You Have Until April 16th To Produce An MLA Format Research

You Have Untilapril 16thto Produce An MLA Format Research Paper Of App

You have until April 16th to produce an MLA format research paper of approximately 1,500 words (minimum 1,000 words), including a Works Cited and an attached bibliography showing research performed on Barry U. subscription databases. The paper must be based on a comparative analysis of two or more complementary film and literary texts, including at least one studied this semester, such as Psycho, The Picture of Dorian Gray, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, or The Merchant of Venice. The essay should demonstrate an awareness of recent critical commentary and include references to at least two secondary sources retrieved via Barry University library subscription databases. The paper should present an original argument on one of five topics: the use of masks in villain figures; villain as devouring/self-swallowed; the culture-specificity of the trickster archetype; the complicating role of the doppelgänger; or villains as destroyers of nature or as nature’s revenge. Search results printouts must be included with the submission. The paper is worth 20% of the course grade.

Paper For Above instruction

In examining the symbolic and thematic significance of villainy and archetypes in literature and film, the use of masks emerges as a compelling motif that encapsulates notions of identity, deception, and moral ambiguity. This paper adopts a comparative analytical approach, focusing on two seminal texts—Robert Louis Stevenson’s The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho. Both texts vividly illustrate how masks—literal or figurative—serve to conceal darker aspects of human nature, aligning with the first topic: “The Mask” and its association with villain figures.

The concept of the mask as a symbol of duality and concealment is historically rooted in theatrical traditions and has been transmogrified into a broader metaphor for the human psyche. Andrew Stott’s article “Clowns on the Verge of a Nervous Breakdown” highlights the evolution of the clown’s mask from mere face paint to a boundary that signifies the division between character and performer. Extending this idea, in Hyde and Psycho, the mask becomes a literal device—Hyde’s disfigured visage and Norman Bates’ mother’s disguise—that allow these characters to embody their villainous selves hidden beneath societal facades.

In Stevenson’s Jekyll and Hyde, Dr. Jekyll’s potion transforms him into Hyde, an embodiment of unrestrained primal urges. The literal mask—Hyde’s grotesque appearance—serves as a barrier that both reveals and conceals his true nature. As noted by Freud in “The Theme of the Three Caskets,” this transformation underscores the dichotomy of human morality, where the mask exposes the suppressed subconscious. Similarly, Hitchcock’s Psycho features Norman Bates’ mother’s disguise—an enforced mask—that symbolizes the villain’s fractured identity and the darker impulses hidden within the protagonist’s psyche.

The use of masks in villain archetypes is not merely superficial but integral to the narrative of moral duality. Grimaldi’s makeup, as Stott discusses, “implied a much stricter division between character and performer,” which parallels how villains’ masks function as a boundary—allowing the individual to perform or hide the true self. In the case of Hyde, the physical transformation signifies the complete suppression of societal decorum, unleashing chaos and violence. In Psycho, Norman Bates’ “Mother” mask signifies the social façade that disguises underlying psychosis, illustrating the dangerous potential of such concealment.

Both texts exemplify how the mask symbolizes the villain’s detachment from societal norms and the internal struggle between civilization and primal urges. Hitchcock’s film emphasizes the psychological opacity—Bates’ transformation into “Mother” becomes a literal and metaphorical mask, revealing how villainy often resides within the conflicted mind. Stevenson’s novel demonstrates how the concealment device can be both a literal mask and a metaphor for the duality of human nature, as Jekyll attempts to isolate and suppress his darker side.

Critical commentary supports this interpretation. For example, Hynes and Doty’s introduction to Mythical Trickster Figures emphasizes that masks often signify ambiguity and social boundary transgressions—traits that villains embody. Similarly, the idea that the mask allows the wearer to “deceive and trick” aligns with the deceptive nature of villains who hide their true motives behind façades. Thus, these texts substantiate the argument that masks are typical of villain figures as they symbolize concealment, duality, and moral ambiguity.

In conclusion, the comparative analysis of Jekyll and Hyde and Psycho demonstrates that masks—whether literal or figurative—are emblematic of villainy’s complex nature. They facilitate the concealment of immoral desires, enabling characters to enact their darker impulses while maintaining social façades. These masks serve as powerful symbols for the dialectic of identity and deception central to understanding villain archetypes in literature and film.

References

• Freud, Sigmund. “The Theme of the Three Caskets.” The Standard Edition of the Complete Psychological Works of Sigmund Freud, vol. 12, Hogarth Press, 1958, pp. 60-66.
• Hynes, William J., and William G. Doty, editors. Mythical Trickster Figures: Contours, Contexts and Criticisms. University of Alabama Press, 1993.
• Reynolds, Simon. Rip It Up and Start Again: Postpunk. Penguin, 2006.
• Shapiro, James. Shakespeare and the Jews. Columbia University Press, 1996.
• Stevenson, Robert Louis. The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Norton, 2006.
• Moore, Alan, and Brian Bolland. Batman: The Killing Joke. DC Comics, 1988.
• Radin, Paul. The Trickster. 1955.
• Reynolds, Simon. Rip It Up and Start Again: Postpunk. Penguin, 2006.
• Hynes, William J., and William G. Doty (Eds.). Mythical Trickster Figures: Contours, Contexts and Criticisms. University of Alabama Press, 1993.
• “Cotton Candy Autopsy: Deconstructing Psycho-Killer Clowns.” The Pyrotechnic Insanitarium: American Culture on the Brink. NY: Grove Press, 1999.