Reaction to The Round House so Far (Emma)

While reading this novel I felt sort of uneasy and a little confused. At first this feeling was frustrating, but then I began to realize that this is the way Joe must feel as this tragic story unfolds. Starting to read The Round House is a lot different then reading our last book, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. Both stories give readers an inside peek into what life on a reservation is like, but in very different ways, through words, imagery, and comedy, or lack there of. What I noticed most about The Round House, and couldn’t seem to get past, (considering I’m an English major), is how Erdrich does not use quotations for characters who are speaking. I did however enjoy how deeply Erdrich allows Joe to express what he is thinking and how he is feeling at all times. This was helpful for me because I can’t personally relate to this storyline, or what life is like being Native American. Knowing how big of a role women play in Native American families, it is interesting to see how a father and son handle this horrible situation, while the mother has little to no voice.

Jerry’s Frustration

In chapter three, (page 25 paragraph 4), Jerry is waiting on Captain McBane, General Belmont and Carteret as they sip on drinks and smoke cigars in honor of Carteret’s new child. They also discuss business, (as most men usually do), of creating “White Supremacy everywhere!” and “No nigger damnation!” What interests me most about this passage is how Jerry is reacting to the men and their conversation. I believe Jerry’s thoughts and feelings displayed here can speak for how many black people were feeling at the time.

After Jerry got a chair for Captain McBane and received a fierce look from him, Jerry leaves the room and beings to talk outloud to himself. He trash talks McBane calling him,”po’w’ite trash” however, then says he has money. Jerry also says, “‘Pears ter me de bottom rail is gittin’ mightly close ter de top” and that it comes with being white. Jerry is expressing how frustrated he is that such an evil man can be so privileged just because of the color of his skin. Jerry too is also poor, but he will never have a chance at being successful because he is black. He then closes his little monologue by saying,”I wush ter Gawd I wuz w’ite!”

Everything Jerry said was shocking to me because it gives good incite on how annoying life must have been for black people at this time. Also, realizing Jerry was saying everything outloud to himself shows how upset he really was. It seems he is fighting with himself out loud when he calls McBane poor but then says, “but Lawd! Lawd! look at de money he’s got.” As I was reading, it disturbed me that Jerry contradicted himself every other sentence about McBane’s character, then in the end wishes to be white.

The Man Behind Yekl

After reading the first story of, Yekl, by Abraham Cahan, I was intrigued to learn more about who exactly Abraham Cahan was. Born on July 7, 1860, Abe was a Lithuanian American socialist newspaper editor, novelist, and politician. Abe immigrated to the US in 1882. He wrote mainly for the Yiddish newspaper, the Jewish Daily Forward, which during the 1890s became a leading advocate for Jewish immigrants.

Being the first editor for the paper, Abe had big ideas for the Forward, wanting it to, “rise above the ideological baffles that divided the socialist and labor movements.”  Working for the paper was a constant struggle for Abe, being he found it difficult to agree with the backers about its editorial content. He resigned twice, one time being for a full seven years. Abe transformed the paper into a, “bridge between two cultures”, making it a family paper appealing while encouraging its readers to learn English even as it was written in Yiddish.

Cahan himself lived and worked in the Jewish ghetto for about twenty years. In 1975, his novel, Yekl, was adapted as the film, Hester Street. It is clear he was successful because of this, however he is not that popular or widely known today. Cahan once said, “If you feel that you are good, don’t be too proud of it.” I think this is a good quote to sum up Cahan’s life because he was good at what he did and knew it, however he stayed humble while being true to his people and religion.

 

Song of the South

http://www.allmovie.com/movie/v111067

Song of the South was a movie created and released by Disney in 1946. The movie was about a young boy named Johnny who was sent to live with his grandmother while his parents deal with divorce issues. It is set during the time of the Civil War. The boy meets Uncle Remus, who often cheers him up with fables about a trickster bunny named Br’er Rabbit.

Although the movie was pretty successful, it was eventually banned from the U.S. because it was deemed controversial. Johnny’s mother in the movie, ordered Johnny to never meet with Uncle Remus ever again because she thought him to be a bad influence. The time period of the movie, (Civil War), along with the depiction of the characters, is what also makes the movie questionable to be racist.

In our reading, The Wonderful Tar-Baby Story, the diction of the story makes me see how the Disney movie could have been seen as a, “sugar-coated depiction of the reconstruction-era south”. The story is written in a southern slang which was pretty difficult to read for me. The story also seemed repetitive, as it kept repeating, “Tar-Baby stay still; en Brer Fox, he lay low”. Although this line was repetitive, it gave the story a sense of song; something seen often in African American literature. One of the main items in this piece which caught my attention, was not only how the characters refer to eachother as “br’er”, meaning brother, but how often the word is said. This could show a form of respect the culture at the time had for each other, similar to referring to someone higher than you as “Mr.” or “Mrs”. Although I do not agree that the movie should have been banned because it depicts a culture at the time, I could see how it may have offended some audiences. At least we still have splash mountain at Disney World!

Don’t tell! they’d advertise–you know!

When searching MLA International Dictionary, I found an article by George Monteiro discussing Emily Dickinson’s, “I’m nobody! Who are you?” The first introductory paragraph talks about how the author, Emily, is afraid her name will be widely spread and her dispersed among strangers. Her ultimate fear is that she will be famous for a bad reason, if the public does not like her poems. The article discusses the author’s overall fear of publicity. Emily Dickinson was not that famous while she was alive, so it is interesting to think how she would feel now knowing how famous her and her poems are.

This article relates similarly to my initial thoughts and feelings about the poem. From the first line I got the impression it was a poem about love, then my thoughts quickly changed when I got to the second stanza. The word, “public”, in this poem made me realize it was about publicity and being exposed like a frog croaking loudly rather than flying under the radar. Similar to the article, I agree that the author is content not being known. In the first stanze it seems as though she is having a discussion with someone about how it is better being hidden than exposed.

William Blake & “The Lamb”

The Lamb, from William Blake’s, Songs of Innocence, is a child’s song with the first stanza being a question, while the second stanza is an answer. The lamb is said to symbolize Jesus, giving the entire poem a religious tone. The speaker of the poem is a child curious about the lamb, how he was created, and who created him. Overall, the poem is one big question of creation.

William Blake (1757-1827), was an English poet, painter, and print maker however he was not very famous during his time. His work became more famous and credited after his death, and is said to embrace imagination as, “the body of God”. His whole life, Blake was very artistic and imaginative, which shows in practically all of his poems. His poems, especially The Lamb, are very visual and creative.

Blake had such a great imagination as a young child he was said to have visions as early as age four. Blake once saw God put his head to a window, and around the age of nine saw a tree full of angels. These visions may suggest Blake was a very spiritual person, especially because his work was created during the Romantic Age. Blake’s spiritual nature is shown in The Lamb mainly by the lamb symbolizing Jesus. The image of a lamb also symbolizes the gentleness and innocence of Jesus. In the second stanza the child is answering his own question about Jesus and creation. Blake’s religious, spiritual side is most evident in the last two lines of the poem where it says, “Little Lamb God bless thee. Little Lamb God bless thee.” the child is blessing the lamb/jesus. Without analysis, The Lamb, seems like a basic poem sung by a child, however with knowledge of William Blake’s life, it is evident the poem sends a religious and spiritual message to readers.

“When I Consider How my Light is Spent”

The word chide has many different meanings, and can be used as both a noun and a verb. In the form of a noun it means, chiding, quarreling, wrangling, an angry rebuke. As a verb, chide means, to give loud or impassioned utterance to anger, displeasure, disapprobation, reproof. As well as, to contend with loud and angry altercation; to brawl, wrangle. The word’s etymology comes from the old English language.

This one single word, chide, I think relates to this poem as a whole very well. This poem is about life, blindness, and God. John Milton, the author of this poem, is saying his meaning in life now feels useless that he is blind and can not continue to do what he has worked for and excelled at. “My true account, lest He (God) returning chide;” here, the word chide is describing how although he is blind, he will continue with what he does, his “true account”, so he is not chided when he returns to God. Although the poem is Milton saying he will be strong, and continue on, by using the word chide which has a negative connotation, it keeps with the frustrated feeling of this poem.

The poem mentions suicide, and how it is so easy and feels like the right thing to do. Although Milton has worked so hard producing great works, and is now robbed of one of his vital senses, he knows he can not just throw away his life. God would be disappointed in him. Milton’s spiritual and religious side shows in this poem, it being the one thing keeping him alive. He knows he has to continue living and writing literature for the sake of God. This poem is somewhat a way of Milton chiding his life, and it is interesting to see how he ends up handling his new lifestyle.

“Whoso List to Hunt”

Thomas Wyatt’s, “Whoso List to Hunt”, is a fourteen-line poem, called a sonnet. Wyatt’s use of prosody, consisting of rhythm, stress and meter, reflect his feelings and overall emotion while writing this poem. Wyatt created the sonnet and first introduced it to England. In this particular poem, I find it interesting to see his emotions through the words as well as watch the story unfold throughout the sonnet.

When I researched the background of this sonnet, I discovered scholar’s believed Wyatt wrote this as an allegory referring to Anne Boleyn‘s marriage to King Henry VIII. Wyatt was said to have been Anne’s lover at one point. He was upset when Anne became property of the King. In this poem, the deer symbolizes Anne, which is clear because the deer is referred to as a, “her”. Wyatt’s love for Anne is especially seen in the last line where he states, “And wild for to hold, though I seem tame.” He wishes to have her, instead of the king, but can not because of the King’s power over everyone in the kingdom.

Rhythms come naturally to humans and our lives. We are constantly experiencing rhythm with our heartbeat, breathing, the flow of the tides as well as birth and death. This adds to Wyatt’s natural feel of the poem, which was written using iambic pentameter. Iambic pentameter comes easily to English speakers. The style in which Wyatt wrote the poem also makes you feel like he’s having a conversation with you. It does not feel like an average poem. His feelings of loss for Anne, I find are felt more strongly this way.

A Gentle Giant

Caliban’s typical savage demeanor and grotesque monstlery appearance is neglected during the scene where he explains to Stephano and Trinculo the mysterious music that they hear by magic. The way Caliban speaks changes from a threatening, ridiculous tone, to a more poetic one. “The clouds methought would open and show riches, Ready to drop upon me, that when I waked, I cried to dream again.” (III.ii.136–138) These few lines I chose from his explanation interest me because it is almost as if Caliban is reciting a poem. His speech is considered one of the most poetic in the play.

At this scene in the play, Caliban has been drinking. For Shakespeare to put these beautiful lines into the mouth of a drunken-monster almost does not make sense. Perhaps Shakespeare gave these lines to Caliban to show his true character. Although Caliban is in fact an ugly, cruel monster, maybe in this scene, Shakespeare is trying to prove our thoughts on this monster as wrong. It is a thought that when people are drunk, the truth comes out. I think Shakespeare made Caliban say these lines while he was drunk to show his true, gentle nature.

Forced to be a servant, Caliban is actually a gentle monster that allows himself to be treated as a fool. As well as showing Caliban’s personality, they also present his attachment and love for the island. I think it was brilliant of Shakespeare to add this scene because it completely throws most readers off in regards to what they thought about Caliban.

Oedipus Wreck

In Oedipus the King, Sophocles implies spectacle into almost every scene and line, creating a more dramatic feel for the play. Since Oedipus is a play, the need for spectacle is greater than if it were a regular novel. The Audience and readers need something to physically look at or picture in their mind.

A major scene in Oedipus the King where spectacle is used is between The Chorus and the Second Messenger. The second messenger is describing to the chorus of Jocasta’s suicide and Oedipus’ stabbing of his eyes. This scene is definitely a visually striking performance with a large visual impact because of the way the Messenger describes the stabbing of the eyes. “No sluggish oozing drops but a black rain and bloody hail poured down.” (lines 1278-1279) This two-line description adds so much drama and impact to the play. Sometimes I find when you are reading a story it is difficult to understand how serious an act or scene can be. Although it is obviously important and severe that Oedipus stabbed his own two eyes repeatedly with Jocasta’s gold chased brooches, these lines cement the fact, for me, that Oedipus’ acts were completely outrageous and wild. It painted such a picture in my mind of how mad Oedipus had become.

This scene is very important to Oedipus the King because it is the final turning point for Oedipus. He has finally accepted his tragic truth and acted upon it in the only way he knew how. It’s clear this scene was a very striking performance to the play because people have mimicked it in different ways all over the Internet. For example people have created gifs and memes about it. This scene and the way it is described helps the audience and reader create a better image or Oedipus’ mental breakdown.