Synthesis Essay

Wei Mei

Ms. Wilson

English IV - Brit Lit B

28 May 2013

Frederick Douglass once said “Power concedes nothing without a demand. It never did and it never will.” Power has always been manipulated by humanity as a vehicle to achieving fulfillment which in turn has caused the construction and the annihilation of countless civilizations. Yet, no power is more potent than the one given to the common man: power that manipulates and feeds off the weakness of others, harnessing their frailty to manifest itself. In Room by Emma Donoghue, A Modest Proposal by Jonathan Swift, “The Chimney Sweeper” by William Blake, and “De Profundis” by Elizabeth Barrett Browning, the authors utilize the corruption and cruelty of the time period as well as the pains of those subject to such harsh treatments, in order to change the state of their oppression by those in power. To tackle the problems presented to society, these authors unpackaged the problem at its source: corruption.

Corrupt morals of individuals in power lead to unethical practices. Corruption being “guilty of dishonest practices, as bribery; lacking integrity; crooked: a corrupt judge.” (Dictionary.com) has caused prosperity and rise to power for the vile while destruction of the sincere. Corruption is a form of power that is fed through the weakness of others, those with power manipulates the weakness of others to attain gratification. In Room when Ma was asked by a TV reporter if “[y]our experiences have given you, ah, enormous empathy with the suffering children of the world.” Ma replies by saying “[n]ot just children . . . [p]eople . . . locked up in all sorts of ways” (Donoghue 77). Being a first hand victim of corruption, Ma explains the experience of being a prey to those in power, which in this case is Old Nick. While Room has a narrow view on corruption, Jonathan Swift’s A Modest Proposal explores a much broader view by examining the corruption of social classes. Swift describes the peasant class Irish mothers as “[t]hese mothers, instead of being able to work for their honest livelihood, are forced to employ all their time in strolling, to beg sustenance for their helpless infants“ (Swift 5-8). Swift is pointing out how the individuals with power won’t contribute to making the society more habitable, instead they just ignore the poor and strive to gain even more power. The broad view of corruption of a society in A Modest Proposal is narrowed to a more personal view in “The Chimney Sweeper” by William Blake as he tells the tale of a chimney sweeper through the lenses of a child. The child says, “They clothed me in the clothes of death, / And taught me to sing the notes of woe.” (Blake 7-8). By “clothes of death” the child is conveying to the reader how the clothing covered in soot is marked by death due to how harmful soot is to the human. The “notes of woe” is most likely the constant coughing that these children develop due to being exposed to soot for so long indicating weakened health. Blake attempts to bring to the attention of the public how these foster children are exploited and forced into involuntary servitude under the greed and corruption of their guardians just so they could become meager assets. These immoral and unethical practices are overlooked as those who are paying for the service wants a cheap way to clean their chimney while those who are exploiting the children obviously don’t care for the well being of the children as long as they are making a profit. In Elizabeth Browning’s “De Profundis”, Browning juxtaposes the mind of an individual to those in power while the body, a captive, as those that are lacking in power. “By anguish which made pale the sun, / I hear Him charge his saints that none / Among his creatures anywhere / Blaspheme against Him with despair, / However darkly days go on” (Browning 91-95). Browning is held captive to her own mind as she is drowning herself in the grief of her brother’s death. By believing that she was the cause of her brother’s death, Browning refuses to let go of her feelings of grief and thus limits her own ability to reach her full potential. Seen through the perspective that Browning is juxtaposing her mind as the corrupted captor that is in power while her body as the individual without power, one can understand how the corrupted individuals with power in society are trying to keep those that are without power in society from ever gaining power in order to exert total control and domination of those that are below them.

To allow the readers to better understand corruption, the author provide context of each time period in order to articulate their reasoning. In A Modest Proposal, Jonathan Swift blames the failure of the Irish nation on the British crown by crying how the Irish children will “fight for the Pretender” (Swift 10) once they reach adulthood and by alluding to James Francis Stuart as “the Pretender”. By attacking the lack of nationalism of the Irish people, Swift tries to rally up the patriotism of the Irish through becoming less dependent on the English. Due to the hearth taxes in 17th century Britain, the lower classes in Britain would burn coal instead of wood to elude the fees as burning wood in the fireplace would make it a hearth. William Blake is inspired to write “The Chimney Sweeper” in order to voice his discontent at the immoral and unethical practices that these foster children were forced to partake in. Blake writes of the actions of the chimney sweepers, “your chimneys I sweep & in soot I sleep.” (Blake 5) to bring to the public the hazardous living conditions of these children. To establish a connection between the reader and her piece, Elizabeth Barrett Browning utilizes religion by alluding to the crucification of Jesus with “crown of sovran thorns” (Browning XVIII). Using biblical references in England, a predominantly Christian country, Browning gains the attention and interest of the reader.

Of all the people to fall prey to corruption, women and children are the most common for women have been seen as the more emotional and physically weaker of the sexes since the dawn of humanity whilst children are obviously both physically and mentally weaker than adults. Voltaire once said “with great power comes great responsibility”, those who are in power but not responsible of their actions may end up becoming corrupt and eventually lead themselves into a cruel view towards the world. In Emma Donoghue’s Room Jack and Ma are under the power of Old Nick who deprives them of contact from the rest of the world. Being in total control, Jack and Ma are forced to listen to his every whim else they would face physical abuse along with mental torture. When Jack and Ma are discovered attempting to escape, Old Nick lashed out at Ma and bestows fear in her by threatening Jack’s safety in order to ensure that there will be no more plots to escape. Jonathan Swift conveys to the reader how cruel abortion is through the usage of, “[t]here is likewise another great advantage in my scheme, that it will prevent those voluntary abortions, and that horrid practice of women murdering their bastard children . . .” (Swift 41-44). Swift emphasizes his point of view that those in power are cruel by allowing abortions. He satirically mocks abortion by insinuating that eating the children would be better than to abort them. William Blake demonstrates the cruelty of the guardians of the foster children in “The Chimney Sweeper” by describing their sleeping quarters as, “locked up in coffins of black.” (Blake 12). Blake shows how the children are waiting to die by referring to their rooms as “coffins”. Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s “De Profundis”, Browning employs personification to make nature a cruel entity. “This Nature, though the snows be down, / Thinks kindly of the bird of June: / This little red hip on the tree / Is ripe for such. What is for me, / Whose days so winterly go on?” (Browning IX). Browning explains how nature, Spring in her case, has control over her emotions creating sadness and grief.

Corruption and cruelty can be expressed through many mediums and may be the embodiments of various entities. In Room by Emma Donoghue, A Modest Proposal by Jonathan Swift, “The Chimney Sweeper” by William Blake, and “De Profundis” by Elizabeth Barrett Browning, the authors articulate how corruption of the society and individual of the given time period can transform into cruelty. The construction and annihilation of many a civilizations occurred due to the manipulation of this dangerous force.