CONCLUSION

In this course, since the beginning to the end of the stories, novels and legends, I learned many important details, one proposes of the course how to critique, but also how to analyze every single detail from each story. Also I learned much new vocabulary from the stories, and this is one of the parts more important for me in whole the course. However not only critique, also to make the reading skill more strong, because it was one of my weaknesses.

And now I know that I have improved a lot it. in this moment I am a teacher in a high school, everything that I have learned, I have put it in practice with my students and also I can give to them advises about how to get the main idea from a text, as I learned getting the main idea from the stories, legends and novels. I know that in my future like a teacher I have to learn a lot and not only like a teacher also like a person, because I want to get my degree and my future degrees. I know that just with my effort I can get them.

ERICK CECILIANO MATAMOROS

THE LEGEND OF SLEEPY HOLLOW

Settings

The year was 1820, Sleepy Hollow was written by Washington Irving. According to the movie, it was produced by Tim Burton in 1999. The action takes place first in New York, when some people started to know about many mysterious deaths. Victims had lost their heads. So Ichabod Crane was sent to Sleepy Hollow in order to investigate all deaths and tried to find the murderer of this crimes. Then, Mr. Crane was to Sleepy Hollow and the rest of the story is developed in that place. Also, it can say that there is another place inside the forest; it is the tree where the grave of the headless horseman was. And that tree was a gate between two worlds: real world and the hell.

Main characters

Ichabod Crane - The protagonist of the story, he was sent to investigate murderers in Sleepy Hollow.

Katrina Van Tassel - Ichabod's love interest and only heir to one of the neighborhood's richest farmers.

Baltus Van Tassel - After Peter Van Garret is murdered, he is placed as the leader of the city, he dies when the horseman drives a fence post through his body Baltus currently being inside a church, which the Horseman cannot enter-, subsequently pulling him out of the window to behead him.

Lady Van Tassel / Witch – Wife of Baltus and stepmother of Katrina, the true main villain of the film, she is the one controlling the horseman as she has his head, which he is looking for; she dies when the Horseman takes her back to hell with him.

Young Masbath - An orphan who looks towards Ichabod as a father figure after his own father is murdered by the Horseman. In the act he helps him investigate the murders of the Headless Horseman alongside Katrina.

Brom Van Brunt - A strong man who is somewhat romantically involved with Katrina. He's hostile to Ichabod upon meeting him, and later ends up dying at the hands of the horseman by being cut in half through the waist while attempting to stop him.

Reverend Steenwyck - The reverend of the village and is shot by Baltus Van Tassel after he kills Lancaster with the wooden cross.

Doctor Lancaster - The only doctor and surgeon in the village and murdered by Steenwyck in the church when he is struck on the head with a cross to prevent him revealing the plot. He was having an affair with servant girl Sarah (murdered by Lady van Tassel)

Notary Handerbrook - The local banker and possibly the oldest citizen in the village. He dies when he commits suicide by hanging

Magistrate Philipse - The town's magistrate who is the sixth victim of the Headless Horseman.

The Headless Horseman - A brutal and sadistic Hessian mercenary sent to America during the American Revolutionary War.

Type of work

Sleepy Hollow is a legend written by Washington Irving in 1820, also there is a movie about it, it was produced by Tim Burton.

Date and place of story

The Legend of Sleepy Hollow was written in 1820 in England.

Point of view

It is protagonist.

The Hero and the Villains

Story`s Hero: Ichabod Crane. Who was the one who decrypted that someone was controlling the headless horseman. And, he still looked for information in that place until the end of the nightmare.

Story`s Villains: The headless horseman, he was killing people which they were chosen. And Lady Van Tassel who controlled the horseman, also she was a witch, when she was a child, she saw when some people killed the Horseman, then she said that “if the horseman back to the life, she will give her soul to the evil”.

Mythological Criticism

In Sleepy Hollow there are some beliefs like fate, there was a church with holly land like cemetery, where the horseman cannot enter. Also there is another face of fate, when Lady Van Tassel had fate in the evil and in bad spirits also her witchcrafts.
They belief in the power of nature, there was a headless horseman, and many satanic symbols, but the symbol which was under the Mr. Crane`s bed was a romantic one.

Images

Death: there are many dead, much blood is shed and heads rolled.

Birth: birth of a new creature in order to kill and decapitate the most important people in the town. (Headless Horseman)

Eternity: Evil. People can stop it, but never destroy it.

Colors

Red: Blood, sacrifice, violence

In this story there were a lot of bloodshed, and many men were killed and decapitate by the headless horseman no mercy for them.

Green: hope, fertility, death, decay
Hope that people in the town had in order to stop their murders and how to control the horseman also to know why he has been killed.

Numbers

Four: life cycle, four seasons, four elements; female.
It was the same life cycle for the headless horseman. He killed because Lady Van Tassel controlled him, but he cut his victims` heads because he was looking his own head. And always men are persuaded by female since early times. (Lady Van Tassel controls the horseman.

Motifs

Immortality: Evil, since early times around human beings.

Woman:

Protection: Katina Van Tassel was protecting Mr Crane because she loved him. So she drew symbols in order to protect him.

Witch: Lady Van Tassel was looking revenge to all the people who did not help her and her family when they were poor.

Beowulf

The most interesting part for me is the presence of Beowulf, when he says "I am Beowulf" in order to demostrate his power and confidence towards the people.

Settings
The time is the dark ages, between 500 and 700 A.D. The action takes place first in a Danish kingdom ruled by Hrothgar. Then in a great mead hall of the king, Beowulf confronts a monster that has been terrorizing the king and his men. Finally in the land of the Geats in Sweden, Beowulf confronts a dragon terrorizing his own land.

Main characters
Beowulf - The protagonist of the epic, Beowulf is a Geatish hero who fights the monster Grendel, Grendel’s mother, and a fire-breathing dragon. Beowulf’s boasts and encounters reveal him to be the strongest, ablest warrior around. In his youth, he personifies all of the best values of the heroic culture. In his old age, he proves a wise and effective ruler.
King Hrothgar - The king of the Danes. Hrothgar enjoys military success and prosperity until Grendel terrorizes his realm. A wise and aged ruler, Hrothgar represents a different kind of leadership from that exhibited by the youthful warrior Beowulf. He is a father figure to Beowulf and a model for the kind of king that Beowulf becomes.
Grendel - A demon descended from Cain, Grendel preys on Hrothgar’s warriors in the king’s mead-hall, Heorot. Because his ruthless and miserable existence is part of the retribution exacted by God for Cain’s murder of Abel, Grendel fits solidly within the ethos of vengeance that governs the world of the poem.
Grendel’s mother - An unnamed swamp-hag, Grendel’s mother seems to possess fewer human qualities than Grendel, although her terrorization of Heorot is explained by her desire for vengeance—a human motivation.
The dragon - An ancient, powerful serpent, the dragon guards a horde of treasure in a hidden mound. Beowulf’s fight with the dragon constitutes the third and final part of the epic.

Other Danes
Shield Sheafson - The legendary Danish king from whom Hrothgar is descended, Shield Sheafson is the mythical founder who inaugurates a long line of Danish rulers and embodies the Danish tribe’s highest values of heroism and leadership. The poem opens with a brief account of his rise from orphan to warrior-king, concluding.
Halfdane - The father of Hrothgar, Heorogar, Halga, and an unnamed daughter who married a king of the Swedes, Halfdane succeeded Beow as ruler of the Danes.
Wealhtheow - Hrothgar’s wife, the gracious queen of the Danes.
Unferth - A Danish warrior who is jealous of Beowulf, Unferth is unable or unwilling to fight Grendel, thus proving himself inferior to Beowulf.
Hrethric - Hrothgar’s elder son, Hrethric stands to inherit the Danish throne, but Hrethric’s older cousin Hrothulf will prevent him from doing so. Beowulf offers to support the youngster’s prospect of becoming king by hosting him in Geatland and giving him guidance.
Hrothulf - Hrothgars nephew, Hrothulf betrays and usurps his cousin, Hrethic, the rightful heir to the Danish throne. Hrothulf’s treachery contrasts with Beowulf’s loyalty to Hygelac in helping his son to the throne.
Aeschere - Hrothgar’s trusted adviser.

Other Geats
Hygelac - Beowulf’s uncle, king of the Geats, and husband of Hygd. Hygelac heartily welcomes Beowulf back from Denmark.
Hygd - Hygelac’s wife, the young, beautiful, and intelligent queen of the Geats. Hygd is contrasted with Queen Modthryth.
Wiglaf - A young kinsman and retainer of Beowulf who helps him in the fight against the dragon while all of the other warriors run away. Wiglaf adheres to the heroic code better than Beowulf’s other retainers, thereby proving himself a suitable successor to Beowulf.
Ecgtheow - Beowulf’s father, Hygelac’s brother-in-law, and Hrothgar’s friend. Ecgtheow is dead by the time the story begins, but he lives on through the noble reputation that he made for himself during his life and in his dutiful son’s remembrances.
King Hrethel - The Geatish king who took Beowulf in as a ward after the death of Ecgtheow, Beowulf’s father.
Breca - Beowulf’s childhood friend, whom he defeated in a swimming match. Unferth alludes to the story of their contest, and Beowulf then relates it in detail.

Type of work
Beowulf is an epic, a long poem telling a story about a hero and his exploits. Beowulf consists of 3 182 lines written in old English (native language of the author`s time and place.
Date and place of story
Beowulf was probably composed between 700 A.D and 900 A.D. The place was Northumbria, an important kingdom.
Transmission of the story
Beowulf was first transmitted orally for one to three centuries. Although its author did not write it down, two English scribes did so in about 1000 A.D. their manuscript, considered one of the great heirlooms of the world literature, is now preserved in the British Library in London.
Structure
Beowulf is divided chronologically into two main sections, one focuses on Beowulf as a young man and one that focuses him as an old man.
Point of view
The poet tells the tale in omniscient third person point of view from a Christian perspective.
The Hero and the Villains
Poem`s Hero: Beowulf, a mighty warrior from the land of Geats in Sweden. He is noble, courageous, bold, and stronger by far than any other living mortal.
Poem`s Villains: Grendel, a foul marsh-dweller born of the hatred of the Biblical Cain. Grendel`s mother, a loathsome fiend protected by sea monsters. A fire-breathing dragon that can destroy an entire town with a mere exhale.

Mythological Criticism

Beowulf story has communal beliefs like fate towards Beowulf when he says that he is going to kill the monster Grendel. Also they have beliefs in religion; they have a God called Odin.
They belief in the power of nature, but in the case of Beowulf anything can stop him in order to get what he wants. As example, when Beowulf is on the sea with a strong winds and strong storm, and his men are afraid about what is going to happen, but Beowulf tells them, that nothing is going to happen and if they want to still alive, they must rowing.

Images
Death: there are many dead, many blood is shed.
Birth: birth of a new creature in order to destroy the kingdom. (dragon)
Life cycle: everything happens in the same way like Hrothgar, when he was young. With the different that Beowulf killed his curse and Hrothgar`s.
Eternity: Grendel`s mother

Colors
Red: Blood, sacrifice, violence
In this tale there were a lot of bloodshed, and many men were sacrificed by the monsters, also violence by these monsters.
Green: hope, fertility, death, decay
Hope that the kingdom got when Beowulf came to the town in order to kill the monster. When Beowulf killed Grendel, Grendel`s mother went to the town and killed Beowulf`s men. (The beginning of his curse)

Numbers
Four: life cycle, four seasons, four elements; female.
It was the same life cycle like Hrothgar. Four seasons; winter, summer, fall, spring. There are four elements; earth, water, fire and air. And always men are persuaded by female since early times.

Motifs
Immortality: Grendel`s mother was the same monster with the pass of the time, she does not get old.
Wise old man (woman): there were two persons who helped Beowulf when he was desperate.Wiglaf and Wealhtheow.

Woman:
Protection: Grendel`s mother wants to protect her son. When he died, she took revenge.
Witch: Grendel`s mother, because they cannot kill her, and always she gets what she wants.

Hero archetypes:
Sacrificial scapegoat: the hero in this case Beowulf died in order to save his people.
Victim: when Beowulf is dying, he feels destroyed and like a victim about his act in the past.

NIGHT WITHOUT END

Night without end

Thriller novel
1959

By Scottish Alistair Maclean

"An British Airways airplane crash-lands on the Greenland ice cap far from its usual route after flying in a seemingly erratic fashion. A scientific research team based near the crash site rescues the surviving passengers and takes them to their station. The team finds that one passenger and most of the flight crew are dead with one of the pilots to be shot in the back. The only means of contact with the outside world, a radio set, is destroyed in a seemingly accidental manner. With not enough food for everyone and no hope of rescue, the leader of the scientific research team, Dr Mason, decides that they must set out for the nearest settlement. Meanwhile the pilot who was shot and in a coma is found to have been suffocated. An attempt is also made on Dr Mason life by getting him to be lost in the arctic night. The scientists suspicion falls on stewardess but she is soon cleared. Dr Mason orders the radio operator, London, to stay behind and repair the radio so that a field expedition can be contacted".

Some important details about this novel will be interesting because we can see them as wrong acts or excellent acts from the characters. What will we do in the characters situation? Can you imagine yourself in the Greenland ice, without enough foot, no hope of rescue and in the worse of the cases you have to depend of someone else` decisions. Well in the previous two texts above they tell you as a summary what happen in the story and you can think and imagine what will you do in that situation or what is going to happen with the character at that moment.

The first truth that characters had to endure is that there was no hope to rescue them, the second one is there were no enough food for them. And another truth was that there were murderers and they were scared about their life. They had to endure the stress to think who were the criminals and then tried to survive.

That was a hard decision because they were thinking about what was going to happen with the people alive, without care too much who were killing people.
Let`s think for a moment what will do in the character`s situation. Well in my case I will be worried about who are or who the killer is, and then will be worried about food, because when the food will end, people in that place will become frustrated about what is going to happen with us, and it is difficult to follow orders from someone else in that situation of chaos or panic. In part of the story Dr. Mason took the control of the situation, but not all the people were agree with that decision.

They manage to catch up the criminals near the shore where a trawler waits for the criminals. But the intervention of navy, on information from Captain Hillcrest, frightens off the trawler. The criminals are surrounded here and after a bitter hand to hand combat between the protagonists and the criminals, the mechanism and the hostages are rescued.

At the end of the story they got the criminals and rescuers saved the Scientifics , of couser with some help from the marine crew.

These are questions from the story:

how will you feel with a night without end?

and

what will you do in the situation of the scientifics?

too difficult right? if you answer these question you will understand in a better way the novel and the character`s feelings.

A BRAVE NEW WORLD

A Brave New World 1932


World War I ended


Science + technology

This is a novel was developed in London, where there were some labs (nursery rooms) in order to procreate new humans beings with different abilities about their development and improvement. Also, they used to drink a substance called soma, it is like a dream-inducing drug. In their labs they separated babies in several groups according their necessities, like some of them will become a lawyers, teachers, athletes among others. Groups of these babies are alpha, beta, delta, epsilon and gamma. They grouped several babies, so if they want that these babies hate book and flowers, they put the babies in small rooms, then when they see a picture about flowers or books, an alarm sound too loud until the babies cry and in this way they will hate books and flowers. At the end of the novel they destroy the labs and people left to drink soma.

NEW WORLD

Perfect, conditioned, moderm, high tech, liberal, goverment, no love.

MALPAIS

Poverty, sickness, booze, freedom, religion.

"In my opinion this process in order to conditioned babies is wrong, because we as humans beings cannot take out opportunities or desires of each person, just because we are talking about their future, and we cannot take, give or teach what they are going to become in the future. Everybody has the chance to obtain the best for them in order to improve every day. However each person has the decision in order to have a better future or worse. It is not depends of us"

CHARACTERS
Thomas "Tomakin", Alpha, Director of Hatcheries and Conditioning for London; later revealed to be the father of John the Savage.
Henry Foster, Alpha, Administrator at the Hatchery and Lenina's current partner.
Lenina Crowne, Beta-Plus, Vaccination-worker at the Hatchery; loved by John the Savage.
Mustapha Mond, Alpha-Double Plus, World Controller for Western Europe, Assistant Director of Predestination.
Bernard Marx, Alpha-Plus but anomalously small, psychologist. He dates Lenina for a short period of time.
Fanny Crowne, Beta, embryo worker; a friend, but not a relation, of Lenina.
Benito Hoover, Alpha, friend of Lenina; disliked by Bernard.
Helmholtz Watson, Alpha-Plus, lecturer at the College of Emotional Engineering, friend and confidant of Bernard Marx and John the Savage.

At the Solidarity Service
Miss Keate, headmistress of the high-tech glass and concrete Eton College.
Arch-Community Songster, a quasi-religious figure based in Canterbury.
Primo Mellon, a reporter for the upper-caste news-sheet Hourly Radio, who attempts to interview John the Savage and gets assaulted for his troubles.
Darwin Bonaparte, a press photographer who brings worldwide attention to John's mother.

Of Malpais

John the Savage ("Mr. Savage"), son of Linda and Thomas, an outcast in both primitive and modern society. He is one of the main protagonists in the story. He commits suicide in the end.
Linda, a Beta-Minus. John the Savage's mother, and Thomas's long lost lover. She is from England and was pregnant with John when she got lost from Thomas in a trip to New Mexico. She is disliked by both savage people because of her "civilized" behaviour, and by civilized people because she is fat and looks old.
Popé, a native of Malpais. Although he reinforces the behaviour that causes hatred for Linda in Malpais by sleeping with her and bringing her mezcal, he still holds the traditional beliefs of his tribe. John also attempts to kill him, in his early years.

A DOLL`S HOUSE

A DOLL`S HOUSE

Characters

Nora - The protagonist of the play and the wife of Torvald Helmer.

Torvald Helmer - Nora’s husband. Torvald wants his new position at the bank, just as he wants in his position of authority as a husband. He treats Nora like a child.

Krogstad - A lawyer who went to school with Torvald and holds a subordinate position at Torvald’s bank.

Mrs. Linde - Nora’s childhood friend.

Dr. Rank - Torvald’s best friend. Dr. Rank stands out as the one character in the play who is by and large unconcerned with what others think of him.

Bob, Emmy, and Ivar - Nora and Torvald’s three small children.

Anne-Marie - The Helmers’ nanny. Though Ibsen doesn’t fully develop her character.

Nora’s father - Though Nora’s father is dead before the action of the play begins, the characters refer to him throughout the play. Though she clearly loves and admires her father, Nora also comes to blame him for contributing to her subservient position in life.

This play talks about the low status of women at Ibsen`s time, around year 1879. This play performances about is a sharp critique of the traditional roles of men and women in the area of marriage. According to Ibsen`s play women did not have the choice to choose their own destiny. They just grew up from their childhood and when they were twenty years old at least; their parents took the decision to elect their husbands in order to get a strong economic situation with no care about girls’ feelings. However this is happening nowadays in our world with the girls from the country side, where their parents just think about a man who can get marry with their girl, help her in order to study and help her family a little bit. Let say economic support. At that time, men thought they were more important than woman, also they thought women did not have the abilities in order to get their goals by themselves. If woman got her goals, it was because of man`s support.

Some ideas about feminism from the play

1. The woman should be weak and passive (because it has a lower body strength than men)
2. It follows that has been created to give pleasure and submit to him
3. The man has to use its power when looking for pleasure, but must follow the wishes it.
4. The stronger sex should, apparently, own and depend, in fact, the weakest.

"CONCLUSION: "Woman has been created to give pleasure and be subject to man."

Nowadays, times have changed as example, our new president. Our president is a woman who got to the power because of her firm decisions and her strong character. These are some characteristics about her. It represents that people can get what they desire if they really want it.

CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

SETTING The first part takes place in Mr. Bucket`s house and the rest is developed in Mr. Wonka's factory

CHARACTERS Mr. and Mrs. Bucket, Grandpa Joe and Josephine, Grandpa George and Georgina, Charlie Bucket, Mr. Wonka, August Gloop, Veruca salt, Violet Beauregard, Mike Teavee and Oompa Loompas

CLIMAX Mr. Wonka offers his factory to Charlie

COMPLICATION 1 Charlie and his family were poor, so Charlie wanted a chocolate for his birthday, so he got it from his parents in order to get the golden ticket.

COMPLICATION 2 Golden Ticket, Charlie found the golden ticket, the last one.

COMPLICATION 3 August Gloop is so greedy and do not stop eating and his behavior leave him to fall into the river of chocolate.

COMPLICATION 4 Veruca Salt, rich, vicious and selfish person. She is so desesperated when she tries to catch a squirrel, she falls down into the pipe which takes her to disposal garbage.

COMPLICATION 5 Violet is an obsessive fan chewing gum. She loses her mind when she is chewing gum meal and tastes it, however Mr. Wonka tries to stop her. She turns purple and blew up like a balloon (Giant grape), then she becomes flexible.

RESOLUTIONS
Violet still purple but she does not blow up
August Glood gets flat and thin
Veruca Salt gets dirty and full of garbage
Mike Teavee stretched out
Charlie lives in the Chocolate Factory with his family