Thursday, September 20, 2012
A Lonely Love
In Those Winter Sundays by Robert Hayden, the father is caring, helpful, and loving. The characterization of the father is conveyed through the imagery of the poem. The poem starts off with the father waking up early in the morning, in the darkness and in the cold weather. His hands are described as being chaffed, dry, and cracked. The description reveals a hard-working father whose hands must hurt as he prepares a fire to warm the house. Moreover, he is never thanked. The father must be very selfless since he continues to warm his family even when they do not thank him. Once the house was warm, the father would wake everyone up, only for his family to start bickering and fighting like most siblings do. His children are ungrateful for the warmth and all that he does. This continues to support the father's generosity and care for his family. At the end, love is revealed to be poignant and that sometimes loving others can be harsh, "what did I know of love's austere and lonely offices?" (Hayden, 782).
Cooking Your Siblings
In The Joy of Cooking by Elaine Magarrell, the speaker characterizes her siblings. She conveys how she deals with them by comparing them to cooking a meal. Her sister has a nasty tongue. The speaker has found a way to keep her sister from saying mean comments but not forever. The sister will eventually say something mean or cruel. When that happens, the speaker will have something to keep her sister saying nice things. Her brother seems to be a brute. He seems to be all about muscle. He seems selfish and couldn't care less about the speaker. Futhermore, her brother is unwilling to help others and cannot be relied upon, "my brother's heart barely feeds two." (Magarrell). The speaker must have a tough life with her siblings.
Drunk Sacrifice
In The Drunkard by Frank O'Connor, the principal irony revolves around the son's drunkenness. The father has a drinking problem and it is harmful to the family. In order to prevent father from becoming drunk, Larry, the son, drinks the pint of beer that is behind his father's back. His father becomes disgusted. His father is disappointed in the way his son acts. The father is embarrassed by his son's actions. The Father promises to never have a another drink again. The ironic part of this story is that the father shows that he is disgusted with drunkenness. He feels the way his family feels, when he is out drunk. The mother embraces Larry because he has prevented Father from drinking ever again, " 'My brave little man!' she said with her eyes shining. 'It was God did it you were there. You were his guardian angel.' " (O'Connor, 351).
Old Love
A Worn Path by Eudora Welty centers around the theme of perseverance. The old lady overcomes many obstacles to get the medicine her son needs. She has a cane which conveys that she has trouble walking. She passes by a thicket that might contain animals and yells aloud to the animals to stay out of her way. Next, she has to climb a large hill to continue on the path, "The path ran up a hill." (Eudora, 224). Furthermore, she feels like chains are pulling at her feet, preventing forward progress. A little later, a thorn bush snags her dress. She must be careful to not rip the dress. Her next trial is stepping over a log, which at her age, is quite a hard feat to accomplish. She has to climb through a barbed-wire fence and pass through the maze, a field of dead corn with no path. She encounters a scarecrow, which at first, appears to be a ghost. Then, she is approached by hunter. The hunter points the gun at the old lady and she does not even flinch. She is not scared of anything. She reaches the city, and it is revealed what her motivation is. Her love for her grandson is what drives her perseverance.
Plain Old Irony
Irony is prevalent in Once Upon a Time by Nadine Gordimer. The first irony I noticed was that the author was creating a children's story when she said she would not do so. She clearly said that she does not write them and that she ought to not write them, "I don't accept that I 'ought' to write anything." (Gordimer, 231). Another irony I noticed was that the family's attempt to protect themselves caused harm. Rather than their walls protecting their family, it only caused the death of their son. Another irony I noticed was the sign "YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED". The family used the sign to warn others of danger, but they never accepted the warning themselves. The last irony I noticed was that the neighborhood was causing its own downfall. The alarm systems the neighborhood installed were triggered by their pets. Soon, no one paid attention to the alarms. Soon, thieves started to steal items while the alarms were going off because no one realized their foolishness. Irony is an essential part of Nadine's not so great children's story.
Thursday, September 13, 2012
Way Too Far
A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry
Act 2, Scenes 2 and 3
When Walter decided to invest all of the $6500 into Willy Harris, he passed a point of no return. He told his son, "your daddy's gonna make a transaction. . . a business transaction that's going to change our lives." (Hansberry, 502). Walter was right about his decision changing his life forever. Willy Harris took Walter's money and disappeared. Walter has nothing left now. He finally realized that his family was right all along. His decision was completely foolish and Walter has learned that. At one point, he realizes that he wasted all of his father's money. This realization strikes Walter's heart and changes him. Throughout the play, Mama wanted Walter to become a man. This is the start of Walter's transformation into a man. Walter understands what he must do to atone for his mistake. He must make his Mama proud by becoming the person his father always wanted to be.
Act 2, Scenes 2 and 3
When Walter decided to invest all of the $6500 into Willy Harris, he passed a point of no return. He told his son, "your daddy's gonna make a transaction. . . a business transaction that's going to change our lives." (Hansberry, 502). Walter was right about his decision changing his life forever. Willy Harris took Walter's money and disappeared. Walter has nothing left now. He finally realized that his family was right all along. His decision was completely foolish and Walter has learned that. At one point, he realizes that he wasted all of his father's money. This realization strikes Walter's heart and changes him. Throughout the play, Mama wanted Walter to become a man. This is the start of Walter's transformation into a man. Walter understands what he must do to atone for his mistake. He must make his Mama proud by becoming the person his father always wanted to be.
The Plant of Life
A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry
Act 3, Scene 1
My Epiphany
A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry
One thing I noticed during today's discussion was that there are a total of six scenes in the play. There are also six images in the poem A Dream Deferred. Each image corresponds with a scene and those images are revealed through the deferment of Walter's dream. The first image of the poem states that a dream deferred might dry up like a raisin in the sun. When a raisin dries up, it becomes bitter and nasty. In the first scene, Walter's dream of becoming wealthy has made him bitter and nasty towards his family. The second image states that a dream deferred might fester like a sore, and then run. When a sore festers and runs, it has become infected and begins to ooze pus out. In the second scene, Walter has become restless. His dream has adulterated his mind and he is angry at his family. Walter results to drinking in the hope that all his problems will melt away. The third image states that a dream deferred might stink like rotten meat. If fresh cut meat remains unused for a while, it rots and emits horrendous odors. In the third scene, Walter's dream has caused the family to fall apart. It is as if Walter is releasing a feeling, attitude, or air that drives the family apart. Furthermore, Mama sees this and tries to fix the problem. This only causes Walter to make a reference to meat: "So you butchered up a dream of mine" (Hansberry, 492). The fourth image states that a dream deferred might crust and sugar over like a syrupy sweet. When something crust and sugars over, it becomes unusable. In the fourth scene, it is evident that Walter's dream has waited long enough and it has hardened. Rather than the dream forming goals so that it might be attained, the hardened dream forms destructive thoughts that will only create a wake of destruction. Walter becomes filled with the destructive thought of spending the rest of the insurance amount on investment. He decides to make the foolish decision because his dream had crusted over so much. The fifth image states that a deferred dream might sag like a heavy load. That heavy load becomes a burden and slows the person down. The person's mind becomes lethargic and they might become depressed. In the fifth scene, Walter has realized that his invested money is gone. All his hopes and dreams have disappeared. The emptiness of an unfulfilled dream weighs upon him. He sees no hope in life and just goes off to his room. The sixth and final image states that a dream deferred might explode. An explosion creates devastation all around it. An exploding dream might cause a person to do something they have never done before. It might drastically alter the personality of the dreamer. Walter changes. He decides to take Mr. Lindner's money. Walter has changed so much that avarice has transcended to be the sole focus of his life. Although Walter becomes himself at the end of the play, the deferment of Walter's dream significantly impacts everything that Walter had held true.
One thing I noticed during today's discussion was that there are a total of six scenes in the play. There are also six images in the poem A Dream Deferred. Each image corresponds with a scene and those images are revealed through the deferment of Walter's dream. The first image of the poem states that a dream deferred might dry up like a raisin in the sun. When a raisin dries up, it becomes bitter and nasty. In the first scene, Walter's dream of becoming wealthy has made him bitter and nasty towards his family. The second image states that a dream deferred might fester like a sore, and then run. When a sore festers and runs, it has become infected and begins to ooze pus out. In the second scene, Walter has become restless. His dream has adulterated his mind and he is angry at his family. Walter results to drinking in the hope that all his problems will melt away. The third image states that a dream deferred might stink like rotten meat. If fresh cut meat remains unused for a while, it rots and emits horrendous odors. In the third scene, Walter's dream has caused the family to fall apart. It is as if Walter is releasing a feeling, attitude, or air that drives the family apart. Furthermore, Mama sees this and tries to fix the problem. This only causes Walter to make a reference to meat: "So you butchered up a dream of mine" (Hansberry, 492). The fourth image states that a dream deferred might crust and sugar over like a syrupy sweet. When something crust and sugars over, it becomes unusable. In the fourth scene, it is evident that Walter's dream has waited long enough and it has hardened. Rather than the dream forming goals so that it might be attained, the hardened dream forms destructive thoughts that will only create a wake of destruction. Walter becomes filled with the destructive thought of spending the rest of the insurance amount on investment. He decides to make the foolish decision because his dream had crusted over so much. The fifth image states that a deferred dream might sag like a heavy load. That heavy load becomes a burden and slows the person down. The person's mind becomes lethargic and they might become depressed. In the fifth scene, Walter has realized that his invested money is gone. All his hopes and dreams have disappeared. The emptiness of an unfulfilled dream weighs upon him. He sees no hope in life and just goes off to his room. The sixth and final image states that a dream deferred might explode. An explosion creates devastation all around it. An exploding dream might cause a person to do something they have never done before. It might drastically alter the personality of the dreamer. Walter changes. He decides to take Mr. Lindner's money. Walter has changed so much that avarice has transcended to be the sole focus of his life. Although Walter becomes himself at the end of the play, the deferment of Walter's dream significantly impacts everything that Walter had held true.
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
1 is the Loneliest Number
A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry
Act 2, Scenes 1 and 2.
With a new house on the way, everybody in Walter's family seems happy, except for Walter. He feels sad and betrayed. The money, which stood for everything that he dreamed about was gone: "So you butchered up a dream of mine--you--who always talking 'bout your children's dreams. . . " (Hansberry, 492). No one seems to be supporting Walter. His idea was completely abandoned. Moreover, his family still mocks his idea of investment when he is already at a low point. He is completely alone, even if his family is all around him. The loneliness soon gets to Walter's head and he decides to miss three days of work. His family tries to console him, but with no avail. It is only at the end of act two, scene two where mama reveals that there is a little money for Walter to invest in his idea. It seems that money creates Walter's happiness as it was the only thing that seemed to lift Walter out of his loneliness.
Act 2, Scenes 1 and 2.
With a new house on the way, everybody in Walter's family seems happy, except for Walter. He feels sad and betrayed. The money, which stood for everything that he dreamed about was gone: "So you butchered up a dream of mine--you--who always talking 'bout your children's dreams. . . " (Hansberry, 492). No one seems to be supporting Walter. His idea was completely abandoned. Moreover, his family still mocks his idea of investment when he is already at a low point. He is completely alone, even if his family is all around him. The loneliness soon gets to Walter's head and he decides to miss three days of work. His family tries to console him, but with no avail. It is only at the end of act two, scene two where mama reveals that there is a little money for Walter to invest in his idea. It seems that money creates Walter's happiness as it was the only thing that seemed to lift Walter out of his loneliness.
Keep on Searching
A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry
Act 1, Scenes 1 and 2
From the beginning, the play conveys a sense of tension. The family is edgy and everything seems to be revolving around the ten thousand dollar check. Both Walter and Beneatha dream about a better life and it all depends on that ten thousand dollar check. Walter wants to invest the payment into a liquor business. He expects to receive money back from his investment and become richer. He hopes to live nicer, buy a new home, and afford to send Beneatha to medical school. Walter attempts to sell this idea to Ruth and his mama, but they disregard it entirely. They think that it's a scam and that it is foolish. Walter's only hurdle is convincing them of his plan. Beneatha wants to be a doctor, "I'm interested in you. Something wrong with that? Ain't many girls who decide--'to be a doctor.' " (Hansberry, 445). Beneatha's dream of becoming a doctor is admirable because she is a woman and she is black. She hopes that by becoming a doctor, she will make money, set herself apart from her family, and provide for herself. She is studying in school and that seems to going really well for her. Her real troubles arrive when she ponders how she will pay for it. The ten thousand dollars would really help with the expenses. Furthermore, it would be safer to just use the money for medical school rather than gamble it on the liquor business. Beneatha continues to study and learn in hopes of gaining entrance to medical school. She tries to not be a pain toward her family so that they will give her the money for school.
Act 1, Scenes 1 and 2
From the beginning, the play conveys a sense of tension. The family is edgy and everything seems to be revolving around the ten thousand dollar check. Both Walter and Beneatha dream about a better life and it all depends on that ten thousand dollar check. Walter wants to invest the payment into a liquor business. He expects to receive money back from his investment and become richer. He hopes to live nicer, buy a new home, and afford to send Beneatha to medical school. Walter attempts to sell this idea to Ruth and his mama, but they disregard it entirely. They think that it's a scam and that it is foolish. Walter's only hurdle is convincing them of his plan. Beneatha wants to be a doctor, "I'm interested in you. Something wrong with that? Ain't many girls who decide--'to be a doctor.' " (Hansberry, 445). Beneatha's dream of becoming a doctor is admirable because she is a woman and she is black. She hopes that by becoming a doctor, she will make money, set herself apart from her family, and provide for herself. She is studying in school and that seems to going really well for her. Her real troubles arrive when she ponders how she will pay for it. The ten thousand dollars would really help with the expenses. Furthermore, it would be safer to just use the money for medical school rather than gamble it on the liquor business. Beneatha continues to study and learn in hopes of gaining entrance to medical school. She tries to not be a pain toward her family so that they will give her the money for school.
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