The Oxford dictionary defines love as “ an intense feeling of deep fondness ” yet its significance is non restricted to merely those few words printed out in the lexicon. Love plays a really important function in an person ‘s life. It is a really intricate and powerful emotion – sometimes so complex that one could pass his or her full life in seeking to unveil the enigmas of love, and sometimes so powerful that it could convey about the most drastic alteration in a individual. In the drama The Seagull written by Anton Chekhov and in the novella Death In Venice written by Thomas Mann, love is portrayed as a life altering experience and plays a really critical function in the development of the character every bit good as the secret plan. In this essay I will research the alterations brought approximately in the characters because of love, the methods used by the writer in order depict this, the impact it has on the reader and besides the cultural facets that one would come across during the class of reading the novel.
In the drama The Seagull, the character Treplev is already in love with Nina at the gap of the drama. But as the drama progresses he realizes that his love is unanswered. In the novella Death In Venice, the supporter Aschenbach, falls in love with a beautiful immature male child Tadzio, and though his love remains unsaid, he is left fascinated. In other words both love every bit good as the lover is every bit responsible for a alteration in the created characters.
One of import facet that any reader would detect on a speedy reading of the drama is that the characters created by the authors, are both authors themselves. Probably, both the authors wanted to show their personal experiences through the presentation of their characters. This would besides be a possible index that literature could hold been of great importance to both civilizations ( German and Russian ) during their several periods. In the fresh Death In Venice, the supporter of the fresh – Aschenbach, was a good reputed good established author and so his work had “ reached a hard and unsafe point which demanded utmost attention and discretion ”[ 2 ]. the usage of cloudy enunciation such as “ apprehension ” “ menace ” and “ unsafe ”[ 3 ]at the really beginning of the novel besides create a adumbrative consequence to propose or instead make the ambiance of decease suggested by the really rubric of the novel. Through a series of mutual oppositions presented such as rigidness versus liberalness, subject versus sensualness and head versus emotions, I felt that the writer conveys the extent to which love could alter a individual. In this novel, Aschenbach, who at one point was portrayed as a dignified and robust Prussian who maintained a great passion for his work, is subsequently presented as a individual corrupted by beauty and luxury. Mann has besides really consciously made usage of symbols such as the black coloring material of the gondola, the stormy sky and the stonemason ‘s pace merchandising clean headstones in order to make the same prefiguration consequence.
While on one manus Aschenbach used to retain his passions within himself and was proud of making so, on the other manus, Treplev was ne’er hesitant in showing his love for Nina. Treplev ‘s great involvement in his work is apparent from the really fact that he was really acute in experimenting new thoughts of theater and was in hunt of “ a new theater ”[ 4 ]and “ New signifiers ”[ 5 ]. But the loss of love wholly changes his attitude towards his work and give up composing. At the terminal it was love that made Treplev gain that “ it ‘s easy to be a philosopher on paper, but how difficult to move like one! ”[ 6 ]. Chekhov, unlike Mann, has made use merely of duologue and secret plan in order to picture the sequence of alteration in Treplev. By killing himself at the terminal of the drama it is apparent that the failure of love had greatly affected Treplev. In my sentiment, the usage of imagination and other techniques used by Mann proved to be more effectual than Chekov ‘s simple manner in order to stress and portray alteration. Besides, I personally felt that both Chekov every bit good as Mann have portrayed a alteration in the characters attitude towards their authorship because their authorship was their passion every bit good as their profession. It served as their agencies of life or in other words was their beginning of income. The audience or the reader on understanding the importance of a individual ‘s passion and profession would see love as a powerful emotion.
The following important alteration that Chekov every bit good as Mann conveying approximately in their characters through their authorship is a alteration in their overall behavior of their characters. Aschenbach at the beginning of the novel it presented as a austere perfectionist. “ Ever since his boyhood the responsibility to accomplish -and to accomplish exceeding things -had been imposed on him from all sides and therefore he had ne’er known young person ‘s idling, its unworried negligent ways ”[ 7 ]. But one time he had fallen in love with Tadzio, he had undergone a terrible alteration. He had now started to be more of a carefree and negligent individual. This is proven due to the really fact that he consumes the strawberries even though he was warned about the epidemic. This symbol is besides linked to the Punica granatum juice and the ruddy tie which he wears. The coloring material red in this novel symbolizes passion and the juice is besides a fabulous mention to the Persephone who consumed the Punica granatum and was sent to Hades. Mann has made usage of the Punica granatum as a symbol to bode Aschenbach ‘s decay in character. Besides, the usage of strong ocular imagination in the dream of the juicy South and the scene of Venice with the unenrgetic air droping into Aschenbach serve as active tools or instead strong regards to turn out the same point. Besides, by showing Venice with the Italian crowd, the gondolas and coffin nail buds, Mann gives the reader important penetration to their civilization.
The prefiguration technique is used even by Chekhov in The Seagull in order to picture alteration, although the symbols do non hold any fabulous mention. In the drama The Seagull, Treplev at first considers himself to be really inferior because of his male parent. The failure of his work had increased his misery. Unlike Aschenbach, who seemed to be joyful in love, Treplev seemed to derive a batch of depression due to his love life and this is apparent from the really fact that he “ burned every bit ” of his work. His hurting is magnified when he realizes that his lady love was falling for “ the great luminary ” Trigorin. This image of unanswered love is presented throughout the drama and is one factor made common in about all the characters. The best illustration n the drama for the same would be that of Masha ‘s unanswered love for Treplev. To back up the same cause Chekhov has made usage of the sea gull as a really of import symbol as suggested by the rubric of the drama ( rather similar to the manner in which Mann has portrayed decease in his novel, evident in the rubric ) . Trigorin ‘s anticipation of Treplev killing himself and Nina destructing herself in the same mode as the sea gull serves as an of import prefiguration tool. Chekhov has besides made usage of conditions in order express the province of head of the characters. Both Chekov every bit good as Mann have yet once more depicted the power and the energy that could impact a individual to such a great extent. While on Aschenbach had turned into a really relaxed and joyous individual, Treplev was really emotional and down.
What I found really challenging was that at the terminal of both the books Treplev every bit good as Aschenbach died. In my sentiment, both the writers might hold wanted to distribute their personal feelings of their unanswered love. While Mann makes usage of fabulous allusions, imagination and strong enunciation in order to convey his feelings and ideas through Death In Venice, Chekhov makes usage of simple duologues and symbols such as the conditions and the sea gull in order to back up his cause. He breaks off from the regular play conventions by affecting off phase action, no supporter and avoiding melodrama. Both the plants prove to be first-class readings since they both provide the reader with many penetrations to assorted civilizations. To reason, in my sentiment, at the terminal of both the plants, the reader realises the power of love and to what extent it can repair and flex its followings.
