Matt's Blog

The Walk

2005-04-24T20:28:00.000-07:00

Another interesting poem. But it's hard to find the meaning! The Walk is about this woman who I believe was attacked while on a walk. Then she was taken to a hospital and is being worked on - but she doesn't make it. She dies. Now the whole time she is saying quotes as she is being worked on. And these quotes I reconsider as being from the Bible. So like the woman in the poem, this author is probably religious. But it makes me wonder why she used this religious under tone. Does it have something to do with the authors' personality transcended in her poem of this woman? I think so.

The Walk has two meanings. It's about a woman taking a walk in the woods in the beginning. Then, when she is dyeing, her transcendent "final" walk to heaven. This was one of the better poems we've read I thought - only because it wasn't too confusing to understand like some of the others we covered in class.

Baby Poems

2005-04-24T20:14:00.000-07:00

In the first poem "The. Open. Box." it seems as though the baby is interested in a fly that lands on the TV. Then the baby becomes involved with the what's on the TV - a tiger or something? The adults around the child are making baby noises and talking to him all the while the baby wants to be in the box! He/she is really into what is on the TV. It's a strange poems - I don't think I understand it completely. The second poem "Another Artifact." Is about baby playing with a doll of some sort. Then the mother takes it away from baby - and the rest of the poem is about this child wanting the doll back. Trying to make sense of why it was taken away. There was something about the baby's shirt being off - which I didn't make sense too. Another strange/awful/interesting poem.

But what I did pick up on, was the narrative identical in both poems. The thing is, there could easily be 3 narrators. In both stories the baby could have been telling the story, the baby at an older age could of also been telling the story, or even one of the parents and adults could of been narrating. These poems are difficult for me to understand - but when we went over that "narrative" idea in class it, that idea made sense to me.

The Invisible Man

2005-04-24T12:12:00.000-07:00

Well the assignment asked the question: "How can The Invisible Man be applied to the modern day?" Even though the black community is a minority in America, and they still have it harder than most americans, i feel as though Muslim americans have it harder. Especially in the aftermath of 9/11. I think everyone judges unfairly. We see someone's color and race before we take the time to know the person. A person could make could see a young black man with a child and think he's a degenerate, or a poor father. When really he's in the "Big Brother" program, trying to help society. I know i judge too fast when i see a Middle Eastern man or woman. it's hard not to.

So anyway, i would change the book by having the author be a 90 - 20 year old Muslim or middle eastern american. Instead of 50 years ago, the book would take place the following weeks and months following 9/11. I like the idea of the narrater being a strong public speaker, so i think i'll keep that. But he will speak about the injustice and discrimination his fellow Muslims are enduring. Asking for change, respect, and equality. My book wouldn't be as violent or even as discriminatory as the original IM, only because times like that will never be repeated. So finally, i think Muslims have it pretty hard here in America. Although it compares it to treatment of blacks in the 1930's, 40's, and 50's - it doesn't completely represent it. Times will never be as they were thanx to discrimination laws - again because OF the black civil rights movement in the 1960's.

Foreign Ideologies in Allende's Novel

2005-03-29T20:55:00.000-08:00

In Allende's novel there are foreign ideologies that render our own common sense. One of the biggest is the way Estavon doesn't believe in the marriage of different social classes. Now a days, it is completely normal for classes to interact and get married. Although, more often that not people do tend to marry within their own social class. But in present society they certainly do not scorn upon these marriages. Estavon believes that he is saving his family by not allowing his daughter to become involved with Pedro, a poor hard working man.

However, my common sence is not thrown into question. The novel did not make me think twice about where I stand on interracial or different classes getting married. If anything else, Allende's novel helped strengthen by position on the matter. However, I am a liberal - and i'm sure there are others who feel differently about the topic.

Blood Wedding

2005-02-13T16:48:00.000-08:00

Blood Wedding was a play about a small town marriage. I found there to be a lot of irony in the play. As well as a sense of fate. It was a tragic story in which the characters are seeming unable to escape their destinies. Being in part of group two, we asked the class what they though about the knives. What was their role in the story. It’s ironic that in the first scene the mother was so adamant of her son not carrying the knife. In the middle of the story when they discovered that the bride ran off with Felix, the mother was quick to form groups and organize a violent attack against Felix. Finally at the end, both her son and Felix end up killing each other with their knives. It seems almost that the mother is a preacher. She hates the idea of killing and fighting. But she was so quick to organize parties to kill Felix - but she is never the one doing the killing. In the last scene, the wife falls to her knees and throws herself at the mercy of the mother. Mother gets physical with her, but doe not kill her.

We also presented the question of the symbolism of the beggar woman and the moon. I felt the old woman was death, and the moon fate. I think the idea trying to be expressed was that fate and death work together sometimes. It leaves open the question: were the deaths of the groom and Felix preventable? One would like to think so, that ones fate is what he makes of it. But then again, isn’t fate that which will happen but we can’t control? Perhaps both these men and their families were doomed in fate, similar to Montagues and Copulates in Romeo and Juliet.

The Awakening

2005-02-07T16:39:00.000-08:00

This is a story about adultery, suicide, and finding oneself. The book is about Edna, a young woman and her transition if you will. She’s lives a wealthy life with beautiful children. Yet, she is sad. She finds herself living a meaningless life. And that’s what the book deals with, Edna finding herself - her true self. The title of course can be taken subjectively, personally I think Edna has a few awakenings. Perhaps the “push over the cliff” was when she started desiring another man, Robert.

It wasn’t until the middle of the book, when Chopin successfully developed the character of Mdm Ratignolle. I realized the difference between the two ladies, Mdm Ratignolle plays the piano for her family and children. She plays for the sole reason of their happiness. Edna was a painter, and not a very good one at that. She thought only of herself it seems. She put more of her time into what she wanted to do over the happiness of others. "' I would give up the inessential; I would give up my money, I would give my life for my children; but I wouldn't give up myself'" (pg.47) There were a lot of references to the ocean. How she almost drowned in the beginning, and then finding solidarity and reassurance on the beach when she paints. It seems only fitting that she drowns herself.

Finally, her death at the end. Is this awakening a product of own conscience will? Perhaps her self realization is the end result of something she can’t control? I would like to think that she chose her own path. I put myself in the story and I’ve decided that we can’t help the awakenings in our own life. An event so small as being told the Easter Bunny isn’t real for example. Or a life changing event, like having a child. However, her suicide at the end isn’t because of her awakenings. That was her choice. Her decision. She chose to end her life early and take the easy road. Life deals you some hard hands now and then - don’t be so quick to fold.

The Yellow Wallpaper

2005-01-24T16:55:00.000-08:00

First and foremost, did not care for this story. Actually, I hated it. Couldn’t really get into it. Just something about the premise - when I first read it I wasn’t sure if she was crazy or not. And it really seemed more like a diary than a short story. Seemed like Gilman was almost venting about a time period in her life. Again, like a diary; the only thing missing were the dates! I thought it was choppy - but when I read why she wrote it, the story line was a bit more clear. We discussed in our group that this was a radical storyline for women back in the 18th century. It was a drastic thing for this book to be publicized at the time. The pretence for women were they should be submissive, barefoot, and pregnant. I’m sure there was a worry that women would read this story and be influenced.

In short, the storyline was choppy at best. If I weren’t to get the history on the story, I would have been completely lost. But even as I write this, I’m not all that sure I know exactly where I stand on this piece of literature…..

Douglass Narrative

2005-01-24T16:30:00.000-08:00

What was special about Douglass? What did he do that really stood out? This first assignment, reading his narrative, opened my eyes to what a pioneer the man really was. He was a slave who beat the system. Not through violence or uprising, he simply became educated. Douglass realized at a young age that education was power. Learning how to read and write was just the beginning to his life's struggle for equality. On another note, the narrative was meaningful to me because it was a narrative. Douglass wasn't writing a shirt story, or an entertaining novel - this was his life. he lived it. So when he made reference to situations of inhumane heartless acts and atrocities - is was as if you lived his life for a brief moment. I respect that, his struggle, and his life.

Douglass Narrative

2005-01-11T16:05:00.000-08:00

What a great story! I knew that he was a pioneer of civil rights, but reading about his life has really been interesting. The part that really stood out was in the beginning of the narrative. He describes a time in his life where he was witness to a terrible beating of a black man. It took place involving a white family who had 2 black slaves to look over the house choirs and what not. He remembered the "lady of the house" would beat on them so hard - and with no mercy or even cause! That part just really stuck out to me.

Another part was when he was still back on the plantation. There was this woman, his slave boss/master who Franklin said had the face of tranquility and the voice of an angel. She was the nicest thing in the world. But if you were to upset her - she would put on the face of that of a demon. Screaming, yelling, and beating. And how he was forbidden to read because it would make a good nigger useless!

I think that when the author writes a book about his own life, it has a much more profound effect on the reader than if someone else writes. at least for me, it just adds more to the story and draws u in more than if someone else wrote it. ESPECIALLY since he was told he couldn't read, and was told he would never read or write. Then he came out with his own book - it's really impressive. I can live vicariously through him in a life I would never live otherwise.