M Cheeseman's Online Journal

Mary Shelley and Shakespeare both present Caliban and Frankenstein’s creation as victims of circumstance. They do this by using different language features and different themes through the novels. Frankenstein was written in 1818 when there was much unrest and debate between which was the truth, the church and religion or science. The Tempest was written in 1611, when slave trade and freak shows were still allowed. The context of each novel or play directly correlates with these two characters being victims of circumstance. There are many examples where they are presented as victims of circumstance which I am going to look into detail on.

In Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein, the creation is presented as a victim of circumstance due to being abandoned at birth. This is a clear example of being a victim of circumstance as the creation has no control over what happens when he is born/created. Not having a parent or a person to guide him in life, could be the reason that the character isn’t accepted into society, as he hasn’t been shown basic morals and rules to follow. ‘Unable to endure the aspect of the being I had created, I rushed out of the room.’ This quotation uses particular and purposeful language devices to express the theme of being a victim of circumstance. The purpose of the word ‘rushed’ is used to emphasis his disgust of his creation and how within a split second he chose to abandon the creation, which he had no choice over. This particular word connotes panic and disgust. As well as this hyperbole is used to over-exaggerate the situation by saying ‘unable to endure’ something that he had worked two years on. This quote shows that the creation is a victim of circumstance as hyperbole is used to emphasise and over-exaggerate the point that even his own father/creator doesn’t want him so if his father abandon him then everyone will.

A similar thing occurs in Shakespeare’s, The Tempest, as Caliban has to grow up without his parents as his mother dies early on. Again, Caliban has no control over this and can’t change his situation. However his upbringing is slightly different to the creation’s as Caliban has someone to guide him in life, Prospero. Even with a better upbringing Caliban still attempts to rape Miranda which turns Prospero against him. With Prospero being a sorcerer, Caliban has now been made a slave by his father figure. Even though he didn’t try and rape Miranda for the reasons we presume, he wanted children and probably didn’t understand the severity of what he had done. This shows he is a victim of circumstance as he probably didn’t realise that what he was doing was so bad and may have been normal to him. ‘This islands mine by Sycorax my mother, which thou tak’st from me.’ This quote shows us that Caliban was robbed of the island and had no choice over it due to the power of Prospero. Shakespeare uses very harsh language and is very blunt as the tone of that quote is very angry and personal. This also shows a change in status as Caliban is no longer being as submissive as before which could show he has had enough of being a victim and wants to change that. Caliban uses direct speech to address Prospero and put the blame on him for the situation he is in. This shows how these two characters are victims of circumstance due to their parents/creators not being around to guide them and teach them right from wrong and basic morals.

In Frankenstein, the creation’s appearance also makes him a victim of circumstance, as again he has no choice in how he was created. ‘I had selected his features as beautiful. Beautiful! Great God!’ This quote shows that even though his creator tried to make him beautiful, it couldn’t happen. It is to unnatural to bring someone from the dead that he will always be an outcast due to his deathly looks. Mary Shelley uses another hyperbole to really emphasis the appearance of the creation as she uses an exclamation mark. However I believe that Shelley uses the creations appearance to show us a problem within our society, not only when the novel was written but even now. When someone looks different due to a disability or another factor, they immediately are blocked out by ‘normal’ people. I can make this inference as Frankenstein’s creation was chased out of villages and abandoned by his creator before he had even done anything wrong, simply because of his appearance. There is evidence that the Creation is abandoned by society due to his looks as in the woods when he went and met the blind man, he had a productive and useful conversation with him and saw that he wasn’t a bad being. It was only when the son saw the creation that he screamed and began to beat him.

Shakespeare also uses appearance to make us despise Caliban and to further prove that he is a victim of circumstance as Trinclo describes him as a ‘freak’ and wants to bring him to the cities to show him off like a circus act. From the beginning of the play Caliban is looked down upon, and our first knowledge of him comes from Prospero describing him as ‘Hag-born’ and ‘not honoured with human shape’ so our first thoughts of him are not good and from there on we always see him as a lesser being. Shakespeare uses strong imagery to paint a picture in our head of a creature of our nightmares. The effect of this is that now he is always seen as the villain of the play, but when you look from a different perspective Caliban’s story is a sad unfortunate one as we see he really is a victim of circumstance, but it all starts with the way his appearance is presented to us by Shakespeare using imagery.

We can already see that Frankenstein’s creation and Caliban are victims of circumstance but to further provide evidence for this point I will look into they’re absence of home. In Shelley’s Frankenstein, the creation is constantly looking for a place to call home, whether that’s with his creator or the kind little family at the cottage, that is all he seems to want. At one point he has nowhere to go but is contempt with just finding a place to sleep that keeps him out of the bad weather. ‘Here then I retreat, and lay down happy to have found shelter, however miserable, from the inclemency of the season, and still more from the barbarity of man.’ Shelley uses juxtaposition as he is happy at one point then sad a miserable later on in the sentence. These two points contrast which symbolises the confusion and anger the creation must have against his situation which he has no control over. This absence of home is what turns the creation evil as when he is rejected from his perfect home, he burns it down and goes on to kill William. Where as if the creation was accepted or even just given a home then he may well of turned out differently and not like it did with the monstrous crimes it committed. This shows that the creation is a victim of circumstance as he is rejected wherever he goes so must make his own way in life without anybody else.

Similarly in the Tempest, Caliban’s home is stolen from him, the island. He says he was happy before Prospero came but now he is a slave to the person that hated his mother and is now in control of the island. Caliban also has a lack of belonging. I see infer this as when Caliban believes he meets two gods he bows down tot them and wants them to love him as he says ‘il show thee every fertile inch o’ th’ island; And I will kiss thy foot: I prithee, be my god.’ Caliban almost submits himself to Trinclo and Stephano straight away, he just wants to feel apart of something. Caliban uses direct speech and asks a big request for them to be his ‘god’. If Caliban still had his mother or his island was not stolen from him then he also wouldn’t of turned evil, it was the absence of home and belonging which gave them no choice but to be bad. This shows how they are victims of circumstance as they’re options were limited as to what they could do and become.

Frankenstein’s creation was underestimated, this allowed him to almost go under the radar until he was able to reach Frankenstein. Both Frankenstein and Caliban knew they were victims of circumstance but used it to their advantage. In the novel Frankenstein, the creator didn’t think he would ever see his ‘hideous’ doing ever again but his being had intelligence and great physical power as ‘his yellow skin scarcely covered the work of his muscles and arteries beneath’ so the creation was able to surprise him and take advantage of the situation which he had unfairly been put into. Shelley uses imagery to allow us to understand this marvellous being that was created. In Caliban’s situation, he used intelligence to take advantage of these two ‘gods’ that came out of nowhere. He convinced them to try and take over Prospero and to have the island that had been stolen from him. He noticed the opportunity to retake what was rightfully his and payment would be to ‘show thee every inch o’ th’ island. Shakespeare uses persuasive language to show to us the intelligence of Caliban and that he is underestimated by us, the readers. Here we see both characters take advantage of their unfortunate situations which we could infer that it was purposeful from Shelley and Shakespeare to show us that no matter what situation we may be in there is always a way out.

Ultimately, we can see that the creation and Caliban are victims of circumstance as they are constantly having wrongs committed against them. If you have everything going against you and people are still not caring for you then there is only one way to go, to become evil. Frankenstein’s creation has just been rejected from the family in the woods so will be depressed yet when he sees a girl fall into a river he runs and saves her, immediately when seeing him the man shots him out of fear. This shows he is naturally benevolent This also brings the creation to an all time low as he says ‘Cursed, cursed creator! Why did I live? Why, in that instant, did I not extinguish in the spark of existence which you had so wantonly bestowed?’ The tone of this quote is very depressing and Shakespeare uses exclamatory phrases to emphasis the creations pain of the situation. Shakespeare uses a triplet of questions to symbolise his confusion and desperation. In the Tempest, our first encounter of Caliban is of him being a slave, this is a massive wrong against him as no living being or person or creature should be a slave, we are all equal. This would of turned Caliban evil and nasty as he and the Creation are both naturally benevolent and kind as when Prospero first came to the island him and Caliban were friends and they taught each other. ‘Abhorred slave, Which any print of goodness wilt not take,
Being capable of all ill! I pitied thee’ Shakespeare uses emotive language to describe Prospero’s view on Caliban and the ‘I pitied thee’ symbolises the sad existence that Caliban lives. We can tell that the creation and Caliban are victims of circumstance as they seem to be naturally benevolent and kind but the circumstances they find themselves in leave them no choice but to be evil and monstrous.

Throughout the novel and play we see that everything that could possibly go wrong for these two specific characters went wrong, from their appearance to wrongs being committed against them. This gave them both no choice but to turn out like they did. If it wasn’t for each of the circumstances they were put in then both could of been a benefit to society or others close to them as both were intelligent and physically able. This shows the the circumstances that Frankenstein and Prospero put them in caused the problems. Shelley and Shakespeare also use different language feature and techniques such as imagery and juxtaposition to present to the reader that Frankenstein’s creation and Caliban would also be rejected by us and that the problem isn’t them, it is us as a society. This is how the creation and Caliban are victims of circumstance and how we can learn from it.

You feel like a god. You feel superior to everyone else; at this moment, no one can touch you. Although there are 90 thousand fans screaming your name, you are in your own trance. There is a peaceful silence and everything is in slow motion. Nothing can compare to this moment.

The instant passed and I’m back to reality, yet I’m still living the dream. My team mates are celebrating and my thousands of followers are still cheering. I can feel the pitch beneath my feet shaking as the whole country is jumping with joy. What I have just done, has changed my life forever. What I have just done, millions of people dream of accomplishing, but only a few are worthy and its me.

There are twenty two players on the pitch, but only I count. I have risen with the sun behind me. No one can question how I got here as you have all witnessed what I had to do to experience this. Was it worth it? Risking everything for this feeling of scoring for your country to make them the best in the world? I am at the pinnacle of my career. I have been gifted my goal in life, yet can I forgive myself for ‘cheating’?

YEAR 2005

I was just 10 years old when I was first signed for Queens Park Rangers, one of the best academies in England. I was ecstatic. Along with most other young boys it was my only dream. I had worked hard to get here and I knew I deserved it. Yet after half a year of strenuous hard work out in the boiling, blazing sun, and trying to be accepted by the other players in the academy, I was released.

It was the worst day in my short life. I was at home ready to leave when my dad sat me down and told me the devastating news. I didn’t leave my room that day. I cried for hours on end, trying to contemplate what had happened. Why? All I wanted in life had just been given to me and taken away just as quickly. The next day I still felt as if I had been robbed of everything I loved. My dad talked to me that night and presented me with two options, either sit here and keep feeling sorry for myself or to get up, keep training and try again to reach my dream. It is never to late. That talk changed my life.

YEAR 2014

I had worked hard enough and earned a place in another academy, yet it wasn’t where I wanted to be. I was training at my maximum yet I still couldn’t break into the starting line-up. It started to hit me. Maybe I just wasn’t good enough. Was all this hard work for nothing? Was it pointless? No I won’t except that, I need to reach my goal, I must hear thousands of fans screaming my name. This is when I was presented with an opportunity to make that happen. I was approached about a substance that would enhance my performance, all the players were doing it, apparently.

I still wasn’t sure, I’ve heard stories before of people dying when taking an unknown drug or even being caught using it. All I could think about was my dream and if this substance was going to help me to reach it then there was no other option for me.

It worked. I had never felt so good in all my career, and I was playing at a whole new level surpassing any other player in the world . This is why I was called up to the England squad. But would I be able to live with myself? I’m not worrying about that now just enjoying football. However I’m pushing it out my mind for now and just enjoying my football.

To Isabelle Kerr,

After reading your article about slang and how young people speak, I decided to write a letter explaining why I disagree with you. Firstly, just because some people chose to speak in a certain way that comes naturally to them and has a different dialect to you does not mean they cannot communicate properly, because what is the proper way to communicate? Young people normally use slang when talking to another person that understands it. So they are communicating properly as both sides of the conversation understands what the other is saying.

Secondly, just because these words have been placed in the Oxford online dictionary is not the end of the world. It is not forcing you to speak in that particular way, you still have freedom of speech and so do young people who want to speak slang. So you trying to stop the spread and evolution of slang is taking away their freedom of speech. The reason words such as ‘twerking’ have been added to the Oxford online dictionary is because before there was not a particular word that describes that particular act, so if someone was “twerking” it would take a lot longer to explain or describe the action before now. This shows the words relevance and usefulness.

In most cases I have experienced, slang can be turned on and off. Usually slang is only used when talking to friends and other people our age. However when the majority of young people are talking to older people or more authority our dialect changes, we know when more formal and eloquent dialect is needed. So just because a couple of popular words have been added to the dictionary does not mean that slang will take over the “traditional English language” as you say. I believe that you are over exaggerating just to make your point seem valuable.

You say that “these words simply promulgate an unhealthy culture obsessed with being seen” which is true however that is the culture that we live in today and if you disagree with that then maybe you should be doing something about trying to stop young people being brought up in such unhealthy circumstances instead of the words that promote them.

As Belinda Webb says in her article, “slang demonstrates inventiveness and quickness of thought” and “evolving not just from one generation to the next, one year to the next”. Slang allows us to communicate in the way that we want to and express our feelings at that time and as slang is evolving and growing every year you may be left behind. In the current generation everyone, especially young people use the internet more and more and are constantly messaging each other so acronyms, such as ‘lol’ which means ‘laugh out loud’ started to become popular. Then it spread until everyone was doing it. Next came abbreviations which started on the internet, until it began to wedge its way in to our dialect and we all started to shorten words in everyday conversation. This shows that it’s the way young people have grown up that has forced us to speak in this way. Therefore we cannot be blamed for the use of slang growing more and more popular.

I believe young people use slang because it gives them a feeling that they are part of something that other people may not understand, and then most other young people follow and copy because it is the cool thing to do, in most schools if you don’t speak slang then you will not understand most things people say and you will be left behind. Slang is part of being young it is our own language and what makes us different from the adults however I do agree with you to a certain extent, the young people of today do need to learn when to use slang and when to use proper English, slang should be kept out of the classroom and places of importance and when around people in authority.

The reason I disagree with your article is because the main emphasis is on these words being added to the Oxford online dictionary and that this has “disgusted you”, you even said ”Shakespeare will be turning in his grave.” this point is ignorant because some of Britain’s greatest figures such as Shakespeare made certain slang words in his day popular to the extent that we use them today such as ‘puke and assassination’ so slang is not a bad thing if it is controlled. In the next generation words such as ‘twerk’ won’t be seen as slang but normal English. Slang is also just a way for young people to have their own identity. This is why I disagree with your article.

Yours Sincerely,

Matthew Cheeseman

As I sit on the highest tree of my kingdom I close my eyes after a successful hunt, not having anything to worry about, nothing hunts me. I choose between others living and dying.  If I am not hunting then I am sleeping and even when I am sleeping I rehearse the perfect kill. My efficient, deadly tools that are my hooked feet and head are the reason to my great success which has served me well over the years. The high trees of my Heaven and all the conditions are advantageous to me as I search the floor for my next kill, I see everything nothing escapes my eyes and there is no hiding from me on the tallest tree in the woods that I have claimed and fought for many times. Everything and anything is beneath me. As my claws clutch the branch, I think to myself it took the whole of creation to produce my foot and my every feather as I am the best. I am at the top and now, every day I am taking creation in my claws and killing it wherever I please because everything is mine. There is nothing in sight that can challenge me This is how I wanted it to stay however that day I realised you can’t have everything your own way.

I was out on a morning hunt, just another day, nothing had changed and then once I caught my prey I turned back to go to my nest and eat my well deserved food. That’s when I saw him in my nest! Who would be brave enough to even go near my nest, he was getting bigger yet I was still quite far away from my lair. As I arrived I realised he was a giant! I have never fought against a Hawk this big before, I attempted to scratch his face but he just brushed me off, he didn’t even move. I flew off. I’ve never done that before. It just felt like the right thing to do at the time, to live and fight another day. I found a place to stay that night a couple of trees downs from my previous tree. I am disgusted at myself, I thought I was the King, I was the biggest, strongest and fastest yet today I learnt that I wasn’t. That next day I was tempted to try and take back my rightful place at the top of the woods yet I saw him go hunting and in one swift movement he grabbed his prey and devoured it instantly. That was the first time that I doubted myself.

After a few days passed as I watched him as two different hawks in quick succession tried to overtake his throne, the first just tried a straight up close quarters fight and was beaten almost straight away yet the second tried a different approach, he flow around and allowed the other bird to chase him, this is when I saw that the king was not so agile and around that area it was very compact with lots of branches sticking out of everywhere. The king eventually caught the second intruder but I could see that he was tired this was my opportunity and no other bird knew that area like I did, I had been there for many years. I went for it.

I flew up above the trees and rocketed back down again right next to this beast trying to draw him out, I could fell the wind brushing threw my feathers. Immediately he jumped out of the nest and flew after me, he could smell my fear in the air. He was catching up fast yet I knew what I was doing. I weaved in and out of different branches and lead him to the most dangerous part of the woods where there are only a few safe spaces to fit through yet I could see he was still followed me, as I weaved in and out of the branches I hear a Bang! He had clipped his wing and he wasn’t flying properly. This was the right moment to start the fight. I pulled up and into the open space, immediately I stopped in mid air with my long sharp claws out waiting for him to crash into them which he did, however he was still strong and put up a fight, he scratched me across my face yet I was biting his throat after minutes of fighting he finally backed down and flew off. I was victorious , I had won and gained my throne back at the top of the woods. I rested for a few hours remembering and experiencing my feelings from the past, feelings of pride and strength, never again would I let my nest go. The sun is behind me, yet things have changed but my eyes will permit no more change. I am going to keep things like this.

Should we ban the Burqa in Britain?

I and many other believe that the Burqa should be banned in England for multiple reasons. Even though London is a multicultural society, England is still a Christian country and the problems that the Burqa brings from these Islamic countries is too great for us to ignore.

“The Burqa is a loose, usually black or light blue robe that is worn by Muslim women, especially in Afghanistan. It covers the body from head to toe”. This is a definition from Wikipedia. It is part of the Islamic religion. The Quran has no rules saying that women should cover their faces with a veil, or the rest of the body with the full-body Burqa. Lots of  Muslims believe that the practice of the life of the prophet Muhammad, require both men and women to dress and behave respectably in public areas. However, this requirement has been interpreted in many different ways(which happens in lots of religions)  by Islamic scholars and Muslim communities. Many interpretations say that a veil is not even compulsory, and that it is not compulsory in front of blind men, asexual men, or homosexual men.

Personally I believe that the Burqa is one of the main reasons that woman are still not properly seen as equal to men. I believe this because the woman hide their faces and bodies so that men will not be attracted to them or tempted in any way. This shows that they do not trust their woman to be faithful to their partners (if they have one). Also why should the woman have to wear this piece of clothing and see the world out of a letterbox slit so the men are not tempted? It is down to the man, not the woman. In this day and age woman are supposed to be equal to men and everyone has ‘human rights’ . One of these rights is to wear what you want not to be forced to wear the Burqa. So why is it still happening even in a developed country such as the UK?

Furthermore, we must ban the Burqa for security reasons. If, for example, you saw a man or woman walking down the street wearing a balaclava, you would be worried as to the reasons why they must cover their face, and why they want to conceal their identity. Previously, a criminal has escaped the crime scene by wearing a Burqa and not been noticed by the police.This is proof that the Burqa brings problems for England. As well as this when you see someone wearing a Burqa you have suspicions as to what they could be hiding underneath it. This may be far fetched but it has happened in the past, especially in other countries such as Afghanistan where the woman have been know to hide guns and bombs in their clothing. We must learn from these other countries’ mistakes and ban the Burqa before it happens here!

Some Muslims say that it is their human right and part of their religion to wear the Burqa. However, with all the risks and dangers that come just from this simple piece of clothing, which isn’t even compulsory to their religion, I do not see the reason for allowing it to be worn. An alternative to this could be to allow them to wear the hijab but not the Burqa as that’s where the majority of the risks and uncertainties come from. However if our country does allow full body Burqa’s to be worn, then the woman wearing them must be willing, if necessary, to show their face for security reasons, such as at the airport or crime scenes. In these modern times with organisations such as ISIS at large, and MI5 supposedly preventing over twenty terrorist attacks in the past few years, then the Burqa could be used to their benefit as it is the perfect disguise.

This is not a xenophobic rant about Muslims, I have nothing against them but the Burqa is a problem. It may sound exaggerated but we must be over cautious to prevent these attacks. Imagine if a man wore a Burqa and had a bomb underneath it, he could walk through London without anyone suspecting him. However if we do suspect something we must not be afraid of being labelled. In order to do this we all must give up things, not just the Burqa. Things like privacy to internet searches so that the government can monitor people who have searched how to make a bomb etc. If we are to live in a safe society then lots of things have to be given up including the Burqa. My opinion is a strong and extreme one and in turn may offend people, but it is for the greater good and safety for the people in this city and country. This is why the Burqa must be banned, for security and freedom.