Final Essay
Pretty Deceit and Ugly Truth
By Alden Gray-Stallings
Much of William Shakespeare’s work shares a common theme: a barricade emplaced between characters by patriarchal authority prevents two lovers from being together. The situative conflicts in both Romeo and Juliet and A Midsummer Night's Dream are very similar, however, there are certain details contained in both that cause the final results to be very different. The authority figures in Romeo and Juliet, Lords Capulet and Montague, have a legitimate reason for keeping the two lovers apart, while in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the major authority figure, Egeus, does not. The rebelling characters in both stories choose to make illogical decisions, but due to the varying levels of severity in these situations, this irrationality guides them in different directions. The main opposition is that Lysander, in A Midsummer Night's Dream, cannot comprehend the truth of his magically impaired state, which gives him something to do in place of emotional decay in the face of restriction, while Romeo, from Romeo and Juliet, sees far too clearly that he cannot fulfill his desires, no matter what.
The characters in A Midsummer Night's Dream have specific objectives, but are all very confused about what exactly is happening around them in the process of reaching their destinations. Lysander and Hermia are in love, but Hermia is being forced to marry Demetrius by her father, Egeus, whose only reason for doing so is that he approves of Demetrius’ love for her. “She is mine, and I may dispose of her, which shall be either to this man, or to her death.” (Egeus, Scene I, Act I, MSND). Lysander and Hermia escape to the forest to elope, but Demetrius chases after them with Helena, in close, lusting pursuit of him. The unseen fairies of the forest use the mortals to solve their own trifles, coinciding with the best interests of the lovers. All they understand, however, is that their perspectives changed sometime between entering and exiting the forest. In the process of the ever escalating ordeal, Hermia and Helena, who are not influenced by any supernatural fairy mojo, exert more effort toward understanding what is actually going on, though they never really succeed. They awaken outside of the forest and are found by Egeus and Theseus. In being informed of Demetrius’ change of heart for Hermia and Helena, Egeus does the same, and allows the lovers to wed whomever they please.
In the opposing story, Romeo and Juliet are forbidden from marrying one another because the relationship between their families encapsulates a horrific and violent rivalry. The chaos, potentially brought about by them being together, would lead them down a path to their inevitable doom. Romeo knows this, and this fact is reinforced by many of his trusted friends and family members. In Act II, Scene III, Friar Francis and Romeo have a notable discussion on the topic. Francis tries to discourage him as much as he can, but in failing to do so, he ends with the quote, “Go wisely and slowly. Those who rush stumble and fall.” With this in mind, Romeo continues to act in the opposite manner. Juliet, on the other hand, uses a more logical method. She plots with Friar Lawrence to fake her death so that she and Romeo can marry in secrecy. The excessive elaboration of the plan causes undue complications and Romeo never gets the memo. Ignorant of the advice of those who know better than he does, his remaining hours are a downward spiral of havoc and emotional destruction. If he knew that what he was doing was only bringing him closer to his death, why would he make such choices? Possibly because he knew that he couldn’t be with Juliet. He had fallen so deeply in love that, to him, a life without her was no life at all. Even though he still was in a constant attempt to obtain what he wanted, his actions were intentionally irrational. He hoped that somewhere along the line he would fall. The moment it was revealed to him that Juliet had “died” was his breaking point. It was the end of the line. He had unraveled himself to his own destruction. With nothing left to live for, he took his own life, and in her waking, Juliet joined him in suicide.
By contrast, Lysander fights the blinding haze of confusion until the situation unwinds into a “happy ending.” His hope and his relatively positive outlook was the source propelling him to success. Romeo’s conflict resided within the clarity of it all. His recognition of the dark truth was the drain into which his hope vanished. The smoke rising from his extinguished purpose in life caused him to give up on logic and reason. The lack of these two things gave way to severe radicalism. With the imbalanced weight on his shoulders, he allowed himself to spin out of control. Had he not been exposed to the ugly truth, he may have had a more stable mindset, and he and Juliet could have carried out their plan. Had Lysander stayed as pessimistic as he was in the beginning, he may have gone on a similar rampage. He may never have chosen to go to the forest, and may instead have met his own doom in Athens, replacing the satisfaction with tragedy. His monologue of the ultimate pointlessness of love is a demonstration of things that may have arisen, “Or, if there were a sympathy in choice, War, death, or sickness did lay siege to it, Making it momentary as a sound, Swift as a shadow, short as any dream, Brief as the lightning in the collied night; That, in a spleen, unfolds both heaven and Earth, And ere a man hath power to say ‘Behold!’ The jaws of darkness do devour it up. So quick bright things come to confusion.” Since he experienced so much of this confusion later, he unknowingly used it as his drive to find comprehension of his experience in the forest, occupying the time it took for things to boil over, and distracting him from his previous state of hopelessness in the city. Romeo, who recognized the grim reality, saw no point in doing anything other than proceeding to hammer the nails into his own coffin. He had no distraction or confusion, it was simply all too clear to try anymore, and thus, all too much to handle any further.
After the lovers are found outside of the forest, Theseus delivers a speech describing Lysander and Demetrius, but it seems to fit Lysander and Romeo better than it does Demetrius. The first sentence demonstrates a beneficial summery, “The lunatic, the lover, and the poet, are of imagination all compact.” This means that under these circumstances, the said “lunatic, lover, and poet,” are all the same person, and all three of these titles suit both Lysander and Romeo. They are both, in a sense, poets with their cynical views and expressions. Lysander’s confusion drawing him to a better result and Romeo’s self-destructive behavior dragging him to tragedy, are both lucid examples of this lunacy, brought about by overly complicated love.
In these two very comparable works, it is demonstrated that, in a situation necessitating patience, confusion can be the foundation of the path leading to hope. Although, in a situation in which no solution is visible, it is dangerous for one to see the grim reality, because in destroying hope, one sees only darkness. Poetry is the way it all begins and ends. Love is what pulls it along and ties it all together. In the beginning, love and poetry may face in opposite directions, but may later converge. The one overarching theme between them remains the same: the lunacy and the madness.
Shakespeare Project Reflection
Mask Project Reflection:
1. Socialization is the way which people are programmed by society. It has affected my life because due to the people I grew up around, the events and occurrences I have experienced, and the places and situations I've ended up in, I make certain choices based around what I have been socialized to perceive as right and wrong. It affects our society because we all subconsciously socialize each other.
2. In this project we studied society and and its affect on individuals. The term which is used to describe this is socialization. The two main assignments were to write an essay and to construct and paint a mask to symbolize the ways which we have been socialized.
3. The process I followed to write my essay began with reading the article by Bobbie Harrow about socialization so I understood the material. After that, I wrote the topic sentences for all of my main body paragraphs and then finished them by adding a thesis and two pieces of evidence for each one. To finish, I wrote my introductory paragraph with a metaphor and a hook and then then my conclusion before making two more drafts.
4. So far this year I am proud that although I am still struggling in certain ways, I'm doing much better than I was throughout middle school. I would like to improve my work ethic because I was a step behind for a while before the exhibition. Overall I enjoyed this project and I hope to have more like it this year.
This is my mask and my essay:
1. Socialization is the way which people are programmed by society. It has affected my life because due to the people I grew up around, the events and occurrences I have experienced, and the places and situations I've ended up in, I make certain choices based around what I have been socialized to perceive as right and wrong. It affects our society because we all subconsciously socialize each other.
2. In this project we studied society and and its affect on individuals. The term which is used to describe this is socialization. The two main assignments were to write an essay and to construct and paint a mask to symbolize the ways which we have been socialized.
3. The process I followed to write my essay began with reading the article by Bobbie Harrow about socialization so I understood the material. After that, I wrote the topic sentences for all of my main body paragraphs and then finished them by adding a thesis and two pieces of evidence for each one. To finish, I wrote my introductory paragraph with a metaphor and a hook and then then my conclusion before making two more drafts.
4. So far this year I am proud that although I am still struggling in certain ways, I'm doing much better than I was throughout middle school. I would like to improve my work ethic because I was a step behind for a while before the exhibition. Overall I enjoyed this project and I hope to have more like it this year.
This is my mask and my essay:
Path of Dollar Bills
I wonder why. I wonder why it’s so difficult for me to begin this essay. Maybe because I’m not too sure about how I was socialized through childhood. That maybe because I learn by example so its harder to pinpoint the exact causes of the way I see. There wasn't a lot of school-appropriate dialogue to direct my thought process. for most of my smoke hazen life, I strutted across fissured ground, tripping over empty alcohol containers on my way to wallow in self pity. While the tears welled in my eyes, shouts and screams echoed within my withered heart, shivering mind, and burning soul. The cryptic road signs pointed me in a blur of different directions and eventually, I was led to believe that this was simply how things were. The confusion, complication, and teary rage drove me off the beaten path and I was forced to pave my own road.
“The Cycle of Socialization,” by Bobbie Harrow is an article our class read explaining the series of sequential events that occur and shape us as “individuals” into the people that we are. The author explains that this cycle begins in the moment of our birth with the first stage, First Socialization. First Socialization is the way people are taught to view the world around them by their parents and other influential figures that they’re exposed to from a young age. Things that they are told such as, “Boys don’t cry,” or “Don’t talk to strangers.” These are the things you don’t really think to question at this age because it’s just what you’re used to. The next stage is Institutional and Cultural Socialization. This type of socialization is how we are influenced by local community. Institutions like schools and churches and those representing the intertwined culture lay down rules and guidelines you must follow. Again, you still don’t really know why you’re following said rules. The third stage is enforcement. This is how we are judged, rewarded, or punished for the choices that we make regarding the norms set by the cycle. For example, as blunt as this instance is, an individual who breaks the law is in turn hunted by law enforcement. The following stage is Results. This is the way we are affected or oppressed by the enforcement. In continuation of the previous example, if a law-breaker is caught by the police, they face court, imprisonment, and even execution on occasion. Actions, the next stage, is how we react and cope with the consequences of the Results. the final stage is Direction for Change. This is the stage which you determine whether or not you fall into your typical role of society. The alternative is to break the cycle and think as a true individual.
Throughout my childhood, I have been socialized to look at social class from many different points of view because over the years, I’ve been exposed to many different financial surroundings and I have lived in several different locations reflecting everything from poverty to wealth. For the majority of my life, my family struggled with property ownership, mortgage, debt, and money overall. Switching between the lower-class neighborhoods and homes in which I’ve lived, and the number of large, expensive houses owned by my grandmother, I have been able to experience multiple different lifestyles. Even during the process of writing this essay, my families bank account was hacked and a large amount of money was stolen from it. This is another decent example of the financial events that occur in my life.
One positive way that my social status has influenced me is that due to the balance of my families money, I was never so spoiled that I couldn't appreciate the fact that I have running water and electricity most of the time. I learned that the simple parts in life are vastly important to the order of things and that I should always be grateful for what I have, even at the times when the only things I have are the clothes on my otherwise bare back. I have been socialized negatively, however. I have a brooding dislike for those who have enough to live comfortably and do not show the slightest appreciation for it. I have an indirect anger towards people who are too greedy for their own good, and too ignorant to realize it. I Hate hypocrisy. People who complain and act as though they have it worse than others, when in reality, the have a happy family, money, and enough overall to satisfy their materialistic needs. As someone who has stood on both feet at rock bottom, and kneeled for a better view on life somewhere near the top, I’ve learned not to be too picky.
Over the course of my life, I have been socialized in many forms by my social class to see the influence of money on my life from multiple points of view. I was confused by this; I didn’t know what was accurate or correct and what wasn’t so I came to the conclusion that I would just wait, ponder my the conflicting opinions and unconfirmed facts until I could see the angles that what made the most amount of sense.
Growing up, I heard a lot of things like, “You’re nothing but a loser,” “The sky's the limit,” and “Give up, you won’t make it.” I got that from both my peers, and my “superiors.” Whatever drug addled pit they’re rotting in right now is none of my business, but I can say one thing, the place I’ve ended up and the path I’m following demonstrates a lucrative example of both irony and how I’ve managed to break the cycle of socialization. So here I am, too far along my own trail to hear the the insults of those who doubt me, and too ahead for the fake worth of money to phaze my focus on what lies ahead. I’m not looking back, I’m not turning around, and I’m not giving up because this is my road.
I wonder why. I wonder why it’s so difficult for me to begin this essay. Maybe because I’m not too sure about how I was socialized through childhood. That maybe because I learn by example so its harder to pinpoint the exact causes of the way I see. There wasn't a lot of school-appropriate dialogue to direct my thought process. for most of my smoke hazen life, I strutted across fissured ground, tripping over empty alcohol containers on my way to wallow in self pity. While the tears welled in my eyes, shouts and screams echoed within my withered heart, shivering mind, and burning soul. The cryptic road signs pointed me in a blur of different directions and eventually, I was led to believe that this was simply how things were. The confusion, complication, and teary rage drove me off the beaten path and I was forced to pave my own road.
“The Cycle of Socialization,” by Bobbie Harrow is an article our class read explaining the series of sequential events that occur and shape us as “individuals” into the people that we are. The author explains that this cycle begins in the moment of our birth with the first stage, First Socialization. First Socialization is the way people are taught to view the world around them by their parents and other influential figures that they’re exposed to from a young age. Things that they are told such as, “Boys don’t cry,” or “Don’t talk to strangers.” These are the things you don’t really think to question at this age because it’s just what you’re used to. The next stage is Institutional and Cultural Socialization. This type of socialization is how we are influenced by local community. Institutions like schools and churches and those representing the intertwined culture lay down rules and guidelines you must follow. Again, you still don’t really know why you’re following said rules. The third stage is enforcement. This is how we are judged, rewarded, or punished for the choices that we make regarding the norms set by the cycle. For example, as blunt as this instance is, an individual who breaks the law is in turn hunted by law enforcement. The following stage is Results. This is the way we are affected or oppressed by the enforcement. In continuation of the previous example, if a law-breaker is caught by the police, they face court, imprisonment, and even execution on occasion. Actions, the next stage, is how we react and cope with the consequences of the Results. the final stage is Direction for Change. This is the stage which you determine whether or not you fall into your typical role of society. The alternative is to break the cycle and think as a true individual.
Throughout my childhood, I have been socialized to look at social class from many different points of view because over the years, I’ve been exposed to many different financial surroundings and I have lived in several different locations reflecting everything from poverty to wealth. For the majority of my life, my family struggled with property ownership, mortgage, debt, and money overall. Switching between the lower-class neighborhoods and homes in which I’ve lived, and the number of large, expensive houses owned by my grandmother, I have been able to experience multiple different lifestyles. Even during the process of writing this essay, my families bank account was hacked and a large amount of money was stolen from it. This is another decent example of the financial events that occur in my life.
One positive way that my social status has influenced me is that due to the balance of my families money, I was never so spoiled that I couldn't appreciate the fact that I have running water and electricity most of the time. I learned that the simple parts in life are vastly important to the order of things and that I should always be grateful for what I have, even at the times when the only things I have are the clothes on my otherwise bare back. I have been socialized negatively, however. I have a brooding dislike for those who have enough to live comfortably and do not show the slightest appreciation for it. I have an indirect anger towards people who are too greedy for their own good, and too ignorant to realize it. I Hate hypocrisy. People who complain and act as though they have it worse than others, when in reality, the have a happy family, money, and enough overall to satisfy their materialistic needs. As someone who has stood on both feet at rock bottom, and kneeled for a better view on life somewhere near the top, I’ve learned not to be too picky.
Over the course of my life, I have been socialized in many forms by my social class to see the influence of money on my life from multiple points of view. I was confused by this; I didn’t know what was accurate or correct and what wasn’t so I came to the conclusion that I would just wait, ponder my the conflicting opinions and unconfirmed facts until I could see the angles that what made the most amount of sense.
Growing up, I heard a lot of things like, “You’re nothing but a loser,” “The sky's the limit,” and “Give up, you won’t make it.” I got that from both my peers, and my “superiors.” Whatever drug addled pit they’re rotting in right now is none of my business, but I can say one thing, the place I’ve ended up and the path I’m following demonstrates a lucrative example of both irony and how I’ve managed to break the cycle of socialization. So here I am, too far along my own trail to hear the the insults of those who doubt me, and too ahead for the fake worth of money to phaze my focus on what lies ahead. I’m not looking back, I’m not turning around, and I’m not giving up because this is my road.