Watch your thoughts... they become your words.

End of Bastard Out of Carolina

2006-05-03T12:35:00.000-05:00

Besides reading the book I have also viewed the movie. Although the two are very similar the only important detail left out of the film is Bone and Reese's masturbation scenes. It's interesting because I felt that masturbating was a way for Bone to release some of her anger. Because this is not included in the film the viewer only gets half of bones reaction to the beatings and rapes. I felt that this was similar to the movie Streetcar when Blanche leaves out the fact that her husband was gay.
The book is also similar to the play A Streetcar Named Desire because of the character Stanley and Glen. Glen and Stanley might have been the same person in another life. Stanley beats Stella when he gets angry and rapes Blanche at the end of the book. Similarly Glen beats and rapes Bone in Bastard out of Carolina. Stella and Anney are also similar characters. They are both weak people who think a man is what they need to solve their problems, regardless of how he treats them and the one's they love. In both readings Stella and Anney chose their men over their loved one's. The only difference is Stella didn't witness Stanley's brutal act, Anney did. I don't understand how any mother could choose her violent husband over her innocent daughter.
I felt the ending of the book was very appropriate for the story. I don't think a happy ending would have fit. It would have been a brick wall to all the deep issues and feelings the characters were going through in the story couldn't be dissolved with a simple,"I'm Sorry." Bone is now free to be her own person and start a new life, hopefully influenced by her Aunt Raylene. Her aunt is a strong female in this strong and she seems to be just what Bone needs right now to help her deal with all her emotions and develop into someone not so tormented by their past. Overall this book was definitely my favorite of all the stories read in class!

"Falling" & Bastard Out of Carolina (Chpts. 1-6)

2006-04-26T12:23:00.000-05:00

"Falling" was a very emotional poem. From his descriptions it was easy to place yourself in her shoes, falling from the sky. At times she was so relaxed and calm in the moment and ready for what was to come. I find it so bizarre that such a horrendous fate can be described so relaxed and beautifully. Even from the beginning the tone of the poem is sleepy and silent. It's as if no one noticed the door fly open and the stewardess get pulled out. I also found it fascinating that the flow of the poem is so free, just as she is "free falling" from the sky. Without reading the poem I would assume that the tone would be chaotic and the poem much shorter and fast past (as one would fall from the sky). I still am not sure why she takes her clothes off as she nears the ground. Can someone explain that to me again?

I really enjoyed the first six chapters of "Bastard Out of Carolina." Its very easy to read and understand. Bone seems very confused about herself. Growing up without a father without even knowing a thing about him must be hard to deal with. She seems very different from her Boatwright family and she notices that even as a young child. The fact that she is labeled "illegitimate" plays a large role in shaping her personality. Even though her family is very close and loving, they don't have the best reputation in the community, which forces Bone to lie about who she really is at a school she attends. Glen doesn't seen to help Bone with her confusion. In fact, I would assume he deepens it. Sexual abuse is something you never forget and I'm sure as she grows up it will impact her in intimate areas of her life. I'm looking forward to reading on!

James dickey Poems

2006-04-19T19:41:00.000-05:00

I have never had to study poetry before and I have to admit it as not as easy to analyze as i thought it would be. The tone of his writing is rather similar throughout all the poems. They seem rather serene and calm. I really enjoyed "Walking on Water." He paints a beautiful picture of the ocean and shore. When he says, "Later it came to be said that I was seen walking on water..." and "My motion a miracle leaving behind me no footprints." I felt he was implying something biblical, just as when Jesus was seen miraculously "walking on water" or leaving "footprints in the sand" (Mary steveson's poem). He uses a lot of natural and animalistic symbols in his writing. Almost every poems we were assigned to read used nature in them and a mention of an animal. For example "Hunting Civil War Relic at Nimble Creek" and "The undergrads Stream" are written about nature. I really enjoyed James Dickey's Poetry.

If you'd like to read Mary stevesons "Footprints in the Sand" you can see in on this site.
http://www.footprints-inthe-sand.com/

Southern Projects

2006-04-12T13:31:00.000-05:00

I think all the presentations were really good. I'm glad we had this assignment because I learned so much about the south I didn't know. I really enjoyed the project on the family structure. For some reason when I think of the south I think of large families and lots of food. That seems like one thing that's never changed. It strange to think the South in still so different from the North. Can that still be? We talked a lot about the south's past but not a lot about what its like now. I would have liked to gain some insight on that topic. The food was great especially the Jambalaya. The Rosewood project was eye opening. You would never think something that obvious could be covered and forgotten. I also enjoyed the Gone with the Wind presentation. I hear about it all the time and have wanted to watch it for a long time now. It was good to have a quick summary and analysis of the film before viewing it. I think now if I watch it I'll have a better understanding of the events. Great job!

Revelation

2006-04-05T19:41:00.000-05:00

Revelation was a very interesting yet confusing piece. I enjoyed the detail O'Connor put into the writing. I noted in all three of her pieces we read have the same religious tone. Mrs. Turpin seemed to be a very confident woman. She was proud to be who she was. She felt confident enough to criticize others in the privacy of her mind and snap back at the lady who she considered to be "white trash." Although she seemed a little snobby she was still friendly with the mother next to her. Maybe this was because the lady was "classy" just as she saw herself.
There were two parts of the piece that confused me. First of all was Claud Mrs. Turpin's son or husband? Also I am very confused as to why the girl attacked Mrs. Turpin. It was such a surprise. I remember thinking to myself, "what just happened? Did i miss something?" There was no explanation for it. I definitely think she represented the devil but don't understand the actual act. Does anyone have any ideas?

A Street Car Named Desire... The Movie

2006-03-29T16:04:00.000-05:00

After reading the play and watching part of the movie I can say that there were some very interesting changes made in the movie. The movie begins was Blanche getting off the train and we follow her to Stella home. The play opens with Stella, Stanley and Eunice. Stanley tells her he's off to bowl and she asks to come. After that Blanche arrives and is let into the house by Eunice. Stella finds out Blanche is at her house and runs home to see her. It also seems like it was an unexpected visit. In the movie after Blanche arrives and she is directed to go find her sister at the bowling alley where the two reunite. Stella also makes a comment about being glad when she heard Blanche was coming to visit.

Another noticeable difference was that Blanche did not mention to Mitch that her late husband was homosexual as the play has it written. As we discussed in class this minor slip in detail weakens the play. It would seem odd to a viewer that has not read the play that a man would be so devastated by the fact that he can't hold a job that he would go to the extent to kill himself. What I didn't understand was that Blanche told Mitch that she was so deeply in love with her husband. But when repeating what she said to her husband on the dance floor that night she made it sound as though she didn't love him anymore. Did anyone else notice that? I was kind of confused.

Lastly something fun I noticed about that film is that Mitch seems to enjoy Blanche's fantasies and always play along with them. Like when Blanche was dancing in the room after the shade was put over the light and the music was turned on. He joined her in pretending and danced with her. He also smiles and play along with her when she pretends to be in Paris when they were on their date. He seems to be excited by this and I think that's what he means when he tells her I've never met a woman like you.

A Streetcar Named Desire...The Play

2006-03-22T20:23:00.000-05:00

In class today we took a deeper look into the characters. We discussed that Blanche is a materialistic and dramatic woman. She is very concerned with what others think of her. There were two incidents of this that caught my attention in the text. On pg.634 She tells her sister not to look at her until she's bathed and rested. She also says tells her sister to turn the light off because it's not flattering to her appearance. Another time this happens in the text is on pg. 647 when she wants to powder her nose before entering the flat where the men are playing poker. I feel as though Blanche is hiding something. She hides her drinking but uses it to calm her nerves and hide her problems. Blanche seems to have a fear of reality until it comes to her sisters well being.
This is a very dramatic story and you can feel the tention building within the plot. I think Stanley might get mad at Blanche soon and get involved in an agruement. Their clashing personalities makes this story very intense. It also leaves Stella as the middle man, stuck in a hard postion. I am excited to find out what come from these evolving situations.

How it Feels to Be Colored Me

2006-03-16T00:45:00.000-05:00

This narrative was like nothing I've ever read before. I really enjoyed reading about a black woman being proud of what she was. All of our readings that have included african americans have been negative in a sense. They talk about the hard life they live and how the whites treat them. It was so eye opening to read another womans perspective. I think this story really touched me because the message in her narrative was something i also believe in. When Zora talks about being discriminated against she replys with, "How can any deny themselves the pleasure of my company? It's beyond me." I love her boldness and the pride she has to be who she is.
My favorite part of this narrative was when she writes, "I feel like a brown bag of miscellany propped up against a wall. Against a wall in company with other bags, white, red, and yellow. Pour out the contents, and there is discovered a jumble of small things priceless and worthless." That is a great simile for life as it is. Everyone may look different but on the inside we are all similar. We all have vlaues, hopes, dreams, precious memories, and perhaps things that are worthless to others yet priceless to us. Everyone is different in there own way. But that is the one thing we all have in common no matter what our race may be.

Porter Readings

2006-02-28T23:23:00.000-05:00

What a relieve Porter's readings were from Faulkner's novel. I feel that the Porter readings helped tie in all the other themes we covered in class. It was a good review for the final. I really enjoyed Porter's readings because it was easy to read. The detail included in the readings helped me become more involved in the story. I really enjoyed the transition shown in the aging of the characters. "The Last Leaf" illustrated Nannie anticipating her death and in "The Grave" it discussed how the old generation was now dying out. This made room for the younger generation to transition into the main focus of her stories. Although the tone of Porter's writing were very different from Faulkner's, I felt that the content and some themes were very similar.

Delta Autumn & Go Down Moses

2006-02-22T20:08:00.000-05:00

I am very surprised with the ending of "Go Down Moses." I expected a more powerful ending than what was written. I felt that an ending dealing with characters we have little knowledge about such as Sam and Gavin wasn't as effective as one with character we know well. After I finished the last chapter I wondered what that story had to do with all the others. I didn't feel it related as well as some of the other stories we read. I did however see the relation we talked about it class between Douglass' writing about "chanting" and what was written in "Go Down Moses," the chapter.
I really enjoyed "Delta Autumn." It was one of the first stories that actually made sense to me as I read it. I think Faulkner did a great job showing the parallel between nature and Isaac. I think another reason I really liked this story was the final merge of the white and black sides of the families. Looking at the family tree, only half way through the book I wondered how it would all come together and work out. Once I had read the chapter I felt I had a better understand of the family tree because I knew each character and how they related to one another through out the stories. Overall, "Go Down Moses" was an interesting and confusing book. Not a book I'd recommend to any of my friends.

The Old People

2006-02-15T16:16:00.001-05:00

I just finish reading The Old People. I can honestly say this book is getting no easier for me to get through. I'm still lost and having a hard time following the story. With new characters being thrown in there, different time periods and the jumping from person to person this book is really confusing. Does anyone else feel this way or is it just me? What I think I got out of this chapter was that an Native American heritage was introduced in the family. I find this interesting because you don't really hear about Native American heredity in the south. I guess I just never gave it any thought before.

Was

2006-02-08T16:44:00.000-05:00

The beginning of "Go Down Moses," was probably one of the most confusing things I have ever read. After going over the questions in class I gained a better understanding of the story and the background of the characters. I had no idea Cass was narrating; that's definitely something a reader should know. I also understood the comical scenes a bit better after our discussion in class. Something that really bothered me that we also discussed in class was the gambling with people fates. It just seems so wrong that slaves and women were viewed as property and a simply card game can decide the fate of one person. I was also completely shocked at the casual use of the N word. It's the difference between then and now. Now that I have a better understanding of the book I'm a little more excited to read on and see how it goes.

Fredrick Douglass Narrative

2006-02-02T10:52:00.000-05:00

I found Douglass's narrative very interesting. His honesty and knack for detail really makes this piece easy to read. To image that a man had the strength to endure this kind of treatment throughout his young life is amazing. To watch others get beat, whipped and raped on a regular basis is enough to put anyone in today's society in therepy. It's hard to believe after everything he went through he doesn't note a single moment of hatred towards the "white man." His strength as a person is inspiring. He fought back in a productive and intelligent manner. This narrative should be read in more history classes. I wish I had gotten the chance to read this in high school. It would have been a great addition to just learning about slavery and not fully understanding the animosity of the situation. Did alot of you get a chance to read this narrative before this Lit. class?

The Fall of the House of Usher

2006-01-29T23:34:00.000-05:00

While reading Poe's "The Fall of the House of Usher", I was drawn into the story. I haven't read much by Poe and I have to admit his writing puts you right in the middle of the story. The house seems dark, eerie and alive. It was like something out of a horror film. I think its strange how much more we understand about twin connection now than he did back then. I think its interesting that he chose to include it in this piece. I cant imagine what readers felt when reading this piece back then. Another thing I find interesting about this piece is his attention to the minor details and the limited description in other areas; such as the house's location. That focused attention adds mystery to the piece and leaves the reader wondering.

2006-01-29T21:59:00.000-05:00

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