August Strindberg

importantly, Strindberg again insists on placing the family of the play in the context of a Darwinian battle of the strongest. It is natural for us to expect similarities between The Father and Miss Julie due to the close proximity of their writing, but the points made about Strindberg’s later work help provide an additional insight into the playwright’s main concerns. In The Father, Strindberg raises a further issue concerning family: can any father know (in a time before genetic testing) if his child is truly his? Furthermore, how does the subsequent uncertainty effect the position and authority of a father in a patriarchal household? Perhaps the most important fact to consider is that in this play, Strindberg is consciously focused on an archetypal family role: the play is called The Father not Captain Adolf after all. The direct quotations of Shakespeare the literary references from numerous sources regarding a father’s dilemma, and the echoing of the father’s situation in both his servants as well as the Pastor’s own experiences (he confides “Do you think I haven’t been all through this?” ), are all designed to emphasise that…

of fate as a motor for drama has been used through the ages and August Strindberg’s controversial play Miss Julie falls into this grouping of literary classics. The eponymous protagonist (daughter of a count and a commoner), is driven by a hereditary need to integrate with the lower class yet simultaneously lord over them. Using her sexuality but also tempted by lowering herself socially, she beds her servant, Jean, leading to her suicide at the closing of the play. Through the characterization…

In the story The Metamorphosis by Kafka, a character by the name of Gregor wakes up a cockroach. But, It’s quite possible that this is not what the title of the book entails, and instead, the title of the book refers more to Gregor’s family rather than himself. The Metamorphosis was written during World War One, and a somewhat popular theme in literature was to reflect the ideals of industrialization during the turn of the century. In the book, Gregor is turned into a bug, and the whole family…

In Franz Kafka’s, The Metamorphosis, the reader is presented with an underlying theme of alienation. This state of alienation or estrangement is seen by the isolation of the main character from a group or activity and their loss or lack of sympathy. Gregor Samsa loses his identity through the estrangement of his obligation to financially support his family and his duty as a traveling salesman. This estrangement is initially somewhat apparent by his physical transformation and later on thoroughly…

onstage at all moments of the scene; it also gives as much information as possible regarding the atmosphere. “A steamship’s bell ring, and now and then silence is pierced by low notes, of an organ in a church near by” (Strindberg 3) this portion of the stage direction is written in an incredibly naturalistic way compare this to a stage direction from one of Strindberg’s earlier plays Miss Julie “through them there is a fountain…

Family values in Franz Kafka’s “Metamorphosis” is portrayal as the same way a business is run. When the leader of the family can’t perform the job anymore someone must take his place. You can see this when Gregor’s father takes it upon himself to lead the family after Gregor fails to do his job. The family also shows business mentality of firing anyone that hurts the business. They did this when they were talking about getting rid of Gregor as he only held the family back. Doesn’t matter what…

Throughout history there remains universal themes explored in life and fiction that are not dependent on time or place. In Franz Kafka's novella The Metamorphosis it follows Gregor Samsa, a travelling businessman who transforms into a bug. As a bug, Gregor lives an unfortunate life full of loneliness, which is barely different than his life as a human. In Kurt Vonnegut's Harrison Bergeron we follow the rise and fall of Harrison himself in a society where everyone is completely equal. Harrison,…

In the short story, “Ball”, by Sam Koperwas, the author teaches us that parents putting their dreams and aspirations on their kids is dreadful thing for the kid and the parent. In the part, where the son gives up on trying to make a basket, the father pulls him by his ear and slams the ball hard into his stomach. Then, the father rambles on about eating an apple everyday and saying prayers can help you accomplish tasks. The father continues with this statement, “Argue and I’ll slap your eyes…

In Franz Kafka’s short story, The Metamorphosis, the reader peers into the life of the Samsa family, seeing the metamorphosis of not only the hard-working son, but also of his three other family members. Over the course of the 100 years of production of The Metamorphosis, there has been many discussions on what Kafka was trying to convey in his morbid and saddening short story. Many discussions include the idea of humanity, and if Gregor still kept his humanity after transforming into a…

The Animalization in The Metamorphosis Including Feelings of Isolation and Powerlessness in Comparison to “The Panther” The Metamorphosis, by Franz Kafka, tells the story about a man’s transformation into a bug. Through his journey in his new life as a bug, he experiences many emotions such as isolation and powerlessness. His family is frightened and disgusted with him and he must learn how to adapt to his new life. “The Panther”, by Rainer Rilke, also displays feelings of isolation and…