Mary Shelley's Frankenstein: "Self education plays a critical role in shaping the subjectivity of Victor Frankenstein's monster." Do you agree?

's novel
offers readers a critical look at the question of "nature versus
nurture." Since abandoned by his "father" upon his "birth," 's creature
must rely upon his own intuition and self-education to survive. Therefore, it is true that
"self education plays a critical role in shaping the subjectivity of Victor Frankenstein's
monster." 

Victor flees his "son" as soon as it lives. He,
mortified by the appearance of , flees from his flat in order to escape both his creature and
the reality of what he has done. The creature, therefore, is left to educate himself upon both
survival and life. 

The creature, unfamiliar with anything at all, must learn
to depend upon his sense in order to survive. Once he masters his senses, he must learn how to
communicate. This he teaches himself through mimicking the DeLaceys and reading different papers
and books. He comes to understand how the world works through his interactions with other
beings, learns about love through watching Felix and Safie, and learns about his own existence
through Paradise Lost and Victor's papers. Everything that the creature
know he does so because of his own questioning and actions. No one teaches him anything about
life (with the exception that he is not like other humans which he comes to realize because of
the way they treat him). 

How does the poet portray the image of the pulley in the poem "The Pulley" by George Herbert?

The
pulley is used by Herbert as afor the relationship between God and the individual Christian
believer. A pulley is a simple mechanical device which you use to lift something up by pulling
down on it. And God both pulls us down and lifts us up by withholding the gift of rest. One is
reminded of St. Augustine's famous maxim that our hearts are restless until they find rest in
God.

As with many metaphysical poems, " " is based around a
conceit, or...

href="https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44370/the-pulley">https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/44370/the-pulley

In Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter, describe the clothes Hester makes for her daughter?

Hawthorne
describes Hester as one who is really good at sewing, so she makes a career out of making and
fixing all types of clothing. It would make sense, then, that she would make clothes for her own
daughter. Hester certainly has a unique eye and bold style because she chooses reds and golds
for her daughter to wear. The Puritans were a humble and simple people who wouldn't seek to
stand out in a crowd, so they didn't wear a lot of color, if any. Astakes to the streets by
chapter seven, she is received by little children with mocking words and mud clots thrown at
her. Pearl runs them off and does not feel ashamed of who she is though; and, her personality
and clothing seem to speak for her. Hawthorne explains it best, though:

"Pearl's rich and luxuriant beauty; a beauty that shone with
deep and vivid tints; a bright complexion, eyes possessing intensity both of depth and glow, and
hair already a deep, glossy brown, and which, in after years, would be nearly akin to black.
There was fire in her and throughout her, she seemed the unpremeditated offshoot of a passionate
moment. Her mother, in contriving the child's garb, had allowed the gorgeous tendencies of her
imagination their full play; arraying her in a crimson velvet tunic, of a peculiar cut,
abundantly embroidered with fantasies and flourishes of gold thread. So much strength of
colouring, . . . that it irresistibly and inevitably reminded the beholder of the token whichwas
doomed to wear upon her bosom. It was the scarlet letter in another form; the scarlet letter
endowed with life" (48)

In "Marriage is a Private Affair", what is the Okeke's internal conflict?

Okeke
faces an internal struggle that concerns his obedience and compliance to the traditional Igbo
culture and his love for Nnaemeka, his son. Okeke is depicted as a traditionalist who obediently
abides by the Igbo customs and traditional culture. When Okeke's son Nnaemeka decides to
challenge the traditional marriage customs of the Igbo tribe, Okeke is faced with a difficult
decision to accept and honor his son's choice or reject and shun Nnaemeka. Okeke's
internal struggle concerns the love for his son, which conflicts with the expectations of the
traditional Igbo society. Okeke realizes that in honoring his son's decision to
marry Nene independently without consulting him or his wife, he will be dismissing the
traditional Igbo marriage custom. Given the fact that Okeke is a strict traditionalist, he
decides to reject and shun Nnaemeka for deciding to marry Nene. Okeke struggles to repress his
feelings of love and affection...

What are two instances of flashbacks or foreshadowing in "The Pit and the Pendulum," and what helped you determine your choices?

In his dark dungeon, the
narrator returns to consciousness and recalls how he got to be in this place. He
describes

[...] a full memory of the trial, of the judges,
of the sable draperies, of the sentence, of the sickness, of the swoon. Then entire
forgetfulness of all that followed; of all that a later day and much earnestness of endeavor
have enabled me vaguely to recall.

Up until now, he has
not even opened his eyes; he has only barely attempted to actually move his body. He has gaps in
his memories, or flashbacks, and this eventually helps him to conclude that he is being drugged.
These gaps also make him a somewhat unreliable narrator because he simply does not recall some
of what has happened to him.

The narrator's moment of "joyof hope"
even while underneath the swinging pendulum seems to foreshadow his eventual escape. He
describes "hopethe hope that triumphs on the rackthat whispers to the
death-condemned even in the dungeons of the Inquisition." This moment gives us hope, just
as the narrator is comforted by it. Even in the worst of moments, of course, we can have
hope.

What are the strengths and weaknesses of collectivism?

Strengths

• Certain political
  objectives are more likely to be achieved by members of a group working together than by
  individuals working in isolation. Strategic issues, such as national defense and the building of
  infrastructure, require a mindset that privileges the group over the individual. If society
  operated on the basis of individualism, it would be much more difficult to achieve these vital
  collective goals.
• Collectivism encourages a sense of social solidarity.
  This should lead to people being less selfish and seeing themselves as part of a bigger whole.
  Instead of simply pursuing their own interests, people will recognize that it's in everyone's
  interests to work together for the good of all.

Weaknesses

• The individual
  tends to get lost in a collectivist system, which is potentially dangerous. Individuals have
  rights against the collective, whether that is government or society, that must always be
  protected. This is a particularly relevant concern in a collectivist system, where...

In "The Cask of Amontillado," why does Montresor vow revenge on Fortunato?

In the
first line of the story, the narrator vows revenge on Fortunato because he claims he had
insulted him in the past.

The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had
bourne as I best could, but when he ventured upon insult I vowed revenge.

However, he doesn't really say how Fortunato had insulted him, and he even refers to
him throughout as "my friend." Fortunato seems to be completely unaware of any bad
blood between them. The only clues Montresor gives as possible offenses are his family emblem
and the suggestion of a possible disbarment from the masons.

Montresor's
family motto, for example, underneath a picture of a foot crushing a serpent, is "Nemo me
impune lacessit," meaning, "no one attacks me with impunity." This could suggest
that the attack was not on Montresor personally but on someone in his family, or even on his
family as a whole. After all, he doesn't seem that comfortable in confronting Fortunato about
what happened. It is almost as if he didn't experience it firsthand.