Mao 12-end

  Well, I have accomplished the impossible and finished Mao II.  I guessing I was hoping that it was going to gain some action or interesting story but I feel like it just stayed the same the whole way through.  I guess I'll being with chapter 12 and saying that I'm not really sure what the point of this Omar guy is.  I think he's just a  man that eventually leads Karen into Scott's arms.  Although that part is strange as well because she doesn't actually go to him until Brita tells her to.  And then there's the spoon...I'm not sure if anyone else thought this was weird but she picks up a spoon with old food on it and puts it up on a pedestal.  I'm not really sure of the significance of this gross spoon but maybe I'm not artsy enough to understand the beauty of it.
     Scott seems to be obsessing over organization--I feel like that's all the author tells us when they talk about his part. Honestly, I could take all of Scott's part out in these last couple chapters and the story wouldn't change a bit because of his mundane life--maybe that's the way it's supposed to be.  I mean in the end it seems that he finally gets what he wants which is Brita.  And then they just decide that Bill won't be coming back so they can just have his money and his house.  It just seems strange that over all this time that they should end up together and just to give up on Bill.
     And then there's Bill and his stubborn attitude--I want to yell at him and tell him to just go to the doctor already!  I'm not really sure I understand all of his story.  He's talking with Vets and then he's out partying and finds himself waking up in his hotel.  I feel like the author leaves information out that is important to transition form one thing to another.  He just decides to go to Beirut and then we don't really hear about him. I was hoping the end after the chapters there would be some sort of explanation about Bill and what happens to him and if the hostage actually was let go...or even if he makes it to Beirut.  The book seems to be building up to what is happening to Bill healthwise but then the author never even says what happens to him in the end.  I know a lot of modernist books end without resolution but I'm not sure I like this style especially in this book because it felt like a book that was just a "so what" book.  I guess what I mean by this is that it just seems like background noise that doesn't really make any impact on me--not enjoyable, I didn't really learn much, or change my opinion on anything.  If anything it seemed to make me more confused and angry.  I realize this is not the nicest thing to say but it is my opinion...I hope someone else enjoyed reading the book! It definitely made me appreciate the Hurston book even more.

Mao II Chapters 6-11

         I think I have finally figured out why I don't care for this book, well a couple of reasons.  Firstly, there is no action--the action that does happen in the book feels muted.  For instance, Bill gets hit by a car and he's bleeding and everyone is rushing towards him and he just brushes it off.  It seems unimportant and insignificant.  Even in the earlier chapters when they go on the trip--Scott seems concentrated on having sex with Karen and then she has sex with Bill and then Scott has sex with Brita.  Seems more like a soap opera without the drama.
        There are a few parts that are still confusing to me because the book doesn't explain it or I just missed something.  When Brita is awake the answering machine comes on with a voice and I don't think the book ever mentions his significance or who he is.  Another part that confused me in the book is the part about the connection between Brita and Karen.  I know it mentions that Brita was skeptical about leaving this girl she barely knew at her home but how did Karen find her how and what's the connection?  Another question that I have is why is Bill so eagerly going along with George and completely leaves Charlie.  It seems that Charlie is much more trustworthy than George.  Bill even knows that George is working for the country that took the hostage and Bill knows that they want to take him--it doesn't seem to phase him in the least bit.
In these chapters I have picked up a few themes that seem to be repeating and significant.  The first is the mob or group importance.  Someone is talking to Brita about mass-marriage and the concept of what Bill thinks about it.  "By compressing a million moments of love and touch and courtship into one accelerated mass, you're saying that life must become more anxious, more surreal, more image-bound, more prone to hurrying its own transformation, or what's the point (pg 80).  The next instance of this group/mob theme is when Brita and Scott are talking after they have come back from their trip.  They're talking about how Bill doesn't understand that people want to do these mass marriages but the reason is to survive as a community rather than mastering every complex force (pg. 89)  One of them goes on to talk about how gender doesn't matter and that people should all become Moonies as one large collective group.  The last example that I found was when Karen goes to the community of homeless and walks around and sees this mass of people that are living under tarps and in boxes or sleeping on benches.  They refer to it as "tent city."
            Another theme that I found occurring in these chapters is the influence of the writer and the terrorist.  Bill talks about when a terrorist wins the writer loses--one line inn particular that he says, "the more clearly we see terror, the less impact we feel from art" (pg. 157).  I remember talking about this idea in class on Thursday and about WWII.  We talked about how after the war nobody could make art because it seemed to take the attention away from the concentration camps and what happened to the innocent people--I think specifically it was referring to Aschwitz.

Mao II Chapters 1-5

          Well, I guess I am going to be completely honest and say that this is going to be a struggle to finish this novel, personally.  I was very confused the first time I began reading this novel.  I was confused with the tie between the prologue and chapter 1 then there's the random conversations that the characters have.  I feel like some of the novel is written with a stream of consciousness because the narrator begins talking about walking on the street and then a thought comes to mind and then something else comes up.  And then I feel like the narrator gives us information without describing it like when one of the characters says she grabs a cigarette even though she hadn't smoked in years...like why?how come?what's the significance?
         I thought the whole wedding cult thing was really weird and I know we talked about the possibility of the wedding being "communist".  I would have to agree with this idea because these couples are giving themselves completely to this "Master" just like in a communist country the people give themselves to the leader.  The people have no control in both situations and someone else is in power over the other.  These couples barely know each other after a few days and are already getting married and being completely separated from each other.  Call me a romantic but there's something to the dating period and getting to know one another.  A wedding should be something intimate--you are bonding one family to another.  The fact that there are thousands of people at this same wedding just make it more cultish and creepy.
     After discussing these first few chapters I feel like I can understand the chapters a little more; I guess I'm not picking up on their humor--especially Bill's.  I realize that we decided that the book was written in the "modern age" but I feel like it's confusing to find this true.  I guess I am still trying to figure out who everyone is and how they are all connected.  I feel like it would be beneficial to have some kind of timeline or summary to look at for each chapter just to help with knowing what's going on.

Wright, Carver, Collins, Lee

            I would like to begin by saying that my favorite poet of all these men was Billy Collins.  I thought his writing was easy to relate to and it was also easy to connect with.  My favorite poem was Forgetfulness because it rings so true for myself.  His observation about forgetting the quadratic equation was humorous because I can remember studying and memorizing it.  Today, I am not sure I could come up with any parts of it.  Or the part about forgetting capitals, order of the planets, or authors of books was also quite humorous.  It seems these were so important to memorize growing up but now we cannot even remember them.  I like his word play with “oblivion” because it seems that a lot of this information will escape from our minds and will not be there—but then he ends the poem with the character rising at night to look up this random information that he had forgotten.  Another one of his poems about the Three Blind Mice was also very humorous.  Even the title of this poem uttered a chuckle from me at least.  I can just imagine him chopping up parsley and he hears this song and begins to micoranalyze where these mice came from and how they became blind.  The one explanation I liked most was “a searing explosion, a firework”.

            I thought James Wright’s poems reminded me a little of William Blake’s style.  They both observed nature and explore their relationship in accordance to nature.  Wright’s poems are definitely based on the Midwest, writing about football games and the prairie.  One thing I noticed about Autumn Begins in Martins Ferry, Ohio was the oxymoron in line 9 “suicidally beautiful”.  I thought this was a strange play on words and I wonder if anyone has any thoughts on it?  In his poem To the Evening Star I loved his imagery of a star being a light that comes on in the sky like a lamp in the prairie.  His last poem of the last line in A Blessing was a very “Blake” line about how he would step out of his body and break into blossom.  Any thoughts?

            Li-Young Lee Persimmons was strange because I felt like it was written in a stream of consciousness.  It seemed to jump around, but I did like that he included bits about himself and his background culture in it.  I thought it was interesting that in many of his poems he included his father as an important part—unlike Sylvia Plath it was a much more positive note.  He writes about missing him and recalling him and his love which I think is beautiful, especially since it is a son and father relationship.

Plath, Roth, Rich

                Sylvia Plath’s poetry was insightful and graphic.  I actually enjoyed it even though I have never read any of her works.  I found her references to the WWII intriguing and questioning to know more about her.  While I did read the bibliography note in the beginning, it doesn’t really talk about her connection to Jews or Germans.  I know that her father died when she was young and was one of the reasons that drew her to an attempt at suicide which she mentions in Daddy.  She talks about how she tried to get back at her dad by killing herself but then being put together by others.  She describes her father as a vampire and having a “fat black heart”.   She talks about getting revenge to her father—by killing herself?  I am not really sure how that would be revenge…any thoughts?  Her other poem “Lady Lazarus” was interesting—particularly the title.  I didn’t understand the title until the end of the poem.  I know that Lazarus was a man that was raised from the dead.  In my opinion, I think she is referring to the Jews especially in the last stanza with the line “out of the ash”.  The footnote talks about the mythical creature called the phoenix which is reborn out of the ashes similar to Lazarus.  Although I’m still not sure why the title includes the word “lady”.  I didn’t know about the Natzi gold fillings being made out of corpses and lampshades being made of victims’ skin.  It makes me sick to think about these images—but I am glad that they are brought to the surface.

                Call me a romantic but I loved the first line in “A Valediction Forbidding Mourning” which is “My swirling wants.  Your frozen lips.”  It reminds me of something in a cheesy chick flick—but I don’t care it’s poetic!  I want more explanation of this poem because while I can pick up bits and pieces I would like to have some more opinions.  It seems someone is trying to forget something bad, but then at the same time it talks about writing and grammar.  I also like the last line—I feel like it’s highly individualized and a modernized notion.  The message of being independent and being living life in a personal choice and not letting others chose it for you.

Synder, Ginsberg, Kerouac

I would like to begin by commenting on Howl by Allen Ginsberg.  This poem or short story or whatever this is seems to remind me of a modern version of Edgar Allen Poe.  After reading this my mind was very disturbed by the images that he has created.  In my opinion it seems that he is either trying to critique America or the world/humanity in general.  Throughout he mentions various states which I think is interesting and noteworthy—perhaps he is trying to focus more on the United States.  He talks about people chaining themselves to subways and the failing law enforcement system.  While this short story does seem to present some grotesque images they are certainly poetic.  One in particular that stood out to me was “returning years later truly bald except for a wig of blood, tears and fingers” (pg.1360).  While this is a disturbing image it is also I guess lack of a better word—beautiful.  I am slightly worried about my comment I just made, nevertheless, it’s an image that sticks in my brain and I can picture it clearly on a canvas.  I wonder if anyone else thought about this image and has any insight into it further.  I thought the second part was interesting with the speaker crying out to “Moloch” who is stated in the footnotes as a fire god.  This cannot be a coincidence.  My own interpretation seems to say that this fire god should destroy all of the filth in the world that humanity has created.  Like the speaker says “Mad Generation” (pg.1362).  Maybe we have become so corrupt that the speaker wishes to show his audience what we have become.  And then what’s with “Rockland”?  Another image that stood out to me is “where we hug and kiss the United States under our bedsheets the United States that coughs all night and won’t let us sleep” (pg. 1363).  I was hoping for some opinions or other insights into this imagery.

On a less disturbing yet sad note is Snyder in August on Sourdough, A Visit from Dick Brewer.  I’m not sure if these two are lovers or friends but at any rate the one must bid a goodbye to the other after spending a night reminiscing and enjoying each other’s company.  

Ellison, Baraka, Lorde, Walker

The Invisible Man short story I did not find particularly fascinating; it just didn’t really seem to resonate for me.  It was somewhat interesting at parts but to be honest I found it dull and boring.  I hope I am not offending anyone by saying this, I guess everyone is entitled to their own opinion.  I mean I thought the ending was clever because he wakes up to his grandfather’s laugh ringing in his ears—creepy yet symbolic.  He’s wrestling with conforming and fighting the norm. 

I wanted to do a small cheer when I read that the mother took the quilts away from Dee because as a character I did not like her.  The author, in my opinion, did a wonderful job of painting the picture of each character in a short amount of pages.  I think especially with short stories it can be difficult to develop characters because of the limited space.  I actually can identify with Dee because it felt like when I was younger I didn’t appreciate a lot of things about my heritage and past.  I think this is a more modern idea—taking old, traditional style and using it as decoration.  Last time I went home to Iowa I asked my mom for some of her mason jars that she keeps in the basement to use as decoration—similar to the quilt I didn’t really care about them until I got to college.  I guess you could say the author is making fun of the educated that go off to school and come back and realize how different their lives are.  Maggie just seems so different from Dee—she seems naïve but appreciative of her heritage and past.  The fact that she tells Dee that she can take the quilts because she can still remember her grandmother regardless was inspiring. 

Roethe, Bishop, Lowell, Berryman

            I actually have read My Papa’s Waltz for an education class and we discussed the different images and cruelty of the poem.  We talked about using this poem as a gateway poem into further discussions.  The imagery in the poem is very explicit and I want to hate it yet I love it.  I love the way the author paints such a clear picture in the poem of the father and the action that goes on in the poem.  The next poem Dolor I found strange because they refer to things that are in schools and offices.  Very strange, perhaps the author is unsatisfied where he is at in his life?  The Waking uses a lot of repetition especially about waking and sleeping.  Two opposites and talking about going slowly I’m not really sure what the whole underlining message is but I’m interested to see what we talk about on Tuesday.

            I found Bishop’s poem The Fish strange especially in relation to the imagery.  The author talks about disgusting and gross things that are wrong with the fish.  Then in the end the fisher decides to let it go.  The author also describes the boat with similar disturbing images; I’m not sure if this is a coincidence or if it was on purpose.  Another one of her poems is called Tshe Armadillo which is definitely not what I thought it would be like.  I have actually seen them multiple times while living in Texas.  I noticed that in the poem there were a lot of images involving fire like: “flame”, “burned”, and “ash”.  I wonder if any of my peers noticed this or had any ideas regarding this observation.  The last poem by Bishop touches on the idea about losing is easy and then mentions the everyday things in life that we lose and how it’s not as difficult as we may think it is.

Carnival Post

          I am going to begin with one very interesting thought that came from almost all of the posts that I read: Wallace Steven's poetry is confusing and could be interpreted a variety of ways.  I will admit I also posted on my blog and while I was reading his poetry I was confused.  I found it very interesting how each person comes in with their own interpretations and images that come to them when they read the poems.  I also thought it was interesting that two classmates felt inspired by the poems to actually write some of their own--and one was reminded of how much they hate poetry:)

            When I was reading about A Rose for Emily and The Mountains of Kilamanjaro I found it interesting that the topic of modernism seemed to appear quite a bit.  This may have been due to our discussion that we had in class but I think that it's worth noting.  Many of the blogs talked about irony and a possible connection between the author and the male character.  This whole idea of the old ways getting set aside for new ideas[taxes] and how that affected the people during this time and the writing.  This idea of small towns and death was particularly interesting which came from one blog.

           Time to move on to Mine Eyes were Watching God which seemed to have many of the same themes as well as different and opposing ones within our class blogs.  First of all, I would like to point out that almost everyone mentioned something about the dialect and the use of Black English.  Some of us enjoyed the new territory while others did not like how it would switch from one dialect to the other.  I found it interesting that most of us mentioned the author's unique style and how she used this as her means to develop the story.  Some of us found it harder to read while others of us found it intriguing and enjoyable.  I would like to add that we are all skeptics of one, some, or all of the characters in this book.  We question the choices that characters make and who should be trusted and who should not be.  Personally, I think that Hurston has done an excellent job to create that skeptism in her book of her characters.  We all chose characters that we questioned and did not trust whether that be by their decisions or by their descriptions.  Another theme that came up in our blogs was the idea about love and the love between Janie and her 3 husbands.  To begin with, Logan was the security that Janie's grandmother wanted for her and she did not love him or want to be with him so she up and decides to go marry Joe.  Some of the blogs talked about how she lost her identity to these two men and as time went on she gained maturity and wisdom that she carries over into her marriage with Tea Cake.  The last theme that our blogs have in common are the ideas about sexism and racism.  Most of us agree that the book shifts from focusing on sexism and racism throughout the book.  Sexism dealt with the security issue and Janie finding it and how their society was hung up on a woman being married in order to "identify" and secure herself.  Racism was dealt with through Mrs. Turner and the Indians as well as other racial comments scattered throughout the story.  I cannot say that we all agree about these topics but I find that refreshing that we all can look on these matters from different lenses from our own opinions and experiences.

TEWWG -End, Steinbeck

Well, this definitely was not what I was expecting, yet looking back at the book these last couple chapters have numerous things that were foreshadowed for.  To just name a few the fact that she kills Tea Cake with a gun and that he turns into a wild dog.  The imagery in these chapters are are just as inspiring as the rest of the chapters.  One part that really stuck out at me was after Janie’s trial she is declared innocent, “The sun was almost down and Janie had seen the sun rise on her troubled love and then she had shot Tea Cake and had been in jail and had been tried for her life and now she was free” (Hurston p. 179).  I feel as if the sun is an image of her identity—her spirit.  She mentions her freedom each time she is no longer with a man.  Hurston ends the book with “She pulled in her horizon like a great fish-net” (p. 184).  I am not sure what I make of this last reference, perhaps we will discuss it further in class.

            I thought it was interesting how this book is more about gender problems and yet race is sprinkled throughout—especially at the end.  Tea Cake makes racist comments towards some Indians that were leaving the area because of the hurricane.  He thinks that they are not smart enough and are socially lower than blacks.  The trial was interesting from a racial viewpoint and the comment about white men and black women being able to “get away” with more. 

            All in all I think it was a good book, but I think I would like to read it again.  I think it might be beneficial to read it once more—I feel like the book had so much going on I couldn’t pick everything up.

            I especially enjoyed the poems by Steinbeck.  Nothing against the earlier poets but I feel like these were easier to understand and had better imagery.  They were personal histories and stories that could be understood and empathized with.

TEWWG Chapters 11-16

Well, I can remember the beginning of the book began with Janie coming back from the place that she is going to in these chapters so this must be where the story ends.  I really liked the part about how Tea Cake taught Janie how to shoot a gun and she actually becomes better at it than him.  I could be totally wrong but I feel a sort of foreshadowing in this part.  He talks about how she has to learn how to shoot a gun even if it’s to kill someone who deserves it—seems like she might someday possibly. 

I cannot believe that Janie just forgives Tea Cake after he leaves her for a day and a night when he was only getting fish.  He was out spending her money and having fun without even consulting her.  Now, maybe I’m just being a girl but I would be angry.  She seemed a little upset at first when he finally told her but then she just brushed it off—seriously?  I would be worried sick and here he is just out spending her money.  Well, after this incident he so far seems like a better man for her, up until the incident with the younger girl that flirts with him.  She had every right to be jealous.  I was kind of sad when there wasn’t even a fight—Janie just runs home.  I’d be mad if some woman started making moves my husband.

More beautiful imagery in these chapters but there was one that stood out to me on pg. 122.  “So her sould crawled out from its hiding place” (Hurston).  I love the imagery of her being trapped with the other men not being allowed to show her true identity and freedom.  With Tea Cake she is allowed to show openly her feelings and her true self.

Their Eyes were Watching God--Chapters 6-11

I am going to be honest and say that the last few chapters that we were assigned kind of bored me.  The chapters about Janie and Joe and how he simply puts her down and orders her around like a pack mule—seems like he is her master and she is the slave that listens.  Nanny had told Janie about the white man giving the burden to the black man and then the black man hands it to the black woman—seems like the first one was cut out of this picture.  The romanticized Joe is gone and now he is a bitter old man that wants his way and has placed himself upon a pedestal.  Whenever she tries to confront him about it he just makes her feel bad.  He becomes physically abusive to her as well.  It seems like she lets people walk all over her until that one day when she actually gets the nerve to stand up for herself.  But then of course he cannot take what he dishes out and becomes sick and eventually dies.  To be honest—Good Riddance!

She finally gains a little independence and allows herself some freedom from the opposite sex to be her own person.  However, like a typical story another man walks by her and she becomes love struck once more and begins to fall for him.  If this story is like any other typical story it does not take a genius to figure out what’s going to happen.  Especially, from the beginning clues that are in the first chapter—seems like a cycle to me.  I am not saying that I don’t like the novel it has just been very predictable so far but I won’t judge it until the end!

Their Eyes were Watching God---Chapters 1-5

The first five chapter of Their Eyes were Watching God was a little difficult to get into the story during the first few pages.  After the first chapter I began to find in easier to read but I also found the writing strange and different.  The novels that I usually read are linear and this book is non-linear so far.  The book bounces around from Nanny’s story, to present day, and to Janie’s past.  While there is character development, the development seems different from what I am used to.  I do think the book is, so far, compelling and hooks the reader into the narrative.  It took a few pages to get into the style of the dialogue that the characters are talking in.  The dialogue reminded me of Huckleberry Finn because it’s that southern dialogue.  I will admit that it took me a few pages to figure out the main character was black.  I did not figure it out until the main character mentions her skin color in one of her early childhood stories. 

So far in only the first five chapters I can already see the tension of the old south and the new south.  The grandma is trying to marry off her granddaughter so that she will have a stable home, not for love.  Janie does not want to marry because she would rather look up at the pear tree.  The book mentions slavery and how towns are being made with only blacks.  Joe takes this opportunity and further establishes a town.  However, now the tension of black folk bossing around other blacks seems to make tensions rise.  It’s no longer a problem of skin color, but rather of wealth and who has the power.

Hemmingway, Eliot, Faulkner

            Ernest Hemmingway’s “The Snows of Kilimanjaro” reminded me of “To Build a Fire” in a sense that they were both trying to survive the outdoor elements.  They also both have unresolved endings which I think are interesting. 

I also thought that Eliot’s “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” was strange especially after talking about it in class.  When I first read the poem I thought it was odd how the writer’s attitude towards his lover and himself changes.  At first he seemed to have confidence and then it begins to fade.  He talks about cheap hotels, which I thought was especially funny, and in the end drowning.  The whole idea of irony really paints a complete picture of the love song.  Like we talked about in class the title itself is ironic and seems more like a business type title rather than someone writing a love letter.  Half way through his love song he simply gives up on his love because he believes that he is insufficient and insignificant.  It seems that Eliot used modernism and irony both within his poem.  The whole question of “you and I” seems to raise a question like we talked about in class.  He sees himself as two potential visions: one that he will get his love and the other that he will never get his love.  He is not sure of who he is and there is an uncertainty of communication.

Faulkner’s “Rose for Emily” is interesting because it is non-linear and jumps around with the story.  The tension between old south and new south seems to be centered around Ms. Emily and the town.  Through taxes, smells, and other problems the question of values and tradition seem to butt heads against new culture of the town and more importantly of the south.  The town was becoming modernized and Ms. Emily holds on to what was and what she knew.

Modernism, Frost, Wallace

Modernism brings new ideas, innovations, and literature.  It's out with the old grand myths and grand narratives and into the new and modern culture.  Literature uses fragments and stories can have no resolution and are discordant.  WWI comes and eventually leads into the Great Depression which then leads into WWII and women's rights.  Urbanization is booming along with the Great Migration and Harlem Renaissance.  Urbanization brings industrialization and technology such as the automobile and airplanes. 

“Good fences make good neighbors,” is one of the most famous lines from Robert Frost’s Mending Wall.  The poem mentions challenging tradition.  The neighbor is simply “going through the motions” and like an archaic ignorant fool.  The man is sneaky and has an obvious lack of intelligent thought since he is attempting to use a fence to separate their trees.  The author believes that there was a time when people needed them but the man was simply doing it out of tradition and not using his brain.  Frost’s other poem The Road not Taken confused me a little, even after our discussion in class.  I understand that the man was trying to be independent and was reminiscing on the past but also looking to the future.  The paths are the same that he is looking down and that there is not one that is better.  The rest is a little confusing with the whole “nostalgia” and “nostalgia importance.”

Wallace Steven’s poem Sunday Morning especially intrigued me because the first time that I read it I found it interesting that Stevens decided to use both pagan and Christianity in his poem.  The woman’s whole take on paradise is very interesting especially for this time period with modernism.  It was always thought of as the ultimate reward after death—now Stevens challenges this with the idea that beauty is around people while they are alive and death brings that beauty to an end so we must enjoy it while we are alive and not waste it.  The grand myth of Christianity is challenged.

London, Crane, Dreiser

            Within three of the stories that we read for Thursday seemed to have the same theme woven within them; survival.  Sister Carrie dealt with Carrie trying to find a job in order to survive in Chicago.  She persevered through the struggles of the big city and rejection from the various shops that she tried to apply to for employment.  At the end she does find a job, although it is not the pay that she had wished it would be.  The Open Boat is not just one character surviving but a whole crew that are on a boat.  They persevere through the many trials and difficulties on the ocean.  In the end, all of them except for one find help and end up surviving.  To Build a Fire also contains the death of the main character; however, his companion does survive through the excursion. 

            I found these stories interesting especially the way that each one ends—considering that they are written during the Realism and Naturalism period.  I think that these three stories marginally show the harsh realities of life that draws from the Realism aspect.  While The Open Boat does have a death occurring at the end it seems highly improbable that all others should survive—epically the captain who was injured.  What’s even more surprising is that none of the crew dies from the freezing temperatures and being splashed with water.  Also, the story never mentions the crew eating anything, only drinking whisky, and it seems unlikely that the men would be able to be burning so much energy and not eating anything. 

Sister Carrie, on the other hand, paints a very real picture of how difficult it was for people, especially women, to find jobs in Chicago if they have no previous experience.  I think in America this is still a real dilemma because businesses do not want to take time to train people to do the job so they will look for people with experience.  However, how can someone gain experience if they are not given the chance?  

Booker T. Washington- "Up from Slavery"

                It’s interesting reading this excerpt right after reading The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn because that novel dealt with the issue of slavery and the relations between white and blacks—blacks being less equal than whites.  Booker T. Washington was asked to make a speech and in his speech he mentions the tensions between blacks and whites.  He begins his speech with an story about dropping one’s bucket down to others—whites need to drop their buckets to blacks.  Washington was trying to challenge their old convictions about blacks not being their equal brethren.  Each race needs to realize that neither blacks nor whites are superior to either one.  Washington states, “nor should we permit our grievances to overshadow our opportunities.”  If they allow their old tensions to outweigh new experiences, then they will never experience life at its fullest.

            Washington continues by speaking about how blacks need to drop their buckets to other blacks.  They must encourage one another; just like we as Americans must also.  In America today we often talk about being proud of our heritage and our freedom as a people.  While we can or cannot be at times friendly to those who come from other countries we also must stand strong next to our culture and our people.  For example, instead of assuming the worst in someone instead assume the best of them and the worst in the situation.  We need to give more credit to people rather than looking at them from negative lenses. 

            During his speech Washington has one key idea that has been his platform which is “which blacks and whites can stand with full justice to each other.”  Now, for this time or for the present the aspect of justice can be very subjective—especially for an individual.  Most people believe that they, in fact, are right—they are morally making the right choices.  This makes it considerable more complicated and more difficult to find the real meaning and true justice.

Chapters 37-43

            The ending to this novel seemed, like we discussed in class, more romanticized than realistic.  Jim is freed and given money—he also is treated like a king and given money.  Whether it is prior or after the civil war it does not seem realistic as to how African Americans were treated.  It seems like a feel-good ending with Jim and Huck making plans to go on another adventure with no repercussions.  These guys have been lying to everyone and it seems that they are not punished in the least bit for what they did. 

The fact that Pap died I was not expecting to happen—yet again a problem that Huck will no longer have to deal with.  I did not pick up on the foreshadowing back in earlier chapters when Jim tells Huck not to look at the face of the body that was floating in the house.  My question is what Pap’s body was doing there in the first place; perhaps I need to go back and read it again.  I actually read this book in high school and I do not remember Pap dying when I read it the first time.

It seems the second part of Huckleberry Finn is used as a social commentary that Twain is making on society of the time—especially of the African Americans.  Perhaps he was being hopeful for blacks that they would be treated equally one day and as whites were treated in that day. 

Chapters 25-37

            There seems to be a pattern in Huck Finn: more lying and more deceit.  I know that at the beginning of the novel it has the caution sign about not finding a moral in the book but it seems strange since there is so much lying in it.  There’s Jim who is an escape slave who is running away from his master; however, his master was going to try and sell him for her own gain.  There’s also Huck who is running away from the widow, who provided and educated him, and from his Pap who abused him.  Huck lies to the old lady and anyone that he meets on the river about his identity and who Jim is. 

Finally, there is the duke and dauphin who con Jim and Huck into thinking that they are royalty as well as when they are doing their plays.  Then the two con the town into thinking that they are Wilks’ old relatives and end up getting a large sum of money.  All of these moral issues are problems that Huck seems to be wrestling with as he tries to find what he should let bother him and what he should ignore and go along with—such as the duke and dauphin. 

Jim becomes more honest and confides in Huck about how he beat his daughter—he feels guilty for what he did and seems to not be able to forgive himself because he is still not with his family.  He forgives Huck for playing tricks on him and lying to him though.  While he does have superstitions and believes in magic, his morality seems to be leaning towards Christian principles.

Chapters 18-24

            The idea of Emmeline seemed very strange and interesting all the same.  She is only given a small section, yet it seems odd that she is mentioned at all and that Huck is so intrigued by her.  She made strange artwork and seems comical; even though her death is a morbid subject.  This makes me contemplate whether Twain was using her as comical relief; however, the seriousness that Huck sees the artwork is possibly a way of him realizes and having first-hand experience with death. 

Sophia’s love life seems like a parody for Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet from the family rivalry.  The two families are feuding and there is an unspoken love between the young couple so they run away in order to keep their love alive.  Also, the fact that the “duke” and “dauphin” decide to put on a Shakespeare play just alluding more to Twain’s purpose for the Shepherds and Grangerfords.  The two practice a scene from Romeo and Juliet that comes from the balcony scene; simply directing more attention to the parody.

Chapter 6-17

     In class on Thursday we talked about Huck's father and his personality.  Whether he was being selfish, protective, or something else all together.  Chapter 6 begins with Pap taking Huck away and locking him in a cabin; beating on him and getting drunk.  While I realize before he may have had his reasons for taking him out of school to possibly keep Huck similar to himself and shelter him from the educated society, beating Huck senseless is not being protective regardless.
       He left his son for days locked up and then went on tangents about the government and blacks.  While I have read Huckleberry Finn previously I had not noticed previously that this may have been used as a foreshadowing.  Pap went off about how blacks were getting rights to vote and how he couldn't stand it--later on Huck finds Jim and the two become comrades.  This friendship seems to be an oxymoron as well since Huck and Jim take care of each other as they drift down the river; even though he grew up with the mentality that blacks should be treated as property.  In chapter 16, Huck seems to change and question what he had been doing.  He had been raised by both his Pap and the widow to view blacks as slaves and property; not free men.  While Huck does "tease" and kid around with Jim he never really treats him as less than himself.  They work together as a team to survive.  It seems strange that all of a sudden his attitude changes and he feels guilty for helping Jim.  He stole, lied, and is helping an escapee; perhaps his conscience is beginning to catch up with him.

Huckelberry Finn: Introduction and Chapters 1-5

       This interm I took a class called banned books and Huckleberry Finn was actually a text that we discussed.  Just like the introduction mentions it is the 5th most banned book in America; even though it is a classic.  Some of the issues with the book deal with racial issues and language.  In my other class we talked about how a group of teachers actually rewrote the book and substituted words for "nigger" that were more "appropriate".  These teachers felt that the students would not be able to handle the words or that there could even possibly be some violence that may ensue if these words were not changed.
      Chapter two seemed to stick out most for me because of the forming of "the gang".  I thought it was interesting how these boys followed Tom so willingly and where Tom got all of his ideas from.  When anyone questioned Tom's reasoning he simply replied that he got it from a book and that they had to go "by the book".  Everything from killing to robbery.