Notion of freedom Flashcards
(6 cards)
“The last three words in the play are ‘set me free’ says Felix. “You don’t say ‘set me free’ unless you’re not free” - Hag Seed
Evaluate the representation of the notion of freedom in the textual conversation between Shakespeare and Atwood
In your discussion, make reference to significant settings within your prescribed texts.
WHAT IS THE THESIS AND BPS
Shakespeare and Atwood represent imprisonment as a condition experienced unequally, shaped by the power and social status of the individual. While men of authority and intellect construct and control their own forms of imprisonment, characters of lower statuses are forcibly confined by external forms of captivity. Their unique settings allow both texts to interrogate how power hierarchies function by contrasting a psychological captivity, with blatant degradation and removal of autonomy.
BP 1- Prospero’s exile is self-inflicted but ge still maintains power in exile. - Great chain of being he is destined for authority. - 2
BP 2- - Felix’s imprisonment is psychological and self-imposed, caused by his grief - postmodern concern with psychological captivity. - 3
BP 3- Miranda and Caliban are imprisoned by the external factors that reflect social hierarchies. Reflection of the Jacobean values -3
BP 4- Reframes the narrative to fit within a correctional centre to interrogate how hierarchies of power prevail within modern society. Atwood is critical of the justice system but appreciates art as a form od escapism-2
BP 1 and Quotes
Topic - Prospero’s exile is self-inflicted, as he prioritises his intellectual pursuits while neglecting his responsibilities as Duke of Milan. He still maintains power and agency even in exile.
Elaborate - Prospero’s passion for and embodiment of individual potential, education, and self-mastery are rooted in renaissance humanist ideals. Great chain of being allows Prospero to construct his own forms of confinement and rise to power despite his imprisonment as he is destined for authority.
Evidence 1 - “Let your indulgences set me free”. Metafiction demonstrates Prospero’s awareness that his isolation is psychological. He is metaphorically trapped by his own magic and the arts that got him exiled to begin with. People Favoured by society are allowed autonomy over their own misery.
Evidence 2 – “Me, poor man, my library was dukedom large enough.”. Ironic juxtapostition eas the intellectual exploration that Prospero found solace in resulted in his imprisonment. Reflects the Renaissance - knowledge as power.
Summative statement – Prospero maintains his position of power, as his imprisonment is psychological in nature. His experiences juxtaposed with characters of lower status, who are subject to external, dehumanising forms of captivity, reflecting the social hierarchies that were contextually present.
BP 2 and Quotes
Topic - Felix’s imprisonment is psychological and self-imposed condition caused by his grief and obsession. It is a product of his inability to let go of the past.
Elaborate - This internalised imprisonment aligns with Atwood’s postmodern concern with the instability of identity.
Evidence 1 - “Snap out of it felix. Pull yourself together. Break out of your cell”, metaphor - The metaphorical “cell” he is trapped within is emotional and psychological. Postmodern theme of questioning conventional ideals - self made imprisonment.
Evidence 2 - “My island domain. My place of exile. My penance. My theatre.” Felix’s house becomes a metaphor for the emotional turmoil that has kept him tethered there for 12 years. Each section represents a part of his life lowk
Evidence 3 - “What kind of prisons are they? Who’s been put in each of them? ” Rhetorical question - Prospero’s examination into the different types of imprisonment in the Tempest. Metafiction - elevates the reader’s experience and forces them to infer meaning.
Summary - Atwood’s portrayal of Felix reflects the postmodern idea that freedom is subjective and rooted on personal perception and emotional stability.
BP 3 and Quotes
Topic - Miranda, Ariel and Caliban are imprisoned not by their actions but by the external factors that reflect the social hierarchies in which they live.
Context- Their treatment ultimately is a reflection of the Jacobean values and the great chain of being
Evidence 1 - If thou more murmur’st, I will rend an oak and peg thee in his knotty entrails till thou hast howled away twelve winters.” - Violent imagery - reflects imperial powers and transactional nature of Ariel’s relationship with Prospero - no chioce but to submit.
Evidence 2 -** “Abhorred slave, Which any print of goodness will not take” -** Diction reflects the belief that some people were irredeemable and had an innate evil nature. Great chain of being
Evidence 3 - “I am your wife if you will marry me. If not, I’ll die your maid” Submissive tone - This ties her worth to her purity and marital status rather than her individual identity. Miranda’s lack of agency - women treatement.
Summary -Lack of autonomy for some charectors illustrates a civilisation with imbalanced unequal power heirechis. Shakespeare uses their characters to reflect the inhumane and materialistic values of early modern Europe, where women and racialized people were imprisoned to the dehumanising authority of others.
BP 4 and Quotes
Topic sentence - Atwood reframes the narrative to fit within a correctional centre to interrogate how hierarchies of power prevail within modern society. Atwood acknowleges this but unlike Shakespeare, she rubutts it.
Elaborate - Atwood is highly critical of the criminal justice system and focuses on the overrepresentation of indigenous people. She appreciated art
Evidence 1 - “He refused to call them inmates… not while they were in his theatre troupe” Intertextuality - Theatre is a socially restorative art form, where people aren’t defined by their crimes, but by their true identity. This reflects Atwoods belief in the redemptive potential of art - neoliberalism.
Evidence 2 -“Prisons are for incarceration and punishment, not for spurious attempts to educate”This assertion is used to criticize the ignorance of some and is openly contradicted through the novel by atwood.
Summary - Atwood explores the faults in the criminal justice system and beleives in the redemptive power of art to free them.
“The last three words in the play are ‘set me free’ says Felix. “You don’t say ‘set me free’ unless you’re not free” - Hag Seed
Evaluate the representation of the notion of freedom in the textual conversation between Shakespeare and Atwood
In your discussion, make reference to significant settings within your prescribed texts.
WHAT IS THE CONCLUSION
The Tempest embodies the shifting values from medieval providentialism to renaissance humanism during the age of exploration by contrasting the physical bounds of the characters who are viewed as lesser within society and with the psychological imprisonment of those who yield more power. This reflects the age of exploration when the indigenous people of the new lands were treated as subhuman and women were considered as the possessions of their husbands and/or fathers. Atwoods Hag Seed also reflects these ideals, changing the political commentary to make it more digestible and relevant to her audience by portraying the prisoners as the minorities that are denied compassion. Atwood juxtaposes Felix’s self imposed exile with their forced incarceration and the impacts this power structure has on their future prospects and their ability to rehabilitate.
