VCE · Text Response
Text Response: How does Sophocles use Oedipus the King to…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 87.5%: During 5th century Athens, Greeks are known to be a part of a society that regularly practises honouring…
During 5th century Athens, Greeks are known to be a part of a society that regularly practises honouring ceremonies to the gods of their polytheistic religion, praying for their empathy in hopes that their fateful futures bear happiness. However, this became a time when the rise of epistemological questioning threatened the belief of predetermined natures, suggesting there is more freedom in human choice. During this heated debate, Sophocles introduced ‘Oedipus the King’ to explore the deep ends of each side of the dichotomy – is fate or free will the right answer? Although destiny is believed to control the outcomes of those who lived in ancient Greece, Sophocles underscores the complex relationship between human choice and fate. He initially asserts that selective believers who attempt to escape fate will always be unsuccessful. Furthermore, he indicates that consciously aligning with the foretold outcomes of the prophecy will be favoured by the gods. Additionally, Sophocles illuminates how external forces of fate spark a cascade of fatal symptoms, such as guilt. Sophocles utilises the play’s tragedy to exemplify the importance of being conservative to the Greeks’ polytheistic religion, as he warns his audience about the destructive nature of epistemological tension.
VCE · Text Response
Text Response: 'Shakespeare presents marriage as…
VCE Text Response essay scoring 85%: Whether it is Beatrice's ascetic disdain of saccharin romance, Claudio's fickle romantic affections or even Don…
Whether it is Beatrice's ascetic disdain of saccharin romance, Claudio's fickle romantic affections or even Don John's brazen malevolence, Shakespeare's 16th century tragicomedy, Much Ado About Nothing illuminates the importance of marriage within Elizabethan society and explores the profundity that all characters see within it. Regardless of their initial view, be it of arrogant aversion or gracious acceptance, the cast all come to see the value that it can provide, for some are 'too wise to woo peaceably' and others who simply 'suffer love'. Accepted as almost a universal truth, marriage is seen as the natural end goal within the progression of a person's life. Marriage is often linked directly to one's social status, as marrying another binds their image with one's own. One can even use marriage as a tool to further one's own ideals, by feeding ones hubris or destroying another's reputation, asserting the influence that it holds upon social acceptance.
In spite of initial reluctance to participate in marriage due to various matters of pride, all characters eventually come to accept the value and inevitability of it. By the conclusion of the all play, Benedict and Beatrice overcome different obstacles in order to reach the happy ending, looking 'pale with love.' Don Pedro's predication that, 'the savage bull doth bear the yoke,' demonstrates Shakespeare's use of foreshadowing to allude to the merry conclusion. Benedick does eventually 'think upon the savage bull,' with Claudio to 'to tip thy (Benedick's) horns with gold', manifesting this augury in a way which completely undermines his initial assertion that 'if ever the sensible Benedick bear it, pluck off the bull's horns and set them in my forehead.' Don Pedro's declaration that 'I shall thee, 'ere I die, look pale with love,' denoting that he wishes nothing more than to see Benedick fall in love, overtly illustrates the effect of being in love to the people around oneself, as Don Pedro believes that marriage would greatly add to his image of Benedick, and that it is all but guaranteed to happen. In doing so, Shakespeare intends to portray the notion of marriage as one that's consistent with every man and women, regardless of their hubris and stubbornness. The two marriages conclude the play on a positive, upbeat note where Don John is 'ta'en in flight' and that they 'have a dance 'ere we are married.' Unequivocally, a successful marriage is displayed as being synonymous to achieving true happiness and receiving social praise and an event that is emblematic of the final stages of a person's development.
Despite marriage being