I am a student in Dr. Jerz’s EL266 American Literature 1800-1915. So far we have read and listened to numerous texts and podcasts. One important concept that I have learned so far through class is that it is never enough to just read and understand a piece of literature. One must go beyond that and learn to interpret and analyze all of its pieces. As this course has progress I feel that I am better able to demonstrate my ability to do this. The following are examples of blogs that I feel demonstrate my progress so far.
Coverage and Timeliness:
Even on a Bad Day, Nature is still Beautifulà This blog discusses the poem “Beclouded” from Emily Dickinson’s “Nature” section. I analyzed the different techniques present in this poem.
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/StefanieWiegand/2010/09/even-on-a-bad-day-nature-is-still-beautiful.html
An Accidental Poetà In this blog entry I discussed my intrigue with Emily Dickinson and how she never had the intent to earn a living from her poetry.
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/StefanieWiegand/2010/09/an-accidental-poet.html
Depth:
What Really Counts as Originality?à This blog discusses chapters from Foster’s How to Read Literature like a Professor and the idea brought up about originality. I bring up the idea that just because a story’s idea was previously used doesn’t mean the story isn’t original. All stories come from other stories. I also incorporated the definitions of “originality” into the blog.
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/StefanieWiegand/2010/09/what-really-counts-as-originality.html
Stereotypical Gender Rolesà This blog goes into depth about roles of women in Washington Irving’s “The Wife”. A passage from the piece was incorporated and I italicized specific words that support the stereotypical role that women are submissive and dependant. I then discussed how times have changed and that women today do not fit this role.
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/StefanieWiegand/2010/09/stereotypical-gender-roles.html
Discussion:
John Henry: American Hero or Tall Tale?à A good discussion as started with this blog about the different versions of the John Henry tale as well as the significance of the ideas within the tale.
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/StefanieWiegand/2010/09/john-henry-american-hero-or-tall-tale.html#comments
Fighting for Identityà Although this blog did not provoke a large quantity of comments, I think it is the quality that counts. Patrick and Michael left two great, in depth comments that brought up important points and questions about The Scarlet Letter.
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/StefanieWiegand/2010/09/fighting-for-identity.html#comments
Interaction:
The Benefits of Listening Instead of Lookingà In this blog I discussed how the podcast on dialect was very helpful when trying to understand and interpret works such as Nights With Uncle Remus. I also linked to Pat’s blog, who offered good advice on understanding difficult dialect.
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/StefanieWiegand/2010/10/the-benefits-of-listening-instead-of-looking.html#comments
Controversy Begins in the Opening Pages of Huck Finnà This blog discussed the techniques used by author Mark Twain aka Samuel Clemens. I cited what novel is being read and I quoted from it. I then linked this blog to the home page where others are blogging about Huckleberyy Finn.
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/StefanieWiegand/2010/10/controversy-begins-in-the-opening-pages-of-huck-finn.html
Xenoblogging:
Unearthly Understanding Regarding Deathà This is Benjamin Davis’s blog. I commented first on this blog and was followed by different ideas from others. I also agreed with a point about Dickinson’s view of death that was brought up by Ben. This idea added to my previous views.
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/BenjaminDavis/2010/09/unearthly-understanding-regarding-death.html
Oh, Those Familiar Blood-Suckers Strike Again…à This is Alwexi Swank’s blog. I really liked her interpretation of Foster’s chapter about vampirism and I agreed with the ideas she brought forth.
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/AlexiSwank/2010/09/oh-those-familiar-blood-suckers-strike-again.html
Wildcard:
Maybe not all Literature is Enjoyable but…à This blog is a reflection of many years of reading Literature that I do not enjoy. I am trying to stick to the point I brought up in the first week of class, which is to appreciate all works of literature even if you don’t really like them. I think I am progressing in this.
http://blogs.setonhill.edu/StefanieWiegand/2010/10/maybe-not-all-literature-is-enjoyable-but.html
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