September 28, 2005
You crazy wallpaper-eater!
Gilman, ''The Yellow Wall-paper'' (1899) -- American Literature, 1800-1915 (EL 266)
"There comes John, and I must put this away,--he hates to have me write a word."
So..."The Yellow Wallpaper"...super creepy if you ask me. Reading this story gave me chills in a a way, because I could easily picture this poor, mental woman going insane and shredding this wallpaper.
But also, because this stort is told from a sick woman' perspective, it is very easy to point out gender roles in this story.
#1-She is not receiving the proper medical treatment beucase her husband is her doctor and he does not want to admit that his wife is suffering from a mental illness. Thus, he does not treat her and makes her deal with things that she claims make her crazy, like the wallpaper.
"It is an airy and comfortable room as any one need wish, and, of course, I would not be so silly as to make him uncomfortable just for a whim."
Even though the wallpaper makes her uneasy and crazy, she will not move rooms because it would make her husband unhappy. This is the perfect example of the typical perfect wife: submissive to her husband. The "he-makes-the-money,-I'll-do-as-he-pleases" attitude is very prevalent in this story.
the poor woman obeys her husband so much that she is driven to insanity and ends up tearing the room up, chewing the bed posts, and crawling over he passed out hubby. Are you kidding me? What kind of man would not listen to his wife, if she were showing signs like these? True, we are supposed to look at this from the gender point, and true, I do take the feminist side on a lot of issues, but this really is a feminist issue.
At least that's what I think.
Lemme know what you think.
PS-
"John says if I don't pick up faster he shall send me to Weir Mitchell in the fall."
Why does the narrator seem so scared an apprehensive about going to see this man?
Check out this website
http://www.whonamedit.com/doctor.cfm/959.html
(Sorry, I couldn't get it to link using the trackback!)
Posted by LaurenEtling at 04:48 AM | Comments (5)
September 26, 2005
Blog Portfolio #1
Coverage
The first few chapters of "The Scarlet Letter" really got me rolling on the blog lifestyle, as did most of my other entries.
Scarlet Letter Part 2
Customs house vs. Bartleby's workplace
Depth
"Bartleby the Scrivener" made me get involved, way involved. Like, way more than usual.
Interaction
My blog on the third part of "The Scarlet Letter" triggered some great peer interaction.
Also, the class discussion on the "Young Goodman Brown" site was lengthy, as well as informative.
Discussions
Also, my blog about Pearl's lifestyle at the end of the novel produced some great discussions, as well.
Poe's "Conqueror Worm" sparked a lengthy discussion among classmates.
Timeliness
It seems to be that all of my blog entries were in on time...hmmm. Maybe I suffer from OCD and must have them in on time. Anyways, here they are:
Scarlet Letter Part 1
Scarlet Letter Part 2
Xenoblogging
* The Comment Primo:
Ashley Holtzer's entry on Dimmesdale's death triggered some deep thoughts for the class.
Also, I was the first to comment on Jay's blog. about Dimmesdale's sermon.
* The Comment Grande:
Neha's entry on "Bartleby the Scrivener" triggered lengthy thoughts from myself.
Wildcard
My entry on "Bartleby the Scrivener" really involved me in the story and made me think of my blog as an accomplishment.
Posted by LaurenEtling at 11:56 PM | Comments (2)
September 25, 2005
Custom's House vs. Bartleby's workplace
When comparing these two working environments, it's pretty easy to see that they share many common traits. For instance, both pieces of literature are told through a narrator that is presumable the boss of the place and has been there for years. The workers in the offices are also similar: the customs house employed workers who had been there for years and were held there by financial reasons. The office where Bartleby worked employed men who had been there a while and all similarly enjoyed their job.
The custom's house and Bartleby's workplace both exhibited a working-class man's job in the respective time periods.
Onto another note...
Just some little things to think about...
"I would prefer not to."
Bartleby always says prefer, and his boss and coworkers catch themselves starting to say it after a while, too.
Let's look at the actual meaning of prefer:
Main Entry: preˇfer
Pronunciation: pri-'f&r
Function: transitive verb
Inflected Form(s): preˇferred; preˇferˇring
Etymology: Middle English preferren, from Middle French preferer, from Latin praeferre to put before, prefer, from prae- + ferre to carry -- more at BEAR
1 : to promote or advance to a rank or position
2 : to like better or best
3 : to give (a creditor) priority
4 archaic : to put or set forward or before someone : RECOMMEND
5 : to bring or lay against someone
6 : to bring forward or lay before one for consideration
- preˇferˇrer noun
This all seems a little confusing, so let's look at alternate word choices:
Entry Word: prefer
Function: verb
Text: 1 to show partiality toward
Synonyms favor, lean (toward), like
Related Words adore, cotton (to), delight (in), dig, enjoy, fancy, groove (on), relish, revel (in); choose, cull, handpick, name, pick, select, single (out), take; covet, crave, desire, want, wish (for); bias, prejudice; incline (towards), tend (to); admire, appreciate, cherish, prize, treasure, value
Phrases be partial to
Near Antonyms disfavor, dislike; abhor, abominate, detest, hate, loathe; decline, refuse, reject, turn down; discard, jettison, throw away, throw out
2 to decide to accept (someone or something) from a group of possibilities
Soooo...now all that said, why would Bartleby PREFER not to do somethings?
Also, I thought that possibly there could be some hidden meaning in Bartleby's name, so I looked it up. Now, the site I chose is not well known and could possibly be false in every aspect, but my findings are sort of interesting...
I found a site that says that Bartleby means "energetic and courageous you stand up for your beliefs and for what you desire. You are independent, strong willed and fiercely competitive when needed although your ambition is tempered with patience. You maintain a positive attitude and with a more organised or practical approach to life material success is very likely. Your immensely loving and generous nature brings joy into peoples lives and ensures your happiness."
hmmmm....lemme know what you think.
Posted by LaurenEtling at 03:25 PM | Comments (9)
September 21, 2005
I'm sooooo happy for Pearl!
Hawthorne, The Scarlet Letter (Ch 22-24, Introductory) -- American Literature, 1800-1915 (EL 266)
OK, so I seem to be stuck on Pearl when dealing with this novel, but I can't help it! She's such an amazing little girl.
But anyways...onto my agenda item...
"So Pearl--the elf child--the demon offspring, as some people up to that epoch persisted in considering her--became the richest heiress of her day in the new world."
All I have to say is GOOD FOR HER. Pearl was the middle man in everyone's troubles her entire life. She was the bridge of her mother's emotions, and watched helplessly as these events unraveled, but all the while, had such a deep understanding.
Also, I think it was about time that Chillingsworth did something worthy. He was such a screwball of a man the whole story, he had to semi-redeem himself in some way. Leaving all of his inheritance to Pearl was a wise choice, considering everyone loved Pearl. (well, at least I did).
Pearl deserved the best of life, because her life to that point, had not been so great. I hope Pearl took that money and ran with it, buying anything she ever wanted. She deserved it from all the turmoil she had to deal with.
Posted by LaurenEtling at 11:27 AM | Comments (8)
September 18, 2005
Hester's burden, no more
Hawthorne, The Scarlet Letter (Ch 14-21) -- American Literature, 1800-1915 (EL 266)
"So speaking, she undid the clasp that fastened the scarlet letter, and, taking it from her bosom, threw it to a distance among the withered leaves."
I think that this is a pivotal moment in the novel. Hester has realized that she has had her fair share of punishment for her sin and that she is done with it all. Also, the fact that she was able to pour some hope into Dimmesdale is a good thing. He needed a "light at the end of the tunnel" sort of thing. Hester lets her hair down out of her cap, and frees herself from the confines of the scarlet letter.
Seeing as how I just finished chapter 18, my opinions on this are subject to change, so I'll be back to this. Lemme know what you think.
Posted by LaurenEtling at 06:09 PM | Comments (6)
September 14, 2005
Poor little Pearl...
Hawthorne, The Scarlet Letter (Ch 8-13) -- American Literature, 1800-1915 (EL 266)
The one thing in this next part of the book that struck me as significant actually occured in chapter 8 (I swear I read all the chapters!) Seriously though, the one thing in this reading that stood out to me, I guess you could say that it really grabbed me emotionally, was when the governor and Chillingworth were harassing Hester and basically threatening her with taking Pearl away from her.
I do not have children, and I'm sure that most people reading this do not have children either, but put yourself in Hester's position--you're a sinner, you have a child whom you have to support and raise all by yourself, you're ostracized, AND your estranged husband is corrupting your local government. I would completely lose it! If I were in Hester's position, I would have went completely rampant. I'm actually kind of proud of her for keeping composure.
Side note--Thumbs up to Dimmsdale...no one else defended Hester in this whole story (except for the woman in the beginning). He stood up for her and said that she deserved that child. His emotions afterward with Pearl struck me as odd...id this some sort os foreshadowing? ::dum-dum-dummmmmm::
Poor little Pearl. She's such a vibrant, charismatic little girl, and all she gets it negativity directed toward her. If that continues, I guarantee Pearl will grow up to have a serious chip in her shoulder.
Posted by LaurenEtling at 02:45 AM | Comments (4)
September 13, 2005
Hawthorne, The Scarlet Letter (Ch 1-7) -- American Literature, 1800-1915 (EL 266)
Test Trackback
Posted by LaurenEtling at 03:36 PM | Comments (0)
September 12, 2005
feminist attack? i think so!
After re-reading "The Scarlet Letter"--yes, re-reading--I realized something that I had not realized the first time I read it, which I think was in 11th grade. This story is not about Hester Prynne and her struggle with dealing with adultery and the ostracism that it brought her, but rather the story carries the underlying theme of FEMINISM. Sure, Hester Prynne committed adultery and now has to wear the scarlet letter upon her breast, but, like the tango, it takes two. This "unknown" man who fathered Pearl is somewhere out there, thinking he got off scott clean with the issue. Sure he got off clean, but hester prynne now carries his burden, as well as her own.
She should not have to suffer by herself. She is not the only one who committed a sin. Also, thinking back to "young goodman brown"--is not everyone a sinner at some point in their life? Why should hester prynne have to pay so deeply for her sins? Should God not be the one to judge her in the end anyways? Sure, it was obvious that she committed adultery because she became pregnant, but the guy got away too easily. There was no way in telling that he was a culprit as well.
Through all of this, Hester refuses to give his name. That takes one tough chick. To go through a jail pregnancy, to be told by her former husband to never speak of him, to be shunned to the outskirts of town, and to be mocked at every glance--all without utterance of the man whom she slept with? That takes one tough chick. Hester Prynne is one touch chick, if you ask me.
Posted by LaurenEtling at 02:26 AM | Comments (11)
September 07, 2005
hi y'all!
Hey everyone! This is my first time blogging, so I just wanted to make sure that I'm doing this right.
Posted by LaurenEtling at 10:55 AM | Comments (0)
Close reading? Panic setting in...
So...this close reading assignment...I have no idea what is going on. I read the information on the class website, but I'm still pretty unclear about what exactly we are supposed to do.
I wrote the paper. Two and a half pages. Yet I'm not sure if I accomplished what I was supposed to accomplish. I created a "semi-thesis," as I like to call it, and I supported my claim to the best of my abilities.
Is that right?
Some suggestions would be awesome.
Posted by LaurenEtling at 10:04 AM | Comments (1)