... Beowulf Even small things have a purpose. For example in epics, minor characters can be as essential as the main characters. In the epic Beowuf, the charactes of Hrothgar, Unferth and Wiglaf prove necessary to the story. Unferth plays an important role in Beowulf. Through his quarreling with Beowulf, he reveals ... to fight Grendel. Beowulf exclaims, ""And when the sun/ Comes up again, opening another/ Bright day, anyone in Denmark/ May enter this hall: that evil [Grendel] will be gone!"" (336-39). Thus, Unferth unknowingly gives Beowulf drive to kill Grendel. All points considered, Un...

• Word Count: 498
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... of no drugs, no drinking alcohol, and no sex without love. In the 12 years since the expiration of Minor Threat, the ideas of straight edge are still going strong in today's punk scene and beyond. The key to the growing of the revolution is young men and women's disgust with ... large X. The end result is sXe. Sometimes there is an h on the top and a c on the bottom of the X. The s and e stand for straight edge, while the h and c stand for hard-core. The big X symbolizes the times when underage people and adults shared clubs together. To keep younger people from being served ... underag...

• Word Count: 1214
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... ). Jack's ferocious action illustrates how his love of authority and violence are intimately connected, as both enable him to feel powerful and like a dignified person. The black on the outer edge of the circle portrays Jack's evil and dark side. Most of the boys, particularly Jack, give into their animalistic tendencies by the end of the novel. During the brutal slaughter ... of Simon, the boys "screamed, struck, bit, tore", and like animals, there were "no movements but the tearing of teeth and claws" (Golding 153). The outer edge was colored black because it represents how, even thoug...

• Word Count: 2153
• Approx Pages: 9
• Grade Level: High School

... through the corrupt era of the 1920's he is able to lend authenticity in his portrayal of the materialism and deceit among the characters of his novel. Fitzgerald was influenced by the novel, The Waste Land by C.F. Elliot (Richard Lehan "Sugar Lumps- 95). The ... principle to hold it together (Lehan "Sugar Lumps- 95). Fitzgerald incorporates his personal background, peers and close friends, to form the personalities of the various characters in The Great Gatsby. F. Scott Fitzgerald was born in St. Paul, Minnesota (Michael Reynolds 2360). His mother's father was a self made Irish immigran...

• Word Count: 1494
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: High School

... familiar with this, while others of you are probably pondering what is this guy talking about. Well for those of you who do not know of this "Straight Edge". It's a term used to describe someone who does not drink alcohol or do any kind of illegal drugs. Not because they have never been exposed to it ... but because they hold themselves to a higher standard than most people these days. Many people will live life no other way except the "Straight Edge" way. Its a way to truly live life to the purest and fullest. Meant for the true romantics of life. They say that every 15 minutes a person...

• Word Count: 783
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

Living on the edge today includes anything from skydiving to rock climbing; even climbing Mount Everest. Mt. Everest, the highest peak in the world, stands at 29,028 feet, (8,848 m), above sea level. The ... ...

• Word Count: 1610
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: High School

... and "The Cask of Amontillado", Poe writes each main character with different personalities although some similar traits can be found in all his main characters. The way they react to other people and their own actions differ with each personality that Poe gives them. In the story "The Tell ... death. In both stories the cleverness of the murderers are glorified beyond the point of right and wrong. Poe justifies these murders by giving his characters a sense of brilliance in their supposed infallible acts. Roderick Usher, the main focus point of Poe's "The Fall of the House of Usher ... ...

• Word Count: 1238
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... theoretically one of the founders of the party and the revolution and is significant as he influences the actions and even the thoughts of most of the characters. There where others that were believed to be the founders of the party and the revolution, these men were Rutherford, Aaronson and Jones, however their ... of Winston Smith, he was the perfect and was an example of how party members should be. Martin is a servant and is one of the few characters that comes across as being a party member and then as a non-party member. His involvement in the story is small but still significant a...

• Word Count: 1789
• Approx Pages: 7
• Grade Level: High School

... the concept of a stock character and to identify them in Shakespearean tragedy. The termstock character? derives from the classic period when playwrights such as Plautus and Menander used very similar characters in their comedies. This eventually leaked into tragedy and became one of the most influential aspects of Elizabethan drama. One of the most famous and widely discussed classifications of stock ... woman or the death of a pathetic little girl, both occurrences are tragic in their own respects and result in the creation of the innocent victim. Shakespeare has created many other ch...

• Word Count: 1288
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... that utilizes every branch of style to entertain his audience. The writings of Shakespeare show a wide range of stylistic devices, all of which he uses to subtly expand on his characters traits and the themes of his stories. William Shakespeare's style of writing in the play Hamlet is the most influential element in developing the deep and complex themes and ... to be preformed by an actor to an audience, he uses this to his advantage to show insight into character without direct description. By his word choice Shakespeare can show a characters intelligence or ignorance simply by how th...

• Word Count: 1264
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... know they are participants, things do not happen at a particular time, and life is real and not rehearsed. This is all very evident in Six Characters in Search of an Author because in many different instances, the father, in particular, makes reference to how their situation is real because they are ... tomorrow, and this very situation in which they will portray to the actors and producer is more real then anything they can hold real. The six characters, on one side of the coin, have certain things about them that are predetermined. These are things like what they look like and how they...

• Word Count: 839
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... without Iago. Imagine Frodo without Sam. I shudder to think of a world where Luke doesn't have Han Solo by his side! All kidding aside, supporting characters are what make stories great and memorable, and these three plays prove that amazingly. Oedipus Rex, what a sad poor man. But he himself wasn't really all ... could say. In Antigone, we again follow the bloodline of Oedipus, through his daughters and sons. Again though, you see major development in the secondary characters. Again we see our old friend Tiresias, although I feel the role he has in this play isn't quite as influential ...

• Word Count: 766
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... typical play, Pirandello brings realism to his play by running his play without acts, scenes, or intermissions. Instead the play is broken up, when the characters without an author, accompanied by the manager, adjourn off stage for twenty minutes to discuss and begin writing the character's story, while the curtain remains ... These are things like what they look like and how they will react to any possible situation. This allows for sound reality because the characters are there in the theater with the actors wanting to tell them about this reality of theirs that will forever stay the ...

• Word Count: 991
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... the novel Kindred play a very important role and have a big impact on the main characters. Some of the secondary characters that played a key part in this novel were Kevin, Mr. Weylin, and Sarah. Kevin was Dana's husband, and he was a big part of this book. He was always there to ... the other slaves were weary of her. This really helped Dana because it gave her a sense of companionship in a very unfriendly environment. As one can see, secondary characters played a key role in this novel. In some cases, they really helped the main characters, and in other cases they made the main chara...

• Word Count: 408
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... depend on the reader and how he or she perceives the book and its deeper meanings. Hawthorne is trying to send a message by using these characters and just did not come out and say it bluntly, but instead tries to get the reader to look more deeply into his story and recognize these ... . This is the first of the surprises for him on his journey, as well as an element that Hawthorne uses to make the reader think about the minor characters" roles in the story. Hawthorne then makes the reader think even more. He introduces the minister and Deacon Gookin, who both ride by on horseback. Good...

• Word Count: 782
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... unfold the story, while others exist only behind the scenes to symbolise ideas and assist our understandings of the major characters. This essay attempts to compare and contrast the presentation and function of minor characters in A Streetcar Named Desire. The appearances of minor characters on stage contribute significantly to the atmosphere of the play. The curtain opens on a casual conversation between Eunice and ... . Tennessee Williams is suggesting that the physical attractions cannot be broken so easily, and is foreshadowing Blanche's eventual failure to win Stella. Eunice is the ...

• Word Count: 1296
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... he needs someone to affirm his memories. Vladimir is generally quick witted, and can think through situations before acting. Not surprisingly, these two characters are easily compared to two aspects of humans, the body and mind. Estragon is compared to the body while Vladimir symbolizes the mind. Each ... cannot function without the other, just like a complete human. The other popular interpretation of the main characters says they symbolize pilgrims awaiting the return of the savior. No matter how they are interpreted, Estragon and Vladimir's long and absurd dialogues ... make Waiting ...

• Word Count: 673
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... and he believes that not having an author does not mean that there isn't a wonderful play to be told. "Are you not accustomed to see the characters created by an author spring to life in yourselves and face each other? Just because there is no book' which contains us, you refuse to believe."" ... (The Father p.389) The manager has a hard time believing these characters. As he is attempting to put together his own play these characters interrupt him. He is upset at the fact that such a disruption has occurred however the more he listens to these ... to write down their play however he do...

• Word Count: 922
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

... of expatriates as they try to find meaning to their lives in the 1920's. Considering the novel is set in Paris, the city of love, one can assume that the characters will undoubtedly encounter sentimental romance. However, Hemingway's portrayal of Paris is one of a saddened, feeble, disillusioned postwar city and therefore, the ... Barnes and Lady Brett Ashley, who seem to share a very strange and distant kind of love for each other. The first of these characters is Jake Barnes. He deals with the everyday stress that comes with being injured. Jake was left physically disabled because of ...

• Word Count: 1202
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... trials, his response is not defiance but surrender. He insists that survival is the highest good, even if it means accommodating oneself to injustice "something that the truly heroic characters can never accept. Elizabeth Proctor John Proctor's wife. Elizabeth fired Abigail when she discovered that her husband was having an affair with Abigail. Elizabeth is supremely virtuous, but often ... guilt by association becomes particularly pernicious. Focused on maintaining public reputation, the townsfolk of Salem must fear that the sins of their friends and associates will taint their names. V...

• Word Count: 4038
• Approx Pages: 16
• Grade Level: High School

Readers do not tend to notice the importance of minor characters and how they help the main character through the story in multiple ways. In the play Hamlet, written by William Shakespeare, the actions and words of the minor characters, such as the Ghost, Horatio, and the gravedigger, play a crucial part to the development of the play's plot and themes. One of the ... important characters in the play is King Hamlet's Ghost. In Act I, the readers learn of a supernatural event that is happening in the castle. The Ghost of King Hamlet has been spotted by ... never there to say that was Yorick'...

• Word Count: 553
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

... well as unhappy. Ergo, one can conclude there is a distinct shallowness among the upper class in the 1920's supported by the attitudes of the characters in the novel. The amount of money the upper class wasted to impress others contributes to the shallowness of the group. The parties, the ... impressing others, as well as putting money before love. Money, and riches, a significant lifestyle in the novel, was valued more by some of the characters rather than true love. Daisy, a egotistic, self centred, but beautiful woman, proves her shallowness throughout her love affair with Gatsby, wh...

• Word Count: 1006
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: High School

The Role Of Minor Characters Many minor characters played very important roles that influenced the outcome of the play to occur. Mercutio, although he wasn't consistent in the play, played a very important role. To give us an insight ... is included. The most important minor character that has influenced the final tragedy of the play was Friar Lawrence. The roles that these characters play set the mood, influences the ending and reveals important information about themselves or other characters. Mercutio played a very important role for a character that was only there for a short period time...

• Word Count: 773
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

... in the centre of the novel. The book is based on human relationships and events which are mostly told by the characters themselves, so they convince us about their reality. We can get to know the various opinions of the characters so we can not decide easily. Sometimes you feel the story very close to you but other times it is far ... from your personal view. Some parts of the story are confused and improbable. Because of these it is quite difficult to understand the relationship between the characters. Emily Bronte makes it more difficult by using signs, allusions and comparisons inste...

• Word Count: 1312
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... through the story and on the other hand there is Gatsby, a man caught up in the corruptions of his own life. Let's study these two different characters. Unlike Nick, Gatsby does not develop in the course of the story. He cannot because his whole life is devoted to the fulfillment of a romantic ... by Nick about Gatsby's life, is also a story of Nick's own development in the story. In the beginning Nick is already a sophisticated observer of characters but reserves his personal judgement, remaining uninvolved in the sense that he is not willing to act upon what he feels are the faults of ...

• Word Count: 788
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School