Reflection

My favorite past assignment was when we had to choose a book to read throughout the year just for pleasure. I have always wanted to read Accidental Billionaires but I haven't really had the motivation to actually go to the book store and buy it- but now I do! I'm really excited to start over winter break and hopefully finish pretty soon. Reading books in school is something I understand we're required to do, but for a long time it made me hate the idea of picking up a new book and starting to read. I think this project is teaching me how to enjoy reading as a form of entertainment, not just a homework assignment.

Prufrock

There are many images in "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" that provoke emotions within the reader. One image occurs at the very beginning of the poem, in the third line. Prufrock states, "When the evening is spread out against the sky/ Like a patient etherized upon a table." This biblical allusion makes for a somber tone in which the reader feels sympathy for the speaker and the environment he is stuck in. Also, the speaker makes reference to a patient laying dead on a table, which is a very similar to the image of Jesus dying on a cross. Prufrock makes many biblical allusions in his poem; however, this parallel is the most profound because the whole rest of the poem talk about how Prufrock does not live up to the ultimate human existence (or even a fulfilling one) by comparing him to a person who many people believe is not defined by his life, but instead, his death.

Sounds in Poetry

The sounds that are heard in poems allows a reader to further connect to the characters in the poem. As personification lends itself to the sense of vision, sound in a poem does the same for the sense of hearing. In "Out, Out" Frost doesn't need to describe the saw for the reader to further understand the scene, instead he states, "Buzz- snaw snarled and rattled." By using words that connote a certain noise, Frost allows the reader to not only see words on a page, but also to hear them.

First Half of 3rd Paragraph

An important contrast to Hamlet, Claudius speaks with a power and conviction one can only derive from an absolute lie. The King’s words and phrases seem rehearsed, as if when he comforts Hamlet, he knows exactly how to permeate Hamlet’s thoughts through sheer confidence. Claudius’ strong sense of sureness is portrayed through repetition as well as an overbearing tone. When the King speaks of his own sadness over the death of his brother, he repeats his words to try and convince his peers of his immense sadness. He duplicates words first when he states, “To bear our hearts in grief and our whole kingdom, to be contracted in one brow of woe” (1.2.3-4), then again a couple lines later, “With an auspicious and a dropping eye, with mirth in funeral and with dirge in marriage…” (1.2.11-12)...

Symbolism in Yates' Poem

A symbol is a thing that represents or stands in for an object, function, or process. The falcon portrayed in Yates’ poem “The Second Coming” is a symbol of liberty, freedom, and victory in a dark and destructive time. However, the falcon “cannot hear the falconer,” meaning that the peace will not come in the “anarchy” and “blood-dimmed tide” that Yates describes. 

Dialogue in Hamlet: Mundane or the Very Reason to Read

Speech patterns on the page seem artificial: they are simply put into place by an author to organize thoughts and ideas, right? Although many argue that dictation is meaningless in dissecting a work of literature and one must look much deeper into abstract thoughts, Shakespeare’s Hamlet proves that diction not only provides a meaning to the words themselves, but also creates a personal connection between the reader and character: a type of bond over emotion through words. This is observed when comparing two very archetypal characters: an indecisive follower and an overbearing manipulator. Hamlet is a boy who has gone through a terrible lost, leaving him in a vulnerable state of mind, easily persuaded by the authoritative Claudius who is very willing to tell Hamlet how to think and act. While at first it may appear that Hamlet and Claudius speak with the same conviction and purpose, closer examination reveals Hamlet’s deep uncertainty and therefore Claudius’ clever use of manipulation.

            Hamlet is left in a very raw state when his father dies and is faced with a multitude of dilemmas.  The most important of which deals with the deception of the people closest to him: should he trust King Claudius or The Ghost? Hamlet shows uncertainty through his speech patterns evident while expressing his loneliness when he tries to come to a conclusion of his next course of action. Hamlet states, ”A dam’d defeat was made. Am I a coward? Who calls me villain? Breaks my pate across? Plucks off my beard, and blows it in my face? Tweaks me by the nose? Gives me the lie I’ th’ throat, as deep as to the lungs? Who does me this? Ha!” (2.2.765). When Hamlet asks questions in his monologue, the reader becomes certain of Hamlet’s doubt and therefore frustration within himself. By not making a decision, Hamlet becomes idle when he is being torn between two realities. He even declares, “Why, what an ass am I! This is most brave, that I, the son of a dear father murder’d, prompted to my revenge by heaven and hell…” (2.2.756).  By showing hesitation before committing his father’s revenge, Hamlet considers himself cowardly. He even employs a very prominent allusions to “heaven and hell” relating his decision to his after-life. Shakespeare alludes to how people base their decisions on what is “right” or “good” depending on the very simplistic version of what will get you into an idealistic afterlife; however, not everything is that straightforward. For example, would Hamlet get into heaven for avenging his father’s death by killing a man, committing the same sin King Claudius committed? Hamlet’s speech patterns create a forum for discussion- weather it be as broad as Hamlet’s motives or as specific as an allusion one may only glaze over while reading.

Lions, Hamlet, and Figurative Language: Oh My!

Hamlet:

My fate cries out, 

and makes each petty artery in this body 

as hardy as the Nemean lion's nerve

(Act 1, Scene 4)

Figurative language is often used to describe a topic in literature using a different topic as a reference. Most often seen in the form of metaphors or similes, figurative language allows a reader to feel more deeply connected to a literary work through common knowledge of said reference. Shakespeare uses a simile when Hamlet describes the feeling of his own body after an interaction with the ghost of his father. A Nemean Lion is a mythical beast with an almost invincible hide, which could only be cut by its own claws. By comparing this beast with Hamlet’s reaction, a reader more clearly empathizes with Hamlet through common understanding of the struggles of the Nemean lion. 

Importance of Setting as a Descriptive Tool in Literature

Setting plays an important role in all literary works, some may say it even portrays it’s own character. Setting is not only considered it’s own character but also may enhance a characters attributes. Through setting a reader is given insight into social standings, upbringing, and overall background of a character’s life, furthering their knowledge of the characters thoughts and motives. Setting can be as broad as the country in which the story takes place or as specific as the type of chair the protagonist sits in during a monologue, each time having the same effect. An author uses setting as a way of describing a character using secondary sources. Instead of saying, for instance, that the Bennet family is not as wealthy as Mr. Darcy in Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, she merely describes both houses, clearly illustrating how setting can be used as a descriptive tool in literature. 

Intro Hamlet

Speech patterns on the page seem artificial: they are simply put into place by an author to organize thoughts and ideas, right? Although many argue that dictation is meaningless in dissecting a work of literature and one must look much deeper into abstract thoughts, Shakespeare’s Hamlet proves that diction not only provides a meaning to the words themselves, but also creates a personal connection between the reader and character: a type of bond over emotion through words. This is seen when comparing two very typical characters seen through everyone’s eyes: an indecisive follower and an overbearing manipulator. Hamlet is a boy who has gone through a terrible lost, leaving him in a vulnerable state of mind, easily persuaded by the authoritative Claudius who is very willing to tell Hamlet how to think and act. While at first it may appear that Hamlet and Claudius speak with the same conviction and purpose, closer examination reveals Hamlet’s deep uncertainty and therefore Claudius’ clever use of manipulation. 

Clauddy & Hammy

Hamlet and Claudius have a very different demeanor and point of view as evidenced by their language in Act 1: Scene 2. Hamlet is in obvious mourning of his fathers death and therefore has a more somber tone than Claudius, who seems to be completely over his brothers death (we learn later on it is because he is the one who has murdered him). Hamlet uses very negative language by repeating “nor” when describing his emotions, illustrating his sadness over the death of his father; however, Claudius seems angry as the reader can see when he asks a rhetorical question to Hamlet and then answers it himself with exclamation. He is hurt by the amount of grief shown by Hamlet and tries to comfort him but instead shows his true feelings of the whole situation: anger and discomfort. 

King Claudius' Speech Analysis pg. 728-730

In King Claudius’ speech, he reprimands Hamlet for mourning the death of his father. Although he calls Hamlet “sweet and commendable,” he believes that it is not manly to mourn the death of one’s father. Claudius backs his theory by pointing out that Hamlet’s “father lost a father, that father lost, lost his” in essence saying that everyone dies and he should not mourn what he cannot change and in doing so would be an insult to nature. Instead he should start to think of Claudius as his new father; however, Claudius’ tone suggests an underlying objective. 

Poem Analysis

The poems “Out, Out,-“ and To An Athlete Die Young are very similar in overall storyline; however, these two poems differ in tone as well as plot. In “Out, Out-“ Robert Frost tells a story from start to finish instead of Housman who analyzes a situation that has already happened. If I were to write a compare and contrast essay, I would first write about Frost’s poem and then about Housman’s in two separate paragraphs. The reason I would do this is mostly due to length. If I had two novels to compare and contrast I would use the tactic of formulating ideas about BOTH books and then formulating my essay depending on those different ideas; however, since these are poems and simply do not have enough to analyze without getting repetitive, I would use the first option. 

Plot

Essentially a story’s plot is what happens during a conflict. It is told from a point of view, in a setting, about a series of events. One story that perfectly exemplifies the conventional narrative is the first Harry Potter book. The exposition is from the start of the play until the owls start delivering Harry’s acceptance into Hogwarts. The rising action starts when he is visited by Hagrid (the inciting incident) and is introduced to the magical world. The climax is when Harry fights with Voldemort over the sorcerer’s stone because the suspense of the book reaches it’s peak. The falling action is very short but is all of the events that occur at Hogwarts after Harry defeats Voldemort and obtains the sorcerer’s stone. The denouement occurs on the train ride home when all is resolved. 

Woodchucks vs. Traveling through the Dark

The only real similarity between these two poems, in my opinion, is that an animal dies; however, these poems are VERY different. The first poem, “Woodchucks” by Maxine Kumin, describes a woman’s intense yet comical pursuit to kill the woodchucks that are eating her garden. Unlike William Stafford’s poem, “Traveling through the Dark,” the narrator in “Woodchucks” has some sort of vendetta against the woodchucks and wants to kill them and even tries multiple ways to do so. The narrator in “Traveling through the Dark” describes “hesitation” very different to the confidence that the reader detects in “Woodchucks.” The dictation in the two poems is very different as well. In “Woodchucks,” Kumin uses allusions (such as Darwin and Nazis) to dramatize a simple task in order to create comedy. Whereas Stafford uses a somber tone and realistic tension when he discovers an unborn baby in the deer’s stomach. Although both of these poems are somewhat similar in subject matter, they are very different in motivation, dictation, and overall tone. 

D.W. Harding

Disagree- I disagree with Harding's fundamental opinion. He believes that Austen's satire doesn't work because it is simple and lack-luster and even describes it as "a mock assault and not genuinely disruptive." However, he then goes on to say that Austen makes a mockery of "people whom she herself detests and fears." Harding is at two different ends of the spectrum. On one side Austen does not negatively lean into her satirical characters enough, and on the other side, Austen is way to harsh on the characters due to her own harsh feelings towards what they represent in her own life.

Agree- I agree that Austen is bias due to her place in society; however, I do not believe that it negatively affects her writing. It is her bias that makes her satire and writing intriguing and funny. In fact, pieces based simply on fact are boring, in my opinion. I even appreciate Harding's article because he takes a stance and supports it, but why can't he do the same for Austen?

First Draft: Plan for Revision

In order to revise my essay, I must first think of a title. I have a couple working titles. Some of which are very traditional: “Individual vs. Society” or “Conformity vs. One’s True Self.” Yet other titles are more satirical (which I like best): “The Underlying Deception of Characterization” or “Elizabeth: the Conformist.” I’ve also constructed an outline, which will hopefully keep my ideas in an orderly fashion. There are a few grammatical mistakes, easily fixable by looking over my first draft a couple more times. This was a very rough draft, so I’m going to go through and add a couple more quotes from the novel to support my points and just overall revise this draft before turning my final essay in on Sunday. 

Conformity Essay: First and Second Paragraph

The ongoing conflict of conformity versus one’s true self has always never been easy for me to understand. Is it the decisions we make in life that dictate who we are as a person, or the other way around? Similarly, how can we never conform to society’s norms when we are surrounded by people who change and influence our decisions starting the moment we are born? For this reason and many others, I seem to always look confused when a person tells me to be “true to myself,” mostly because I’m not sure who that may be. When Elizabeth is portrayed as a non-conformist in the novel Pride and Prejudice, I can only assume it is due to her black and white characterization by Jane Austen. We already know that Elizabeth will reject Mr. Collins offer because she is painted as an unconventional individual in the society in which she lives. However, in reality, one’s true character traits are not so apparent and therefore, one’s answers are not so predictable. Although I believe there is no such thing as “conforming” in a realistic society with realistic people who change and evolve regularly, Elizabeth is a constant character in a novel and is an evident contrast to the similarly consistent yet flawed society.  

England in the 17^th century was male-dominated and most individuals exercised different customs than are popular today. The most influential aspect of life in that time was the subsidiary role women played to men and how attention from such men- especially with a large fortune- was a privilege women must “win” from others. This is first evident when the reader is introduced to Mrs. Bingley and finds out of her intentions for her daughters. “The business of her life was to get her daughters married; its solace was visiting and news” (Austen 3). Within this quote, the reader gets a view of both how a young woman is treated within society as well as how she will grow into nothing more than a gossip and wife. Austen strategically uses Mrs. Bennet as a symbol of the wrongs in 17^th century England customs; therefore, Elizabeth is a symbol of the complete opposite, a symbol of rebellion- a feminist hero in a male dominated society. Of course she does change her mind and end up marrying the once perceived scoundrel in her eyes- Darcy, further proving my point. Does Elizabeth conform when she chooses to marry the wealthy, persistent, rude male? Or is it simply human nature to transform and reform ideas and values?

Outside Essay Edit

In Essay “A for Alfi,” I found that the language was repetitive and the structure, unclear. When Alfi illustrates Austen’s introduction to characters in the novel “Pride and Prejudice,” he repeats himself over and over again to get the point across, when in actuality, he should be giving more context and analysis. Speaking of repetition, he seems to always repeat the same words without any variations, making the reader feel bored. I feel Alfi gets a little too specific in the intro while explaining “good lists vs. bad lists,” where he definitely could have waited to introduce that topic until the body paragraphs. I thought the conclusion flowed very smoothly until the last sentence when he said the word “opinions” too many times. My ultimate issue with this essay is one of structure, easily fixable with the right thesaurus. B.

In “B for Beatrice,” I felt her introduction was very nice: it showed complex vocabulary, was smoothly written, and definitely says something about her point of view. I love that she used many transitions, such as “thus, moreover, however,” because it really helped the reader move among the sentences. I noticed that she used textual evidence in the form of quotations, which she analyzed. I liked that she did this a lot, it made her writing seem a lot more effortless. This by far was my favorite essay of the bunch, because she took a strong stance while also writing elegantly. A+.

Oh goodness, “C for Cecilia” was not a well-written or thought provoking essay. Starting with a quote would be a good idea; however, not in this context and definitely NOT with that quote. Cecilia used a lot of clichés and hyperboles, such as “minute they meet them” and “judge a book by it’s cover.” If these points were essential in conveying her argument, I would understand, but they simply did nothing- considering she didn’t even have an argument to start with. Cecilia stated facts instead of analyzing them, and then just repeated herself. Another way Cecilia repeated herself was with diction; she kept saying “he/she” and “his/her.” Between her poor analysis and less than complex language, I was expecting a stellar conclusion where she brought it all together in a stunning way. I obviously didn’t get what I had hoped for. D.

Conformity Essay: First Paragraph

The ongoing conflict of conformity versus one’s true self has always never been easy for me to understand. Is it the decisions we make in life that dictate who we are as a person, or the other way around? Similarly, how can we never conform to society’s norms when we are surrounded by people who change and influence our decisions since the moment we are born? Is our truest form to “ourselves” in the womb before our little decision-making minds come into contact with other little decision-making minds, and even then, our mothers dictate our diet? For this reason and many others, I seem to always look confused when a person tells me to be “true to myself,” mostly because I’m not sure who that may be. 

To His "Koi" Mistress

The beginning of "To His Coy Mistress" contains words that are meant to slow the reader down, such as ve-ge-ta-ble. The reader must really take the time to sound out Marvell's argument at first, as if he is just "warming up" and the real meat of his argument comes in the second stanza. As the pace gets faster, the poem's content gets more heated and, in my opinion, offensive and aggressive. Marvell not only uses words to alter the reader's pace, but also to belittle the mistress's integrity and honor... not the best way to get a woman into bed, I have to say.

Book

I have decided to read The Accidental Billionaires by Ben Mezrich which was made into the movie The Social Network in 2010. I loved the movie, and I heard that the book is much better, so by default I'm going to love this book. I'm excited to get started!

"Introduction to Poetry" by Billy Collins

Billy Collins illustrates how poetry is meant to be read and enjoyed, instead of dissected and manipulated in order to find a hidden meaning that may or may not have been the author's intention. One line that stood out to me is "I want them to waterski/ across the surface of a poem/ waving at the author's name on the shore."It seems to me that Collins is promoting poetry as a fun way to experience literature and asking students to have fun and just experience the poem without caring too much about it's depth.

First Post

Hellooo! I'm Lauren. Here's a kitty yawning.