On Liberty (1859) It is a philosophical work by British philosopher John Stuart Mill.

It was a radical work to the Victorian readers of the time because it supported individuals' moral and economic freedom from the state. Perhaps the most memorable point made by Mill in this work, and his basis for liberty, is that "over himself, over his own body and mind, the individual is sovereign". Mill is compelled to make this assertion in opposition to what he calls the "tyranny of the majority", wherein through control of etiquette and morality, society is an unelected power that can do horrific things. Mill's work could be considered a reaction to this social control by the majority and his advocacy of individual decisionmaking over the self. The famous Harm Principle, or the principle of liberty, is also articulated in this work: people can do anything they like as long as it does not harm others. All branches of liberalismas well as other political ideologiesconsider this to be one of their core principles. However, they often disagree on what exactly constitutes harm. On Liberty was an enormously influential work; the ideas presented in the book have remained the basis of much liberal political thought ever since. Aside from the popularity of the ideas themselves, the book is quite short and its themes are easily accessible to a non-expert. It has remained in print continuously since its initial publication. To this day, a copy of On Liberty has been passed to the president of the British Liberals, and then Liberal Democrats, as a symbol of office and succession from the party that Mill helped found. Composition According to Mill's Autobiography, On Liberty was first conceived as a short essay in 1854. As the ideas developed, the essay was expanded, rewritten and "sedulously" corrected by Mill and his wife, Harriet Taylor. Mill, after suffering a mental breakdown and eventually meeting and subsequently marrying Harriet, changed many of his beliefs on moral life and women's rights. Mill states that On Liberty "was more directly and literally our joint production than anything else which bears my name." The final draft was almost completed when his wife died suddenly in 1858. Mill suggests that he made no alterations to the text at this point and that one of his first acts after her death was to publish it and to "consecrate it to her memory." Despite Mill's own assertion of her involvement, Robson and Stillinger, authors of Harriet Taylor and John Stuart Mill: Artist and Scientist, debate the extent to which she influenced his thought. The composition of this piece was also indebted to the work of the German thinker Wilhelm von Humboldt, especially his essay On the Limits of State Action. Overview Introduction Mill opens his essay with a discussion about the "struggle between authority and liberty" describing the tyranny of government, which, in his view, needs to be controlled by the liberty of the citizens. Without such limit to authority, the government has (or is) a "dangerous weapon". He divides this control of authority into two mechanisms: necessary rights belonging to citizens, and the "establishment of constitutional checks by which the consent of the community, or of a body of some sort, supposed to represent its interests, was made a necessary condition to some of the more

important acts of the governing power". As such, Mill suggests that mankind will be happy to be ruled "by a master" if his rule is guaranteed against tyranny. Mill speaks in the aforementioned section in terms of monarchy. However, mankind soon developed into democracy where "there was no fear of tyrannizing over self". "This may seem axiomatic", he says, but "the people who exercise the power are not always the same people with those over whom it is exercised". Further, this can only be by the majority, and if the majority wish to criminalize a section of society that happens to be a minority whether a race, gender, faith, or the like this may easily be done despite any wishes of the minority to the contrary. This, in his terms, is the "tyranny of the majority". In Mill's view, tyranny of the majority is worse than tyranny of government because it is not limited to a political function. Where one can be protected from a tyrant, it is much harder to be protected "against the tyranny of the prevailing opinion and feeling". People will be subject to what society thinks is suitable and will be fashioned by it. The prevailing opinions within society will be the basis of all rules of conduct within society thus there can be no safeguard in law against the tyranny of the majority. Mill goes on to prove this as a negative: the majority opinion may not be the correct opinion. The only justification for a person's preference for a particular moral belief is that it is that person's preference. On a particular issue, people will align themselves either for or against this issue; the side of greatest volume will prevail, but is not necessarily correct. According to Mill, there is only one legitimate reason for the exercise of power over individuals: "That the only purpose for which power can be rightfully exercised over any member of a civilised community, against his will, is to prevent harm to others." This is the first mention in On Liberty of the harm principle. The only limiting factor of liberty in Mill's view should be harm in the form of either physical or moral compulsion. If a person is thus harmed, then his or her sovereignty over self is impaired because sovereignty is exercised either through action or judgement. Children and those who cannot take care of themselves are allowed to be interfered with beyond the harm principle as they may well harm themselves unintentionally; they do not, and cannot, have sovereignty over self. Furthermore, Mill states that one may accept despotism over "barbarians" if the end result is their betterment; this implies that barbarians are of "nonage" and cannot be sovereign over self. As soon as people are capable of deciding for themselves, they should then be given liberty from authority. To illustrate his point, Mill uses Charlemagne and Akbar the Great as examples of such compassionate dictators who controlled and supposedly helped "barbarians". At this point, Mill divides human liberty when in private into its components or manifestations: The freedom to think as one wishes, and to feel as one does. This includes the freedom to opinion, and includes the freedom to publish opinions known as the freedom of speech, The freedom to pursue tastes and pursuits, even if they are deemed "immoral," and only so long as they do not cause harm, The "freedom to unite" or meet with others, often known as the freedom of assembly. Without all of these freedoms, in Mill's view, one cannot be considered to be truly free.

Essay Mill then spends the next several chapters examining these freedoms and their implementation, beginning with the liberty of thought and discussion, moving to individuality, the limits of the authority of society over the individual, and ending with applications. Connection to Utilitarianism Mill makes it clear throughout On Liberty that he "regard[s] utility as the ultimate appeal on all ethical questions." This he inherited from his Utilitarian upbringing under his father James Mill, a follower of Jeremy Bentham. Because of this, the specific justifications he gives for each of the freedoms listed above rests not on any form of natural rights but rather on the fact that he believed these freedoms would bring positive consequences for society. Thus, both advocates and critics of Mill's views have argued that he does not take liberty as an absolute standard of value, prizing above it diversity, equality and social progress. Mill does make an appeal to human nature, which he sees as requiring freedom of action: "To give any fair play to the nature of each, it is essential that different persons should be allowed to lead different lives." Mill's main argument indeed comes from utility, but he appeals to human nature in arguing about the utilitarian consequences of giving or denying freedom. Utilitarianism (also: utilism) is more commonly known as the "The greater good" argument; the belief that the right course of action is the one that maximises the overall "good" of the situation.[1] it is the idea that the moral worth of an action is determined solely by its usefulness in maximizing utility as summed among all sentient beings. It is thus a form of consequentialism, meaning that the moral worth of an action is determined by its outcome. The most influential contributors to this theory are considered to be Jeremy Bentham, Xavier Weisenreder and John Stuart Mill. Utilitarianism was described by Bentham as "the greatest happiness or greatest felicity principle".[2] Utility, the good to be maximized, has been defined by various thinkers as happiness or pleasure (versus suffering or pain), although preference utilitarians define it as the satisfaction of preferences. It may be described as a life stance, with happiness or pleasure being of ultimate importance. Utilitarianism can be characterised as a quantitative and reductionist approach to ethics. It is a type of naturalism.[3] It can be contrasted with deontological ethics (which do not regard the consequences of an act as a determinant of its moral worth) and virtue ethics (which focuses on character), as well as with other varieties of consequentialism. In general usage, the term utilitarian refers to a somewhat narrow economic or pragmatic viewpoint. Philosophical utilitarianism, however, is a much broader view that encompasses all aspects of people's life. Both rule utilitarianism and act utilitarianism are teleological (from the Greek for "end", "purpose", or "goal") meaning that they are consequential, however Bentham's act utilitarianism is primarily absolutist, even though it is much more free than theories such as those put forward by Immanuel Kant. This means that in all acts require "felicific calculus" to achieve "the greatest pleasure for the greatest number."[citation needed] Therefore there are definite rules and codes as to what the person must do in each situation to benefit the most people. The hedonic calculus is

what Bentham thought all people must do before deciding the utility of the certain act in question. It is dependent on: Its intensity. Its duration. Its certainty or uncertainty. Its propinquity, or remoteness. Its fecundity, or the chance it has of being followed by similar sensations: that is, pleasures, if it is pleasure: pains, if it is pain. Its purity, or the chance it has of not being followed by, sensations of the opposite kind: that is, pain, if it is pleasure: pleasure, if it is pain. Its extent (the number of people who are affected by it). However, Mill's rule utilitarianism is much more relative in that he encourages people to do acts that are pleasurable to themselves as long as they are what he calls a "higher pleasure" for example, the arts like literature, poetry, the opera. However, the meta-ethics of rule utilitarianism can be questioned as they are much more absolutist, since Mill is absolute in what he values as a higher pleasure. The Subjection of Women It is the title of an essay written by John Stuart Mill in 1869,[1] possibly jointly with his wife Harriet Taylor Mill, stating an argument in favour of equality between the sexes. At the time it was published in 1869, this essay was an affront to European conventional norms of views on the status of men and women. John Stuart Mill credited his wife, Harriet Taylor Mill, with co-writing the essay, although she is rarely credited on publications. Most scholars agreed by 2009 that John Stuart Mill was the sole author.[2] Overview "The Subjection of Women" (1869) offers both detailed argumentation and passionate eloquence in opposition to the social and legal inequalities commonly imposed upon women by a patriarchal culture. Just as in "On Liberty", Mill defends the emancipation of women on utilitarian grounds. Mill was convinced that the moral and intellectual advancement of humankind would result in greater happiness for everybody. The higher pleasures of the intellect yielded far greater happiness than the lower pleasure of the senses. He conceived of human beings as moral and intellectually capable of being educated and civilised. Mill believed everyone should have the right to vote, with the only exceptions being barbarians and uneducated people. Mill argues that the reason people should be able to vote is to defend their own rights and to learn to stand on their two feet, morally and intellectually. This argument is applied to both men and women.

Mill often used his position as an MP to demand the vote for women, a controversial position for the time. In Mill's time a woman was generally subject to the whims of her husband and/or father due to social norms which said women were both physically and mentally less able than men, and therefore needed to be "taken care of." Contributing to this view were social theories, i.e. survival of the fittest and biological determinism, based on a now considered incorrect understanding of the biological theory of evolution and also religious views supporting a hierarchical view of men and women within the family. The archetype of the ideal woman as mother, wife and homemaker was a powerful idea in 19th century society. At the time of writing, Mill recognized that he was going against the common views of society and was aware that he would be forced to back up his claims persistently. Mill argued that inequality of women was a relic from the past, when might was right;[3] but it had no place in the modern world.[4] Mill saw this as a hindrance to human development, since effectively half the human race were unable to contribute to society outside of the home. "... [T]he legal subordination of one sex to another is wrong in itself, and now one of the chief hindrances to human improvement; and that it ought to be replaced by a system of perfect equality, admitting no power and privilege on the one side, nor disability on the other."[5] Arguments Mill attacks the argument that women are naturally worse at some things than men, and should, therefore, be discouraged or forbidden from doing them. He says that we simply don't know what women are capable of, because we have never let them try - one cannot make an authoritative statement without evidence. We can't stop women from trying things because they might not be able to do them. An argument based on speculative physiology is just that, speculation. "The anxiety of mankind to intervene on behalf of nature...is an altogether unnecessary solicitude. What women by nature cannot do, is quite superfluous to forbid them from doing." [6] In this, men are basically contradicting themselves because they say women cannot do an activity and want to stop them from doing it. Here Mill suggests that men are basically admitting that women are capable of doing the activity, but that men do not want them to do so. Whether women can do them or not must be found out in practice. In reality, we don't know what women's nature is, because it is so wrapped up in how they have been raised. Mill suggests we should test out what women can and can't do - experiment. "I deny that any one knows or can know, the nature of the two sexes, as long as they have only been seen in their present relation to one another. Until conditions of equality exist, no one can possibly assess the natural differences between women and men, distorted as they have been. What is natural to the two sexes can only be found out by allowing both to develop and use their faculties freely." [7] Women are brought up to act as if they were weak, emotional, docile - a traditional prejudice. If we tried equality, we would see that there were benefits for individual women. They would be free of

the unhappiness of being told what to do by men. And there are benefits for society at large doubling the mass of mental faculties available for the higher service of humanity. The ideas and potential of half the population would be liberated, producing a great effect on human development. Mill's essay is clearly utilitarian argument on three counts: The immediate greater good,[8] the enrichment of society,[9] and individual development. If society really wanted to discover what is truly natural in gender relations, Mill argued, it should establish a free market for all of the services women perform, ensuring a fair economic return for their contributions to the general welfare. Only then would their practical choices be likely to reflect their genuine interests and abilities. Mill felt that the emancipation and education of women would have positive benefits for men also. The stimulus of female competition and companionship of equally educated persons would result in the greater intellectual development of all. He stressed the insidious effects of the constant companionship of an uneducated wife or husband. Mill felt that men and women married to follow customs and that the relation between them was a purely domestic one. By emancipating women, Mill believed, they would be better able to connect on an intellectual level with their husbands, thereby improving relationships. Mill attacks marriage laws, which he likens to the slavery of women, "there remain no legal slaves, save the mistress of every house." He alludes to the subjection of women becoming redundant as slavery did before it. He also argues for the need for reforms of marriage legislation whereby it is reduced to a business agreement, placing no restrictions on either party. Among these proposals are the changing of inheritance laws to allow women to keep their own property, and allowing women to work outside the home, gaining independent financial stability. Again the issue of women's suffrage is raised. Women make up half of the population, thus they also have a right to a vote since political policies affect women too. He theorizes that most men will vote for the MPs which will subordinate women, therefore women must be allowed to vote to protect their own interests. "Under whatever conditions, and within whatever limits, men are admitted to the suffrage, there is not a shadow of justification for not admitting women under the same." [10] Mill felt that even in societies as unequal as England and Europe that one could already find evidence that when given a chance women could excel. He pointed to such English queens as Elizabeth I, or Victoria, or the French patriot, Joan of Arc. If given the chance women would excel in other arenas and they should be given the opportunity to try. Mill was not just a theorist; he actively campaigned for women's rights as an MP and was the president of the National Society for Women's Suffrage. Conclusions The way Mill has interpreted subjects over time changed. For many years Mill was seen as an inconsistent philosopher, writing on a number of separate issues. Consistency in his approach is based on utilitarianism, and the good of society.

Utilitarianism Nothing should be ruled out because it is just "wrong", or because no one has done it in the past. When we are considering our policies, we should seek the greatest happiness of the greatest number. This leads to attacks on conventional views. If you wish to make something illegal, you need to prove what harm is being done. Individuals know their own interests best. Progress of Society The greatest good is understood in a very broad sense to be the moral and intellectual developments of society. Different societies are at different stages of development or civilisation. Different solutions may be required for them. What matters is how we encourage them to advance further. We can say the same for individuals. Mill has a quite specific idea of individual progress, (1) Employing higher faculties (2) Moral development, people place narrow self interest behind them. VICTORIAN PERIOD The Victorian era of the United Kingdom was the period of Queen Victoria's reign from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901.[1] It was a long period of prosperity for the British people. Some scholars extend the beginning of the periodas defined by a variety of sensibilities and political concerns that have come to be associated with the Victoriansback five years to the passage of the Reform Act 1832. The era was preceded by the Georgian period and succeeded by the Edwardian period. The latter half of the Victorian era roughly coincided with the first portion of the Belle poque era of continental Europe and the Gilded Age of the United States. The era is often characterised as a long period of peace, known as the Pax Britannica, and economic, colonial, and industrial consolidation, temporarily disrupted by the Crimean War, although Britain was at war every year during this time. Towards the end of the 19th century, the policies of New Imperialism led to increasing colonial conflicts and eventually the Anglo-Zanzibar War and the Boer War. Domestically, the agenda was increasingly liberal with a number of shifts in the direction of gradual political reform and the widening of the voting franchise. The population of England had almost doubled from 16.8 million in 1851 to 30.5 million in 1901.[2] Scotland's population also rose rapidly, from 2.8 million in 1851 to 4.4 million in 1901. Ireland's population decreased rapidly, from 8.2 million in 1841 to less than 4.5 million in 1901.[3] At the same time, around 15 million emigrants left the United Kingdom in the Victorian era and settled mostly in the United States, Canada, and Australia.[4] During the early part of the era, the House of Commons was headed by the two parties, the Whigs and the Tories. From the late 1850s onwards, the Whigs became the Liberals; the Tories became the Conservatives. These parties were led by many prominent statesmen including Lord Melbourne, Sir Robert Peel, Lord Derby, Lord Palmerston, William Ewart Gladstone, Benjamin Disraeli, and Lord Salisbury. The unsolved problems relating to Irish Home Rule played a great part in politics in the later Victorian era, particularly in view of Gladstone's determination to achieve a political settlement. Indeed, these issues would eventually lead to the Easter Rising of 1916 and the subsequent domino effect that would play a large part in the fall of the empire.

Victoria reigned for 63 years and 216 days, the longest in British history up to this point. However, the present monarch, Elizabeth II, will surpass this if she remains on the throne until 9 September 2015. CHARLES DICKENS Charles John Huffam Dickens (7 February 1812 9 June 1870) was the most popular English novelist of the Victorian era, and he remains popular, responsible for some of English literature's most iconic characters.[1] Many of his novels, with their recurrent concern for social reform, first appeared in magazines in serialised form, a popular format at the time. Unlike other authors who completed entire novels before serialisation, Dickens often created the episodes as they were being serialised. The practice lent his stories a particular rhythm, punctuated by cliffhangers to keep the public looking forward to the next installment.[2] The continuing popularity of his novels and short stories is such that they have never gone out of print.[3] His work has been praised for its realism, mastery of prose, comic genius and unique personalities by writers such as George Gissing, Leo Tolstoy, and G. K. Chesterton; though others, such as Henry James and Virginia Woolf, criticised it for sentimentality and implausibility. Great Expectations is written in the first person from the point of view of the orphan Pip. The novel, like much of Dickens' work, draws on his experiences of life and people. Plot summary Pip and his family Philip Pirrip, nicknamed Pip, an orphan and the protagonist of Great Expectations. Throughout his childhood, Pip thought that he was going to be trained as a blacksmith, but with Magwitch's anonymous patronage, Pip travels to London and becomes a gentleman. Joe Gargery, Pip's brother-in-law, and his first father figure. He is a blacksmith who is always kind to Pip and the only person with whom Pip is always honest. Joe was very disappointed when Pip decided to leave his home and travel to London to become a gentleman rather than be a blacksmith. Mrs. Joe Gargery, Pip's hot-tempered adult sister, who raises him after the death of their parents but complains constantly of the burden Pip is to her. Orlick, her husband's journeyman, attacks her and she is left disabled until her death. Mr. Pumblechook, Joe Gargery's uncle, an officious bachelor and corn merchant. While holding Pip in disdain, he tells Mrs. Joe how noble she is to raise Pip. As the person who first connected Pip to Miss Havisham, he even claims to have been the original architect of Pip's precious fortune. Pip despises Mr. Pumblechook as Mr. Pumblechook constantly makes himself out to be better than he really is. He is a cunning impostor. When Pip finally stands up to him, Mr. Pumblechook turns those listening to the conversation against Pip and his usefulness at succession. [edit]Miss Havisham and her family

Miss Havisham, wealthy spinster who takes Pip on as a companion and whom Pip suspects is his benefactor. Miss Havisham does not discourage this as it fits into her own spiteful plans. She later apologizes to him as she's overtaken by guilt. He accepts her apology and she is badly burnt when her dress catches aflame from a spark which leapt from the fire. Pip saves her, but she later dies from her injuries. Estella (Havisham), Miss Havisham's adopted daughter, whom Pip pursues romantically throughout the novel. She is secretly the daughter of Molly, Jaggers' housekeeper, and Abel Magwitch, Pip's convict, but was given up to Miss Havisham after a murder trial. Estella represents the life of wealth and culture for which Pip strives. Since her ability to love has been ruined by Miss Havisham, she is unable to return Pip's passion. She warns Pip of this repeatedly, but he is unwilling or unable to believe her. At one point, Estella is walking up some iron stairs representing how she is of a higher class than Pip when in fact she is of the same class. Arthur (Havisham), Miss Havisham's half-brother, who felt he was shortchanged in his inheritance by their father's preference for his daughter. He joined with Compeyson in the scheme to cheat Miss Havisham of large sums of money by gaining Miss Havisham's trust through promise of marriage to Compeyson. Arthur is haunted by the memory of the scheme and sickens and dies in a delirium, imagining that the still-living Miss Havisham is in his room, coming to kill him. Arthur has died before the beginning of the novel and gambled heavily, being drunk quite often. Matthew Pocket, a cousin of Miss Havisham's. He is the patriarch of the Pocket family, but unlike others of her relatives he is not greedy for Havisham's wealth. Matthew Pocket has a family of nine children, two nurses, a housekeeper, a cook, and a pretty but useless wife (named Belinda). He also tutors young gentlemen, such as Bentley Drummle, Startop, Pip, and his own son Herbert, who live on his estate. Herbert Pocket, a member of the Pocket family, Miss Havisham's presumed heirs, whom Pip first meets as a "pale young gentleman" who challenges Pip to a fist fight at Miss Havisham's house when both are children. He is the son of Matthew Pocket, Pip's tutor in the "gentlemanly" arts, and shares his apartment with Pip in London, becoming Pip's fast friend who is there to share Pip's happiness as well as his troubles. He is in love with a girl called Clara. Herbert keeps it secret because he knows his mother would say she is below his "station". Camilla, an ageing, talkative relative of Miss Havisham who does not care much for Miss Havisham and only wants her money. She is one of the many relatives who hang around Miss Havisham "like flies" for her wealth. Cousin Raymond, another ageing relative of Miss Havisham who is only interested in her money. He is married to Camilla. Georgiana, an ageing relative of Miss Havisham who is only interested in her money. Sarah Pocket, "a dry, brown corrugated old woman, with a small face that might have been made out of walnut shells, and a large mouth like a cat's without the whiskers." Another ageing relative of Miss Havisham who is only interested in her money. [edit]Characters from Pip's youth

The Convict, an escapee from a prison ship, whom Pip treats kindly, and who turns out to be his benefactor, at which time his real name is revealed to be Abel Magwitch, but who is also known as Provis and Mr. Campbell in parts of the story to protect his identity. Pip also covers him as his uncle in order that no one recognizes him as a convict sent to Australia years before. Abel Magwitch, the convict's given name, who is also Pip's benefactor. Provis, a name that Abel Magwitch uses when he returns to London, to conceal his identity. Pip also says that "Provis" is his uncle visiting from out of town. Mr. Campbell, a name that Abel Magwitch uses after he is discovered in London by his enemy. Mr. and Mrs. Hubble, simple folk who think they are more important than they really are. They live in Pip's village. Mr. Wopsle, the clerk of the church in Pip's village. He later gives up the church work and moves to London to pursue his ambition to be an actor, even though he is not very good. Mr. Waldengarver, the stage name that Mr. Wopsle adopts as an actor in London. Biddy, Mr. Wopsle's second cousin; she runs an evening school from her home in Pip's village and becomes Pip's teacher. A kind and intelligent but poor young woman, she is, like Pip and Estella, an orphan. She is the opposite of Estella. Pip ignores her obvious love for him as he fruitlessly pursues Estella. After he realizes the error of his life choices, he returns to claim Biddy as his bride, only to find out she has married Joe Gargery. Biddy and Joe later have two children, one named after Pip whom Estella mistakes as Pip's child in the original ending. Orlick was attracted to her, but his affection was unreciprocated. PLOT Pip, a young orphan living with his sister and her husband in the marshes of Kent, sits in a cemetery one evening looking at his parents tombstones. Suddenly, an escaped convict springs up from behind a tombstone, grabs Pip, and orders him to bring him food and a file for his leg irons. Pip obeys, but the fearsome convict is soon captured anyway. The convict protects Pip by claiming to have stolen the items himself. One day Pip is taken by his Uncle Pumblechook to play at Satis House, the home of the wealthy dowager Miss Havisham, who is extremely eccentric: she wears an old wedding dress everywhere she goes and keeps all the clocks in her house stopped at the same time. During his visit, he meets a beautiful young girl named Estella, who treats him coldly and contemptuously. Nevertheless, he falls in love with her and dreams of becoming a wealthy gentleman so that he might be worthy of her. He even hopes that Miss Havisham intends to make him a gentleman and marry him to Estella, but his hopes are dashed when, after months of regular visits to Satis House, Miss Havisham decides to help him become a common laborer in his familys business.

With Miss Havishams guidance, Pip is apprenticed to his brother-in-law, Joe, who is the village blacksmith. Pip works in the forge unhappily, struggling to better his education with the help of the

plain, kind Biddy and encountering Joes malicious day laborer, Orlick. One night, after an altercation with Orlick, Pips sister, known as Mrs. Joe, is viciously attacked and becomes a mute invalid. From her signals, Pip suspects that Orlick was responsible for the attack. One day a lawyer named Jaggers appears with strange news: a secret benefactor has given Pip a large fortune, and Pip must come to London immediately to begin his education as a gentleman. Pip happily assumes that his previous hopes have come truethat Miss Havisham is his secret benefactor and that the old woman intends for him to marry Estella. In London, Pip befriends a young gentleman named Herbert Pocket and Jaggerss law clerk, Wemmick. He expresses disdain for his former friends and loved ones, especially Joe, but he continues to pine after Estella. He furthers his education by studying with the tutor Matthew Pocket, Herberts father. Herbert himself helps Pip learn how to act like a gentleman. When Pip turns twentyone and begins to receive an income from his fortune, he will secretly help Herbert buy his way into the business he has chosen for himself. But for now, Herbert and Pip lead a fairly undisciplined life in London, enjoying themselves and running up debts. Orlick reappears in Pips life, employed as Miss Havishams porter, but is promptly fired by Jaggers after Pip reveals Orlicks unsavory past. Mrs. Joe dies, and Pip goes home for the funeral, feeling tremendous grief and remorse. Several years go by, until one night a familiar figure barges into Pips roomthe convict, Magwitch, who stuns Pip by announcing that he, not Miss Havisham, is the source of Pips fortune. He tells Pip that he was so moved by Pips boyhood kindness that he dedicated his life to making Pip a gentleman, and he made a fortune in Australia for that very purpose. Pip is appalled, but he feels morally bound to help Magwitch escape London, as the convict is pursued both by the police and by Compeyson, his former partner in crime. A complicated mystery begins to fall into place when Pip discovers that Compeyson was the man who abandoned Miss Havisham at the altar and that Estella is Magwitchs daughter. Miss Havisham has raised her to break mens hearts, as revenge for the pain her own broken heart caused her. Pip was merely a boy for the young Estella to practice on; Miss Havisham delighted in Estellas ability to toy with his affections. As the weeks pass, Pip sees the good in Magwitch and begins to care for him deeply. Before Magwitchs escape attempt, Estella marries an upper-class lout named Bentley Drummle. Pip makes a visit to Satis House, where Miss Havisham begs his forgiveness for the way she has treated him in the past, and he forgives her. Later that day, when she bends over the fireplace, her clothing catches fire and she goes up in flames. She survives but becomes an invalid. In her final days, she will continue to repent for her misdeeds and to plead for Pips forgiveness. The time comes for Pip and his friends to spirit Magwitch away from London. Just before the escape attempt, Pip is called to a shadowy meeting in the marshes, where he encounters the vengeful, evil Orlick. Orlick is on the verge of killing Pip when Herbert arrives with a group of friends and saves Pips life. Pip and Herbert hurry back to effect Magwitchs escape. They try to sneak Magwitch down the river on a rowboat, but they are discovered by the police, who Compeyson tipped off. Magwitch and Compeyson fight in the river, and Compeyson is drowned. Magwitch is sentenced to death, and Pip loses his fortune. Magwitch feels that his sentence is Gods forgiveness and dies at peace. Pip falls ill; Joe comes to London to care for him, and they are reconciled. Joe gives him the news from home: Orlick, after robbing Pumblechook, is now in jail; Miss Havisham has died and left most of her fortune to the Pockets; Biddy has taught Joe how to read and write. After Joe leaves, Pip decides to rush

home after him and marry Biddy, but when he arrives there he discovers that she and Joe have already married. Pip decides to go abroad with Herbert to work in the mercantile trade. Returning many years later, he encounters Estella in the ruined garden at Satis House. Drummle, her husband, treated her badly, but he is now dead. Pip finds that Estellas coldness and cruelty have been replaced by a sad kindness, and the two leave the garden hand in hand, Pip believing that they will never part again. (Note: Dickenss original ending to Great Expectations differed from the one described in this summary. The final Summary and Analysis section of this SparkNote provides a description of the first ending and explains why Dickens rewrote it.) Ambition and Self-Improvement The moral theme of Great Expectations is quite simple: affection, loyalty, and conscience are more important than social advancement, wealth, and class. Dickens establishes the theme and shows Pip learning this lesson, largely by exploring ideas of ambition and self-improvementideas that quickly become both the thematic center of the novel and the psychological mechanism that encourages much of Pips development. At heart, Pip is an idealist; whenever he can conceive of something that is better than what he already has, he immediately desires to obtain the improvement. When he sees Satis House, he longs to be a wealthy gentleman; when he thinks of his moral shortcomings, he longs to be good; when he realizes that he cannot read, he longs to learn how. Pips desire for selfimprovement is the main source of the novels title: because he believes in the possibility of advancement in life, he has great expectations about his future. Ambition and self-improvement take three forms in Great Expectationsmoral, social, and educational; these motivate Pips best and his worst behavior throughout the novel. First, Pip desires moral self-improvement. He is extremely hard on himself when he acts immorally and feels powerful guilt that spurs him to act better in the future. When he leaves for London, for instance, he torments himself about having behaved so wretchedly toward Joe and Biddy. Second, Pip desires social selfimprovement. In love with Estella, he longs to become a member of her social class, and, encouraged by Mrs. Joe and Pumblechook, he entertains fantasies of becoming a gentleman. The working out of this fantasy forms the basic plot of the novel; it provides Dickens the opportunity to gently satirize the class system of his era and to make a point about its capricious nature. Significantly, Pips life as a gentleman is no more satisfyingand certainly no more moralthan his previous life as a blacksmiths apprentice. Third, Pip desires educational improvement. This desire is deeply connected to his social ambition and longing to marry Estella: a full education is a requirement of being a gentleman. As long as he is an ignorant country boy, he has no hope of social advancement. Pip understands this fact as a child, when he learns to read at Mr. Wopsles aunts school, and as a young man, when he takes lessons from Matthew Pocket. Ultimately, through the examples of Joe, Biddy, and Magwitch, Pip learns that social and educational improvement are irrelevant to ones real worth and that conscience and affection are to be valued above erudition and social standing. Social Class Throughout Great Expectations, Dickens explores the class system of Victorian England, ranging from the most wretched criminals (Magwitch) to the poor peasants of the marsh country (Joe and Biddy) to the middle class (Pumblechook) to the very rich (Miss Havisham). The theme of social class is

central to the novels plot and to the ultimate moral theme of the bookPips realization that wealth and class are less important than affection, loyalty, and inner worth. Pip achieves this realization when he is finally able to understand that, despite the esteem in which he holds Estella, ones social status is in no way connected to ones real character. Drummle, for instance, is an upper-class lout,while Magwitch, a persecuted convict, has a deep inner worth. Perhaps the most important thing to remember about the novels treatment of social class is that the class system it portrays is based on the post-Industrial Revolution model of Victorian England. Dickens generally ignores the nobility and the hereditary aristocracy in favor of characters whose fortunes have been earned through commerce. Even Miss Havishams family fortune was made through the brewery that is still connected to her manor. In this way, by connecting the theme of social class to the idea of work and self-advancement, Dickens subtly reinforces the novels overarching theme of ambition and self-improvement. Crime, Guilt, and Innocence The theme of crime, guilt, and innocence is explored throughout the novel largely through the characters of the convicts and the criminal lawyer Jaggers. From the handcuffs Joe mends at the smithy to the gallows at the prison in London, the imagery of crime and criminal justice pervades the book, becoming an important symbol of Pips inner struggle to reconcile his own inner moral conscience with the institutional justice system. In general, just as social class becomes a superficial standard of value that Pip must learn to look beyond in finding a better way to live his life, the external trappings of the criminal justice system (police, courts, jails, etc.) become a superficial standard of morality that Pip must learn to look beyond to trust his inner conscience. Magwitch, for instance, frightens Pip at first simply because he is a convict, and Pip feels guilty for helping him because he is afraid of the police. By the end of the book, however, Pip has discovered Magwitchs inner nobility, and is able to disregard his external status as a criminal. Prompted by his conscience, he helps Magwitch to evade the law and the police. As Pip has learned to trust his conscience and to value Magwitchs inner character, he has replaced an external standard of value with an internal one. Motifs Motifs are recurring structures, contrasts, and literary devices that can help to develop and inform the texts major themes. Doubles One of the most remarkable aspects of Dickenss work is its structural intricacy and remarkable balance. Dickenss plots involve complicated coincidences, extraordinarily tangled webs of human relationships, and highly dramatic developments in which setting, atmosphere, event, and character are all seamlessly fused. In Great Expectations, perhaps the most visible sign of Dickenss commitment to intricate dramatic symmetryapart from the knot of character relationships, of courseis the fascinating motif of doubles that runs throughout the book. From the earliest scenes of the novel to the last, nearly every element of Great Expectations is mirrored or doubled at some other point in the book. There are two convicts on the marsh (Magwitch and Compeyson), two invalids (Mrs. Joe and Miss Havisham), two young women who interest Pip (Biddy and Estella), and so on. There are two secret benefactors:

Magwitch, who gives Pip his fortune, and Pip, who mirrors Magwitchs action by secretly buying Herberts way into the mercantile business. Finally, there are two adults who seek to mold children after their own purposes: Magwitch, who wishes to own a gentleman and decides to make Pip one, and Miss Havisham, who raises Estella to break mens hearts in revenge for her own broken heart. Interestingly, both of these actions are motivated by Compeyson: Magwitch resents but is nonetheless covetous of Compeysons social status and education, which motivates his desire to make Pip a gentleman, and Miss Havishams heart was broken when Compeyson left her at the altar, which motivates her desire to achieve revenge through Estella. The relationship between Miss Havisham and Compeysona well-born woman and a common manfurther mirrors the relationship between Estella and Pip. This doubling of elements has no real bearing on the novels main themes, but, like the connection of weather and action, it adds to the sense that everything in Pips world is connected. Throughout Dickenss works, this kind of dramatic symmetry is simply part of the fabric of his novelistic universe. Comparison of Characters to Inanimate Objects Throughout Great Expectations, the narrator uses images of inanimate objects to describe the physical appearance of charactersparticularly minor characters, or characters with whom the narrator is not intimate. For example, Mrs. Joe looks as if she scrubs her face with a nutmeg grater, while the inscrutable features of Mr. Wemmick are repeatedly compared to a letter-box. This motif, which Dickens uses throughout his novels, may suggest a failure of empathy on the narrators part, or it may suggest that the characters position in life is pressuring them to resemble a thing more than a human being. The latter interpretation would mean that the motif in general is part of a social critique, in that it implies that an institution such as the class system or the criminal justice system dehumanizes certain people. Symbols Symbols are objects, characters, figures, and colors used to represent abstract ideas or concepts. Satis House In Satis House, Dickens creates a magnificent Gothic setting whose various elements symbolize Pips romantic perception of the upper class and many other themes of the book. On her decaying body, Miss Havishams wedding dress becomes an ironic symbol of death and degeneration. The wedding dress and the wedding feast symbolize Miss Havishams past, and the stopped clocks throughout the house symbolize her determined attempt to freeze time by refusing to change anything from the way it was when she was jilted on her wedding day. The brewery next to the house symbolizes the connection between commerce and wealth: Miss Havishams fortune is not the product of an aristocratic birth but of a recent success in industrial capitalism. Finally, the crumbling, dilapidated stones of the house, as well as the darkness and dust that pervade it, symbolize the general decadence of the lives of its inhabitants and of the upper class as a whole. The Mists on the Marshes The setting almost always symbolizes a theme in Great Expectations and always sets a tone that is perfectly matched to the novels dramatic action. The misty marshes near Pips childhood home in

Kent, one of the most evocative of the books settings, are used several times to symbolize danger and uncertainty. As a child, Pip brings Magwitch a file and food in these mists; later, he is kidnapped by Orlick and nearly murdered in them. Whenever Pip goes into the mists, something dangerous is likely to happen. Significantly, Pip must go through the mists when he travels to London shortly after receiving his fortune, alerting the reader that this apparently positive development in his life may have dangerous consequences. ROBERT BROWNING Summary: MY LAST DUTCHESS

This poem is loosely based on historical events involving Alfonso, the Duke of Ferrara, who lived in the 16th century. The Duke is the speaker of the poem, and tells us he is entertaining an emissary who has come to negotiate the Dukes marriage (he has recently been widowed) to the daughter of another powerful family. As he shows the visitor through his palace, he stops before a portrait of the late Duchess, apparently a young and lovely girl. The Duke begins reminiscing about the portrait sessions, then about the Duchess herself. His musings give way to a diatribe on her disgraceful behavior: he claims she flirted with everyone and did not appreciate his gift of a nine-hundredyears- old name. As his monologue continues, the reader realizes with ever-more chilling certainty that the Duke in fact caused the Duchesss early demise: when her behavior escalated, *he+ gave commands; / Then all smiles stopped together. Having made this disclosure, the Duke returns to the business at hand: arranging for another marriage, with another young girl. As the Duke and the emissary walk leave the painting behind, the Duke points out other notable artworks in his collection. Form My Last Duchess comprises rhyming pentameter lines. The lines do not employ end-stops; rather, they use enjambmentgthat is, sentences and other grammatical units do not necessarily conclude at the end of lines. Consequently, the rhymes do not create a sense of closure when they come, but rather remain a subtle driving force behind the Dukes compulsive revelations. The Duke is quite a performer: he mimics others voices, creates hypothetical situations, and uses the force of his personality to make horrifying information seem merely colorful. Indeed, the poem provides a classic example of a dramatic monologue: the speaker is clearly distinct from the poet; an audience is suggested but never appears in the poem; and the revelation of the Dukes character is the poems primary aim. Commentary But Browning has more in mind than simply creating a colorful character and placing him in a picturesque historical scene. Rather, the specific historical setting of the poem harbors much significance: the Italian Renaissance held a particular fascination for Browning and his contemporaries, for it represented the flowering of the aesthetic and the human alongside, or in some cases in the place of, the religious and the moral. Thus the temporal setting allows Browning to again explore sex, violence, and aesthetics as all entangled, complicating and confusing each other: the lushness of the language belies the fact that the Duchess was punished for her natural sexuality. The Dukes ravings suggest that most of the supposed transgressions took place only in his mind. Like some of Brownings fellow Victorians, the Duke sees sin lurking in every corner. The reason the

speaker here gives for killing the Duchess ostensibly differs from that given by the speaker of Porphyrias Lover for murder Porphyria; however, both women are nevertheless victims of a male desire to inscribe and fix female sexuality. The desperate need to do this mirrors the efforts of Victorian society to mold the behaviorgsexual and otherwisegof individuals. For people confronted with an increasingly complex and anonymous modern world, this impulse comes naturally: to control would seem to be to conserve and stabilize. The Renaissance was a time when morally dissolute men like the Duke exercised absolute power, and as such it is a fascinating study for the Victorians: works like this imply that, surely, a time that produced magnificent art like the Duchesss portrait couldnt have been entirely evil in its allocation of societal controlgeven though it put men like the Duke in power. A poem like My Last Duchess calculatedly engages its readers on a psychological level. Because we hear only the Dukes musings, we must piece the story together ourselves. Browning forces his reader to become involved in the poem in order to understand it, and this adds to the fun of reading his work. It also forces the reader to question his or her own response to the subject portrayed and the method of its portrayal. We are forced to consider, Which aspect of the poem dominates: the horror of the Duchesss fate, or the beauty of the language and the powerful dramatic development? Thus by posing this question the poem firstly tests the Victorian readers response to the modern worldgit asks, Has everyday life made you numb yet?gand secondly asks a question that must be asked of all artgit queries, Does art have a moral component, or is it merely an aesthetic exercise? In these latter considerations Browning prefigures writers like Charles Baudelaire and Oscar Wilde. Notes on "Love Among the Ruins" Robert Browning (1812-1889) was not a love poet as such. For the most part, he wrote historical and narrative poems and various experimental poetry in the form of dramatic monologues. His romantic courtship and secret marriage to Elizabeth Barrett Browning made him a celebrated figure of romantic love poetry however. This poem, Love Among the Ruins, was part of Men and Women, a book of 51 poems written in Italy and published in 1855, after he had married Elizabeth Barrett. The book helped to repair his reputation, which had been suffered at the hands of critics in 1840 when he published Sordello. This poem was almost certainly evoked by a specific incident, though evidently nobody knows where these particular ruins were. The poem was first published in volume I of Men and Women, 1855, in fourteen six-line stanzas; and later changed to the present seven twelve-line stanzas in 1863. It was written in January 1852. The "certain rills from the hills" intersect the slopes referred to previously in that line. "The caper overrooted" refers to a common Italian shrub. The theme of the poem is straightforward - love is preferable to martial glory. In the first part of poem, Browning uses an unusual scheme of rhyming couplets in which long iambic lines are paired with short lines of three syllables. The poetic speaker, contemplating a pasture where sheep graze, points out that once a great ancient city, perhaps his country's capital, stood there. After praising the ancient city and its glories, the poetic speaker proclaims that "a girl with eager eyes and yellow hair/Waits me there", and that "she looks now, breathless, dumb/Till I come." The poem closes by rejecting the majesty of the old capital and preferring his love instead.

One can trace hints, or more than hints, of inspiration from Edward Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, and from the poem Ozymandias. In rejecting material things for love, Browning perhaps anticipates poets like e e cummings. The use of parentheses in that way was probably very uncommon in that period as well. Commentary THE LOTOS EATERS This poem is based on the story of Odysseuss mariners described in scroll IX of Homers Odyssey . Homer writes about a storm that blows the great heros mariners off course as they attempt to journey back from Troy to their homes in Ithaca. They come to a land where people do nothing but eat lotos (the Greek for our English lotus), a flower so delicious that some of his men, upon tasting it, lose all desire to return to Ithaca and long only to remain in the Land of the Lotos. Odysseus must drag his men away so that they can resume their journey home. In this poem, Tennyson powerfully evokes the mariners yearning to settle into a life of peacefulness, rest, and even death. The poem draws not only on Homers Odyssey, but also on the biblical Garden of Eden in the Book of Genesis. In the Bible, a life of toil is Adams punishment for partaking of the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge: after succumbing to the temptation of the fruit, Adam is condemned to labor by the sweat of his brow. Yet in this poem, fruit (the lotos) provides a release from the life of labor, suggesting an inversion of the biblical story. Tennyson provides a tempting and seductive vision of a life free from toil. His description of the Lotos Land rivals the images of pleasure in Miltons LAllegro and Marvells The Garden. Yet his lush descriptive passages are accompanied by persuasive rhetoric; nearly every stanza of the choric song presents a different argument to justify the mariners resolution to remain in the Lotos Land. For example, in the second stanza of the song the mariners express the irony of the fact that man, who is the pinnacle and apex of creation, is the only creature made to toil and labor all the days of his life. This stanza may also be read as a pointed inversion and overturning of Coleridges Work without Hope, in which the speaker laments that all nature seems at work while he alone remains unoccupied. Although the taste of the lotos and the vision of life it offers is seductive, the poem suggests that the mariners may be deceiving themselves in succumbing to the hypnotic power of the flower. Partaking of the lotos involves abandoning external reality and living instead in a world of appearances, where everything seems to be but nothing actually is: the Lotos Land emerges as a land where all things always seemed the same (line 24). Indeed, the word seems recurs throughout the poem, and can be found in all but one of the opening five stanzas, suggesting that the Lotos Land is not so much a land of streams as a land of seems. In addition, in the final stanza of the choric song, the poem describes the Lotos Land as a hollow land with hollow caves, indicating that the vision of the sailors is somehow empty and insubstantial. The reader, too, is left with ambivalent feelings about the mariners argument for lassitude. Although the thought of life without toil is certainly tempting, it is also deeply unsettling. The readers discomfort with this notion arises in part from the knowledge of the broader context of the poem: Odysseus will ultimately drag his men away from the Lotos Land disapprovingly; moreover, his injunction to have courage opensand then overshadowsthe whole poem with a sense of moral opprobrium. The sailors case for lassitude is further undermined morally by their complaint that it is

unpleasant to war with evil (line 94); are they too lazy to do what is right? By choosing the Lotos Land, the mariners are abandoning the sources of substantive meaning in life and the potential for heroic accomplishment. Thus in this poem Tennyson forces us to consider the ambiguous appeal of a life without toil: although all of us share the longing for a carefree and relaxed existence, few people could truly be happy without any challenges to overcome, without the fire of aspiration and the struggle to make the world a better place. ULYSSES In the final stanza, Ulysses addresses the mariners with whom he has worked, traveled, and weathered lifes storms over many years. He declares that although he and they are old, they still have the potential to do something noble and honorable before the long day wanes. He encourages them to make use of their old age because tis not too late to seek a newer world. He declares that his goal is to sail onward beyond the sunset until his death. Perhaps, he suggests, they may even reach the Happy Isles, or the paradise of perpetual summer described in Greek mythology where great heroes like the warrior Achilles were believed to have been taken after their deaths. Although Ulysses and his mariners are not as strong as they were in youth, they are strong in will and are sustained by their resolve to push onward relentlessly: To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield. Form This poem is written as a dramatic monologue: the entire poem is spoken by a single character, whose identity is revealed by his own words. The lines are in blank verse, or unrhymed iambic pentameter, which serves to impart a fluid and natural quality to Ulyssess speech. Many of the lines are enjambed, which means that a thought does not end with the line-break; the sentences often end in the middle, rather than the end, of the lines. The use of enjambment is appropriate in a poem about pushing forward beyond the utmost bound of human thought. Finally, the poem is divided into four paragraph-like sections, each of which comprises a distinct thematic unit of the poem. Commentary In this poem, written in 1833 and revised for publication in 1842, Tennyson reworks the figure of Ulysses by drawing on the ancient hero of Homers Odyssey (Ulysses is the Roman form of the Greek Odysseus) and the medieval hero of Dantes Inferno. Homers Ulysses, as described in Scroll XI of the Odyssey, learns from a prophecy that he will take a final sea voyage after killing the suitors of his wife Penelope. The details of this sea voyage are described by Dante in Canto XXVI of the Inferno: Ulysses finds himself restless in Ithaca and driven by the longing I had to gain experience of the world. Dantes Ulysses is a tragic figure who dies while sailing too far in an insatiable thirst for knowledge. Tennyson combines these two accounts by having Ulysses make his speech shortly after returning to Ithaca and resuming his administrative responsibilities, and shortly before embarking on his final voyage. However, this poem also concerns the poets own personal journey, for it was composed in the first few weeks after Tennyson learned of the death of his dear college friend Arthur Henry Hallam in 1833. Like In Memoriam, then, this poem is also an elegy for a deeply cherished friend. Ulysses, who symbolizes the grieving poet, proclaims his resolution to push onward in spite of the awareness that

death closes all (line 51). As Tennyson himself stated, the poem expresses his own need of going forward and braving the struggle of life after the loss of his beloved Hallam. The poems final line, to strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield, came to serve as a motto for the poets Victorian contemporaries: the poems hero longs to flee the tedium of daily life among these barren crags (line 2) and to enter a mythical dimension beyond the sunset, and the baths of all the western stars (lines 6061); as such, he was a model of individual self-assertion and the Romantic rebellion against bourgeois conformity. Thus for Tennysons immediate audience, the figure of Ulysses held not only mythological meaning, but stood as an important contemporary cultural icon as well. Ulysses, like many of Tennysons other poems, deals with the desire to reach beyond the limits of ones field of vision and the mundane details of everyday life. Ulysses is the antithesis of the mariners in The Lotos-Eaters, who proclaim we will no longer roam and desire only to relax amidst the Lotos fields. In contrast, Ulysses cannot rest from travel and longs to roam the globe (line 6). Like the Lady of Shallot, who longs for the worldly experiences she has been denied, Ulysses hungers to explore the untraveled world. As in all dramatic monologues, here the character of the speaker emerges almost unintentionally from his own words. Ulysses incompetence as a ruler is evidenced by his preference for potential quests rather than his present responsibilities. He devotes a full 26 lines to his own egotistical proclamation of his zeal for the wandering life, and another 26 lines to the exhortation of his mariners to roam the seas with him. However, he offers only 11 lines of lukewarm praise to his son concerning the governance of the kingdom in his absence, and a mere two words about his aged wife Penelope. Thus, the speakers own words betray his abdication of responsibility and his specificity of purpose. Matthew Arnold: The Function of Criticism at the Present Time In 1865 Matthew Arnold wrote, The Function of Criticism at the Present Time. In this essay, Arnold discusses the tenuous relationship between criticism and creation, one that before this, was virtually non-existent . Though literary criticism had been taking place for years, it was generally disregarded and held as useless. William Wordsworth once said that, if the quantity of time consumed in writing critiques on the works of others were given to original composition, of whatever kind it might be, it would be much better employed (2103). By acknowledging this view, and then creating a rational argument against it, Arnolds essay helped to send the genre into a new direction, as well as to create a new respect for it. Arnold begins his argument by stating that, The critical power is of lower rank than the creative (2104), this is because man finds his true happiness within the creative process. However, this creative process cannot be limited to great works of literature, or most people would be denied their true happiness. Arnold says that well-doing, learning, or even criticizing can be creative projects and that they can be just as fulfilling as a great work of literature. It is in his The Function of Criticism at the Present Time (1864) that Arnold says that criticism should be a 'dissemination of ideas, a disinterested endeavour to learn and propagate the best that is known and thought in the world'. He says that when evaluating a work the aim is 'to see the object as in

itself it really is'. Psychological, historical and sociological background are irrelevant, and to dwell on such aspects is mere dilettantism. This stance was very influential with later critics. Early in his career Matthew Arnold was himself a very popular admired poet. Later in his life, however, he turned his considerable talent toward literary criticism as well as social criticism. In his seminal work on the subject, The Function of Criticism at the Present Time, Matthew Arnold posits the idea that criticism is an endeavor that is not dependent upon any creative art form, but rather enjoys an intrinsic value in itself. The value of criticism lies in bringing joy to the writer of it as well as playing a prominent role in ensuring that the best ideas reach society. Matthew Arnold echoes the thoughts of the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotles views of poetry when he declares that the ultimate function of humankind lies in exercising its creative power. Arnold therefore is able to link criticism with creative power in his essay, ultimately asserting that writing criticism actually produces in its practitioner a sense of ecstatic creative joy very similar to that enjoyed by the person who engages in creative writing. Matthew Arnold goes on to equate the emotional experience of writing criticism with the emotional experience of creative writing in order to undermine the typical rap against criticism that it serves no purpose, or is just the sour grapes expression of one who criticizes something that he cant do as well himself. THE BURIED LIFE Who are we? Where did we come from and where are we going? Even to ourselves, as we sit at home or hurry through the city streets, we remain a bewildering mystery. Matthews Arnolds haunting poem, The Buried Life, describes our yearning to know our own heart. In this short extract, not even the worlds most crowded streets can stifle the unspeakable desire to find our most essential self. The word unspeakable suggests that such knowledge cannot be put into wordsand is somehow deemed obscene by others. The true individual is terrifying to the group. This stubborn desire can arise at the most unexpected of moments: a moment filled with joy and panic. Suddenly, after years of contentment, we question everything. Has the course of our life gone surprisingly wrong? Has a burning dream of ours been left to die? Is it now too late to changetoo late to live a life we can be proud of? Throughout the poem, Arnold searches for the elusive spark of truth. He starts by addressing an unnamed woman. He reflects on the charming and brittle war of mocking words between them, but hungers for a deeper, more significant bond. He yearns for her to place her hand in his, and for her limpid eyes to reveal her inmost soul. Yet even love seems unable to bridge the gap between them. He wonders about the price we pay by trying to escape from fate. We hide behind a false persona and allow ourselves to be possessed by distractionseven turning our identity inside out. We do anything to avoid obeying our beings law. Anything to avoid our most profound feelings. They are too shattering for the status quo.

Arnolds poem is alive with emotion. When he speaks of the mystery of our heart, which beats so wild, so deep in us, our heart seems to beat with greater urgency, responding intuitively, instinctively, to each word. Few poems touch with more subtle and searing power, in Arnolds phrase, the souls subterranean depth. Arnold ends the poem on a note of guarded optimism, evoking certain moments when life does seem to reveal its inner meaning. When our eyes can in anothers eyes read clear. When our ear is by the tones of a loved voice caressed. Then the heart lies plain and we connect to lifes flow. We feel this ebb and flow in the poems rhythm itself, as it sweeps us into a confrontation with ourselves, our fear of stagnancy, and our secret hope for renewal. Do we follow the dangerous freedom of our heart or slip back into the crowd? LEWIS CARROL Themes, Motifs & Symbols Themes Themes are the fundamental and often universal ideas explored in a literary work. The Tragic and Inevitable Loss of Childhood Innocence Throughout the course of Alices Adventures in Wonderland, Alice goes through a variety of absurd physical changes. The discomfort she feels at never being the right size acts as a symbol for the changes that occur during puberty. Alice finds these changes to be traumatic, and feels discomfort, frustration, and sadness when she goes through them. She struggles to maintain a comfortable physical size. In Chapter 1, she becomes upset when she keeps finding herself too big or too small to enter the garden. In Chapter 5, she loses control over specific body parts when her neck grows to an absurd length. These constant fluctuations represent the way a child may feel as her body grows and changes during puberty. Life as a Meaningless Puzzle In Alices Adventures in Wonderland, Alice encounters a series of puzzles that seem to have no clear solutions, which imitates the ways that life frustrates expectations. Alice expects that the situations she encounters will make a certain kind of sense, but they repeatedly frustrate her ability to figure out Wonderland. Alice tries to understand the Caucus race, solve the Mad Hatters riddle, and understand the Queens ridiculous croquet game, but to no avail. In every instance, the riddles and challenges presented to Alice have no purpose or answer. Even though Lewis Carroll was a logician, in Alices Adventures in Wonderland he makes a farce out of jokes, riddles, and games of logic. Alice learns that she cannot expect to find logic or meaning in the situations that she encounters, even when they appear to be problems, riddles, or games that would normally have solutions that Alice would be able to figure out. Carroll makes a broader point about the ways that life frustrates expectations and resists interpretation, even when problems seem familiar or solvable. Death as a Constant and Underlying Menace

Alice continually finds herself in situations in which she risks death, and while these threats never materialize, they suggest that death lurks just behind the ridiculous events of Alices Adventures in Wonderland as a present and possible outcome. Death appears in Chapter 1, when the narrator mentions that Alice would say nothing of falling off of her own house, since it would likely kill her. Alice takes risks that could possibly kill her, but she never considers death as a possible outcome. Over time, she starts to realize that her experiences in Wonderland are far more threatening than they appear to be. As the Queen screams Off with its head! she understands that Wonderland may not merely be a ridiculous realm where expectations are repeatedly frustrated. Death may be a real threat, and Alice starts to understand that the risks she faces may not be ridiculous and absurd after all. Motifs Motifs are recurring structures, contrasts, or literary devices that can help to develop and inform the texts major themes. Dream Alices Adventures in Wonderland takes place in Alices dream, so that the characters and phenomena of the real world mix with elements of Alices unconscious state. The dream motif explains the abundance of nonsensical and disparate events in the story. As in a dream, the narrative follows the dreamer as she encounters various episodes in which she attempts to interpret her experiences in relationship to herself and her world. Though Alices experiences lend themselves to meaningful observations, they resist a singular and coherent interpretation. Subversion Alice quickly discovers during her travels that the only reliable aspect of Wonderland that she can count on is that it will frustrate her expectations and challenge her understanding of the natural order of the world. In Wonderland, Alice finds that her lessons no longer mean what she thought, as she botches her multiplication tables and incorrectly recites poems she had memorized while in Wonderland. Even Alices physical dimensions become warped as she grows and shrinks erratically throughout the story. Wonderland frustrates Alices desires to fit her experiences in a logical framework where she can make sense of the relationship between cause and effect. Language Carroll plays with linguistic conventions in Alices Adventures in Wonderland, making use of puns and playing on multiple meanings of words throughout the text. Carroll invents words and expressions and develops new meanings for words. Alices exclamation Curious and curiouser! suggests that both her surroundings and the language she uses to describe them expand beyond expectation and convention. Anything is possible in Wonderland, and Carrolls manipulation of language reflects this sense of unlimited possibility. Curious, Nonsense, and Confusing Alice uses these words throughout her journey to describe phenomena she has trouble explaining. Though the words are generally interchangeable, she usually assigns curious and confusing to

experiences or encounters that she tolerates. She endures is the experiences that are curious or confusing, hoping to gain a clearer picture of how that individual or experience functions in the world. When Alice declares something to be nonsense, as she does with the trial in Chapter 12, she rejects or criticizes the experience or encounter. Symbols Symbols are objects, characters, figures, or colors used to represent abstract ideas or concepts. The Garden Nearly every object in Alices Adventures in Wonderland functions as a symbol, but nothing clearly represents one particular thing. The symbolic resonances of Wonderland objects are generally contained to the individual episode in which they appear. Often the symbols work together to convey a particular meaning. The garden may symbolize the Garden of Eden, an idyllic space of beauty and innocence that Alice is not permitted to access. On a more abstract level, the garden may simply represent the experience of desire, in that Alice focuses her energy and emotion on trying to attain it. The two symbolic meanings work together to underscore Alices desire to hold onto her feelings of childlike innocence that she must relinquish as she matures. GEORGE ELLIOT MILL ON THE FLOSS Themes, Motifs, and Symbols Themes The Claim of the Past Upon Present Identity Both characters and places in The Mill on the Floss are presented as the current products of multigenerational gestation. The very architecture of St. Ogg's bears its hundreds of years of history within it. Similarly, Maggie and Tom are the hereditary products of two competing family linesthe Tullivers and the Dodsonsthat have long histories and tendencies. In the novel, the past holds a cumulative presence and has a determining effect upon characters who are open to its influence. The first, carefully sketched out book about Maggie and Tom's childhood becomes the past of the rest of the novel. Maggie holds the memory of her childhood sacred and her connection to that time comes to affects her future behavior. Here, the past is not something to be escaped nor is it something that will rise again to threaten, but it is instead an inherent part of Maggie's (and her father's) character, making fidelity to it a necessity. Book First clearly demonstrates the painfulness of life without a pastthe depths of Maggie's childhood emotions are nearly unbearable to her because she has no past of conquered troubles to look back upon with which to put her present situation in perspective. Stephen is held up as an example of the dangers of neglecting the past. Dr. Kenn, a sort of moral yardstick within the novel, complains of this neglect of the past of which Stephen is a part and Maggie has worked against: "At present everything seems tending toward the relaxation of ties toward the substitution of wayward choice for the adherence to obligation which has its roots in the past." Thus, without a recognition of the past with which to form one's character, one is left only to the whims of the moment and subject to emotional extremes and eventual loneliness. The Importance of Sympathy

The Mill on the Floss is not a religious novel, but it is highly concerned with a morality that should function among all people and should aspire to a compassionate connection with others through sympathy. The parable of St. Ogg rewards the ferryman's unquestioning sympathy with another, and Maggie, in her final recreation of the St. Ogg scene during the flood, is vindicated on the grounds of her deep sympathy with others. The opposite of this sympathy within the novel finds the form of variations of egoism. Tom has not the capability of sympathizing with Maggie. He is aligned with the narrow, self-serving ethic of the rising entrepreneur: Tom explains to Mr. Deane that he cares about his own standing, and Mr. Deane compliments him, "That's the right spirit, and I never refuse to help anybody if they've a mind to do themselves justice." Stephen, too, is seen as a figure that puts himself before others. His arguments in favor of his and Maggie's elopement all revolve around the privileging of his own emotion over that of others', even Maggie's. In contrast, Maggie's, Philip's, and Lucy's mutual sympathy is upheld as the moral triumph within the tragedy of the last book. Eliot herself believed that the purpose of art is to present the reader with realistic circumstances and characters that will ultimately enlarge the reader's capacity for sympathy with others. We can see this logic working against Maggie's young asceticism. Maggie's self-denial becomes morally injurious to her because she is denying herself the very intellectual and artistic experiences that would help her understand her own plight and have pity for the plight of others. Practical Knowledge Versus Bookish Knowledge The Mill on the Floss, especially in the first half of the novel, is quite concerned about education and types of knowledge. Much of the early chapters are devoted to laying out the differences between Tom's and Maggie's modes of knowledge. Tom's knowledge is practical: "He knew all about worms, and fish, and those things; and what birds were mischievous, and how padlocks opened, and which way the handles of the gates were to be lifted." This knowledge is tangible and naturalit brings Tom in closer association to the world around him. Meanwhile, Maggie's knowledge is slightly more complicated. Other characters refer to it as "uncanny," and her imagination and love of books are often depicted as a way for her to escape the world around her or to rise above it"The world outside the books was not a happy one, Maggie felt." Part of the tragedy of Maggie and Tom Tulliver is that Tom received the education that Maggie should have had. Instead of Maggie blossoming, Tom is trapped. When Tom must make a living in the world, he discovers that his bookish education will win him nothing: Mr. Deane tells Tom, "The world isn't made of pen, ink, and paper, and if you're to get on in the world, young man, you must know what the world's made of." Tom soon returns and takes advantage of his skills for practical knowledge, making good in the newly entrepreneurial world. Tom's practical knowledge is always depicted as a source of superiority for Tom. From his childhood on, Tom has no patience for Maggie's intellectual curiosity. The narrowness of Tom's miseducation under Mr. Stelling seems somewhat related to the narrowness of Tom's tolerance for others' modes of knowledge. Yet Eliot remains clear that Maggie's intellectualism makes her Tom's superior in this case"the responsibility of tolerance lies with those who have the wider vision." The Effect of Society Upon the Individual Society is never revealed to be a completely determining factor in the destiny of Eliot's main charactersfor example, Maggie's tragedy originates in her internal competing impulses, not in her public disgrace. Yet, Eliot remains concerned with the workings of a communityboth social and economicand tracks their interrelations, as well as their effect upon character, as part of her

realism. The Mill on the Floss sets up a geography of towns and land holdingsSt. Ogg's, Basset, Garum Firs, Dorlcote Milland describes the tone of each community (such as the run- down population of Basset). The novel tracks the growth of the particular society of St. Ogg's, referencing the new force of economic trends like entrepreneurial capitalism or innovations like the steam engine. A wide cast of characters aims to outline different strata in the societysuch as the Dodsons, or the Miss Gueststhrough their common values, economic standing, and social circles. In the first part of the novel, Eliot alludes to the effect these communal forces have on Maggie's and Tom's formation. Toward the end of the novel, the detailed background of St. Ogg's society functions as a contrast against which Maggie seems freshly simple and genuine. Motifs The Disparity Between the Dodsons and the Tullivers Early on in the novel a distinction between the two families from which Tom and Maggie are descended is drawn out. The Dodsons are socially respectable, concerned with codes of behavior, and materialistic. The Tullivers are less socially respectable and have a depth of emotion and affection. The constant repetition of the characteristics of the two clans serves to create a division along which Maggie's and Tom's growth can be tracked. Tom is associated with the Dodsons, even more so when an adult, and Maggie is associated with the Tullivers. THOMAS HARDY TESS OF d'UBERVILLES Themes, Motifs & Symbols Themes Themes are the fundamental and often universal ideas explored in a literary work. The Injustice of Existence Unfairness dominates the lives of Tess and her family to such an extent that it begins to seem like a general aspect of human existence in Tess of the dUrbervilles. Tess does not mean to kill Prince, but she is punished anyway, just as she is unfairly punished for her own rape by Alec. Nor is there justice waiting in heaven. Christianity teaches that there is compensation in the afterlife for unhappiness suffered in this life, but the only devout Christian encountered in the novel may be the reverend, Mr. Clare, who seems more or less content in his life anyway. For others in their misery, Christianity offers little solace of heavenly justice. Mrs. Durbeyfield never mentions otherworldly rewards. The converted Alec preaches heavenly justice for earthly sinners, but his faith seems shallow and insincere. Generally, the moral atmosphere of the novel is not Christian justice at all, but pagan injustice. The forces that rule human life are absolutely unpredictable and not necessarily welldisposed to us. The pre-Christian rituals practiced by the farm workers at the opening of the novel, and Tesss final rest at Stonehenge at the end, remind us of a world where the gods are not just and fair, but whimsical and uncaring. When the narrator concludes the novel with the statement that Justice was done, and the President of the Immortals (in the Aeschylean phrase) had ended his sport with Tess, we are reminded that justice must be put in ironic quotation marks, since it is not really just at all. What passes for Justice is in fact one of the pagan gods enjoying a bit of sport, or a frivolous game.

Changing Ideas of Social Class in Victorian England Tess of the dUrbervilles presents complex pictures of both the importance of social class in nineteenth-century England and the difficulty of defining class in any simple way. Certainly the Durbeyfields are a powerful emblem of the way in which class is no longer evaluated in Victorian times as it would have been in the Middle Agesthat is, by blood alone, with no attention paid to fortune or worldly success. Indubitably the Durbeyfields have purity of blood, yet for the parson and nearly everyone else in the novel, this fact amounts to nothing more than a piece of genealogical trivia. In the Victorian context, cash matters more than lineage, which explains how Simon Stokes, Alecs father, was smoothly able to use his large fortune to purchase a lustrous family name and transform his clan into the Stoke-dUrbervilles. The dUrbervilles pass for what the Durbeyfields truly areauthentic nobilitysimply because definitions of class have changed. The issue of class confusion even affects the Clare clan, whose most promising son, Angel, is intent on becoming a farmer and marrying a milkmaid, thus bypassing the traditional privileges of a Cambridge education and a parsonage. His willingness to work side by side with the farm laborers helps endear him to Tess, and their acquaintance would not have been possible if he were a more traditional and elitist aristocrat. Thus, the three main characters in the Angel-Tess-Alec triangle are all strongly marked by confusion regarding their respective social classes, an issue that is one of the main concerns of the novel. Men Dominating Women One of the recurrent themes of the novel is the way in which men can dominate women, exerting a power over them linked primarily to their maleness. Sometimes this command is purposeful, in the mans full knowledge of his exploitation, as when Alec acknowledges how bad he is for seducing Tess for his own momentary pleasure. Alecs act of abuse, the most life-altering event that Tess experiences in the novel, is clearly the most serious instance of male domination over a female. But there are other, less blatant examples of womens passivity toward dominant men. When, after Angel reveals that he prefers Tess, Tesss friend Retty attempts suicide and her friend Marian becomes an alcoholic, which makes their earlier schoolgirl-type crushes on Angel seem disturbing. This devotion is not merely fanciful love, but unhealthy obsession. These girls appear utterly dominated by a desire for a man who, we are told explicitly, does not even realize that they are interested in him. This sort of unconscious male domination of women is perhaps even more unsettling than Alecs outward and self-conscious cruelty.

Even Angels love for Tess, as pure and gentle as it seems, dominates her in an unhealthy way. Angel substitutes an idealized picture of Tesss country purity for the real-life woman that he continually refuses to get to know. When Angel calls Tess names like Daughter of Nature and Artemis, we feel that he may be denying her true self in favor of a mental image that he prefers. Thus, her identity and experiences are suppressed, albeit unknowingly. This pattern of male domination is finally reversed with Tesss murder of Alec, in which, for the first time in the novel, a woman takes active steps against a man. Of course, this act only leads to even greater suppression of a woman by men, when the crowd of male police officers arrest Tess at Stonehenge. Nevertheless, for just a moment, the accepted pattern of submissive women bowing to dominant men is interrupted, and Tesss act seems heroic.

Motifs Motifs are recurring structures, contrasts, or literary devices that can help to develop and inform the texts major themes. Birds Images of birds recur throughout the novel, evoking or contradicting their traditional spiritual association with a higher realm of transcendence. Both the Christian dove of peace and the Romantic songbirds of Keats and Shelley, which symbolize sublime heights, lead us to expect that birds will have positive meaning in this novel. Tess occasionally hears birdcalls on her frequent hikes across the countryside; their free expressiveness stands in stark contrast to Tesss silent and constrained existence as a wronged and disgraced girl. When Tess goes to work for Mrs. dUrberville, she is surprised to find that the old womans pet finches are frequently released to fly free throughout the room. These birds offer images of hope and liberation. Yet there is irony attached to birds as well, making us doubt whether these images of hope and freedom are illusory. Mrs. dUrbervilles birds leave little white spots on the upholstery, which presumably some servantperhaps Tess herself will have to clean. It may be that freedom for one creature entails hardship for another, just as Alecs free enjoyment of Tesss body leads her to a lifetime of suffering. In the end, when Tess encounters the pheasants maimed by hunters and lying in agony, birds no longer seem free, but rather oppressed and submissive. These pheasants are no Romantic songbirds hovering far above the Earththey are victims of earthly violence, condemned to suffer down below and never fly again. The Book of Genesis The Genesis story of Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden is evoked repeatedly throughout Tess of the dUrbervilles, giving the novel a broader metaphysical and philosophical dimension. The roles of Eve and the serpent in paradise are clearly delineated: Angel is the noble Adam newly born, while Tess is the indecisive and troubled Eve. When Tess gazes upon Angel in Chapter XXVII, she regarded him as Eve at her second waking might have regarded Adam. Alec, with his open avowal that he is bad to the bone, is the conniving Satan. He seduces Tess under a tree, giving her sexual knowledge in return for her lost innocence. The very name of the forest where this seduction occurs, the Chase, suggests how Eve will be chased from Eden for her sins. This guilt, which will never be erased, is known in Christian theology as the original sin that all humans have inherited. Just as John Durbeyfield is told in Chapter I that you dont live anywhere, and his family is evicted after his death at the end of the novel, their homelessness evokes the human exile from Eden. Original sin suggests that humans have fallen from their once great status to a lower station in life, just as the dUrbervilles have devolved into the modern Durbeyfields. This Story of the Fallor of the Pure Drop, to recall the name of a pub in Tesss home villageis much more than a social fall. It is an explanation of how all of us humansnot only Tessnever quite seem to live up to our expectations, and are never able to inhabit the places of grandeur we feel we deserve. Variant Names The transformation of the dUrbervilles into the Durbeyfields is one example of the common phenomenon of renaming, or variant naming, in the novel. Names matter in this novel. Tess knows and accepts that she is a lowly Durbeyfield, but part of her still believes, as her parents also believe,

that her aristocratic original name should be restored. John Durbeyfield goes a step further than Tess, and actually renames himself Sir John, as his tombstone epitaph shows. Another character who renames himself is Simon Stokes, Angels father, who purchased a family tree and made himself Simon Stoke-dUrberville. The question raised by all these cases of name changing, whether successful or merely imagined, is the extent to which an altered name brings with it an altered identity. Alec acts notoriously ungentlemanly throughout the novel, but by the end, when he appears at the dUrberville family vault, his lordly and commanding bearing make him seem almost deserving of the name his father has bought, like a spoiled medieval nobleman. Hardys interest in name changes makes reality itself seem changeable according to whims of human perspective. The village of Blakemore, as we are reminded twice in Chapters I and II, is also known as Blackmoor, and indeed Hardy famously renames the southern English countryside as Wessex. He imposes a fictional map on a real place, with names altered correspondingly. Reality may not be as solid as the names people confer upon it. Symbols Symbols are objects, characters, figures, or colors used to represent abstract ideas or concepts. Prince When Tess dozes off in the wagon and loses control, the resulting death of the Durbeyfield horse, Prince, spurs Tess to seek aid from the dUrbervilles, setting the events of the novel in motion. The horses demise is thus a powerful plot motivator, and its name a potent symbol of Tesss own claims to aristocracy. Like the horse, Tess herself bears a high-class name, but is doomed to a lowly life of physical labor. Interestingly, Princes death occurs right after Tess dreams of ancient knights, having just heard the news that her family is aristocratic. Moreover, the horse is pierced by the forwardjutting piece of metal on a mail coach, which is reminiscent of a wound one might receive in a medieval joust. In an odd way, Tesss dream of medieval glory comes true, and her horse dies a heroic death. Yet her dream of meeting a prince while she kills her own Prince, and with him her familys only means of financial sustenance, is a tragic foreshadowing of her own story. The death of the horse symbolizes the sacrifice of real-world goods, such as a useful animal or even her own honor, through excessive fantasizing about a better world. The dUrberville Family Vault A double-edged symbol of both the majestic grandeur and the lifeless hollowness of the aristocratic family name that the Durbeyfields learn they possess, the dUrberville family vault represents both the glory of life and the end of life. Since Tess herself moves from passivity to active murder by the end of the novel, attaining a kind of personal grandeur even as she brings death to others and to herself, the double symbolism of the vault makes it a powerful site for the culminating meeting between Alec and Tess. Alec brings Tess both his lofty name and, indirectly, her own death later; it is natural that he meets her in the vault in dUrberville Aisle, where she reads her own name inscribed in stone and feels the presence of death. Yet the vault that sounds so glamorous when rhapsodized over by John Durbeyfield in Chapter I seems, by the end, strangely hollow and meaningless. When Alec stomps on the floor of the vault, it produces only a hollow echo, as if its basic emptiness is a complement to its visual grandeur. When Tess is executed, her ancestors are said to snooze on in

their crypts, as if uncaring even about the fate of a member of their own majestic family. Perhaps the secret of the family crypt is that its grandiosity is ultimately meaningless. Brazil Rather surprising for a novel that seems set so solidly in rural England, the narration shifts very briefly to Brazil when Angel takes leave of Tess and heads off to establish a career in farming. Even more exotic for a Victorian English reader than America or Australia, Brazil is the country in which Robinson Crusoe made his fortune and it seems to promise a better life far from the humdrum familiar world. Brazil is thus more than a geographical entity on the map in this novel: it symbolizes a fantasyland, a place where dreams come true. As Angels name suggests, he is a lofty visionary who lacks some experience with the real world, despite all his mechanical know-how in farm management. He may be able to milk cows, but he does not yet know how to tell the difference between an exotic dream and an everyday reality, so inevitably his experience in the imagined dream world of Brazil is a disaster that he barely survives. His fiasco teaches him that ideals do not exist in life, and this lesson helps him reevaluate his disappointment with Tesss imperfections, her failure to incarnate the ideal he expected her to be. For Angel, Brazil symbolizes the impossibility of ideals, but also forgiveness and acceptance of life in spite of those disappointed ideals.