Elements of Gothic Literature Essay

Gothic literature was born in 1764 when Horace Walpole published The Castle of Otranto, which is considered to be the first gothic novel ever written. Gothic literature was originally written as a reaction to the age of reason, order, and the politics of eighteenth-century England. Containing anti-Catholic sentiments and mythical aspects, Gothic literature explored the tension between what we fear and what we desire. The stories were usually set in some kind of castle or old building that showed human decay and created an atmosphere of mystery and suspense. Often, one of the main characters would be some sort of damsel in distress, threatened by some man. The words chosen in these novels and short stories were very descriptive, creating overwrought emotion and often, feelings of gloom and horror. Also, within the plot, some sort of ancient prophecy, along with omens and visions, could usually be found. The most important elements to the structure of canonical gothic literature, however, are supernatural and unexplainable events. In The Castle of Otranto, much of the plot surrounds one unexplainable incident: a giant black helmet falls on Prince Conrad, thus killing him. Because of Prince Conrad’s death, Manfred, his father, captures a passing peasant, Theodore, and pursues Isabella, Conrad’s fiancee. Later, it is learned that Jerome (the minister) is Theodore’s father. If the helmet had never fallen on Conrad, Manfred never would have stopped Theodore, and Jerome would never have found his long lost son. Manfred, still believing that Theodore is guilty of dropping the helmet by sorcery, is ready to execute him. At this point in the story, Isabella’s long lost father appears, which halts Theodore’s execution. It is later learned that Isabella’s father found her because a dream he had led him to a monk, who led him to Otranto. The supernatural event here is the dream, which turned out to forecast reality. He accuses Manfred of not being the rightful ruler of Otranto. Eventually, everything is confirmed when the giant version of Alfonso the Good that has been living in the castle (another mysterious incident) breaks through the walls and proclaims Theodore the natural heir of Alfonso and the rightful ruler of Otranto. The Ruins of the Abbey of Fitz-Martin, whose author remains anonymous, also has a similar dependency on a chain of supernatural events. Sir Thomas Fitz-Martin acquires an abbey, which he finds in ruins. He is certain it can be repaired, so he and his people venture inside. Upon exploring the abbey, Fitz-Martin opens a door with difficulty, only to be met with severe shrieks from inside that particular room. Later in the story, the superstition surrounding those screams is explained. Evidently, every night, the ghost of St. Anna can be seen walking up to the altar. She stays there until midnight, and then walks to the south tower. She screams three times, and the ghost of the evil Baron, who possessed the abbey years before, comes. Then, Anna chases him with a â€Å"fire-brand† in one hand and a dead baby in her other arm. The two ghosts eventually come to the Baron’s old room, where â€Å"dismal yells and dying groans† can be heard from. Fiery lights surround the Baron’s old room until the clock that hasn’t been touched in years strikes two, or sometimes three o’clock. This story of supernatural occurrence strikes the curiosity of Rosaline, Sir Thomas Fitz-Martin’s daughter, who then decides to go investigate the south tower. When she does, she finds the torture chamber where they killed St. Anna so many years ago. She is debating whether or not to go in, when she hears a voice commanding her to enter. She feels almost possessed, as the voice tells her to reach inside the coffin. When she does, she pulls something out and takes it with her, fleeing in terror. It is the supernatural phenomenon of this voice that brings in St. Anna’s story, which is written on the papers with which Rosaline fled in terror. The Vampyre by John Polidori casts an interesting slant on the element of supernatural events. The entire story is a supernatural event because Lord Ruthven is a vampire, a supernatural creature. Before this is revealed to the reader, however, there are important unexplainable events that allude to his being a vampire and are of utmost importance to the story. It is the mystery of Lord Ruthven’s appearance that first attracts Aubrey to him, and thus begins the story. Aubrey wants to get to know him better, hopefully to  understand the enigma of his demeanor. They leave on a trip together, and Aubrey notices that Lord Ruthven is extremely charitable. He also notices, though, that Lord Ruthven always gives his money to the scoundrels of society, those who will piddle away the charity pursuing their vices. Then he realizes that all who receive money from Lord Ruthven end up far worse than they were before the charity. Although Aubrey cannot explain this, it intrigues him and makes him wonder if there isn’t a spark of evil in Lord Ruthven. Some time later, Aubrey receives letters from his sister and his guardians. The letter from his sister is very loving, but the letter from his guardians bears only bad and mysterious news. They tell him that his traveling companion is pure evil, that all the women at home that he wooed because of their virtues, have now come forth and shown that they are tainted, and pursue their vices publicly. The people of their town find this unexplainable and very unnerving. He was suspicious of Lord Ruthven’s evil before, but upon reading the letter, Aubrey decides that he must leave Lord Ruthven for the remainder of the trip. Aubrey travels to Greece, where he stays with a kind family and falls in love with their daughter, Ianthe, although he does not act on it. It is here that he learns the legend of the vampire. One day he goes to a place to research, and they tell him to be back before dark because of the vampire. He loses track of time and it is soon dark. He hears a scream and runs toward it. He finds a hut, and picks up a dagger that is inside. However, he is too late. Ianthe was murdered by the vampire. Aubrey falls into a fever and Lord Ruthven returns to him and nurses him back to health. Soon after this, they are attacked by robbers and Lord Ruthven is wounded. He dies, but makes Aubrey promise to him that he will not speak a word of his death. When Aubrey goes back for Lord Ruthven’s body, it is gone, and the robbers tell Aubrey that they had to put it in the moonlight the first night of Lord Ruthven’s death. They go to where they left the corpse, but it has mysteriously disappeared. Aubrey decides that it is time to go home. On his way home, he goes through Lord Ruthven’s things and finds a shaft that matches the dagger he found in the hut exactly. This confirms for Aubrey  that Lord Ruthven is the vampire. When he arrives home, his sister holds a drawing-room. Here, Aubrey is snatched by the arm and told to ‘remember his oath.’ Aubrey is dumbfounded because Lord Ruthven is supposed to be dead, but here he is, pursuing his sister. This drives him into a terrible fever. During this fever, he figures out that his sister is engaged to Lord Ruthven and fears for her. He tries to stop the wedding, but everyone thinks that he is crazy and dismisses him. His sister is killed at the end of the story. The fact that Lord Ruthven is a supernatural creature accounts for all of the supernatural events and the entire story. If he was not a vampire, his demeanor would never have attracted Aubrey initially, and Aubrey never would have gone traveling with Lord Ruthven. Had Aubrey not gone traveling with him, he never would have discovered that Lord Ruthven was a vampire, and gone crazy. If Aubrey had not gone crazy, he would have been able to stop the wedding and save his sister’s life. Supernatural and unexplainable events are crucial to the plot of a gothic story. Often, they act as the backbone of the plot and many of the circumstances and coincidences rest upon them. In The Castle of Otranto, they act as the coincidence drivers as well as supply some of the omens and visions, another element of gothic literature. They bring the real story to the surface in The Ruins of the Abbey of Fitz-Martin, and provide the foundation for the story in The Vampyre. Without the element of supernatural and unexplainable events, much of the canonical gothic literature would not stand on its own.

Limit Pricing and Oligopolies

Limit pricing is the type of pricing wherein firms discourage entrants to the market by choosing a low price that is below short-run profit maximizing price but above the competitive level. Firms who engage in limit pricing are forfeiting current profits to earn future profits. The output is being maintained despite the presence of entrants. However, there are still issues whether the application of limit pricing models is profitable for firms (2002). A firm engages in limit pricing by choosing its price and output while an entrant cannot sufficiently cover the average total cost of the remaining market demand. An established firm that is threatened by an entry in a single-period could use limit price as the highest price. This will block the entry. As first explained by Modigliani in 1958, it was assumed that entrants would expect that incumbent firm will continue production at an entry-limiting output with an entry present. It is the same as the Cournot Competition wherein firms believe that its competitors will continue production at the current levels (McAuliffe, 1997). On the other hand, â€Å"classic limit pricing† is another pricing policy where limit pricing allows established firms to earn economic profits while they are preventing the occurrence of entry. It happens if there are economies of sale in production even if the entrants and the incumbent firms have the same costs (McAuliffe, 1997). Another model is explained by Gaskin in 1971, called the dynamic limit pricing. It happens if there are threats from potential competition to a firm for current and future periods. The firms would now depend the rate of entry from the difference between the current price and their marginal costs. If a firm would want to earn high profits at current period, it will set a high price. However, the number of entry will also increase while the price and profit are likely to decrease in the future. On the other hand, if an established firm decided for a lower price, both the entry and the profits will decrease. Moreover, if the firms do not have any cost over the entrants, it will lose its position then the market will be competitive. The competitive outcome of the market however is not astonishing at all since only the price is used by the firm (McAuliffe, 1997). Both in the classic and dynamic limit pricing, the market power of the established firms are restricted due to the potential competition. In the end, they have no choice but to set the price under monopoly level. However, the expectation from an entrant that a firm would always maintain its output is not always true. After the entry period, both firms would earn high profits through high prices and restricted output. An established firm therefore with maintained output after the existence of an entry is not always a threat for an entrant. Otherwise, the established firm should bind for the current period   in order to obtain high profits with high output for the next periods (McAuliffe, 1997). Successful limit pricing could affect the market structure however few firms do set prices equal to or below the monopoly level to discourage entry. Major American companies use different strategies such as advertising and product proliferation  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   to discourage entry (McAuliffe, 1997). Competition is important in the American economy system but what if there is only a small number of competing companies? This condition falls under the oligopoly market. Unlike the monopoly where there is only one seller and many buyers, in oligopoly there is more than one seller (Schenk). In oligopoly, there may be homogenous or heterogeneous products; however entry is deterred by legal restrictions such as banking, minimum efficient scale such as overnight mail service , or strategic behavior (2008). Oligopoly has different models such as the Cournot-Nash Equilibrium of Duopoly and the Collusive Oligopoly. Cournot focused only on duopoly where there are only two firms competing assuming that both sell the same products produced at zero marginal cost. Both firm engage in output that is profit-maximizing expecting that the output of the other firms is maintained or held constant (Lipsey and Crystal, 2007). Under Cournot-Nash equilibrium, duopolists are competing for the quantities where each produces less than a monopoly. However, the sum of the production of both duopolists is more than the monopoly but their economic profits are less than the monopoly. The price is always less than monopoly level but not more than the competitive price (2008). Under Cournot equilibrium, firms would earn less than a monopoly because the duopolists’ outputs are more then the monopoly output. They would earn however more than the perfectly competitive firms since they could decrease the price upon increasing output (Lipsey and Crystal, 2007). Each competing firm is expected to adjust their outputs. However, if they cannot make any more adjustments then equilibrium is reached (Hobbs, 2001). Unlike Cournot-Nash equilibrium with doupolists as competing firms, in collusive oligopoly the firms cooperate in order to have a monopoly power. They may agree in setting price and dividing the output therefore gaining the quantity a monopoly produces and earning the economic profits a monopoly can. The firms are now earning more than doupoly profits (2008). There are many factors for collusion such as the number of sellers, personalities, equality of shares, costs of each firm, and others. There is a possibly that a collusion might disintegrate especially if the firm begin competing and cheating with the other firms (Schenk). Monopolies in the U.S. are most likely to be regulated by the government unlike the oligopolies. Price-fixing by the collusive oligopolies however is not allowed unless for agricultural cooperatives and professional sports league (2006). Collusion oligopolies, just like the doupoly, could turn into competition as well. Firms begin violating the production limits and producing more than they have to. Besides, the price tends to be lower. In the end, the collusion becomes unsuccessful. Bibliography OECD 2002, Limit Pricing, viewed 6 May 2007, . NC State University 2006, Collusive Oligopolies, viewed 6 May 2008, . 2008 Oligopoly, viewed 6 May 2008, . Hobb, B.K. 2001, Cournot Equilibrium, viewed 6 may 2008, . Lipsey, R. G. & Crystal, A. 2007, Doupoly. Oxford University Press, viewed 6 May 2008, . McAuliffe, R. E. 1997, Encyclopedic Dcitionary of Managerial Economics, Blackwell Punlishing, viewed 6 May 2008, . Schenk, R. The Theory of Few Sellers, viewed 6 May 2008, .         

Language Confusion in Shakespeare's Twelfth Night Essay

Language Confusion in Shakespeare's Twelfth Night - Essay Example In literary critics, views that Feste has assumed the spirit of the Twelve Night festivities which involves having fun and tossing the bird towards authority figures (Ford, 145). Despite the belief by Caesario, the disguised Olivia, she believes that Feste remains one of the wisest cats in Illyria. The description fits Feste through his expressed genius nature with words. Feste is endowed with the talent of punning, clever banter and word play. It is amazing how Feste utilizes his skills throughout the Twelfth Night (Ford, 148). Feste appears fond of amicably sizing up situations as they come and at the same time the characters around him allowing him to discern the foolishness of the individuals around him. The character not only tickles individuals but, at the same time ends up providing him with an opportunity to earn a few bucks. Feste mocks the Olivia saying that she has over indulge in mourning which, he, Feste, views as a foolish behavior. Further, Feste mocks Duke Orsino’s moods as being excess. To emphasize the extent he compares Orsino’s mind with an ‘apal’ that constantly changes its color (Ford,

Discrimination Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

Discrimination - Essay Example This harassment is termed as overt discrimination (Gregory, 2004). The Title VII of the Civil Right Act addressed the situation and declared that all decisions pertaining to employment, termination or promotion should never be based on gender, instead based on merit. The issue was addressed, and the female employee got the promotion and the male employee was subjected to punishment to discourage such behaviors (Boland, 2005). The uninformed manager could have mishandled the issue if he/she is uninformed of the Title VII of the Civil Right Act, this way there would never be any punishment administered to the gender prejudiced employee. In return, this would have led to subsequent cases of sexual harassment of the same nature in the organization (Barreto et al, 2009). The managers always determine the level of sexual harassment to be expected in an organization. Mangers that set rules that discourage sexual harassment tend to report lower cases of sexual harassment, whilst managers with rules that encourage sexual harassment experience a vast number of cases of sexual harassment (Neville,

Surrealism and its Inspiration Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Surrealism and its Inspiration - Research Paper Example When Breton designed the cover of ‘Young Cherry Trees Secure against Hare’s surrealism,’ he brought out a strong message for the audience. In the cover, he transformed the commonly known symbol for freedom that bears the face of a woman and replaced it with his own. He realized that he could use what people had prior knowledge to create an impact. He was advocating for the liberty that artists needed. He was defying the old way of thinking that expected artists to express issues that people knew. It is with this thinking that he founded surrealism (Sepp and Lester 78). With such thinking in the artist’s mind, disorder may result because odd ideas from the subconscious mind come out. One of the famous surrealists of the time was Salvador Dali. Dali started out as a poet but diversified to being an author of books and painter. Dali was a vocal artist who defended his wild pieces of work and asserted that he did not need to understand them himself. As long as they were coming from his subconscious mind, he did not have to hold back from expressing himself. As a result, Dali produced work that amazes anyone seeking to appreciate his pieces of work. One of the images that has evoked the imagination and attention of people over time is the painting Dali named the ‘persistence of memory’. In this painting, he portrayed soft watches hanging on a rock, on a tree and on another surface that is not very clear. The unique thing about these watches is that they are melting. The persistence of memory attracted a lot of interpretation and different opinions on the interpretation. The fact that watches were melting seemed to suggest something that was continuously happening to time. Many guessed that the painting was a reflection of the relativity between... Surrealism and its Inspiration This paper will consider how much order one can find in the artwork of some of the surrealist artists. In addition, the paper will consider whether the unrealistic images portrayed have meaning in real life. An analysis of Andre Breton’s description of surrealism because he developed the entire concept will give an insight of the real surrealistic art. Breton was a poet and novelist. There are unique things that happened to Breton that led to the development of surrealism. When he was studying medicine, he got an introduction into Sigmund Freud. Freud was a psychoanalyst who had developed theories explaining the potential of the mind to carry out multiple amazing functions. From these theories, Breton adopted new attitude of writing. Having realized that the mind had potential that he imagined, Breton explored new ways of writing (Sepp and Lester 78). The second influence came from the Dadaists who influenced his thinking. He defied the dada movement later because he wanted an art movement that allowed him to express himself without the need to reason. In 1924, he managed to describe surrealism fully in a manifesto. This manifesto emphasized the power of imagination. Visual arts have had a significant growth since the early 1900s. As presented in this paper, Surrealism, just like other visual arts has had an interesting history. Worth noting, it is evident that understanding the themes behind surrealistic arts may not be easy. This is because the themes do not appear on the surface. So much disorder seems to appear for interpreter.

Duchamp, Segal, Rauschenberg, Warhol, Oldenburg, Lichtenstein Assignment

Duchamp, Segal, Rauschenberg, Warhol, Oldenburg, Lichtenstein - Assignment Example The paper "Duchamp, Segal, Rauschenberg, Warhol, Oldenburg, Lichtenstein" discovers the famous artists of the 20th century. Marcel Duchamp and was interested to put art back to the service of the mind. He distanced himself from the traditional artistic methods and paintings, relying on seducing the view through irony and verbal witticism instead of relying on the aesthetical appeal as other artists did. George Segal was a Jewish. He is known for â€Å"Pop Art† movement. His technique was however different form pop art due to closely relating his work to human values and personal experiences. He chose to deal with places that were familiar to him, rather than the elegant topics. His artistic work led to creation of close up drawings of human expressions and was known for his humanistic passion. Robert Rauschenberg was an American born in Texas and studied pharmacology. His unique artistic style involved the use of newspapers to make long silk screens cardboards, and early Egypt ians which is a series of wall reliefs and sculptures constructed from used boxes. He also made a lot of prints on silk where he made colorful silk walls and floor works. Rauschenberg later began to use his black and white photographs and was more recognized for the  ¼ Mile or Two Furlong Piece that was conceived to be the longest artwork in the world portraying his unique photographic techniques and horology of his imagery. Claes Oldenburg was born in Stockholm in 1929, but his family settled in Chicago in 1936.

Franchise Feasability Study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4750 words

Franchise Feasability Study - Essay Example What is a franchise, and how does it work? Franchise is a business arrangement undertaken between two parties for the purpose of marketing a product or service. The franchiser (party selling the product or service) enters into an agreement with the franchisee (party buying the product or service) to provide marketing and selling expertise under its banner, for a fee. The franchisee is at liberty to operate in areas not directly under the jurisdiction of the franchiser (Definition: Franchise@ Sterling Knight, Commercial Mortgages, Sterling Knight, www.sterlingknight.co.uk). What are the rules set out by the Australian Franchise Standards to enhance profitability and high standards of personal and professional conduct? Does Garuva have the qualities to market their services through franchisees in Melbourne and Sydney? What does the Australian Franchise Standards mean in the context of this research, and does Garuva bar and restaurant, meet the suitability criteria of the Australian Franchise Standards to expand its operations through a franchise in the port cities of Sydney and Melbourne? The Franchise Council of Australia (FCA) expects its members to maintain a high level of standards in personal and professional conducts, to enhance public perceptions of a franchise.... teria of the Australian Franchise Standards to expand its operations through a franchise in the port cities of Sydney and Melbourne The Franchise Council of Australia (FCA) expects its members to maintain a high level of standards in personal and professional conducts, to enhance public perceptions of a franchise. In return, FCA will help safeguard the investment of its member franchisers and the businesses of its franchisees, and protect franchise networks from unfair or unethical attacks. Brisbane, the capital of Queensland, is a well developed, industrial, tourism, and sporting city. This makes Brisbane an ideal destination for holiday makers as well as businessmen, not forgetting the local population that draws as much as 16% of the state's total wages. The same can be said of Sydney and Melbourne. Cosmopolitan cities that they are, Garuva would definitely benefit from operating franchises there. This research will exemplify the business potential in the field of food and beverag es and undertake the study of business expansionism through franchise. 2.0 Executive summary Brisbane, the capital of Queensland, is situated to the north of Sydney. It accounts for 10% of the State's total jobs. Wages drawn is equal to 16% of the State's total wages bill. With its industrial areas, international sea and airports, lush green parks, theatres, hotels, outdoor and indoor sports, and tourist spots, which include the world famous Sunshine and Gold Coast, Brisbane is the place to be. An adventurer's and tourist's destination, Brisbane is among the most-sought-after destinations for Australian and international travellers. Approximately 60% of the country's meat export, and roughly 40% of her car imports happens through the Port of Brisbane (Elizabeth Nosworthy, 2001,