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The Life of Anthony Quinn, 2002.
This is a short biography of actor, Anthony Quinn. It briefly reviews the relevant information about his life from birth until death.
3,190 words (approx. 12.8 pages), 9 sources, MLA, AU$ 135.95
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Abstract
This paper looks at Anthony Quinn's ancestry, birthplace, adolescence and young adult years. It covers his beginnings in the film industry, his rise to fame, the movies he starred in, his personal life after he achieved success and his slow demise in the film industry.
From the Paper
"Before he launched his acting career, Quinn worked at a variety of odd jobs including a boxer, butcher, street corner preacher and a worker in a slaughterhouse. At one point, he had even been a painter before trying his hand at acting. He launched his film career playing small character roles in several movies in 1936, including his debut in a movie called Parole. He also had small parts in Sworn Enemy and Night Waitress in 1936 before signing with Paramount, where he had an exclusive contract until 1940, generally playing gangsters and Indians. Some of the films he did for Paramount, include The Plainsman in 1936, which was directed by Cecil B. DeMille, who eventually became Quinn's father-in-law, Waikiki Wedding, The Last Train from Madrid, Daughter of Shanghai, all done in 1937, The Buccaneer, Tip-Off Girls, Bulldog Drummond in Africa, King of Alcatraz, all done in 1938, King of Chinatown, Television Spy, Union Pacific, all done in 1939 and Parole Fixer, The Ghost Breakers and Road to Singapore, all done in 1940."
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"The Beggar?s Opera", 2002.
A brief review of "The Beggar?s Opera" written by John Gay, the first ballad opera in the English language.
1,458 words (approx. 5.8 pages), 1 source, MLA, AU$ 71.95
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Abstract
This paper discusses the use of satire, metaphor and simile in Gay's "The Beggar's Opera". It shows how Gay used his opera to satirize the society of his time, but that this satirization was not derogatory or moralistic enough to give much offense. It shows how Gay?s entire cast of characters play the role of metaphor depicting social ills of the time.
From the Paper
"In satirizing the conventions of opera and romance, the Beggar?s Opera arranges a meeting of opposites. Macheath the criminal thus refers to himself as a ?man of honor?. Instead of the expected nobleman, this man of honor is a mere criminal, but he is more than that. Gay turns him into a metaphor for the hypocrisy of those who like to believe in their own heroics. Specifically, Macheath represents the aristocrat and the army officer. His affectations and efforts at romance later in the opera reflect this."
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Men's Attitudes Toward Women, 2002.
This paper introduces, discusses and analyzes the pieces, "A Doll's House" by Henrik Ibsen and "Trifles" by Susan Glaspell.
1,025 words (approx. 4.1 pages), 2 sources, MLA, AU$ 53.95
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Abstract
This paper compares and contrasts Torvald and his attitude toward Nora in Ibsen's play, to the men's attitudes toward women in the play "Trifles." It discusses how both these pieces show women treated simply as idiotic "things" by the men in the pieces, but the women are clearly smarter than the men are, and it is the men who end up looking idiotic in the end.
From the Paper
""Trifles" tells the tale of a woman driven to the "end of her rope" by a spiteful, mean-spirited man, but it is also a story for all women, celebrating how they can band together in a crisis. Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters sense immediately what Mrs. Wright was dealing with, and they attempt to protect her when the men begin to criticize her housekeeping skills. They astutely note, "MRS. HALE. No, I don't mean anything. But I don't think a place'd be any cheerfuller for John Wright's being in it" (Glaspell). While the men are still fumbling around looking at things and speculating, (and appearing increasingly idiotic), the more introspective and sensitive women have solved the crime, and are on the way to saving Mrs. Wright from paying for the murder. "A Doll's House" relates the story of Nora, a woman far ahead of her time in the Victorian era, who cannot live under her husband's thumb any longer, and must strike out on her own, even if it was not the thing to do in Victorian society."
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?The Iceman Cometh?, 2002.
An analysis of Eugene O'Neill' play ?The Iceman Cometh?.
1,714 words (approx. 6.9 pages), 3 sources, MLA, AU$ 81.95
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Abstract
This paper reviews the "The Iceman Cometh", a play by Eugene O?Neill that experiments with the painful side of emotional life about the different dreams that people aspire to achieve. It looks at how the play is rather simple and tells the stories about a group of men who are rather depressed with what life has to offer them. They sit around at the bar and live with the hope of making their dreams come true one day. The paper also provides a brief biography of Eugene O'Neill.
From the Paper
"The story is about how and why people manage to live in self denial and how one character called Hickey is challenged to drive them away from this noxious poison and bring them back to reality. The remaining Acts deal with the challenges and struggles that Hickey has to face in order to bring these people out of insanity. This creates suspense in the play too as each Act concludes with bringing that Act to a climax and ending it there. Each revelation in each Act tells us what Hickey plans to do with the harmony he wants to bring to everybody."
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?Long Day?s Journey Into Night?, 2002.
Examines the imagery of fog in Eugene O'Neill's play.
2,293 words (approx. 9.2 pages), 6 sources, APA, AU$ 103.95
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Abstract
In the play ?A Long Day?s Journey Into Night,? Eugene O?Neill uses fog imagery to suggest that motivations and secret (offstage) lives of each character is partially obscured because each character refuses to really see or hear the others? stories. The paper shows that this refusal to pay attention symbolizes the repeated blame, contempt and self-deception each character practices to deny his or her own complicity in the failure of his or her dreams. Fog is an apt metaphor for this family trait because through fog one can see the general shapes or outlines of things, but the details and the substance of things is mostly hidden. In the paper, the themes of inability to empathize and blame are also explored to varying degrees in O?Neill?s plays ?Desire Under the Elms? and ?Strange Interlude?, but arguably the literary techniques employed by O?Neill in ?Long Day?s Journey? more effectively exploit the dramatic tension these themes create.
From the Paper
"By Act III, fog has rolled in and a foghorn sounds offstage. In response to Mary?s complaint about the foghorn, Cathleen agrees that it sounds like a ?banshee.? (98). The Oxford English Dictionary defines a banshee is a supernatural being supposed by Irish peasantry to wail under the windows of a house where ?one of the inmates is about to die.? With the metaphorical equation of foghorn (which is heard off-stage) and banshee, O?Neill foreshadows the literal death by consumption of Edmund and probably of Mary?s whose morphine addiction returns by the end of the day. Both of these deaths will occur offstage, somewhere outside the scope of the play."
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AIDS in the Theater, 2002.
A review of the plays ?As Is? by William Hoffman and ?The Normal Heart? by Larry Kramer both on the subject of AIDS.
971 words (approx. 3.9 pages), 2 sources, MLA, AU$ 50.95
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Abstract
This paper analyzes the topic of AIDS and the way the gay community is dealt with in the "The Normal Heart" by Larry Kramer an ?As is? by William Hoffman. It looks at how "The Normal Heart" centers around a theme of growing realization regarding the AIDS epidemic globally and nationally. An important character in this play is Ned, a gay man, who becomes increasingly worried about the number of people he knows dying from AIDS. It examines how ?As Is? also demonstrates the different factions regarding AIDS homophobia. The play is set in New York City and looks at the disease from a social point of view and perpetuates a more real sense of hope.
From the Paper
"Bruce is a gay man who perpetuates homophobic fears by living in fear of discovery in his business world. Bruce is an example of a character that prefers diplomacy and preferred not to confront his pears about the AIDS epidemic. His behavior is shameful. By failing to act in a proactive manner, Bruce cheats the gay community. Ned would have performed in just the opposite manner, acting as a voice against the AIDS epidemic. Bruce states at one point, when asked if he is an activist, that he is not. He says, ?We?re not activists.? He also claims he will do nothing, stating, ?I?m only in this until it goes away.? (44). Bruce also believes that the political platform for gay men has nothing to do with anything except for sex. Ned is referred to in the play by Dr. Emma as a ?big mouth? to which she believes is a ?cure? for the epidemic (22) Emma also expresses her concern that nothing ?important is going to happen because it seems to be happening mostly to gay men."
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Samuel Beckett, 2002.
A discussion of the themes of comedy and death in the work of the playwright Samuel Beckett.
1,879 words (approx. 7.5 pages), 3 sources, MLA, AU$ 88.95
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Abstract
This paper examines how Samuel Beckett is one of the most important and influential playwrights of the twentieth century. It looks at how in most of his plays, he reflects an existential feeling that life is essentially absurd and that the only positive elements in it are discovered through the creativity of individuals who attempt to create meaning or else use humor to deal with this absurdity. It analyzes how death also receives a similar treatment in his plays and while the reality of death is exceptionally sad in its terrible finality, it is also dealt with in a humorous fashion. It evaluates how this combination of sadness and humor lead Beckett himself to label his own plays as ?tragicomic,? since these contradictory elements of tragedy and comedy seem to appear at the same in the same amount often in the same passage. It shows how Beckett?s portrayal of the reality of human death is at once hysterical and depressing, whimsical and terrible, as he embraces both the absurdity of life through human creation and mourns the inability of human to triumph completely over those limitations.
From the Paper
"Fittingly, in his play Waiting for Godot, his characters deal with death in a fashion that is both absurd and laments the true tragedy of the brevity and absurdity in their lives. Indeed, early in the play, the characters are considering what they should do with themselves since they are bored by the repetition of days in the strange and unnamed place where the scene is set. In this moment, Vladimir and Estragon decide that they might choose to hang themselves from the tree that is in the center of the stage. While this suggestion of suicide may seem quite grim, it is in reality extremely comic, since the tree is so small and pathetic that it could never hold a man?s weight enough for him to be hanged. In a way, this joke about death is little more than a game that the two characters use to pass the time and one that results in great comedy."
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William Shakespeare, 2002.
Discusses the influence of the Bard's writings on literature and what influenced his own writings.
2,002 words (approx. 8.0 pages), 7 sources, MLA, AU$ 93.95
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Abstract
William Shakespeare was born in 1564 and spent most of his childhood in Stratford, Great Britain. It wasn't until the age of 28 that Shakespeare began to gain prominence as a playwright. This paper shows that little is known about the private life of the man who would later be recognized as ?the greatest and most famous of English writers?. The paper shows that by skillfully creating realistic characters and situations is his plays, Shakespeares is still considered a major influence on writers across the world. Even in poetry, Shakespeare was able to transcend the boundaries of poetry and engage the reader in such a way in which all poets seek to imitate.
From the Paper
"Up until 1594 his plays appear to be influenced from Roman and medieval dramas. From 1594-1600, Shakespeare began to develop a distinctive style. The histories of this period are Shakespeare's best, portraying the lives of kings and royalty in most human terms. He also begins the interweaving, in these histories, of comedy and tragedy that would become one of his stylistic signatures. His comedies mature in this period as well, portraying more characterization in their subjects than previously. Between 1600-1608, Shakespeare wrote his tragedies, which would be the play that brought him infamy for centuries to come. Clearly, Shakespeare was at his best when he was writing these tragedies. The writing of Shakespeare until 1608, brings into focus the romantic tragicomedy. Many claim that Shakespeare seemed to be concerned with redemption at this time because the writing is more serious. These plays were also more lyrical and demonstrate how Shakespeare successfully mastered the technique of symbolism."
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Playbill and the History of Broadway Theater, 2002.
The paper analyzes the role the reference guide, Playbill, has played in Broadway's history, focusing specifically on the musical "Showboat" and its accompanying Playbill.
1,343 words (approx. 5.4 pages), 3 sources, MLA, AU$ 66.95
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Abstract
The paper explains the nature of a Playbill, a kind of reference guide to the show of the evening, summing up the cast list, the cast biographies, and also giving theatergoers a bit of advice about places to go in New York before and after the show. The paper examines the role the playbill plays in encapsulating the consumerist, capitalist nature of Broadway theater. It also explores the influence wielded by Showboat's playbill.
From the Paper
" ?Show Boat,? originally produced in 1926, and later revived at the Gershwin theater in 1994, has often been called the first modern Broadway musical. The image on the cover of the show?s Playbill during its most recent incarnation on Broadway is a sentimental picture of a turn of the century family of three waving at a large, smoking Riverboat show boat ship. This Playbill artifact encapsulates, perhaps more than any other example of the modern, New York Broadway theatre, the nature of Broadway?s form of theatrical, musical entertainment. The Playbill is a nostalgic commodity that reduces the show to a singular theme, and attempts to encapsulate within its covers, in as non-threatening a fashion as possible, the nature of a show that has proved disturbing to many viewers."
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"Annie", 2002.
Reviews and analyzes this 1982 musical-movie directed by John Huston.
990 words (approx. 4.0 pages), 5 sources, MLA, AU$ 52.95
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Abstract
This paper discusses and reviews the 1982 musical , "Annie", based on the successful Broadway production. It examines the choice of John Huston as director and discusses the characterization in the film. The paper examines several of the more successful characters such as Carol Burnett as Miss Hannigan. Finally, the paper looks as the songs and music in the film.
From the Paper
"Characterization may be one of the film's most successful qualities. Carol Burnett is brilliant as the drunken Miss Hannigan, who runs the orphan's home with an iron hand, usually grasping a bottle of booze. She may not be politically correct today, but she is certain hilarious in the film, which is probably why writers gave her some of the film's best lines, including: "Why anyone would want to be an orphan is beyond me" ("Annie"). Albert Finney as Daddy Warbucks is perfect as the millionaire with a heart of gold, who at first doesn't want anything to do with the little orphan who eventually charms him. By the end of the film, he truly becomes her "father," when he tells her, "You are special. Never stop believing that" ("Annie"). Rooster, played by veteran actor Tim Curry is one of the strangest characters in the play. Curry is excellent as the demented villain who only wants Annie for the reward money offered to locate her "real" parents. His continual crowing is an amusing touch to a character that could become a little too scary for younger children."
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?Hippolytus?, 2002.
A review of the play ?Hippolytus? by the Greek playwright Euripides.
1,040 words (approx. 4.2 pages), 3 sources, MLA, AU$ 53.95
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Abstract
This paper examines the play "Hippolytus" by the Greek playwright Euripides which explores classical Greek religion. It discusses how throughout the play, the influence of the gods on the actions of the characters is evident, especially when Aphrodite affects the actions of Phaedra and also how central to the plot is the god-god interactions between Artemis and Aphrodite. It attempts to determine whether the Greek view of their gods was governed in a frame work of forgiveness and mercy or whether they believed that they, the Greeks, were only pawns to be pushed in and out of life?s joys and sorrows. It evaluates whether the characters concern themselves with the reaction of the gods to their behavior as well as what they expect from the gods and what the gods expect of the human behavior.
From the Paper
"The thoughts and actions of Hippolytus and Phaedra are irrational at times. After all, a stepmother falling in love with her stepson is unlikely, but probably even less acceptable. This is directly related to the gods. What Aphrodite does to Phaedra causes her to do some strange things. For instance, first Phaedra seems to go crazy, and then she decides to hide her new-found love for Hippolytus from the nurse. Later, though, she decides to tell the nurse, and when she finds that the nurse has told Hippolytus, decides that the only logical course of action is to kill herself. This action is certainly related to the gods because Aphrodite makes it look as if Phaedra?s suicide is really the fault of Hippolytus. Some of Hippolytus? actions are related to the gods as well. When Theseus discovers that Phaedra is dead and decides to exile Hippolytus, Hippolytus does object to his banishment, but eventually he stops arguing with his father."
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"Cyrano de Bergerac", 2002.
Analyzes the main character, de Bergerac, in Edmond Rostand's play.
1,035 words (approx. 4.1 pages), 4 sources, APA, AU$ 53.95
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Abstract
The play "Cyrano de Bergerac", by Edmond Rostand, centers on a tragic comedy of errors, about a man who actually lived in France during the 1600s and was one of the first writers of science fiction. The paper shows that in the play, de Bergerac lives during a time where too much emphasis is put on both appearance and superficial behavior. De Bergerac has a comically ugly nose and, because of this physical flaw, cannot bring himself to tell his cousin, Roxane, that he loves her. The paper describes how, instead, he loves her by proxy, writing beautiful love letters and speeches for someone in his regiment who courts Roxane, wins her love based on de Bergerac?s words and feelings, and eventually marries her. The paper discusses both the play and the movie version of the text.
From the Paper
"The reader gets the feeling, however, that de Bergerac gets more than a little pleasure from being the center of attention, even if it is because of something he sees as grotesque about himself (staff writer, 1995). He repeatedly brings attention to his nose, and as he is very witty, he does it in extreme ways. One gets the feeling that he revels in his own suffering. When given the choice of sabotaging or enabling his friend?s courtship of Roxane, the woman de Bergerac loves desperately, he makes it impossible for Roxane to do anything except fall in love with his rival. Perhaps de Bergerac prefers to love from afar: she cannot mock him for his nose."
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Acting in Theatre, 2002.
A comparison of "Hamlet" by William Shakespeare and its spinoff Tom Stoppard?s play "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead" with an emphasis on the theme of acting.
889 words (approx. 3.6 pages), 0 sources, AU$ 46.95
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Abstract
This paper discusses how in both Tom Stoppard?s play "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead" and the play it was based on, Shakespeare?s "Hamlet", acting is a major theme and motif. It examines how especially in "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead", acting signifies the falsity, absurdity and superficiality of life and therefore, acting and the staging of plays is a metaphor for living. It analyzes how both plays use acting to portray the futility and tragedy of life, but how "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead" does so in an almost slapstick way. It looks at how Stoppard?s play is a comedy that grossly exaggerates two minor characters in Shakespeare?s "Hamlet". While Shakespeare shows how acting and drama can evoke deep emotional responses in people, as with Claudius? reaction to Hamlet?s play in Act II, scene ii, Stoppard proves that plays can be purely meaningless.
From the Paper
"The Players, or Tragedians in Shakespeare?s Hamlet first appear in Act II, scene ii. Hamlet speaks to the troop of performers about staging a drama for the King so that Hamlet can entrap him. The general association of plays and emotionality is conveyed in this scene. Hamlet?s main objective in staging ?The Murder of Gonzago? is to show Claudius that he is aware of his murderous act. Hamlet hopes to evoke in Claudius an incriminating response and to inspire fear in him. The players and Hamlet speak of the efficacy of the Classical Greek tragedies. This conversation emphasizes how significant great works of drama are in providing archetypes and universal metaphors. Even the characters within a play, in this case within Shakespeare?s play Hamlet notice the importance of play-acting. Hamlet, however, is caught up in the melodrama. In his soliloquy at the end of Act II, scene ii, he wonders how actors can feign emotion so well."
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?The Glass Menagerie?, 2002.
A review of the play ?The Glass Menagerie? by Tennessee Williams.
1,837 words (approx. 7.3 pages), 8 sources, MLA, AU$ 85.95
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Abstract
This paper examines how Tennessee Williams is a playwright who makes strong use of symbolism and how he makes good use of symbolism in "The Glass Menagerie", a play that recalls Williams' own family situation. It looks at how in the play, the brother, Tom, is a budding writer who leaves home, much as Williams himself did and how the family structure also mirrors his own, with the aristocratic mother trying to hold onto her youth and expecting more of the lame daughter than she can ever achieve. It analyzes how the play itself is presented as a memory, something that Tom as narrator emphasizes at the outset as well as the emphasizing the symbolic nature of the play itself by describing the characters to be presented and indicating that one of them is more realistic than the others. It discusses how the play uses projections to evoke certain symbols in a more direct manner and how this symbolism always links back in some manner to Williams' own earlier life.
From the Paper
"Laura is a fragile creature, as fragile as the glass figures in her collection of the title. The glass menagerie therefore is a symbol for her fragility. The glass menagerie and the phonograph records Laura plays are also a means of escape for the girl: "Through her timidity, her suffering from the friction between Tom and Amanda, and her retreat into a world of dreams, Laura evokes genuine sympathy; she is the one who must be cared for, loved, and understood" (Falk 49). The fragile glass creatures are just like Laura, and yet it is when the Gentleman Caller accidentally breaks one of the figures when he is dancing with Laura that Laura is suddenly set free from her dream world. In a larger sense, this also sets Tom free, allowing him to escape from the home after a fight with Amanda because the Gentleman Caller is already engaged. The broken glass figure is a symbol of the break with the past, though that break is always incomplete because memory, almost as fragile as the glass figures, keeps the past alive."
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?Death of a Salesman?, 2002.
Discusses the failure of both father and son in Arthur Miller's play.
907 words (approx. 3.6 pages), 3 sources, MLA, AU$ 47.95
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Abstract
In "Death of a Salesman" by Arthur Miller, Willy Loman finally realized that he had been living a life of illusion and self-deception. The paper shows how his son Biff has seen the truth about his father?s self-delusions much earlier then Willy. This causes clashes between the two, as Willy still believes that Biff will amount to something and Biff finally confronts his father about his low station in life and the fact that the two of them will always be nobodies. The paper examines the relationship between Willy and Biff Loman based on Willy's self-delusions.
From the Paper
"Willy developed the theory that if a person is well liked and is very good looking then doors, i.e. opportunity, will automatically be opened for him. In essence Willy believes in style over substance. Willy Loman, raised his two boys to embrace the same illusions about life and the keys to success that he has. Both boys, in their 30?s in the play, grow up to be failures as well. Hap, like his father, is blind to this fact; Biff on the other hand has had those illusions removed a long time ago. Biff, unlike his brother and mother, sees the truth about his father and feels a compulsion to seek the truth about himself. This conflict between Biff and Willy is the central conflict in the play that the story revolves around."
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"Killings" by Andre Dubus, 2002.
This paper looks at the play "Killings" by Andre Dubus, focusing on the way in which Dubus has inserted his own point of view about murder.
1,214 words (approx. 4.9 pages), 2 sources, MLA, AU$ 60.95
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Abstract
The writer interprets the stylistic elements in Dubus' writing that reveal his position about the social and individual consequences of murder. According to the paper, this is done through the title, plot, and the characters of the play which strengthen the connection between the story and its reader.
From the Paper
"The play?s title also points to the suffering of Frank?s loved ones. The victim?s death was so disturbing for his parents that the father?s heart was dying to kill Strout. Matt tells his friend ?(Ruth) can?t even go out for cigarettes and aspirin? without seeing Strout, ?it?s killing her? (Dubus 64). The constant daydreaming of Frank?s murder killed Matt and Ruth from inside until they took out their revenge on Strout and calmed their emotions. Simultaneously, the playwright also reflects through the thoughts of Matt Fowler, how the loved ones of Richard Strout would be killed inside by his murder. Thus, the writer builds on a deeper meaning for the play?s title by depicting how the emotions of families are killed on the deaths of their beloveds."
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