Monday, March 10, 2008
Aphra Behn- On Her Loving Two Equally
This poem kinda seemed like a mother talking about her two children. In the part when she says "When my Alexis present is, Then I for Damon sigh and mourn" I feel like she's saying that when just one of her children is around she just things about the other. Maybe thats not how all parents are but thats how it seems with my mom. When ever I'm home she seems to talk about my brother all the time and always be thinking of him. I've come to the conclusion that it's not because she loves him better but because when I'm with her she knows I'm safe and happy and he's not around so she wonders. I believe that this lady feels the same way because in the end she says "But which, O Cupid, wilt thou take? If Damon's, all my hopes are crossed; Or that of my Alexis, I am lost."
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
The Glass Castle
I'm reading the book The Glass Castle. This is probably one of the first books I've had to read in a class that I actually like and it's not like pulling teeth to get through it.
That makes me question what qualities need to be there to make a story or a book enjoyable? I used to think that it was being able to relate to the story but clearly thats not true with this story. I have never been in any situation even relatively close to the things that this women has gone through and I'm pretty sure that no one I know has gone through things like this.
So maybe what makes a story likeable is when it shows you something that you've never seen before. But thats can't be the case because every story we have read from the Norton has been slighty boring and hard to get through at times and they all presented things I've never dealt with.
This leaves me to believe that maybe it has nothing to do with what the bookis about and really about how the author writes the story. So then, is there ever really a good story, or just good authors?
That makes me question what qualities need to be there to make a story or a book enjoyable? I used to think that it was being able to relate to the story but clearly thats not true with this story. I have never been in any situation even relatively close to the things that this women has gone through and I'm pretty sure that no one I know has gone through things like this.
So maybe what makes a story likeable is when it shows you something that you've never seen before. But thats can't be the case because every story we have read from the Norton has been slighty boring and hard to get through at times and they all presented things I've never dealt with.
This leaves me to believe that maybe it has nothing to do with what the bookis about and really about how the author writes the story. So then, is there ever really a good story, or just good authors?
Monday, February 11, 2008
Wikipedia defines non-fiction as "an account or representation of a subject which is presented as fact. This presentation may be accurate or not; that is, it can give either a true or a false account of the subject in question. However, it is generally assumed that the authors of such accounts believe them to be truthful at the time of their composition."
This defination goes a little more in dept of what I thought non-fiction really was. I always just thought it was true. Like fiction is a made believe story, I thought that non-fiction was a re-telling of something that really had happened. Almost like a newspaper article or a biography only about an event instead of about a person.
This defination goes a little more in dept of what I thought non-fiction really was. I always just thought it was true. Like fiction is a made believe story, I thought that non-fiction was a re-telling of something that really had happened. Almost like a newspaper article or a biography only about an event instead of about a person.
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Flannery O'Connor
In "A Good Man is Hard to Find" one literary device O'Connor uses is irony. In "A Good Man is Hard to Find" the grandmother talks to everyone about "The Misfit" who is killing people. It's ironic that she just happened to think of this house and make her family search for it, only to get frightened that she had remembered the wrong state, kick open the basket that the cat was in, the cat would attack her son, he would freak out, the car would roll, and then "The Misfit" would be the first person to come upon them.
In "The Lame Shall Enter First", O'Connor always employs irony. In this story, Sheppard wants to take Johnson under his wing because he feels that no one recognizes his potential or treats him well. The irony is that Sheppard is often quoted as making rude remarks about his son being "not bright enough to be damaged much" (pg. 387 between 195 and 200) and that he is lazy and ungrateful. Obviously the son is not lazy, stupid or ungrateful because he spends his free time trying to make money by selling seeds. Also, Johnson is more of the rude one who purposely says and does things to upset Sheppard and Johnson. Another example of irony, or at least something to notice is that Sheppard lectures Norton on not being nice to other people and although Sheppard is willing to help all other needy people, he can't even be nice to his own son, be ignores him on night after the picture show because he doesn't want to lose Johnson's trust, instead he settles for crushing his son.
After reading both of these stories, my personal opinion is that they are semi interesting with all the twists and turns but there are too many pointless details you have to weed through to actually get to the interesting parts. If it were a T.V. show ... I would have changed to something else by the first or second commercial break.
In "The Lame Shall Enter First", O'Connor always employs irony. In this story, Sheppard wants to take Johnson under his wing because he feels that no one recognizes his potential or treats him well. The irony is that Sheppard is often quoted as making rude remarks about his son being "not bright enough to be damaged much" (pg. 387 between 195 and 200) and that he is lazy and ungrateful. Obviously the son is not lazy, stupid or ungrateful because he spends his free time trying to make money by selling seeds. Also, Johnson is more of the rude one who purposely says and does things to upset Sheppard and Johnson. Another example of irony, or at least something to notice is that Sheppard lectures Norton on not being nice to other people and although Sheppard is willing to help all other needy people, he can't even be nice to his own son, be ignores him on night after the picture show because he doesn't want to lose Johnson's trust, instead he settles for crushing his son.
After reading both of these stories, my personal opinion is that they are semi interesting with all the twists and turns but there are too many pointless details you have to weed through to actually get to the interesting parts. If it were a T.V. show ... I would have changed to something else by the first or second commercial break.
Monday, January 28, 2008
William Faulkner's A Rose for Emily
The people of this town describe Emily as some what of a hermit. It is said that before her father died he turned away a lot of the men that came to marry her and after her father died she didn't seem to want to leave the house.
A question that came to my mind after reading what the towns people have to say about Emily is, Does she avoid leaving her house because she's upset or because she is just sick and tired of having people whisper and stare at her when ever she's in public?
Does the people in this town mean well when they sneak onto her property and sprinkle lime so whatever stinks will stop stinking or are they just thinking of themselves and there wants?
That brings up a bigger question. When Emily died, did the people come to her home out of respect or simply because they were curious and wanted to see whats hardly any have seen before?
I guess you could ask that about all people. Does anyone does anythings solely out of good nature? Or is there always an ulterior motive? Even the nicest people who would do just about anything for people have an ulterior motive. It may be to create good karma or to look good in the eyes of God. Regardless if the motive is good or bad, most people do things because it will some how work out to benefit them in the end.
A question that came to my mind after reading what the towns people have to say about Emily is, Does she avoid leaving her house because she's upset or because she is just sick and tired of having people whisper and stare at her when ever she's in public?
Does the people in this town mean well when they sneak onto her property and sprinkle lime so whatever stinks will stop stinking or are they just thinking of themselves and there wants?
That brings up a bigger question. When Emily died, did the people come to her home out of respect or simply because they were curious and wanted to see whats hardly any have seen before?
I guess you could ask that about all people. Does anyone does anythings solely out of good nature? Or is there always an ulterior motive? Even the nicest people who would do just about anything for people have an ulterior motive. It may be to create good karma or to look good in the eyes of God. Regardless if the motive is good or bad, most people do things because it will some how work out to benefit them in the end.
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
Angela Carter's A Souvenir of Japan
The beginning of this story made me think about how many memories I have in my past that relate to fireworks. For some reason fireworks have always been magical to me, even at this age. As a child my family used to spend the 4th of July up in Alpena and I remember sitting in some random parking lot watching the fireworks, going through all of the oohhs and ahhhs. At that age I'm not sure what was more fun for me, watching the sky light up or just being out in the late summer night. In this sense I can some what relate to the wife in this story when her husband gets bored and wants to go back to the city instead of watch the rest of the fireworks. My parents always wanted to pack up during the big grand final, they said it was so we could beat the traffic, but I can imagine that they were some what bored. I always wanted to stay until every last spark had died and the smoke was drifting away.
The summer before I started middle school we went down to Cincinnati for the 4th of July to visit my aunt, uncle, and cousins. The fireworks off the barges compared to the fireworks in Jackson is like comparing a candle to a forest fire. It was simply amazing. That whole night doesn't come to my mind very often but when it does, I remember it as the last time all 8 of us were together, happy and healthy. No girlfriends or boyfriends. No worries about ACT scores or that paper we should be writing.
In middle school and the early years of high school, the fireworks always meant doing down the the park and meeting up with all the other kids from the other schools. There were always fights and people drinking and tons of drama. Although my parents hated it when I went down there for the fireworks, I went every year, every time there were fireworks. Even then it seemed like there was some mysterious magic in the air and if you caught it just at the right time or place, all your dreams could come true. During those years, the thing I wanted the most was to have some special boy watch the fireworks with me like you see in romantic movies. Things never seemed to work out just right for me.
I can still remember the last time all of my high school friends were together in the same place, just us, no college friends, no awkward moments like we seem to run into some times now when we get back together. We were all sitting on the curb, just looking up at the sky, almost like we did when we were younger. No one said anything during the whole show. I think deep down we all knew this was our last great moment together.
Although I know that this story isn't about the fireworks, the beginning of this story struck a cord with me and it was nice to take a trip down memory lane. Who doesn't like to take that stroll every once in a while.
The summer before I started middle school we went down to Cincinnati for the 4th of July to visit my aunt, uncle, and cousins. The fireworks off the barges compared to the fireworks in Jackson is like comparing a candle to a forest fire. It was simply amazing. That whole night doesn't come to my mind very often but when it does, I remember it as the last time all 8 of us were together, happy and healthy. No girlfriends or boyfriends. No worries about ACT scores or that paper we should be writing.
In middle school and the early years of high school, the fireworks always meant doing down the the park and meeting up with all the other kids from the other schools. There were always fights and people drinking and tons of drama. Although my parents hated it when I went down there for the fireworks, I went every year, every time there were fireworks. Even then it seemed like there was some mysterious magic in the air and if you caught it just at the right time or place, all your dreams could come true. During those years, the thing I wanted the most was to have some special boy watch the fireworks with me like you see in romantic movies. Things never seemed to work out just right for me.
I can still remember the last time all of my high school friends were together in the same place, just us, no college friends, no awkward moments like we seem to run into some times now when we get back together. We were all sitting on the curb, just looking up at the sky, almost like we did when we were younger. No one said anything during the whole show. I think deep down we all knew this was our last great moment together.
Although I know that this story isn't about the fireworks, the beginning of this story struck a cord with me and it was nice to take a trip down memory lane. Who doesn't like to take that stroll every once in a while.
Wednesday, January 16, 2008
How To Pick The Wrong Guys
Find a guy with that mysterious charm. He may be interested but distant. Assume that's just because he doesn't want to get to serious to fast. Find that cute because you think he feels that way because he might have been hurt before and wouldn't want to hurt someone back
Giggle and find it charming when he calls us cute names like "Baby" or "Pumpkin". Don't listen to the little voice in the back of your head that says he might call you these things because he has so many girls in his life that he doesn't want to call you by the wrong name.
When he doesn't answer your calls for a week-end straight or doesn't come around for a while, just assume that it's because he's really busy in his life or work, not that he's cheating on you or with another girl.
When your friends say that they don't like him because he seems sneaky and like a liar, know that they are just jealous not that they really can see what you don't.
Finally, if you've been dating him for 5 months and you still haven't met his family or friends, believe him when he says that it's because he doesn't want to share you with other people. It couldn't be that he's just using you.
Giggle and find it charming when he calls us cute names like "Baby" or "Pumpkin". Don't listen to the little voice in the back of your head that says he might call you these things because he has so many girls in his life that he doesn't want to call you by the wrong name.
When he doesn't answer your calls for a week-end straight or doesn't come around for a while, just assume that it's because he's really busy in his life or work, not that he's cheating on you or with another girl.
When your friends say that they don't like him because he seems sneaky and like a liar, know that they are just jealous not that they really can see what you don't.
Finally, if you've been dating him for 5 months and you still haven't met his family or friends, believe him when he says that it's because he doesn't want to share you with other people. It couldn't be that he's just using you.
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