Jack Gladney teaches death, destruction, and devastation, he surrounds himself by the legacy of chaos perpetuated by Hitler. Death did not stop Hitler, he continued to live on by securing his place in history. Jack struggles to secure his own place in history, rather he attaches himself to the important figure. The ever present fear of death affects Jack and his family are differently, causing them to find their own ways of dealing with it. While some are encouraged to pursue outrageous feats, others attempt to cure themselves of the fear, and some try to defeat death itself. Throughout the novel, White Noise, Jack is forced to look past the distractions of daily life and face the looming fear of death that plagues his thoughts, and he learns how that fear prevails even in the modern world.
Despite death, many powerful and popular individuals continue to live on. One individual, Hitler, used his persona to gain political power which spawned a myth, that grew larger than life and larger than death. Jack learns, studies, and lives through Hitler, through his appraisal of Hitler, Jack realizes the insignificance of his own death. His attachment to Hitler helps Jack ward off the overwhelming fear and anxiety about being forgotten after his own death. In a discussion about Hitler and Elvis, Murray notes, "Elvis fulfilled the terms of the contract. Excess, deterioration, self-destructiveness, grotesque behavior, a physical bloating and a series of insults to the brain,
Jack represents evil, violence and how people can have a dark side emerge in a period of hardship. As a former choirmaster and "head boy" at his school, he lands on the island having had control and power over others, by overpowering the choir with his bad attitude. He wants to make rules similar to Ralph but his rules are much harsher. Jack’s rules are more black and white.
Jack’s characteristics of violence and aggression were showed in the book when he loved to “watch the blood pour out” of the pig (W. Golding 89). Watching an animal die, and enjoying it, as a psychopath would. People don’t enjoy death or injury and the fact that Jack watched in enjoyment is unusual. Young children such as Jack are scared of blood and Jack is happy to be seeing such gory things. Jack’s tendencies and enjoyment reflect on his psychotic ways. Jack has unusual thoughts especially for such a young boy. Jack gets overly excited that they “will have rules” (32) so excited that he shrieked. Normally young boys don’t enjoy rules and tend to break them. So it is unexpected that Jack would be “excited” about such rules and he will be providing strong commands and following distinct rules. Following rules would seem like a drag, but the fact Jack finds this exciting is
Jack’s thirst for power for the sake of dominance develops a sense of dictatorship. When killing the sow, the shift in Jack is clear. Jack no longer looks to control nor shield himself from savagery; instead, he embraces it: “His mind was crowded with memories; memories of the knowledge that had come to them when they closed in on the struggling pig, knowledge that they had outwitted a living thing, imposed their will upon it, taken away its life like a long satisfying drink” (Golding 70). The sense of power Jack receives from his kill is enough to completely take over his actions. Power is a drug to Jack, and he has become addicted. This addiction continues to affect his life, and more importantly, the lives of those he has surrounded himself with. Dropped “He [Jack] began to dance and his laughter became a bloodthirsty snarling” (Godling 64). Golding uses juxtaposition and zoomorphism to inhibit this effect. Jack shifts from dancing to snarling in a matter of seconds, showing his vulnerability to the evil which has taken root in his heart. Jack is no longer human; he is a savage. It is known that money changes people. However, this is not true. With money comes power; power changes people. Jack has lost all control and power over his own life. So, he looks for control and power in the lives of others.
King of Pop, the iconic Michael Jackson is an example of how some people go beyond life. For once he died he was so much more important and earned way more money. While he was alive the King of Pop was $500 million in debt. Once he died he earned over $1.5 billion, Halperin believes “The simple truth is this: the most extraordinary fact about Michael Jackson’s death is that it made him the highest-earning corpse in the world”. Which is the truth, while Michael was alive he was known as the man who tried to kill his baby and a sex predator. Now after his death he is literally the richest corpse in the world. Some people are worth more gratitude, short after Banquo’s death he was then recognized as the noble wise man he always was, which is the reason he was dead. Macbeth says, “He hath a wisdom that doth guide his valour To act in safety. There is none but he Whose being I do fear: and, under him, My Genius is rebuked” (Shakespeare Act III Scene I). Macbeth felt as though that since Banquo was so wise and noble that only he had the ability to catch on so his deceitful plans. But as when Banquo was alive he was only recognized as Macbeth’s sidekick or his best friend, never as his equal or even his
It can be argued that Golding’s use of characterization solidifies his theory that all men have the capacity for evil due to their innate human nature. Golding depicts the two main alpha male characters of Jack and Ralph as primary examples of this theme. As the story unfolds, Golding reveals Jack to be selfish, violent, and corrupt as he was driven “to violence, the bolting look came into his blue eyes. He took a step, and able at last to hit someone, stuck his fist into Piggy’s stomach,” (Golding 71). The description of Jack towards the conclusion of the book reveals how deceitful and antagonistic Jack has become. Jack’s monstrous personality devours everyones humanity when he refuses to obey rules, and begins to let his anger out starting with piggy. Ralph accuses Jack of being “a beast and a swine and a bloody thief” (Golding 179)! Ralph’s statement is a concise summation of all that Jack becomes. Furthermore, the fact that Jack has begun to become more tribal in appearance indicates his reversion into a more primal being. Finally, as depicted midway through the story, Jack reveals his true sadistic nature as he was “on top of the sow stabbing downward with his knife....Jack found the throat and the hot blood spouted over his hands,” (Golding 135). All of these intensely descriptive characterizations of Jack committing violence as a beast and becoming a thief portray his evil nature. This proves Goldings point that all humans can succumb
In the beginning of the book you are introduced to the antagonist Jack , who is in the middle of killing the
But Jack cannot change the past. Rather, he must reflect on it as it really happened, allowing those reflections to guide his future conduct and to enrich his relationships with those whom he has helped or hurt. By the end of the story, instead of running from his past, Jack has begun to make restoration for its mistakes by finally marrying his beloved Anne and opening his home to Elliot Burden, the man he long believed to be his father. Jack’s contemplation of the past leads him not to despair, but to a deeper understanding of and compassion for the human race.
This causes Jack to be driven off the edge in hatred, which also causes his family to be in danger of abuse yet again.
This world is filled with many troubles including racism. Society often depicts whites as superior to blacks. However, this is not precise, because every race has both good and bad within it. The world is trying to break away from racism to become a better place for everyone around the world. Racism is not only about the color of one’s skin, it can impact individuals around the world due to their race or religion. The title of this novel is “Black and White” by Paul Volponi. In this coming of age story, two friends, Marcus Brown and Eddie Russo, who are black and white (respectively), are senior basketball stars at their high school. Marcus lives in community housing which is fraught with crime with a single mother. On the other hand, Eddie lives in a private house nearby where Marcus lives. Both Marcus and Eddie are in financial hardships and need to find easy money to cover their school and basketball fees. The two agree to start pulling robberies when they unintentionally shoot a black man. They are left in anxiety trying to avoid getting caught while trying to lead a normal life after the incident. They both end up going through the justice system, and Marcus must serve jail time while Eddie gets to go free. While all of this transpires, Marcus and Eddie manage to keep their friendship strong and overcome any barriers together. Any true friendship can overcome racial stereotypes put in place by society including the racial barrier between Blacks and Whites. The novel
To begin with Jack, Jack wants power and leadership. The situation Jack is in makes his evil grow. Jack is letting the situation control him which is increasing the evil inside of him. The evil inside him is making him more selfish and violent. For example, at the starting of the novel when Jack had failed to kill the pig he cries to Ralph, “[Jack] tried to convey the compulsion to track down and kill that was swallowing him up. ‘I went on. I thought, by myself-’ The madness came into his eyes again. ‘I thought I might kill.” (Golding 51). The quote shows how at the starting of the novel Jack had good inside of him as he had feared killing an animal which makes sense as he is a kid. This shows that Jack was not evil from the beginning. But the situation and atmosphere increase the evil inside of him when he says, “I thought I might kill” this shows how the
Death is probably the most feared word in the English language. Its undesired uncertainty threatens society’s desire to believe that life never ends. Don DeLillo’s novel White Noise tells the bizarre story of how Jack Gladney and his family illustrate the postmodern ideas of religion, death, and popular culture. The theme of death’s influence over the character mentality, consumer lifestyle, and media manipulation is used often throughout DeLillo’s story.
Hitler was the ruler of Germany during World War II, and he ruled over his people in fear. Jack is commonly described to being similar if not exactly like Hitler. Golding leaves many examples in the novel to show how Jack and Hitler are alike. Both of them promised their “citizens” a better life, they both promise their country “meat” (Golding 140), and they both lead as a dictator, taking their power with force and leading as the only chief of the state. Jack is described in the book as “a terror” (Golding 189) and Hitler has been
Once he understands his situation upon the island Jack sees it as a fresh start where he can act as a complete tyrant and have unlimited power, and by doing so, escape his fear of being publicly embarrassed, ashamed and humiliated by other children. But his “temporary” personality change seems to have completely changed him into the blood-thirsty savage that he has become. This situation can apply to so many events that have taken place throughout history. A great example would be Salieri and Mozart, Salieri who loved music, believed himself to be a talented musician and performer, until, Mozart. His jealousy and
Violence begins to emerge in Jack at the end of the novel. This is the last quality that shows Jack is a dynamic character. By the end of the book, Jack has become a murderer. Not only
Lastly, Jack forms relations with the new outside world, and consequently he further explores his role within society. According to a specialist, Jack’s limited exposure to the world will create a barrier towards interaction with the community and environment. “‘Like a newborn in many ways, despite his remarkably accelerated literacy and