February 2009 Archives

"Tom, I ain't a goin' on." Tom sat up. "What you mean?" "Tom, I ain't a-gonna leave this here water. I'm a-gonna walk on down this here river." "You're crazy," Tom said. "Get myself a piece a line. I'll catch fish. Fella can't starve beside a nice river." (284)

This conversation that took place between Noah and Tom in chapter 18 of The Grapes of Wrath supported my notion that Noah may function as a Christ figure. I suppose Noah's misshapen head as a result of being pulled from his mother's womb can be likened to being wounded in the head, or wearing a crown of thorns. We already compared Noah to the biblical Noah. Noah's loading of the truck bed is comparable to the loading of the arc, although there was no flood. Noah is also described as lacking sexual urges, meaning he could be celibate. In the above passage, Noah expresses his wishes to remain in the wilderness, to walk down the river and to catch fish. However, I am struggling to decide why Noah would leave his family. Noah said he knew the family was nice to him, but did not really care for him; nevertheless, he seemed to be forgiving. Perhaps leaving the family was a self-sacrificing act;especially, since Noah knew the load was too heavy and resources were scarce. Maybe the notion that Noah is a christ figure is far-fetched. Did any of you connect these ideas? or do you disagree? 

http://jerz.setonhill.edu/EL267/2009/03/steinbeck_the_grapes_of_wrath_1/

"Even our best intentions, he seems to suggest, can have disastrous consequences in an alien environment." (Foster, How to Read Literature like a Professor; chapter 19, page 169)

When I encountered this quote, I immediately thought of Australia (at least, I think it's Australia?) Anyway, I can recall being told that our "thumbs up", a pleasant, encouraging gesture, means, well, something not so pleasant in Australia. This is a perfect example of what Foster is trying to convey. All of the things that distinguish us (culture, race, ethnicity, age, gender) bring with them certain standards and practices that determine how we ineract with one another. In order to connect to one another, we need to learn to express ourselves in terms of these standards and practices; especially, so we can understand others. I believe Foster is also trying to say that our best intentions are only as good as the cultures, social groups, and the like in which they are found. This desire to "fit in" and act according to the accepted standards is what makes even a less extreme situation such as changing schools or moving to a different neighborhood somewhat stressful. Ultimately, we should always make pains to learn and model the intentions of others, so we can understand one another and connect despite our differences.  

http://jerz.setonhill.edu/EL267/2009/02/foster_how_to_read_literature_3/

"The coffee machine spurted steam, and the waitress, without looking, reached behind her and turned it off." (Steinbeck, The Grapes of Wrath; chapter 2, page 8)

I chose to take a look at this quote because upon reading it, I was immediatley reminded of Treadwell's Machinal. While the roles and views of women are definitely not the focus of The Grapes of Wrath, I believe these elements are embodied in this quote. The fact that the waitress could operate this machine "without looking" demonstrates the role it plays in her daily activities. Even in the 1930s, machines were an intergral part of life. Waitressing seems like an ideal job in some respects; basically, be friendly, serve promptly, and earn tips. The instant gratification of earning tips after every shift is especially alluring. However, this profession also reveals the limited options available to women at the time. This quote also has some staying power. I think waitressing is still a job not necessarily of choice, but mostly of necessity, and still predominantly occupied by women. While women today definitely enjoy more options, such circumstances as lack of education can subject women to the same shallow pool of options. In these situations, waitressing does not seem so ideal. In fact, I am reminded frequently by my elder co-workers of the importance of an education. "You don't wanna be stuck here working all these years like us," they constantly remind me.

 http://jerz.setonhill.edu/EL267/2009/02/steinbeck_the_grapes_of_wrath/

"Slavery allows its victims no decision-making power over any aspect of their lives, including the decision to live. The lone exception, the only power they have, is that they may choose to die...That Eunice's suicide takes place in a novel that draws its title from a spiritual, in which Moses is asked to "go down" into Egypt to "set my people free," is no accident. If Moses should fail to appear, it may fall to the captive race to take what actions they can to liberate themselves."

...More Than It's Gonna Hurt you: Concerning Violence, Foster, pgs, 94-95

I chose to take a closer look at this quote because the reference reminded me so much of the young woman in "Machinal". In this example, Foster is referencing a character, a slave, who was impregnated by her slaveowner; not only that, but the slaveowner then impregnated the daughter. Feeling helpless, the slave decides to exhaust her only option: death. This slave reminded me of the young woman in "Machinal", because she, too, did not seem to have any choice as to the direction her life took. The young woman was as a slave in that she, like Eunice, had no say in how her body had been used. She flinched when her husband touched her, and nearly suffocated at the thought of an unwanted child suckling at her breast. Like the slave, the young woman's only escape was death, although that of her husband. Finally, at the end of the play, leading up to her execution, the young woman questions the priest. She wants to know why? Why was it that the only time she felt free was when she sinned? The only liberation the young woman felt was when she committed adultery and later murder. In accordance with Foster's example, Moses did not show up, and the captive took what actions she deemed necessary to free herself of the mechanical life she unwillingly lead.

http://jerz.setonhill.edu/EL267/2009/02/foster_how_to_read_literature_2/

NURSE (to young woman) "Aren't you glad it's a girl? You're not! Oh my! That's no way to talk! Men want boys - women ought to want girls."

This quote on page 27 in episode four of "Machinal", along with many other quotes in the play, expresses the young woman's unhappiness in life. The young woman is not happy the babe is a girl, because she knows all too well the difficulties that come with being a woman at that time. Althought the young woman was deeply disturbed by the fact that she had to "submit" to motherhood at all, she was even more distraught that the babe turned out to be a girl. Although the young woman did not seem to immediately bond with the child, she probably did not want her daughter to have to suffer the same fate as she did. This quote is also very similar in nature to one uttered by Daisy in "The Great Gatsby": I'm glad it's a girl. And I hope she'll be a fool - that's the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool." Although Daisy is glad to have had a girl, she, too, expresses her worry that her daughter will succumb to a similar fate. Perhaps if Daisy and the young woman were fools, they would be unaware of the confinement of their situations. The young woman would not mind the mechanical life she leads. She would not mind submitting to marriage and to motherhood. Ultimatley, the two aforementioned quotes are similar in that they both express the limited roles of and options for women in the past; in fact, women were expected to marry and bear children (particularly, males), and were not expected to do much, if anything else. No wonder the young woman often felt as though she were choking... 

  http://jerz.setonhill.edu/EL267/2009/02/treadwell_machinal/

NURSE (to young woman) "Aren't you glad it's a girl? You're not! Oh my! That's no way to talk! Men want boys - women ought to want girls."

This quote on page 27 in episode four of "Machinal", along with many other quotes in the play, expresses the young woman's unhappiness in life. The young woman is not happy the babe is a girl, because she knows all too well the difficulties that come with being a woman at that time. Althought the young woman was deeply disturbed by the fact that she had to "submit" to motherhood at all, she was even more distraught that the babe turned out to be a girl. Although the young woman did not seem to immediately bond with the child, she probably did not want her daughter to have to suffer the same fate as she did. This quote is also very similar in nature to one uttered by Daisy in "The Great Gatsby": I'm glad it's a girl. And I hope she'll be a fool - that's the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool." Although Daisy is glad to have had a girl, she, too, expresses her worry that her daughter will succumb to a similar fate. Perhaps if Daisy and the young woman were fools, they would be unaware of the confinement of their situations. The young woman would not mind the mechanical life she leads. She would not mind submitting to marriage and to motherhood. Ultimatley, the two aforementioned quotes are similar in that they both express the limited roles of and options for women in the past; in fact, women were expected to marry and bear children (particularly, males), and were not expected to do much, if anything else. No wonder the young woman often felt as though she were choking...   

"Carter employs not only materials from earlier texts but also her knowledge of our responses to them in order to double-cross us, to set us up for a certain kind of thinking so that she can play a larger trick in the narrative."

In chapter 5 of How to Read Literature like a Professor, Foster talks about how authors draw on previous works of literature. While I was aware that common patterns and themes exist in literature, I merely thought it was a coincidence, or a necessity in order to create a great story. Rather, we are aware of these commonalities when we read, and we begin to anticipate what might happen next, or how the story will end. Afterall, common themes exist that are true for all people at all times; furthermore, I think there is some wonder in realizing that people who lived long before us are not so different from us. Nevertheless, authors are aware of the way we respond to literature, and they use this knowledge to their advantage. Aware of the way we absorb and interpret literature, authors sometimes throw a wrench in the gears, and deliver something totally unexpected, a twist. One of my favorite books, My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult, offers an unexpected twist at the end of her novel. A twist at the end of a story makes that story all the better, because we were already drawn in by one of the literary heavy-hitters, such as a timeless Shakespearian theme.

I found a quote on page 93 of The Great Gatsby that involved age:

"There was a small picture of Gatsby, also in yachting costume, on the bureau - Gatsby with his head thrown back defiantly - taken apparently when he was about eighteen."

Upon reading these sentences, I immediately thought of the inexperience of youth compared to the wisdom of old age. Young people, particularly teenagers, are often accused of deeming themselves indestructable; unfortunately, many adolescants are guilty of this belief, which is evident in automobile crash statistics. Most wrecks are the result of young people driving too fast for conditions. Nick does not know Gatsby's age in the picture, but assumes he is about eighteen by his demeanor. Not until I read a passage in How to Read Literature like a Professer, however, did I take this realization one step further. On pages 66 and 67, Foster speaks on the topic of age: "the youthful exuberance that leads to self-destruction, the clash between sober, adult wisdom and adolescent recklessness..." While the majority of us grow out of the destructive phases of our youth, this does not hold true for Gatsby. Several times throughout the novel, Gatsby is compared to, or discreetly depicted as, a little boy. In fact, on page 88, Nick scolded Gatsby for acting so nervous around Daisy: "you're acting like a little boy," he erupted. Ultimately, I gathered from this comparison that Gatsby never did mature past the recklessness of his youth to gain the sobriety and wisdom that comes with age, a deficiency which ultimately led to self-destruction.