As told in her biography, Kate Chopin had a pretty crappy life, disregarding the fact that she lived during a time period when women were suppressed by their male "overlords". Her life was surrounded by death and loss throughout her family. To top it off, her life was not only surrounded by death but she died in the most bogus way your life could end after enduring the struggles she endured, by dying of a cerebral hemorrhage. I think that the deaths in her family had played a key role in her stories. I've only read two of her short stories, but in the both of them the main character, both women, died and when they did they were miserable and died a miserable death. In Desiree's Baby, the main character Desiree lost the love of her husband and took her child and herself and committed murder/suicide. Then there is The Joy that Kills, where the main character Mrs. Mallard thinks her husband is dead and is free from his "tyranny" and upon finding out he isn't, instantly dies of a heart disease.
It seems like these deaths in her stories symbolize more than what people think. It seems like this is a cry for death to come and take her and to end the struggles and stress of her life. Lets recap, it first start with the death of both her sisters that died as babies before she turned five. Being five she might not understand the concept of death but there is still a void left by their presence being gone. After that her father is killed in a horrifying accident when the bridge his train was crossing collapsed. Once again at that age she might not understand the concept of death, but that doesn't overshadow the fact that she has to learn the answer to the question "where is daddy?" and has to find out what happened. She then goes to live with her mom, grandmother, and great-grandmother who are all widows, meaning she lost not only her dad but her grandfather and great-grandfather, whom she probably knows if she knows her grandmother and great-grandfather. She goes on to live a pretty decent life until the Civil War comes along and snatches her away from her best friend Kitty Garesche. Sure it's not as bad as losing her sister's and dad, but nevertheless she has lost someone important in her life, but then her grandmother dies directly before Christmas which should be a happy time of sharing gifts, not mourning over the lost of a family member. Her friend comes back, but then is taken away again because she wants to become a nun and she also loses her brother. She goes on to get married in 1870 and has seven children with her husband, who dies after twelve years of marriage and her last remaining sibling dies sometime before her fifth year of marriage. Once again she has lost someone important in her life and is left with the responsibility of raising seven kids. Finally after two years of being on her own she moves back in with her mom, who dies the following year leaving her by herself to raise her children again. That's nine deaths, ten if you count the death of her friendship with Kitty, over a 30-year period. That might not seem like much during given the time interval but it is when the people who died are the individuals who were close and dear to you.
On top of the deaths and the seven children she had to raise on her own she has her book career that doesn't go very far because she is silenced by a society that doesn't yet value the women as they should. It seems that these stories she wrote provide release for her tortured soul as the women of the stories tortured souls are released from the indignity society has bestowed upon them and the misery they faced in their daily lives. But its through death which makes one wonder, is it death that she hopes to escape her life and release her tortured soul?
Friday, October 31, 2008
Monday, October 27, 2008
Disturbia
Shia LaBeouf/ Kale Brecht
Shia Labeouf’s character Kale Brecht is the image of every teen boy that loses his father at an early age. Seeing as how Kale lost his during the age when a close bond is already formed and he lost him during when they were on a bonding trip, it makes makes him troubled, to which I can fully relate. The comment from his Spanish teacher, doesn’t help either, which causes Kale to punch him. Doesn’t seem like something that’ll actually happen in real life but it happens in the movie thus causing him to come under house. His boredom takes him from troubled kid that punches a teacher, to a certified stalker that knows each of his neighbor moves and has it timed exactly, especially as he spys on the girl next door. This within itself screams “Help, I’m crazy, and need professional help. Then he goes from spying to accusing one of his neighbors of murder adding more to the cry for help. I can see him being troubled for the lost of his father, but I don't see how that leads into him being a stalker, kidnapping children maybe, but not stalking.
Shia Labeouf’s character Kale Brecht is the image of every teen boy that loses his father at an early age. Seeing as how Kale lost his during the age when a close bond is already formed and he lost him during when they were on a bonding trip, it makes makes him troubled, to which I can fully relate. The comment from his Spanish teacher, doesn’t help either, which causes Kale to punch him. Doesn’t seem like something that’ll actually happen in real life but it happens in the movie thus causing him to come under house. His boredom takes him from troubled kid that punches a teacher, to a certified stalker that knows each of his neighbor moves and has it timed exactly, especially as he spys on the girl next door. This within itself screams “Help, I’m crazy, and need professional help. Then he goes from spying to accusing one of his neighbors of murder adding more to the cry for help. I can see him being troubled for the lost of his father, but I don't see how that leads into him being a stalker, kidnapping children maybe, but not stalking.
Aren't I a Woman to Ain't I a Woman
The Aren’t I a Woman in 50 Essays isn’t much different from Ain’t I a Woman. It follows the same style that was to describe the proceedings of the meeting and the words spoken by Sojourner Truth. The only difference between the two is that in 50 essays it took some of the words Truth spoke and made them easier for the reader to understand . Other than that it still kept the southern dialect and imagery used. It also kept the same sentence structure.
Friday, October 24, 2008
Essay Response
Let me start off by stating that I commend Sojourner Truth for taking a stand. Most women, and many others of her time, would not have made the brave decision to stand up for what they believe, and she was not only a woman but also an African-American, doubling the barriers, opposition, and obstacles against her. Her purpose was clear; she was human and didn't think herself any lower than a man because she was a woman and no other woman should either. Not only did she take a stand in making her opinion known she also demolished anything that anyone had to say that was negative concerning the status of women equality. The most compelling part was that she did it by stating that though she was a woman, she could do anything any man could and more.
Her first compelling argument was that men thought women were fragile and needed help and deserved the best. But she states how she was a woman and no one helped her in these areas and that she provided for herself, without the help of a man. The next really made me feel, I can't think of the word, but its like whoa!!! She pulls out her arm, showing muscle power and says she has worked plantations and farms and that no man could've topped her, but yet she is a woman. She then goes to say that she works just as much as any man, eats just as much as any man, and as a former slave got beatings like a man and took it, unlike most guys who can't even take a punch, but yet she was still a woman. She then pulls at the strings of the heart by telling her story of grief that she went through as a mother, as her children were taken from her and sold into slavery, but no on ever heard a peep out of her about it, when most men where their outrage and grief on their shoulders and face, but she was STILL a woman. Her last two most compelling arguments involved the two most important women of the bible, showing Truth as a credible and intelligent source. The man she was debating had the audacity to come out and say that women weren't equal to men because Christ wasn't a woman, and instantly Truth said that Christ came from God and a woman. She also expounded on how Eve, the very first woman God created was strong enough to flip the world upside by just biting into a piece of forbidden fruit. In both cases man had nothing to do with what took place.
The most powerful part of her speech was when she took the time to encourage the women in her midst while still talking to the man. She was letting them know if Mary, the mother of Christ, and Eve took part and had the strength to change the world, and that she herself could do the things she could, and be stronger than any man, and stand there openly state her mind, that they could do it and do it better. And she still held herself in a lady-like manner and thanked the man for listening to her opinions.
Her first compelling argument was that men thought women were fragile and needed help and deserved the best. But she states how she was a woman and no one helped her in these areas and that she provided for herself, without the help of a man. The next really made me feel, I can't think of the word, but its like whoa!!! She pulls out her arm, showing muscle power and says she has worked plantations and farms and that no man could've topped her, but yet she is a woman. She then goes to say that she works just as much as any man, eats just as much as any man, and as a former slave got beatings like a man and took it, unlike most guys who can't even take a punch, but yet she was still a woman. She then pulls at the strings of the heart by telling her story of grief that she went through as a mother, as her children were taken from her and sold into slavery, but no on ever heard a peep out of her about it, when most men where their outrage and grief on their shoulders and face, but she was STILL a woman. Her last two most compelling arguments involved the two most important women of the bible, showing Truth as a credible and intelligent source. The man she was debating had the audacity to come out and say that women weren't equal to men because Christ wasn't a woman, and instantly Truth said that Christ came from God and a woman. She also expounded on how Eve, the very first woman God created was strong enough to flip the world upside by just biting into a piece of forbidden fruit. In both cases man had nothing to do with what took place.
The most powerful part of her speech was when she took the time to encourage the women in her midst while still talking to the man. She was letting them know if Mary, the mother of Christ, and Eve took part and had the strength to change the world, and that she herself could do the things she could, and be stronger than any man, and stand there openly state her mind, that they could do it and do it better. And she still held herself in a lady-like manner and thanked the man for listening to her opinions.
Aren't I a Woman? Discusssion Questions
1. She is responding to a minister that has made the remarks that women aren't equal to men and can't have as much rights as men.
2. The arguments are examples of her strength and how she keeps going despite her circumstances and what happens to her and help her make the argument that women are just as equal and strong as men and in many cases better.
4. She wouldn't have had to counter my perceptions because my perception would've been that she is a capable and strong woman.
2. The arguments are examples of her strength and how she keeps going despite her circumstances and what happens to her and help her make the argument that women are just as equal and strong as men and in many cases better.
4. She wouldn't have had to counter my perceptions because my perception would've been that she is a capable and strong woman.
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Incidents and American Slave
These two stories are significantly different from each other. Harriet Jacobs tells of not only the hardships she endured as a slave, but her master's mission in trying, and almost succeeding, to break her spirit and separate her from the man she loved. Frederick Douglas's tells more of the horrifying experience he endured as he watched and heard his aunt be mercilessly and repeatedly beat with a whip. Though these stories differ far from each other, they are the same in one aspect; they were made with a purpose. They were made with the purpose to inform, not only of the trials they endured individually, but the trials the slave population endured as a whole, as a people. They were also made with the purpose of not only to inform, reveal to other's the horrors inflicted by slavery in hope that one-day the terrible and horrifying practice of trading humans like cattle would end and that everyone would be treated equally as portrayed by the idea of the Declaration of Independence.
Another way in which these two pieces are similar is through their preface. The one for American slave was written as a testimonial to the words of Frederick Douglas spoken to the abolitionist, and the uproar in response to making sure he became and stayed a free man. The one for Incidents was also written as a testimonial to the inspiration the author of the preface felt from Harriet Jacobs. They were also written by Caucasian authors, as an act of validating the words that flowed from the mind of the author of the different stories to the paper on which they wrote. They were written also to the one's in the north that needed a little a push to get on the band wagon with the abolitionist, and make aware of the cruelty of slavery in the ongoing effort to get the horrible practice dismantled.
Another way in which these two pieces are similar is through their preface. The one for American slave was written as a testimonial to the words of Frederick Douglas spoken to the abolitionist, and the uproar in response to making sure he became and stayed a free man. The one for Incidents was also written as a testimonial to the inspiration the author of the preface felt from Harriet Jacobs. They were also written by Caucasian authors, as an act of validating the words that flowed from the mind of the author of the different stories to the paper on which they wrote. They were written also to the one's in the north that needed a little a push to get on the band wagon with the abolitionist, and make aware of the cruelty of slavery in the ongoing effort to get the horrible practice dismantled.
Tuesday, October 14, 2008
Scarlet Letter Study Questions
1. Hester's sin was committing adultery. The consequence of this was she had to wear a scarlet letter that, in a sense, inflicted pain upon it wearer for they could feel a burning in the spot where they wore it and feel the stares of everyone that saw it. This affects her character because it killed her spirit making her gloomy and dead on the inside. It also left her dead to the people, as she tried to sink from the public eye, but alive, because of the distinctness of the letter. Dimmesdale's sin was committing fornication and living a life of hypocrisy before his people. His consequence and the affect on his character was the agony, pain and anguish he that tormented him and the burning pain of the scarlet letter that he could feel on his heart, which in the end left the faint image of the letter on his chest. Chillingworth's sin was his thirst for revenge and lying to Dimmesdale about being his friend. The consequences and the affect on his character was the cold and dark feelings that he felt on the inside, and his feeling of emptiness when Dimmesdale died, taking away his purpose for living, reason and need for revenge.
2. Hawthorne uses a lot of figurative language, some of what he writes uses imagery like when he describes the burning scarlet letter. But what he uses the most are metaphors and similes like, " had so early borne the black flower of civilized society, a prison." and "The eloquent voice, on which the souls of the listening audience had been borne aloft as on the swelling waves of the sea, at length came to a pause." He also uses symbolism like when he calls Pearl the scarlet letter endowed with life or said that the weed was on the grave because it grew from the heart of a man with a terrible secret.
3. During Hester's time there was this thing going around known as being a "true woman". Hester is one of literatures first feminist because she threw off the shackles of being a "true woman". The first was committing adultery. Due to the oppression of being a "true woman" she was forced to marry a man she did not love and whom she admitted and told straight to his face she didn't. By committing adultery she gave her self the choice of being with the man she loved and she didn't regret it, but embraced what she did. The second was being a single mother. Throughout the seven-year period in the book she not only raised a child by herself, but she provided for the child by working all the while taking care of the household duties that needed to be done. She also didn't keep her daughter from expressing herself freely, she let her play in the streets while they were going through the market-place and didn't discipline her for standing up for herself and showing some real human emotions which seemed to go against the Puritan religion. She also defied the magistrates by not telling whom it was she committed adultery with and protesting the governor when he tried to take her child away from her. Her last act was trying to flee with Dimmesdale, Pearl, and leave behind all the shame which she brought up herself, so in a sense she was trying to defy the authority of the town and flee with the people and acts that made her a feminist.
4. The second scene acts as the climax because it reveals the answer to questions that the reader wants to know. Who was the one that Hester committed her crime with and who was Pearl's father? It also serves as the turning point in Dimmesdale and Chillingworth's relationship when Chillingworth's true motives is finally revealed to Dimmesdale, and he doesn't hesitate in letting Chillingworth know that he knows who he is. It also confirms Chillingworth's suspicions about Dimmesdale and lets him know that his cover is blown and getting revenge is going to be harder.
5. Pearl name is symbolic because like an actual pearl she is rare and a treasure to her mother. Her mother says that not only is she the object of her greatest affection but the object of her greatest suffering, and that she brings her great joy and pain. Thus she is her treasure and her burden that keeps her from making the same mistake and falling to sin again. Dimmesdale is symbolic because he is a dimwit, (DIMmesdale, DIMwit) seriously he isn't very bright. He knows that there is something wrong and that something or someone is watching him waiting for him to slip up, and he knows he gets the feeling every time Chillingworth is around, but he can't figure out for nothing that Chillingworth is the reason he is getting that feeling. Chillingworth is symbolic because of the chills he sends down Dimmesdale spine and uneasiness he makes Dimmesdale feel. Its also symbolic because it represents his how cold he is now compared to the warm affectionate man he used to be.
6. Hester attitude changes from a dead feeling to acceptance. At first she couldn’t stand having the letter on her chest and it made her feel dead, shameful and embarrassed on the inside. She stays away from everyone throughout the story for the most part to avoid the stares and the feeling she gets from them. She even has the idea to run away and actually decides to run away with Dimmesdale so she could feel freedom from the scarlet letter, which she actually feels for a brief moment in the forest. Towards the end after Dimmesdale dies and she is given a chance to escape she takes it but inevitably comes back on her own free will and takes upon her the shame which she left behind, accepting the face that she committed a crime and that she has to and that to redeem herself she must suffer the punishment of her crime where she committed it and she must do it alone.
2. Hawthorne uses a lot of figurative language, some of what he writes uses imagery like when he describes the burning scarlet letter. But what he uses the most are metaphors and similes like, " had so early borne the black flower of civilized society, a prison." and "The eloquent voice, on which the souls of the listening audience had been borne aloft as on the swelling waves of the sea, at length came to a pause." He also uses symbolism like when he calls Pearl the scarlet letter endowed with life or said that the weed was on the grave because it grew from the heart of a man with a terrible secret.
3. During Hester's time there was this thing going around known as being a "true woman". Hester is one of literatures first feminist because she threw off the shackles of being a "true woman". The first was committing adultery. Due to the oppression of being a "true woman" she was forced to marry a man she did not love and whom she admitted and told straight to his face she didn't. By committing adultery she gave her self the choice of being with the man she loved and she didn't regret it, but embraced what she did. The second was being a single mother. Throughout the seven-year period in the book she not only raised a child by herself, but she provided for the child by working all the while taking care of the household duties that needed to be done. She also didn't keep her daughter from expressing herself freely, she let her play in the streets while they were going through the market-place and didn't discipline her for standing up for herself and showing some real human emotions which seemed to go against the Puritan religion. She also defied the magistrates by not telling whom it was she committed adultery with and protesting the governor when he tried to take her child away from her. Her last act was trying to flee with Dimmesdale, Pearl, and leave behind all the shame which she brought up herself, so in a sense she was trying to defy the authority of the town and flee with the people and acts that made her a feminist.
4. The second scene acts as the climax because it reveals the answer to questions that the reader wants to know. Who was the one that Hester committed her crime with and who was Pearl's father? It also serves as the turning point in Dimmesdale and Chillingworth's relationship when Chillingworth's true motives is finally revealed to Dimmesdale, and he doesn't hesitate in letting Chillingworth know that he knows who he is. It also confirms Chillingworth's suspicions about Dimmesdale and lets him know that his cover is blown and getting revenge is going to be harder.
5. Pearl name is symbolic because like an actual pearl she is rare and a treasure to her mother. Her mother says that not only is she the object of her greatest affection but the object of her greatest suffering, and that she brings her great joy and pain. Thus she is her treasure and her burden that keeps her from making the same mistake and falling to sin again. Dimmesdale is symbolic because he is a dimwit, (DIMmesdale, DIMwit) seriously he isn't very bright. He knows that there is something wrong and that something or someone is watching him waiting for him to slip up, and he knows he gets the feeling every time Chillingworth is around, but he can't figure out for nothing that Chillingworth is the reason he is getting that feeling. Chillingworth is symbolic because of the chills he sends down Dimmesdale spine and uneasiness he makes Dimmesdale feel. Its also symbolic because it represents his how cold he is now compared to the warm affectionate man he used to be.
6. Hester attitude changes from a dead feeling to acceptance. At first she couldn’t stand having the letter on her chest and it made her feel dead, shameful and embarrassed on the inside. She stays away from everyone throughout the story for the most part to avoid the stares and the feeling she gets from them. She even has the idea to run away and actually decides to run away with Dimmesdale so she could feel freedom from the scarlet letter, which she actually feels for a brief moment in the forest. Towards the end after Dimmesdale dies and she is given a chance to escape she takes it but inevitably comes back on her own free will and takes upon her the shame which she left behind, accepting the face that she committed a crime and that she has to and that to redeem herself she must suffer the punishment of her crime where she committed it and she must do it alone.
Saturday, October 11, 2008
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