Ya'll Better Hold Me Back!

But we won't, only you will. Characters in "A Raison in the Sun" and in real life, use the excuse that other people hold them back from accomplishing their dreams. This is an extreme allusion and is counter productive. Not only does this place blame on another person and make the accuser feel more powerful, it also allows the person to blow off working harder and merely complain. Walter says his wife, a hardworking respectful women, is holding him back. Preventing him, "a colored man", from becoming anything in this world (Hansberry 34). This is complete and utter blasphemy. Ruth does her part and then some to support her family. Furthermore, she is not even in a position to say if Walter can have his dream or not. Walter is relying on other people and other people's resources to make his dream come true. This is simply not fair, and thus Walter's dream can never become a reality under these circumstances. I think Walter realizes this deep down, but it is to heartbroken to deal with the pain constructively; Walter in turn takes his frustration with reality out on his wife and family, claiming that "colored women in this world, don't understand about building their men up" (Hansberry 34). Well Walter, that sure is a shame, isn't it.

She Wants More

*I know that looks bad, but I have a point I promise!

So if you listened to the song above you will understand the connection it has to The Great Gatsby. The song summed up is an animals point of view of a women taking it's body parts to create her stylish clothing. Despite how much the animal gives her, she just takes more. All the while this allusive women refuses to smile. The animal in this song can be compared with our great man Gatsby. Regardless of how much he gives the women (Daisy) she will never be satisfied. The women can also not just be restrained to being Daisy, but to the upper class population of the 1920's. Men and women alike were never content with what they had, and only purchased things to flaunt them in front of their peers, in the pursuit of feeling adequate and of a higher class. There is no winner in the end, the animal dies and the women moves on to the next shiny new thing. Materialism corrupts, not only in The Great Gatsby, but in "A Diamond as Big as the Ritz" as well. Upon first arriving at the castle built upon a solid diamond the main character, as well as the reader, are in awe of the pure luxuriousness of it all. Gradually, however, this facade evaporates. John begins to see the moral lapses in the Washington family and feels uncomfortable. Just as people who harm animals to clothe themselves superficially can make certain individuals feel bad. There is a difference between doing things out of need and want.

Plus it's just a fantastic song :)

Happy Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is a holiday of family, food and hopefully most importantly thankfulness. Anyone who is fortunate enough to be sitting at a table with other people enjoying a meal, should be counting their blessings. After having a wonderful thanksgiving with people I care about, makes me wonder how the characters from The Great Gatsby would treat thanksgiving. My best guess is simple. They would do the exact opposite of the very word Thanksgiving. To start, these people would not be thankful. They would criticize and critique themselves and each other. Nothing is enough, eight turkeys dressed to perfection? Nope, the meat is dry. A table set for 300, each place setting adorned with monogrammed napkins? Childs play, for I heard Lucy had 800 people over with champagne glasses filled with elephant tears. And so on and so forth. Secondly, people from the book would not give without expecting something in return. Whether it was fame, fortune, or general bragging rights. Needless to say there truly would not be any Happy Thanksgivings in the land of The Great Gatsby.

Beware Of Backlash

After reading "The History Teacher", I have been thinking a lot about crossing that extremely fine line. The line between, protecting someone and lying to them. Most would agree that this so called teacher was ignoring all the important and painful truths and essentially lying to his students. By doing this, this man is completely undermining his job as a history teacher. Because why do we learn history? To remember tragedies and learn from our mistakes to make sure these things never happen again. The students in the poem were already showing signs of aggression and cruelty. Without proper instruction they simply cannot learn. Santa Clause and the Tooth Fairy can be debated over, but history can absolutely not be glossed over and changed.

Ok, Now Say It With A Semicolon

Punctuation has an ever-important value in the ever-changing world of today because it promotes clarity and style in an organized and easily comprehendible fashion.  Hitching states that “rules for grammar and punctuation are vital for clear, effective and consistent communication” (Source A). Punctuation enables different generations to communicate easily by using the standard set of rules and regulations; without them mass confusion and headaches would ensue. Standard punctuation acts as the structure of a piece and creates a mutual agreement of what the meaning is. For example, in science the metric system exists so people can communicate their ideas to each other in a standard, accepted format. Punctuation acts as this for the literary world.  People who see no value in standard punctuation state that punctuation is “feigning liberation with one hand and tightening the leash with another” (Source B), by limiting creativity and expressive thought. This is untrue, punctuation is a tool used to highlight the meanings and ideas the marks are placed around; the actual words are what the creativity should stem from, the punctuation merely helps provide organization for the author’s insightful thoughts.  Punctuation prevents rambling and adds clarity, this is why “semicolons, along with a sack full of commas are… vital tools in keeping… the “stream of thought” from appearing to the reader as a wild torrent” (Source E). Punctuation is a tool that is used in shaping literature and is something that needs to remain constant in an ever-changing world.

From The Inside Out

There's that pain again.

You know the one.

An ever present pain.

Gnawing
Gnawing
Gnawing away at you.

You're always paranoid
Frightened
Scared
Panicked

Of what?

Someone finding out...

Your Secret

This feeling has been present in every human being at sometime. A feeling of intense guilt that just builds inside your chest characterized by a dull ache or squeezing feeling. Guilt. A horrible problem with an overly simple solution. Let it out. Tell the truth. If it is so easy why does this awful pain still affect people today? Consequences is the reason. The actual act of telling is not hard, but rather what comes after that. The moment after. The day after. The year after. People harbor this emotion because they live in fear of the changed glances they will endure after the truth has been told. This is an unfortunate catch 22. If you tell your secret you are subject to the stares, the ridicule, the shame. But, if you stay silent...

You destroy yourself from the inside

And will never get out.

Do What You Say, Say What You Mean

One thing leads to another.

Connotation of words and the deliberate manipulation of the words can be seen everywhere we look in the world today. Whether they are used to persuade someone to join a side or get the person to buy something they are used. The very act of simply stating the truth or giving an idea without any fancy forms of deception is unheard of these days. This sounds very harsh, but it does not have to be. Deception has very negative connotation. I could have used another word, but chose that one to persuade you to agree with me. I unknowingly inserted a loaded word into my very post talking about the over use of loaded words. This just proves how easy and natural it is for us to dress writings up for only our benefit. "Say what you mean" is now an almost impossible task, for we cannot help, but put a spin on things for our own gain.

Default Settings - Off

In class we looked at David Foster Wallace's speech "This is Water", and spent a large portion of class time picking it apart and analyzing very small details. However, along with the intricate details in the piece, we also were able to find the main purpose in the speech quite easily. Wallace's purpose is to encourage the graduates to utilize their liberal art education when thinking about a sometimes mundane life, and not allow themselves to sink back into their "default settings". This speech is extremely insightful and inspiring, in an unconventional way. Sadly, the brilliant speaker himself committed suicide in 2008. He was suffering from serious depression he had been battling for about 20 years. This very sad occurrence gives a whole new aspect to the speech however; it just goes to show that old cliché "easier said than done" is ultimately true. Like so many clichés Wallace spoke of in his speech. It can be very very difficult to switch your mind from its "default settings", but this does not mean people should stop trying to accomplish it. I think it is very fitting that David Foster Wallace's death can represent a cliché, especially since it is one that teaches us about our own minds. Even though struggle will always exist and we cannot force a minds out of their continuous loop all the time, it's important to still try. To try to change our thoughts from default to possibly customize.

Don't Panic! It's Not Crisis Time Yet

This phrase is quietly hilarious and ironic. After these two simple words slip (or lets be honest, are shouted) from a person's lips, every person in earshot blood pressure shoots up, their bodies tense, and they are ready to pounce on whatever threat is coming their way. The phrase DON'T PANIC breeds almost instant hysteria. Seeing those words in caps probably even made you a little more stressed. This phrase comes with good intentions however, for there truly is never a good time to panic. Ever. Panic just creates more problems. This is something I think Thomas Paine knew, while writing The Crisis he let the troops know that he knew what intense hardships they were going through and how he also saw how bleak the situation looks. However, instead of saying something as short sighted as don't panic he gave the men and country one of the best pep talks ever written. Reassuring them that their ploy is righteous and they are nobler men for taking on such a challenge. What should be taken from this today is, instead of saying the loaded phrase don't panic, say something along the lines of, we can do this.

Admit It, We All Love To Hate Her

Abigail Williams. What are horrible, godforsaken, coldhearted girl. One who deserves no pity or sympathy on account of all her actions. And she was given none of the above from my class. Everyone had an opinion on her character (None of which were positive) and the feelings in the room radiated a range of pure irritation to absolute hatred. So if talking about Abigail just creates frustration and anger, why do we do it? Because every story needs a villain. A bad guy, an antagonist, someone so outside the normal realm of humanity that all we can do is stand back and gape at them. Without these shocking characters there would be no story, no conflict. To relate to the world outside The Crucible, I believe Miley Cyrus demonstrates this effect beautifully. Though she is not putting up people to hang, she is still putting a very harsh imprint on todays youth. From going from sweet country girl to punk twerker, she can represent Abigail's shift from innocent village girl in love with John Proctor to an unfeeling sociopath. By giving Miley all this confrontational and negative publicity the public is keeping her famous or alive. Just as by talking about how horrible Abigail is, we keep her and The Crucible alive.

 

Psycho Killer

Abigail from the Crucible has turned out to be a manipulative, coldhearted character. She lies to everyone out of vengeance and to advance herself in society. She shows no remorse for her actions even though she has already gotten over a dozen people hanged, just by crying witch. I think the song "Psycho Killer" by the Talking Heads describes her as an individual very well (Her being the psycho killer). It also speaks to the feeling of panic and anxiety in Salem.

 

The song repeats "Run run away", this represents how the people being prosecuted feel. For they are being falsely accused, but with no way to remedy their supposed actions without confessing. Proctor's view can also be very well represented in this song. The band sings, "You're talking a lot, but you're not saying anything". This is how Proctor feels about the accusers because the claim all these facts without having any evidence what so ever. As for Abigail, like the song title "Psycho Killer" she is a murderer. But without her there would not be a play, as there would not be a song without a title.



So wait.. How angry is He?

The most interesting (and most controversial) piece I think we read in class was Edwards "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God". The bulk of this sermon was focused on the ever looming threat of Hell and God's willingness to exploit it. This is where I pose a question. Is God an angry being? Is his power designed to threaten those who believe in him? There are many opinions that try to satisfy this problem, ranging from Edwards belief that God's wrath is endless to people who believe God would never harm a living thing. This sermon when spoken back then frightened a lot of people, some to the point of suicide, but now when read people may step back and question a lot of it. Who gets to decide how angry God is? Where does this authority come from? An interesting thought, and it does not just apply to God. Even in small quarrels between children, how does one know how angry the other is? The simple answer, they cannot. Anger like truth and fiction, is based on perception. No one can say how angry another person is without being in their minds, in their very beings. So how angry is God? Society will never know for sure as a whole, but each and every individual decides how angry or not God is based on their faith and connection with him. The link below is to a very interesting article about how the world views God. Read it and find out which percent you fall under, or if you view God in a different light.

http://www.charismamag.com/spirit/spiritual-growth/16922-god-is-not-mad-at-you

To Wield or Not to Wield, THAT is the Question

Power struggle has always been a popular topic. Especially between political candidates, or even countries. But this power struggle is not an external one that you can see. This power struggle takes place within everyone, battling with themselves for how much power the will use and can handle. I think of this eternal internal battle, when asked the question how much power does an individual wield? This vague question about humanity has many correct answers. In the novel, The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien, the author explores this all most impossible to answer question in a multitude of ways. One way to look at an individuals power is shown through the chapter "The Man I Killed". Power is shown in its simplest form, one man's power to take another man's life. O'Brien writes, "I was afraid of him- afraid of something- and as he passed me on the trail I threw a grenade that exploded at his feet and killed him" (O'Brien 125). It was so simple, physically, for O'Brien to kill this man, just a flick of his wrist and the threat is gone. In this moment, O'Brien chose to use or wield his power, even though mentally after he was a wreck for destroying another living person. Another way the author portrays an individuals power is through the character Jimmy Cross. In the chapter "In the Field", Jimmy Cross places his troops in a "shit field" (O'Brien 158) and Kiowa dies. Some readers may argue that it was not Cross' fault, because "the order had come from higher" (O'Brien 157). But, that very statement represents Cross' use of his individual power. Cross chose not to wield it and cost a life. Now if  Cross went against higher orders, would have been consequences? Quite likely. But, Kiowa would have probably survived that night. Both O'Brien and Cross chose to when to wield or withhold their internal power. In both circumstances there are consequences. This is what makes power tricky. How does a person decide when it is good time to use it? Who is so in control that they will know the outcome of the destruction power can lead to? The answer? No one. So how much power does an individual wield? A lot, they just chose when they want to show it.