warren wagoner

Sunday, April 27, 2008

A Farewell to Arms 3

After finishing a Farewell to Arms, the ending really didn’t surprise me. As soon as the couple seemed to escape all of their troubles with the military police and escaping Italy, I knew that something bad would happen in the end. Hemingway doesn’t write happy endings and I could predict that she was going to die in childbirth from a mile away. Nevertheless, I did still have to read the entire ending because it seemed several times that Catherine might pull through. Yet no matter how many fatal bullets the couple dodges, they are never really in safety. Even in the last few pages after learning the baby died and that Catherine was recovering ok, there was still an ominous feeling in Heminway’s tone. The author didn’t fail to deliver in yet another sad ending despite surviving many near catastrophic events, Catherine dies of a hemorrhage. This conclusion makes A Farewell to Arms seem even more like a true Romeo and Juliet story except that Romeo doesn’t die.

As I alluded in my first blog, I believe that their relationship started as a make-believe love that developed into something deeper and truer. As Lt. Henry had more time to think about what Catherine really meant to him, he began to fall in love with her. It was no longer a wartime fling that he had experienced with so many other women. Although he first intended Catherine to be another one of his one night stands, he soon realized that she meant more to him that other women. He found that he actually cared about her. Lt. Henry matured over the course of his experiences in the war from being a lost young man to an adult that knew what he wanted in life. He realized that he only wanted to be with Catherine no matter what the risk. It was a type of emotional awakening for Lt. Henry along with Catherine. They both started to make sacrifices for each other and let themselves fall in love. They both began to let their emotional barrier down. Before meeting Henry, Catherine was still in shock from losing her long time fiancée in the war. Even when she met Henry, it seemed as if she believed it was her lost love coming back from the dead to be with her again. Even at their first meeting, Catherine wanted Henry to tell her how much he loved her, and that he would never leave her again. It seemed as if she was looking for someone to fill her void and that she was even a little crazy in visualizing Henry as her lost love. Even Lt. Henry could see that was a little crazy and was emotionally distraught. Nevertheless, he didn’t shy away from her; he embraced her because he too needed someone that he could love although he didn’t see it yet. Both of them had emotional problems that needed to be solved and were both a little crazy–they seemed perfect for each other.

In my paper I plan to analyze how their love matured and what events/changes were especially critical in their emotional awakening. It might also be interesting to examine to what extent is this a tragic novel and what devices and events make it seem this way. Although it seems like a tragic ending, the characters could not control their fate in the end at all. They did everything they could to make it and they did not have any tragic flaws that lead to their downfall. Their fate was out of their hands and in the hands of mother nature. It seems that Hemingway might be implying that no matter how hard you try to do everything right, your fate is never really in your own control. (635)

Sources for A Farewell to Arms Paper

These are the sources I have found that might be usefull in writing my paper.

1. Supernaturalism and the Vernacular Style in A Farewell to Arms
Authors: George Dekker, Joseph Harris

2. A Farewell to Arms: Hemingway and Peele
Author: Clinton Keeler

3. Tragic Form in A Farewell to Arms
Author: Robert Merrill

4. The English Journal Review A Farewell to Arms
Author: James F. Fuller

Thursday, April 24, 2008

A Farewell to Arms 1

When I finished the first few chapters of “A Farewell to Arms” I knew that I was going to enjoy following Lt. Henry’s story. On my first sitting I had trouble putting the book down, so I read 280 pages. I have always liked reading books set in war time and this is no exception. The settings in the novel are so strange in that they are both dominated by the beautiful Italian countryside yet surrounded by a raging world war. All of the characters in the book, and I mean all of them, add something unique to the plot and simply make the novel interesting to read. Every character has his or her own bizarre mannerism or personality that helps to keep the reader hooked to every scene.

Lt. Henry is quite complex not only because he is an American fighting in the Italian army, but also because his motives for being in the war are so ambiguous. It took a lot of determination to take it upon himself to enlist in the army but on the second hand it seems as if he could careless about the war. No one forced him to join the fight so it would imply that he had some strong desire to serve and be a hero. Although he is courageous in battle and selfless when it comes to his men, Lt. Henry is not looking for honor or to be a hero. Even when he is recommended to receive a silver star he seems to care little at all. When he is at the front all he can do is think about leaving and yet once he is wounded all he can think about it getting back to the fight as quickly as possible. Lt. Henry is a very contradictory and complex man. It seems as if he has no real direction or purpose in life, that is until he meets Catherine.

Although at first he thinks she is crazy, for some reason he continues to visit her habitually. He tells her he loves her even though he doesn’t and he has no intentions whatsoever of falling for her. But once he is away from her for three days he begins to notice how much he truly misses her and I think that it shocks him greatly. Never before has he ever loved anyone or has know what it is like to love until now. When Lt. Henry is again sent to the front and is wounded badly in the legs, he can think of nothing but Catherine. From that point on he knows that he wants nothing more than to be with her. As he heals at the hospital their relationship quickly builds into something serious I believe that they both did not anticipate. I found it strange that they could fall in love so quickly and they never have any serious dialogue. Yet they both agree that they are essentially married. After spending many months with her he is finally healed enough to go back to the front and they cannot bear to separate. When the Italian lines break and Lt. Henry and his men are forced to retreat hastily, he is determined to survive only so that he can see Catherine again. Lt. Henry risks everything to return to her, even deserting from the army and possibly facing the firing squad. He finally realizes that the military was not his true calling, but it is to run away and be with Catherine. It seems as if Lt. Henry has found a genuine direction in his life and he is no longer wandering from place to place looking for something that he thinks might fill the void. (617)

Wednesday, April 9, 2008

The--Poem

At first glance "My Papa’s Waltz" may appear to be a dark poem describing an abusive, alcoholic father. Yet after further examination, the reader may develop a completely opposite oppion. Although the father's intoxicated "waltz" seems to be excessively rough and abusive, the overall tone of the poem suggests otherwise-a comic and affectionate situation between father and son.

The first stanza introduces the reader to the drunken, uneasy waltz that drives the action of the poem. It is clear that the father has been drinking heavily as the speaker notes his foul breath, "Could make a small boy dizzy." In order for the speaker to keep up with his father's wild dancing he must hang "on like death" suggesting that the father may be becoming abusive. The stanza ends with an uncertain tone, revealing a situation in which the speaker is trying to enjoy the moment yet cannot overlook his fathers heavy drinking problem.

As their dance continues they "romped until the pans slid from the kitchen shelf" creating a comic scene while the mother watches disapprovingly. The word "romped" connotes a joyful roughhouse between the son and his father, not an abusive situation disguised as dancing. Since the father is drunk his dancing has become less than perfect causing him to bump into the surrounding objects in the kitchen. If he was in fact beating his son and not just rough housing, the mother would have reacted with more enthusiasm than simply a frown. No attempts at intervention were made because none were necessary.

The third and fourth stanzas might again be misunderstood as an abusive encounter, but the overall playful tone suggest otherwise. The fathers hand is described as being "battered on one knuckle" which might imply that he has been abusing his family and son. His palms are then described as being "caked hard by dirt" which leads the reader to believe that the father is a manual laborer, and could have received his "battered" knuckle while on the job. If he had injured himself while beating his family, then the speaker would have not chosen such a humorous tone. At the end of the night the father, "Then waltzed me off to bed still clinging to your shirt." If the father was in fact abusing the small boy, then why would he take the time to put him to bed. The speaker is also described to be "clinging" to his father's shirt rather than running away in fear of his abusive, alcoholic father.

Although the satirical tone of the poem may suggest that the speaker is somewhat critical of his fathers heavy drinking, roughness, and inconsiderate actions, the overall comic scene helps the reader to look past the harsh edges. The constant rhythm throughout the poem helps to give it a lighter feeling to contrast with some of its possible darker interpretations. At times the fathers drunkenness and lines such "at every step you missed my right ear scrapped a buckle" or "you beat time on my head" might not suggest an altogether joyful dance, but rather a frightful experience. Nonetheless the relationship between the father and son is an affectionate and complicated love despite the poem's dark undertone.

Question Deals:
1. Although I have interpreted the poem to be an overall affectionate experiece, does anyone think that the poem is really about the boy being abused
2.How does the language used in the poem make its meaning ambiguous
3.How is the comic tone achieved in the poem
4.What effect does rhyming have on the poem
5.How would you describe the imagery used in the poem?

Thursday, February 21, 2008

Subtext Deal

Sunday, February 3, 2008

Poor Greeks

In Sopchocles’s Antigone, yet again we are shown how our favorite Greek heroes and heroines suffer from their horribly tragic flaws. Through examining Creon’s and Antigone’s pitiful downfalls, we can only hope to learn from their unfortunate mistakes and pass this knowledge down to future generations. From what I have gathered after careful examination of the ancient text, I have concluded that it is important that we listen to whatever Teiresias says. But since Teiresias actually isn’t real, or at least he is dead, the real message here could be that we should listen to what other people have to say. In the story, Creon, Antigone, and Haemon all face less than favorable outcomes because they did not fully account for each other’s valid arguments. Creon and Antigone are both very different characters with very different motives. Creon adheres to the law of man and kingdom and in stark contrast Antigone follows her heart and the law of God. Their stubborn personalities would not allow them to seriously look at each other’s opposing arguments and to come to some sort of common agreement. If only Creon and Antigone could have found a way to set aside their pride and negotiate, they could have both avoided their tragic downfalls.
As the king of Thebes, Creon is the complete autocrat and leader who must personify the power and dignity of the state himself. Creon is the state. He represents the strength and stability in the kingdom. He possesses the unquestioned right to rule as he pleases and in any effort to uphold the stability of the kingdom. Though it may seem as if he is being cruel by leaving Polyneices to rot, the king must adhere to the laws of his state. If Creon did otherwise, it would seem as if he was a weak man who cared more for his blood than for his own people. Once Polyneices lead an army against Thebes, he became a traitor no matter what his past connection to the royal family. Creon must deny the enemy’s right to a decent burial although it is his own nephew. The king cannot have favorites and make exceptions at the cost of threatening the stability of his rule and kingdom. Once Antigone chose to defy Creon’s edict, she became a threat to the stability in Thebes and was arrested. If Creon simply allowed her to bury her brother, then it would appear that his laws meant nothing and could be easily broken. Up to this point, Creon’s actions are understandable as he is the king and must uphold the law of man. However, his treatment for Antigone is gruesome and the situation could have been handled a lot easier if he had only tried to negotiate with his niece.
In contrast to Creon, Antigone champions the laws of God above the laws of man. Antigone’s struggle to bury her traitorous brother draws attention to the difference between divine law and human law. To her, it is her obligation to bury Polynices no matter what his crimes. She follows her heart and believes that Creon’s edicts cannot override the laws of God and of morality. Creon coldly sees her argument as foolishly passionate and imprisons her. To Creon, his laws are the ultimate authority and are always right. Creon is just following his own laws. He is too proud and stubborn to notice that his decision is not morally just. Creon is not even affected by his own son’s pleas for mercy. Yet the king’s ultimate mistake is in Antigone’s punishment. Although Creon was full of pride and ambition at the start, by the conclusion Creon suffers the wrath of the gods, and ends in his own self-destruction.
If Creon and Antigone could have reached a compromise instead of taking the extreme sides of the argument, they could have easily prevented their fates. Creon was ultimately right in denying Polynices a public burial but he did not have to deny Antigone the decency to mourn her brother’s loss. If only he had allowed her to bury her brother in secret or out of the state, then this whole play could have been avoided. There would not have been a conflict, but then we wouldn’t have learned a valuable lesson. Both the opposing forces can never come to an easy agreement that makes a happy ending, because that doesn’t sell books as well. In the end, Sopchocles wanted to make money and teach us things at the same time. It must have worked since the play has been around a long time.

Monday, January 21, 2008

My Expert #2

After reviewing the four arguments posted in the "Imaginary Panel of Experts", it seems to me that the second expert appears to have been the most accurate in his interpretation of the text. Expert #2 believes that Gregor has transformed into an insect only because Gregor has felt like an insignificant being for so many years. The expert argues that Gregor has always been a disgusting groveling, abject, vermin-like creature his entire life – yet in human form. Only now has Gregor completed his metamorphosis and taken his true identity as an insignificant insect subservient to society.

As my selected expert points out, Gregor has adopted a vermin-like posture towards his family and the other authority figures in his life. Gregor seems to care only to please those around him and believes that he is insignificant to those around him. Even after he discovers he has taken the shape of an insect, Gregor can only think about how he is late for work. Gregor worries about his superiors reaction, Anyway I can still make the eight o’clock train. I’ll be showing up at the office very soon. Please be kind enough to inform them, and convey my best wishes to the director." As Gregor further pleads with his office manager to keep his job he says, "You will, you will let me go, won’t you? You can see, sir, that I’m not stubborn and I’m willing to work; the life of a traveling salesman is hard, but I couldn’t live without it. As you know very well, I am deeply obligated to the director." Again, Gregor grovels to his superiors as an insect just as he had groveled in his human form. Even as a human, Gregor never had given himself enough self-respect. As he continues his transformation into an insect, Gregor finds that he only enjoys eating garbage. As many people say, you are what you eat, and in Gregor’s case, he feels like garage. Even when Gregor rolls over and dies, he is so insignificant that his own family will not even take the time to mourn him. His new insect body severs to exemplify how his inner identity has transformed not only his mind, but also his physical form.

Gregor has been an insignificant insect for years in both his family affairs, and in his interactions with his boss. Gregor’s new physical appearance serves only demonstrate his true sense of worthlessness. Although the other experts provide valid arguments, the second expert’s interpretation of the text provides us with the most appropriate explanation for Gregor’s strange metamorphosis. Gregor’s mental state of worthlessness has finally caught up to his physical perception. Gregor has finally become the disgusting, cringing, abject, vermin that he has always felt he was. (457)

Monday, January 14, 2008

Ivan Ilych Blog

In chapter nine of "Ivan Ilych", Ivan finally realizes that all hope for recovery is lost. After dismissing his aid Gerasim, Ivan weeps in self-pity and begins his unusual "prayer". It appears that he is looking to God for answers for his suffering, but in reality, Ivan is trying to find peace with his tormented soul.
Ivan begins his prayer not by asking for help, but by demanding why he has been plagued by pain. He questions God, "Why hast Thou done all this? Why hast Thou brought me here? Why, why dost Thou torment me so terribly?" Ivan believes he has entered a stage in which he believes that he is being punished for his sins. He believes his pains are no longer from natural causes. His illness is no longer just a physical one, but also an emotional and mental ailment that constantly runs him down.
As Ivan continues with his prayer he shifts away from accusing God and begins to search for an answer within himself. His soul searching begins when he asks, "What is it you want?" All Ivan can answer is that he wishes his life was simple and pleasant, as it was in the old days. Ivan thinks back on his childhood and school days as his happiest memories. Now that he has absorbed himself so deeply in his job and in keeping up with society’s demands, he has lost touch with his family and his old, happy life. He beings to realize his present life is worthless and trivial, and that he has forgotten about all the joys in his life. Ivan can no longer find any lightheartedness, friendship, or hope in his life. Ever since he became consumed in his work, he has lost touch with what used to matter most to him. As his career progressed, he notices that he no longer had time for any happy memories. Ivan realizes that, "It is as if I had been going downhill while I imagined I was going up. I was going up in public opinion, but to the same extent life was ebbing away from me." Ivan comes to the terrible conclusion that his whole life had been a waste. The thought that "maybe I did not live as I ought to have done" suddenly occurs to him. However, Ivan dismisses his bizarre idea, since he is sure that the purpose of life is too succeed and that he had done everything properly. He had done everything according to what society deemed was right. Again, Ivan’s mind has trumped his soul. Although Ivan tries to convince himself that he has lived a good life, his soul is trying to tell him otherwise. (450)

Monday, December 3, 2007

Love in the Time of Cholera: Blog 2

In the novel, I find Florentino’s character to be quite peculiar. Although every character in the book seems to be a little eccentric or quirky in some way, everything about Florentino’s disposition strikes me as very odd. From the manner in which he is physically described to the actions he is involved in make him out to be the strangest character in the book. Yet, without Florentino, there would be no "Love in the Time of Cholera" at all. Like it or not, Florentino is the central character for the driving force of the plot even though he appears to be a character that no one could relate to.

The strangest aspect of Florentino’s abnormal lifestyle is his pursuit of vulnerable women. After Fermina rejects him early in his life, he vows that he will spend his whole life trying to win her back. He is sick from depression for many days over her loss and marriage. So much so that it drive him away from the only home he knows in the hopes that he will forget about her in his long journey. Despite his efforts, all he can continue to think about is Fermina Daza. Yet on his riverboat voyage, a woman essentially rapes him and his first experience seems to be life changing for him. When he returns home, he again experiences sexual relations with a widow, his first true lover. As their relationship continues, Florentino observes that widowed women seem to be the most free spirited females he has ever know. Yet he feels that they too have experienced a love lost with the passing of their husbands. As his thirst for women develops, Florentino learns that his sexual experiences serve as an elixir to heal his wounds from Fermina. Throughout the next decades, Florentino’s major pastime is the pursuit of what he calls "lost birds". In all of his loose relationships, Florentino ensures that the connection they have is purely physical, and that he is not emotionally attached to another women. For one, he does not want Fermina to ever know that he has "cheated" on her. Secondly, I believe that Florentino does not want to get hurt in another deep relationship. The only way that he can have relations with women is in a physical sense, because once they get to close he always likes to have the power to step away. Florentino is very cautious with his emotions ever since his crushing rejection.

As the years continue to pass, Florentino still has not lost hope in his quest for Fermina’s hand every though he has had so many other opportunities to live a happy life. Even after fifty years, Fermina continues to occupy his life day in and day out. Yet, he is still able to keep her a secret from everyone around him, along with his sex life. What is strange to me is that he says he has all his sexual encounters to get "experience" for when he finally receives his chance to get back with Fermina. He also uses his love exposure to help young lovers write letters to their sweethearts. Everything he does is part of his master plan to win her back. Florentino is such an obsessive-compulsive character that he cannot simply let go of his past-lost love. If only he would learn to move on, he would have so many opportunities to live a happy life with one of the many women that he has had encounters with. What also strikes me as strange is that if he is willing to go the trouble to start relationships with married women, why does he not try to steal Fermina from Urbino? If he cares so much about her that his life is devoted to her, he might as well try to have an affair with her. Florentino has the ability to woo almost any women he desires; yet he will not even talk to Fermina while she is married to the Doctor. If it was anyone else but the eccentric Florentino, he would not have wasted his time with the other women, and would have just gone for what he wanted the most, or just plain forget about her and move on. (701)

Tuesday, November 20, 2007

Love in the Time of Cholera: Blog 1

One of the novel’s most prominent and powerful themes is, not surprisingly, love. However, love is not portrayed as a wonderful, simplistic, union of two people who share each other’s passions without question. In "Love in the Time of Cholera", love is portrayed as a plague comparable to cholera that can devastate your life. We can see from Florentino Ariza that love is sometimes single sided and agonizing. He becomes so lovesick that he must endure not only emotional hardships, but also physical pains similar to those of cholera as he woos over his beloved Fermina Daza. Marquez’s novel suggests that lovesickness is not only a state of mind, but is a literal illness that can consume your entire life.

As chapter two progresses, we can see that Florentino is literally plagued by love. Every second of his life he can only think of Fermina. Although he only catches glimpses of her walking to and from school, for two weeks straight he thinks of nothing else but her. He even spends his time alone writing pages and pages of letters to her in hopes that one day he will find the courage to give them to her. Florentino goes to the extent of memorizing entire books of love poems only to find better ways of expressing his unconditional devotion to his secret love. His obsession with Fermina becomes so unbearable that he must unleash the weight of his secret to his mother. Since it is Florentino’s first experience with what he believes is true love, he turns to the only person that can guide him in the right direction.

When Florentino finally gives Fermina the letter confessing his love, he is instantly sick with worry. As soon as Florentino, "began to wait for the answer to his first letter, his anguish was complicated by diarrhea and green vomit, he became disoriented and suffered from sudden fainting spells and his mother was terrified because his condition did not resemble the turmoil of love so much as the devastation of cholera." (61) His lovesickness was so much like cholera that his godfather, a homeopath, mistakes that Florentino was infected with the illness. Yet, they finally conclude, "the symptoms of love were the same as those of cholera." (62) Florentino again complicates his emotional pain with physical agony when he vomits after eating roses and drinking perfume hoping to "taste" Fermina’s forbidden scent. He is so delirious over her letters that he, "spent the rest of the afternoon eating roses and reading the note letter by letter, over and over again (68)." Florentino even compromises his job as he works absent mindedly at the telegraph office and makes costly errors for the company. Florentino goes so far as to risk his life only so he can play love songs on his violin to Fermina during the Civil War. He is eventually captured by government troops, is accused of being a spy, and barley escapes execution after serving jail time for his senseless acts of love. As their relationship, solely through letters, progresses Florentino proposes to his love. Of course, Fermina’s father is enraged that a lower class boy would ruin all that he has provided for his daughter. He can only hope that if he takes her away for many years, she will forget about Florentino completely. Although they keep in contact secretly and she maintains her fidelity for years, Fermina knows she never truly loved him as soon as they are reunited in the market. All she can think to say to Florentino is "No, please, forget it (102)." After all of those years of devotion and non-stop love sickness, Florentino is finally faced with the fact that his love is one-sided. Fermina tell him in a simple letter that, "Today when I saw you, I realized that what is between us is nothing more than an illusion (102)."

Contrary to many other novels focused on love, "Love in the Time of Cholera" shows us that love is not always the wonderful experience that everyone should look forward to experiencing. More often that not, love can be one-sided and can consume your entire life as you brood over lost love. As we learned from the first chapter, even after fifty years of rejection, Florentino is still convinced of his everlasting love for her. Florentino’s lovesickness is not only an emotional and physical pain, but also a psychological illness that leads him to compulsively obsess over Fermina. (744)

Sunday, November 4, 2007

The Sound and the Fury Blog 2

The Jason section in The Sound and the Fury is entirely different from any of the previous sections we have read. Unlike the Benjy and Quentin sections, Jason’s account is very structured and chronological. His recollection of past events is no where near as vivid and as emotional as the previous sections. Jason’s tone is quite harsh and cruel. He is much more vulgar, nasty, hurried, power-hungry, and consumed with his ego than his brothers are. While Benjy and Quentin both seem to reminisce in the past and their mistakes, Jason’s main interests lie in the present and controlling those around him. He is more concerned with external events than he is with his emotions and his inner world. Jason is a clear contrast to his brothers in which his motives are very black and white.

No matter what character Jason interacts with, he always attempts to gain control over them. He constantly tries to twist circumstances in his favor, usually at the expense of those around him. Jason believes that he is more clever than everyone else is and that he can control any one if he wants to by manipulating them. One of the main ways he tries to gain control over those around him is with money. Since he is the head of the family after his father and brother died, he believes that he is now financially responsible for the Compsons. He feels that since he brings in the money to support the family, he should be able to dictate how his family, in particular his niece, act. Jason tries to control the women in his life by relying on his finances. Although he swindles the money from his sister’s child support checks, Jason believes that he should be in control of Quentin’s actions since he pays for her things with his sister’s money. When Quentin does not have her books he asks her, "I know you haven’t got any books: I just want to ask you what you did with them, if it’s any of my business. I’m just the one that paid $11.65 for them last September." Although he tries to gain control over her with money, she does not listen to him nor respect him. She replies to his treats by saying, "I’d rather be in hell than anywhere where you are." Another woman Jason tries to control is his prostitute girlfriend Lorranine. The only way that he knows how to have a relationship with a woman is by controlling her with money. Jason knows that she is dependent on him and "misses" him because "last time I gave her forty dollars". Although it is a prostitute, he feels as if she is truly dependent on him. Yet without his money, Lorranine would not even pay attention to him. Jason also manipulates Caddy by requiring that Quentin’s child support checks go through him. For many years, he believes that he has tricked both his mother and sister by stealing the money, but eventually Caddy lets him know that he has not tricked her. She tells him that, "I’ve had no answer to the last two letters I wrote her, though the check in the second one was cashed with the other check. I know you are opening my letters to her. I know that as well as if I were looking at you." Once again, Jason fails at controlling the women in his life or even tricking them. The only woman that he has been able to control is his mother, only because she believes that he is her perfect son. When Jason tries to sell a ticket to Luster, Jason shows how cruel he truly is. Jason knows that his servant cannot afford the five cent ticket, yet he would rather burn it in front of him than give it too him. Jason claims that he "Needs the cash" although he has a safe box full of bills in his room. Jason again wants to flaunt his self-perceived power over everyone else because of his money. In the end, no one cares about his small amount of cash and his perception that he has any power over people is false.

Although Jason is a crafty and clever character, he never uses his talents to swindle people rather than to gain their respect honestly. Faulkner’s different use of style and tone in each characters section of the novel is based upon each characters different personality in the novel. If Jason learned to not manipulate and trick those around him, people might start to truly listen to him and he would finally have some real control over his peers. By concentrating on his small sum of money and believing that it is everything in his life, Jason never develops any higher goals or aspirations for himself. Jason appears to be a motivated character with clever ideas, driven by his strong ego. Jason could be a strong leader if he could put his traits to good use instead of wasting them on petty tricks; he could finally win some real control over those around him.(824)

Friday, October 26, 2007

The Sound and the Fury Blog 1

In first section of "The Sound and the Fury", Benjy acts as the moral reflector of the novel and helps the reader evaluate the other characters. Although Benjy is mentally handicapped, his primary attribute is that he is able to sense emotional changes in any of the character’s behavior. Benjy is unable to communicate his feelings to others around him, but he can feel the deviations in his companion’s emotions. Benjy has an acute sense of the situations that surround him although he cannot fully understand them. He simply knows when his companions are in trouble and can sense their uneasiness. Benjy knows when Caddy has been promiscuous, when his family members are sick, and is able to read peoples emotions and true feelings through their tone and body language. Because Benjy can only understand the characters on a very primitive standpoint, we are able to analyze the character’s actions at their most basic level. Through Benjy’s honest interpretation of the events that surround him, the reader is able to evaluate the other characters in a way that is unique to Faulkner’s novel.

Since Benjy thinks on such a simple level his interpretations of his companion’s actions are broken down to the most basic understanding. Although he cannot communicate and has a terrible mental handicap, Benjy can interpret the mood of the characters around him. When Mr. Patterson intercepts the letter intended for his wife, Benjy can sense the tension between the two characters by reading their body language, "Mrs. Patterson came across the garden, running. When I saw her eyes I began to cry. Mr. Patterson climbed the fence. He took the letter. Mrs. Patterson’s dress was caught on the fence. I saw her eyes again and I ran down the hill" (13-4). In another scene involving an argument between Caddy and Quentin, Benjy again is able to sense the tension between the two characters even though he cannot understand what they are fighting about, "I’ll run away. Caddy said. Yes you will. Quentin said. I’ll run away and never come back. Caddy said. I began to cry" (19). When Caddy comes home after losing her virginity Benjy again can sense the emotional turmoil, "We were in the hall. Caddy was still looking at me. Her hand was against her mouth and I saw her eyes and I cried. We went up the stairs. She stopped again, against the wall, looking at me and I cried and she went on and I came n, crying, and she shrank against the wall, looking at me" (69). Because Benjy cannot communicate through speech, the only way he can express himself if by crying. Whenever he senses a situation with any tension, as little as it may be, he begins to cry until the situation is corrected.

Aside from highlighting especially tense scenes in the novel, Benjy’s innocent interpretation of the characters helps the reader to see their true nature. When characters are alone with Benjy they know that he cannot fully understand what they are saying. During this time the reader is able to see what the characters true personality is like. Benjy is to an extent acting as an omnipresent observer. The only characters that seem to care for Benjy are Caddy and Dilsey. Most of the other characters in the novel abuse Benjy and mock his mental handicap. Jason is one of the coldest characters towards Benjy and blames the family troubles on Benjy. After Benjy is accused of raping the girl outside of the gate Jason says that, "Do you think I wanted anything like this to happen. This family is bad enough, God knows. I could have told you the entire time. I reckon you’ll send him to Jackson, now (52). Although Luster takes care of Benjy when he is older, Luster also treats Benjy with disrespect and always tries to make him cry. After Caddy has been gone, Luster knows that Benjy loves her more than anything and uses it against him, "Beller. You want something to beller about. All right, then. Caddy. Caddy. Beller now. Caddy" (55). By seeing how most of the characters treat Benjy the reader is able to see how compassionate the characters truly are. When they are with Benjy, they do not need to pretend to be anything they are not because they know that Benjy cannot understand the things around him. The uncaring characters treat Benjy with disrespect because they know he cannot protect himself. In contrast, we see the Caddy and Dilsey both constantly treat Benjy with the proper respect he deserves and protects him at every chance they get. Through Benjy’s eyes, the reader is able to see into how each character acts when they think no one else is watching them.

Without Benjy, "The Sound and the Fury" would not be able to analyze the characters on such a unique level. Since the other characters know that Benjy cannot fully understand the events that go on around him, they often let their guard down when interacting around him. We can then see the characters true personality traits and if they have any compassion for anyone but themselves. Benjy’s acute sense of emotional change helps us to determine when critical moments develop in the novel between the characters. Benjy’s innocence and simple perception of the characters and events in the novel help us to analyze the novel on its most basic levels. (904).

Thursday, October 11, 2007

"Greasy Lake"

"Greasy Lake", by Thomas C. Boyle, reveals a moment of enlightened transformation in three young men as they experience a series of mistakes, consequences, and reformation. The three friends, who have considered themselves "bad characters", discover that being "bad" is not anything like they thought. After experiencing a night full of terrible mishaps, the teenagers realize that living a truly rebellious and dangerous lifestyle is not for them. Boyle’s coming of age story explores a turning point of the young men’s road to maturity. For the characters of this story, one mistake follows another, revealing potential and actual consequences that lead up to a final moment of self-recognition.

Similar to the murky lake they frequent, the main characters are so obsessed with their fake personas that they lose sight of their true personalities. The young men see themselves as bad characters, "We wore torn-up leather jackets, slouched around with toothpicks in our mouths, sniffed glue…we drank gin and grape juice, Tango, Thunderbird, and Bali Hai. We were nineteen. We were bad"(1). Yet, they are not born in the slums, or even self-sustaining tough guys who live on their own rules. The main characters are suburban teenagers in rebellion against anything and everything in their path simply because it is cool. It was "a time when courtesy and winning ways went out of style, when it was good to be bad"(1). The narrator describes his friends as "two dangerous characters" although Digby attends Cornell by "allowing his father to pay his tuition", Jeff is thinking of quitting school to become a painter, and the narrator drives his mother’s station wagon. As the night progresses, the friends are horrified to experience what being "bad" is truly like.

Hoping to find some last minute excitement before returning home, the characters drive up to the local hangout known as Greasy Lake. After a series of unfortunate mistakes, the three boys find themselves in a fight with a real tough guy. In the midst of the climactic moment, the narrator loses his keys and their only way to escape the rough situation. The "bad greasy character" is able to manhandle all of the boys at once. The narrator explains that, "I was terrified. Blood was beating in my ears, my hands were shaking, my heart turning over like a dirtbike in the wrong gear"(11). Unsure of how to handle the situation, the narrator returns to the battle with a tire iron and takes the assailant down with a single blow. The immature boys are at a loss, "No one said anything. We just stared down at the guy…Rattled, I dropped it{tire iron} in the dirt, already envisioning the headlines, the pitted faces of the police inquisitors…"(14). Acting purely on adrenaline, the three friends move on to assault the man’s girlfriend. At this point, they have traveled far into the dark side and have truly become unscrupulous characters. The boys are finally living their dream of becoming "bad characters", but their dream has turned into a nightmare.

The series of mistakes the boys unknowingly commit set the stage for their eventual transformation and realization of their immaturity. The arrival of the second car stops them from crossing over into rape and scares them so badly that can only think to retreat deep into the woods. As the narrator encounters a dead body in the lake, the narrator reaches a point in which he loses all self-control. The narrator, "stumbled back, but the muck took hold of my feet—a sneaker snagged, balance lost—and suddenly I was pitching face forward into the buoyant black mass, throwing my hands out in desperation…"(21). The introduction of the dead body adds the extra push for the narrator to evaluate his current circumstances and realize that acting "bad" only gets him into trouble. After waiting hours in the reeds surrounding the scene of the crime, all three dazed boys emerge together. Physically and mentally exhausted, "They slouched across the lot, looking sheepish, and silently came up beside me to gape at the ravaged automobile. No one said a word" (33). When they think the night is over, two older girls approach their car as the boys are trying to collect themselves. The boys "looked at her like zombies, like war veterans, like deaf-and-dumb pencil peddlers"(40). The young men are given a second chance to fulfill the "real bad character" persona that they so desired before when the girls ask them if they want to party. Although Digby is the only character able to verbally denounce the temptation, the silence of the other two characters is enough to lead us to believe that the young men have undergone a serious transformation. The narrator "just looked at her. I thought I was going to cry"(44). All of the young men have changed from their experience and no longer desire the life of a "real bad character".

After the boys emerge from their hiding places around Greasy Lake, they return to society with a cleansed sense of maturity and understanding. The series of unfortunate events the young men encounter lead them to realize that being "bad" is not all that they hoped it would be. The night they experienced is their harsh initiation into the real world. The narrator understands that he could easily have been lying next to the dead biker on the lake. If he was not as lucky as he was that night, he would have been killed over his notion that being "bad" was the only way to be cool. The night’s events are permanently etched into their minds. For the rest of their lives, the defining moment at Greasy Lake helped the young men realize that acting "bad" did not fit their personality and was not worth the expense that it could cost them. (976)

Friday, October 5, 2007

"The Things They Carried"

In "The Things They Carried", Tim O’ Brien explores the physical and emotional burdens that weighed on soldiers during the Vietnam War. The "things" the troops carry are both literal and figurative. Their physical load of weapons, ammunition, rations, and other supplies underscore their emotional load of terror, love, grief, and their desire to return home. Each character in O’Brien’s short story carries a different load specific to their role in the unit. Similar to their physical items, each character carries a different emotional burden specific to their outlook on the terrible events that surround their lives.

Jimmy Cross, the unit’s officer, is charged with the most responsibility and appears to suffer emotional burdens more than any of his other men. Although Cross may not carry as much physical load as the other enlisted men in his unit, he is responsible for his men’s lives. When Cross witnesses Lavender’s death, he bears the grief of the other members of the unit and feels as if he is responsible for his demise. The other enlisted men, too dumbfounded to mourn, do not experience the grief that Cross does. In response to losing one of his men, Cross feels as if he must become the best officer he can be and devote his life to his men. He then makes a symbolic personal sacrifice by burning the letters from his beloved Martha. By giving up Martha, he loses the escape he once had from the war around him. Since he believes her presence will no longer distract him, he can become closer to his men and protect them better. He is no longer absently obsessed with her trivial matters that he sees as a destructive force to his concentration to his unit. Lavender’s death, although un-preventable, leads Cross to become a different person for the rest of his time in Vietnam. He will no longer allow he and his men to take the war lightheartedly. The unit will no do everything by the book and according to military procedure. Cross no longer is devoted to focusing on matters at home, but rather on devoting all of his efforts on getting his men safely through the conflict.

Some of the things the men carry are universal, such as the two-pound poncho, magazines of ammunition, a primary weapon, and fear. All of the men carry the weight of fear, reputations, and death along with their standard gear. Although every member of the unit experiences fear at some point, every one of the soldiers knows that exhibiting fear will only reveal vulnerability. After a particularly bad firefight, "They would touch their bodies, feeling shame, then quickly hiding it. They would force themselves to stand. As if in slow motion, frame by frame…Scary stuff, one might say. But then someone else would grin…" (65) Although the men are all scared they try to hide their fear from each other. They all "carried the emotional baggage of men who might die. They carried shameful memories. They carried the common secret of cowardice barely restrained, the instinct to run or freeze or hide, and in many respects that was the heaviest burden of all, for it could never be put down, it required prefect balance and perfect posture" (76). All of the men have to find a way to dehumanize the whole situation in order to cope with the events that surround them. In the short story, the men encounter a VC corpse by the side of the road. One of the men, Sanders, reaches down, cuts a finger from the body, and puts in his pocket. Sanders then tries to tell the other men that there is some moral to the scene before them yet he is unable to explain it. The other troops curse Sanders and yet it does not seem to bother any of them what they had just seen. In order to continue on fighting and not lose your sanity, the soldiers must dehumanize the events around them.

Tim O’ Brien’s short story explores the hardships the troops endured during the war. Even more encumbering than their physical loads were the emotional wounds they suffered each day. All of the men over there could handle the physical demands the war required from them, but many of they could not handle the emotional drain that the war took from them. Even if the troops could hide their emotional pain while in battle and in Vietnam, once they returned home they were changed forever. The emotional wounds many of the troops faced in the war could not be repaired. Through Lieutenant Jimmy Cross and his men, we can see how the terrible events the men suffered though changed their lives forever. (787)

Thursday, September 27, 2007

"Battle Royal"

"Battle Royal", by Ralph Ellison, explores the difficulties black men faced in the pre-civil rights era. Before the civil rights movement began to end segregation and to end the oppression of black men and women, American culture still viewed African Americans as inferior people. Throughout the South and in other American cities, blacks were still treated as if they were lesser citizens or even as quasi slaves. Ellison’s short story explores the effects segregation had on the black men and how dehumanizing racism truly is. Racism not only affects those who are targeted, but it also affects the source. "Battle Royal" exemplifies the degradation and dehumanization of society through the personal experiences of a young black man.

In the few opening paragraphs, we are introduced to the narrator through the recollection of his grandfather’s death. In the short sequence of events, the narrator first begins to question his outlook on life when his grandfather last words are, "Our life is a war and I have been a traitor all my born days, a spy in the enemy’s country" (2). Since his grandfather was an outstanding member of the community and in many ways just like him, the narrator cannot understand why the old man would chose to confess to such terrible deeds. Throughout the rest of his childhood, the narrator is uneasy about his success in the white community and his "desirable conduct". Every praise he receives the narrator can only think of his grandfather’s last chilling words. Yet after many years of absent submission to the white community, the narrator finally realizes first hand of his subservient role to the white men.

For many years after his grandfather’s death, the narrator is oblivious to his last powerful words. After his experiences in the hotel with the leading white members of the community, he soon learns that he is not an equal in the white community. When the young black men are first lead into the hotel, they are ushered through the elevators and rooms as if they were mere cattle. They are treated as if they are unwelcome foreigners as they cluster together when they enter the room full of drunken white men. To their surprise, the leading white town officials are all at the party and are drinking heavily. As they are further ushered past aggressive and jeering white men, the narrator recollects that, "I almost wet my pants" as he makes his way on to the stage and in front of the white crowd. Again, the black men are surprised to find a stark naked white woman right in front of their eyes. At the time, it was social taboo that black men should desire a white woman and the white men in the crowd threaten the narrator as he glances over her. As the woman starts to dance, the white men turn into animals as they attempt to grab her and carry her off. Although the men had acted so poorly towards the blacks, the woman’s abuse further shows how animalistic the drunken men are. Once the woman leaves, the men turn their attention back towards the blacks and force them into the boxing ring.

As the narrator is blind folded and forced to fight, he begins to see the power the whites have over him. The narrator is a mere spectacle and a form of sick entertainment for the white men. By forcing the blacks to fight, the men are exercising their control over every aspect of the black’s lives. Although they are free men, the whites attempt to display their superiority over them as they treat them like puppets. The blacks are told to fight each other, so without question the young men do as they are told. By forcing the men to fight each other for no reason, the whites are displaying their total control over the black men’s lives. Even as the narrator tries to reason with Tatlock to end the mindless fight, Tatlock refuses to even listen to the narrator’s bargains. Tatlock's only concern is to fight because the white men told him to do so. After the fight, the white men further dehumanize themselves and the blacks by forcing them to fight over a few dollars. As the men electrocute themselves fighting over the coins, the white men jeer and lash out against any of the blacks who do not participate. After the opening "festivities", the narrator is brought forward to give a speech. During his oration, the white men constantly laugh and yell over him. When the narrator talks of social equality the room falls silent. The white men begin to shout threatening remarks until the narrator explains that he only misspoke. Again, the whites show that even talking about social equality is not acceptable. At the end of his speech, the men award the narrator a scholarship and begin to praise him for his accomplishments. Even after all that had happened to him that night, the narrator was blinded by what appeared to be a token of appreciation. However, in reality the scholarship was only another control the white men believed they had over the narrator. The white men believed that they were the only ones that had the power to send him to school. If they chose too, they could help anyone they wished because they were in complete control. At the end of the night, not only were the blacks dehumanized by the white’s forced humiliation, but also the white men’s racist actions showed how cruel and animalistic men could be.

By the end of the short story, the narrator finally realizes what his grandfather’s dying words meant. For all of the old man’s life, he had been subservient to the white man’s control and did nothing to combat it. Just like the narrator, the old man never lashed out against the segregation and degradation he faced from the whites. The old man and the narrator alike were viewed as outstanding, quiet, desirable members of the community only because they submitted to the white man’s racism and control. At the end of his grandfather’s life, the old man finally regretted his complacence and hoped that his grandson would not make the same mistakes he did. After the narrator realizes that the white men had used him and that his scholarship is another control by the white men over his life, he finally sees that his life is second in importance to the white man’s desires. (1082)

Thursday, September 20, 2007

Response to A Good Man is Hard to Find

In Flannery O’Connor’s short story, "A Good Man is Hard to Find", the interactions between the bizarre characters create an interesting framework in which O’Connor can discuss the nature of human psychology. The short story focuses on the series of unfortunate events that comprise a family’s road trip across the southeast. Through these events and the character’s various reactions, the reader realizes that nothing in life can be taken for what it seems. In the short story, some of the characters experience circumstances that challenge their outlook on life. It is evident that the author believes people are often not who they pretend to be. Through the course of events in "A Good Man is Hard to Find", we experience how different people actually are from their self-image and how dramatic events can challenge everything that you believe in.

From the introduction, the grandmother appears to be the most prominent character in the short story. She is very talkative, self-centered, bossy, manipulative, and seems as if she is a thorn in her family’s side. When she does not want to go to Florida, she selfishly attempts to manipulate her son into canceling their trip by arguing that "I wouldn’t take my children in any direction with a criminal loose in it. I couldn’t answer to my conscience if I did."(1) After her attempt to sway her son and daughter-in-law is to no avail, she is the first one ready to get on the road. Although she had put up a fight to cancel the trip, she could not bear to be left behind. As the trip progresses, the family sees a poor boy standing in the doorway of his shanty. The grandmother, even after proclaiming that that it is hard to find good people anymore like herself, claims that, "Little niggers in the country don’t have things like we do."(20) The grandmother disrespects the small child instead of even thinking to stop to help him in anyway possible or even to pity his condition. When the family arrives at Red Sammy’s the grandmother quickly picks up Red Sam’s opinion that, "These days you don’t know who to trust."(35) She jumps at the opportunity to again express her belief that "People are certainly not nice like they used to be." (35) The grandmother identifies herself and Red Sam as the last of the truly "nice" people although she causes problems within her family and Red Sam appears to have problems with his wife.

Back on the road, the grandmother selfishly tricks her grandchildren into convincing their father to turn the car around to search for an old plantation from her younger years. She tricks them by claiming that, "There was a secret panel in this house…and silver was hidden in it when Sherman came through but it was never found…" (47) During her snipe hunt, the grandmother’s cat jumps onto her son’s shoulder causing him to flip the car. After she regains her senses, the old lady hopes that, "she was injured so the Bailey’s wrath would not come down on her all at once." (66) She does not even consider that her family could have died from her actions. Her only concern after regaining conscience is that she will not be blamed for the accident. Soon after when the Misfit arrives, the old lady selfishly tries to save herself, "You wouldn’t shoot a lady, would you?" (86) After her attempts to quell the Misfit are to no avail, she begins to try to convince him that he is truly a good man at heart. Even after her son and grandson are shot, the grandmother still tries to reason with the killer by calling him a good man. Exhausting her sweet talk, the old lady turns to God. She asks the Misfit "Why don’t you pray?" and his only response is that "I don’t want no hep, I’m doing all right by myself." (120) The old lady again pleads with the killer selfishly offering him all of her money to get out of the situation. The Misfit is still unperturbed by the old lady’s pitiful pleas.

When it is clear that all hope is lost, the grandmother finally realizes that she has been hypocritical her entire life. Although she had always preached about her olden days in which people were kinder, she in fact was not kind at all. She manipulated her family into listening to her. It was her fault that they were in the mess they stumbled into. She finally takes the blame for all of her sins once she realizes that her life is about to end. Acting as if she is a saint, she reaches out to touch the Misfit suggesting that she has forgiven him for his sins. As she moves towards him she murmurs, "Why you’re one of my babies. You’re one of my children." (137) As if in a trance from the old lady’s discussion about God and forgiveness, the Misfit recoils from her touch and shoots her three times. Although the grandmother is unable to change the Misfit’s habit of killing, her pure soul at the end of her life shocks the killer. He finally realizes that there are some truly innocent victims and after killing the old lady, he sees that his life no longer means anything. He remarks to his partner in crime that "It’s no real pleasure in life" suggesting that the Misfit can no longer enjoy killing. The grandmother’s actions before her death convinced the killer that people could be saved through believing in God.

Although the short story ends abruptly with the death of the entire family, the grandmother is able to come to terms with her shortcomings and accept her sins. By truly believing in God and in God’s grace, the old lady realizes that she has made many mistakes throughout her life but that she can cope with her weaknesses. Right before she is shot, the old lady accepts herself for who she is and dies a peaceful woman. (1000)

Thursday, September 13, 2007

Teenage Wasteland Response

Anne Tyler’s short story, "Teenage Wasteland", chronicles the decay of an adolescent boy facing a difficult period of his life. Although Donny’s mother Daisy cares greatly for her child, Daisy is unable to save him from his spiraling descent leading to his complete emotional breakdown. As a child, Donny is a well-natured boy that appears to have no qualms with the world around him. Once Donny beings to mature into a teenager, his mother senses that there may be a dark side to his character. He becomes an obstinate, misunderstood boy showing many difficulties both academically and socially.

Although the author chooses not to elaborate on the years preceding his fifteenth birthday, we first encounter Donny’s problems when Daisy is called to speak with the principle regarding her son’s foul behavior. The school advises Daisy to seek professional support for Donny for both emotional and academic issues. A former fourth grade teacher, Daisy feels obligated to help tutor her son and raise his grades on her own. Donny barely responds to his mother’s guidance and determination to help him succeed. Although Daisy employs all of her effort, her son simply does not want to cooperate with anyone. It seems that Donny has so much contempt for the world around him that there is no way that he can be helped. At a loss, Daisy agrees to hire the private tutor at great expense to her family financially and emotionally. Cal, the new tutor, successfully befriends Donny by agreeing that it is the world, not Donny, which is at fault. Even though Cal is intended to be an academic tutor, Cal takes on a role more suited for a therapist. After weeks of help, Daisy sees little change in Donny’s behavior and his grades continue plummet. Eventually Donny is expelled from school for misconduct and shortly after he disappears. It is clear that Donny is unable to handle the problems in his life. Rather than confront his issues, Donny simply runs away from anything he cannot face.

Donny receives every bit of compassion and support a young boy could hope for. His caring parents attempt to personally guide him through a tough time in his life and Donny is simply unresponsive. He is given a personal guidance counselor to help support him in ways his parents can not. Repeatedly Donny simply does not respond to any help he receives. His own stubborn character leads him to his demise. It is not those around him that ruin his life, but rather Donny’s own actions. Donny’s life failed not because of his parent’s faults or his tutor’s faults. Donny’s life failed simply because he did not try hard enough to overcome his problems. He never takes responsibility for his own actions and always attempts to push the blame on others around him. When Daisy questions him about the beer in his locker he claims that, "It wasn’t my fault. I promise…It was a put-up-job! See, there’s this guy that doesn’t like me." In his opinion, nothing that goes wrong in his life is his fault. It is anyone or anything around him that he pushes the blame too. Donny’s nature simply makes it impossible for him to confront his own problems and fix them. No one but Donny can care enough to fix his own mistakes and his life, not even his parents. If Donny wants to change his life for the better, then it is up to him to do it. No one else can do it for him. The only way that Donny can turn his life around is to recognize his faults and, with his parents, teachers, and tutors support, fix them one by one. Donny simply is not motivated to mend his broken life. In the end, he would rather run away from his issues than confront them. Donny’s character is frankly too weak, not because of those around him, but because of himself. Adolescence is a hard time for both parents and their children, but it is up to the children to take control of their own lives and take responsibility for their mistakes and correct them. Cal, Daisy, and Matt all have their flaws in supporting Donny but they all attempt to help him. No one wants to see Donny fail. No one is working against Donny’s success. Although Cal may be an insincere mentor, Cal has no motivation to ruin Donny’s life. No one is hoping that Donny will fail. Mentors and parents can only give advice and support. It is up to the adolescent, Donny, to make the actual changes necessary to correct the issues in his own life. Parents and mentors can only help Donny understand what he must do to help himself. They cannot forcefully change Donny for the better unless he wants it for himself. In the end, Donny must take the reins himself to truly have an effect on improving his life. Since he is not strong enough to take his life under his own control, Donny takes the easy way out by running away for good. (846)

Friday, August 31, 2007

Summer Reading

In “The Plot Against America”, Phillip Roth is able to convey such realistic human emotions through his characters that the novel begins to appear to be more than simply a fictional account of a family’s struggle. Throughout the novel, Roth draws on his own personal family experiences to give his characters the essential spark to bring them to life. The protagonist, Phillip Roth, is a seven-year-old character modeled after the author’s own early childhood and is subjected through all of the troubles in the novel. Because Roth is nearly writing an autobiography about his family members he has no trouble in clearly expressing their human traits and emotions.

As a young boy, the protagonist Phillip embodies one of the most recognizable human traits—innocence. Since he is only seven years old he has no strong, negative emotions against anything around him. He is simply a young boy hoping to enjoy his childhood and live with his loving family. Once the most influential members of his family, his parents, begin to fear the election of a radical anti-Semitic Charles Lindberg the reader witnesses the rapid changes that rock the family and Phillip to their core. Because Phillip is so young he is easily impressionable to the events that surround his life. Phillip’s father terrifies his son when he breaks down, “How can this be happening in America? How can people like these be in charge of our country? If I didn't see it with my own eyes, I'd think I was having a hallucination." After Lindberg is elected president, the Roth family realizes that all of America is turning against the Jews. Phillip worries that the whole world around him is the enemy. Only months before the election Phillip lived an innocent childhood life and believed nothing could hurt him or his family in America. Through the rest of the novel he develops nervous anxieties toward the frailty of life and the future of his friends and relatives. Phillip can barely even turn to his parents as they know no better than he what may become of them as the pro-Nazi Lindberg party begins to mount their offensive against the Jews.

As the novel progresses Phillip and his family no longer feel safe in their own country. The harsh circumstances that young Phillip must face to survive changes him rapidly and forces him to grow up in a constant state of fear. The fearful boy laments, "Our homeland was America…then the Republicans nominated Lindbergh and everything changed." Phillip is challenged with making difficult decisions on his own and forming his own opinions on what is right from wrong. He learns to depend on himself when he feels he can no longer trust some of the influential members of the community. The harsh experiences Phillip goes through and his subsequent personality changes express how real Phillip’s situation could be. Because Phillip’s responses seem so believable the reader can easily identify with his hardships and his motives. The author draws specific details and occurrences from his own life that he effectively instills into the characters in his novel. The “Plot Against America” contains many lifelike characters such as young Phillip due to the fact that many of their actions are drawn from real life experiences in the author’s life. There is no question that Phillip Roth’s novel contains great examples of characters expressing strikingly lifelike human emotions and qualities. (567)

Monday, August 27, 2007

Letter

Mr. Coon,
For as long as I can remember, reading and writing have been core aspects in the PCDS curriculum. Since the fifth grade, PCDS has taught me to appreciate good books and to realize the importance of writing well. Writing is an essential tool in clearly stating one’s objectives and motives while reading is a key ingredient to one’s complete education. In middle school, we students were "required" to read as many as seven books each summer. So naturally the summertime was when I did most of my pleasure reading while the school year would usually be devoted to class readings. In high school, I stopped reading as much pleasure reading as I used to in middle school simply because there seemed to be other things to do. Sports became more of a commitment, school became more time consuming and important, and other things seemed to always come up. Nevertheless, I still try to keep at least one book by my bed when I have free time to pick it up again. The books I like to read the most have always been historical fiction novels. Ever since I was little I loved learning about history because history is simply the best story there is. History is not only intriguing, but also it actually happened. It makes the story so much better to me since its true. Because historical fiction novels are tied into real life events, I feel more strongly towards the plot and the characters because it is bringing history alive. Some of my favorite books have been "Christ in Concrete" and "Killer Angles" simply due to the fact that these novels can put human faces and emotions in real life events in the past. I feel as if these books and books like them are important to society because they can show anyone what history was like not from a facts and figures standpoint, but from a more personalized level. Some of my best papers have been in history, again one of my favorite subjects, simply because I like to write about it. When I am inspired by my topic, I try my best to do it justice. Some of my papers last year covered the history of the Panama Canal, the Cold War, and twentieth century immigrant life. Once I get going on my topic, whatever it may be, it is easy for me to continue to write. On every paper it is always the hardest for me to get my introduction the way I want it. I hope to expand my abilities as a writer and I look forward to a great senior year in English. (442)