Illusion Of Glory And Honor English Literature Essay

Modernism was a motion that gained grip during the twentieth century, particularly after the Great War. This epoch was marked by the divergency from traditional beliefs and the experimentation with new thoughts and perceptual experiences of the universe and ego. Harmonizing to A Handbook to Literature, “ modern implies a historical discontinuity, a sense of disaffection, loss, and desperation ” ( Harmon, 318 ) . Modernists contemplated upon the mistakes and questioned the thoughts of the old order. They attempted to make a new universe, but they were accordingly alienated from a society that still held on to the traditional values. Writers such as Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald played with the extremist thoughts and conveyed the new thoughts and the sentiments of modernists through their plants, A Farewell to Arms and The Great Gatsby. In both novels, the writers portrayed the supporter ‘s interruption off from the Romantic thoughts about glorification, which lead to their disaffection from society and ego, respectively..

In A Farewell to Arms, the Romantic thought of glorification interruptions down every bit Henry rejects the glory of war and the nationalism of take parting in the war attempt. Through the descriptions of the soldiers ‘ feelings and the events that occurred in the novel, Hemingway was able to picture the world of war and its black and inhumane nature. Soldiers are enduring from disease, hungriness, and hurting and many soldiers, such as Catherine ‘s past fellow, are blown to pieces by howitzer shells. These are non glorious minutes. This breaks down the Romantic sense of glorification and heroism since there is deficiency of pride in being wounded or pride in a loved one ‘s part to the war attempt in malice of decease. Alternatively, people are enduring from the hurting of being wounded or of holding a loved one dice in war, as in the instance of Catherine. The rough war resulted in the boisterous behaviours of the soldiers. They often drink intoxicant to get down the fright and hurting of confronting war and visit whorehouses to get away the world of war. This reveals the morally insufficiency of the soldiers and contrasts nationalism. The responsibility of a soldier is to function his state and demo nationalism, nevertheless the soldiers in the Great War are pretermiting them. Alternatively of experiencing honored to finish his responsibility to the state, the soldiers desire an flight from war. The Great War has degraded to a conflict of lasting the rough worlds of war. Peoples want to take themselves from the war every bit shortly as possible. As a consequence of the agony, moral insufficiencies, and false nationalism, Henry believes he “ had seen nil sacred, and the things that were glorious had no glorification and the forfeits were like the stockyards at Chicago if nil was done with the meat except to bury it. aˆ¦Abstract words such as glorification, award, bravery, or consecrate were obscene beside the concrete names of small towns, the Numberss of roads, the names of rivers, the Numberss of regiments and the day of the months ” ( Hemingway, 52 ) . There is no glorification in fall ining the Great War because many people slaughtered each twenty-four hours like farm animal. These “ forfeits ” are non honored, glorified, or exalted for their parts for war and are left in the battleground grounds to break up. Henry sees that old thoughts of glorification and award merely exist in our heads and are at that place to deceive people from the world.

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Jay Gatsby, from The Great Gatsby, reveals the corrupt elements of the American Dream and the worsening glorification of recognizing the dream. The American Dream signifies the chance to be successful and travel up the societal ladder. Gatsby was prosecuting the American Dream by working as a clam digger, working as a janitor to pay for his college tuition, and puting up a agenda to analyze electricity, innovations, and fluency. He was given chances and worked difficult to travel up the societal ladder. However, the experiences with Dan Cody in Gatsby ‘s life marks the alteration in Gatsby ‘s ideals. Gatsby ‘s American Dream becomes synonymous with material wealth and nobility and Gatsby starts to prosecute a hedonic life style. After his life with Dan Cody, he changes his name from “ James Gatz — that was truly, or at least lawfully, his name. He had changed it at the age of 17 and at the specific minute that witnessed the beginning of his careeraˆ¦ ” ( hypertext transfer protocol: //gutenberg.net.au ) . This signifies the decease of his old hardworking ego to the birth of a new ego who values money and position. This marks a dramatic alteration in his American dream from a dream of traveling up the societal ladder for a better life to a dream that revolves around money, position, and credence by the high society, the East Egg. To make this end, he delves into fly-by-night concern trades with Meyer Wolfsheim, sells intoxicant illicitly, and attempts to appeal to the old money East Eggers by throwing munificent parties. In these actions, Fitzgerald shows how the American dream has been stained by greed and immoral values. Peoples ‘s dreams in the early twentieth century became focused on roll uping a huge amount of money and are utilizing dishonest methods to accomplish this end. Peoples with this dream, such as Gatsby, lose the glorification of recognizing the American Dream. Gatsby ‘s dream is stained by the compulsion of stuff wealth and the glorification of accomplishing the American dream through “ rugged individuality ” crumbles.

As a consequence of the rejection and crumbling of Romantic thoughts of glorification, Henry and Gatsby become alienated from society and the person, severally. Henry is able to see through the black and inhumane world of war. He decides to get away from it by “ [ forgetting ] the war [ doing ] a separate peace ” ( Hemingway, 103 ) . By set uping his separate peace, he becomes disconnected from the Great War, which everyone else in society is concerned about. This withdrawal and disaffection is farther emphasized when Henry escapes to impersonal Switzerland to set up a peaceable private life with Catherine. Switzerland provides a oasis for the twosome off from the force per unit area of war. Furthermore, while Henry position award, heroism, and glorification as semblances that merely be in the head, society still uphold these values, which farther highlights Henry ‘s disaffection. For illustration, Gino believes that they will non lose and “ [ the ] summer [ battles ] can non hold been done in vain ” ( Hemingway, 79 ) . He holds an optimistic and hopeful position that the Allies will win the war. Gino believes that they will take back the glorification because their forfeits will assist them win. However, Henry feels “ abashed ” ( 79 ) by words such as glorification and forfeit. These are empty words that hold no significance for Henry because they are unreal ideals created by the head. This creates a disjunction between Henry and his familiarities, which extends to the disaffection from society as he establishes his separate peace.

Gatsby ‘s compulsion with material wealth and high-class society consequences in the disaffection of himself. The first measure of self-alienation comes when he kills the individuality of James Gatz and creates a new ego, Jay Gatsby. This reflects the contradiction with himself and his ain values. The James Gatz, who works diligently and aspires to mount the societal ladder, is his true ego. When Gatsby destroys this individuality, he alienates himself. Second, Gatsby has a “ Platonic construct of himself ” ( hypertext transfer protocol: //gutenberg.net.au/ ) . Gatsby attempts to populate up to an ideal, which is merely a universe that he fantasizes about but can ne’er to the full achieve. He aspires to be a member of the old money East Egg community by accumulating his wealth, but with underarm tactics.

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