3/31/14
Over the past week, we have been having some interesting discussions on the novel Invisible Man. Due to an art field trip, I missed the seminar about the Liberty Paint and Hospital episode. However, in the other seminars, we have made connections back to this episode, so it is an important episode on the novel. I believe this episode is so important because it is a transition period for the narrator. The Liberty Paint episode seems to be the narrators last ditch effort to succeed according to his beliefs as a young college student. The hospital episode is a transition period. What exactly is the narrator transitioning to? Well that question was debated on A LOT during the Eviction/Women seminar.
Before I get ahead of myself, I would like to talk about the Liberty Paint episode. There are many contrasts during this episode. There is the definite contrast between white and black. These colors are not only contrasted, their qualities are flipped. Throughout the whole novel, white is blinding while people can only see in black or in darkness. The narrator states, "All were the same, a brilliant white diffused with gray. I closed my eyes for a moment and looked again and still no change," (Ellison 205). Usually, it is easy to tell whether or not a color is purely white. White is clean, bright, and easily recognizable. It is interesting to note that the narrator is confused when looking at the white paint. White usually stands for enlightenment, but it is making the narrator confused. However, the narrator is not confused when he is starring at black paint. The narrator states, "But when I looked into the white graduate I hesitated, the liquid inside was dead black. Was he trying to kid me?" (Ellison 200). The narrator is certain that the paint is black, He does not doubt himself when looking at the black paint. He believes that the man could be trying to trick him. However, when the narrator is looking at the white paint, he doubts himself. He thinks his own eyes are playing a trick on him. When the narrator is faced with darkness and the color black, he is certain of himself. When the narrator is faced with brightness and the color white, he becomes wary and uncertain. This connects to the end of the novel. The narrator is certain that he is invisible and he knows who he is and how he wants to live when he is in the darkness of his cave. He was not able to figure out who he was when he was in the bright light of the world above.
During the Eviction/ Women seminar we discussed whether or not the hospital episode was a transition or a rebirth. Personally, I did not see the episode as a complete rebirth. The narrator did completely lose his identity and had to start fresh, but I believe some of his old beliefs and tendencies are still present. For example, when the narrator is eating the yams on the street, he realizes that he did not come to New York to enjoy yams on the side of the street. He remembers that there is a specific reason he is in New York. After this moment, he falls into the trap of the brotherhood. This is why I read the hospital scene as more of a transition than a rebirth. Yes the narrator loses his identity because he is given a new name, but he still has the same tendencies and follows other people like he did before the hospital scene.
Monday, March 31, 2014
Sunday, March 30, 2014
3/30/14
Night Poem
Margaret Atwood
There is nothing to be afraid of,
Night Poem
Margaret Atwood
There is nothing to be afraid of,
it is only the wind
changing to the east, it is only
your father the thunder
your mother the rain
In this country of water
with its beige moon damp as a mushroom,
its drowned stumps and long birds
that swim, where the moss grows
on all sides of the trees
and your shadow is not your shadow
but your reflection,
your true parents disappear
when the curtain covers your door.
We are the others,
the ones from under the lake
who stand silently beside your bed
with our heads of darkness.
We have come to cover you
with red wool,
with our tears and distant whispers.
You rock in the rain's arms,
the chilly ark of your sleep,
while we wait, your night
father and mother,
with our cold hands and dead flashlight,
knowing we are only
the wavering shadows thrown
by one candle, in this echo
you will hear twenty years later.
changing to the east, it is only
your father the thunder
your mother the rain
In this country of water
with its beige moon damp as a mushroom,
its drowned stumps and long birds
that swim, where the moss grows
on all sides of the trees
and your shadow is not your shadow
but your reflection,
your true parents disappear
when the curtain covers your door.
We are the others,
the ones from under the lake
who stand silently beside your bed
with our heads of darkness.
We have come to cover you
with red wool,
with our tears and distant whispers.
You rock in the rain's arms,
the chilly ark of your sleep,
while we wait, your night
father and mother,
with our cold hands and dead flashlight,
knowing we are only
the wavering shadows thrown
by one candle, in this echo
you will hear twenty years later.
I am starting to love Margaret Atwood's poetry. I never heard of her before I stumbled upon her poetry a few months ago. My favorite kind of poetry is dark poetry that is weird, different, and eerie. The poems I have read by her have fit these descriptions so far. For this month, I decided to analyze Night Poem.
The title itself leads the reader to believe that the poem will be dark and eerie. The word "night" connotates to many things. During the night, creatures come out that would not normally show themselves in the day. It is hard to see at night so images and objects are distorted and can be mistaken for something else. The first line in the poem creates a sense that something not right is happening. Personally, when I hear someone say "there is nothing to be afraid of" then there is most likely something to be afraid of. Especially when a person comes out of the darkness of the night saying everything is ok. Whoever the speaker is seems untrustworthy. The speaker says it is only the "wind changing to the east" and the father which is thunder and the mother which is rain. The wind is changing its direction. This means that the wind could be unstable or the wind could be taking a new path. The father is thunder which is loud and strong. The mother is rain which can be light and cleansing or can be violent and harmful depending on the storm. These parents of the night are intertwined with nature. Meaning that nature can come to live at night.
The next stanza discusses all of nature. Nature seems to have a saggy or sullen mood. The moon is "beige". It does not glow a bright white like one would think of the moon. It resembles a "damp..mushroom". Nature takes on more creature like qualities during the night. One of my favorite lines in this poem is "and your shadow is not your shadow but your reflection". Such a great line! This implies that people are their shadows. People have both positive qualities during the daylight and negative qualities during the night. A shadow self is a negative energy that is completely opposite of a person. Yet the speaker is saying that this shadow is the reflection. You are who you are bad qualities and all. This all becomes evident at night.
The next stanza is equally creepy and equally awesome. The speaker is saying that they are the new parents. They are the parents that appear when you shut your door at night. When you are locked alone in your room, they come out to stare at you. They come from under the lake which means that they are damp and soggy. They probably look like they were dragged from the lake. They cover the child with "red wool". Red stands for violence and blood. Personally I find wool to be itchy and uncomfortable, so this piece of fabric is not comfortable or pleasant. The new parents cover the child with whispers and tears. Everything looks perfect during the day, but during the night, the real issues and problems emerge from the darkness. "You will rock in the rain's arms" means that the child will be rocked by his night mother. The child's night parents wait and watch. They have a "dead flashlight" which means they have no light to see. This could men that the night parents are not enlightened. They are blinded by the darkness. They cannot truly see the child they hold. However, they know that they are only shadows. They cannot be seen in the full sunlight. They can only be seen with one candle light. They lurk in the shadows wanting what they cannot have. Nature itself must want to consume the child at night to have for its own. Nature cannot have the child during the day in the light. At night, nature becomes distorted and people become their shadow selfs. Their negative qualities are reflected just as nature's negative qualities are reflected.
The next stanza discusses all of nature. Nature seems to have a saggy or sullen mood. The moon is "beige". It does not glow a bright white like one would think of the moon. It resembles a "damp..mushroom". Nature takes on more creature like qualities during the night. One of my favorite lines in this poem is "and your shadow is not your shadow but your reflection". Such a great line! This implies that people are their shadows. People have both positive qualities during the daylight and negative qualities during the night. A shadow self is a negative energy that is completely opposite of a person. Yet the speaker is saying that this shadow is the reflection. You are who you are bad qualities and all. This all becomes evident at night.
The next stanza is equally creepy and equally awesome. The speaker is saying that they are the new parents. They are the parents that appear when you shut your door at night. When you are locked alone in your room, they come out to stare at you. They come from under the lake which means that they are damp and soggy. They probably look like they were dragged from the lake. They cover the child with "red wool". Red stands for violence and blood. Personally I find wool to be itchy and uncomfortable, so this piece of fabric is not comfortable or pleasant. The new parents cover the child with whispers and tears. Everything looks perfect during the day, but during the night, the real issues and problems emerge from the darkness. "You will rock in the rain's arms" means that the child will be rocked by his night mother. The child's night parents wait and watch. They have a "dead flashlight" which means they have no light to see. This could men that the night parents are not enlightened. They are blinded by the darkness. They cannot truly see the child they hold. However, they know that they are only shadows. They cannot be seen in the full sunlight. They can only be seen with one candle light. They lurk in the shadows wanting what they cannot have. Nature itself must want to consume the child at night to have for its own. Nature cannot have the child during the day in the light. At night, nature becomes distorted and people become their shadow selfs. Their negative qualities are reflected just as nature's negative qualities are reflected.
Sunday, March 9, 2014
3/9/14
Wasn't that times writing on Friday great?! I kid I kid. I know that timesd writings make everyone said and dread the entire hour we must sit and write until our hands fall off. Mrs. Clinch tires to boost our spirit with her fairy powers, and that definitely makes us laugh before we dive into the question sitting in front of us. Although I was dreading the times writing on Friday, I took away many different viewpoints of Hamlet after writing the essay. I was surprised to see that there were three options to choose from on the prompt sheet. I chose the question having to do with a tragic figure and how they impose suffering on those around them and how they add to the overall tragedy of the play.
After reading Hamle, I came to the conclusion that I did not like Hamlet as a character. I thought he was a hypocrite and way too judge mental for his own good. I mean come one buddy, you murdered Polonius, yet your damning Ophelia for telling one four worded lie? Give her a break! She has to follow her father in the society she is has to live in. (Sorry for the mini tangent. Since I played Ophelia in our group project, I now have a soft spot for her and her situation). ANYWAY. After reading the question about the tragic figure, I realized Shakespeare probably made Hamlet a tragic figure to add to the tragedy of the play. He did not make Hamlet a jerk just to make him a jerk. He made Hamlet impose suffering on the other characters to create a tragedy.
A way to read the play, is to read it in a way so that you can see that Hamlet is the one who causes everyone's death in the play. Besides King Hamlet's death, Hamlet either directly or indirectly causes the death of every other character. For example, he causes the death of Ophelia(here comes my soft spot again). Personally, I believe that Hamlet and Ophelia were in love. I also believe that they had been intimate. First Hamlet tells her he doesn't lover her and that he never loved her. Then, he insults her and makes awfulinnuendos toward Ophelia. Not only does he take their love away, he KILLS HER FATHER without an apology! Ophelia goes crazy due to her fathers death and her situation with Hamlet. In the end, I blame Hamlet for Ophelia stowing herself.
Hamlet not only causes Ophelia's suffering and death, he causes the death of everyone else and his own death in the end. After watching the Branagh version, I believe that Hamlet knew the drink was poisoned. Hamlet is always the smarted character in the room. He should have know that the cup was poisoned, yet he did not stop his mom from drinking out of the cup. It is as if he wanted her to die for her sins. He could care less by that point. He causes his own death by not taking the action of Claudius's murder until the very end. He was too calculated and too worried about playing God, so he caused everyone to suffer when he could have just killed Claudius!
Wasn't that times writing on Friday great?! I kid I kid. I know that timesd writings make everyone said and dread the entire hour we must sit and write until our hands fall off. Mrs. Clinch tires to boost our spirit with her fairy powers, and that definitely makes us laugh before we dive into the question sitting in front of us. Although I was dreading the times writing on Friday, I took away many different viewpoints of Hamlet after writing the essay. I was surprised to see that there were three options to choose from on the prompt sheet. I chose the question having to do with a tragic figure and how they impose suffering on those around them and how they add to the overall tragedy of the play.
After reading Hamle, I came to the conclusion that I did not like Hamlet as a character. I thought he was a hypocrite and way too judge mental for his own good. I mean come one buddy, you murdered Polonius, yet your damning Ophelia for telling one four worded lie? Give her a break! She has to follow her father in the society she is has to live in. (Sorry for the mini tangent. Since I played Ophelia in our group project, I now have a soft spot for her and her situation). ANYWAY. After reading the question about the tragic figure, I realized Shakespeare probably made Hamlet a tragic figure to add to the tragedy of the play. He did not make Hamlet a jerk just to make him a jerk. He made Hamlet impose suffering on the other characters to create a tragedy.
A way to read the play, is to read it in a way so that you can see that Hamlet is the one who causes everyone's death in the play. Besides King Hamlet's death, Hamlet either directly or indirectly causes the death of every other character. For example, he causes the death of Ophelia(here comes my soft spot again). Personally, I believe that Hamlet and Ophelia were in love. I also believe that they had been intimate. First Hamlet tells her he doesn't lover her and that he never loved her. Then, he insults her and makes awfulinnuendos toward Ophelia. Not only does he take their love away, he KILLS HER FATHER without an apology! Ophelia goes crazy due to her fathers death and her situation with Hamlet. In the end, I blame Hamlet for Ophelia stowing herself.
Hamlet not only causes Ophelia's suffering and death, he causes the death of everyone else and his own death in the end. After watching the Branagh version, I believe that Hamlet knew the drink was poisoned. Hamlet is always the smarted character in the room. He should have know that the cup was poisoned, yet he did not stop his mom from drinking out of the cup. It is as if he wanted her to die for her sins. He could care less by that point. He causes his own death by not taking the action of Claudius's murder until the very end. He was too calculated and too worried about playing God, so he caused everyone to suffer when he could have just killed Claudius!
Friday, February 21, 2014
2/21/14
Hamlet just keeps getting more and more complicated. Thanks to the snow week, we had to read Act three of Hamlet on our own. I read the act and understood what was going on, but these past few days in class have definitely helped me fuehrer understand the deeper meaning in the play. I mean the conversation Hamlet has with Ophelia in scene two... What?! I did not catch how rude Hamlet was being or what he was referring to. I think most of us were shocked by how rude Hamlet is in that scene. He is back to being the moral judge. He is judging Ophelia and his mother in front of everyone! In the Branagh version, Hamlet, Ophelia, Claudius, and Gertrude are watching the play amongst an audience. When I first read the scene, I believed that Hamlet was speaking only to Ophelia and Gertrude, and they were the only ones who get hear him. But oh no! In the Branagh version the whole audience hears the rude comments Hamlet is making towards his mother and Ophelia. I think this adds a whole new meaning to Hamlet. Isn't he being a little hypocritical? He is bashing Ophelia and his mother for the wrong doings he believes they have committed, but isn't Hamlet being rude and a bad person by publicly humiliating them? Hamlet is the moral judge of everyone, but the standards he holds of everyone else to not seem to apply to him.
Another part of Act three that I found to be interesting is Hamlet's aside at the end of scene two. Depending on the way you read the aside, you could claim that Hamlet has in fact gone mad. However, there is still a collected method to Hamlet. In this aside, it seems there is a method to his madness. He his planning on telling his mother how he truly feels and accusing her of what she's done. He states, " I will speak daggers to her, but use none," (line 429). He is planning out how he is going to come across to his mother. However, when he goes to speak to her the method to his madness disappears. He could not kill Claudius before because he was too busy contemplating whether it was the right time or not. And in scene three, he runs and stabs Polonius before he can even make sure that he is killing the right person! Hamlet's method is gone and his ways of doing things have changed. In the Branagh version, Hamlet sees the ghost in his mother's room. His mother cannot see the ghost and believes that Hamlet is mad. It can be argued that Hamlet has in fact finally gone mad. In the beginning of the play, Horatio and others could see the ghost. Now only Hamlet can see the ghost. Could it all be in his head? Has all of the stress finally gotten to Hamlet? It is hard to come to a certain conclusion because the play can e interpreted in so many ways! I'm interested to see what shenanigans Hamlet gets himself in to in Act four.
Hamlet just keeps getting more and more complicated. Thanks to the snow week, we had to read Act three of Hamlet on our own. I read the act and understood what was going on, but these past few days in class have definitely helped me fuehrer understand the deeper meaning in the play. I mean the conversation Hamlet has with Ophelia in scene two... What?! I did not catch how rude Hamlet was being or what he was referring to. I think most of us were shocked by how rude Hamlet is in that scene. He is back to being the moral judge. He is judging Ophelia and his mother in front of everyone! In the Branagh version, Hamlet, Ophelia, Claudius, and Gertrude are watching the play amongst an audience. When I first read the scene, I believed that Hamlet was speaking only to Ophelia and Gertrude, and they were the only ones who get hear him. But oh no! In the Branagh version the whole audience hears the rude comments Hamlet is making towards his mother and Ophelia. I think this adds a whole new meaning to Hamlet. Isn't he being a little hypocritical? He is bashing Ophelia and his mother for the wrong doings he believes they have committed, but isn't Hamlet being rude and a bad person by publicly humiliating them? Hamlet is the moral judge of everyone, but the standards he holds of everyone else to not seem to apply to him.
Another part of Act three that I found to be interesting is Hamlet's aside at the end of scene two. Depending on the way you read the aside, you could claim that Hamlet has in fact gone mad. However, there is still a collected method to Hamlet. In this aside, it seems there is a method to his madness. He his planning on telling his mother how he truly feels and accusing her of what she's done. He states, " I will speak daggers to her, but use none," (line 429). He is planning out how he is going to come across to his mother. However, when he goes to speak to her the method to his madness disappears. He could not kill Claudius before because he was too busy contemplating whether it was the right time or not. And in scene three, he runs and stabs Polonius before he can even make sure that he is killing the right person! Hamlet's method is gone and his ways of doing things have changed. In the Branagh version, Hamlet sees the ghost in his mother's room. His mother cannot see the ghost and believes that Hamlet is mad. It can be argued that Hamlet has in fact finally gone mad. In the beginning of the play, Horatio and others could see the ghost. Now only Hamlet can see the ghost. Could it all be in his head? Has all of the stress finally gotten to Hamlet? It is hard to come to a certain conclusion because the play can e interpreted in so many ways! I'm interested to see what shenanigans Hamlet gets himself in to in Act four.
Sunday, February 9, 2014
2/9/14
WALKIG DEAD SPOILER ALERT: Okay, so that Walking Dead episode was insane. I just finished watching the episode, and I am not going to lie, I was yelling at the tv the whole time I was watching it. My mom and I are the only two in my house who watch the show, so my dad and sister sat in the other room annoyed with our yelling. Other than the anxiety that I received as a result of that episode, I noticed a major arc and transformation in the character names Michone.
Michone appeared in the series in the beginning of season three. She started off the show as a hard character who would not let anyone get to know her. Similar to other characters, Michone went through a tragic time where she lost all of her loved ones to the mindless zombies killing everyone in their path. This experience made her hard as stone. When she met all of the other main characters, she became part of the group, but she only slowly opened up to them over time. She protected herself from being hurt again by trying to stay as guarded as possible. Although she tried to stay guarded, she eventually let the people around her get to know her. She became close with the people she was surviving the zombie apocypse with BUT every good thing comes to an end. SO OF COURSE something awful happened in the mid season finale. The prison was attacked and the group was split up. Michone was left by herself not knowif where her friends had gone or if any of them had survived.
At the beginning of this episode, Michone reverted back to her old self. She created her own zombie group and disguised herself among them. She was angry and frustrated and killed all of the zombies surrounding her in a moment of rage. This marks as a turning point for Michone. She realized that she can not go back to her old life. She cannot pretend to be zombie-like and survive alone. She needs to go out and find people and try to live. After her moment of rage, Michone wakes up from a dream that further transforms her. She has a dream that flashes back to her life before the zombie apocalypse. She recalls the life with her boyfriend, friend, and son before the zombies appeared. The dream deteriorates and evolves to when her friend, boyfriend, and son die. It is as if her mind is telling her that she needs to move on and needs to live. From this point on, Michone travels and finds her two friends that she thought she had lost. In one episode alone, she went from angry and a hard character, to realizing that she needed to let go of her past and be open to the world and to living. AGH such an insane episode, but it was so interesting to see a character make a giant transformation.
WALKIG DEAD SPOILER ALERT: Okay, so that Walking Dead episode was insane. I just finished watching the episode, and I am not going to lie, I was yelling at the tv the whole time I was watching it. My mom and I are the only two in my house who watch the show, so my dad and sister sat in the other room annoyed with our yelling. Other than the anxiety that I received as a result of that episode, I noticed a major arc and transformation in the character names Michone.
Michone appeared in the series in the beginning of season three. She started off the show as a hard character who would not let anyone get to know her. Similar to other characters, Michone went through a tragic time where she lost all of her loved ones to the mindless zombies killing everyone in their path. This experience made her hard as stone. When she met all of the other main characters, she became part of the group, but she only slowly opened up to them over time. She protected herself from being hurt again by trying to stay as guarded as possible. Although she tried to stay guarded, she eventually let the people around her get to know her. She became close with the people she was surviving the zombie apocypse with BUT every good thing comes to an end. SO OF COURSE something awful happened in the mid season finale. The prison was attacked and the group was split up. Michone was left by herself not knowif where her friends had gone or if any of them had survived.
At the beginning of this episode, Michone reverted back to her old self. She created her own zombie group and disguised herself among them. She was angry and frustrated and killed all of the zombies surrounding her in a moment of rage. This marks as a turning point for Michone. She realized that she can not go back to her old life. She cannot pretend to be zombie-like and survive alone. She needs to go out and find people and try to live. After her moment of rage, Michone wakes up from a dream that further transforms her. She has a dream that flashes back to her life before the zombie apocalypse. She recalls the life with her boyfriend, friend, and son before the zombies appeared. The dream deteriorates and evolves to when her friend, boyfriend, and son die. It is as if her mind is telling her that she needs to move on and needs to live. From this point on, Michone travels and finds her two friends that she thought she had lost. In one episode alone, she went from angry and a hard character, to realizing that she needed to let go of her past and be open to the world and to living. AGH such an insane episode, but it was so interesting to see a character make a giant transformation.
Sunday, January 26, 2014
1/26/14
Hamlet, Hamlet, Hamlet. I have to admit, I was worried about reading another one of Shakespeare's works. I read Romeo and Juliet in ninth grade, and I read Twelfth Night in 10th grade. I remember thinking that I understood Romeo and Juliet in ninth grade, but after reading barley one act of Hamlet, I have realized that I did not understand it as well as I could have. The same goes for Twelfth Night. There are so many different meanings behind one word in Hamlet, I do not even want to think of how many different uses of a word Shakespeare used in Romeo and Juliet. If ninth grade me read Hamlet like we are reading it in class, my freshman mind would have been blown. I do not think there is another book that captures the "it is all how you interpret it" concept. If you read one word a different way than another reader, then you could have a completely different interpretation and take away something else from that passage. For example, one reader can read the King's speech to Hamlet in Act 1 Scene 2 as message from a concerned fatherly figure or a person in a political situation who wants to keep an eye on the heir to the thrown. Personally, I interpreted the King's speech as the second scenario I listed. It all depends on the reader and how they look at the character.
Reading aloud in class most definitely helps me understand Shakespeare more than I would have been able to understand it myself. Watching the videos in class also helps me further understand the play. I also find it interesting to watch how the director decided to portray the characters. For example, the version we watched in class portrayed Ophelia as already having a sexual relationship with Hamlet. Kate Winslet looks worried and nervous as her father scolds her because she has already opened her "treasure" to Hamlet. I am intrigued to see how Hamlet and Ophelia's relationship pans out in the future. Hamlet seems a little to preoccupied with his dead father to even pay any attention to Ophelia.
Okay, I have to talk about that scene that we watched in class on Friday. We had yet to read the part we watched on Friday, so I had to pay close attention to make sure that I knew what was going on. The word "interesting" does not even to begin to capture the essence of that scene. The effects were strange and everything was extremely dramatized. But hey, I guess I would be yelling and stressed out if I saw my father as a ghost and he told me that he was murdered by my uncle. That is the major element that I took out of that scene. Poor Hamlet had to see his father'a ghost only to find out that the man who is now king is a murderer. Not only is he a murderer, he is a murderer who married his mother. That is a lot to take in after Hamlet has been grieving for only two months. Hopefully positive things will happen to Hamlet. However, since his father'a ghost is most likely a bad omen, it does not look like things are going to get better any time soon. We shall see what poor Hamlet has to endure in the future!
Hamlet, Hamlet, Hamlet. I have to admit, I was worried about reading another one of Shakespeare's works. I read Romeo and Juliet in ninth grade, and I read Twelfth Night in 10th grade. I remember thinking that I understood Romeo and Juliet in ninth grade, but after reading barley one act of Hamlet, I have realized that I did not understand it as well as I could have. The same goes for Twelfth Night. There are so many different meanings behind one word in Hamlet, I do not even want to think of how many different uses of a word Shakespeare used in Romeo and Juliet. If ninth grade me read Hamlet like we are reading it in class, my freshman mind would have been blown. I do not think there is another book that captures the "it is all how you interpret it" concept. If you read one word a different way than another reader, then you could have a completely different interpretation and take away something else from that passage. For example, one reader can read the King's speech to Hamlet in Act 1 Scene 2 as message from a concerned fatherly figure or a person in a political situation who wants to keep an eye on the heir to the thrown. Personally, I interpreted the King's speech as the second scenario I listed. It all depends on the reader and how they look at the character.
Reading aloud in class most definitely helps me understand Shakespeare more than I would have been able to understand it myself. Watching the videos in class also helps me further understand the play. I also find it interesting to watch how the director decided to portray the characters. For example, the version we watched in class portrayed Ophelia as already having a sexual relationship with Hamlet. Kate Winslet looks worried and nervous as her father scolds her because she has already opened her "treasure" to Hamlet. I am intrigued to see how Hamlet and Ophelia's relationship pans out in the future. Hamlet seems a little to preoccupied with his dead father to even pay any attention to Ophelia.
Okay, I have to talk about that scene that we watched in class on Friday. We had yet to read the part we watched on Friday, so I had to pay close attention to make sure that I knew what was going on. The word "interesting" does not even to begin to capture the essence of that scene. The effects were strange and everything was extremely dramatized. But hey, I guess I would be yelling and stressed out if I saw my father as a ghost and he told me that he was murdered by my uncle. That is the major element that I took out of that scene. Poor Hamlet had to see his father'a ghost only to find out that the man who is now king is a murderer. Not only is he a murderer, he is a murderer who married his mother. That is a lot to take in after Hamlet has been grieving for only two months. Hopefully positive things will happen to Hamlet. However, since his father'a ghost is most likely a bad omen, it does not look like things are going to get better any time soon. We shall see what poor Hamlet has to endure in the future!
Sunday, January 19, 2014
1/19/14
"A Sad Child"
By Margaret Atwood
You're sad because you're sad.
It's psychic. It's the age. It's chemical.
Go see a shrink or take a pill,
or hug your sadness like an eyeless doll
you need to sleep.
Well, all children are sad
but some get over it.
Count your blessings. Better than that,
buy a hat. Buy a coat or pet.
Take up dancing to forget.
Forget what?
Your sadness, your shadow,
whatever it was that was done to you
the day of the lawn party
when you came inside flushed with the sun,
your mouth sulky with sugar,
in your new dress with the ribbon
and the ice-cream smear,
and said to yourself in the bathroom,
I am not the favorite child.
My darling, when it comes
right down to it
and the light fails and the fog rolls in
and you're trapped in your overturned body
under a blanket or burning car,
and the red flame is seeping out of you
and igniting the tarmac beside your head
or else the floor, or else the pillow,
none of us is;
or else we all are.
It took me a while to find a poem that I wanted to read and analyze this month. I used the list that Mrs. Clinch gave us in the beginning of the year and looked up the poet Margaret Atwood. I enjoy reading poems that capture my interest right away and usually have a more grim or darker tone. I found "A Sad Child" to be extremely interesting. It is not a complicated read and is not that hard to understand what the poem is saying, but it is intriguing. It makes the reader think about his or herself and his or her own happiness or sadness. "You're sad because you're sad." This statements starts off the poem with a "get over it" attitude. It is like it is saying "yeah you might be sad, but so is everyone else." The next line gives a list of reasons why a person could be sad. When I read it, I sense that the speaker is giving of a know it all attitude. It is like she is trying to say that everyone is sad and that they all try to blame it on a certain reason why. In reality, everyone is sad and some people can deal with it and some people cannot deal with it. The people who cannot deal with it try to blame there sadness on something else. The speaker lists things that children can do to get over it. They can buy things to make them happy or they can "take up dancing to forget." Personally, I think this statement is relatable. I am a dancer, and I dance to release emotion and to forget about the difficulties I might be facing or the problems that I might have. When I am dancing, I truly forget about everything going on in my life for that three minute number or improv period.
The third stanza discusses that moment when every child realizes, "I am not the favorite child." This moment is the moment when a child loses his or her innocence. There is a moment when a child realizes the world is not what it seems and that he or she can disappoint his or her parents. Usually, when a child upsets his or her parents when they are young, they become upset. The moment of realizing that "I am not the favorite child" is a moment when the sadness could begin to grow in a child.
The next two stanzas describe a rather grim accident. The speaker describes a car accident, yet it also seems that she is hinting that it could be a dream. The speaker uses the words "blanket" and "pillow" to show that the sadness can consume you while you sleep or in an actual accident. When the sadness consumes you, everything becomes chaos no matter what situation you are in. My favorite lines of the poem are, "none of us is; or else we all are." I interpret that to mean either none of us are sad, or everyone is sad. Every "child" is consumed with his or her own sadness. They are so consumed that they do not recognize the sadness around them. It is usual for a child to be somewhat narcissistic. They are self absorbed and can only see their own problems. Margaret's choice to describe a child's sadness is fitting. The speaker is scolding the child for being so self absorbed in her own sadness because either everyone is sad or no one is sad at all.
"A Sad Child"
By Margaret Atwood
You're sad because you're sad.
It's psychic. It's the age. It's chemical.
Go see a shrink or take a pill,
or hug your sadness like an eyeless doll
you need to sleep.
Well, all children are sad
but some get over it.
Count your blessings. Better than that,
buy a hat. Buy a coat or pet.
Take up dancing to forget.
Forget what?
Your sadness, your shadow,
whatever it was that was done to you
the day of the lawn party
when you came inside flushed with the sun,
your mouth sulky with sugar,
in your new dress with the ribbon
and the ice-cream smear,
and said to yourself in the bathroom,
I am not the favorite child.
My darling, when it comes
right down to it
and the light fails and the fog rolls in
and you're trapped in your overturned body
under a blanket or burning car,
and the red flame is seeping out of you
and igniting the tarmac beside your head
or else the floor, or else the pillow,
none of us is;
or else we all are.
It took me a while to find a poem that I wanted to read and analyze this month. I used the list that Mrs. Clinch gave us in the beginning of the year and looked up the poet Margaret Atwood. I enjoy reading poems that capture my interest right away and usually have a more grim or darker tone. I found "A Sad Child" to be extremely interesting. It is not a complicated read and is not that hard to understand what the poem is saying, but it is intriguing. It makes the reader think about his or herself and his or her own happiness or sadness. "You're sad because you're sad." This statements starts off the poem with a "get over it" attitude. It is like it is saying "yeah you might be sad, but so is everyone else." The next line gives a list of reasons why a person could be sad. When I read it, I sense that the speaker is giving of a know it all attitude. It is like she is trying to say that everyone is sad and that they all try to blame it on a certain reason why. In reality, everyone is sad and some people can deal with it and some people cannot deal with it. The people who cannot deal with it try to blame there sadness on something else. The speaker lists things that children can do to get over it. They can buy things to make them happy or they can "take up dancing to forget." Personally, I think this statement is relatable. I am a dancer, and I dance to release emotion and to forget about the difficulties I might be facing or the problems that I might have. When I am dancing, I truly forget about everything going on in my life for that three minute number or improv period.
The third stanza discusses that moment when every child realizes, "I am not the favorite child." This moment is the moment when a child loses his or her innocence. There is a moment when a child realizes the world is not what it seems and that he or she can disappoint his or her parents. Usually, when a child upsets his or her parents when they are young, they become upset. The moment of realizing that "I am not the favorite child" is a moment when the sadness could begin to grow in a child.
The next two stanzas describe a rather grim accident. The speaker describes a car accident, yet it also seems that she is hinting that it could be a dream. The speaker uses the words "blanket" and "pillow" to show that the sadness can consume you while you sleep or in an actual accident. When the sadness consumes you, everything becomes chaos no matter what situation you are in. My favorite lines of the poem are, "none of us is; or else we all are." I interpret that to mean either none of us are sad, or everyone is sad. Every "child" is consumed with his or her own sadness. They are so consumed that they do not recognize the sadness around them. It is usual for a child to be somewhat narcissistic. They are self absorbed and can only see their own problems. Margaret's choice to describe a child's sadness is fitting. The speaker is scolding the child for being so self absorbed in her own sadness because either everyone is sad or no one is sad at all.
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