LisaRandolph

O'Conner "The Displaced Worker"

O'Connor, '''The Displaced Person'' -- Jerz: American Lit II (EL 267)

]]> "She stood on two tremendous legs, with the grand self-confidence of a mountain, and rose, up narrowing bulges of granite, to two icy blue points of light that pierced forward, surveying everything."
Then the front door opend and out stepped the man, The Displaced Person. Mrs. Shortley very bold in her thinking and negative. She tells the black men that "Displaced" means they ain't where they were born. She is upset that they were here. Mrs.McIntrye the mom of I believe the McIntrye in Bernice Bobb's her hair. But not real sure. She does make reference to her son. Mrs.McIntrye is a woman who expects alot, rich and pays black people, and poor people little money to do all her work. She complains about money and that she wants more work done but says her hired help is slow but she never offers them a raise. She stated they stole from her and the "Displaced" worker turns the one in. Please she's paying him more money because the priest ask her to. Aagain there is death, jealously and envy. Well not wonder in this story because O'Connor pretty much sets it up. This story did have an ending unlike the others. If she would have offered her hired help more money maybe she would have been rich and wealthier than she already was.

O'Conner "Good Country People"

O'Connor, '''Good Country People'' -- Jerz: American Lit II (EL 267)

]]> "Mrs. Hope thought of her as a child though she was thirty-two years old and highly educated."
A child at the age of thirty-two. Pregnant and married at the age of fifteen. "Mrs. Freeman's daughters Glynese and Carrame" Carramae married and pregnant at the age of fifteen. They are considered as good country people. They may be good country people but I'm not sure about anything else. Even though Mrs.Hope's daughter is handicapped she is not a child at the age of 32. The bible salesman a real joke. Not sure that lying and selling bibles is a good ethnic goal. Personally, I found this very disturbing not only did he lie, he also took Hlulga's freedom from her and left her their where she was. Grant it, it was her stupidity someone having a PH.D and acting that stupid goes to say that even with more knowlege dumb mistakes can be made. It doesn't take an education to act that stupid. Love is blind however, why would she climb up on the top loft if she had trouble getting around. Seriously ironic and stupid. The "Bible Salesman" had no right to deceive people they way in which he did either. Again the story ends with questions.

O'Conner "A Late Encounter

O'Connor, ''A Late Encounter with the Enemy'' -- Jerz: American Lit II (EL 267)

]]> "General Sash a hundred and four years old. Granddaughter 62". If it took me 20 years to finish school I would forget it. She wanted her grandfather to attend her graduation and the only thing he cared about was the attention on stage. General Sash did not want to go to the graduation because he knew before hand that it would remind him of his past and he was trying to forget it. "He felt that he was running backwards and the words were coming at him like musket fire, just escaping him but getting nearer and nearer(165). He attended her graduation and then died. O'Connor did set us up for this but it is still very disturbing that General Sash was out in the hot sun sitting. Get real someone who is a 104 years old that would just be like putting a baby in those temperatures no wonder he died. The main jist is that Mr.Sash did not want to think about the past and then at the end of his life he did face it and died.

O'Conner "A Late Encounter

O'Connor, ''A Late Encounter with the Enemy'' -- Jerz: American Lit II (EL 267)

O'Conner, A Circle Of Fire

O'Connor, ''A Circle in the Fire'' -- Jerz: American Lit II (EL 267)

]]> "It doesn't all come at once,"Mrs.Cope said sharply." "I take it as it comes(131). Mrs.Cope seems to be a know it all and thinks that her good fortune is going to continue and that she is not really ready for any diasters in her life. Her only fear is fire and then she states to the boys "Ashfield! Please pick that up" "I'm afraid of fires" (136). Oh please why would anyone tell a teenager what they are afraid of. O'Connor does set us up for the ending because in the end Mrs. Cope does lose everthing. The "Circle of fire" was a way of showing her that tradegy does strike and can strike anyone at anytime and no matter how well off you are it could happen.

Critical Approaches To Literature

O'Connor, ''The Artificial Nigger'' -- Jerz: American Lit II (EL 267)

]]> "Ideally, moral/intellectual critism should differ from sermonizing to the degree that readers should always be left with their own decisions about whether to assimilate the ideas of a work and about whether the ideas-and values-are personally or morally acceptable(300)
This points that if we as readers can make a personal connection of the story, poem, play or movie to our own lives. If the author did not use it for any other purpose such as political or spirtual. This also can cause concerns in drawing one's own conclusions for the fact that each of us has different life experiences and drawing our own conclusions about a story could lead to personal critism from others. Robert's is basically saying that if we can connect the story to our personal lives then the author did their part.

O'Connor "The Artificial Nigger"

O'Connor, ''The Artificial Nigger'' -- Jerz: American Lit II (EL 267)

]]> Story starts by Mr. Head wanting to keep Nelson the child at home with himself and not to leave him. Being that his wife and daughter died. I guess he was afraid of losing him as well. However, Mr.Head tells Nelson where to put his ticket."You put that in your pocket and don't lose it or you'll have to stay in the city." Nelson is thinking about staying in the city. Until the woman fell over him and wanted Mr.Head to pay the medical bills. Nelson then realizes that he did not want to stay in the city and never wanted to go back again. That would be scary for a boy his age since Mr.head claimed "I don't know who he is" and walks away. All along Mr. Head was trying to show Nelson why he didn't want to live in the city, not explaining to him that he was afraid that Nelson would leave him too. Thought this was disturbing and not only that but O'Connor uses "Coffee-colored", "Tan","The N word" "Black" and then Mr.Head on the train points out the older man and the two girls and says who are they and Nelson got mad at the "black" man for passing by him and making a fool out of him. The black man did not know what Mr.Head told Nelson and Nelson immediately picked up his grandfathers biased. I personally did not care for the way O'Connor portrays black people with the different descriptions used for black people. Also as Mr.Head and Nelson were walking to catch the trian they saw an "Artificial Nigger" and Mr.Head again says "we have enough around don't need aritifical ones". If he is trying to teach a child something then he should have kept his opinion out of it. I am aware that during this time period that was acceptable however, I still do not feel that Mr.Head had the right motives and because of fear of losing Nelson, Mr.Head acted like a fool. At the end he did apolized to Nelson and Nelson did forgive him and then stated "I've went once,but I will never go back again." Obviously Mr.Head accomplished his mission to keep Nelson all to himself and probably would remind Nelson of the day in the city if he ever thought of leaving him. Personally, I think he is a sick and deceiving man.

O'Connor "A Temple of the Holy Ghost"

O'Connor, '''A Temple of the Holy Ghost'' -- Jerz: American Lit II (EL 267)

]]> "The child decided, after observing them for a few hours, that they were practically morons and she was glad to think that they were second cousins and she couldn't have inherited any of their stupidity."
Interesting that "the child" doesn't have a name. Obviously she is young and yet intelligent. I'm guessing her age around 7-9 however not sure. But she considers herself as a relative but distant and that she did not acquire Joanne's or Susans stupidity and called them morons. Her age is technically told when she ask the "Temple one" and "Temple two" (Joanne & Susan). Joanne and Susan told her what they meant by the "you-know-what" thinking "the child" knew how rabbits were born. This is funny "They spit them out of their mouth" "six of them". Even though she made this up I am assuming that they believed her. Interesting to note is that the "Temple One and "Temple two" meaning that their body was the temple of the holy spirit and that they nun told them to say no to intercourse. Good advise however Joanne and Susan obviously were not intelligent nor acted their age. Girls around their age do not dress up and look at themselves in the mirror. Usually, little kids do this. Maybe that's why "the child" saw them as foolish and morons because she realized they were acting like little girls and not teenagers.

O'Connor "A Stroke of Good Fortune"

O'Connor, ''A Stroke of Good Fortune'' -- Jerz: American Lit II (EL 267)

]]> "You would have thought that after two years in the armed forces Rufus would have come back ready to eat like somebody from somewhere; but no." He wanted Collard greens if she did not want to know what he wanted then she should not have ask him what he wanted. To get upset over something so simple. Just shows how stupid little things we get upset over. Personally, I think this is funny she gets upset over Rufus wanting collard greens. However, as you read the rest of the story "Rufus" is her brother and she hated him from the day he was born. "She was the only one in her family who had been different, who had any get" (p.65). Ha, Ha she thinks that she is something and that everyone is beneath her. Oddly enough she is just like her family. She thought she was sick when all in all she was pregnant. Her "stroke of good fortune" was the baby not moving. Which she may do because of the baby. O'Connor, portrays her as a I'm too good for you attitude. At the end of the story it is because she is pregnant and is ready to have the baby. Reasoning for her attitude and personality. Interesting and funny story. Just shows that sibling rivarly still exists even as adults.

Roberts ch.18

Roberts, Ch 18 -- Jerz: American Lit II (EL 267)

]]> I liked the part in Roberts chapter 18. under notetaking. "Think about the purpose of your research." Which is one may not know what they are researching or the topic of their research until they start looking and then a topic will come to mind. This is usally what I do. However, alot of the papers we do we have a topic to go by. I would prefer to pick my own. I feel it is easier because we know what we like and don't like. But this is not always true either as Roberts states "May not always know what you are 'fishing for' until you start looking and researching the topic. I also like that he states "focus on the structure and use your own words as the example in the book where the person only used a short quote and then commented on it in his own words. This is a little harder done then said. I use a lot of quotes. Something I need to work on. This is a good chapter to review and wish we would of read it sooner. I like all the points in this chapter however, the notetaking part is the part that I was looking at more closely because the other parts I have already done and it refreshed my memory from past classes that I have taken. The taking notes part is not something that I usually do. I usually read a piece and then write and then revise. I like the note taking because it may organize the paper in a proficient manner then do an outline. I like this, because the only thing I write is what I quote. I will be using this method and see how it works for me.

Roberts p.254-263

Demonstrative Research Essay -- Jerz: American Lit II (EL 267)

]]> Interesting point of view on pages 254-263. In writing about a film one needs to look at "symbolism, character, lighting, action and color." In the pages following papers need to be researched by author, or subject. This would be an interesting paper on a film. But that would take a while to do since it would be looking at a film and then looking at "your first impression" of the film. What if your meaning of a part symbolizes something else in the film." Would your paper or perspective be wrong. This is interesting however and makes me think. In writing a paper I would probably look for an author. Reseach would be based on an author, but I need to think about this a little more.

O'Connor, A Good Man is Hard to Find"

O'Connor, ''A Good Man Is Hard to Find'' -- Jerz: American Lit II (EL 267)

]]> Mr. Jerz, good question actually I really didn't focus on her character that closely until I read your question. Rereading the last part her character was basically to save herself knowing that her family was dead. She perched life a turkey, wanted water and then she sunk down as if hiding in the earth. Then she said "your one of my children" maybe thinking that he would not shoot her. Unfortunately, he did. However, I think her character she got quiet and mumble her words in fear. I think she realized she was going to die from the start. Actually, from the beginning she wore her funeral outfit. In case she would die. Maybe that is why she did not want to go to Florida and wanted to revisit her hometown in Tennessee.

O'Connor, "The Life You Save, Maybe Your Own"

O'Connor, ''The Life You Save May Be Your Own'' -- Jerz: American Lit II (EL 267)

]]> "The body, lady, is like a house: it don't go anywhere;but the spirit,lady, is like a automobile: Always on the move always..."
Obviously he went to the house because he wanted the automobile and made himself look good, helped Lucynell out by fixing up her house and for payment got the car. However, Mr. Shiftlet was deceptive in that he went to the house for one thing, the car. Even though he married her daughter who was deaf he really did not want to. The mother "Lucynell" forced him into a marriage thinking her daughter would be taken care of unfortunately she was wrong. Mr.Shiftlet left her "the daughter" at a resturant and then took off in the car "I can't wait I got to make Tuscaloosa" how rude. He could of at least took Lucynell the daughter back home, but that would have meant that he would of had to stay and not carry on his own business. Both were deceptive and unfortunately the deaf woman was the one on her own. Goes to say that people only care about themselves and no one else. He followed his spirit alright, like he stated the automobile moves always and that is what he did he moved on after he got what he wanted and the one who was left in the cold was the deaf daughter, who was forced into marriage not realizing what was going on. The mother and Mr.Shiftlet got what they wanted but the daughter was out in the cold to defend for herself. He called the daughter and "Hitch-hiker" not his wife.

O'Connor/ The River

O'Connor, ''The River'' -- Jerz: American Lit II (EL 267)

]]> "He hadn't taken a suitcase because there was nothing from there he wanted to keep."
Sad that some kids look for anything that will love them. Harry went to the river to find the kingdom of God. The thought that it was a joke until it took him down the river. I guess he found God and what he was looking for. He took nothing except some lifesavers. He obviously did not want to live in the conditions that he was living in any more and he ran away looking for love.

O'Connor/A Good Man is hard to Find

O'Connor, ''A Good Man Is Hard to Find'' -- Jerz: American Lit II (EL 267)

]]> I found this very disturbing. The grandmother wanted to go to Tennessee "They never had been east Tennessee" and her son and family wanted to go to Florida. The son and the children seemed disrespectful. Then the grandmother talked about the "Misfit". When she wants to see an old house and the "had an accident" they ran into the "misfit" because the grandmother said that she recognized him and they all were killed. If she would not of said anything I wonder if they would still be alive. I also wonder if they went to Tennessee if they would still be alive. I just found this very disturbing and even though it is reality and things like this does happen in real life shows that sometimes people just need to shut up. The father said no, he should have stuck with his answer maybe they would have been alive to go to Florida.