Sample

Element Analysis Example

From //Hamlet// “To be or not to be...” Shakespeare uses infinitives to imprison the action of the verb, a perfect representation of Hamlet’s tragic flaw. Because the verbs in the opening of this soliloquy do not have a subject, no action can be completed. This develops Hamlet’s ambivalence.

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In this clip from the movie Girl Interrupted, the psychiatrist explains the heart of the protagonist’s issue: her ambivalence. Every year, when I am teaching this part of Hamlet, I am reminded of this scene because it was the first time I truly understood the definition of the word.


 * IQ Example **

From //Frankenstein//: "When falsehood can look so like truth, who can assure themselves of certain happiness?"

*I once built on sand, for it looked solid and true. The winds came; time and perspective shake my foundation. Lies fall through this sieve, sometimes slowly, other times with a particularly tumultuous shift, a 9.0 on the Richter scale. Now I build on rock, as the rest falls blissfully away. * ~I chose the metaphor of sand for falsehood because it is so very unstable, while truth, despite its ugliness and pain at times, is certain and solid. I will not claim this as my own metaphor; much of it comes from my faith. However, the sand/rock metaphor illustrates the difference between lies and truth perfectly for me.