Hasty Generalization: Brad didn't apologise after he stepped on my foot, he just walked away. Brad is a total douche.
Stereotype: He's British, he must like tea, talk funny, and have bad teeth.
Cause and Effect: When I pointed at my front door, the doorbell rang. Therefore, I'm magical.
Only Cause: We will eliminate obesity by not eating fast food.
False Analogy: Beating this team is as important assassinating Hitler.
Attacking the Person: There's no way we're listening to Jim's directions, he got lost in his own hometown!
Either-Or: Either eat all of what I gave you, or you're not eating at all.
Non-sequitur: I can't talk, there are no carrots in the house.
Circular Reasoning: He's amazing at all sports yet he never gloats. He should get all A's.
Begging the Question: Well, duh it waz sold outtt, Twlight<333 is teh besttt moviie EvErrrr!!!!(<~~notice the obnoxious instant message language and the sarcasism)
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Syllogisms
Correct
1.)
-Yeast causes bread dough to rise
-Pan au rustic (a bread) rises
-Pan au rustic contains yeast
2.)
-Players get hurt in contact sports
-Football is a contact sport
-Players get hurt in football
3.)
-All primary colors have a secondary color
-Red is a primary color
-Red has a secondary color
4.)
-Convex lenses can start fires
-Tom wears glasses with convex lenses
-Tom could start a fire
Incorrect
1.)
-All #2 wooden pencils are yellow
-My pencil is a #2
-My pencil is yellow
~This is wrong because not all #2 wooden pencils are yellow,for example the seasonal printed pencils(i.e. Christmas).
2.)
-The Red Sox beat the Yankees
-The Yankees beat the White Sox
-The Red Sox can beat the White Sox
~This is wrong because this is not necessarily true. Perhaps the White Sox were down a player when the Yankees beat them.
3.)
-Blondes are stupid
-Wanda is blonde
-Wanda is stupid
~This is wrong because not all blondes are stupid, that is a sterotype. A counter example might be any blonde in this AP class (i.e.-Kerri, Nathaniel, etc.)
4.)
-Siblings share rooms
-Jon and Janet are siblings
-Jon and Janet share a room
~This is wrong because not all siblings share rooms, I am sure that several people in this AP class can prove this.
1.)
-Yeast causes bread dough to rise
-Pan au rustic (a bread) rises
-Pan au rustic contains yeast
2.)
-Players get hurt in contact sports
-Football is a contact sport
-Players get hurt in football
3.)
-All primary colors have a secondary color
-Red is a primary color
-Red has a secondary color
4.)
-Convex lenses can start fires
-Tom wears glasses with convex lenses
-Tom could start a fire
Incorrect
1.)
-All #2 wooden pencils are yellow
-My pencil is a #2
-My pencil is yellow
~This is wrong because not all #2 wooden pencils are yellow,for example the seasonal printed pencils(i.e. Christmas).
2.)
-The Red Sox beat the Yankees
-The Yankees beat the White Sox
-The Red Sox can beat the White Sox
~This is wrong because this is not necessarily true. Perhaps the White Sox were down a player when the Yankees beat them.
3.)
-Blondes are stupid
-Wanda is blonde
-Wanda is stupid
~This is wrong because not all blondes are stupid, that is a sterotype. A counter example might be any blonde in this AP class (i.e.-Kerri, Nathaniel, etc.)
4.)
-Siblings share rooms
-Jon and Janet are siblings
-Jon and Janet share a room
~This is wrong because not all siblings share rooms, I am sure that several people in this AP class can prove this.
Pride&Prejudice Proposal
Rachael Kerr
AP English 11
October 3, 2009
Pride and Prejudice
Rewritten proposal
My dearest Elizabeth, from the moment I laid eyes on you, I knew you would be mine. I could have chosen from any of you sisters, but nay. I could have taken any woman where I was from, but nay. I did not want them; none of the compare to your silent beauty. It may seem that I am getting ahead of myself, but that is what you have done to me. You enflame my very heart, which boils my mind, and knots my stomach. It pains me when you are not near, for these symptoms only grow worse. I need you in my life, or I fear they will kill me.
I hope I am not frightening you with my feelings, but they are so violent within me, I cannot hold them any longer. Although I know we have not had too many chances-closer to none- to know each other at all, I want- no, I need- these chances. Please, let us figure each other out, together, forever. I can tell you about me, and it would please me to hear about you: I am a clergyman, desiring marriage to a fair maiden, but shaking to the core, awaiting her answer. Perhaps in the future you might learn more about me, and I might learn about you.
My love, you make me slur my words, you make my heart skip several beats, you make me think irrational thoughts. But I do not care for these ill-effects. For I know, when you accept my hand, my heart will undergo a final surge, and then settle and rest in you. And my hopes will be that you rest your own in mine. Please, I humbly plead, consider me. In being your husband, I will love you, cherish you, and stay by you forever. I will not judge you based on the actions of your family (as did Mr. Darcy). I will never judge you, but if I did, it would be based on you and only you.
I know this all must seem very humorous to you; to think that someone as gauche as myself asking for your hand in marriage. But please, gentle angel, do not laugh, unless in the bliss of pleasant surprise. I am completely serious in my proposal; although I am sure my disposition gives an air of jest. I have, over and over and over again, recited the words to this proposal in my head, but now that I repeat it in your presence, I have forgotten how to speak. I must sound very plain, but all my eloquence is lost after one look into your majestic eyes. So I will take a breath and try once more.
My lovely Elizabeth, my heart goes out to you, pleading as a young lad does for a puppy; only this matter is much more serious. I want to be with you, forever. I want to take your slender hand and fix a ring upon it, so brilliant it seems to be made of moonlight. If you accept my proposal, please know that you will have made me the absolute happiness in the history of the entire universe. Knowing that every morning, I will be able to roll over to your delicate features, softly breathing, to sniff your hair, the scent of angels, and to hold you in my arms, to protect you from everything. Elizabeth, will you marry me?
AP English 11
October 3, 2009
Pride and Prejudice
Rewritten proposal
My dearest Elizabeth, from the moment I laid eyes on you, I knew you would be mine. I could have chosen from any of you sisters, but nay. I could have taken any woman where I was from, but nay. I did not want them; none of the compare to your silent beauty. It may seem that I am getting ahead of myself, but that is what you have done to me. You enflame my very heart, which boils my mind, and knots my stomach. It pains me when you are not near, for these symptoms only grow worse. I need you in my life, or I fear they will kill me.
I hope I am not frightening you with my feelings, but they are so violent within me, I cannot hold them any longer. Although I know we have not had too many chances-closer to none- to know each other at all, I want- no, I need- these chances. Please, let us figure each other out, together, forever. I can tell you about me, and it would please me to hear about you: I am a clergyman, desiring marriage to a fair maiden, but shaking to the core, awaiting her answer. Perhaps in the future you might learn more about me, and I might learn about you.
My love, you make me slur my words, you make my heart skip several beats, you make me think irrational thoughts. But I do not care for these ill-effects. For I know, when you accept my hand, my heart will undergo a final surge, and then settle and rest in you. And my hopes will be that you rest your own in mine. Please, I humbly plead, consider me. In being your husband, I will love you, cherish you, and stay by you forever. I will not judge you based on the actions of your family (as did Mr. Darcy). I will never judge you, but if I did, it would be based on you and only you.
I know this all must seem very humorous to you; to think that someone as gauche as myself asking for your hand in marriage. But please, gentle angel, do not laugh, unless in the bliss of pleasant surprise. I am completely serious in my proposal; although I am sure my disposition gives an air of jest. I have, over and over and over again, recited the words to this proposal in my head, but now that I repeat it in your presence, I have forgotten how to speak. I must sound very plain, but all my eloquence is lost after one look into your majestic eyes. So I will take a breath and try once more.
My lovely Elizabeth, my heart goes out to you, pleading as a young lad does for a puppy; only this matter is much more serious. I want to be with you, forever. I want to take your slender hand and fix a ring upon it, so brilliant it seems to be made of moonlight. If you accept my proposal, please know that you will have made me the absolute happiness in the history of the entire universe. Knowing that every morning, I will be able to roll over to your delicate features, softly breathing, to sniff your hair, the scent of angels, and to hold you in my arms, to protect you from everything. Elizabeth, will you marry me?
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Pathos, Logos, Ethos in Pride and Prejudice
Rachael Kerr
AP English 11
September 29,2009
Mr. Collins marriage proposal to Elizabeth in Pride and Prejudice was completely wrong; his proposal contained inaccurate proportions of Pathos(emotion), Logos(logic), and Ethos (character).
Mr. Collins marriage proposal became more of an argument because of his unneeded amount of Logos. In his speech, he tried to convince Elizabeth to agree to marriage through more logistical thinking than his undying love for her. Although logic is not a bad thing, it just has no place in a marriage proposal, or at least not as the most of the words. In expressing himself, Mr. Collins made it seem as though this were a well-memorized paper, practiced in front of a mirror, not a heart-felt request: “My reasons for marrying are, first, that I think it a right thing for every clergyman…to set the example of matrimony…Secondly, …it will add greatly to my happiness…and thirdly…it is the particular advice and recommendation of the…patroness” (Austen). In this excerpt, he sounded as though he were convincing her of a business transaction, not a ring on her finger. He imparted way too much logic for such an emotional speech like a marriage proposal, and did not consider his own or his listener’s feelings.
In addition to overrun of Logos, Mr. Collins lacked a large part of a marriage proposal, which was Pathos. In his introduction, while it was weak, Mr. Collins did seem to be going down a better path compared to the rest of his argument. However, he stopped himself, and then inserted logic which became the crux of his monologue: “But before I am run away with my feelings on this subject, perhaps it will be advisable for me to state my reasons for marrying”(Austen). Again, his diction gives off an air of business, rather than affection. This lack of any emotion in his proposal made his speech so bland, and lifeless, that if one were to remove any word that directly denoted marriage (e.g. marry, marriage, bride, the complements), the entire text would be able to be substituted for a business proposal. There are many mistakes that Mr. Collins made in his marriage proposal, but in the end, they all link to inaccurate proportions of pathos, logos, and ethos.
Mr. Collins did not create a very good idea of the kind of person he was; he attempted, when he explained he was clergyman, but nothing else described him or his feelings. To write this better, Mr. Collins would need to get in touch with his feelings more, and less in touch with his brain. In actuality, if I were to rewrite it, I would first need to remove all traces of logos; unfortunately this is the majority of his speech, which would remove most of the text(which is not as bad as it sounds because Mr. Collins is just very long-winded). Then, I would need to impart the largest amount of pathos that I can. Finally, I would need to put in some ethos every here and there because this girl doesn’t really have much of an idea of who I am. After all of that, I would come to realize that I probably would have no trace amounts of Mr. Collins original argument and that I could have just very well written a completely new proposal, but I digress.
AP English 11
September 29,2009
Mr. Collins marriage proposal to Elizabeth in Pride and Prejudice was completely wrong; his proposal contained inaccurate proportions of Pathos(emotion), Logos(logic), and Ethos (character).
Mr. Collins marriage proposal became more of an argument because of his unneeded amount of Logos. In his speech, he tried to convince Elizabeth to agree to marriage through more logistical thinking than his undying love for her. Although logic is not a bad thing, it just has no place in a marriage proposal, or at least not as the most of the words. In expressing himself, Mr. Collins made it seem as though this were a well-memorized paper, practiced in front of a mirror, not a heart-felt request: “My reasons for marrying are, first, that I think it a right thing for every clergyman…to set the example of matrimony…Secondly, …it will add greatly to my happiness…and thirdly…it is the particular advice and recommendation of the…patroness” (Austen). In this excerpt, he sounded as though he were convincing her of a business transaction, not a ring on her finger. He imparted way too much logic for such an emotional speech like a marriage proposal, and did not consider his own or his listener’s feelings.
In addition to overrun of Logos, Mr. Collins lacked a large part of a marriage proposal, which was Pathos. In his introduction, while it was weak, Mr. Collins did seem to be going down a better path compared to the rest of his argument. However, he stopped himself, and then inserted logic which became the crux of his monologue: “But before I am run away with my feelings on this subject, perhaps it will be advisable for me to state my reasons for marrying”(Austen). Again, his diction gives off an air of business, rather than affection. This lack of any emotion in his proposal made his speech so bland, and lifeless, that if one were to remove any word that directly denoted marriage (e.g. marry, marriage, bride, the complements), the entire text would be able to be substituted for a business proposal. There are many mistakes that Mr. Collins made in his marriage proposal, but in the end, they all link to inaccurate proportions of pathos, logos, and ethos.
Mr. Collins did not create a very good idea of the kind of person he was; he attempted, when he explained he was clergyman, but nothing else described him or his feelings. To write this better, Mr. Collins would need to get in touch with his feelings more, and less in touch with his brain. In actuality, if I were to rewrite it, I would first need to remove all traces of logos; unfortunately this is the majority of his speech, which would remove most of the text(which is not as bad as it sounds because Mr. Collins is just very long-winded). Then, I would need to impart the largest amount of pathos that I can. Finally, I would need to put in some ethos every here and there because this girl doesn’t really have much of an idea of who I am. After all of that, I would come to realize that I probably would have no trace amounts of Mr. Collins original argument and that I could have just very well written a completely new proposal, but I digress.
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Huckleberry Finn Notes- Social Critique
The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn as a Social Critique
o “Aunt Sally says she’s going to adopt me and sivilize me and I can’t stand it” (307)
• By saying this, Huck demonstrates the ignorance of the South and their content with such
o “‘What was the trouble about, Buck?’ ‘…I don’t know.’” (120)
• Here we see Huck talking to a boy his own age (Buck) about a feud between Buck’s family and a neighboring family. Buck replies that he doesn’t know, which demonstrates two points
The feud goes back a long way (never-ending wrath)
No one has tried to find a reason to fight (blind rage)
o Gender morality played a large part in the social critique
• “‘You do a girl terrible poor, but you might fool men, maybe…Why, I spotted you for a boy when you was threading the needle; and I contrived the other things to make certain’” (Twain, 72)
When Huck dressed as a girl, the woman tests to see if he is really a girl with a sequence of situations and judging based on how a girl should act, and how Huck acts. Although Huck was not really a girl, this woman got luck; she could have just had a girl who didn’t act as a girl sitting in front of her
• “I says to myself, this is a girl that I’m letting that old reptle rob her out of her money!...I felt so ornery and low down and mean, that I says to myself, My mind’s made up; I’ll hive that money for them or bust” (188).
When the dauphin and the king attempt to swindle the young girls out of their uncles’ money, Huck sees that it is just plain wrong to take money from grieving girls who are just so sweet
o Stereotypes were broken
• “It was a close place. I took it[a letter to the owner of Jim about where he is] up and held it in my hand. I was a-trembling, because I’d got to decide, forever, betwixt two things, and I knowed it. I studied a minute, sort of holding my breath, and then says to myself: ‘All right then, I’ll go to hell’—and tore it up. ”(Twain,228).
Huck breaks an almost un-written cardinal rule in the South: if a black person runs away and you find him, turn him in. By not turning Jim in, Huck no longer fits the Southern-stereotype of the novel
o “Aunt Sally says she’s going to adopt me and sivilize me and I can’t stand it” (307)
• By saying this, Huck demonstrates the ignorance of the South and their content with such
o “‘What was the trouble about, Buck?’ ‘…I don’t know.’” (120)
• Here we see Huck talking to a boy his own age (Buck) about a feud between Buck’s family and a neighboring family. Buck replies that he doesn’t know, which demonstrates two points
The feud goes back a long way (never-ending wrath)
No one has tried to find a reason to fight (blind rage)
o Gender morality played a large part in the social critique
• “‘You do a girl terrible poor, but you might fool men, maybe…Why, I spotted you for a boy when you was threading the needle; and I contrived the other things to make certain’” (Twain, 72)
When Huck dressed as a girl, the woman tests to see if he is really a girl with a sequence of situations and judging based on how a girl should act, and how Huck acts. Although Huck was not really a girl, this woman got luck; she could have just had a girl who didn’t act as a girl sitting in front of her
• “I says to myself, this is a girl that I’m letting that old reptle rob her out of her money!...I felt so ornery and low down and mean, that I says to myself, My mind’s made up; I’ll hive that money for them or bust” (188).
When the dauphin and the king attempt to swindle the young girls out of their uncles’ money, Huck sees that it is just plain wrong to take money from grieving girls who are just so sweet
o Stereotypes were broken
• “It was a close place. I took it[a letter to the owner of Jim about where he is] up and held it in my hand. I was a-trembling, because I’d got to decide, forever, betwixt two things, and I knowed it. I studied a minute, sort of holding my breath, and then says to myself: ‘All right then, I’ll go to hell’—and tore it up. ”(Twain,228).
Huck breaks an almost un-written cardinal rule in the South: if a black person runs away and you find him, turn him in. By not turning Jim in, Huck no longer fits the Southern-stereotype of the novel
Thursday, September 10, 2009
The Count of Monte Cristo: Honor
Rachael Kerr
AP English 11
September 10, 2009
The Count of Monte Cristo Suicide (Notes)
In the times that the Count of Monte Cristo takes place, suicide was considered an honorable action. By taking your own life, it showed that you had a sense of self pride; the idea is that if you are willing to take you own life, you know that what you did was seriously wrong. A perfect example of this is Monsieur Morrel. Quite a few terrible things happened to him while Dantes was gone, and all of them were out of his control; Morrel ran a shipping company in which several of his ship had sunken. Although he could not afford it, Morrel paid every living sailor on each ship their wages as if nothing had happened. Finally, Morrel cannot afford another ship after his last one sunk and he paid the sailors, so he plans to kill himself and leave the business to his family. While he planned to do this in secret, Maximilian (his son) entered the room and questioned: “‘Father…why have you a brace of pistols under your coat?’”(183). After being caught by his son, Morrel explains that “[b]lood washes out dishonor” (184) and “[he] should be looked upon as a man who has broken his word and failed in his engagements” (185). And he believes, by killing himself, it not only shows his honor, it leaves honor behind for his family; as he tells his son; “When I am dead, you will raise your head and say ‘I am the son of him who killed himself because for the first time in his life, he was unable to keep his word’”(185). In the end, he does not kill himself because Dantes as Sinbad the Sailor rewards Morrel with a sum of money large enough to get him back on his feet. However, suicide was not always an idea implied to ones’ self in The Count of Monte Cristo. In fact, in the case of Madame Villefort suicide is forced upon her by her husband. After finding out what Madame Villefort had been murdering the people in his household, Monsieur Villefort becomes enraged, threatening her with death. He informs her that justice will be done and that “[he] should send the executioner to any other woman were she the Queen herself, but to [Madame Villefort] [he is] merciful! To [her] [he says]: ‘Madame, have you not put aside a few drops of the most potent, the swiftest, and deadliest poison?” (561). Villefort gives his wife the option of killing herself with the poison she used to kill everyone else, thereby bestowing some sort of honor about her. In the end she follows through, but not without taking her child Edward with her. When it comes to honor, some people will strike or act out against other to either protect their own or a loved one’s’ honor. A perfect example would be Albert de Morcerf; he challenges Danglars to a duel to protect his father’s honor: “Albert was resolved to kill the unknown person who had struck this blow his father” (457). This striving to protect his father’s honor made Albert delve into a blind rage. In fact, while he believed that Danglars was the one to disrespect his father, it was actually Dantes as the Count of Monte Cristo who told Danglars all the things he used to disrespect Albert’s father. While this protection of honor was not suicide, it was most certain that it would end in death; either Albert or Danglars would be killed. The dual was considered an honorable practice because it involved facing that which compromised your honor; if you won, your honor was restored, if you lost, you were dead. In the end, Albert does not go through with the dual and realizes what kind of a person his father really is, one that does not deserve honor and to have his honor defended.
AP English 11
September 10, 2009
The Count of Monte Cristo Suicide (Notes)
In the times that the Count of Monte Cristo takes place, suicide was considered an honorable action. By taking your own life, it showed that you had a sense of self pride; the idea is that if you are willing to take you own life, you know that what you did was seriously wrong. A perfect example of this is Monsieur Morrel. Quite a few terrible things happened to him while Dantes was gone, and all of them were out of his control; Morrel ran a shipping company in which several of his ship had sunken. Although he could not afford it, Morrel paid every living sailor on each ship their wages as if nothing had happened. Finally, Morrel cannot afford another ship after his last one sunk and he paid the sailors, so he plans to kill himself and leave the business to his family. While he planned to do this in secret, Maximilian (his son) entered the room and questioned: “‘Father…why have you a brace of pistols under your coat?’”(183). After being caught by his son, Morrel explains that “[b]lood washes out dishonor” (184) and “[he] should be looked upon as a man who has broken his word and failed in his engagements” (185). And he believes, by killing himself, it not only shows his honor, it leaves honor behind for his family; as he tells his son; “When I am dead, you will raise your head and say ‘I am the son of him who killed himself because for the first time in his life, he was unable to keep his word’”(185). In the end, he does not kill himself because Dantes as Sinbad the Sailor rewards Morrel with a sum of money large enough to get him back on his feet. However, suicide was not always an idea implied to ones’ self in The Count of Monte Cristo. In fact, in the case of Madame Villefort suicide is forced upon her by her husband. After finding out what Madame Villefort had been murdering the people in his household, Monsieur Villefort becomes enraged, threatening her with death. He informs her that justice will be done and that “[he] should send the executioner to any other woman were she the Queen herself, but to [Madame Villefort] [he is] merciful! To [her] [he says]: ‘Madame, have you not put aside a few drops of the most potent, the swiftest, and deadliest poison?” (561). Villefort gives his wife the option of killing herself with the poison she used to kill everyone else, thereby bestowing some sort of honor about her. In the end she follows through, but not without taking her child Edward with her. When it comes to honor, some people will strike or act out against other to either protect their own or a loved one’s’ honor. A perfect example would be Albert de Morcerf; he challenges Danglars to a duel to protect his father’s honor: “Albert was resolved to kill the unknown person who had struck this blow his father” (457). This striving to protect his father’s honor made Albert delve into a blind rage. In fact, while he believed that Danglars was the one to disrespect his father, it was actually Dantes as the Count of Monte Cristo who told Danglars all the things he used to disrespect Albert’s father. While this protection of honor was not suicide, it was most certain that it would end in death; either Albert or Danglars would be killed. The dual was considered an honorable practice because it involved facing that which compromised your honor; if you won, your honor was restored, if you lost, you were dead. In the end, Albert does not go through with the dual and realizes what kind of a person his father really is, one that does not deserve honor and to have his honor defended.
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
The Counte of Monte Cristo 1 pg notes
Rachael Kerr
AP 11 English Language
September 9, 2009
Dantes' Role as God (NOTES)
The idea of taking the role of God came from Dantes’ time at Chateau D’If; being in solitude for so long, knowing he was innocent began to change him. In the beginning, Dantes was a virtuous man, but being wrongly imprisoned led him to believe that God is unjust and not as omnipotent as he had been led to believe. By wrongly being left to rot, Dantes felt that God could do nothing for him. He no longer felt that God was someone to be praised, but to be fought: “I exerted all my efforts to escape it, and I combined all my man’s strength with all my sailor’s skill in that terrible fight against God” (79). Not too long after this passage, Dantes turns once again to God in praise, but also begging for mercy: “have pity on me, oh, my God! and let me not die of despair!”(84). This shows his still strong belief in the existence of God, but the tone has changed to a darker, more ominous God; He is seen more as a punisher than a protector. This angle is what leads Dantes to what he is to become. In Chateau D’If, Dantes learns that he is a neighboring prisoner to a man of the cloth, Abbe Faria Once Abbe Faria reveals to him about what may have happened to him, he proclaims to Dantes; “I almost regret having helped you in your researches and having told you what I did…Because I have instilled into your heart…vengeance” (97). Abbe can clearly see what the hostility towards those who imprisoned Dantes will do to him, and desperately tries to touch and keep that last hold on Dantes’ virtue and level-headed thinking. Whilst teaching Dantes and adopting him as his son, Abbe reveals to Dantes that he has found a hidden fortune on an island, Monte Cristo, that he hopes to escape and retrieve. Abbe promises to Dantes that: “it will be you who takes me [to Monte Cristo]” (114); this means that he will be splitting the vast wealth with (what Abbe refers to Dantes as) his child from God. When Abbe dies, Dantes feels that this will be his only chance to escape and that is what Abbe would have wanted. He plans to head to Monte Cristo and use his acquired wealth as a perfect opportunity to enact the justice that God misses, while at the same time rewarding the good. Finally, after making his way to Monte Cristo, finding his treasure, taking enough with him to do his job, but leaving enough for future use, Dantes returns to Marseilles to being his onslaught of his idea of justice. He is relieved to find that no one recognizes him, leaving him free to enact his punishment. After receiving the information of what he has missed since he was gone (Mercedes getting married, his father dying, et cetera), he is further motivated to punish and reward. Under the alias of an Italian priest named Monsieur l’Abbe, Dantes learns from his friend Caderousse of who his conspirators were and who his first benefactor would be. C Caderousse explained that he took care of Dantes’ father while he was away and tried his best to keep him alive. In fact, in this dialogue, Dantes demonstrates the importance of Christians at that time when he declares: “a man, a Christian, has died of hunger amidst men who call themselves Christians!”(151). This clearly exemplifies that Christian morality was expected of you at this time in history, perhaps another factor for Dantes need to act as God. Caderousse explains that “it is thus that God reward virtue, monsieur. Just look at me. I have never done a wrong action…yet I live in poverty, while Fernand and Danglars (Dantes conspirators) are rolling in wealth” (157). By hearing this situation that is lacking so much justice, Dantes feels that he must intervene and right whatever wrong he can. Dantes leaves Caderousse a large sum of money as to make him equal to the wicked in reward.
AP 11 English Language
September 9, 2009
Dantes' Role as God (NOTES)
The idea of taking the role of God came from Dantes’ time at Chateau D’If; being in solitude for so long, knowing he was innocent began to change him. In the beginning, Dantes was a virtuous man, but being wrongly imprisoned led him to believe that God is unjust and not as omnipotent as he had been led to believe. By wrongly being left to rot, Dantes felt that God could do nothing for him. He no longer felt that God was someone to be praised, but to be fought: “I exerted all my efforts to escape it, and I combined all my man’s strength with all my sailor’s skill in that terrible fight against God” (79). Not too long after this passage, Dantes turns once again to God in praise, but also begging for mercy: “have pity on me, oh, my God! and let me not die of despair!”(84). This shows his still strong belief in the existence of God, but the tone has changed to a darker, more ominous God; He is seen more as a punisher than a protector. This angle is what leads Dantes to what he is to become. In Chateau D’If, Dantes learns that he is a neighboring prisoner to a man of the cloth, Abbe Faria Once Abbe Faria reveals to him about what may have happened to him, he proclaims to Dantes; “I almost regret having helped you in your researches and having told you what I did…Because I have instilled into your heart…vengeance” (97). Abbe can clearly see what the hostility towards those who imprisoned Dantes will do to him, and desperately tries to touch and keep that last hold on Dantes’ virtue and level-headed thinking. Whilst teaching Dantes and adopting him as his son, Abbe reveals to Dantes that he has found a hidden fortune on an island, Monte Cristo, that he hopes to escape and retrieve. Abbe promises to Dantes that: “it will be you who takes me [to Monte Cristo]” (114); this means that he will be splitting the vast wealth with (what Abbe refers to Dantes as) his child from God. When Abbe dies, Dantes feels that this will be his only chance to escape and that is what Abbe would have wanted. He plans to head to Monte Cristo and use his acquired wealth as a perfect opportunity to enact the justice that God misses, while at the same time rewarding the good. Finally, after making his way to Monte Cristo, finding his treasure, taking enough with him to do his job, but leaving enough for future use, Dantes returns to Marseilles to being his onslaught of his idea of justice. He is relieved to find that no one recognizes him, leaving him free to enact his punishment. After receiving the information of what he has missed since he was gone (Mercedes getting married, his father dying, et cetera), he is further motivated to punish and reward. Under the alias of an Italian priest named Monsieur l’Abbe, Dantes learns from his friend Caderousse of who his conspirators were and who his first benefactor would be. C Caderousse explained that he took care of Dantes’ father while he was away and tried his best to keep him alive. In fact, in this dialogue, Dantes demonstrates the importance of Christians at that time when he declares: “a man, a Christian, has died of hunger amidst men who call themselves Christians!”(151). This clearly exemplifies that Christian morality was expected of you at this time in history, perhaps another factor for Dantes need to act as God. Caderousse explains that “it is thus that God reward virtue, monsieur. Just look at me. I have never done a wrong action…yet I live in poverty, while Fernand and Danglars (Dantes conspirators) are rolling in wealth” (157). By hearing this situation that is lacking so much justice, Dantes feels that he must intervene and right whatever wrong he can. Dantes leaves Caderousse a large sum of money as to make him equal to the wicked in reward.
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