I spent most of this weekend deciding where to go in my Lit X. Having met with you, I knew that I needed to redeine the direction I was going or I would definatly recieve a grade lower than an F by some act of god. Originally I had planned to use my 2nd Lit X book, Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie but after looking at the comments you had made, I knew it might not work (at least for the part of the paper I was working on). Sensing that I probably should just start over, I sat down and wrote an offical outline.
Topic --> The noticeable changes in female authors from contemporary to non-contemporary authors. (Emphasis on British women)
Sub Categories
- Character development
- Writing techniques/literary criticism
- Sense of social focus/voice
-Interpretation of different sexes
Though this is clearly only a rough outline of the places I plan to focus, I found that by sitting down and understanding what I needed to accomplish I feel my mind is more understanding of my goal. I went back to my paper and scratched the entire first page. I rewrote my thesis and cut out any mention of comparison of man and woman as authors (I can't even begin to think about that as a topic!). Then I realized that part of what I had said about my first Lit X book was valid and supported my character development topic. Then I decided to take your advice and write about the female experience and why that might shape an authors ability to create certain types of characters. Remembering that my 2nd book didn't fit character development as the most defining thing about it, I went back to an article I had been given by my grandmother when I explained to her my Lit X paper. The article was written in 1956 by Mark Schorer and it was the introduction to my grandmother's copy of Pride and Prejudice. The article made wonderful points about Jane Austen's ablate to create characters of her own thoughts rather than fitting of the time in history. So I added an entire part about comparing Austen and Gregory, so I think I've narrowed my paper down to the difference in character development from women of different eras relative to the female experience. Narrow enough? I hope so!
I'll be posting my Lit X once I finish all the little details, I'm still working on some paragraphs.
Monday, December 17, 2007
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Female Archetypes (focus on Ursula)
Today in class we were asked to respond to a question of why we thought the chapters 3 and 4 were of importance and why the author did what he did in that portion of the book. I decided to write about Jose and how in these chapter we see the disintegration of his sanity and his over obsessiveness with the new things the gypsies bring. Jose's fascination with the new discoveries eventually drive him to become detached from the real world and thus I thought this section focused on his change from reality to insanity. I then found myself going on a tangent in my response about his wife, Ursula. Some of my classmates had touched on their opinions of Ursula in class as the evil temptress and then as somewhat of an accessory to Jose's madness, but I found her "archetype" to be very different in my mind. If you focus on just these two chapter of the book, Ursula doesn't do anything that would suggest she is in anyway evil or aiding Jose's path to self-desrtucion. Ursula is, of course, a strong woman with a personality and progatives of her own but her interests do not necessarily have malicious intent towards anyone (specifically not Jose). This section of the book focuses not on her, rather her husband but there was one part of the book I recall specifically that proves (at least to me) that Ursula is not an evil temptress. On page 86, it talks about how Ursula unties Jose's wrists and ankles and then helps others to build him a shelter to protect him, which in my mind shows a great deal of compassion on her part (I have heard from some people though that by untying him and leaving him just tied at the waist is more painful, however I would disagree). Thus, I can take "evil temptress" off the list of archetypes which brings me to the other two which are "good mother" and "soul mate". While Ursula is a devoted mother and a good one at that, I would probably characterize her more as the "soul mate". Why you ask? She doesn't have a divine husband and thus isn't in a divine couple? While true, I think (being a feminist!) that she creates her own sense of fulfillment without her husband, knowing that he is on the road to madness. Ursula fits this archetype because she does have that spiritual connection and she knows what she wants. For example, when she ventures out to find her son without telling anyone, she does it out of her own will and her own sense of want. She knew she could not be happy without knowing where her son had gone and thus she knew to fulfill herself she needed to find him. This demonstrates both sense of self and determination, which is why I think she's a "soul mate" archetype. Feel free to disagree!
Monday, November 26, 2007
Solitude
Solitude is many things. Its a ski lodge in Salt Lake City Utah. Its a private airline company. its even a osh clothing line. None of those things truely define solitude though, yet they do show how important solitude is to the world. In my own definition I would say that Solitude is the act of being alone with one's thoughts and feelings but it can also mean a group of people who together are separate and by themselves. When I "googled" the word solitude I found a bunch of interesting links, but the one I decded to go to was "Physchology Today" with an article that compared loliness with solitude. Loliness the article states is a sense of isolation that is unwanted by the individual while solitude is the state of being alone without feeling down about about it. Solitude, the artcile argues, may even lead to self awareness and a love of life. Its an interesting concept for me, because I always thought of the two words in similar, almost synonimic terms.
The word solitude relates to the book in the sense that the town Maconda is existing in solitude, with the only visitors bring gysies. In 6 generations, the town still remains relitively the same size, with less expansion that one would expect over the course of a hundred years. I also think the book title coensides with the idea of solitude bringing about self-awareness. As the characters age, they become more aware of life and the role they play within the world. Though I'm not done with the book yet (sorry i'm a horrible student, but i promise i'm almost done!), I think knowing more what solitude is, which is a positive sense of alone, I think I'll pay more attention to that as I finish.
(I didn't spell check this, i will though!)
The word solitude relates to the book in the sense that the town Maconda is existing in solitude, with the only visitors bring gysies. In 6 generations, the town still remains relitively the same size, with less expansion that one would expect over the course of a hundred years. I also think the book title coensides with the idea of solitude bringing about self-awareness. As the characters age, they become more aware of life and the role they play within the world. Though I'm not done with the book yet (sorry i'm a horrible student, but i promise i'm almost done!), I think knowing more what solitude is, which is a positive sense of alone, I think I'll pay more attention to that as I finish.
(I didn't spell check this, i will though!)
Thursday, November 8, 2007
Author Exploration
When we began reading Calvino's first chapter of his latest book I have to admit I was delighted to hear something new. The idea of an author talking to his audience made the book feel personal and relatable. Yet as the chapter countied with Calvino's speech about choosing the proper book, naming the categories of books I would not read and carrying on, I liked the author less and less. I had the opposite effect when reading Storytown. Originally, I thought the plot was random and nothing was being told so I had to assume it for myself, which wasn't the style of reading I'm most accustom to. As Storytown continued I found that I looked at the importance of each sentence and what it was showing to me so that I could figure out what wasn't being told. Though this process was actually more interesting than I had initially thought it would be. Unlike Calvino, Daitch was making me interact with the characters rather than telling me how I should.
After our class discussion on Storytown, I learned a few things that I need to pay attention to that I haven't in the past. First of all, when I was reading the story I on own I didn't catch on to the fact that Alice described her co-workers by their characters, rather than by given name. Phil brought up this point in class, and made me realize that each of the characters in the story were similar to their given characters at Storytown. The intertexuality of the character Alice and the story of Alice in Wonderland showed me the similarities between Alice in Storytown and the book Alice in Wonderland. Both characters are bored with their world, so they escape through a fantasy or in Alice of Storytown's case, through her job. Both girls also go with the flow and allow themselves to be sweep away proving their neither is very self-motivated. My favorite line of this story was on pg. 191 when they describe the author by saying "coincidences mattered to him, as if there might be no other reasonable motive for giving someone a job". This quote lead me to believe that Alice and her co-workers may be seen by the outside world as the same as their given characters. All in all, I think that just my in depth thought and preoccupation with this idea proves how Daitch made me as a reader become invested in her plot. For this reason, I think layers of the story like hiding meaning, interesting characters, and underlying morals make a story meaningful, which is why an author should give extra attention to those principles to attract a reader.
After our class discussion on Storytown, I learned a few things that I need to pay attention to that I haven't in the past. First of all, when I was reading the story I on own I didn't catch on to the fact that Alice described her co-workers by their characters, rather than by given name. Phil brought up this point in class, and made me realize that each of the characters in the story were similar to their given characters at Storytown. The intertexuality of the character Alice and the story of Alice in Wonderland showed me the similarities between Alice in Storytown and the book Alice in Wonderland. Both characters are bored with their world, so they escape through a fantasy or in Alice of Storytown's case, through her job. Both girls also go with the flow and allow themselves to be sweep away proving their neither is very self-motivated. My favorite line of this story was on pg. 191 when they describe the author by saying "coincidences mattered to him, as if there might be no other reasonable motive for giving someone a job". This quote lead me to believe that Alice and her co-workers may be seen by the outside world as the same as their given characters. All in all, I think that just my in depth thought and preoccupation with this idea proves how Daitch made me as a reader become invested in her plot. For this reason, I think layers of the story like hiding meaning, interesting characters, and underlying morals make a story meaningful, which is why an author should give extra attention to those principles to attract a reader.
Thursday, November 1, 2007
I'd give our Julia Roberts an Oscar
Before Starting my Lit X
Despite their sometimes silly requests to quite down or to move tables, I hold a special place in my heart for the Staples Librarians. Since I finished my first Lit X book, I knew I needed to drag myself to the library to pick out another book to start. I thought about cheating the system a bit and picking out Frankenstein since it fits my theme of British female authors....and I maybe could have gotten away with it, but I couldn't do it. I've done enough research to name five or six authors I want to read for my topic, yet I knew I would come up with more names that might work better. Shocking AP confession...I thought Mary Wollstonecraft and Mary Shelley were different people. Oops, please forgive me Mary Shelley Wollstonecraft! Luckily, my lost soul was saved by Mrs. Roberts when she pointed me to an author database that searches by country and then narrows into gender. I struck gold with a complete list of notable British female authors. In less than one free period, I was able to make my official list of authors I wanted to read to my Lit X.
The Official Lit X Author List
Contemporary
JK Rowlings
Philippa Gregory
Agatha Christie
Elizabeth Bowen (short stories)
Non-Contemporary
Mary Shelley Wollstonecraft
Jane Austen
Jane Ward Lead (religious books)
Mary Russell Mitford (poetry and short-stories)
I think a mixture of famous novelists and less known authors that specialize in short stories and poetry will make for a solid mix of work from British female authors. Now my challenge becomes narrowing the focus of my Lit X paper. My guiding questions so far a pretty wide...they are "How do men and women differ through writing? Are men more violent than women? Are women more apt to write about love, loss and family? Can men write realistic female characters, can women write realistic male characters? Are female characters more matronly than male characters? Are male characters depicted as having as much emotion as female characters?". The best way to go about narrowing this down would be to write and see where my thoughts take me.
After Writing my Lit X
I decided to take my own advice, so I just sat and wrote from my notes I made in class and my notes made in the book I read. After three and a half pages, I think I made a valid point, but I realize I took too long to get there. Re-reading it, I noted that I tend to sway towards plot summery to justify my point since my book (The Virgin's Lover by Philippa Gregory) isn't necessarily a well known title. My goal for my next draft is to narrow my plot summery to be more concise, but for the most part I think my conclusion, that contemporary authors unknowingly use contemporary thoughts within their characters thoughts, is true, at least of Philippa Gregory. We'll have to wait and see how the next draft goes! :)
Despite their sometimes silly requests to quite down or to move tables, I hold a special place in my heart for the Staples Librarians. Since I finished my first Lit X book, I knew I needed to drag myself to the library to pick out another book to start. I thought about cheating the system a bit and picking out Frankenstein since it fits my theme of British female authors....and I maybe could have gotten away with it, but I couldn't do it. I've done enough research to name five or six authors I want to read for my topic, yet I knew I would come up with more names that might work better. Shocking AP confession...I thought Mary Wollstonecraft and Mary Shelley were different people. Oops, please forgive me Mary Shelley Wollstonecraft! Luckily, my lost soul was saved by Mrs. Roberts when she pointed me to an author database that searches by country and then narrows into gender. I struck gold with a complete list of notable British female authors. In less than one free period, I was able to make my official list of authors I wanted to read to my Lit X.
The Official Lit X Author List
Contemporary
JK Rowlings
Philippa Gregory
Agatha Christie
Elizabeth Bowen (short stories)
Non-Contemporary
Mary Shelley Wollstonecraft
Jane Austen
Jane Ward Lead (religious books)
Mary Russell Mitford (poetry and short-stories)
I think a mixture of famous novelists and less known authors that specialize in short stories and poetry will make for a solid mix of work from British female authors. Now my challenge becomes narrowing the focus of my Lit X paper. My guiding questions so far a pretty wide...they are "How do men and women differ through writing? Are men more violent than women? Are women more apt to write about love, loss and family? Can men write realistic female characters, can women write realistic male characters? Are female characters more matronly than male characters? Are male characters depicted as having as much emotion as female characters?". The best way to go about narrowing this down would be to write and see where my thoughts take me.
After Writing my Lit X
I decided to take my own advice, so I just sat and wrote from my notes I made in class and my notes made in the book I read. After three and a half pages, I think I made a valid point, but I realize I took too long to get there. Re-reading it, I noted that I tend to sway towards plot summery to justify my point since my book (The Virgin's Lover by Philippa Gregory) isn't necessarily a well known title. My goal for my next draft is to narrow my plot summery to be more concise, but for the most part I think my conclusion, that contemporary authors unknowingly use contemporary thoughts within their characters thoughts, is true, at least of Philippa Gregory. We'll have to wait and see how the next draft goes! :)
Revising my in-class disaster...i mean essay?
Although when writing my in-class essay I thought my paper was focused and thoughtful, while re-reading it I noticed some key areas where I don't make a lot of sense and where my ideas aren't explained adequately. I know that while writing a paper I sometimes forget to explain parts because I think them through in my own mind and the idea feels so first nature that I find it impossible to think others might not understand my direction. Basically, I think something in my head and I can't type as fast as i think so I forget key elements of my analysis so that my paper makes a point, but not a point that is well backed up. After reading through your comments I saw specific instances where I am very vague and elaboration needs to take place in order for it to say something. For example, in one instance of my paper I rationalize that Briony turns Robbie in for the rape because she wants to protect her sister. What I forgot to include was that Briony was given a note to give to Cecilia by Robbie that had graphic and adult content. A lack of adult thoughts or an understanding of hte inappropriateness of the letter contributed to Briony's development of the idea that Robbie was a danger to Cecilia. To amend this in my paper, I know I cannot simply plot summarize, though I usually would, instead I need to figure out a way to say all of that either using a quote or shortening it. Also, can I even make that assumption? We spoke as a class about how Briony clearly does not like Robbie, but for a multitude of reasons. There is the scene she views out by the pond, there is Robbie's status as their maid's son, the letter, Cecilia's focus on him during that night, and simply Briony's dislike for almost every real person besides family members. Because Briony is always making up stories in her head, she can mold the characters and make them do whatever she pleases, but real people don't allow for that. She cannot control Robbie or his actions, but somehow she finds a way to do so, by accusing him of rape. (I think I'm going somewhere with this....) The sheer accusation of rape is one that is not taken lightly. Rape conotates violence, fear, control, vengeance, dirtiness and a plethora of other unwanted aspects of life. By making Robbie a rapist, Briony makes him a real live version of the villain she makes him in her mind. Ah-ha! Though I know my paper needs a hundred other little changes, I think I've begun to work through the main changes in terms of content. My old thesis was...
Ultimately, Briony’s lie about Lola’s rape defines her as a jealous little girl looking for reprisal follows her for the rest of her life as she tries to free herself of the power she has gained as a child.
And while I still hold this to be true because I would never write something I didn't believe, I've changed my thesis a tad bit to make it more focused and specific to the meaning of the book as a whole.
Ultimately, Briony’s lie about Lola’s rape defines her as a jealous little girl looking for a way to control real people the way she does with her fictional characters in her writing. Her control over Robbie by painting him as a rapist is a mistake that follows her for the rest of her life as she tries to free herself from the power she has gained as a child.
Now, that I've fixed my thesis to make it less vague, I'll begin with the body paragraphs. I'll get back to you on that...
Ultimately, Briony’s lie about Lola’s rape defines her as a jealous little girl looking for reprisal follows her for the rest of her life as she tries to free herself of the power she has gained as a child.
And while I still hold this to be true because I would never write something I didn't believe, I've changed my thesis a tad bit to make it more focused and specific to the meaning of the book as a whole.
Ultimately, Briony’s lie about Lola’s rape defines her as a jealous little girl looking for a way to control real people the way she does with her fictional characters in her writing. Her control over Robbie by painting him as a rapist is a mistake that follows her for the rest of her life as she tries to free herself from the power she has gained as a child.
Now, that I've fixed my thesis to make it less vague, I'll begin with the body paragraphs. I'll get back to you on that...
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
The Madness Begins...Lit X
And so it starts...the adventure of writing a Lit X paper. I must admit that I've heard some contridicting opinions about this assignment from students past, yet I think the concept of devleoping my own thesis based on books I've read is an intriguing one. With my first draft due on Friday, I've decided to do this in steps begining with my intorduction.
My Invented Steps (Part 1)
1.) What proof do I have that this hasn't been answered before? What question am I exploring? Oh and umm What exactly is my topic anyway?
I wanted to do my paper on female authors exploring how they are different and alike than their male counterparts. To begin with I'll just do a free write to get my ideas flowing (essentially just bullet points)
-women haven't had roles outside the home for very long
-men given more schooling in past centuries
-European/Western focus for my paper (I don't know enough about Eastern cultures or Native American cultures to generalize that way I am above)
-Why don't women have counterparts to the famous males of different time periods?
-Do men write differently than women? Why?
-Do wome nwrite differently than men? Why?
2.) What books have I read in the past that support my topic?
I have so many favorite female authors, I'm not sure where to begin! Alice Sebold, JK Rowling, Phillipa Gregory, Judy Blume, Ann Patchett, Iris Johansen, Sylvia Plathe, Virginia Wolfe...etc. I could use any of their books, but I think it would be best to use "iconis" authors, like household names. JK Rowlings is known by large masses of the world, Virginia Wolfe has written many famous novels and Jane Austen just had a movie made about her life.
3.) What book did I just read that supports this thesis?
I just read "The Virgin's Lover" by Phillipa Gregory, and although not a critically acclaimed book I found it be be very interseting. In terms of my topic, it looks heavily into the development of a male character by a female which I find to be something I could definatly explore further.
4.) What do I need to limit? How do I limit?
I think I'm going to focus on British female authors, because I can look to past and present and compare the two time periods and how the female author role has changed in that time.
5.) Rough draft of my indroduction.
If men and women are created equal, then shouldn’t there be a female counterpart for every famous man, one with equal talents and brilliance to offer the world? History should house a female Shakespeare and a lady Locke, shouldn’t it? Although history books mention a few women here and there, the sad fact of our world is that women were not given equal chance to develop intellectually and share their ideas until just a few centuries ago. For this reason, the list of infamous male authors and storytellers quadruples the short list of notable female writers. In the United States, the SAT’s were recently revised to allow females a chance to score higher based on the widely agreed upon theory that women are better at writing than men. We know why there are fewer women in the history of literature than men, but a more intriguing question for the world is how do men and women differ through writing? Are men more violent than women? Are women more apt to write about love, loss and family? Can men write realistic female characters, can women write realistic male characters?
My Invented Steps (Part 1)
1.) What proof do I have that this hasn't been answered before? What question am I exploring? Oh and umm What exactly is my topic anyway?
I wanted to do my paper on female authors exploring how they are different and alike than their male counterparts. To begin with I'll just do a free write to get my ideas flowing (essentially just bullet points)
-women haven't had roles outside the home for very long
-men given more schooling in past centuries
-European/Western focus for my paper (I don't know enough about Eastern cultures or Native American cultures to generalize that way I am above)
-Why don't women have counterparts to the famous males of different time periods?
-Do men write differently than women? Why?
-Do wome nwrite differently than men? Why?
2.) What books have I read in the past that support my topic?
I have so many favorite female authors, I'm not sure where to begin! Alice Sebold, JK Rowling, Phillipa Gregory, Judy Blume, Ann Patchett, Iris Johansen, Sylvia Plathe, Virginia Wolfe...etc. I could use any of their books, but I think it would be best to use "iconis" authors, like household names. JK Rowlings is known by large masses of the world, Virginia Wolfe has written many famous novels and Jane Austen just had a movie made about her life.
3.) What book did I just read that supports this thesis?
I just read "The Virgin's Lover" by Phillipa Gregory, and although not a critically acclaimed book I found it be be very interseting. In terms of my topic, it looks heavily into the development of a male character by a female which I find to be something I could definatly explore further.
4.) What do I need to limit? How do I limit?
I think I'm going to focus on British female authors, because I can look to past and present and compare the two time periods and how the female author role has changed in that time.
5.) Rough draft of my indroduction.
If men and women are created equal, then shouldn’t there be a female counterpart for every famous man, one with equal talents and brilliance to offer the world? History should house a female Shakespeare and a lady Locke, shouldn’t it? Although history books mention a few women here and there, the sad fact of our world is that women were not given equal chance to develop intellectually and share their ideas until just a few centuries ago. For this reason, the list of infamous male authors and storytellers quadruples the short list of notable female writers. In the United States, the SAT’s were recently revised to allow females a chance to score higher based on the widely agreed upon theory that women are better at writing than men. We know why there are fewer women in the history of literature than men, but a more intriguing question for the world is how do men and women differ through writing? Are men more violent than women? Are women more apt to write about love, loss and family? Can men write realistic female characters, can women write realistic male characters?
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
Response to Part II Question
Examine the following quote: "But what was guilt these days? It was cheap. Everyone was guilty, and no one was." What is the significance of this quote in the context of Part II? For the book as a whole?
One of the main themes in this book is the question of what makes a person guilty and how does each character define guilt. In our group discussions we talked a lot about how different people deal with situations that should feel guilty in and how sometimes people do not. For example, taking money from a parent's wallet is an action I would consider stealing while others might consider it borrowing or their right as a child. Conclusively, I have discovered that guilt is a very shaky bridge that can fall in many directions depending upon the eye of the beholder. In relation to the book, Briony does not seem to feel any guilt initially for having lied about the rape, but as she ages and sees the effects of her lies, Briony begins to understand the complexity of her lie. One tiny lie told as a child ruined a man's reputation, ruined her sister's family relationship, and arguably lead to the wedding of Lola and her true rapist. Though the guilt took a long time to manifest itself, it affected Briony even into her old age. In the final pages of the book, one opf the quotes that spoke to me the most was when Briony says, "It occurs to me that I have not traveled so far after all, since I wrote my little play" (349). Though the Trials of Arabella seems lifetimes away, that summer was the most crucial time for Briony and her one small lie turned into a lifetime of guilt and regret. I think the significance of the quote above is that it symbolizes the underlying theme of the entire book. Particularly in Part II, guilt within Briony is built up even more than before and she does weird things like having a delusional "make-up" with Robbie and Cecelia. Her lack of responsibility, even as a young woman, contributes to the theme that guilt left unchecked will eat a person alive and they will feel that void of forgiveness forever. Ultimately, I think the underlying presence of guilt within Briony throughout the book comes center stage in part two and teaches the reader that guilt is like a cancer, it can be maintained for a while, but it will eventually spread uncontrollably and there's nothing to be done about it.
One of the main themes in this book is the question of what makes a person guilty and how does each character define guilt. In our group discussions we talked a lot about how different people deal with situations that should feel guilty in and how sometimes people do not. For example, taking money from a parent's wallet is an action I would consider stealing while others might consider it borrowing or their right as a child. Conclusively, I have discovered that guilt is a very shaky bridge that can fall in many directions depending upon the eye of the beholder. In relation to the book, Briony does not seem to feel any guilt initially for having lied about the rape, but as she ages and sees the effects of her lies, Briony begins to understand the complexity of her lie. One tiny lie told as a child ruined a man's reputation, ruined her sister's family relationship, and arguably lead to the wedding of Lola and her true rapist. Though the guilt took a long time to manifest itself, it affected Briony even into her old age. In the final pages of the book, one opf the quotes that spoke to me the most was when Briony says, "It occurs to me that I have not traveled so far after all, since I wrote my little play" (349). Though the Trials of Arabella seems lifetimes away, that summer was the most crucial time for Briony and her one small lie turned into a lifetime of guilt and regret. I think the significance of the quote above is that it symbolizes the underlying theme of the entire book. Particularly in Part II, guilt within Briony is built up even more than before and she does weird things like having a delusional "make-up" with Robbie and Cecelia. Her lack of responsibility, even as a young woman, contributes to the theme that guilt left unchecked will eat a person alive and they will feel that void of forgiveness forever. Ultimately, I think the underlying presence of guilt within Briony throughout the book comes center stage in part two and teaches the reader that guilt is like a cancer, it can be maintained for a while, but it will eventually spread uncontrollably and there's nothing to be done about it.
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Writing about Writing (October 17th, 2007)
What are the major content/critical thinking/writing issues that you were confronted with on this draft?
How well do you understand the content/substance of what you are writing about?
What was your plan or strategy that you used to address these issues for this draft? Was this plan similar to the plans you have used in the past? How did you go from blank page to finished copy? How, and why, did you know those steps would work?
What are your strengths and weaknesses as a writer and thinker? Are you a strong thinker but no so good at the follow-through? Are you best at the big picture or the details? Are you a last-minute writer or do you plan things out and stick to the plan? Do you start relatively early in the time frame given for completing a writing task, or relatively late? Do you go through several early drafts, or do you simply work on your text once and then turn it in?
How well do you understand the written and verbal comments that were provided to you? What do these comments tell you about yourself as a writer and thinker?
What advice did you solicit for this draft? What was/were the source(s) of this advice? What advice were you given on this draft?
What advice did you accept? Reject? Why?
Describe the major changes that you made on this draft. Provide a rationale for why you made these changes.
How has the revision process allowed you to see content, in general, in a more sophisticated way.
How has the writing and thinking that you have been asked to do in the past prepared you for the kinds of writing and thinking that you were asked to do for this assignment?
While I've never been assigned an 'exploritory' essay in any other class by specific definition I have done lots of creative pieces where I come to a conclusion while working through my thoughts in the paper. In my first draft of this paper, I did more of an annilitical paper with a majority of the writing being plot summary and then explaining the relevence of that part of the novel. My 2nd draft was not much better; i pretty much just decided to put in new quotes, correct sentence structure, but the content did not chane drastically. For my 3rd draft (the one I'm turning in today) I went back to the first draft and decided to eleborate on parts both you and peers in my writing group found confusing. By doing this, I think the changes are more meaningful than my 2nd draft and the plot proves something until the end when I make my point. Thus, I think that my expereience with creative writing in my sophomore year where I made my "moral" at the end of the story helped me to write this essay where I put my thesis at the end of the paper, rather than the beginning.
What are your goals for your next piece? Where do those goals come from?
My goal for my next piece is to condence the paper. Rewriting the paper over several nights this week I would spend about an hour on each paragraph, reworking the order, adding sentences, correcting, deleting, and so on. The result is a 4 and a half paper paper, which I think explains my point very well, but my goal is to get to my point in a more conceise, fast way.
What are your over-arching goals for yourself as a writer? Why are these your goals?
My goal as a writer this year is to understand each style of paper in a way that makes me get the paper right the first time. By this I mean that I want to understand the assignment and be able to give a great draft on my first draft, instead of having to work until my 3rd to get a product I'm sincerely proud of. This is a goal of mine because if I'm able to produce a wonderful first draft that follows the assignment then my final draft ought to be extremely thoughtful.
What do you think your main goals should be as writer and thinker, given what you have experienced so far in AP English?
I think my main goal should be exaiming the text in a meaningful, thought-provoking way that makes me analyze a novel or portion of a novel in a way that I would not have if I had just read it. I feel that in class discussions bring out new points and thoughts that I never had considered on my own before and thus by pushing myself to do further examinations on my own will help me to be a deeper thinker and a better writer.
What is your criteria for quality work?
My criteria for quality work is very ambugious because I think every paper has its own expectations and its individual goals that I need to acheive as a writer. For this paper, I wanted every part of my paper to support the thesis I got to in the end and thus the criteria for any sentence I wrote was for me to ask the question, "how is this relevent?" and "do I need this?"
What was the most important thing you learned while working on this piece?
The most important thing I learned while writing this paper was that I need to focus less on what happens in the book and how it relates to my thesis and more on how my thesis relates to the book. By this I mean, instead of looking for parts in the book that are true to my thesis, I tried in this draft to instead look into my thesis and brainstorm instances in the book where the thesis is true. By doing this I found that my orginial thesis was not always true, so I twiched it to make it more relevent to the story. Essentially, I learned that the thesis needs to be crafted before I look for text that supports it, which in the past I have done.
How well do you understand the content/substance of what you are writing about?
What was your plan or strategy that you used to address these issues for this draft? Was this plan similar to the plans you have used in the past? How did you go from blank page to finished copy? How, and why, did you know those steps would work?
What are your strengths and weaknesses as a writer and thinker? Are you a strong thinker but no so good at the follow-through? Are you best at the big picture or the details? Are you a last-minute writer or do you plan things out and stick to the plan? Do you start relatively early in the time frame given for completing a writing task, or relatively late? Do you go through several early drafts, or do you simply work on your text once and then turn it in?
How well do you understand the written and verbal comments that were provided to you? What do these comments tell you about yourself as a writer and thinker?
What advice did you solicit for this draft? What was/were the source(s) of this advice? What advice were you given on this draft?
What advice did you accept? Reject? Why?
Describe the major changes that you made on this draft. Provide a rationale for why you made these changes.
How has the revision process allowed you to see content, in general, in a more sophisticated way.
How has the writing and thinking that you have been asked to do in the past prepared you for the kinds of writing and thinking that you were asked to do for this assignment?
While I've never been assigned an 'exploritory' essay in any other class by specific definition I have done lots of creative pieces where I come to a conclusion while working through my thoughts in the paper. In my first draft of this paper, I did more of an annilitical paper with a majority of the writing being plot summary and then explaining the relevence of that part of the novel. My 2nd draft was not much better; i pretty much just decided to put in new quotes, correct sentence structure, but the content did not chane drastically. For my 3rd draft (the one I'm turning in today) I went back to the first draft and decided to eleborate on parts both you and peers in my writing group found confusing. By doing this, I think the changes are more meaningful than my 2nd draft and the plot proves something until the end when I make my point. Thus, I think that my expereience with creative writing in my sophomore year where I made my "moral" at the end of the story helped me to write this essay where I put my thesis at the end of the paper, rather than the beginning.
What are your goals for your next piece? Where do those goals come from?
My goal for my next piece is to condence the paper. Rewriting the paper over several nights this week I would spend about an hour on each paragraph, reworking the order, adding sentences, correcting, deleting, and so on. The result is a 4 and a half paper paper, which I think explains my point very well, but my goal is to get to my point in a more conceise, fast way.
What are your over-arching goals for yourself as a writer? Why are these your goals?
My goal as a writer this year is to understand each style of paper in a way that makes me get the paper right the first time. By this I mean that I want to understand the assignment and be able to give a great draft on my first draft, instead of having to work until my 3rd to get a product I'm sincerely proud of. This is a goal of mine because if I'm able to produce a wonderful first draft that follows the assignment then my final draft ought to be extremely thoughtful.
What do you think your main goals should be as writer and thinker, given what you have experienced so far in AP English?
I think my main goal should be exaiming the text in a meaningful, thought-provoking way that makes me analyze a novel or portion of a novel in a way that I would not have if I had just read it. I feel that in class discussions bring out new points and thoughts that I never had considered on my own before and thus by pushing myself to do further examinations on my own will help me to be a deeper thinker and a better writer.
What is your criteria for quality work?
My criteria for quality work is very ambugious because I think every paper has its own expectations and its individual goals that I need to acheive as a writer. For this paper, I wanted every part of my paper to support the thesis I got to in the end and thus the criteria for any sentence I wrote was for me to ask the question, "how is this relevent?" and "do I need this?"
What was the most important thing you learned while working on this piece?
The most important thing I learned while writing this paper was that I need to focus less on what happens in the book and how it relates to my thesis and more on how my thesis relates to the book. By this I mean, instead of looking for parts in the book that are true to my thesis, I tried in this draft to instead look into my thesis and brainstorm instances in the book where the thesis is true. By doing this I found that my orginial thesis was not always true, so I twiched it to make it more relevent to the story. Essentially, I learned that the thesis needs to be crafted before I look for text that supports it, which in the past I have done.
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Response to pages 34-37, Homework Oct. 9th
Today in class we covered pages 34 through 37 in teh text which focus on Briony's thoughts about her play and her sister's bizarre encounter with Robbie Turner. During class, I noticed that most people were focusing on the wording of what was bring said and the specific lines, while I thought of it in a broader sense. Briony talks about two things most prevelently in this section...a. not understanding other people's needs and desires within her play...and b. viewing a scene from a bird's eye view in which she can interprete the actions in any way she sees fit.
A. In the first few paragraghs, the feeling that stuck out most in my mind was Briony's inability to focus and understand other people's needs. While I don't think Briony is willingly selfish, I think she's been allowed to grow up in an enviroment where she's only needed to access her own needs. Being the youngest by a huge gap, Briony isn't used to working with children her own age, such as her cousins, and thus she's inpatient with them during play practice. As a character I cannot assume certain things, such as Briony being selfish due to the way I think she was raised, but I do think her actions prove a self-centered little girl who is unaware of the individuals around her. Her thoughts may be grown up and her stories may prove brillance for a child her age, but the way she interacts with other people makes Briony seems somewhat immature.
B. As Briony watches the scene between Cecelia and Robbie from above, she gets the unique oppurtunity to make her own assumptions about the situation since she isn't able to hear the dialogue. Instead of allowing her to access the situation rationally, Briony just uses it to fuel her hate for Robbie by making the entire scene seem to revolve around something he did, when in actuality she knows nothigna of the sort. I think that during this short part of the book, readers learn that Briony's imagination isn't as creative as we might have previously thought, but rather she uses it as a tool of manipulation to make situations ideal in her mind.
A. In the first few paragraghs, the feeling that stuck out most in my mind was Briony's inability to focus and understand other people's needs. While I don't think Briony is willingly selfish, I think she's been allowed to grow up in an enviroment where she's only needed to access her own needs. Being the youngest by a huge gap, Briony isn't used to working with children her own age, such as her cousins, and thus she's inpatient with them during play practice. As a character I cannot assume certain things, such as Briony being selfish due to the way I think she was raised, but I do think her actions prove a self-centered little girl who is unaware of the individuals around her. Her thoughts may be grown up and her stories may prove brillance for a child her age, but the way she interacts with other people makes Briony seems somewhat immature.
B. As Briony watches the scene between Cecelia and Robbie from above, she gets the unique oppurtunity to make her own assumptions about the situation since she isn't able to hear the dialogue. Instead of allowing her to access the situation rationally, Briony just uses it to fuel her hate for Robbie by making the entire scene seem to revolve around something he did, when in actuality she knows nothigna of the sort. I think that during this short part of the book, readers learn that Briony's imagination isn't as creative as we might have previously thought, but rather she uses it as a tool of manipulation to make situations ideal in her mind.
Friday, October 5, 2007
Examination of Briony Homework 10/5
Is Briony credible? Could she actually be a living, breathing human being? How does McEwan make the character seem so real?
McEwan creates Briony to be a very realistic person in the sense that her actions and emotions embody many of the errors of the human way. Some of the most basic human flaws are seen in Briony, the biggest bring jealously. Her jealousy of Robbie and Cee's budding relationship turns into her own vengeful hunt to find something to accuse Robbie of, which she finds to be the rape. By developing these thoughts in a young adolescent, McEwan allows Briony to become reliable and therefore more a living, breathing human being. His ability to give Briony realistic thoughts and irrational actions, makes her seem more like a flawed human. As humans, we all do things that are unexplainable to others and Briony's actions are just that, therefore she is easily seen as more like a real person.
What, then, is McEwan’s opinion of Briony?
I didn't find that McEwan offered his opinion of Brinoy very much, but rather he explained her in a light that showed readers what he was thinking about her. Briony's actions are self-serving and careless, thus making her appear in a negative light. I think that McEwan makes Briony a selfish little girl who grows into an unsure young woman with a lack of focus towards her dreams. Thus, the end result is that McEwan doesn't literally say his opinion of Briony but the way her portrays her is in a neutral, yet leaning towards the more negative side. Although McEwan doesn't give his opinion of Briony it seems as though he is saying he doesn't agree or condone her actions.
What is your reaction to Briony? Are you sensitive to her and to her situation? Do you feel empathy toward her? Does she deserve what she “gets” in the story, or is her fate undeserved?
My reaction towards Briony varied based on the different parts of the story, but in general I was disappointed by her lack of initiative to fix things in the end. At first, I related to Briony's situation of feeling unimportant because its a cycle every young child goes through as they are growing older. Yet as she grew up I didn't understand her lack of accountability and felt regret for her family. Her actions towards Robbie and Cecelia are not justified by her feelings of jealously and unimportance as a child and they situation was worsened by her lack of remorse.
Does Briony say anything to you personally? How do you relate/respond to her? Why do you respond the way that you do?
Briony's thoughts don't intrigue me particularly, but I think there is meaning in her actions. The fact that she waited until several years after the rape incident, time in which the rape defined Cecelia's and Robbie's life, to apologize and set the record straight says a lot about waiting. A theme I gathered from this book was that an apology can loose its effectiveness and meaning if the issue is life ruining, like accusing someone of rape. The way I can respond what I've found most interesting is that I now know that time is of the essence and that childish mistakes need to be rectified. I think I respond this way because in the entirety of the book, an entire lifetime of Briony is examined and the end result is almost tragic. Brinoy may have made it to live a long life, but at a very young age she lost the family unity and all the blame of that situation lay on her lying shoulders.
McEwan creates Briony to be a very realistic person in the sense that her actions and emotions embody many of the errors of the human way. Some of the most basic human flaws are seen in Briony, the biggest bring jealously. Her jealousy of Robbie and Cee's budding relationship turns into her own vengeful hunt to find something to accuse Robbie of, which she finds to be the rape. By developing these thoughts in a young adolescent, McEwan allows Briony to become reliable and therefore more a living, breathing human being. His ability to give Briony realistic thoughts and irrational actions, makes her seem more like a flawed human. As humans, we all do things that are unexplainable to others and Briony's actions are just that, therefore she is easily seen as more like a real person.
What, then, is McEwan’s opinion of Briony?
I didn't find that McEwan offered his opinion of Brinoy very much, but rather he explained her in a light that showed readers what he was thinking about her. Briony's actions are self-serving and careless, thus making her appear in a negative light. I think that McEwan makes Briony a selfish little girl who grows into an unsure young woman with a lack of focus towards her dreams. Thus, the end result is that McEwan doesn't literally say his opinion of Briony but the way her portrays her is in a neutral, yet leaning towards the more negative side. Although McEwan doesn't give his opinion of Briony it seems as though he is saying he doesn't agree or condone her actions.
What is your reaction to Briony? Are you sensitive to her and to her situation? Do you feel empathy toward her? Does she deserve what she “gets” in the story, or is her fate undeserved?
My reaction towards Briony varied based on the different parts of the story, but in general I was disappointed by her lack of initiative to fix things in the end. At first, I related to Briony's situation of feeling unimportant because its a cycle every young child goes through as they are growing older. Yet as she grew up I didn't understand her lack of accountability and felt regret for her family. Her actions towards Robbie and Cecelia are not justified by her feelings of jealously and unimportance as a child and they situation was worsened by her lack of remorse.
Does Briony say anything to you personally? How do you relate/respond to her? Why do you respond the way that you do?
Briony's thoughts don't intrigue me particularly, but I think there is meaning in her actions. The fact that she waited until several years after the rape incident, time in which the rape defined Cecelia's and Robbie's life, to apologize and set the record straight says a lot about waiting. A theme I gathered from this book was that an apology can loose its effectiveness and meaning if the issue is life ruining, like accusing someone of rape. The way I can respond what I've found most interesting is that I now know that time is of the essence and that childish mistakes need to be rectified. I think I respond this way because in the entirety of the book, an entire lifetime of Briony is examined and the end result is almost tragic. Brinoy may have made it to live a long life, but at a very young age she lost the family unity and all the blame of that situation lay on her lying shoulders.
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
Atonement Part 1 Prep 10/3
Definitions of "Realism": teh tendancy to see things are they really appear and are.
Definitions of "Intertextuality": the whole network of relations, conventions, and expectations by which the text is defined; the relationship between texts
Definition of "Prolepsis": the assigning of a person, event, etc., to a period earlier than the actual one; the representation of something in the future as if it already existed or had occurred
(Definitions were taking from www.dictionary.com)
What are Briony's limitations?
-what defines Briony
As a little girl Briony is defined as a unique child who is often times "in her head" meaning she thinks and analyzes situations more than the average child. This is seen most prevelantly when she writes her stories, which have very adult thoughts despite being authored by a child. She is essentially, a wise soul. (Until of course, she lies about Robbie, yet even at that age I think she knew the implications of her crime.)
-how Briony defines and uses her imagination
Her imagination is used both in her writing and how she precieves people. As a little girl, she keeps her thoughts about people to herself yet she seems to assume things about people that aren't real. She imagines Robbie to be attacking Cee in the library, when in actuallity, at her age I think she would understand they were having sex. Witnessing Robbie and Cee justified to others what Briony wanted to think about Robbie because she wanted to confirm that he was a danger to Cee.
-how prolepsis affects her
Above when I spoke of how Briony wanted to think of Robbie as a danger, she had it in her mind that he was so she had assigned him that role ahead of time. She saw Robbie as a threat even before he "attacked" (i don't think Cee would call it that) Cee.
-her view of the vase scene
She was looking out a window while she saw that and to her it was all very confusing. At first the thought of seeing her sister take off her blouse and skirt might have been thought to be a sexual act when really she was just going swimming. Also, since Briony only saw the silent version of what was going on, she didn't hear the dialouge which would have clarified the situation. Due to the fact, that her view of it was from above, in silence, she was able to make her own assumptions, most of which were wrong.
-her reaction to Robbie's note
Briony was simply asked to take the note to her sister, the wrong note at that, but instead of delivering it, she read it. The situation was about as bad as it could have been. A little girl was reading a (i'll call it...) "questionable" note that was never suppose to be sent in the first place, and her child's mind didn't process the meaning of it all. Her reaction was actually more adult than I would expect, as most children would have ran to their parents straight away with a note like that. Briony didn't do that childish expectation, proving she has a cunning side, which leads me to believe she knew Robbie didn't rape Lola all along.
Intertextuality
-What purpose does the novel's epigraph, a quotation from Jane Austen's Northanger Abbey serve?
Upon finishing the book, I went back to the epigraph because I never understoof its purpose until I was done with the novel. I think that Jane Austen's quote serves the basic idea for which "Atonement" lays on. After rereading the quote the last new words echoed most to me, "...and with tears of shame she ran off to her own room" and it made me think back to the night of Lola's rape. I pictured Briony running to her room with tears, not for her cousin, but for the lie she knew she told. Also, when Austen talks about suspicions that people entertain I think McEwan is forshadowing how the Tallis' later precieve the entire rape scene.
-What is the difference between intertextuality and a source?
The difference ist hat intertextuality is a small connection between two texts that make them able to relate to each other, while a source is just used to help define a thought within another text.
-Arabella is the name of Clarissa's sister in Clarissa by British author Samuel Richardson. Why might this be important?
I've never read the book Clarissa, but if I were to take a guess, I would think that maybe the books have similar themes or that perhaps McEwan is a fan of Samuel Richardson. I couldn't find a plot summery for Clarissa to get a general idea of what its about, but my best thought is that the themes about lying, the truth, love vs. war, and acceptance are themes of both books.
Definitions of "Intertextuality": the whole network of relations, conventions, and expectations by which the text is defined; the relationship between texts
Definition of "Prolepsis": the assigning of a person, event, etc., to a period earlier than the actual one; the representation of something in the future as if it already existed or had occurred
(Definitions were taking from www.dictionary.com)
What are Briony's limitations?
-what defines Briony
As a little girl Briony is defined as a unique child who is often times "in her head" meaning she thinks and analyzes situations more than the average child. This is seen most prevelantly when she writes her stories, which have very adult thoughts despite being authored by a child. She is essentially, a wise soul. (Until of course, she lies about Robbie, yet even at that age I think she knew the implications of her crime.)
-how Briony defines and uses her imagination
Her imagination is used both in her writing and how she precieves people. As a little girl, she keeps her thoughts about people to herself yet she seems to assume things about people that aren't real. She imagines Robbie to be attacking Cee in the library, when in actuallity, at her age I think she would understand they were having sex. Witnessing Robbie and Cee justified to others what Briony wanted to think about Robbie because she wanted to confirm that he was a danger to Cee.
-how prolepsis affects her
Above when I spoke of how Briony wanted to think of Robbie as a danger, she had it in her mind that he was so she had assigned him that role ahead of time. She saw Robbie as a threat even before he "attacked" (i don't think Cee would call it that) Cee.
-her view of the vase scene
She was looking out a window while she saw that and to her it was all very confusing. At first the thought of seeing her sister take off her blouse and skirt might have been thought to be a sexual act when really she was just going swimming. Also, since Briony only saw the silent version of what was going on, she didn't hear the dialouge which would have clarified the situation. Due to the fact, that her view of it was from above, in silence, she was able to make her own assumptions, most of which were wrong.
-her reaction to Robbie's note
Briony was simply asked to take the note to her sister, the wrong note at that, but instead of delivering it, she read it. The situation was about as bad as it could have been. A little girl was reading a (i'll call it...) "questionable" note that was never suppose to be sent in the first place, and her child's mind didn't process the meaning of it all. Her reaction was actually more adult than I would expect, as most children would have ran to their parents straight away with a note like that. Briony didn't do that childish expectation, proving she has a cunning side, which leads me to believe she knew Robbie didn't rape Lola all along.
Intertextuality
-What purpose does the novel's epigraph, a quotation from Jane Austen's Northanger Abbey serve?
Upon finishing the book, I went back to the epigraph because I never understoof its purpose until I was done with the novel. I think that Jane Austen's quote serves the basic idea for which "Atonement" lays on. After rereading the quote the last new words echoed most to me, "...and with tears of shame she ran off to her own room" and it made me think back to the night of Lola's rape. I pictured Briony running to her room with tears, not for her cousin, but for the lie she knew she told. Also, when Austen talks about suspicions that people entertain I think McEwan is forshadowing how the Tallis' later precieve the entire rape scene.
-What is the difference between intertextuality and a source?
The difference ist hat intertextuality is a small connection between two texts that make them able to relate to each other, while a source is just used to help define a thought within another text.
-Arabella is the name of Clarissa's sister in Clarissa by British author Samuel Richardson. Why might this be important?
I've never read the book Clarissa, but if I were to take a guess, I would think that maybe the books have similar themes or that perhaps McEwan is a fan of Samuel Richardson. I couldn't find a plot summery for Clarissa to get a general idea of what its about, but my best thought is that the themes about lying, the truth, love vs. war, and acceptance are themes of both books.
Thursday, September 20, 2007
What has the Compson family lost?
The Compson family as a whole has lost everything that they once were. They've lost their reputation, their ability to function as a family unit, and their love for one another. In the physical sense, Quentin is gone forever becaues of his death, yet Caddy can also be thought of as "lost" because she's a character who has no indication of coming back. Emotionally, Jason has lost the control he longs to hold on to and Benjy has lost the comfort of farmiliarity that kept him sane.
What is the source of the tension in Dilsey's section?
I think that Dilsey's section is unique above the others because she seems to have very little bias towards any of the characters. She never gives her opinion of each person or tells the reader anything about her own personal judgement. Instead, she uses description to show the reader what is going on in a situation, but keeps enough distance of her own thoughts to make the source of tension minimal.
What is Faulkner asking us to consider here?
Faulkner is asking us to consider the roles of each of the characters in comparison to the others. Quentin is seen
The Compson family as a whole has lost everything that they once were. They've lost their reputation, their ability to function as a family unit, and their love for one another. In the physical sense, Quentin is gone forever becaues of his death, yet Caddy can also be thought of as "lost" because she's a character who has no indication of coming back. Emotionally, Jason has lost the control he longs to hold on to and Benjy has lost the comfort of farmiliarity that kept him sane.
What is the source of the tension in Dilsey's section?
I think that Dilsey's section is unique above the others because she seems to have very little bias towards any of the characters. She never gives her opinion of each person or tells the reader anything about her own personal judgement. Instead, she uses description to show the reader what is going on in a situation, but keeps enough distance of her own thoughts to make the source of tension minimal.
What is Faulkner asking us to consider here?
Faulkner is asking us to consider the roles of each of the characters in comparison to the others. Quentin is seen
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
How does Quentin's relationship compare with Benjy's?
Quentin and Benjy are both tragic characters who have flaws that are very apparent to the outside world but invisible to the characters. Other than that sad realization, they are quite different. Benjy has issues understanding the world because he was born with a disability that keeps him from being normal, while Quentin is just an emotional wreck but has the mental compasity to understand time. Thus, when Quentin becomes fixated on time and certin events, its by choice not because he has no other thought process like Benjy.
What is the source of tension between Quentin and "time"?
Quentin's tension with time is that he hates time because with every passing moment something happens that complicates him life even further. He hates the idea of change, especially when it comes to his sister's innocence, which is why he lies and fixates on specific things. Quentin hates that time moves him forward into issues and problems he can't always fix and moments when people don't feel bad for him, so he feels tension with it.
What conclusion can you now draw?
Time has lots of meaning through this book, but the part that I think is most intriguing is that one of hte themes of this book its the Compson's decline or the fact that they are slowly falling apart. Time, to the family, represents the slow movement of their decline and that's a painful process to watch. Like a cancer patient who takes many grueling years to die with failing treatments, the Compsons's feel the pain of their mistakes for a long period of time which is maybe why each kid has such issues with time. I personally thing Quentin lost the will to fight time and that's why he ultimately killed himself.
Why does Quentin kill himself?
As I said before, I think he lost his fight against time and he lost the will to try anymore. Although a bright young man, the pain in his life was too much for him to handle and too great for time to heal. After all, time is a wonderful healing tool but there are some things, like heartbreak (over Caddy's innocence for Quentin), that remains an open wound until the gap can be filled. In Quentin's case, the void was never filled and to him, nothing could lessen the pain of living with it, so he choose to end it.
What do we "learn" about family from Benjy and Quentin?
We learn that the kids of the Compson family are ultimately never changed from the people and events that occurred during their upbringing. Maybe in that sense, Faulkner is making a suggestion about the world in which childhood is a defining factor that shapes the character of people as adults. Then again, childhood is not something people can always control. Benjy and Quentin didn't ask to have an alcoholic father or ill mother, they were just dealt the wrong cards in life and its troubling to think that they were predestined to be who they were due to their parents. So, I guess I haven't made up my mind on this yet.
Quentin and Benjy are both tragic characters who have flaws that are very apparent to the outside world but invisible to the characters. Other than that sad realization, they are quite different. Benjy has issues understanding the world because he was born with a disability that keeps him from being normal, while Quentin is just an emotional wreck but has the mental compasity to understand time. Thus, when Quentin becomes fixated on time and certin events, its by choice not because he has no other thought process like Benjy.
What is the source of tension between Quentin and "time"?
Quentin's tension with time is that he hates time because with every passing moment something happens that complicates him life even further. He hates the idea of change, especially when it comes to his sister's innocence, which is why he lies and fixates on specific things. Quentin hates that time moves him forward into issues and problems he can't always fix and moments when people don't feel bad for him, so he feels tension with it.
What conclusion can you now draw?
Time has lots of meaning through this book, but the part that I think is most intriguing is that one of hte themes of this book its the Compson's decline or the fact that they are slowly falling apart. Time, to the family, represents the slow movement of their decline and that's a painful process to watch. Like a cancer patient who takes many grueling years to die with failing treatments, the Compsons's feel the pain of their mistakes for a long period of time which is maybe why each kid has such issues with time. I personally thing Quentin lost the will to fight time and that's why he ultimately killed himself.
Why does Quentin kill himself?
As I said before, I think he lost his fight against time and he lost the will to try anymore. Although a bright young man, the pain in his life was too much for him to handle and too great for time to heal. After all, time is a wonderful healing tool but there are some things, like heartbreak (over Caddy's innocence for Quentin), that remains an open wound until the gap can be filled. In Quentin's case, the void was never filled and to him, nothing could lessen the pain of living with it, so he choose to end it.
What do we "learn" about family from Benjy and Quentin?
We learn that the kids of the Compson family are ultimately never changed from the people and events that occurred during their upbringing. Maybe in that sense, Faulkner is making a suggestion about the world in which childhood is a defining factor that shapes the character of people as adults. Then again, childhood is not something people can always control. Benjy and Quentin didn't ask to have an alcoholic father or ill mother, they were just dealt the wrong cards in life and its troubling to think that they were predestined to be who they were due to their parents. So, I guess I haven't made up my mind on this yet.
Monday, September 10, 2007
Benjy's Hypertext (Homework Sept. 10th, 2007)
Assignment- Read through the hypertext version of Benjy's narrative.
Through reading the hypertext of Benjy's thoughts, I was surprised about a few things. I thought the story would read ten times easier, but it didn't seem to make the original version make more sense to me. Again, this all goes back to Benjy's unconventional use of time compared to how I'm used to reading novels. This got me to thinking again about how Benjy felt about time and I remembered a comment Phil Seo said in class about how Benjy remembered major emotional events like his father and Quentin dying. After re-reading the section, I thought of Benjy in a different light. Before, I assumed because of his disability he just remembered random events that had a meaning to him, but perhaps the events he recalls are due to the intense emotion he felt about them. Time and emotion have a strong bond, in my opinion. This bond I think is explained well from a Bible verse from Ecclesiastes. (below)
There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a time for every event under heaven — A time to give birth, and a time to die; A time to plant, and a time to uproot what is planted. A time to kill, and a time to heal; A time to tear down, and a time to build up. A time to weep, and a time to laugh; A time to mourn, and a time to dance. A time to throw stones, and a time to gather stones; A time to embrace, and a time to shun embracing. A time to search, and a time to give up as lost; A time to keep, and a time to throw away. A time to tear apart, and a time to sew together; A time to be silent, and a time to speak. A time to love, and a time to hate; A time for war, and a time for peace.
King Solomon, The Bible, Ecclesiastes 3:1-8
Like this quote, Benjy relates his thoughts to times that had strong centimental value to him rather than just excitement as I had thought before. I guess I was being very close-minded before about Benjy and I wasn't giving him enough credit for his thought process, thinking it was just about random connections of instances that has similarities instead of events of emotional importance to him.
In terms of the hypertext, I think i prefer the original text because it makes Benjy's character come alive more.
Through reading the hypertext of Benjy's thoughts, I was surprised about a few things. I thought the story would read ten times easier, but it didn't seem to make the original version make more sense to me. Again, this all goes back to Benjy's unconventional use of time compared to how I'm used to reading novels. This got me to thinking again about how Benjy felt about time and I remembered a comment Phil Seo said in class about how Benjy remembered major emotional events like his father and Quentin dying. After re-reading the section, I thought of Benjy in a different light. Before, I assumed because of his disability he just remembered random events that had a meaning to him, but perhaps the events he recalls are due to the intense emotion he felt about them. Time and emotion have a strong bond, in my opinion. This bond I think is explained well from a Bible verse from Ecclesiastes. (below)
There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a time for every event under heaven — A time to give birth, and a time to die; A time to plant, and a time to uproot what is planted. A time to kill, and a time to heal; A time to tear down, and a time to build up. A time to weep, and a time to laugh; A time to mourn, and a time to dance. A time to throw stones, and a time to gather stones; A time to embrace, and a time to shun embracing. A time to search, and a time to give up as lost; A time to keep, and a time to throw away. A time to tear apart, and a time to sew together; A time to be silent, and a time to speak. A time to love, and a time to hate; A time for war, and a time for peace.
King Solomon, The Bible, Ecclesiastes 3:1-8
Like this quote, Benjy relates his thoughts to times that had strong centimental value to him rather than just excitement as I had thought before. I guess I was being very close-minded before about Benjy and I wasn't giving him enough credit for his thought process, thinking it was just about random connections of instances that has similarities instead of events of emotional importance to him.
In terms of the hypertext, I think i prefer the original text because it makes Benjy's character come alive more.
Sunday, September 9, 2007
The Sound and the Fury: Benjy (Homework Sept. 10th)
What is the source of tension in Benjy's section?
As I reread this section, i noticed that most of the tension I found as a reader was Benjy's inability to absorb and concentrate on keeping his thoughts chronological. His perception of time is mixed up to a point that its very confusing for the reader to follow what's going on. Another key source of tension for Benjy on a character level is what is his importance to the story if he is considered nothing but an "idoit". I found as I contiuned to read the book that Benjy was essentail to the story because his level of honesty about each of the characters gave an inside look into each of them that they themselves could not do. Benjy becomes the not bias narrator of the story in the beginning, which helps greatly as the plot thickens.
What is Benjy's relationship to time and events?
Benjy doesn't have a relationship to time and events like ordinary people do. For Benjy, time isn't a measure that has a specific right order, rather time is relitive to him. Benjy's thought process is unique in the sense that he thinks about one thing and then instead of thinking about what happens next, he connects his present thought to another moment in time that connects to the present thought regardless of whether its chronological or not. For the reader, this makes things complex but in teh grand scheme of things, I think its a sign that Benjy isn't as dumb as he's thought to be by others. Not to go on a huge random tangent..BUT when they atopsied Albert Einstien they found that he had more connecting neurons in his brain than the average person by a multiple of ten. Einstien didn't do so well in school, but he proved to be brillant with his contribituoins to the world. It was said that the way he learned was by connecting his current studies to something he already knew so that he would remember it more clearly. For example, if he was studying the the capitals as a child he wouldn't have meomorized that Hartford is the capital of Connecticut. Instead he might say Hartford sounds like Harvard College which is in Massachusetts which is next Connecticut, thus Hartford is the capital of Connecticut. Just has Benjy makes random connections to recall events, Einstein used to as well. While this all might seem weird to connect, perhaps benjy's connections that seem out of place, are really just his genius way of thinking. In that sense, maybe Benjy's relationship to time and events doesn't have to be like others, because like many other strangely unique people (Albert Einstein) it works for him!
How does Faulkner utilize: metonymy, antonomasia, metaphor, mimesis, and metaphysics in this section?
Faulkner uses these literary terms in many ways through-out the Benjy's section and in my opinion they help make Benjy's thoughts more clear. Though at times Benjy's train of thought seems to rabble or go off course, his senses are very prominat in his description of things. The part of his section that struck me the most was when Benjy would say "Caddie smelled like trees" of "Caddie smelled like leaves". At first I thought that was just a way of saying how she smelled...but as I came to realize later, it was in fact a way to describe Caddies promisous actions. This metaphor was reoccuring over the section and it developed Benjy's character as showing he knew what was going on though he didn't fully understand the implications of Caddie's actions.
As I reread this section, i noticed that most of the tension I found as a reader was Benjy's inability to absorb and concentrate on keeping his thoughts chronological. His perception of time is mixed up to a point that its very confusing for the reader to follow what's going on. Another key source of tension for Benjy on a character level is what is his importance to the story if he is considered nothing but an "idoit". I found as I contiuned to read the book that Benjy was essentail to the story because his level of honesty about each of the characters gave an inside look into each of them that they themselves could not do. Benjy becomes the not bias narrator of the story in the beginning, which helps greatly as the plot thickens.
What is Benjy's relationship to time and events?
Benjy doesn't have a relationship to time and events like ordinary people do. For Benjy, time isn't a measure that has a specific right order, rather time is relitive to him. Benjy's thought process is unique in the sense that he thinks about one thing and then instead of thinking about what happens next, he connects his present thought to another moment in time that connects to the present thought regardless of whether its chronological or not. For the reader, this makes things complex but in teh grand scheme of things, I think its a sign that Benjy isn't as dumb as he's thought to be by others. Not to go on a huge random tangent..BUT when they atopsied Albert Einstien they found that he had more connecting neurons in his brain than the average person by a multiple of ten. Einstien didn't do so well in school, but he proved to be brillant with his contribituoins to the world. It was said that the way he learned was by connecting his current studies to something he already knew so that he would remember it more clearly. For example, if he was studying the the capitals as a child he wouldn't have meomorized that Hartford is the capital of Connecticut. Instead he might say Hartford sounds like Harvard College which is in Massachusetts which is next Connecticut, thus Hartford is the capital of Connecticut. Just has Benjy makes random connections to recall events, Einstein used to as well. While this all might seem weird to connect, perhaps benjy's connections that seem out of place, are really just his genius way of thinking. In that sense, maybe Benjy's relationship to time and events doesn't have to be like others, because like many other strangely unique people (Albert Einstein) it works for him!
How does Faulkner utilize: metonymy, antonomasia, metaphor, mimesis, and metaphysics in this section?
Faulkner uses these literary terms in many ways through-out the Benjy's section and in my opinion they help make Benjy's thoughts more clear. Though at times Benjy's train of thought seems to rabble or go off course, his senses are very prominat in his description of things. The part of his section that struck me the most was when Benjy would say "Caddie smelled like trees" of "Caddie smelled like leaves". At first I thought that was just a way of saying how she smelled...but as I came to realize later, it was in fact a way to describe Caddies promisous actions. This metaphor was reoccuring over the section and it developed Benjy's character as showing he knew what was going on though he didn't fully understand the implications of Caddie's actions.
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
Sept. 4th 2007 "Families"
Question- What you are doing in this post is honing your ideas and thinking about "families". What does one of these statements/or all of them make you think/wonder? This is a free write let yourself wander, but also ground these wanderings in specific ideas. Remember - try and answer for yourself - WHY do you think/believe what you do?
Today in our group we decided not to look at one of the quote specifically but all of them to form different ideas about what we thought was the meaning of family. Ari, Clay, and Becca (my group) discussed how we've all been brought up in typical homes, where our parents are married and we have siblings and pets to fill our house with company. This brought us to the beginning of our pondering. After discussing our own families, we truened to family structures of famous people, sociaital villians to be specific. Hitler, we knew, was brought up in a broken home where his father was much older than his mother and abused his wife and child due to a problem with alcoholism. Voldemort, from Harry Potter, was also the product of a broken home where violence plagued his early childhood. Both real and fictional villians that we discussed had the common thread of being from families that weren't functional or loving. To this point, I think that families have shown in the past and continue to show the beginning of a healthy child. Having loving parent/parents, in my opinon, is a key factor to the success of each individual. The reason i believe this is true is because I've seen, more often than not, that people in real life and novel characters are better people if they have the influence of a good, loving family.
At the end of your post, skip a line and ask a question. For example "blah, blah, blah... What is the relationship between carrying on our family's legacy to finding my own way through life"?
I think this question could be answered a number of ways depending on the time period and the place an individual lives. Carrying on a families legacy means everything to some cultures and very little to others, so the basis for this answer is variable. In my opinon, I think its more important to find you're own way through life than to carry on the family legacy. Family legacy does have its upside, like a safe job and future, but more unfourntatly, it can lack passion and drive. My father works as a brand evaluationist doing work I can't begin to comprehend and my mother is a market researcher with studies that don't interest me. They both adore they're jobs and I too want to enjoy the work i will eventually go into, thus family legacy doesn't carry much weight in my path through life. Therefore, the relationship between the two is relitive to the individual family and the culture they thrieve in.
Today in our group we decided not to look at one of the quote specifically but all of them to form different ideas about what we thought was the meaning of family. Ari, Clay, and Becca (my group) discussed how we've all been brought up in typical homes, where our parents are married and we have siblings and pets to fill our house with company. This brought us to the beginning of our pondering. After discussing our own families, we truened to family structures of famous people, sociaital villians to be specific. Hitler, we knew, was brought up in a broken home where his father was much older than his mother and abused his wife and child due to a problem with alcoholism. Voldemort, from Harry Potter, was also the product of a broken home where violence plagued his early childhood. Both real and fictional villians that we discussed had the common thread of being from families that weren't functional or loving. To this point, I think that families have shown in the past and continue to show the beginning of a healthy child. Having loving parent/parents, in my opinon, is a key factor to the success of each individual. The reason i believe this is true is because I've seen, more often than not, that people in real life and novel characters are better people if they have the influence of a good, loving family.
At the end of your post, skip a line and ask a question. For example "blah, blah, blah... What is the relationship between carrying on our family's legacy to finding my own way through life"?
I think this question could be answered a number of ways depending on the time period and the place an individual lives. Carrying on a families legacy means everything to some cultures and very little to others, so the basis for this answer is variable. In my opinon, I think its more important to find you're own way through life than to carry on the family legacy. Family legacy does have its upside, like a safe job and future, but more unfourntatly, it can lack passion and drive. My father works as a brand evaluationist doing work I can't begin to comprehend and my mother is a market researcher with studies that don't interest me. They both adore they're jobs and I too want to enjoy the work i will eventually go into, thus family legacy doesn't carry much weight in my path through life. Therefore, the relationship between the two is relitive to the individual family and the culture they thrieve in.
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