Comparative Literature Essay, Free Example for Everyone

The Shatterer of Worlds and To Kill a Mocking Bird are two distinct novels creatively written by two different authors, kilder Dobbs and Harper Lee respectively. Kilder Dobbs in 'The Shatterer of Worlds' writes a story which he was told by a lady from Japan who had vacated to Toronto in the United States. However, this young woman of about 14 years was narrating through an interpreter as she did not know the English language. The novel is about a girl, Emiko who is telling of how Hiroshima, one of the cities in Japan, experienced a bomb blast which left numerous people killed while others injured. On the other hand, Harper Lee in his works, 'To Kill a Mocking Bird' talks about the experience he had with his family and also her close neighbors when she was still at his tender age of 10 years. The paper, therefore, explores a comparison between the two texts by looking at various concepts of characters, themes, setting as well as the plot.

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To Kill a Mocking Bird is a book that was set back in the 1930s during the moment when the United States of America were experiencing a great depression on racial segregation, and inequality (Lee, 2016).The setting is based on a society which has students and the ordinary citizens that are out looking for a living. On the other hand, The Shatterer of Worlds is a novel set in the early years of 1945, in the urban centers of Japan. The story illustrates a bomb blast that was encountered in Hiroshoma city of Japan leaving many wounded and a great number to death. Emiko's family is among the family that were the victims of the bomb blast and it begins where her mother is busy taking care of Hideko, her younger 13-year-old sister who had fallen sick as a result of it.

From the two texts, there is an exploration of the theme of desperation. To Kill a Mocking Bird is full of anguish. For instance, in the city of Alabama, there is a man by the name Boo Radley who is always locking himself in the house (Lee, 2016). Children from the neighborhood are always eager to know why Boo doesn't get out of the house and the reason why he is not social with other residents. Scout, her sibling called Jem as well as their friend Dill, tip-toes towards where Boo stays. According to rumors which were in the city, the man had stabbed the feet of his father and therefore cursed hence, living in a state of desperation and animosity. Likewise, the theme of being desperate is shown vividly in the novel of the Shatterer of Worlds where Emiko's sister called Eiko was desperately suffering from heart problems. Their mother was also uncomfortable as the health status of her daughter was demanding (Kildare, 2014). Due to the state of being unsettled, Emiko wakes up at 2:00 A.M. to check on her sister Eiko. From this situation, the state of being desperate engulfs the entire family

Morality and immoral acts are clearly portrayed in the two novels especially among their residents. To Kill a Mocking Bird has demonstrated the aspects of sound and immoral acts in different accessions. Atticus is instilling in his children morals by advising them to always do what is right. He also shows morality when he advocates for equality to all the people in Maycomb. While he was in USA, he mocked the idea of discriminating people basing on their ethnic lines. The immoral deeds are expressed clearly where a black person who was living in America had been accused of raping a white woman. The act which occurred in a town called Maycomb makes the author to states that there were social injustices that were taking place. On the other hand, morality is clearly seen in The Shatterer of Worlds, especially at Emiko's place of residence where every person is respecting one another. The children are also following the instructions that their guardians are giving to them. However, immorality in this novel has outweighed good deeds. Back in the city of Hiroshima, people are killed after a bomb blast is released in the skies of Japan (Kildare, 2014). Many people lost their lives while others got major injuries, including the main character Emiko.

Loving and selflessness are other themes which is evident in the two novels. To begin with, the book of Shatterer of Worlds has narrated numerous situations where love, caring, and humility has been exercised. Back at Otake, where Emiko's family resided, her father strives hard to sell furniture so that his family can get the daily basic needs (Kildare, 2014). He ensures that his children schools in a good school at Hiroshima. Also, he ensures that Emiko and her sister are going to school by train as a way of avoiding other complications which might have found them on their way. On the other hand, To Kill a Mocking Bird has too described on several occasions where the aspect of love is exhibited among the individuals. Atticus, who is a lawyer and also a father of two, is portrayed from the novel as a person who loves and at the same time cares for other individuals (Lee, 2016). For instance, he remains steadfast in the court of law by defending a man who had African origin in the American courts; the gentleman had been alleged of raping a white girl. Atticus further states that false accusations against such an innocent man are unacceptable in the society. He insists that segregating others based on the color bar is a retrogressive act which should not be accepted in a modern setting.

Basing on the mood in these texts, the novel of Kilder Dobbs presents a somber situation. After being reported that 78, 150 people had succumbed to death while 13,083 were missing as a result of Hiroshima massacre in Japan, many people were sorrowful to the families who had been affected by the bad seen to ever happen in the country. Furthermore, citizens became tense especially at Ako where those who had had been wounded were being ferried by the train to different health sectors for medical attention. Similarly, the somber mood occurred in the artistic work of Harper Lee when Mr. Ellen frightens Atticus together with other men after claiming that he was humiliated at the courts. Mr. Ellen wanted the black man who was accused of rape to be detained, but Atticus managed to defend him as his lawyer.

The two books have used characters of different ages to pass the intended message to potential readers. For instance, in the book To Kill a Mocking Bird, has a girl known as Jean Louise as the main character. She is narrating of how her biological father taught her and her younger brother, Jem on how to stay firm against anyone who wanted to violate their right. Their father, Atticus, was a shrewd lawyer who also advocates for the rights of the weak in the society (Lee, 2016). Atticus showed his good characters in every place he visited. On the other hand, The Shatterer of Worlds also has a young girl called Emiko who was living with her family at Otake in Japan (Kildare, 2014). In the novel, there are other characters like Tetsuro, Emiko's brother, who is involved in the terror attacks conducted by the US Imperial Army in Japan.

However, the two novels have also shown contradicting instances throughout the process of their presentation. To Kill a Mocking Bird has a male who is also a professional in the field of law as the main character. Here, the man called Atticus is going through psychological torture on how to bring humanity among the people. He is torn between two dilemmas of whether to concentrate on his family or serve the citizens. On the other hand, The Shatterer of Worlds has an adolescent young school girl called Emiko as the main character. Although she is tongue tied with the state of confusion in Japan, she has no authority to put matters into a right way since she is too young to make concrete decisions. She can also not be hard in the community as people take her to be less influential on states concerns.

The two novels, The Shatterer of Worlds and To Kill a Mocking Bird are texts which are carrying moral lessons to the current society. There is the mockery of those people who are practicing moral injustice to other individuals. The two authors have used similar styles of writing to pass their message to readers. Indeed, it is evident that what has been outlined in these books is a true reflection of what most of the current people go through. The stylistic devices which are applied in the novels tend to resemble, though there are also other areas which carry different ideas.

References

Lee, H. (2016). Harper Lee- To kill a mocking bird. Interview by Roy Newquist. In Counterpoint, edited by Newquist, 403-12.

Kildare Dobbs (2014). The Shatterer of Worlds. Oxford university press,