Wednesday, May 26, 2010
IOP Journal #5
I am just a little nervous for my IOP presentation. I have my analysis down, I'm just scared I'll talk too fast or mess up! haha but i should be fine. I chose to do a powerpoint presentation, with many many slides with some awesome pictures. I would also like to involve the class, just a little, answering simple questions or reading quotes nothing big. I hope that's alright because I haven't seen anyone else do that yet. Oh well. I really enjoyed re-reading the novel "Their Eyes Were Watching God" I felt like i got much more out of it the second time through. I got little details that i would never have seen before. I found it extremely beneficial especially when analyzing. I do think that it would help a lot on my world lit to re-read the plays, I've re-read scenes but the entire play would bring more things to light. Anyway, when i first got my topic of animals, i wasn't entirely sure where to go with it or if it would be too cliche. I felt like it worked out pretty well and that I was insightful in my analysis but that will just have to wait until I have already given my presentation.
IOP Journal #4
I think i have the analysis of the dogs finalized
the dogs represent protection given to women by the men who care for them. The first time dogs are mentioned is the story of how Janie’s father was run out of town because he raped her mama. This man abused a women’s sexuality and therefore was a menace and a threat and to he was chased away in order to protect Janie’s mother and the other women in the town. The dogs lend a sense of security and make the women feel loved and safe. Tea Cake the only man who truly loved Janie shares the same qualities of these loyal animals. He is extremely loyal to Janie, he loves her wholly, and will protect her no matter what. “He worked like a dog for her” (177), this shows his deep devotion to his wife. Every women dreams of a man like that, one who will care for them. But it is these same qualities that brought such pain to Janie after he was gone. Tea Cake was bitten by a mad dog during the hurricane, under normal conditions the dog would’ve left Tea Cake alone, however because the dog was confused he believed Tea Cake was harming Janie because he was her husband, and in that society all husbands were harmful to their wives. However even while in the midst of intense pain Tea Cake shows his love for Janie “Tea Cake couldn’t come back to himself until he had got rid of that mad dog that was in him and he couldn’t get rid of the dog and live” (178). He wanted to protect Janie from the evil inside of him but it had such a strong hold upon him that he had to sacrifice himself in order to save her.
IOP Journal #3
The dogs are a little more tricky to figure out. Because the dogs provide protection to women, when they run off the man that raped Janie's mother but it was also a dog that killed Tea Cake. I believe that Hurston is trying to show how sometimes trying to protect women actually ends up hurting them more. Because Janie's father wanted to get back together with her mother and marry her but the dogs ran him off because they thought they were protecting her. But if the father stayed than maybe Janie would've had a mother and a father and been able to grow up like most children and live a happy life. Or maybe not. With Tea Cake the dog killed the only man that truly loved Janie and that she loved back with all her heart. The dog believed that Tea Cake was a threat and so he wanted to get rid of him, causing much more pain to Janie than anything else. However it was a mad dog so maybe it was too crazy to realize that Tea Cake was actually a blessing in her life and not something that was harming her. There is also the quote that says "he worked like a dog for her" this refers to Tea Cake and his devotion to Janie, so maybe the dog represents devotion and love, but that doesn't fit. I will have to look deeper into the analysis of the dog.
IOP Journal #2
The next animal Hurston focuses on is the vultures. These are present after the burial of the mule and they pick at the mules flesh. These birds do not kill their prey, nor do they rarely attack healthy vibrant animals. This shows that they are dependant on the suffering of other creatures in order to survive and gain sustenance. The vultures represent rumors and gossip spread by other women. Rumors do not come from happy marriages and well meaning citizens but they spawn from suffering and pain. Rumors live off of the pain of others and they need that pain in order to survive and grow. Also Hurston shows that rumors are greater than humans because of the personification of vultures in that scene. No other animal is given the power to speak like humans do and so this shows that they have more power than the other animals, and the animals represent human things, so it shows how destructive rumors can be. Even though they do not cause the death or the direct pain, they do nothing to stop what is happening.
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
IOP Journal #1
For my IOP I chose to analyze the way Hurston uses animals in "Their Eyes Were Watching God" to symbolize the varying degrees of suffering felt by women in a male dominant society. The first animal I really began analyzing was the mule. The mule represents the direct abuse that women receive at the hands of men. This means physical abuse, lack of emotional care, dominance and such things. This is portrayed through the way the town talks about the mule, how it is starved and so skinny that the women use his ribs for a washboard. This illustrates the lack of emotional care given to Janie by Joe Starks. Janie is a larger metaphor of women and the animals depict what she experiences throughout the novel. Though Joe gives her all the material things she desires he does not openly show his affection to her and this causes her to question her marriage. Jody also forces her to be submissive under his voice, he fights with her and continues to degrade her until she complies with what he wants. Even after she has given way he still crushes her even lower which is exhibited by Joe standing on the dead mule and using the body as a platform. Even Tea Cake, Janie's best and most loving husband, still demonstrates dominance over her. When he whips her just to show that he is boss. The word whip instead of beats denotes that Janie is lowering than human, because a whip is something you would use on a beast of burden to maintain power over it.
p.s. I didn't originally write my journals on the blog, I just typed them all at once. Sorry that it's a little out of order and scatter brained.
p.s. I didn't originally write my journals on the blog, I just typed them all at once. Sorry that it's a little out of order and scatter brained.
Wednesday, May 19, 2010
Blood Wedding Journal #3
Analysis of various symbols in Blood Wedding and how they are used.....
Knife: jealousy (causes death/violence)
Littlest Knife: women, because they are the heart of jealousy
Grapes: wealth, people seek for wealth
Horse: Bride
River/Water: true love
Birds: Death/carriers of death
Moon: truth
Wind: power (double edged)
Beggar Women: Death
Trees: Deception/lies
Blood: Passion/emotion
Orange Blossoms: purity/virginity
A knife is a tool used to kill and jealousy is a very strong emotion that invokes the desire to murder or get rid of the offended person. Because jealousy does not have to progress into feelings of murder, the knife can also be used to harm/injure gravely. The mother is so adamantly against knives because of the harm it brought to her family. Her husband and child were killed in the vineyard, their own place of wealth and fortune. If a person has a vineyard that is prosperous they are seen as very well off and a respectable person, and since the husband was murdered in his vineyard we can see that he was killed because the Felix's were jealous of his wealth. Though his death did not gain wealth for them it gave them a sense of accomplishment because he was no longer around. What goes deeper than mere jealousy over worldly things is the jealousy of love. The littlest knife is women because only a women can evoke such strong emotions into a man that would lead him to murder again and again. The littlest knife cannot be held in the hand, this shows that it cannot be controlled and a women's passion cannot be contained. But it can penetrate the skin deeper than any other knife, emotions are stronger than physical pain and so a women can hurt a man more than anything else.
The horse is the bride because Leonardo is the skilled horseman, he is able to aptly control the horse and make it do whatever he wants. The bride states that she did not want to go with Leonardo but she was forced, this shows that he had great control over her and was able to coerce her into his desires. Also the horse does not want the water. Water is true love because it can quench the fire that the bride is feeling, and it is what she truly wants, it is described as a small refreshing amount. True love can save anything but if there was too much it would no longer be special and so there must needs be a small amount. The bride seeks after the black river because there is a large amount of it and she thinks it will be better than something small, the river is described as black because it is corrupted and no longer pure. It has been darken by deceit and jealousy. The bridegroom states that there is only one horse in the world, this expresses his deep love for the bride because there is no other person for him. He would do anything to save her and loves her profusely. When Leonardo is telling the bride that she is caught in this deceit by her own will he states that she untied the horse. This means that she let her passions go, she no longer tried to control herself and let herself run free, even if what she was running to was harmful to her.
The moon sheds light upon the night and allows things to be seen that wouldn't normally be visible to the naked eye during night fall. The moon is the revealer of truth, because it brings light it makes the truth known. Although the trees can cast shadows on the ground and make it darker so the moon's light can't penetrate the moon will always be able to shed at least some light even in the darkest trees. Because the trees shade the truth this makes them deceit. The woodcutters wish to chop down the trees and destroy the deceit because it pulls apart relationships and is very harmful, the woodcutters are similar to the chorus in Oedipus. And like the chorus they know a little bit more than the audience and they wish to help the protagonist in his quest. The wind is another force that is trying to knock down the trees, however the wind is described as double-edged. Meaning that there is a good side and a bad side, the wind represents power. Power can do a lot of good and can help a lot of people, but with a price, it will corrupt the person it is serving. Most often with power there comes many deceits and lies because it is uncertain how that person became so powerful and there are often hidden plans ans secrets to bring them out of power. Power, however cannot touch the truth. The wind cannot effect the moon, it can blow clouds in the way but eventually the moon will still shine. And so we see that truth brings down power and is able to reveal the core of power, making it weaker.
Knife: jealousy (causes death/violence)
Littlest Knife: women, because they are the heart of jealousy
Grapes: wealth, people seek for wealth
Horse: Bride
River/Water: true love
Birds: Death/carriers of death
Moon: truth
Wind: power (double edged)
Beggar Women: Death
Trees: Deception/lies
Blood: Passion/emotion
Orange Blossoms: purity/virginity
A knife is a tool used to kill and jealousy is a very strong emotion that invokes the desire to murder or get rid of the offended person. Because jealousy does not have to progress into feelings of murder, the knife can also be used to harm/injure gravely. The mother is so adamantly against knives because of the harm it brought to her family. Her husband and child were killed in the vineyard, their own place of wealth and fortune. If a person has a vineyard that is prosperous they are seen as very well off and a respectable person, and since the husband was murdered in his vineyard we can see that he was killed because the Felix's were jealous of his wealth. Though his death did not gain wealth for them it gave them a sense of accomplishment because he was no longer around. What goes deeper than mere jealousy over worldly things is the jealousy of love. The littlest knife is women because only a women can evoke such strong emotions into a man that would lead him to murder again and again. The littlest knife cannot be held in the hand, this shows that it cannot be controlled and a women's passion cannot be contained. But it can penetrate the skin deeper than any other knife, emotions are stronger than physical pain and so a women can hurt a man more than anything else.
The horse is the bride because Leonardo is the skilled horseman, he is able to aptly control the horse and make it do whatever he wants. The bride states that she did not want to go with Leonardo but she was forced, this shows that he had great control over her and was able to coerce her into his desires. Also the horse does not want the water. Water is true love because it can quench the fire that the bride is feeling, and it is what she truly wants, it is described as a small refreshing amount. True love can save anything but if there was too much it would no longer be special and so there must needs be a small amount. The bride seeks after the black river because there is a large amount of it and she thinks it will be better than something small, the river is described as black because it is corrupted and no longer pure. It has been darken by deceit and jealousy. The bridegroom states that there is only one horse in the world, this expresses his deep love for the bride because there is no other person for him. He would do anything to save her and loves her profusely. When Leonardo is telling the bride that she is caught in this deceit by her own will he states that she untied the horse. This means that she let her passions go, she no longer tried to control herself and let herself run free, even if what she was running to was harmful to her.
The moon sheds light upon the night and allows things to be seen that wouldn't normally be visible to the naked eye during night fall. The moon is the revealer of truth, because it brings light it makes the truth known. Although the trees can cast shadows on the ground and make it darker so the moon's light can't penetrate the moon will always be able to shed at least some light even in the darkest trees. Because the trees shade the truth this makes them deceit. The woodcutters wish to chop down the trees and destroy the deceit because it pulls apart relationships and is very harmful, the woodcutters are similar to the chorus in Oedipus. And like the chorus they know a little bit more than the audience and they wish to help the protagonist in his quest. The wind is another force that is trying to knock down the trees, however the wind is described as double-edged. Meaning that there is a good side and a bad side, the wind represents power. Power can do a lot of good and can help a lot of people, but with a price, it will corrupt the person it is serving. Most often with power there comes many deceits and lies because it is uncertain how that person became so powerful and there are often hidden plans ans secrets to bring them out of power. Power, however cannot touch the truth. The wind cannot effect the moon, it can blow clouds in the way but eventually the moon will still shine. And so we see that truth brings down power and is able to reveal the core of power, making it weaker.
Blood Wedding Journal #2
To what extent have you found it possible, in your consideration of literary works, to separate the individual from his or her public role?
In Blood Wedding the bride has two different personalities, the one she shares with the world and the one she keeps hidden to herself. Lorca uses this concept of inner and outer self to demonstrate that when a person is expected to act a certain way they will innerlly resent the task. Bride seems very willing and even happy about marrying bridegroom "I am longing to be your wife. And to be alone with you and hear no other voice but yours." (54). Here the bride outwardly states that she desires to be with bridegroom and she wants to be his alone and not be influenced by Leonardo. Previously Leonardo was talking to her, trying to get her to sway from her course of marriage, and when she states she does not want those other influences she is throwing herself under the control of bridegroom. Though these convictions seem truthful and filled with a loving intent, there is a darker side to bride. When she is away from the bridegroom and his mother she is harsh to her maid, uncaring to her friends, and all around a nasty person. She does not care for the wedding nor for the bridegroom, all she wants is to be alone and to maintain her power. "They are dark clouds -- an ill wind inside me" (41), dark clouds bring an image of unpleasant foreboding and trouble. This shows her unwillingness to love bridegroom and to share her entire self with him, the ill wind furthers these thoughts of her because she does not wish him well but ill. The wind will blow over both of them and cause trouble and break their love apart. She states that she wishes to marry him when she is in his presence and the mother's presence but inside she does not wish to marry him at all.
In Wild Duck Hjalmar is considered to be the bread winner, the one to provide for the family as is expected of the man during that time. His friends and the public believe that he is working diligently at his photography business in order to put food on the table and allow his family to live in comfort. However he barely ever works. His wife Gina takes the photographs, schedule the appointments and tracks all the finances. Hjalmar will sometimes touch up the photos, but often Hedvig or Gina will do that work as well. He is able to consolidate himself by stating that he is working on his invention, a thing that will bring back his father's name and give the family honor. It turns out that Hjalmar barely provides anything for his family and a lot of the needed money comes from the charity of Werle. When he discovers this he is greatly angered and ashamed, however he does not begin working but rather begins to leave his family. On the outside Hjalmar seems like a hard working man, when really he does not provide for his family the way he should. Ibsen uses this depiction of the public man and the private man to illustrate that a person cannot keep living with multiple personalities because eventually one will overcome the other. In Hjalmar's case his lack of work ethic was the stronger of the two and because he was unwilling to work to solve the issues in his family his daughter committed suicide and it crushed both him and his wife.
In Blood Wedding the bride has two different personalities, the one she shares with the world and the one she keeps hidden to herself. Lorca uses this concept of inner and outer self to demonstrate that when a person is expected to act a certain way they will innerlly resent the task. Bride seems very willing and even happy about marrying bridegroom "I am longing to be your wife. And to be alone with you and hear no other voice but yours." (54). Here the bride outwardly states that she desires to be with bridegroom and she wants to be his alone and not be influenced by Leonardo. Previously Leonardo was talking to her, trying to get her to sway from her course of marriage, and when she states she does not want those other influences she is throwing herself under the control of bridegroom. Though these convictions seem truthful and filled with a loving intent, there is a darker side to bride. When she is away from the bridegroom and his mother she is harsh to her maid, uncaring to her friends, and all around a nasty person. She does not care for the wedding nor for the bridegroom, all she wants is to be alone and to maintain her power. "They are dark clouds -- an ill wind inside me" (41), dark clouds bring an image of unpleasant foreboding and trouble. This shows her unwillingness to love bridegroom and to share her entire self with him, the ill wind furthers these thoughts of her because she does not wish him well but ill. The wind will blow over both of them and cause trouble and break their love apart. She states that she wishes to marry him when she is in his presence and the mother's presence but inside she does not wish to marry him at all.
In Wild Duck Hjalmar is considered to be the bread winner, the one to provide for the family as is expected of the man during that time. His friends and the public believe that he is working diligently at his photography business in order to put food on the table and allow his family to live in comfort. However he barely ever works. His wife Gina takes the photographs, schedule the appointments and tracks all the finances. Hjalmar will sometimes touch up the photos, but often Hedvig or Gina will do that work as well. He is able to consolidate himself by stating that he is working on his invention, a thing that will bring back his father's name and give the family honor. It turns out that Hjalmar barely provides anything for his family and a lot of the needed money comes from the charity of Werle. When he discovers this he is greatly angered and ashamed, however he does not begin working but rather begins to leave his family. On the outside Hjalmar seems like a hard working man, when really he does not provide for his family the way he should. Ibsen uses this depiction of the public man and the private man to illustrate that a person cannot keep living with multiple personalities because eventually one will overcome the other. In Hjalmar's case his lack of work ethic was the stronger of the two and because he was unwilling to work to solve the issues in his family his daughter committed suicide and it crushed both him and his wife.
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