Assignment #3

The Fountainhead essay

1.      In dynamiting Cortland Homes, Howard Roark breaks the law. What is his moral and philosophical argument for the rectitude of his action?

         The Fountainhead written by Ayn Rand primarily revolves around the protagonist, Howard Roark’s struggle to retain his individuality in the face of forces bent on bringing him on the edge. The book make the reader realize the value, altruism, and individualism that leads to human egotistic decisions. In the last scene of the novel, Roark undermined the law creating an ignition of the ethics and moral of the novel.

         First we need to consider the moral side of the problem. Howard never compromises when it comes to defending his designs, copyright, originality and creativity. He agreed to help Peter Keating under one condition and that promise was broken, thus he had no choice but to break the law and make it a test case for the court and jury to decide. Howard is so passionate about his work that he will not compromise his creativity in order to accomplish his personal goals; he will never give in no matter how enormous outside pressures he faces. There is only black and white. He stands for an individual’s right to his own mind, believing strongly in intellectual property rights of an individual. Roark is not concerned with what others think because he relies on his own thinking to form his own conclusions. Gail Wynand was trying to defend Roark through his newspaper “The Banner” and went for the first time in his journalistic career against the public opinion. The articles published on that subject compared Howard with other trials of unjustly convicted innocent men in history, such as Socrates, Pasteur or Galileo. Unfortunately, because Roark blew up a housing project for the poor, even though he made sure that nobody was there at the time of explosion, Wynand faces more opposition from the public and eventually reverses his position publicly under pressure. Toohey is power hungry, sets a standard of mediocrity in order to manipulate the masses, thinking he is above the law, he is fostering collectivism. An advocate for altruism, Peter, cannot stand on his own when deserted; he achieved success only with help of others. Howard is the opposite, he stands on his own. Or as he states in his court speech: “The creator originates. The parasite borrows. The creator faces nature alone. The parasite faces nature through an intermediary”. (http://bookstove.com/classics/why-did-howard-roark-dynamite-his-own-creation/)

         “A man’s ego is the fountainhead of human progress (Ayn Rand).” The whole issue of Roark breaking the law was the ethical concept of what is law? Law is created by an individual and random words written in an official document does not mean rule to follow by people. Laws are created to keep the society in perfect fit, without any condemned nation, and to avoid overpowering an egotistic individual. Roark believed that by breaking the law, he saved his own personal goals.

Assignment #2: Analysis of symbolism in The Scarlet Letter

The Scarlet Letter

Period 2

IB English 12

Symbolism

             The Scarlet Letter written by Nathaniel Hawthorne is comprised into portions of symbolism that occurred throughout the whole novel. Although primarily focused on the sin of the two main characters of Hester Prynne and Dimmesdale, symbolisms had a powerful dominance and impact in the plot of the novel. Initiating from the prison doors where Hester was seen as a sinner to the public’s eyes and also the introduction of the first symbol of the novel, the scarlet letter. As the poem progresses, there are many symbolisms that Hawthorne uses to manipulate the idea of sin and identity as a whole. Many of the symbols include the constant appearance of letter “A” throughout the course of the novel, the daughter of Hester Prynne herself named Pearl, and the use of light and darkness in the novel.

             The scarlet letter is obviously one of the provocative symbols of the novel. From the beginning of the story, the readers had already encountered and witnessed the displayed letter of “A” on Hester’s chest. The letter stands for the shameful act of adultery that occurred between Hester and Dimmesdale. The symbol of letter “A” ironically contrast the views of Hester and Dimmesdale. The scarlet letter, as time passes by had shifted its meanings into a powerful stance for Hester in being able to be free. Meanwhile, in the second scaffold scene of the novel, Dimmesdale encountered the letter “A” as well up in the sky. The letter seems to ignite the guilt of Dimmesdale from being unable to proclaim the same mask of shame that Hester wears. However, the community interpreted the meteor as an Angel sent from above prior to the Governor Winthrop’s death. Furthermore, the symbol exemplifies the Puritan beliefs that the community had experienced to confirm divine sentiments.

             Symbol has also claim the character of Hester’s daughter named Pearl. Although Pearl is an innocent and adolescent character of the novel, she embodies the sin of Hester. Pearl creates the mood of Hester, the motivation that she has known as a blessing. The reader witnesses the idea of questioning the identity of Pearl for not knowing the mystery of her creation. Until Dimmesdale reveal himself as the father of Pearl, her identity will remain to be unsolved until the ending of the story when all the secrets and mysteries are revealed. Another symbolism that played a major role in the novel of Hawthorne is the use of light and darkness. To the eyes of the community, the physical entity is easily seen with the use of light. However, many settings of the novel are hidden in a pitch dark environment where reality is escapable to Dimmesdale and sins are easily abided. In addition, many of the scenes in the novel occur in the darkness.  Hawthorne cleverly uses symbols that seemed to spark the motivation of being free of guilt, the idea of sins and the true identity of an individual creating dynamic characters.

Assignment #1: Five interesting facts about George Elliot

1) Eliot's scandalous personal life clouded her reputation even after her death. Despite her literary achievements, Eliot was not allowed a memorial stone in Westminster Abbey's Poets' Corner. She finally received recognition there in 1980, one hundred years after her death.


2) When Eliot's first novel became a huge success, several people claimed to have written the novel. Eventually, Eliot came forward to state that she is the rightful author.


3) When the reading public discovered that Eliot was a woman, they didn’t know whether to condemn her for being an arrogant woman who thought she could write...or praise her for writing so well.


4) It has been suggested that Herbert Spencer, a famed British philosopher, had an affair with Eliot and then broke up with her. Afterward, he wrote an essay on the repugnancy of ugly women. All of Eliot’s friends knew whom he was writing about.


5) For over thirty years, Eliot lived with philosopher George Henry Lewes, although they never married and Lewes already had a wife.