how literary texts may promote Peace

Fardella Flora Literature and Peace how literary texts may promote Peace

MATERIALS • S.SASSOON, Glory of Women • S.SASSOON, They • W.OWEN, Futilityfrom Collected Poems by C. Day Lewis • W.SHAKESPEARE, Hamlet, Act III, Scene1” • W.SHAKESPEARE, Macbeth, Mondadori 2004 (parallel text)

WORKING METHOD • Textual analysis • Finding relationship between text and peace • Class discussion

PEACE TODAY It is an important problem all over the world. People always search for PEACE But, What is Peace? Peace is a never-granted condition.

WAR TODAY Today there are a lots of conflicts in the world as is the case of Israel and Palestine, Afghanistan and Iraq, there is frequent terrorism, tragedies in most African areas and many others. Nowadays there are about thirty conflicts in the world. All that said so far gives the idea of the difficulty to get to and keep a global balance.

SIEGFRIED SASSOON Siegfried Sassoon 1886-1967, English poet and novelist. Importance of his biography for our project Sassoon was an officer in World War I. Thus he knows very well what fighting means

Glory of Women You love us when we’re heroes, home on leave, Or wounded in a mentionable place, You worship decorations; you believe That chivalry redeems the war disgrace. You make us shells. You listen with delight, By tales of dirt and danger fondly thrilled. You crown our distant ardours while we fight, And mourn our laurelled memories when we’re killed. You can’t believe the British troops ‘retire’ When hell’s last horror breaks them, and they run, Trampling the terrible corpses – blind with blood. O German mother dreaming by the fire, While you are knitting socks to send your son His face is trodden deeper in the mud.

Textual Analysis • Title: Glory of Women • Central theme:the soldiers criticize women’s point of view. Women do not know the real face of war: they believe it is something that change men into hero. • Poet’s Message: he wants to underline war is unimaginable, only soldiers can know it. • In relationship with Peace: Only they who fight can really know the importance of Peace.

Different points of view about war • The women’s  they believe that it is something that change men into heroes. • The soldiers’  only they who fight know war  negative vision of war.

Conclusions • IMORTANCE OF PEACE • NEGATIVE VISION OF WAR • PEOPLE’ S IGNORANCE OF IN FRONT OF WAR

They The Bishop tells us: “When the boys come back They will not be the same; for they’ll have fought In a just cause; they lead the last attack On Anti-Christ, their comrades’ blood has bought New right to breed an honourable race, They have challenged Death and dared him face to face”. “We’re none of us the same” the boys reply. “For Gorge lost both his legs; and Bill’s stone blind Poor Jim’s shot through the lungs and like to die And Bert’s gone syphilitic: you’ll not find A chap who’s served that hasn’t found some change”. And the Bishop said: “The ways of God are strange!”

Textual Analysis • Title: the reader expects the poem to be about people different from the speaking voice because “They” conveys the idea of distance. • Central theme: dialogue between a bishop and some soldiers. • Bishop: when men come back from a war they will not be the same because “they fought in a just cause”. • Boys: men changed because war mutilated their body.

Poet’s Message: Sassoon wants to underline the difference between they who fight and they who see war from the outside. In relationship with Peace In the poem war is seen like a concrete danger for soldiers’ bodies. Thus Peace represents an important condition to safeguard our self.

Different points of view about war The Bishop’s war is a source of moral change for the soldiers. The soldier’s they know what the reality of war is, thus they have got a negative consideration of war

Summary about Sassoon’s poems GLORY OF WOMENTHEY Sassoon's point of view: - negative vision of war - only they who fight know war for certain - they who live war from the outside have not got a real vision of war.

WILFRED OWEN Wilfred Owen was an English poet and a soldier, regarded by some as the leading poet of the First World War.

Futility Move him into the sun -Gently its touch awoke him once,At home, whispering of fields unsown.Always it woke him, even in France,Until this morning and this snow.If anything might rouse him nowThe kind old sun will know. Think how it wakes the seeds, -Woke, once, the clays of a cold star.Are limbs, so dear-achieved, are sides,Full-nerved, - still warm, - too hard to stir?Was it for this the clay grew tall?- O what made fatuous sunbeams toilTo break earth's sleep at all?

Textual Analysis • Title:“Futility”. It suggests the idea of something not very important. • Central theme:A dead soldier has been placed in the sun. He lived and worked in the English countryside, an early riser, and perhaps the sun will wake him again. • Message:The poet wants to underline the futility of things in human life. • In relationship with Peace: War is considered a futility of life, thus the poet has got a negative consideration of it.

WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE Shakespeare 1564-1616, English poet and playwright. Importance of his works for our project: Macbeth and Hamlet are the most famous tragedies in which Shakespeare underline the importance of Peace.

To be, or not to be (from Hamlet 3/1) • Title: the reader can already understand the protagonist’s problem and his difficult question: to be or not to be? • Central theme: Hamlet asks himself if it is right to depend upon fortune or if it is right to fight against it to get what we are looking for. The reason why people with serious difficulties, prefer continuing to live even if they could kill themselves is because they do not know what there is after death. Therefore they remain in life which they find easier than doing an extreme act.

Message:Hamlet gives an unusual suggestion about knowledge • It is considered a negative element against active human intentions. Moreover the monologue provides the reflection about the sense of the life. • In relationship with Peace: Hamlet is a perfect example about the break out of a inner balance. Thus in this case, Shakespeare speaks about inner Peace.

Macbeth Macbeth is one of the most important of Shakespeare’s tragedies.

Textual Analysis • Title: it coincides with the main character. This is important because Shakespeare wants to underline the role of the person as a human being. • Central theme: Macbeth’s determination and ambition bring the protagonist to commit murders, live conflicts and to later madness and defeat. • At the end he was killed and this makes him a hero.

Message: Shakespeare conveys thenegative effects of the break of balance driving the protagonist to commit murders and eventually to madness and defeat. • In relationship with Peace: Macbeth is the symbol of war, thus giving a negative example in the play, Shakespeare suggests reflection on the value of peace.

The Word Peace in Macbeth Act I Witches: “Peace! – the charm’s wound up” Lady Macbeth: “Shake my fell purpose, nor keep peace between the effect and it” Macbeth: “Prythee, peace”

Act II Lady Macbeth: “- Hark! – Peace” Act III Macbeth: “Put rancour in the vessel of my peace, only for them” Macbeth: “Better be with the dead, whom we, to gain our peace, have sent to peace” Lenox: “But, peace!”

Act IV Malcom: “Nay, had I power, I should pour the sweet milk of concord into Hell, uproar the universal peace, confound all unit of earth” Macduff: “The tyrant has not batter’d at their peace?” Rosse: “No; they were well at peace when I did leave ’em”

PEACE IN THE TRAGEDY In the tragedy the word Peace is used by Shakespeare to interrupt a discussion between the characters or to underline their sense of guilt.

Summary about Shakespeare’s plays MACBETHHAMLET • Peace like an inner balance • break of this balance • theme of murders Murders to satisfy his ambition. In to be or not to be he express is problem: to kill or not his uncle. • theme of madness • death of two protagonists TRAGIC HEROES

how literary texts may promote Peace