Reflection

Well, since I seem to be the only student in this class who doesn't seem to be majoring in any type of English, I will confess that I randomly took this class because I am waiting to get into the Nursing program and have already taken everything I needed to.  I also have always enjoyed English and writing my own fictional stories.  Overall, this class was not at all what I expected.  I'm used to the more traditional text book version of interpreting literature.  I guess I was pleasantly surprised.  It definitely helped me to grow because I have never looked at literature in this light.  

I found that the text I responded best to, and did my best response paper on, was the hardest one.....Shakespeare.  I don't know why I like his plays because I don't understand them most of the time.  For some reason it just provokes a lot of thought from me.  There weren't really any works that I absolutely hated that we read.  If I had to pick I would say I struggled the most with the poetry.  I've never really been a big fan and certainly can't write my own.

As far as graphic novels, I honestly didn't know they existed until now.  I knew of comic books but I didn't know there were novels that were all in pictures.  While I do enjoy them and they are a very quick read, I still have to say I prefer to read regular novels because I like to use my imagination as far as what the characters and settings look like.

I have never blogged in a class before and it was definitely something I enjoyed.  I like that I can just write what's on my mind.  If I had to pick one thing I didn't enjoy, besides being here at 8:00am....was speaking in class because I don't like to.  I try and I have gotten better but I would rather not. :-)

Like I said earlier, I feel as if I did do a lot of growing in this course.  I would say I feel better prepared to think critically about literature because now I am familiar with doing it the textbook way and the way I experienced here.  I can't really say I was hoping for anything in particular when I came out of this class so I guess I can't say I was hoping for more. :-)

Dream Country and A Midsummer Night's Dream

After reading the excerpt from Dream Country, I formed a few different opinions about A Midsummer Night's Dream.  First of all, I used to like Puck.  After seeing this image of him I think he looks scary and that is not what I pictured at all.  Secondly, there was a particular quote made by Titania that read, "We thank you shaper.  But this diversion, although pleasant, is not true.  Things never happened thus."  It seems as if Gaiman is almost challenging Shakespeare and saying to readers that these mythical creatures do exist but they have a different story.  I kind of wish he would have gone into more detail about really happened.  So, in a way, Gaiman's interpretation destroyed the classic.  It forced readers to look another direction and wonder what his version of the story was.

Poor Helena...

In Act 2, Scene 2 of A Midsummer Night's Dream, Helena spoke to herself in the forest after Demetrius left her to go find Hermia.  From this speech I gathered that Helena was doing a lot of whining.  While all that happened to her is unfortunate and sad, she sure seemed to complain about it often.  She said she was "out of breath in this fond chase."  I think that she meant overall and not just chasing her love through the forest that night.  She was just getting sick of running after someone who wanted nothing to do with her.  After she said that she started to ramble about how beautiful Hermia was, her eyes in particular, and how she, personally, was as "ugly as a bear."  She thought that Hermia's eyes were only as bright as they were because they hadn't been faded by tears like her own.  She expressed that she is not surprised that Demetrius runs away from her when Hermia is so beautiful.  She then ends with saying that there must have been some sort of evil mirror that lied to her, telling her that she could compete with Hermia.  Overall, I do feel bad for her.  After all, Demetrius did love her first.  Yet, she constantly talked about herself and how horrible she had it.  She should have said that she was too good for Demetrius!

Titania and Oberon?

Even though this play is rather hard to follow, as most of...actually all of the works of Shakespeare's are, this is probably one of my favorites. Even though it starts with some problems for each of the couples it all works out in the end and they all seem to have a good start for "happily ever after." I was, however, a little confused about the relationship between Titania and Oberon. From my interpretation, I gathered that they used to be married and happy but then they ended up on each other's bad side due to the fact the Oberon was jealous of the Indian boy that Titania kidnapped from a king. Oberon wanted the boy for himself but Titania refused. (according to Act 2 scene 1). So...Oberon "drugged" Titania with the magic flower and she awoke to Bottom, with the donkey head, and fell in love. During that time, Oberon managed to trick her into handing over the boy. She was so in love with Bottom that her judgement was blinded and she just gave him up. Then, Oberon reversed the "spell" and Titania loved him again. I believe they got back together and stopped arguing after this incident. If I were Titania I would be slightly angry. My husband drugged me, made me fall in love with a donkey, and stole my child. I would not just fall back in love with him like nothing ever happened. Unless...I didn't remember anything. I'm not sure if he erased her memory or what. Regardless, even if she didn't remember the nights events.....wouldn't she wonder where the child went?

Changed my mind...new thesis

Ok.....scratch the last thesis post. I think I now want to write about education and how it shaped Marjane's life. It's going to be something along the lines of "Education played an important role in Marjane's upbringing and shaped who she is today"...but it will be a little more fancy and hopefully sound more intelligent. Yes? No? Maybe?

Thesis........

I'm thinking about analyzing how Marjane's view of men during her life shaped her relationships with men as an adult. However, I have been trying to research it and am having trouble finding much information. Anyone have any suggestions? Should I change my thesis? I don't know!

Persepolis Part 1

On page 95 of Persepolis there is an image of Marjane and her classmates beating their chest as a daily ritual in their classroom. She said that this was their way of honoring those who had died at war. The next page showed some panels that described how some of the men went as far as to beat themselves with chains or even cut themselves with knives. These panels stuck out to me because I recently watched a show on the National Geographic Channel about different cultures and how they honored their war dead. Their was one country, I don't remember which, that once a boy was a certain age, which was not very old, they were allowed to buy razor blades which they held in the palm of their hands and slapped their chest with during an yearly ceremony. They felt that it was honorable to make themselves suffer like their ancestors in war had. It was a very powerful image after they were finished. There were young boys, around the age of ten maybe younger, that had blood gushing from hundreds of cuts on their chest. I realize this is something they believe is right to do, but it is an act I will never understand. Is it really necessary to injure oneself in order to honor those who have fallen in the name of country?

Connecting this to the war poems that we read, I once again am reminded of "War is Kind" by Stephen Crane. Judging from how Marjane's life is playing out, war only has a negative effect on one's being. It is not nice and caring or compassionate as something that is kind would be described. It is not kind to have to beat oneself to honor the dead. If a young boy's father died in battle, would he want his son to suffer physically? I would hope not. His father more than likely went to war so his family didn't have to suffer. Isn't saying a prayer to honor his memory enough?

Persepolis and Poetry

Before I get into what I think about Persepolis I want to express my reaction to the poem "War is Kind" by Stephen Crane. When I think of the word kind I think of pleasant and nice....someone or something that shows compassion towards others. So, how can war be kind? I see nothing nice about describing "corpses." It is as if Crane was trying to be sarcastic about war in general. He is pointing out the most grim and morbid aspects of the matter and then, shortly after, repeating the phrase "War is Kind." This poem really made me stop and think.

Now......Persepolis....I'm not sure how I feel about it. I don't like it...but I don't dislike it either. It is not literature that I would normally pick out to read at all. When I first started reading it I thought that it wouldn't be able to hold my attention. To my surprise, I actually have had a problem putting it down at certain points. I certainly gives me a different perspective on the people of Iran. We here in the United States only get to see a certain image of that area. Persepolis gives a glimpse into something we dont see every day and I like that.

More Blankets

On page 420 in Blankets the first panel actually made me say, "Oh no, the alarm clock!" outloud. This is what I kept thinking about all the way up to page 437 when the clock showed up again. Throughout their entire "romantic experience" all I could think was "please dont fall asleep...the alarm clock is off!" I know it sounds funny but I really got into this book.

Throughout all of the literary pieces we have read, I have noticed a very common theme. American Born Chinese, Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit, and Blankets each have a character or characters that seem to be on a path of self discovery. Though they all grow older and come closer to finding who they are they all seem to remain haunted by their past. In American Born Chinese, this is less obvious because the end is more of a reconciliation between the friends and we dont see what happens next. Jeanette, from Oranges, and Craig, from Blankets, both grow into adulthood with a different outlook on their lives and faith. They both, however, cant escape reminders of thier past. Jeanette is reminded by her mother and Craig by the quilt Raina made. In The Bluest Eye, Pecola also grows and changes but in a different way. She is not only haunted by her past but it has consumed her to the point that she may never find herself.

Belief (oops...almost got lost in my notebook)

Since I can remember I have always been a Christian. Not only was I raised to be one by my family but also, as I grew old enough to form my own opinions, chose to stick with my faith. When I was a child my parents and other relatives shaped my beliefs. Throughout adolescence I had close friends that went to church. However, I would consider myself my personal greatest belief shaper because I ultimately make the decisions in my life. I can chose whether or not to listen and be influenced. My belief system started being challenged in high school when everyone was really starting to form their individualities. Some of my classmates would argue my points and some of what they said did make sense. I didn't change my mind whatsoever because I believe what I know in my heart to be true. What I found interesting in Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit is the idea of Jeanette's mother and the oranges. She was always giving her oranges until the end of the novel they began discussing pineapple and her mother said, "After all, oranges are not the only fruit." It almost seems like her belief system was altered with the actions of her daughter. In the beginning it was oranges and only oranges, the only way to go. At the end she thought, well, pineapple might be alright too. The oranges are also an example of foreshadowing. One part of the novel describes Jeanette's demon as being orange. Maybe the oranges continue to be introduced in order to symbolize her demon always being with her.

Blanket's Panel

First of all I'd like to say that I have really enjoyed this story thus far.  It is a really fast read and the story actually sucked me in right away.  I didn't want to stop reading half way through but I made myself because I didn't want to get confused when we discussed it in class today.  If I know what happens I always seem to want to bring it into discussion.  Anyway......

The first set of panels that I really liked were on page 132.  Craig described how his brother and he used to "challenge" themselves to walk across the snow without breaking through it.  He says that "Late in the winter season, the top snow would melt and refreeze, forming a crispy coating on the deeper snow.  It was most awkward to walk upon 'cuz it didn't give way like regular snow, and didn't support one like ice."  The reason I wanted to discuss this event is because trying to walk on the snow and not break it something I distinctly remember as a child.  My friends and I would try to make ourselves as weightless as we could.  Sometimes we could make a couple of steps successfully but it as always ended the same way as shown in the fifth panel on page 132.  When he breaks through the top layer the word "CRUNCH" is spelled out in huge letters.  When I read that, I could actually hear the sound and feel it under my feet.

How does Blankets form a literary conversation with Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit?  Well, they both deal with religious subject matter.  Jeanette's mother seems to be a lot more strict then Craig's though.  Also, Craig, like Jeanette, is an adolescent trying to find his place in the world but not quite fitting in.

Will you play with Jane?

The beginning of The Bluest Eye holds a very interesting couple of pages. They tell the story of "Mother, Father, Dick, and Jane" who live in a green and white house that has a red door and is pretty. They have a dog and a cat and seem to be very happy overall. Yet, the question that continues to pop up in this cheerful story is "Who will play with Jane?" I noticed that as all of the good descriptions are being presented that questions keeps breaking through. It is there but almost ignored and pushed aside. Jane asks everyone to play, but does anyone really stop to play with her? This story reappears throughout the book, usually at the beginning of chapters. I think that the author, Toni Morrison, is trying to force the reader to remember the words and connect them to the book in general. Could this story be Pecola's internal struggle with wanting so badly to be a child who plays all day? However, she cannot because her surrounding force her to grow up.

Thesis for Paper #1

I want to write about something pertaining to the Breedlove family and how their name contradicts the general perception the reader gets of them. I just dont know how to word it. Any ideas?

Texts in Conversation

When I read through Ralph Waldo Emerson's piece from his "Self-Reliance" essay about trusting thyself, it was as if it fit perfectly with "American Born Chinese." The whole story wraps around the idea that we are who we are and we were made that way for a reason. The quote "Accept the place the divine has providence has found for you" is the exact concept the characters in the book struggle to come to an understanding of. The monkey wants to be a king even though he was brought into the world as a monkey. He eventually learns that this is what he is and to accept it. Jin wants so badly to just fit in with everyone else in his school. He stands out and is made fun of because he is Chinese. When he wakes up and finds that he has transformed in to the typical blonde, blue-eyed boy next door he is pleased and tries to deny who he truly is. His cousin Chin-kee is a constant reminder to him that he wants to escape from. I believe what Emerson meant by writing that great men "predominate in all their being" was the fact that if one embraces who he truly is he will go farther and truly dominate the position of being himself and reach his greatest potentil.

American Born Chinese pt.1

My initial impression of this book was "This is kind of a weird book to be reading, it looks like it's for kids." However, as I continued reading it I got sucked in and couldn't stop. I ended up reading the whole thing in one sitting. So, I'm going to try to only talk about the first half even though I know what happens throughout the entire book. I liked how there was a transition between three completely different stories. The one that I found the most interesting was the boy, Jin Wang, who moved to a new school and his trials of fitting in with that environment. I chose a few panels from the this story to focus on in order to really analyze it piece by piece. Pages 27-29 are a great example of multimodal learning. This scene reveals Jin's experience in the waiting room of the Chinese Herbalist his mother would visit for her allergies. He describes how he listened to the sound of the abacus the Herbalist's wife used to calculate bills. The next panel focuses on the abacus only and "click, clack, clack" is written across the panel. When I read this I could definitely here it immediately. When she stopped to ask him what he wanted to be when he grew up it stopped and picked right back up when the conversation ended. The first panel on page 29 was the most dramatic overall. The "click, clack, clack" stopped a few panels before, she reveals that she has a secret and then.....there is a close up of here face along with a black background to had intensity. What she is saying is very important. It even resonates into the next panel where little Jin is just sitting a staring. You can almost here a nervous "gulp." In the last panel, the Herbalist's wife just goes back to working on her abacus like nothing ever happened.

bell hooks

I don't really even know where to start. She spoke about a lot of very interesting subject matter throughout the clips. In the first part she made the statement that someone who thinks critically can transform regardless of what their background or current situation might be. I believe that an upper middle class individual and a person the grew up in an inner city can have equal amounts of success if they have the drive. If one doesn't think critically about life and what they have to do to rise above their situation...then...of course they wont go anywhere. Does that make sense? An individual who has all the privileges the world has to offer can still fall flat on their face if they don't want something bad enough.

My Analysis of American Gothic

I have seen this painting many times in my life yet I have never really had the chance to give my interpretation of it until now. Everyone tries to pick it apart and analyze every inch of it but, what if it isn't meant for such things? What if it was supposed to be a glimpse into the life of an American family. Thats it. Yes, the house in the background as a strong, angular roof....but do you see many houses with round roofs? This is just a normal home. The colors in the background are also very light and happy. This isn't a tense environment. Yes, the man seems to be standing in front of the woman which does clue the viewer into him being more dominant. He seems to be the leader and provider. Considering that this was painted many years ago, this is not a surprising concept. As far as the woman looking off to the side...well...it might be to show that she is the follower. However, she might be keeping a watchful eye on her children playing in the distance.

Real Books??

What is a real book? Well, it can be many things depending on who you ask. There isn't a set of guidelines hidden somewhere saying what makes a book. I believe that all books are real, it just depends on the audience. Different types of books are appealing to different types of people. Their are children's books that have lots of pictures and color which helps them, being at a young age, to learn and associate words with images. There are books for the older child and pre-teen group, which are simple in their format but lack graphics. So, as we grow and develop we gain experience reading both books with and without pictures. Therefore, as an adult, we are experienced in reading both so we can chose what we would like to pick up. Personally, I enjoy novels that go on for hundreds of pages but I occasionally like to just pick up something that is simple with graphics. There is nothing wrong with that at all. It only becomes questionable when one can only read book with pictures because this is all they know.

Multimodality

I found this article to be very thought provoking. As a pre-nursing student I have taken many science classes that use the multimodal approach to learning. Instead of just listening and taking notes, we have labs where we can actually physically do the experiments that are talked about in textbooks. All of these approaches to learning are very diverse. Some people are visual, some can just listen to a professor speak and completely understand the topic, and others are more hands on. I think it is really important to learn from various methods in order to completely understand a topic. As far as "multisemiotics" and "multiliteracies" go, well....... to be honest, I am slightly confused about this whole topic in general. I don't want to go on writing about something I don't completely understand. Hopefully, my confusion will be clarified a little bit during class discussion.

What is an American?

What is an American? Well, this question definitely will bring up a variety of opinions from different people. Personally, I feel that an American is someone who not only lives in the United States, but is proud to be able to travel anywhere in the world and say that they are an American. They should stand behind their country no matter what the situation and never turn their back on it. Though there are many controversial issues at the forefront in the United States today, a true American should never be ashamed of who they are and where they came from. There are many countries where people are constantly suffering because they lack the freedom that we all overlook so easily. The poem "I Hear America Singing" is a perfect example of pride in one's country. It reveals that no matter the job someone works hard at every day, we each sing the same tune. Though we are all unique individuals we all have one thing in common and that is that we are all Americans.

Two Theories for 9/8/08

Though each of the theories were interesting in their own unique way, the two that stood out most to me were Biographical and Pop Culture. Before I read my first biography I thought that they might not be something I would enjoy. However, after completeing my first book, which was a detailed story of the life of Malcolm X, I found that I was very wrong. It is amazing to learn where someone who made such a dramatic difference in our history came from and the struggles they went through to get where they are today.
The Pop Culture theory is equally as fascinating to me. Knowing what is going on in the world today is just as important as knowing about our history. Not to mention, though I do like learning about traditional views, contemporary is a little more interesting because I feel like I can relate to what is going on.