Jen's Blog

The Invisible Man

2005-04-17T20:34:00.000-07:00

The book, The Invisible Man, deals a lot with racial stereotypes and the tension among different races. The book is very interesting to read because it talks about these ideas and stereotypes very openly and without hesitation. The ideas the author presents in the book are ideas that even today are very difficult to talk about due to the differences in the views of blacks and whites.

The main character of the book is a black man who is haunted by the advice of his dead grandfather who told him to work to become the superior race and not to trust white men. Early in the book it is easy to notice that he admires the white man and does indeed feel whites are superior. Even though he admires them, it is not totally clear to the reader whether he really trusts them or just hopes he can.

When he joined the Brotherhood it was very interesting that white men were involved with this group. It is very clear that there is a lot of racial tension outside of the group so the white men in the Brotherhood make things a lot more interesting. It is easy to notice the narrator doesn;t completely trust these white men. A prime example of why he should not trust them is the time Clifton is shot and killed by the police officers. When this happens it stirs up a riot from most of the members in the group. Instead of the white founding members being upset over the murder, they are more upset that the group supports Clifton. They feel he is a corrupt member because he supports these racist dolls. Rather than be upset of the way the police treated him and his death, they are worked up over how this may make the Brotherhood look.

This book is very good and presents these ideas in a way that is very common. The fact that they are so openly discussed in the novel is also very interesting because even today we are still scared to talk about racial issues due to the different viewpoints. Everyone is worried about offending somebody else so, instead of talking about the differences in their views, they shy away from the issue completely. After reading the book and comparing the way society was then to the way society is today, it is very evident that the racial tension that existed then still, in some way or another, exists today as well.

The House of the Spirits

2005-03-29T19:06:00.000-08:00

Ideology is a major part in The House of the Spirits. Some of it is very evident while the rest is very subtle and unnoticable. It is displayed in many ways, such as family relationships and in the importance of a family's social status. Another major way it is presented in the book that is very uncommon is the use of lesbianism in the novel. This is shown in the relationship between Ferula andClara. This was shocking and unexpected in the novel. It is something that usually isn't written about in stories from this time and really wasn't expected of Clara and her sister-in-law. This seems odd now and I'm sure it was even more strange and unexpected in the past.

Same sex relationships are more common now and are started to be accepted in our society. They are making progress and slowly getting more rights but still are looked down upon. However, there are many people who still don't agree with it and are disgusted by the circumstances. If it is still odd now, I can only imagine how weird and uncommon it was then. Even though these feelings probably existed then anhd were more common than what we assume, I'm sure it was something that nobody talked about or acted upon like they do today. Based on Estaban's reaction to the situation it is evident it wasn't common and definitely was not acceptable behavior. This makes me think that despite all the time that has passed, gays and lesbians still are not gaining approval from our world and society.

Duplessis

2005-03-13T18:32:00.000-08:00

I think if I was going to ask Rachel Blau Duplessis a question about her writing, I would ask her something about "death of the author". I would be curious to know how much attention she pays to leaving her own opinion out of her writing so the reader will be able to have their own perspective on the writing. I would also be curious to know what or who inspires her in most her writing.

Antigone

2005-03-11T16:40:00.000-08:00

Stories like Antigone are stories that are just as enjoyable now as they were when they were written. Even though the stories are basically the same, in order for us to enjoy them now we need to alter them in certain ways. Usually for stories such as this one we need to expand the storyline and add more conflict or drama to the plot. If we didn't add more drama or violence the movie probably wouldn't be as exciting or appealing to viewers now.

In this version of Antigone, Brecht made the same kind of chnages so that the story would be appealing to readers now. He made minor adjustments to characters and added more charcters to create a bigger plot. He also made minor changes to the story so that we would understand things better. The changes he made were similar to the changes we made in class last week when we were asked to recreate this story into a movie.

Another reason this story may have changed so much is because as it has been passed on through time, there have probably been a lot of changes in translation. Sometimes these stories weren't written on paper and were acutally performed. This would change translations in the story because different people may have different persepectives on what is going on in the story. Stories like Antigone will continue to be passed down through time but in order for them to be appealing to future generations, changes will need to be made so that they can enjoy them as well.

Gregorio Cortez

2005-02-20T22:54:00.000-08:00

It is interesting to see how all of the versions of Gregorio Cortez's story vary so much. In every story there is a different opinion of what happened and how it happened. Depending on who tells the story, there are differences in things from his to appearance to his personality. Being that this story is of little importance and has been passed down throughout history, people have changed it simply because of their opinions of what happened or should have happened. A good demonstration of how this happened or could happen was when we played the game "telephone" in class last week. By the end of the game the sentence we started with was completely different. After playing this game it was easy to understand how this story could have possibly changed in so many different ways. In all of the stories basically the same things happened but the details and minor parts were different.

People from different cultures could have different opinions of this story, maybe changing the way it is told or how it is told. For instance, in Mexico people see Gregorio Cortez as a very heroic man who succeeds at everything he does. They adore him and would like to think of themselves as people with his characteristics so they often associate him with themselves. Other people from different cultures may see him as a criminal just running from the law. In this case they may want him to have characteristics opposite of their own.

Regardless of how you look at this story or what your opinions may be, it is still a classic story that has been passed down for many years. It is a fun and exciting story and I think it is especially popular for those in Mexico near the border since they can relate to him a lot more than we can.

Blood Wedding

2005-02-10T18:26:00.000-08:00

Almost every event in Blood Wedding is foreshadowing to what is going to happen at the end of the play. At the beginning, we are introduced to the mother who is very worried that her son, like his father and brother, will be murdered by a knife. She tries to control what he does and tries to prevent him from being killed, but in the end there is nothing she can do about it. All along she talks of the murdering being wrong, but as soon as Leonardo runs away with her son's bride she is quick to encourage her son's desire to kill him. In the end, his death by the knife is inescapable regardless of how long they tried to avoid it. Another major use of foreshadowing in the play is when the reader finds out the bride's mother had not been a good wife and nobody really knows anything about her. By the way the women talk it is easy to assume that his bride could have the same problems. Sure enough, when their wedding day rolls around she begins to have second thoughts and eventually runs away with Leonardo. I think it was pretty obvious to the reader something was going to change her mind somehow.

Another major part of the play was the use of symbolism. The old beggar woman in the story represents death. She isn't a character is the play, so she is in the story to present an idea, which in this case, is death. She appears in the story when Leonardo and the bridegroom are nearing their death and presents the idea to the reader. Her only purpose in the story is while they are murdered and then she has no reason The knife also sort of has a symbolic meaning. In a way it shows that for these men, death is unavoidable.

The Awakening

2005-02-01T18:55:00.000-08:00

I didn't mind reading this book. It was sort of interesting to read about the way Edna felt about her situation. I know if I was in her situation I would want some sort of independence as well, but I don't know that I would go about it the way she did. I think she could have chose a lot of different ways to gain this freedom from her husband. And in the end, I was very disappointed that she ended it all in suicide. I think it proved how weak she was and how easily she conformed to the pressure she was feeling.

I think the whole story was about Edna becoming her own person and breaking away from her husband, family, and the roles she was supposed to play as a wife and mother. She didn't want to do what her husband wanted her to do and wasn't happy living this way so it was almost as if she would do anything to be different. Not only did she not want to live "under" her husband, she also didn't want to be just like the other women in the story. Although she was constantly seeking this independence, she sort of let Robert control her life to a certain extent. At one point in the book she says she will never let a man, not even her husband or Robert, be in control of her. As soon as Robert comes home, however, she automatically thinks about what her life will be like with him. Then, when Robert finally tells her he loves her but things will never work out, the only thing she can do now is give up. It's like the whole book she tries to be this strong, independent woman, but when things get really tough, she stops trying and just tells herself she can't do it anymore. I think this shows she is a very weak person because when things get tough, she stops fighting for want she wants and gives in. She wanted to be her own person and I really don't think she was able to achieve that.

The Yellow Wallpaper

2005-01-25T22:59:00.000-08:00

The woman in the story may seem like she has some health problems but the more I read, the more I questioned whether she was really sick. Sometimes while I was reading I was almost convinced she wasn't crazy at all. Her husband and everyone around her were constantly telling her she was ill and controlled everything that she said and did. She had absolutely no freedom at all. If I was locked in a house with someone telling me I was sick and wasn't ever allowed to do anything but stare at some ugly yellow wallpaper, I think I would eventually drive myself crazy too. One thing I don't understand is that, even though she is "sick", why did her husband forbid her to write? I really don't think that would have any effect on her physical or mental health. The restrictions he puts on silly things like that shows he is trying to "help" her with things beyond this illness, things like never being entitled to her own opinion.

I think if the narrator of the story was the female writer it would be a lot easier to tell if the woman was really suffering from this post-partum illness or if she was being told she was sick. Maybe if we only heard her opinion of what was going on and didn't have any other insight it may be more clear as to whether she was ill or not. We would probably hear a lot more about what she thought of her condition instead of constantly hearing about what her husband, the powerful doctor, had to say. It would also help because we would automatically be able to form our own opinions about her, without immediately hearing that she has some problems.

I think if the story had been written this way it would have been a lot less confusing. The woman's thoughts and condition would be a lot clearer to the reader, which would help the reader to get a better understanding of the story. The author would probably get her point across a lot easier and the meaning of the story would have been more evident.

Douglass

2005-01-24T14:29:00.000-08:00

I think it is very important that Douglass is the author ofthe writing since it was his story of his own struggle during slavery. Because of his struggle and the events of his past, it is much easier for him to tell his story. If he had simply told another person his story and they wrote about it his point wouldn't have come across as clear and it wouldn't have as much as an effect on the reader.

It was interesting to see how determined Douglass was to succeed as a writer despite everything and everyone he had against him. The fact that he taught himself to read and write and was able to write this text is a very impressive accomplishment. His narration of this story makes his reader feel very sympathetic to what happened to him and all of the slaves. I think it's great that his motivation drove him to accomplish this piece and allowed him to get the respect he wants and deserves.

Because of his accomplishments his role as an author should not be in question. He made it through a very difficult time and deserves a lot of respect and admiration for what he has done.

Test

2005-01-14T07:14:00.000-08:00

Just a test to make sure this works!