Week Thirteen Poems

“Because I could not stop for Death” had a gloomy ambience in my opinion. The poem is discussing the narrator’s unexpected encounter with Death. We can tell that the narrator is unprepared for her date with death because she is under dressed as “the Dews drew quivering and chill”. After reading the poem, it had me pondering the concept that death could come at any moment. Death does not wait on us, we wait on Death. At the end of the poem, we find out that the narrator has been dead for centuries, but to her it seems like just yesterday.

In “Some keep the Sabbath going to Church”, the point of the poem is that we all practice worship in different ways. The narrator is able to find peace and comfort in her own backyard. The narrator’s appreciation for nature, or God’s creations, is her way of praising the Lord. Just because a person goes to church does not mean that they keep the Sabbath holy; likewise, just because a person does not attend church doesn’t mean that they do not keep the Sabbath holy.

Death of a Salesman

Death of a Salesman was a typical display of chasing the wrong aspect of the American Dream, and the critic in the article explained it well. The article explains that while Willy was trying to achieve the wealth factor of the American Dream, he failed at his family life, which in the end is far more important. The article also analyzed Willy’s character in depth; Willy’s need to succeed as a businessman. Along with discussing the corruption of the American Dream, the article also states that this story is a modern tragedy, with which I would have to agree. Willy keeps failing, and the audience sympathizes with him. The article states that this story is “personal, not classic and heroic” and that the “central figure is a little man sentenced to discover his smallness”, and that assertion is the best way to describe Death of a Salesman. I understood Death of a Salesman before I read the critical article, but the article did give me a new perspective on some aspects of the story, as well as introduce some points that I had not thought of, such as considering it a modern tragedy.

The Death of Ivan Ilych

The lesson learned from The Death of Ivan Ilych is quite typical; you can have everything and still not be happy. Throughout the entire story, Ivan was so set on having the perfect life, that he detached himself from feeling emotion. He had a beautiful home, and family, a lucrative job, and many friends but was still not satisfied. He was never content, and it took him until he was lying on his death bed to realize what it was that he was missing; empathy towards others. This piece was trying to convey that without human connection in your life, life is going to feel empty, not matter how many material things you possess. Also, a lesson that can be taken from this story is that it is never too later to make things right in your life. Ivan had his epiphany on his death bed and was still able to mend the situation with his family. He apologized and felt for them, and because of that he became a new person.

Research Paper

The Yellow Wallpaper was entertaining and interesting, so I’ve been considering writing my research paper over that story. Also, there are many critical articles on the story, so it should be easy to find secondary sources. By the end of the story, my thoughts were that she was not insane to begin with, but by keeping her locked in that room doing nothing all day,  it drove her to insanity.  So my topic could be something along the lines of: Was the narrator really insane, or did her husband’s treatment contribute, or even cause, her mental decline? I’m not completely sure on the wording yet, but that’s my basis.

Kate Chopin

“The Storm” and “The Story of an Hour” are two completely different pieces by Chopin, but both have similar characteristics. I really enjoyed both of the stories for multiple reasons. For one thing, Chopin knows how to tell a story without being too verbose. Stories that are short and too the point hold my attention better than long ones. They were also easy to understand, as well as entertaining. Both pieces were obviously feminist, but I can see how they could be tied into historical works as well. During the time that these were published, women were very subordinate and submissive to their husbands. Not many writers during this time wrote about women’s independence, but Chopin defied that logic. In “The Storm”, Chopin discusses a woman having an affair with a man other than her husband. This was very unheard of at the time. In “The Story of an Hour”, Chopin told a story of a woman feeling immense freedom when her husband died. Chopin’s stories helped people understand how women felt trapped in many ways.

Composition II Course

So far in the composition II course I’ve enjoyed the reading. The stories have all been interesting in their own way. With each story we’ve had to analyze certain aspects of the literature, so I’ve learned a couple things in that area. I’ve learned that sometimes there’s more to a story than what’s written; you have to infer or dig deeper than just the words. Also, I’ve learned that knowing what time period the story was written in, and the history going on when the story was written, can be helpful in understanding the text. I expect to keep learning how to analyze and criticize literature, and becoming better at it as the course progresses. The course is important because it’s needed to graduate, obviously. I don’t know about how it’s important in real life really, other than it’s good to know how to express your thoughts about something, and criticize it respectfully.

Hills Like White Elephants by Ernest Hemingway

Hemingway’s writing style is often referred to as “simple” because he uses language that is easy to understand and plain grammar.  Hemingway is also called “the master of dialogue” because of the conversations he chooses his characters to have; sometimes the way the characters say things is more important than what is actually being stated.  This style was coined the Iceberg theory; the less the writer actually says, the more powerful the story becomes because we are left with the bare essentials. These techniques are evident in Hills Like White Elephants. The story was uncomplicated in language and diction, and mostly composed of dialogue. In the story, the man and woman seemed to talk a great deal, but not much was actually said; they were talking around the problem, but not addressing it directly. Hemingway employs this technique in his writing to show inner conflict in his characters. The time period is also crucial in Hills Like White Elephants. The 1920s were a time for change in America. The country’s wealth more than doubled between 1920 and 1929, and woman had a new found freedom. Woman now smoke, drank, and were considered more sexually free. Birth control devices were also made available. This goes along with the story because the woman was drinking with the man, and was considering having an abortion. Prohibition was also going on during the 1920s, but many Americans still drank alcohol anyway, just illegally.  The setting of the story is full of symbols. Hills Like White Elephants took place in a train station, which can be seen a crossroad. The couple had to decide where to go from there, physically and in their relationship. The contrasting landscapes, the white hills and barren, dry landscape, symbolized two different options; to have the baby or not, to maintain the relationship or not.

“A Good Man is Hard to Find”

When I first began reading A Good Man is Hard to Find, I thought the grandmother might have had some kind of mental problem, such as Alzheimer’s, because of the way she spoke.  Once I was finished reading, however, I realized that she was just a lonely, and very observant woman. The grandmother did not bother me in the story. In fact, I sympathized with her at the end when she began praying in an attempt to save her life. Not to mention she had to listen to her family being shot in the woods. She felt helpless, and if I was in her situation I would have done the same thing. What else could she have done? I think that it was noble of her to beg to God instead of begging the Misfit not to kill her. I do not, however, feel sorrow for the Misfit. He chose his actions. We all have things in our lives that go wrong, or hurt us, but that does not mean that we can go and do whatever we want. He did the things he did because he did not care. So why would I care about someone who does not care about life, his actions, his punishment, or anything?

Poe’s short stories

A Tell Tale Heart and The Fall of the House of Usher were both decent stories, but they were not my favorite thing to read. I understood A Tell Tale Heart just by reading the text in the book better than I did The Fall of The House of Usher; I had to use Sparknotes to fully understand what the story was saying. But once I understood The Fall of the House of Usher, I liked it’s storyline better than A Tell Tale Heart. I like the elements that compose Gothic stories, such as a dark atmosphere, supernatural elements, haunted houses, etc., but the time period they were written in make it hard to easily understand the text; usually I have to read sentences more than once. Both stories were creepy, which is what I like about them. If the text was easier to read, I would have liked them much better. However, these are the only two Gothic stories I have ever read, so maybe if I was accustomed to reading them I would be used to the language in which they are written.

The Yellow Wallpaper

The Yellow Wallpaper was an interesting story. Throughout the entire story, the reader is left pondering whether the narrator is actually insane. By the end, however, I was certain that she had psychiatric problems. I would have to agree with the critics who assume that the narrator commits suicide at the end of the story. On page 82, she discusses jumping out of her window. She also says on page 78 that the woman in the wallpaper shakes the pattern in an attempt to get out. This implies that the narrator is subconsciously feeling trapped, which can sometimes lead a person to suicide. She mentions on page 83 about being fastened by a “well-hidden rope”. Could that rope be used in her suicide later on? The reader can never know what really happens after the story ends, we can only assume. In my opinion, enough signs point the her committing suicide.