so you need something helping you get out of that. Let turn on the cellophane, and play some Pop, ideas will come to you. As can be seen, music is an effective medicine helps us get ideas that are more creative. One other advantage of listening to music while studying is that it helps students have a better memory. Our studies prove that Classical or Zen music can help students easily remember the numbers in math or years of history.Music has the ability to transport our memory back in time just like a time machine. Some formulas or sequences students have studied for a long time might be forgotten. Now, they are recalled exactly as learned yesterday thanks for Classical music. Some students cannot remember and revise what they learned because they are under the pressures of the test ahead. In that case, listening to Zen music could release the pressure, slow the heartbeat and inspires students' confidence that help them recall their memories better.Moreover, students will not be bored or stressed when dealing with a long night trying to revise some ideas for a presentation. With a good mood from music, they can better learn facts and lectures tha t they confront for a presentation. Also, fast music affects students' abilities to remember things out loud. In the same way, slow music helps students think more deeply and keep this information in students' memories. Therefore, music is really a helpful tool for students' memories.

College: A Sound Investment Essay

Cost is always about loss. When we consider opportunity cost, we consider what losses an opportunity brings us. One of the most enduring â€Å"opportunities† individuals receive is education. Society is immersed in messages about the benefits of education, but what about the costs? Any important decision should involve a sound cost-benefit analysis. Do the benefits outweigh the costs? This is the basic question of decision-making—of investment. Is college worth the investment? In consideration of this question, I would first need an estimate of the cost of college. First, I would tally the basic, overt costs. Tuition, books, room and board, travel expenses (for commuters): each of these components would subtracts from my finances. Suppose all of these expenses add up to roughly fifteen thousand dollars per year. Now, if I subtracted around five thousand dollars for scholarship, I would be left with a net debt of ten thousand dollars per year. At the end of my college experience, the cost of college would be around forty thousand dollars, correct? Incorrect—I have failed to consider the â€Å"hidden† costs of college. Namely, I have not aken into account the wages I have lost because I chose to be in the classroom rather than in the workforce. With a high school education, I might have expected a job that pays perhaps fifteen thousand dollars a year. Four years of this wage would leave me with a gross profit of sixty thousand dollars. So, what is my overall cost of college now?†¦ 100,000 dollars. What was I thinking? For one, I was thinking that without a higher education I could have expected my wages to rise by at most five thousand dollars, if I was being generous. No advancement in my nowledge or skill sets would have corresponded with no job growth opportunities and thus no significant income growth. Therefore, short of winning the lottery, my wages would remain relatively stagnant. I was also thinking that with a college degree as my backing, I would have the leverage to position myself into an entry-level job that would pay at the very minimum twenty-thousand to twenty-five thousand dollars. Further, I was thinking that entry-level positions lead to advancement. Entry-level positions lead to opportunity. With a decade of strong ork ethic, I have a respectable chance of cracking the forty to fifty thousand dollar barrier, if not more. With just two years of such a salary, I would compensate for the one hundred thousand dollar investment I made to ensure my career. I was thinking that I would much rather retire with a net worth of in the hundreds of thousands rather than the prospect of a retirement where the number 100,000 is still as magical and elusive as that winning lottery number. Most important, I was thinking that I would gladly pay the â€Å"opportunity cost† today to realize the â€Å"opportunity†Ã¢â‚¬â€for myself and for my future family—tomorrow.