The Spectator

             Oftentimes, the most accurate portrayal of society stems from examining the everyday occurances of people within that community. For Joseph Addison, England is no exception. Throughout his diary (fictional) in The Spectator, Addison is able to use detail, repetition, and tone to characterize clearly the diarist himself as well as the society that he lives in.
             Giving us an insight into six days of the diarist life, the seemingly insignificant detail provided characterizes the diarist and his society as a place without meaning. Throughout the span of time, we see the diarist tying his knee strings and washing his hands, dinning as usual with a good stomach, eating overcorned beef but sour small beer, walking in fields with a wind N.E. None of these details tells anything about the diarist or his world. It is as if he is isolated, captured in a bubble that cuts him off from reality. He cannot, and does not, affect anyone else's life at any point. By going in such detail on such mundane occurances, Addison succeeds in disgusting us with the character's life, replete of life itself. He is a walking dead in a walking world. This type of material, consumer driven, meaningless society is exactly what Addison is protesting against and satirizing.
             Certainly, Addison's use of repetition contributes to the idea of a meaningless, mundane life where humans become robots and the world never changes. Everyday the diarist makes a comment about his clothes or shoes, discusses his food for the day, recounts the wind direction, and goes to the club to hear Mr. Nisby talk. NOt only do the same events occur form day to day, but Addison deliberately uses phrases such as "Rose as usual" (line 20), "Nap as usual" (43), to emphasize the fact that nothing changes in this man's life, nor does he have any desire for things to change. His excitement is going to the club every night, usually from 6-10 o'clock, to listen to Mr. Nisby speak. Even he...

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The Spectator. (1969, December 31). In MegaEssays.com. Retrieved 13:07, March 28, 2024, from https://www.megaessays.com/viewpaper/85671.html