EM 16: CONTEMPORARY TO POPULAR LITERATURE

WEEK 7: SELECTED CONTEMPORARY LITERATURE

Values of Literature
They refer to those qualities of poems, stories, novels, etc. that make them worthwhile to read. If we feel our
time reading is well spent, we can say that a work has value for us. If reading the work was a complete waste,
then we might say it has no value for us.

entertainment value is an enjoyable way to pass the time

political value can change the way people live with and influence each
other

artistic value helps us contemplate the nature of beauty and human

creativity
cultural value
sheds light on the place and time of the author of the work
historical value
helps one understand the past and how the world has
philosophical value evolved
explores human knowledge, how we know and what we
know
moral value teaches a lesson to inspire the reader to live a better life
ethical value asks questions a the about the standards of a "good" life

Peter Straughn’s “Orphan”

The Author
Playwright and screenwriter Peter Straughan was born in 1968 and grew up in Gateshead in the north-east of
England. He worked as a professional musician and actor and studied English at Newcastle University. He won
the 1997 Northern Arts Writer's Award and his play A Rhyme for Orange won the 1997 North East People's
Play Award. His stage play Bones (2002) premiered in 1999 at Live Theatre in Newcastle where he became
Writer in Residence. His play Noir (2002), a dark comedy of desire, dreams and coincidence, was staged at
Newcastle Playhouse in a co-production between Live Theatre and Northern Stage Ensemble. News From The
Seventh Floor (2003) is a site-specific theatre piece for Wils Wilson and co-written with Bridget O'Connor,
which opened at Clements department store in Watford in 2003.

Summary:
Kate and John Coleman's marriage is strained after the still birth of their third child Jessica, whose loss is
particularly hard on Kate, who is also recovering from alcoholism. The couple decide to adopt a 9-year-old
Russian girl, Esther, from the local orphanage. While their 5-year-old deaf daughter Max embraces Esther
almost immediately, their 12-year-old son Daniel is far less welcoming. Kate soon bonds with Esther,
developing a strong mother-daughter relationship as well as rebuilding her own with John.
One night, after talking of how things have become since Esther came into their lives, John and Kate undress
and begin to have intercourse, with hopes that she will become pregnant again before Esther interrupts them.
Kate becomes suspicious when Esther expresses far more knowledge of sex than expected of a child her age,
but John tells her not to worry about it, as she may have picked this up from her other foster parents. Soon
however, Esther demonstrates hostile behavior, killing an injured pigeon and injuring a bullying classmate at the
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park, furthering Kate’s suspicions.
Sister Abigail, the head of the orphanage, warns Kate of bad things happening whenever Esther is around,
Esther kills the nun with a hammer and pushes her body into a ditch, hiding the evidence in Daniel's treehouse.
She catches Daniel spying on her, interrogates him, and threatens to kill him if he tells his parents. As Kate
becomes further convinced that something is wrong with Esther, John, who does not believe her, suggests that
Esther could do something nice for Kate. She intentionally brings her a bouquet of flowers from Jessica's grave,
angering Kate who roughly grabs Esther's arm in response. Later that night, Esther purposely breaks her arm
and blames Kate. The next day, Esther releases the brake in the car, causing it to roll into oncoming traffic with
Max inside. When Esther points out the wine bottle she found in the kitchen, John decides to take some time
away from Kate, taking the children before demanding a divorce if Kate doesn't go into rehab. Kate later
discovers that Esther came from an Estonian mental hospital and the orphanage Esther claims she was from has
no records of her.
When Daniel learns about Sister Abigail's death from Max and searches the treehouse, Esther sets it on fire,
causing Daniel to fall and be knocked unconscious. Esther attempts to kill him but is stopped by Max. While
Daniel is in the hospital, Esther smothers him with a pillow but he is quickly revived. Realizing what Esther did,
Kate attacks her but is restrained and sedated. That night, Esther attempts to seduce a drunk John, who threatens
to send Esther back to the orphanage for her behavior.
At the hospital, Kate gets a call from Dr. Värava of the Saarne Institute, and learns that Esther is actually a 33-
year-old woman named Leena Klammer. She has hypopituitarism, a rare hormonal disorder that stunted her
physical growth and caused proportional dwarfism, and has spent most of her life posing as a little girl. Leena
has murdered at least seven people, including the last family that adopted her after failing to seduce the
husband. The ribbons Esther wears around her wrists and neck have been hiding scars from trying to break out
of a straitjacket. Meanwhile, Leena removes her disguise and stabs John to death, which Max witnesses. After
Kate rushes home, Leena grabs a gun and attempts to shoot Max in the greenhouse, but Kate breaks through the
roof and lands on top of her.
Kate and Max escape to a frozen pond, unaware that Leena is pursuing them. Leena attacks Kate, knocking the
gun away and hurling them onto the ice. Max tries to shoot Leena but shatters the ice, sending Leena and Kate
into the freezing water. Kate climbs out, with Leena clinging to her legs. Leena pleads with Kate to save her
while hiding a knife behind her back, before Kate tells Leena that she’s not her mother and kicks her in the
head, killing her and sending her back into the water.
Thomas More’s book “Utopia” (1516)
The Author
Thomas More, in full Sir Thomas More, also called Saint Thomas More, (born February 7, 1478, London,
England—died July 6, 1535, London; canonized May 19, 1935; feast day June 22), English humanist and
statesman, chancellor of England (1529–32), who was beheaded for refusing to accept King Henry VIII as head
of the Church of England. He is recognized as a saint by the Roman Catholic Church.

Utopia is a Greek name of More’s coining, from ou-topos (“no place”); a pun on eu-topos (“good place”) is
suggested in a prefatory poem. More’s Utopia describes a pagan and communist city-state in which the
institutions and policies are entirely governed by reason. The order and dignity of such a state provided a
notable contrast with the unreasonable polity of Christian Europe, divided by self-interest and greed for power
and riches, which More described in Book I, written in England in 1516. The description of Utopia is put in the
mouth of a mysterious traveler, Raphael Hythloday, in support of his argument that communism is the only cure
against egoism in private and public life. Through dialogue More speaks in favour of the mitigation of evil
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rather than its cure, human nature being fallible. Among the topics discussed by More in Utopia were penology,
state-controlled education, religious pluralism, divorce, euthanasia, and women’s rights. The resulting
demonstration of his learning, invention, and wit established his reputation as one of the foremost humanists.
Soon translated into most European languages, Utopia became the ancestor of a new literary genre,
the utopian romance.

WEEK 8: SELECTED CONTEMPORARY LITERATURE

Style in Writing
It can be defined as the way a writer writes. It is the technique that an individual author uses in his writing. It
varies from author to author, and depends upon one’s syntax, word choice, and tone. It can also be described as
a “voice” that readers listen to when they read the work of a writer.

Functions of Style
A unique literary style can have great impact on the piece in which it is used, and on the readers. When authors
write and put their ideas into words, they have many choices to make, which include: words, sounds,
logic, sentence structures. However, different authors use different literary styles that depend on their distinct
expression, and their utilization of these choices. And their choices create their niche.

Parts of Style
Here are some key parts that work together to make up a piece of literature’s style:
· Diction: the style of the author’s word choice
· Sentence structure: the way words are arranged in a sentence
· Tone: the mood of the story; the feeling or attitude a work creates
· Narrator: the person telling the story and the point-of-view it is told in
· Grammar and the use of punctuation
· Creative devices like symbolism, allegory, metaphor, rhyme, and so on

Types of Style
There are four basic literary styles used in writing. These styles distinguish the works of different authors, one
from another. Here are four styles of writing:
· Expository or Argumentative Style
Expository writing style is a subject-oriented style. The focus of the writer in this type of writing style is to tell
the readers about a specific subject or topic, and in the end the author leaves out his own opinion about that
topic.
· Descriptive Style
In descriptive writing style, the author focuses on describing an event, a character or a place in detail.
Sometimes, descriptive writing style is poetic in nature in, where the author specifies an event, an object, or a
thing rather than merely giving information about an event that has happened. Usually the description
incorporates sensory details.
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· Persuasive Style
Persuasive style of writing is a category of writing in which the writer tries to give reasons and justification to
make the readers believe his point of view. The persuasive style aims to persuade and convince the readers.
· Narrative Style
Narrative writing style is a type of writing wherein the writer narrates a story. It includes short stories, novels,
novellas, biographies, and poetry.
Top Ten (10) Contemporary Writers
Ranking the most important authors in contemporary and late-20th-century literature is impossible. These 10
authors all made their mark over the last 50 years and are each widely considered to be significant and worth
exploring. From Updike's post-World War II suburbia to Smith's postcolonial tale of London immigrants, the
sweep of these writers' works chronicles the vast changes that have occurred over the turn of the 21st century.
· Isabel Allende - Chilean-American author Allende wrote her debut novel, "House of Spirits," to great
acclaim in 1982. The novel began as a letter to her dying grandfather and is a work of magical realism charting
the history of Chile. Allende began writing "House of Spirits" on Jan. 8, and subsequently has begun writing all
of her books on that day. Most of her works usually contain elements of magical realism and vivid female
characters. "City of Beasts" (2002) has been another large commercial success.
· Margaret Atwood – Canadian Atwood has numerous critically acclaimed novels to her credit. Some of
her best-selling titles are "Oryx and Crake" (2003), "The Handmaid's Tale" (1986), and "The Blind Assassin"
(2000). She is best known for her feminist and dystopian political themes, and her prolific output of work spans
multiple genres, including poetry, short stories, and essays. She distinguishes her "speculative fiction" from
science fiction because "science fiction has monsters and spaceships; speculative fiction could really happen."
· Jonathan Franzen - Winner of the National Book Award for his 2001 novel, "The Corrections," and a
frequent contributor of essays to The New Yorker, Jonathan Franzen's works include a 2002 book of essays
titled "How to Be Alone," a 2006 memoir, "The Discomfort Zone," and the acclaimed "Freedom" (2010). His
work often touches on social criticism and family troubles.
· Ian McEwan - British writer Ian McEwan started winning literary awards with his first book, a
collection of short stories, "First Love, Last Rites" (1976) and never stopped. "Atonement" (2001), a family
drama focused on repentance, won several awards and was made into a movie directed by Joe Wright (2007).
"Saturday" (2005) won the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. His work often focuses on closely observed
personal lives in a politically fraught world. He wields a paintbrush.
· David Mitchell - English novelist Mitchell is known for his frequent use of intricate and complex
experimental structure in his work. In his first novel, "Ghostwritten" (1999), he uses nine narrators to tell the
story, and 2004's "Cloud Atlas" is a novel comprising six interconnected stories. Mitchell won the John
Llewellyn Rhys Prize for "Ghostwritten," was shortlisted for the Booker Prize for "number9dream" (2001), and
was on the Booker longlist for "The Bone Clocks" (2014).
· Toni Morrison – Her "Beloved" (1987) was named best novel of the past 25 years in a 2006 New York
Times Book Review survey. The searingly painful novel offers a very personal window into the horrors of the
enslavement of people and its aftermath. The novel won the Pulitzer Prize in 1988, and Toni Morrison, a
luminary of African American literature, won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1993.
· Haruki Murakami - Son of a Buddhist priest, Japanese author Haruki Murakami first struck a chord
with "A Wild Sheep Chase" in 1982, a novel steeped in the genre of magical realism, which he would make his
own over the coming decades. Murakami's works are melancholic, sometimes fantastic, and often in the first
person. He has said that "his early books...originated in an individual darkness, while his later works tap into the
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darkness found in society and history." His most popular book among Westerners is "The Wind-Up Bird
Chronicle," and 2005's English translation of "Kafka on the Shore" has also met with great success in the West.
The English version of Murakami's well-received novel, "1Q84," was released in 2011.
· Philip Roth - Roth (1933–2018) seems to have won more book awards than any other late-20th-century
American writer. He won the Sidewise Award for Alternate History for The Plot Against America (2005) and a
PEN/Nabokov Award for Lifetime Achievement in 2006. His mostly Jewish-themed work usually explores a
fraught and conflicted relationship with Jewish tradition. In Everyman (2006), Roth's 27th novel, he stuck to
one of his familiar later themes: what it's like growing old Jewish in America.
· Zadie Smith - Literary critic James Wood coined the term "hysterical realism" in 2000 to describe Zadie
Smith's hugely successful debut novel, "White Teeth," which Smith agreed was a "painfully accurate term for
the sort of overblown, manic prose to be found in novels like my own 'White Teeth.'" The British novelist and
essayist's third novel, "On Beauty," was shortlisted for the Booker Prize and won the 2006 Orange Prize for
Fiction. Her 2012 novel "NW" was shortlisted for the Ondaatje Prize and the Women's Prize for Fiction. Her
works often deal with race and the immigrant's postcolonial experience.
· John Updike - During his long career that spanned decades and reached into the 21st century, John
Updike (1932–2009) was one of only three writers to win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction more than once. Some of
Updike's most renowned novels included his Rabbit Angstrom novels, "Of the Farm" (1965), and "Olinger
Stories: A Selection" (1964). His four Rabbit Angstrom novels were named in 2006 among the best novels of
the past 25 years in a New York Times Book Review survey. He famously described his subject as "the
American small town, Protestant middle class."

Plot Overview of Atwood’s “The Handmaid’s Tale”

Offred is a Handmaid in the Republic of Gilead, a totalitarian and theocratic state that has replaced the United
States of America. Because of dangerously low reproduction rates, Handmaids are assigned to bear children for
elite couples that have trouble conceiving. Offred serves the Commander and his wife, Serena Joy, a former
gospel singer and advocate for “traditional values.” Offred is not the narrator’s real name—Handmaid names
consist of the word “of” followed by the name of the Handmaid’s Commander. Every month, when Offred is at
the right point in her menstrual cycle, she must have impersonal, wordless sex with the Commander while
Serena sits behind her, holding her hands. Offred’s freedom, like the freedom of all women, is completely
restricted. She can leave the house only on shopping trips, the door to her room cannot be completely shut, and
the Eyes, Gilead’s secret police force, watch her every public move.
As Offred tells the story of her daily life, she frequently slips into flashbacks, from which the reader can
reconstruct the events leading up to the beginning of the novel. In the old world, before Gilead, Offred had an
affair with Luke, a married man. He divorced his wife and married Offred, and they had a child together.
Offred’s mother was a single mother and feminist activist. Offred’s best friend, Moira, was fiercely independent.
The architects of Gilead began their rise to power in an age of readily available pornography, prostitution, and
violence against women—when pollution and chemical spills led to declining fertility rates. Using the military,
they assassinated the president and members of Congress and launched a coup, claiming that they were taking
power temporarily. They cracked down on women’s rights, forbidding women to hold property or jobs. Offred
and Luke took their daughter and attempted to flee across the border into Canada, but they were caught and
separated from one another, and Offred has seen neither her husband nor her daughter since.
After her capture, Offred’s marriage was voided (because Luke had been divorced), and she was sent to the
Rachel and Leah Re-education Center, called the Red Center by its inhabitants. At the center, women were
indoctrinated into Gilead’s ideology in preparation for becoming Handmaids. Aunt Lydia supervised the
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women, giving speeches extolling Gilead’s beliefs that women should be subservient to men and solely
concerned with bearing children. Aunt Lydia also argued that such a social order ultimately offers women more
respect and safety than the old, pre-Gilead society offered them. Moira is brought to the Red Center, but she
escapes, and Offred does not know what becomes of her.
Once assigned to the Commander’s house, Offred’s life settles into a restrictive routine. She takes shopping
trips with Ofglen, another Handmaid, and they visit the Wall outside what used to be Harvard University, where
the bodies of rebels hang. She must visit the doctor frequently to be checked for disease and other
complications, and she must endure the “Ceremony,” in which the Commander reads to the household from the
Bible, then goes to the bedroom, where his Wife and Offred wait for him, and has sex with Offred. The first
break from her routine occurs when she visits the doctor and he offers to have sex with her to get her pregnant,
suggesting that her Commander is probably infertile. She refuses. The doctor makes her uneasy, but his
proposition is too risky—she could be sent away if caught. After a Ceremony, the Commander sends his
gardener and chauffeur, Nick, to ask Offred to come see him in his study the following night. She begins
visiting him regularly. They play Scrabble (which is forbidden, since women are not allowed to read), and he
lets her look at old magazines like Vogue. At the end of these secret meetings, he asks her to kiss him.
During one of their shopping trips, Ofglen reveals to Offred that she is a member of “Mayday,” an underground
organization dedicated to overthrowing Gilead. Meanwhile, Offred begins to find that the Ceremony feels
different and less impersonal now that she knows the Commander. Their nighttime conversations begin to touch
on the new order that the Commander and his fellow leaders have created in Gilead. When Offred admits how
unhappy she is, the Commander remarks, “[Y]ou can’t make an omelette without breaking eggs.”
After some time has gone by without Offred becoming pregnant, Serena suggests that Offred have sex with
Nick secretly and pass the child off as the Commander’s. Serena promises to bring Offred a picture of her
daughter if she sleeps with Nick, and Offred realizes that Serena has always known the whereabouts of Offred’s
daughter. The same night that Offred is to sleep with Nick, the Commander secretly takes her out to a club
called Jezebel’s, where the Commanders mingle with prostitutes. Offred sees Moira working there. The two
women meet in a bathroom, and Offred learns that Moira was captured just before she crossed the border. She
chose life in Jezebel’s over being sent to the Colonies, where most political prisoners and dangerous people are
sent. After that night at Jezebel’s, Offred says, she never sees Moira again. The Commander takes Offred
upstairs after a few hours, and they have sex in what used to be a hotel room. She tries to feign passion.
Soon after Offred returns from Jezebel’s, late at night, Serena arrives and tells Offred to go to Nick’s room.
Offred and Nick have sex. Soon they begin to sleep together frequently, without anyone’s knowledge. Offred
becomes caught up in the affair and ignores Ofglen’s requests that she gather information from the Commander
for Mayday. One day, all the Handmaids take part in a group execution of a supposed rapist, supervised by Aunt
Lydia. Ofglen strikes the first blow. Later, she tells Offred that the so-called rapist was a member of Mayday
and that she hit him to put him out of his misery.
Shortly thereafter, Offred goes out shopping, and a new Ofglen meets her. This new woman is not part of
Mayday, and she tells Offred that the old Ofglen hanged herself when she saw the secret police coming for her.
At home, Serena has found out about Offred’s trip to Jezebel’s, and she sends her to her room, promising
punishment. Offred waits there, and she sees a black van from the Eyes approach. Then Nick comes in and tells
her that the Eyes are really Mayday members who have come to save her. Offred leaves with them, over the
Commander’s futile objections, on her way either to prison or to freedom—she does not know which.
The novel closes with an epilogue from 2195, after Gilead has fallen, written in the form of a lecture given by
Professor Pieixoto. He explains the formation and customs of Gilead in objective, analytical language. He
discusses the significance of Offred’s story, which has turned up on cassette tapes in Bangor, Maine. He

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suggests that Nick arranged Offred’s escape but that her fate after that is unknown. She could have escaped to
Canada or England, or she could have been recaptured.
WEEK 9: SELECTED CONTEMPORARY LITERATURE
Common Perceptions on the Elements of Contemporary Literature
- reality-based stories with strong characters and a believable story;
- well-defined, realistic, highly developed characters in realistic, sometimes harsh environments;
- often character-driven stories;
- literature is ironic and reflects current political, social and personal issues;
- may reflect a personal cynicism, disillusionment and frustration;
- facts are questioned as are historical perspectives;
- often presents two contradictory arguments;
- may reflect a growing skepticism in the existence of God as well as distrust or lack of faith in traditional
institutions
New Criticism/Formalism
Character: How does the character evolve during the story? What is unique or interesting about a character? Is
the character a stereotypical action hero, a patriarchal father figure, or Madonna? How does a character interact
with other characters?
Setting: How does the setting enhance tension within the work? Do any elements in the setting foreshadow the
conclusion of the piece?
Plot: What is the conflict? How do scenes lead to a suspenseful resolution? What scenes make the plot unusual,
unexpected, suspenseful?
Point of View: Who is telling the story? Is the narrator omniscient (all knowing) or does the narrator have
limited understanding?
Reader-Response Criticism
How does the text make you feel? What memories or experiences come to mind when you read? If you were the
central protagonist, would you have behaved differently? Why? What values or ethics do you believe are
suggested by the story? As your reading of a text progresses, what surprises you, inspires you?
Feminist Criticism
How does the story re-inscribe or contradict traditional gender roles? For example, are the male characters in
“power positions” while the women are “dominated”? Are the men prone to action, decisiveness, and leadership
while the female characters are passive, subordinate? Do gender roles create tension within the story? Do
characters’ gender roles evolve over the course of the narrative?
New Historicism Criticism

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How does the story reflect the aspirations and conditions of the lower classes or upper classes? Is tension
created by juxtaposing privileged, powerful positions to subordinated, dominated positions? What information
about the historical context of the story helps explain the character’s motivations? Who benefits from the
outcome of the story or from a given character’s motivation?
Media Criticism
How does the medium alter readers’ interactions with the text? Has the reader employed multimedia or
hypertext? What traditions from print and page design have shaped the structure of the text? In what ways has
the author deviated from traditional, deductively organized linear texts?
Cite from the Work
Literary criticism involves close reading of a literary work, regardless of whether you are arguing about a
particular interpretation, comparing stories or poems, or using a theory to interpret literature. Do not summarize
the story. The purpose of the document is not to inform the readers, but to argue a particular interpretation. You
only need to cite parts of the work that support or relate to your argument and follow the citation format
required by your instructor (see Using and Citing Sources).
Through the Arc of the Rain Forest
Karen Tei Yamashita’s Through the Arc of the Rain Forest (1990) is a magical realist story from Coffee House
Press. Narrated by a sentient floating sphere, the story primarily takes place in Brazil. Utilizing fantastical
elements, the novel addresses issues of environmentalism, economic inequality, and faith.
Plot Summary
A sentient ball narrates the novel in the first person and provides third person narration for the other characters.
The story opens on the shores of Japan, where the ball hits Kazumasa on the head and remains in his orbit for
the rest of the story. Kazumasa gets a job for the railway system, using the ball to identify weaknesses in the
rails, but technology outmodes him. He moves to Brazil, São Paulo, near Batista and Tania Aparecida Djapan.
Batista and Tania are a passionate couple, but Batista is extremely jealous. Batista finds an injured pigeon and
trains it to deliver messages. After neighbors win the lottery because of a pigeon message, the community
becomes enthralled with the pigeon. The bird prophesizes Kazumasa will become rich, and he wins a fortune
gambling. He gives away his money freely. With Kazumasa’s charity, Batista and Tania expand their hobby into
a full-fledged pigeon messenger business. Kazumasa also gives money to his cousin Hiroshi, who invests it,
growing the fortune. Kazumasa’s maid, Lourdes, and her two children, Rubens and Gislaine, move in with him.
Lourdes and Kazumasa form an attraction, but don’t express their feelings.
Elsewhere in Brazil lives the forest native, Mané Pena. A storm ravages Mané’s farmland and uncovers a
strange, smooth, miles-long surface underneath: the Matacão. Mané believes bird feathers have healing
properties, and he espouses these beliefs to reporters visiting the Matacão. A three-armed businessman named
J.B. Tweep is convinced feathers will be the next hot item. He travels to Brazil so GGG, J.B.’s employers, can
dominate the feather market. GGG employs Mané and dubs him the founder of featherology. GGG discovers
the Matacão is a plastic that can be used across multiple industries, and they begin selling both normal and
plastic feathers.
A fisherman, Chico Paco, lives in seaside town in Brazil. There, he helps his neighbor Gilberto, who can’t walk.
Gilberto’s grandmother prays for Gilberto’s legs and swears to journey all the way to the Matacão if he
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recovers. Gilberto recovers, but Chico makes the pilgrimage to the Matacão instead. Chico reaches the Matacão,
and the public idolizes him as a living angel. Chico meets Mané, and the two become lifelong friends. Although
Chico completed his pilgrimage, the image of a young boy dominates his dreams.
Rubens falls 14 stories after trying to grab to grab his pigeon off the balcony, lands in the back of a meat truck,
and is driven far from his home. Lourdes prays to Chico and sends him a letter with a picture of her missing
son. Chico recognizes Rubens from his dream and walks to São Paulo, thousands of miles away. Rubens makes
it home safely. To complete this second pilgrimage, Chico once again travels back to the Matacão. After, Chico
starts a religious radio station, Radio Chico. Tania expands the business and travels internationally. Batista and
Tania don’t see each other for over a year, which torments Batista.
J.B. strongarms Kazumasa and the ball into travelling in search of more Matacão. Other companies target
Kazumasa, and Lourdes travels to the Matacão in search of Kazumasa.
Gilberto and Chico’s mother come to stay with Chico. Gilberto loves thrills and excitement now that he can
walk. J.B. and Chico co-fund an amusement park on the Matacão to appease Gilberto. A terrible typhus
epidemic breaks out across Brazil, and Chico hopes opening the amusement park will give people hope.
Secretly, Gilberto plans to launch himself from a canon during the grand opening to surprise Chico.
Kidnappers take Rubens and Gislaine, demanding Kazumasa and the ball in exchange for the children.
Kazumasa and the ball intend to surrender themselves to save the children. All the characters converge at the
amusement park opening in Matacão. A kidnapper pulls a gun and accidentally fatally shoots Chico. Gilberto
dies from his cannon trick.
Lice in the popular bird feathers has caused the typhus epidemic. Mané falls victims to the disease along with
his children. The Brazilian government carpet bombs the country with a louse-killing agent, killing countless
bird species in the rain forest and Batista’s pigeons. Matacão plastic is also toxic and disintegrates. With GGG
in shambles, J.B. commits suicide.
Batista and Tania reunite at last. Without the Matacão, the ball dies. Kazumasa and Lourdes confess their love
and move with her children onto a farm. Slowly, nature begins to return.
WEEK 10: CONTEMPORARY AND POPULAR LITERATURE
4.1 Background on Odyssey
Odyssey, epic poem in 24 books traditionally attributed to the ancient Greek poet Homer. The poem is the story
of Odysseus, king of Ithaca, who wanders for 10 years (although the action of the poem covers only the final six
weeks) trying to get home after the Trojan War. On his return, he is recognized only by his faithful dog and a
nurse. With the help of his son, Telemachus, Odysseus destroys the insistent suitors of his faithful wife,
Penelope, and several of her maids who had fraternized with the suitors and reestablishes himself in his
kingdom.
Odyssey” (Gr: “Odysseia”) is the second of the two epic poems attributed to the ancient Greek poet Homer (the
first being “The Iliad”), and usually considered the second extant work of Western literature. It was probably
composed near the end of the 8th Century BCE and is, in part, a sequel to “The Iliad”. It is widely recognized as
one of the great stories of all time, and has been a strong influence on later European, especially Renaissance
literature.

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The poem focuses on the Greek hero Odysseus (or Ulysses, as he was known in Roman myths) and his long
journey home to Ithaca following the fall of Troy. His adventure-filled ten-year journey took him through the
Ionian Islands and the Peloponnese and as far away as Egypt and North Africa and the western Mediterranean,
as the displeased sea-god Poseidon prevented him from reaching his home.
4.2 Summary of the Odyssey
Ten years after the Fall of Troy, and twenty years after the Greek hero Odysseus first set out from his home in
Ithaca to fight with the other Greeks against the Trojans, Odysseus’ son Telemachus and his wife Penelope are
beset with over a hundred suitors who are trying to persuade Penelope that her husband is dead and that she
should marry one of them.
Encouraged by the goddess Athena (always Odysseus’ protector), Telemachus sets out to look for his father,
visiting some of Odysseus’ erstwhile companions such as Nestor, Menelaus and Helen, who have long since
arrived home. They receive him sumptuously and recount the ending of the Trojan War, including the story of
the wooden horse. Menelaus tells Telemachus that he has heard that Odysseus is being held captive by the
nymph Calypso.
The scene then changes to Calypso’s island, where Odysseus has spent seven years in captivity. Calypso is
finally persuaded to release him by Hermes and Zeus, but Odysseus’ makeshift boat is wrecked by his nemesis
Poseidon, and he swims ashore onto an island. He is found by the young Nausicaa and her handmaidens and is
made welcome by King Alcinous and Queen Arete of the Phaeacians, and begins to tell the amazing story of his
return from Troy.
Odysseus tells how he and his twelve ships were driven off course by storms, and how they visited the lethargic
Lotus-Eaters with their memory-erasing food, before being captured by the giant one-eyed cyclops Polyphemus
(Poseidon’s son), only escaping after he blinded the giant with a wooden stake. Despite the help of Aeolus, King
of the Winds, Odysseus and his crew were blown off course again just as home was almost in sight. They
narrowly escaped from the cannibal Laestrygones, only to encounter the witch-goddess Circe soon after. Circe
turned half of his men into swine, but Odysseus had been pre-warned by Hermes and made resistant to Circe’s
magic.
After a year of feasting and drinking on Circe’s island, the Greeks again set off, reaching the western edge of
the world. Odysseus made a sacrifice to the dead and summoned the spirit of the old prophet Tiresias to advise
him, as well as the spirits of several other famous men and women and that of his own mother, who had died of
grief at his long absence and who gave him disturbing news of the situation in his own household.
Advised once more by Circe on the remaining stages of their journey, they skirted the land of the Sirens, passed
between the many-headed monster Scylla and the whirlpool Charybdis, and, blithely ignoring the warnings of
Tiresias and Circe, hunted down the sacred cattle of the sun god Helios. For this sacrilege, they were punished
by a shipwreck in which all but Odysseus himself drowned. He was washed ashore on Calypso’s island, where
she compelled him to remain as her lover.
Having listened with rapt attention to his story, the Phaeacians agree to help Odysseus get home, and they
finally deliver him one night to a hidden harbour on his home island of Ithaca. Disguised as a wandering beggar
and telling a fictitious tale of himself, Odysseus learns from a local swineherd how things stand in his
household. Through Athena’s machinations, he meets up with his own son, Telemachus, just returning from
Sparta, and they agree together that the insolent and increasingly impatient suitors must be killed. With more

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help from Athena, an archery competition is arranged by Penelope for the suitors, which the disguised Odysseus
easily wins, and he then promptly slaughters all the other suitors. Only now does Odysseus reveal and prove his
true identity to his wife and to his old father, Laertes. Despite the fact that Odysseus has effectively killed two
generations of the men of Ithaca (the shipwrecked sailors and the executed suitors), Athena intervenes one last
time and finally Ithaca is at peace once more.
4.3 Analysis of the Odyssey
Like “The Iliad”, “The Odyssey” is attributed to the Greek epic poet Homer, although it was probably written
later than “The Iliad”, in Homer’s mature years, possibly around 725 BCE. Also like “The Iliad”, it was clearly
composed in an oral tradition, and was probably intended more to be sung than read, probably accompanied by
a simple stringed instrument which was strummed for an occasional rhythmic accent. It is written in Homeric
Greek (an archaic version of Ionic Greek, with admixtures from certain other dialects such as Aeolic Greek),
and comprises 12,110 lines of dactylic hexameter verse, usually divided up into 24 books. Today, the word
“odyssey” has come to be used in the English language to refer to any epic voyage or extended wandering.
The character of Odysseus embodies many of the ideals the ancient Greeks aspired to: manly valour, loyalty,
piety and intelligence. His intelligence is a mix of keen observation, instinct and street smarts, and he is a fast,
inventive liar, but also extremely cautious. However, he is also portrayed as very human – he makes mistakes,
gets into tricky situations, loses his temper and is often moved to tears – and we see him in many roles (as a
husband, father and son, but also as an athlete, army captain, sailor, carpenter, storyteller, ragged beggar, lover)
The other characters are very much secondary, although Odysseus’ son Telemachus shows some
growth and development from a passive, untested boy to a man of valour and action, respectful to gods and
men, and loyal to his mother and father. The first four books of “The Odyssey” are often referred to as “The
Telemachy” as they follow Telemachus’ own journey.
Among the themes explored by “The Odyssey” are those of homecoming, vengeance, the restoration of order,
hospitality, respect for the gods, order and fate, and, perhaps most importantly, loyalty (Odysseus’ loyalty in
persisting in his attempts to return home, even after twenty years, Telemachus’ loyalty, Penelope’s loyalty and
the loyalty of the servants Eurykleia and Eumaios
WEEK 11: DEVOTIONAL LITERATURE
4.1 Devotional Literature
Because Christianity played such a major role in the social and intellectual life of the Renaissance, almost all
the literature produced in Europe at that time had some religious content. However, many types of works were
specifically Christian in nature. Religious writers produced poetry, stories, essays, and dialogues, written both in
Latin and in vernacular* languages. All these works fell under the broad heading of devotional literature, which
aimed to help the reader lead a more holy life.
Devotional writing changed in several ways during the late Middle Ages and the Renaissance. For example, by
the middle of the 1300s, the growing use of the vernacular in writing had helped to create new forms of
religious literature. At the same time, a large new audience for books emerged among laypeople*. During the
Renaissance, other factors such as the development of printing and the intellectual movement known as
humanism* produced further changes in religious literature. However, people continued to read older religious
texts, including works written by church fathers

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Major Themes
The most popular devotional texts of this period advised readers about following the example of Jesus Christ.
This theme appeared in such works . These works taught that believers could recreate Christ's sufferings in
their own minds and bodies, an idea that became a focus of spiritual exercises for Catholics and some
Protestants in the late Renaissance. For Catholics, literature of this type focused largely on the physical details
of Christ's suffering.
Another major figure in devotional literature was the Virgin Mary. Catholic authors of this period wrote about
the Virgin in epics*, lyric poetry, sermons, and meditations. These works discussed Mary's various roles as a
wife and mother, a worker of miracles, and a person who pleads on behalf of sinners. Devotion to other
members of Christ's Holy Family, such as his cousin John the Baptist, became popular at this time as well. A
cult also developed around Joseph, Mary's husband, which presented Christ's earthly father as a model for
Christian fathers.
Some devotional literature focused on the ideal of isolation, which provided a contrast to a Renaissance culture
centered on the life of the city and the court. Many texts described the experiences of the Desert Fathers, who
fled Roman persecution in the 200s and 300s. These holy men settled in Egypt, where they lived as hermits. The
image of a person alone in the desert provided a popular model for many Christians. During the 1500s,
however, this ideal faded as both Catholics and Protestants stressed the importance of public as well as private
devotion.
4.2 The Book of Ruth
According to the Talmud (Jewish tradition), the prophet Samuel wrote the book of Ruth. The text itself says
nothing of the author, but whoever wrote it was a skilled storyteller. It has been called the most beautiful short
story ever written.
The final words of the book link Ruth with her great-grandson, David (Ruth 4:17– 22), so we know it was
written after his anointing. The genealogy at the end of the book shows David’s lineage through the days of the
judges, acting as a support for his rightful kingship. Solomon is not mentioned, leading some to believe the
book was written before David ascended the throne.
The events of Ruth occurred sometime between 1160 BC and 1100 BC, during the latter period of the judges
(Ruth 1:1). These were dark days, full of suffering brought about by the Israelites’ apostasy and immorality. Part
of the judgments God brought upon His sinful people included famine and war. The book of Ruth opens with a
report of famine, which drove Naomi’s family out of Bethlehem into neighboring Moab. Naomi eventually
returned with Ruth because she heard “that the LORD had visited His people in giving them food” (1:6).
Readers can identify this interlude as part of the cyclical pattern of sin, suffering, supplication, and salvation
found in Judges. But this story stands as a ray of light, showing the power of the love between God and His
faithful people. The author gave the reader a snapshot perspective—one family, in a small town, at the threshing
floor—as opposed to the broader narratives found in Judges. The book was written from Naomi’s point of view.
Every event related back to her:
her husband’s and sons’ deaths, her daughters-in-law, her return to Bethlehem, her God, her relative, Boaz, her
land to sell, and her progeny. Almost without peer in Scripture, this story views “God through the eyes of a
woman.”1 Naomi has been compared to a female Job. She lost everything: home, husband, and sons—and even
more than Job did—her livelihood. She joined the ranks of Israel’s lowest members: the poor and the widowed.
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She cried out in her grief and neglected to see the gift that God placed in her path—Ruth. Ruth herself
embodied loyal love. Her moving vow of loyalty (Ruth 1:16–17), though obviously not marital in nature, is
often included in modern wedding ceremonies to communicate the depths of devotion to which the new couples
aspire. The book reveals the extent of God’s grace—He accepted Ruth into His chosen people and honored her
with a role in continuing the family line into which His appointed king, David, and later His Son, Jesus, would
be born (Matthew 1:1, 5).
Obedience in everyday life pleases God. When we reflect His character through our interactions with others, we
bring glory to Him. Ruth’s sacrifice and hard work to provide for Naomi reflected God’s love. Boaz’s loyalty to
his kinsman, Naomi’s husband, reflected God’s faithfulness. Naomi’s plan for Ruth’s future reflected selfless
love.
The book of Ruth showed the Israelites the blessings that obedience could bring. It showed them the loving,
faithful nature of their God. This book demonstrates that God responds to His people’s cry. He practices what
He preaches, so to speak. Watching Him provide for Naomi and Ruth, two widows with little prospects for a
future, we learn that He cares for the outcasts of society just as He asks us to do (Jeremiah 22:16;
4.3 Parables
A parable is a tale about a simple, common subject to illustrate a deeper, valuable moral lesson. It utilizes the
full story to produce the spiritual lesson whereas a proverb, metaphor, simile, or figure of speech centers usually
on a word, phrase or sentence. The source definition of the word “parable” means a placement side by side for
the purpose of comparison.
Parables of Jesus
The parables of Jesus make up a crucial part of the Bible. Jesus had the wisdom to simplify the profound
spiritual truths he needed to share with humanity in the form of relatable stories that are easy to understand.
Sometimes the Gospel authors begin a parable with an analogy, as "The Kingdom of Heaven is like a landowner
who went out at dawn to hire laborers for his vineyard" (Matthew 20:1). Or Jesus may provide an example from
everyday life to convey spiritual truth, such as the Parable of the Good Samaritan to emphasize love and mercy,
or the Parable of the Friend at Midnight to show persistence in prayer.
• The Speck and The Log - Matthew 7:1-5
“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with
the measure you use, it will be measured to you. “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s
eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck
out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of
your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.
• The Parable of the Growing Seed – Mark 4:26-29
He also said, “This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man scatters seed on the ground. 27 Night and day,
whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. 28 All by itself the soil
produces grain—first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head. 29 As soon as the grain is ripe, he
puts the sickle to it, because the harvest has come.”
• The Lost Coin – Luke 15:8 -10

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“Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins and loses one. Does she not light a lamp, sweep the house and search
carefully until she finds it? And when she finds it, she calls her friends and neighbors together and says,
‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost coin.’ In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of
the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”
• The Vine and the Branches – John
“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me
you can do nothing. 6 If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such
branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned.
• The Parable of the Good Shepherd – John 10: 1-5
“Truly, truly I say to you, the one who does not enter by the door into the fold of the sheep, but climbs up some
other way, he is a thief and a robber. 2 But the one who enters by the door is a shepherd of the sheep. 3 To him
the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep listen to his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.
4 When he puts all his own sheep outside, he goes ahead of them, and the sheep follow him because they know
his voice. 5 However, a stranger they simply will not follow, but will flee from him, because they do not know
the voice of strangers.”

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