Ashley's Blog

Irony is expressed in many forms as demonstrated in Don Quixote.  For example, during the dinner with the Duke, Duchess, Sancho, and Don Quixote, the Duke and Duchess pretend to be higher in a social status than everyone else, and continue to feed lies to Sancho. The Duchess, although appears to not be such a maleficent character, ironically gains pleasure from this act. Second, the quotation "I shall never be fool enough to turn knight-errant. F or I see quite well that it’s not the fashion now to do as they did in the olden days when they say those famous knights roamed the world," explains another form of irony well. It is ironic that although the innkeeper recognizes this, as do others in the story, they either still stay, such as Sancho, or encourage the knight-errant, as the priest does. Even though these characters know that it is outdated and not worth the time, they ironically still encourage Don Quixote to continue this lifestyle for pleasure to themselves. Finally,...

Enlightenment is known as having the complete understanding of something or the act of giving the knowledge to someone else. This theme is present in  Journey to the West , as it is demonstrated through the story of Tripitaka, and his disciples as they journey to defeat evil. Through the many journeys that are endured throughout the story, enlightenment is encountered. A teaching of Buddhism is that all actions are done through conscious decision and development. Therefore, the act of becoming enlightened was also done consciously. Similar to the Monkey, we all strive to reach a state of enlightenment, even though we are sinners, unlike Tripitaka. Although he is pure in spirit, Tripitaka does hold flaws that prevent him from initial enlightenment. He fears danger and without his disciples he could have never reached that state.  "He had discarded his earthly body, he was cleansed from the corruption of the senses… his was now the transcendent wisdom that leads to the Further S...

What is love? There are many types and forms of love, as seen in Dante . The love for a lover, a guider, or even a higher power is what guides Dante through the epic. The first example of love in this epic is Beatrice leaving heaven to ask for Virgil to assist Dante in his journey through hell, as he speaks about her love, "love that first moved me from the blissful place..". Although terrifying, the journey is fueled by Dante's love for Beatrice, for Virgil, even for God. Dante becomes a witness to many of other types of love, like that of power and wealth, or the love in the form of lust, as spoken, "love to a single death brought him and me". There are circles of individuals in hell that are damned with these types of love. Ultimately, Dante forms a secure love connection through this journey with God, "the primal love supernal".  There are so many forms of love that are explored, and it is demonstrated that the strong, pure, bonds are those that cr...