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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
This 5 page paper examines this well known story that many claim is a parallel to fascism. This paper explores the less discussed theme of free will. Bibliography lists 1 source.
Page Count:
5 pages (~225 words per page)
File: RT13_SA647Mar.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
One can see from the outset that the setting is 1930s Italy, just around the height of change in Europe. Fascism and Nazism would soon be paramount. Perhaps because of
this, and because of many things that are contained in this novella, critics believe that the works primary thematic element is fascism. This may be true on a surface level.
Cipolla certainly has the power over the audience, but there may be something more going on beneath the surface. Indeed, the idea that man is not in control over his
own destiny is a theme that seems to loom large. As the story unfolds, one sees a family having a good time at a resort in Italy in the
early part of the twentieth century and the family is not well treated. There is much animosity between various nations at the time, and there also seems to be a
great deal of elitism in the mix. The plot of the story is telling. Cipolla is suppose to be a magician but he is actually a hypnotist and many critics
have suggested that the author uses this example to make a statement about fascism. Mario, a waiter at the resort, kills Cipolla. Essentially, Mario kills the magician just like
Lee Harvey Oswald killed JFK. Most explicators of this story tend to see the theme as one where there are parallels to the murder of the magician and the deterioration
of fascism. But again, it seems that there is more. The parallels are indicated because of the control that Cipolla has over his audience, but Cipolla is after all a
hypnotist. The fact that he is able to control the audience and humiliate the people is indicative of the idea that people are simply not in control of their own
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