“ringing crude changes on a clumsy phrase” ( Holman 849). I like this phrase in the poem. It is very simple but has a lot of meaning. It shows Mr. Z’s efforts being totally cast aside by one Obit writer. He tried his whole life to escape part of himself but fails. He does everything right to avoid one part of himself and cling to another part of himself. This may give his respect by his pears but not totally. He gains respect and prominence for his work but never himself. His difference is too visible. No mater how much he runs it will always be with him. This part of himself he tries to escape is stile part of him to the end even though he tries to hide from it. If he would have accepted all of his attributes he would not have had to run from himself. Even with his total self he could of gain just as much prominence with les self sacrifice.
Wednesday, August 29, 2012
Toads / Philip Larkin
“And will never allow me to blarney
My way to getting
the fame and the girl and the money
all at one sitting.” (Larkin 801).
These four lines make me thing the second toad has to be honesty or pride. These to things are quite similar and could probably be replaced with many synonyms but I will stick to these two. This stanza seems to represent an ingrained habit. This habit is like work in its continual existence. It sticks with the narrator for his whole life. It weighs him down just as much as work does. It presses him into a rut which he cannot escape. They are like wagon wheel tracks which cannot be easily avoided. They could also be like when one drives his car tire of the road and it tries to suck the whole car into the ditch. This is kind of like the last two lines were he explains how incredibility difficulty it is to escape these toads.
Hazel Tells LaVerne / Katharyn Howd Machan
I like how this poem puts a twist to the traditional frog prince fairy tale. It seems to be more realistic. If a frog started talking to me I would probably get rid of it as well. The vernacular of the poem makes it more relatable to real life. “an i hitsm with my mop an has ta flush,” (Machan 21). This shows a kind of southern uneducated vernacular. This vernacular adds to the contrast between the poem and the fairy tale. The fairy tale is proper and yet this poem is very improper in speech. There is also a contrast between a lowly peasant being the narrator and the prince of a frog. In the poem it sounds as if this incident would not faze the narrator at all and does not. It seems to me as if this is just a story to be added to the character long list of funny things that have happened to her.
Everyday Use / Alice Walker / question 4
The mother’s refusal to let Dee have the quilts indicates a permanent change of character. This is shown by Maggie’s and the mother’s contented position at the end of the story. They seem set in their way and perfectly contented to stay that way. Dee may be trying to change her out look and status in life but Maggie and the mother are not any were close to doing so. Dee seems to want everything that has any meaning in their lives. “This churn top is what I need,” (Walker Dee seems to have always gotten her way because she was assertive while Maggie was shame faced. The mother seems to finally decide Maggie needs her fair share especially since Dee seems to only care for history not the present.
Interpreter of Maladies / Jhumpa Lahiri / question 5
Mrs. Das thinks of Mr. Kapasi as almost a doctor. She thinks of him as having the ability to decide what needs to be done to fix peoples problems. She hopes he can fix her personal problem with her husband. He however is less confident in his abilities. He never glorified his position and is flattered when it is suggested he does more than just translate the people’s words. “She sat a bit slouched at one end of the back sea, not offering her puffed rice to anyone,” (Lahiri 150). This quote shows her indifference to her family. This is latter explained when she confesses her secret to Mr. Kapasi. Mr. Kapasi thinks Mrs. Das is like him self which in a way she is. She has a child that is not her husbands which has separated her from her husband. Mr. Kapasi lost a child to disease which caused him and his wife to grow apart.
Sunday, August 19, 2012
poems, how to?
I think Perrine ’s approach to poems is a very efficient one. His method seems very scientific. He gives pretty strait forward rules for deciding the correct meaning of a poem. His ideas make sense. Every poem has only one correct meaning. I do disagree though some what. Poems are like ink blots; they can be interpreted any way possible by different people. Poems are often written for the enjoyment of others so if they find enjoyment out of interpreting the poem in a different way than it was intended than what is the problem with that.
I found his explanations of the poems very satisfactory. He explained in detail why they should be interpreted in the correct way. He again sounds like a scientist or a lawyer because of his detailed explanations. For the poem the Night-March it never occurred to me that it could be about the stars. After he explains it, I can hardly picture it as anything ells. At the end of his article he explains that symbols could be interpreted as a larger range of ideas. I feel this kind of contradicts what he said earlier. The poem of the Sick Rose is actually about a sick rose. This completely threw me of because I was thinking it was symbolic not literal, although the title does lend one to think of it literally. Poems can easily become much more complex if parts of it are accidentally considered to be symbolic.
Thursday, August 9, 2012
The Great Gatsby / F. Scott Fitzgerald (pg 143-153)
Ops I did it again. The main character dies again in the end of the book. After Gatsby’s death Nick takes care of his funeral. Nick continues to be Gatsby’s leaning post even after death. Finally in the end of the book you learn Gatsby actually has a father. It was not until his father was introduced as Mr. Gatz did I realize that in the earlier story about Gatsby helping a sailor from not crash his yacht Gatsby was the grungy character on the beach. The book that Mr. Gatz shows Nick reveals how meticulous Gatsby was from the beginning of his life. “They were careless people, Tom and Daisy—they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated” (Fitzgerald 187). This statement reveals how connected Tom and Daisy were. Although daisy may hove loved Gatsby her need for luxury seemed more powerful because she did not show up to his funeral. Daisy seems to be successful at living a rich life when Lily Bart was not.
The Great Gatsby / F. Scott Fitzgerald (pg 154-170)
In chapter 8 you finally find out how Daisy and Gatsby met. Their meeting sounds very fantastical. For only being with her for a month Gatsby show a lot of determination to love her for five years. I find it interesting how he describes Daisy as being mysterious when he met her. This is kind of similar to how Nick had met Gatsby in a mysterious manner. “But now he found that he had committed himself to the following of a grail” (Fitzgerald 156). This quote reminds me of Indiana Jones. In one of the movies he searches for the Holy Grail. In real life know one knows were it is and it seems to be a fruitless effort. This is the point I think Fitzgerald was trying to make. He is saying Gatsby’s quest seamed to be hopeless but he was eternally bound to fallow it. “‘I don’t think she ever loved him’” ((Fitzgerald 158). This quote seems to show Gatsby’s insecurities. He is trying to give himself a pep talk and still looking to Nick for support.
The Great Gatsby / F. Scott Fitzgerald (pg 143-153)
After there time in town Tom , Jordan
The Great Gatsby / F. Scott Fitzgerald (pg 119-142)
At the start of chapter 7 it sounds like Gatsby has lost himself. He fired all of his staff and hired a smaller number of more reclusive people. He stopped having parties as well. You discover that Gatsby is not having parties because Daisy is coming over many afternoons and she did not like his parties. Gatsby and Nick are invited to Daisies for lunch. At this lunch Tom is their and much hostility is felt between Tom and Gatsby. The whole dinner party goes into town and stops at a hotel. While there everything explodes and Gatsby and Tom get in a fight over Daisy. “‘I just got wised up to something funny the last two days,’ remarked Wilson Wilson Wilson
The Great Gatsby / F. Scott Fitzgerald (pg 115-118)
Nick seems to be a flat character he does not change during the story. He is a fixed point of reference for Gatsby. His main purpose seems to be a tangible narrator so he can give the reader a better perspective of Gatsby. If the story was told from the point of view of Gatsby it would seem more cluttered. That point of view would also erase some of the mystery that is wrapped around Gatsby. The mystery of Gatsby’s past and his elusive nature make the book a more intriguing reed. “‘Can’t repeat the past?’ he cried incredulously. ‘Why of course you can!’” (Fitzgerald 116). In the end of chapter six Gatsby is shown to be desperate for Daisy. He wants their relationship to return to the way it was five years ago. Gatsby does not seem to realize he can not go back but he could still be with her now it just would be different. He seems to self absorbed in the past to realize what future he could have. His desperation seems kind of like Lily Bart’s in House of Mirth and I hope Gatsby does not kill himself to.
The Great Gatsby / F. Scott Fitzgerald (pg 110-114)
When daisy and Tom come over to Gatsby’s party they seem out of place. They are east eggers and are not used to west egg parties. Daisy seems to enjoy her self some what but some of the people are too much for her to take. Gatsby tries to entertain Daisy as best he can. Tom is decidedly not overjoyed about the party. Gatsby seems to kind of pick fun at him as well. “‘Who is this Gatsby anyhow?’ demanded Tom suddenly. ‘Some big bootlegger?’”(Fitzgerald 114). Tom seems to be very judgmental of Gatsby. He questions how Gatsby knew Daisy. Tom seems to be a hypocrite because he has another woman but he questions when Daisy knows someone he did not know about.
The Great Gatsby / F. Scott Fitzgerald (pg 103-109)
The beginning of chapter 6 seems to shift to third person limited point of view. Nick is still the narrator but he is not involved in the story and he does not know what is going on in the minds of those he is narrating for. James Gatz is introduced but is not really all that important to the story or at least not yet. James seems to bee a flat stock character which is just used to fill some space in the story. He also seems to be used as a lead into telling a part of Gatsby’s past. James is portrayed to treat Gatsby as a roll model. However he over exaggerates his qualities as a be all end all of a god person to be. “But it was already Jay Gatsby who borrowed a row-boat, pulled out to the Tuolomee and informed Cody that a wind might catch him and break him up in half an hour” (Fitzgerald 104). This segment of the book gives a break from the current situation that Gatsby is in. it show some of the good he did in his past and also sets the record strait on what he actually did somewhat. This story also shows that he is not actually all that rich.
The Great Gatsby / F. Scott Fitzgerald (pg 86-102)
I originally thought that the main character might be Nick. I thought this odd because of the name of the book. The focus of the book in the beginning is how Nick meets Gatsby and learns about Gatsby through what others said. I thought Nick was the main character because this focus on Nick’s learning about Gatsby and not Gatsby himself. This changes in the fifth chapter and now the focus is on what Gatsby is doing. Gatsby in his quest to talk with Daisy becomes the main topic of the story. “He had passed visibly through two states and was entering upon a third. After his embarrassment and his unreasoning joy he was consumed with wonder at her presence. Gatsby originally seems to be a very distant, detached person. Now we begin to learn that his detached thoughts were focused on meeting Daisy, not just because he didn’t care. Throughout the chapter, his emotions change as the quote suggests. We learn that he really does care. He was just so preoccupied with meeting Daisy.
The Great Gatsby / F. Scott Fitzgerald (pg 76-85)
Its kind of interesting that Mr. Wolfshiem mentions where Gatsby went to college, and Nick acts like its new information. This is interesting because Nick had just heard from Gatsby himself that he went to Oggsford; however, Nick acted like this new information to him. The manner in which Gatsby tries set up a meeting with Daisy is amusing. He is trying to arrange a way to see her without it seeming that he is trying to do so. This happens today at school by way of a friend asking another friend to speak to someone for them, or find out is they might be interested. Today’s methods are via text, facebook, or email; and as round-a-bout as in this book. “I turned toward Mr. Gatsby, but he was no longer there” (Fitzgerald 79). This alludes to Gatsby capability to be cleverly allusive. I find it interesting that Nick starts to think about asking Jordan
The Great Gatsby / F. Scott Fitzgerald (pg 65-75)
In chapter four, the first three pages are devoted to a list of guest that attend Gatsby’s parties. This matches earlier mention in the book about the enormous amount of food needed for his parties. I find it interesting that he list so many people and the tone of the book suggest that one should know all these people personally. However this is impossible because they are fictional characters not based on any historical people. His use of the term “old sport” in reference to Nick brings to mind the movie “The Santa Claus”. In this movie, the head elf refers to the new Santa’s child as “Sport”, even though they didn’t know each other. This is similar to Gatsby because it seems like a very friendly term even though they don’t know each other well. “My incredulity was submerged in fascination now; it was like skimming hastily through a dozen magazines” (Fitzgerald 71). This quote is a simile. It’s comparing Gatsby larger-than-life explanation of his life to flipping through a magazine so swiftly one just catches the bold phrases and wonderful pictures. One is reliving, or living just the highlights of life so swiftly, there is no savoring or depth.
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
The Great Gatsby / F. Scott Fitzgerald (pg 55-64)
I like how Fitzgerald two mini stories almost about what happened at the party right before Nick left. The stories about a singer crying and people mixing up their spouses were funny. I also enjoyed his description of the car wreck out side of Gatsby’s house. These three stories make the book more enjoyable to read. They also make it seem all the more like I am listening to a friend telling me about a fun experience they had. “Reading over what I have written so far I see I have given the impression that the events of three nights several weeks apart were all that absorbed me” (Fitzgerald 60). This statement makes the book seem like it is supposed to be a bibliography. It make is sound as if Nick is the Author not Fitzgerald. It contributes to me feeling like it is one of my friends telling me a story not me reading a book. At the end of the third chapter Jordan
The Great Gatsby / F. Scott Fitzgerald (pg 43-54)
In the third chapter Gatsby almost seems to be a ghost. Earlier in the book Gatsby seems to disappear when Nick glanced away from him for a few seconds. When Nick goes over to one of Gatsby’s parties he can not see him for a while after he arrives. So many different people have stories about his past but none really know what he actually did. All of their ideas are either outlandish or just gossip. Gatsby is almost imaginary. When Nick first meats Gatsby face to face he does not recognize him. Dering this meeting Gatsby seems to create welcoming thoughts in Nicks head. Gatsby then promptly leaves because of a phone call. Gatsby although he hosts a lot of parties seems to be distant from those at the parties and not many people really know him well. They all seem to know of him. “‘And I like large parties. They’re so intimate. At small parties there isn’t any privacy’” (Fitzgerald 54). This statement I think is a paradox. When I first read it is sounds backwards but after thinking about it actually makes sense.
The Great Gatsby / F. Scott Fitzgerald (pg 27-42)
In the second chapter Tom is shown to be forceful. He forces Nick into coming to visit his mistress. Tom forces Wilson
The Great Gatsby / F. Scott Fitzgerald (pg 17-26)
I find it interesting that you do not find out the main characters first name until page 19. On the third page you learn some of his family history but not his name. The main character is also the narrator. This is a first person point of view narration. Not telling you the main characters name and having it be first person point of view adds to the feeling of being told a personal story or memory. That is however what the book is and the author did a good job of giving that feel to the book so far. Telling a story like it is a personal memory I think helps the book be more engaging especially compared to House of Mirth’s third person point of view. How he references the cultural feelings towards minority races is interesting. “‘This fellow has worked out the whole thing. It’s up to us who ate the dominant race to watch our or these other races will have control of things’” (Fitzgerald 17). This comment is by Tom a friend of Nicks. I find it interesting how hardcore Tom takes to the ideas in the book. It is also interesting that because it says it is scientifically proven it is that much more believable to Tom.
The Great Gatsby / F. Scott Fitzgerald (pg 6-16)
I find the first two pages of the Gatsby interesting. They give me the feeling of sitting in front of my grand parents listening to them recite a story of their past exploits. These two pages seem to represent a conversation leading up to a story or a conversation that ignites a spark of recognition in the story teller to bring up his story in the conversation. This conversation then leads to him actually telling the story which is like the rest of the book. From the start of the book I think it will be more fun to read than house of mirth. Gatsby seams to be more like most other book I have read. It seems to be more of a fun book and not so much of a literary wonder kind of book. “To see two old friends whom I scarcely knew at all” (Fitzgerald 11). This sounds like an oxymoron. If some one is an old friend that implies that you have known them awhile. If you have known them awhile then you should know then. This is sounded odd when I read it but know that I wrote this blog it seem to make more sense and seems to be feasible.
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)