In every great literary work, there is a symbolic element, and irony, making the author’s message more tangible and realistic. As we compare the novels, Sophie’s World, Moby Dick, and East of Eden, we start to see two respective themes in common that the author expresses. One of which, is freewill, the power of choice and the other good vs. evil. As the drama increases, we start to see that both themes become interdependent of one another. In the three novels, these are in fact the two major themes that lead to the climatic scenes.
In the novel, Sophie’s World, Guarder (the author) incorporates literature, history and philosophy together. Sophie Amundson, who is the protagonist of the book, becomes enlightened with philosophical schooling through the mail by a man name, Alberto Knag. Although when reading this book, you then start to realize that Sophie Amundson wasn’t an ordinary character. In fact she wasn’t real. Albert Knox, a real character in the book, made Sophie up to enlighten his daughter, Hilde with the questions of life. Even though his intentions were genuinely good, he represents the evil of the book in Sophie’s World, whereas Sophie represents the good.
Albert Knag is writing Sophie’s life. He basically controls her mentality, and her physical well-being, yet he isn’t god. In reality the only freedom that Sophie has is what Alberto allows. Yet, despite the fact that Sophie is a figment of Alberto’s imagination, she’s still able to break free from her fate and exercise some of her own thoughts as well. In the novel Moby Dick, the narrator, Ishmael tells the story of his adventures whaling with a rather odd and diverse crew. The good and the evil vary in this book because there are so many comparisons.
The Essay on Bad Things Good Evil Boethius
In book III of The Consolation of Philosophy, Boethius establishes the fact that God is the world's helmsman, the divine reason, the supreme good, the origin of all things. He demonstrates that God is omnipotent and omniscient. Nothing more superior can even be conceived of. Through the concept of unity, through which things basically become good, Boethius shows that God and happiness are one, the ...
One that caught my eye was when Queequeg exhibited some sort of disease that was fatal. The disease represents death, and death representing the evil that Queequeg was experiencing. Obviously the good in this represents life, to live. Although death was inevitable due to lack of modern medicine, Queequeg decided to live, and he recovered. By that we can see that Queequeg bestowed his own freewill, even when fate was decided.
There again we see a character turning his own predestined fate around to his liking. As we get to East of Eden we see the same thing happening as to all the other characters. In this book, Stienback composes many characters that all meet up with each other. One of the relations in which demonstrates good and evil and free-will is between Adam’s atrocious wife, Cathy Trask and their son Caleb Trask. Cathy was a careless and moral less character, and Caleb wasn’t an admirable character either. Though in the story both characters show signs of similarity, but in this relation Cathy is represented as the evil and Caleb is represented as the Good.
This is because as we near the end of the book Caleb wanted to see his mother, Cathy to see if she really was as bad as people says. Then when Caleb saw her he knew it was true. She then told him that he was part of her, in other words, he’s just like her and he will never amount to anything more. Caleb on the other hand decides that he will not be like her. He will live out his life his way. He therefore chooses well over evil.
In these three novels, the two themes are interdependent of one another. In Sophie’s World, Sophie is able to escape her fate of being a mindless character in Albert’s imagination. Queequeg in Moby Dick is able to escape death because he had the will power to do so and Caleb in East of Eden was able to make his own choices about what he wanted to be in life. For these characters it was a battle between good and evil, and the battle of unwanted fate. It was freewill that aided them to triumph over evil.
The Essay on Good and Evil in Beowulf
The story of Beowulf was probably composed in England sometime in the Eighth Century AD, and written down circa 1000 AD, by a literate scop (bard) or perhaps a Christian scribe who was possibly educated in a monastery. The poem was created in oral tradition and was transferred to writing over time. It had its roots in folk tales and traditional stories until some very talented poet put it in ...
