Gustavo Quintero
English 48B
February 27, 2008
Journal #33 Kate Chopin
Quote:
"How Mademoiselle Reisz would have laughed, perhaps sneered, if she knew!'And and call yourself an artist! What pretensions..."(Chopin 625).
Summary:
As Edna is about to die she has a multitude of thoughts going through her head. She thinks about her husband and children but most importantly she thinks about how Mademoiselle Reisz was right; she is the wounded bird.
Response:
Mademoiselle puts Edna in check by telling her that their is o use to her being pretentious. As I argued before I felt that Edna was trying to hard at reversing her gender role. Mademoiselle Reisz puts it perfectly by telling Edna earlier in the novel that she should not claim have qualities that she does not have. For example she begins to draw even though she is not a great artist. As I said before she is doing to many things at once. Few people see the hazard of what Edna is doing as does Mademoiselle Reisz. What I found strange about this novel is that it is not your typical romance novel. It does not have a happy ending where Edna and Robert form a loving relationship that lasts forever. Rather it ends with Robert telling Edna that they cannot be together and Edna committing suicide. This form of realism really helps give the novel a lot more depth and character. This novel acts as a textbook definition of what realism is, it exposes the harsh realities of the real world and it does not end with a cookie cutter happy ending. The ending is very dark and dismal. Although you could also argue that the ending serves as an ultimate expression of freedom. Edna's suicide frees her form all the problems and dilemmas that plague people in the real world. This novel serves as a tale of what can happen when a person falls in love with someone that is out of their reach. Ultimately Edna' affair is what kills her. I do want to point out how all of this may not fall completely on the shoulders of Edna. What if her husband had actually cared for her and not had went to the club every night. What if he would have actually shown his beautiful wife some affection. Would she still have strayed from her marriage or would she have lived happily ever after? Of course if she had lived happily ever after this would not have made for such a deep and great novel.
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Overestimating her strength
Gustavo Quintero
English 48B
February 27, 2008
Journal# 32 Kate Chopin
Quote:
"...overestimating her strength. She wanted to swim far out where no woman had swam before"(Chopin 556).
Summary:
Edna after taking many swimming lessons from everybody has finally overcome her fear of swimming and is swimming by herself. For the first time she is swimming without the aid of anybody.
Response:
I have to say that I have mixed feelings about Edna in, "The Awakening". I first I am glad that she is able to awaken to these new feelings and expressions as she has never been able to before but at the same time I feel she is trying to hard. What I mean by this is that she seems to be trying to get everybody's attention just a bit to hard. During the Victorian times that Edna lived in she is very much oppressed and expected to maintain her role in society. Her role is that of a mother. She is not expected to sway at all from this role. Throughout this novel we are confronted with gender roles, in particular female roles, that are set in stone. For example the woman are expected to stay faithful to their husbands and take care of their children and household. the men on the other hand are almost encouraged to have sex outside of the marriage. I personally do not fell this is right but I did grow up in a much different time than that of Chopin's novel. Edna begins to flirt with just about every young male character in the novel, while her husband continues to visit the "clubs". This newly found sexual freedom that Edna has found helps her open up in other parts of her life. She begins to take on painting, gambling and rebels against her husband. While all this is great for freeing Edna from her oppression it seems like she is trying to do way to much all at once. All of these awakenings follow up one after another. All leading to her eventual suicide. I am not saying that she should have accepted her role in society rather Edna should not have had her "hands in so many cookie jars". The one thing I do have to respect Edna for is her ability to see what her gender role was and to completely change it. She reminds me of Sylvia as the Geranium. At the beginning of the novel she is wilted and dying, by the end she has come full circle and has blossomed(although in this case the Geranium perishes).
English 48B
February 27, 2008
Journal# 32 Kate Chopin
Quote:
"...overestimating her strength. She wanted to swim far out where no woman had swam before"(Chopin 556).
Summary:
Edna after taking many swimming lessons from everybody has finally overcome her fear of swimming and is swimming by herself. For the first time she is swimming without the aid of anybody.
Response:
I have to say that I have mixed feelings about Edna in, "The Awakening". I first I am glad that she is able to awaken to these new feelings and expressions as she has never been able to before but at the same time I feel she is trying to hard. What I mean by this is that she seems to be trying to get everybody's attention just a bit to hard. During the Victorian times that Edna lived in she is very much oppressed and expected to maintain her role in society. Her role is that of a mother. She is not expected to sway at all from this role. Throughout this novel we are confronted with gender roles, in particular female roles, that are set in stone. For example the woman are expected to stay faithful to their husbands and take care of their children and household. the men on the other hand are almost encouraged to have sex outside of the marriage. I personally do not fell this is right but I did grow up in a much different time than that of Chopin's novel. Edna begins to flirt with just about every young male character in the novel, while her husband continues to visit the "clubs". This newly found sexual freedom that Edna has found helps her open up in other parts of her life. She begins to take on painting, gambling and rebels against her husband. While all this is great for freeing Edna from her oppression it seems like she is trying to do way to much all at once. All of these awakenings follow up one after another. All leading to her eventual suicide. I am not saying that she should have accepted her role in society rather Edna should not have had her "hands in so many cookie jars". The one thing I do have to respect Edna for is her ability to see what her gender role was and to completely change it. She reminds me of Sylvia as the Geranium. At the beginning of the novel she is wilted and dying, by the end she has come full circle and has blossomed(although in this case the Geranium perishes).
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Her first crush
Gustavo Quntero
English 48B
February 26, 2008
Journal #31 Sarah Orne Jewett
Quote:
"...Sylvia still watched the young man with loving admiration. She had never seen anybody so charming and delightful; the woman's heart, asleep in the child, was vaguely thrilled by the dream of love"(Jewett 526).
Summary:
Sylvia is overcoming her fear of people and has developed a crush on the young hunter.
Response:
This is the turning point for the novel and for Sylvia. She is overcoming her fear of people and has a crush on the hunter. This is a huge step for Sylvia especially considering that just a day earlier she was deathly afraid of the young hunter. The part I find a little strange is how Sylvia can find a man that is so crass and demanding as charming. When he first met Sylvia he basically demanded that she find him room and board. He also came off very aggressive to Sylvia grandmother. I do not know why she finds this man charming. Maybe she finds him charming because he is a very masculine man. Sylvia has never had any interaction with anyone let alone a man. This is why she develops this crush on him. His masculinity overwhelms her and she has feelings for him. It's as if the city she grew up in, repressed her so much that she was never able to develop feelings for the opposite sex. In the quote it says, "the woman's heart, asleep in the child", is ever important because Sylvia is craving affection. I almost think that she fantasizes about being swept off her feet by a knight on a horse. The typical fantasy that girls about her age fantasize about involves the princess and the knight. Now that she is not oppressed by the factory town she is free to explore the feelings of love and affection. I do not think that she is in love because she is to young to know what love is. Crush is the perfect description for what Sylvia feels for the young hunter because she is just beginning to express herself affectionatly and sexually. She has not yet fully matured sexually, although at the end of this story I think that Sylvia finds herself closer to full maturity.
English 48B
February 26, 2008
Journal #31 Sarah Orne Jewett
Quote:
"...Sylvia still watched the young man with loving admiration. She had never seen anybody so charming and delightful; the woman's heart, asleep in the child, was vaguely thrilled by the dream of love"(Jewett 526).
Summary:
Sylvia is overcoming her fear of people and has developed a crush on the young hunter.
Response:
This is the turning point for the novel and for Sylvia. She is overcoming her fear of people and has a crush on the hunter. This is a huge step for Sylvia especially considering that just a day earlier she was deathly afraid of the young hunter. The part I find a little strange is how Sylvia can find a man that is so crass and demanding as charming. When he first met Sylvia he basically demanded that she find him room and board. He also came off very aggressive to Sylvia grandmother. I do not know why she finds this man charming. Maybe she finds him charming because he is a very masculine man. Sylvia has never had any interaction with anyone let alone a man. This is why she develops this crush on him. His masculinity overwhelms her and she has feelings for him. It's as if the city she grew up in, repressed her so much that she was never able to develop feelings for the opposite sex. In the quote it says, "the woman's heart, asleep in the child", is ever important because Sylvia is craving affection. I almost think that she fantasizes about being swept off her feet by a knight on a horse. The typical fantasy that girls about her age fantasize about involves the princess and the knight. Now that she is not oppressed by the factory town she is free to explore the feelings of love and affection. I do not think that she is in love because she is to young to know what love is. Crush is the perfect description for what Sylvia feels for the young hunter because she is just beginning to express herself affectionatly and sexually. She has not yet fully matured sexually, although at the end of this story I think that Sylvia finds herself closer to full maturity.
Young Sylvia
Gustavo Quintero
English 48B
February 26, 2008
Journal #30 Sarah Orne Jewett
Quote:
"She did not dare to look boldly at the tall young man, who carried a gun over his shoulder, but she came out of her bush and again followed the cow, while he walked alongside"(Jewett 523).
Summary:
After Sylvia and the hunter have met for the first time, hunter demands for place to stay and for food. Sylvia takes him to her grandmothers house.
Response:
Here we see the first encounter between the hunter and Sylvia. Sylvia, deathly afraid of the young man, jumps into the bush with her cow at the sound of his whistle. The young man introduces himself and demands that Sylvia take him to a place for lodging and food. I found this quote to be important because it introduces us to a very defining trait that Sylvia shows. Since she is so shy and afraid of people she is always described as following people around. Here she is following the cow as she brings the man to her house. She never seems to lead the way. Later on on the story Sylvia is following the man around like a little dog. I think that this action says a lot about who Sylvia really is. She lacks so much confidence and self esteem that she can not even bring herself to walk in front of anybody and lead the way. She is always following behind someones footsteps. Here she finds herself not even able to lead the cow, her only friend. This story is a tale of growing up and sexual maturing. The contrast between Sylvia in the beginning of the story and the end is a stark difference. By the end of the story she finds herself with a confidence that she has never had before. This confidence is the most important thing that could have happened to Sylvia because it breaks her from the shy little girl into a a more mature girl with a new found confidence. The oppression and isolation that Sylvia experienced while in the factory town is completely rid of by the time that she spends among the rural country, it's animals and the unimposing environment.
English 48B
February 26, 2008
Journal #30 Sarah Orne Jewett
Quote:
"She did not dare to look boldly at the tall young man, who carried a gun over his shoulder, but she came out of her bush and again followed the cow, while he walked alongside"(Jewett 523).
Summary:
After Sylvia and the hunter have met for the first time, hunter demands for place to stay and for food. Sylvia takes him to her grandmothers house.
Response:
Here we see the first encounter between the hunter and Sylvia. Sylvia, deathly afraid of the young man, jumps into the bush with her cow at the sound of his whistle. The young man introduces himself and demands that Sylvia take him to a place for lodging and food. I found this quote to be important because it introduces us to a very defining trait that Sylvia shows. Since she is so shy and afraid of people she is always described as following people around. Here she is following the cow as she brings the man to her house. She never seems to lead the way. Later on on the story Sylvia is following the man around like a little dog. I think that this action says a lot about who Sylvia really is. She lacks so much confidence and self esteem that she can not even bring herself to walk in front of anybody and lead the way. She is always following behind someones footsteps. Here she finds herself not even able to lead the cow, her only friend. This story is a tale of growing up and sexual maturing. The contrast between Sylvia in the beginning of the story and the end is a stark difference. By the end of the story she finds herself with a confidence that she has never had before. This confidence is the most important thing that could have happened to Sylvia because it breaks her from the shy little girl into a a more mature girl with a new found confidence. The oppression and isolation that Sylvia experienced while in the factory town is completely rid of by the time that she spends among the rural country, it's animals and the unimposing environment.
Don't be afraid
Gustavo Quintero
English 48B
February 26, 2008
Journal #29 Sarah Orne Jewett
Quote:
"Afraid of folks,'they said! I guess she won't be troubled no great with 'em up to the old place"(Jewett 523).
Summary:
Mrs. Tilley is commenting on the personality trait that Sylvia exhibits. Sylvia is a lonely little girl that is very shy around people.
Response:
Mrs Tilley mentions a character trait that is essential to knowing Sylvia on a deep level. Sylvia is a young girl, pre-teens, that is very afraid of people. She has grown up most of her life in a factory town during that industrial revolution. She is a girl that has no friends and is secluded form the rest of society. All of this helps mold Sylvia into the animal loving, Nature enthusiast that she exhibits later in the short story. This character trait of hers is important to understanding Sylvia because it lays down the foundation for the crush that she later has on the Heron hunter. Sylvia is isolated from all types of people because of where she grows up in. In "life in the iron Mills", by Rebecca Harding Davis the scene of the city is set up as a very dismal one. The pollution casts a black and gloomy shadow over the city that prevents any sun from shining on the workers. In this type of town where all the people work 24/7 there is no time allotted for children to grow and experience friendships. I believe that this is the very same type of environment that Sylvia grows up in. This is what causes her to be deathly afraid of people. She has no interaction with anyone so she does not know how to open herself up to other people. Sylvia says,"...this was a beautiful place to live in, and she never wished to go home". When she is taken away form the factory city she is on the path to discovering who she really is. The environment that she grew up in serves as a catalyst for her love of the environment later in the story. As we read on, Sylvia transforms from the wilted and dying Geranium, to one that is in full blossom and lively.
English 48B
February 26, 2008
Journal #29 Sarah Orne Jewett
Quote:
"Afraid of folks,'they said! I guess she won't be troubled no great with 'em up to the old place"(Jewett 523).
Summary:
Mrs. Tilley is commenting on the personality trait that Sylvia exhibits. Sylvia is a lonely little girl that is very shy around people.
Response:
Mrs Tilley mentions a character trait that is essential to knowing Sylvia on a deep level. Sylvia is a young girl, pre-teens, that is very afraid of people. She has grown up most of her life in a factory town during that industrial revolution. She is a girl that has no friends and is secluded form the rest of society. All of this helps mold Sylvia into the animal loving, Nature enthusiast that she exhibits later in the short story. This character trait of hers is important to understanding Sylvia because it lays down the foundation for the crush that she later has on the Heron hunter. Sylvia is isolated from all types of people because of where she grows up in. In "life in the iron Mills", by Rebecca Harding Davis the scene of the city is set up as a very dismal one. The pollution casts a black and gloomy shadow over the city that prevents any sun from shining on the workers. In this type of town where all the people work 24/7 there is no time allotted for children to grow and experience friendships. I believe that this is the very same type of environment that Sylvia grows up in. This is what causes her to be deathly afraid of people. She has no interaction with anyone so she does not know how to open herself up to other people. Sylvia says,"...this was a beautiful place to live in, and she never wished to go home". When she is taken away form the factory city she is on the path to discovering who she really is. The environment that she grew up in serves as a catalyst for her love of the environment later in the story. As we read on, Sylvia transforms from the wilted and dying Geranium, to one that is in full blossom and lively.
Friday, February 22, 2008
What a relief
Gustavo Quintero
English 48B
February 22, 2008
Journal #28 Stephen Crane
Quote:
"...drowning must really be a comfortable arrangement, a cessation of hostilities accompanied by a large degree of relief, and he was glad for it, for the main thing in his mind for some moments had been horror of the temporary agony. He did not wish to be hurt"(Crane 1015).
Summary:
Death by drowning is being described as a huge relief, after enduring the rowing and fighting against the waves to get land.
Response:
After our discussion, in class, on Wednesday Scott ended the lecture with the final Crane stage being about love, courage, trust and community. I do not completely agree with this interpretation but I can see how Scott arrived to it. Scott along with another student interpreted the story about the courage the crew showed by sticking together in the face of death. I however see the ending different. I get more the impression that the crew,"could then be interpreters", because they have just been enlightened to the awesome strength of their environment. In other words they became aware that they have no say in their world. They are at the mercy of nature and the environment. They become interpreters in the sense that they respect their environment and are very aware of its tremendous power. They now posses the ability to read mother nature and interpret what she is trying to say. They are no longer the egotistical humans they once were, they know that everything is not about them. They to will feel the wrath of their environment regardless of how good or bad they are.
The environment has a power that few realize. Take for example hurricane Katrina. No one would ever have thought that a hurricane would reach inland with that much force. The devastation from this hurricane is still being felt and seen three years later. It's our environment keeping us in check and sending us a warning. It's telling us that we need to treat our environment better. It also serves as a message that we are not in control of our fates. At any will we can be wiped off the planet. The environment controls our fate not us.
English 48B
February 22, 2008
Journal #28 Stephen Crane
Quote:
"...drowning must really be a comfortable arrangement, a cessation of hostilities accompanied by a large degree of relief, and he was glad for it, for the main thing in his mind for some moments had been horror of the temporary agony. He did not wish to be hurt"(Crane 1015).
Summary:
Death by drowning is being described as a huge relief, after enduring the rowing and fighting against the waves to get land.
Response:
After our discussion, in class, on Wednesday Scott ended the lecture with the final Crane stage being about love, courage, trust and community. I do not completely agree with this interpretation but I can see how Scott arrived to it. Scott along with another student interpreted the story about the courage the crew showed by sticking together in the face of death. I however see the ending different. I get more the impression that the crew,"could then be interpreters", because they have just been enlightened to the awesome strength of their environment. In other words they became aware that they have no say in their world. They are at the mercy of nature and the environment. They become interpreters in the sense that they respect their environment and are very aware of its tremendous power. They now posses the ability to read mother nature and interpret what she is trying to say. They are no longer the egotistical humans they once were, they know that everything is not about them. They to will feel the wrath of their environment regardless of how good or bad they are.
The environment has a power that few realize. Take for example hurricane Katrina. No one would ever have thought that a hurricane would reach inland with that much force. The devastation from this hurricane is still being felt and seen three years later. It's our environment keeping us in check and sending us a warning. It's telling us that we need to treat our environment better. It also serves as a message that we are not in control of our fates. At any will we can be wiped off the planet. The environment controls our fate not us.
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Temple but no bricks
Gustavo Quintero
English 48B
February 21, 2008
Journal #27 Stephen Crane
Quote:
"...he at first wishes to throw bricks at the temple, and he hates deeply the fact that there are no bricks and no temples"(Crane 1011).
Summary:
This is another stage in Crane's stage's. This is the stage where one wants to curse the gods but there is nothing to curse.
Response:
Naturalism is how the environment shapes a humans actions and reactions and in the case of the doomed ship crew the environment serves exactly this purpose. After they have prayed for salvation they find themselves staring death in the face. They complain about how unjust it is for them to have rowed so long and be within eyesight of land only not be able to make it to land. These men think they are better then the sea. The sea is what holds the power over the lives of these men. While trying to row their way to land they are thrown all over the place by the strong currents of the sea. This is when the men get upset, they want to vent their anger on the sea for fighting against their progress. The only problem is what are they supposed to do if the very thing keeping them from the land has no physical form. They want to get mad at something that has no physical shape. I chose this quote because of the deep philosophical roots that these problem conjures up. How do you hurt something that has no feeling? This reminds me of any time I am having trouble fixing my car and things are not going as I please. I then become frustrated and hit whatever part of my car I am working on. What if an inatimite object could feel pain? Would I hit the part of my car knowing that it felt pain? The Crane stages prove to be very complex when they are broken down and looked at individually.
English 48B
February 21, 2008
Journal #27 Stephen Crane
Quote:
"...he at first wishes to throw bricks at the temple, and he hates deeply the fact that there are no bricks and no temples"(Crane 1011).
Summary:
This is another stage in Crane's stage's. This is the stage where one wants to curse the gods but there is nothing to curse.
Response:
Naturalism is how the environment shapes a humans actions and reactions and in the case of the doomed ship crew the environment serves exactly this purpose. After they have prayed for salvation they find themselves staring death in the face. They complain about how unjust it is for them to have rowed so long and be within eyesight of land only not be able to make it to land. These men think they are better then the sea. The sea is what holds the power over the lives of these men. While trying to row their way to land they are thrown all over the place by the strong currents of the sea. This is when the men get upset, they want to vent their anger on the sea for fighting against their progress. The only problem is what are they supposed to do if the very thing keeping them from the land has no physical form. They want to get mad at something that has no physical shape. I chose this quote because of the deep philosophical roots that these problem conjures up. How do you hurt something that has no feeling? This reminds me of any time I am having trouble fixing my car and things are not going as I please. I then become frustrated and hit whatever part of my car I am working on. What if an inatimite object could feel pain? Would I hit the part of my car knowing that it felt pain? The Crane stages prove to be very complex when they are broken down and looked at individually.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)