The Sunset Limited

Cormac McCarthy's The Sunset Limited illustrates the difficult truth of humanity; namely that we are often not sure of what we believe. It is as if we do not have full assurance in our own convictions.  When we come across difficulties in life, we tend to be shaky in what we hold most dear. The character named Black asks White a number of questions that center around topics like religion and family history. White almost always answers with uncertainty: "I don't know. Maybe. I'm not sure."  He isn't sure if the Bible is as credible a book as other literature and whether or not he is guilty of not seeing his father die of cancer.  But after Black's persistent questions, he finally takes a stance as to how he feels. One would think that he has low self-esteem.  White even asks Black about what the most horrible thing he ever did was. Black refuses to elaborate on his "jailhouse story." Both men have their convictions, but when they are put to the test, they seem to become two conflicted characters. Black feels frustrated at God for not giving him the words to say after White reveals his desire for death.  Both the men are trapped by the mysteries of life and cannot find simple solutions to their problems. What the reader expects about traditional values regarding what is good or evil is turned on its head; things are not what they seem to connotate. This conclusion from  McCarthy illustrates a common thread with writers from the twentieth century: truth is not as easily discerned as we would like.          

Death Be Not Proud

John Donne is one interesting poet. I always like how he fuses religion with deep issues such a death and sex. In his famous "Death be not proud," he mocks the efforts of death to be so domineering in life. People generally, and naturally, feel like, since death is the inevitable thing we must face in the end, we should do it homage. Donne disagrees heavily. He believes death to be futile in stopping people's eternal destinies. This eternal perspective is highlighted in lines 3 and 4: "For those whom thou think'st thou dost overthrow/ Die not , poor Death, nor yet canst thou kill me." I have to admit, he is quite bold to view death this way, with such a cocky attitude.  Christianity is the religious basis for this ideal; Christians believe that because Christ rose from the dead, then they, too, will rise and conquer death itself. I love how Donne uses alliteration and repetition in this poem; the last line is one of the most memorable I know.  The line is number 14: "And death shall be no more; Death, thou shalt die." Death is personified as a being who is just as mortal as humans.  The letter d gets special emphasis to where the line has a special style to it. This one, along with "Batter my heart Three-Personed God," is definitely one of my favorite poems of all time.      

   Works Cited: Donne, John "Death be not proud." The Norton Introduction to Literature. Eds. Alison Booth and Kelly J. Mays. 10th ed. New York, London: W.W. Norton and Company, 2011. 669