4/08/13

I think the structure of the stories tell me as the reader that I can't just read one story and skip over a few then read a next one. I realized that I had to continue reading to end of each story in order for the next story to make even a little sense. The structure is a bit different from the usual structures that I'm used to so it wasn't the easiest thing for me to read. There were some things that I didn't get and I felt I had to google them to make more meanings of it. Where the Mobius strip was concerned, I think it both complicated and clarified the meaning of the series. It clarified it by showing me that the stories weren't going to be the  easiest to read. I found that the stories wouldn't be the typical straight forward stories I'm accustomed to. The way in which I saw it complicating the series is that it left me with questions I had to search the answers to. As I read it I immediately remembered the first thing I learnt in Sociology, "everything is not as it seems". I realized that I had to apply a deeper thought when reading the rest of the book. I believe Barth used such a strange object to serve as the narrative structure because he thought readers were accustomed to having a particular frame of mind when reading novels. This was his way of showing that there are different ways to approaching books where reading is concerned. He wanted to be different in his own way and creative at the same time.

4/01

     I believe that in Tortilla Flat the author was trying to show that people don't just value material things. People want to feel that they have other people around them that care about them. That's what they value most. The characters were depicted as thieves and wine lovers (which was true), but they proved to have some sort of moral values through the way they treated others. They  formed friendships that were very thick. I did see that if you didn't have money you didn't have certain advantages but that didn't bother Danny nor Pilon, nor the others who lived in the house.
     At one point everything was centered around money but in the end what mattered was the friendship formed by the men and their will to help others who they saw in the same social position as them. When they were around each other there wasn't any separation with status, it was them being free in society without rules and governing. The American Experience affects me in the same way I described before. I often want to be free from rules and do what I want but society requires that I work and follow instructions in order to "make it". Tortilla Flat depicts that perfectly cause I myself want to help others who are travelling the same road as me.

3/5

In The Sun Also Rises, I believe Ernest Hemingway took the characters out of their comfort zone (home) to show how our character can be tested. The characters int he book, just like anyone else, were made to adapt to a different  lifestyle because of the cultural difference they faced. I realised that the characters are affected by who they've become due to the different environment in which they were placed. Jake is a  man of nature but he doesn't get to enjoy it anymore or as much as he wants. Jake is caught up with the constand thought of food and drinking just like the people around him. The new setting has the characters live a different life, one that almost covers the true identity of the characters.
The setting of the novel has allowed me to see or not the what the characters are about. I'm getting a perception of the characters that have gotten accustomed to the European way of living. We have knowledge of their backgrounds but we don't see the same people in Europe. The men seem to have lost their sense of self as well by putting Brett at the top of their priority list. they just want to be noticed by her. The same way the Europeans chase the Matadores, it's the smae way the men chase after Brett with compassion and persistence. Even when they are suppose to be behaving like men they transform into little kids chasing the most popular girl in school. They end to put themselves and how they could benefit first before thinking or even caring how their decisions will affect their "friends".

Blog Prompt 2/18

I think Ecclesiastes 7:4 means that a wise person knows better so they'll do better, even though it may cause them to feel unhappy with their choice they know it's for the good. The fool will squander his life and possessions over stupid and meaningless things and still find it enjoyable. The House of Mirth shows Lily as a prime example of how someone who has their mind in the wrong place will find meaningless things enjoyable. She finds pleasure wherever she benefits financially. Lily is one of the worse persons to deal with when she loses money and she'll do whatever it takes to attain it and save her face, even if it means marrying someone she doesn't like. She even went to the opera with someone she doesn't like just to maintain an image that will benefit her in the long run. Wharton depicts this biblical passage in the book by showing how vanity has taken over people's lives. They seem to be happy with what they are doing. They gamble, deceive, and risk marriages to get what they want, even if it isn't money. We are just shown how to realize how we as humans will go to extreme measure for things that are easily attainable.

Blog prompt for february 4

   In the book, The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, I believe there is some controversy in deciding who is the most rounded character. Twain shows how Huck grew as an individual different from society and as an individual in n his small group. he show significant changes when faced with challenges he never encountered, like seeing people die and people being blatantly robbed. on the other hand, Twain showed Jim in the begining as a boring character who tried to seek attention from others and do what he's told. Jim was then portryed as a man with a family, a man of patience and a man of trust. Throughout the book, we learnt of everything Huck went through but the few times Jim was included, he proved himself rounded in more ways than Huck. His lower level of intelligence may have given the impression that he wasn't at all rounded but his actions and thoughts proved otherwise.
    Huck showed his growth in the increasing rate of his maturity, with wise decisions and courage. His intilect played a part when he had to teach Jim things about the different eras and royalty. This still wasn't enough to show how Jim, who probably has never been to school before, demonstrated his wisdom through experience. Huck was still being a bit childish by playing pranks throughout the book on Jim, but Jim showed a little of his smarts through his own observations and patience by not letting it get to him. Jim was the most rounded character in my opinion.

Learn something new.

 I thought I'd use this opportunity to share a bit of my culture like I said I would. The words "wah gwan" are often used to say hi to someone. You would pronounce the first word as "want" without the "nt" and get a dragging sound of the word. Then the second word would be similar to the "Guan" in "Guantanamo", except you would drag the "a" as well. The words simply translate to the standard English's "what's going on". Saying the words as they appear with the correct pronunciation would give you an idea that you are saying "what's going on". Use these words with confidence and people will actually think you speak a little Jamaican. Keep in mind that you don't want to be asked "wah gwan" and have nothing Jamaican to say after that. You may simply respond with "nuttin much". It's just like saying "nothing much". You would want to pronounce "nuttin" as if you were saying the word "button", except  with an "n" at the start of the word. Now you can impress your friends and family with more than the regular everyday words. Next time you want to greet someone, use these words and look at the puzzled reaction on their face. Translate to them what it means and be the one that stands out.

Blog Prompt for January 28th

I think Twain crafts this morally ambiguous world for Huck to navigate because he wants to let us as the readers know that the world is not as safe as we might think regardless of us seeing it perfectly while living with our parents/guardians. Twain puts real-life scenarios for Huck to show part of what can happen when you are on your own and you encounter strangers. Luckily the two con men were what they were and not killers. All the immoral actions that Huck has been engaging in has really been playing on his mind in a bad way. It constantly troubles his conscience and causes him to rethink whatever he had done or was about to do. I say this because every time he engages in something immoral he remembers what the widow would have to say about it and her Christian way of life. He's always thinking of things that she might say or remember bible scriptures that has something to do about his current experience. He would always feel bad and think that he shouldn't be doing what he was doing but he was not in much of a position to say or do otherwise because of what he had brought on himself by picking up the two men. The moral values came from Huck living with the widow and Ms. Watson. Even though he didn't like Ms. Watson's way of thinking and preferred the widow's, he would always remember what they would preach to him for him to do what was morally right. Twain might be suggesting that people  from our grandparents' generation are usually ones to be actively involved in the church and its teachings. With that said they would normally try to enforce those beliefs upon us regardless of the life we choose to live. Twain is also trying to show that females in late adulthood are usually embracing their religious beliefs. With that said it is more likely for them to spread "the word" to whomever they can.