Remembering details, coupled with the act of consuming alcohol never go well together. Alcohol, when consumed, affects the cerebrum, which is the part of the brain responsible for motor movements, balance, and coordination. After the cerebrum has been partially shutdown, alcohol has an effect on the hippocampus, slowing down encoding, and has the potential to completely turn off the hippocampus. This part of your brain is used for creating lasting images and emotions known as MEMORY. In Edgar Allan Poe’s “The Cask of Amontillado”, the narrator, Montresor, consumes a large quantity of wine and in doing so, makes it extremely difficult for me to believe his story on the murder of Fortunato.
Montresor states while guiding Fortunato through the catacombs, “My own fancy grew warm with the Medoc” (129), and right away destroys any notion of remembering the murder with such vivid detail as he has presented. Details can easily be imagined and presented in a convincing matter, but when we know of the consumption of alcohol during Montresor’s encoding period, there leaves little doubt of his lack of integrity. In addition, we are never told of exactly what Fortunato had done to Montresor to bring about this lethal plot. The beginning lines pronounce, “The thousand injuries of Fortunato I had borne as I best could, but when he ventured upon insult I vowed revenge” (127). This insult had to be the worst thing that could possibly be spoken to bring about a desire to kill the speaker, and I simply don’t believe this is the reason for the wasting of Fortunato. Finally, Montresor describes Fortunato literally sucking down a bottle of “De Grave” when he says, “He emptied it at a breath” (129). This Fortunato character was described as a connoisseur of wine, and I know by my parents’ own actions that wine is to be sipped and enjoyed due to its rich flavor and scent. Someone who takes pride in wine would not quickly swallow a bottle of wine, regardless of the make.
Having said all this, I do not believe Montresor, or his murderous tail of Fortunato. In fact, I believe Montresor to be a psychopath for the simple reason that he does not ever regret his actions. “My heart grew sick; it was the dampness of the catacombs that made it so” (131). Details can be thought up, but the loopholes in this story cause credibility to be “thrown out the window.”
Poe, Edgar Allen. “The Cask of Amontillado”. The Norton Introduction To Literature. Allison Booth, J. Paul Hunter, Kelly J. Mays.-9th ed. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2005.
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Introduction for "Diving into the Wreck"
When the word “ocean” is heard in one’s ear, one may think of the Pacific Ocean, or possibly the Atlantic Ocean. Others may picture the ocean, with waves crashing into the shore, causing bubbles to form as the salt-water hits the small rocks. The almost black water slowly creeping in, changing to lighter colors as it transforms from dark-blue to a lighter blue, and then to a greenish-blue. Additional sights could be dolphin fins off towards the horizon, or a small fishing boat where a father and son are enjoying the day, bonding and fishing for the local catch. One may think of the sounds of the ocean, as seagulls fly overhead letting out their somewhat annoying cackles, while children play in the sand with their toys, building sand-castles and burying their parents and siblings in the warm sand. The sounds of the shore are incredibly peaceful, and the ocean has always been a symbol of a site where fun experiences and love are shared between people.
Through all the joyous thoughts of the ocean, it’s easy to forget how dangerous and frightening this place can be. Conflicting images of the blissful ideas of the ocean could be tsunamis, tidal waves, hurricanes, and the overall brute strength of the ocean. Lives can be lost so easily in the unrelenting body of water known as the sea, and the strains that may occur to survive are an incredible concept. In the poem “Diving into the Wreck” by Adrienne Rich, we are presented with images of a “shipwreck,” the “dive,” and the “speaker” herself. These images are seen as their true identities in the beginning stanzas of the poem as the speaker suits up and plunges into the ocean to view the shipwreck at the bottom of the sea. As we read further into Rich’s poem, these images begin to show their alternate meanings as the “shipwreck” becomes the feminist movement, the “dive” becomes the struggle for equality and social rights for all females, and the “speaker” loses her identity as she is lost in this ongoing struggle. There are many other symbols in “Diving into the Wreck” that support the feminist movement and express gratitude to all those who have tirelessly labored for the success of the movement and fought to acquire equality in all aspects of female life.
Through all the joyous thoughts of the ocean, it’s easy to forget how dangerous and frightening this place can be. Conflicting images of the blissful ideas of the ocean could be tsunamis, tidal waves, hurricanes, and the overall brute strength of the ocean. Lives can be lost so easily in the unrelenting body of water known as the sea, and the strains that may occur to survive are an incredible concept. In the poem “Diving into the Wreck” by Adrienne Rich, we are presented with images of a “shipwreck,” the “dive,” and the “speaker” herself. These images are seen as their true identities in the beginning stanzas of the poem as the speaker suits up and plunges into the ocean to view the shipwreck at the bottom of the sea. As we read further into Rich’s poem, these images begin to show their alternate meanings as the “shipwreck” becomes the feminist movement, the “dive” becomes the struggle for equality and social rights for all females, and the “speaker” loses her identity as she is lost in this ongoing struggle. There are many other symbols in “Diving into the Wreck” that support the feminist movement and express gratitude to all those who have tirelessly labored for the success of the movement and fought to acquire equality in all aspects of female life.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
The Juggernaut
Many of you do not know my I.D.,But look at me and you’ll never forget,
Get in my way and you’ll fall, guarantee,
I run through walls without breaking a sweat.
I’m huge, I’m red, my outfit is metal,
View me with fear, because everyone does,
Most shall see, I weigh more than a petal,
If you’re hit, your head will be in a buzz.
Many have died trying to slow me down,
It takes some time for me to get going,
As I watch people fly, I do not frown,
If I’m angry, fists I’ll be throwing.
I am the juggernaut; I’ll say it loud,
I’m strong as an ox; I’ll run over a crowd.
I chose to write about the DC Comics character, Juggernaut, for two main reasons. One, he is not very well known by most of society, and two, this was my nickname in high school. People used to and still call me this because when I played football I was hard to tackle, and in baseball I was considered a power-hitter. Some of the football guys on varsity during my junior year said I reminded them of the juggernaut for how I ran when I had possession of the ball, and the name has stuck with me ever since. As far as the poem goes, I have never written one in my life before, so I have attempted a sonnet. I focused mostly on the rhyme scheme and making sure each line had ten syllables. Other than that, the poem basically describes what the character looks like and what he does, and that is run over and through things.
Sunday, January 18, 2009
The Tyger
William Blake’s poem “The Tyger” is a compilation of questions about a tiger from a child’s perspective that one may find frustrating due to there being no answers coming from the text. There are also many paradoxes and contradictions presented from the questions pointed towards this amazing creature. The main contradiction I saw in this poem is how the tiger was made, and looking at the spelling of “tyger” and our prompt, I believe the “tyger” is a symbol for the industrial revolution or the advancing of technology in today’s society.
In the beginning of the poem, the speaker lays down imagery of the tyger, describing it as a ferocious beast, and something to gaze in awe upon. In the fourth stanza, the reader is presented with many questions about the creation of this unique creature: “What the hammer? What the chain?/ In what furnace was thy brain?/ What the anvil? What dread grasp/ Dare its deadly terrors clasp?” These questions reference many tools that a blacksmith would use, and going along with the paradoxes, I interpreted this as the “tyger” being the symbol for industrialization. In stanza three, the speaker asks, “And what shoulder, & what art,/ Could twist the sinews of thy heart?” I believe the speaker, or possibly Blake is referencing industrialization and putting a negative connotation on it. In addition, in line twenty the speaker asks, “Did he who made the Lamb make thee?” Looking at this line, I noticed “Lamb” is capitalized, and I believe there is another symbol here, possibly being that the lamb is the innocence and beauty of nature and it’s creations. The comparison of the tyger and the lamb furthers the harmful outlook of the tyger, or the advancing technology of the modern world. The speaker is making a case that modern technology is becoming a very hazardous and detrimental cause in today’s society. Finally, looking at the nursery rhyme characteristics of the poem and the repetition of the first and last stanzas, I believe the speaker wants to make his message easier to understand for the youth so that our coming generations do not continue on this terrible course. The speaker wants everyone to be able to look at this robotic tiger and see that nature did not create it, but rather man did, and nothing good will come out if it.
Blake, William. “The Tyger”. The Norton Introduction To Literature. Allison Booth, J. Paul Hunter, Kelly J. Mays.-9th ed. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2005.
In the beginning of the poem, the speaker lays down imagery of the tyger, describing it as a ferocious beast, and something to gaze in awe upon. In the fourth stanza, the reader is presented with many questions about the creation of this unique creature: “What the hammer? What the chain?/ In what furnace was thy brain?/ What the anvil? What dread grasp/ Dare its deadly terrors clasp?” These questions reference many tools that a blacksmith would use, and going along with the paradoxes, I interpreted this as the “tyger” being the symbol for industrialization. In stanza three, the speaker asks, “And what shoulder, & what art,/ Could twist the sinews of thy heart?” I believe the speaker, or possibly Blake is referencing industrialization and putting a negative connotation on it. In addition, in line twenty the speaker asks, “Did he who made the Lamb make thee?” Looking at this line, I noticed “Lamb” is capitalized, and I believe there is another symbol here, possibly being that the lamb is the innocence and beauty of nature and it’s creations. The comparison of the tyger and the lamb furthers the harmful outlook of the tyger, or the advancing technology of the modern world. The speaker is making a case that modern technology is becoming a very hazardous and detrimental cause in today’s society. Finally, looking at the nursery rhyme characteristics of the poem and the repetition of the first and last stanzas, I believe the speaker wants to make his message easier to understand for the youth so that our coming generations do not continue on this terrible course. The speaker wants everyone to be able to look at this robotic tiger and see that nature did not create it, but rather man did, and nothing good will come out if it.
Blake, William. “The Tyger”. The Norton Introduction To Literature. Allison Booth, J. Paul Hunter, Kelly J. Mays.-9th ed. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2005.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Much More Than Meets the Eye: "In a Station of the Metro"
Although “In a Station of the Metro” by Ezra Pound is a very short poem, I realized very quickly that it was not lacking in imagery. With the help of our assignment guidelines, I was also able to pick up on the two contrasting views for pro-modernism and anti-modernism.
Pound’s poem can be seen in the eyes of pro-modernity with the help of the word “apparition” in line one, as well as the word “Petals” in the second line of the poem. Apparitions are most often referred to as ghosts or unfamiliar objects, and looking with a pro-modernity perspective, the apparition of faces is an amazing sight to look upon. The speaker is amazed at all the people in the metro, and this goes to support technological advances in transportation. The “Petals” can also be used to support pro-modernity as the speaker views each person in the metro as an individual petal of a flower. Flowers are frequently used as a symbol of beauty, so someone may interpret the speaker comparing the people with petals of a flower in order to show the beauty of nature and how urbanization and industrialization are advancing nature’s beauty.
On the contrary, one may also see an anti-modernity theme in “In a Station of the Metro.” The “apparition,” or ghostly figures can be interpreted as an evil sighting, with the ghosts being full of malicious intent. Ghosts are seldom seen as beautiful, and one may believe the speaker mentions these beings in order to bring about thoughts of how urbanization leads to the destruction of nature. This claim can also go along with the second line, “Petals on a wet, black bough.” The fact that the petals are black results in feelings of death and wickedness. The movement of urbanization and industrialization may be leading to the deaths of all the people in the crowd at the metro. The adjective “wet,” in line two also makes one perceive a feeling of a gloomy, rainy day at the metro, casting a pessimistic outlook on the modernism movement.
Rich, Adrienne. “Diving into the Wreck”. The Norton Introduction To Literature. Allison Booth, J. Paul Hunter, Kelly J. Mays.-9th ed. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2005.
Link for flower image:
Link for subway image:
Monday, January 12, 2009
My Thoughts on "Diving into the Wreck"
In the poem “Diving into the Wreck” by Adrienne Rich, many images come into play throughout the stanzas. Images such as “the book of myths,” “the camera,” “the knife-blade,” “the body-armor of black rubber,” and many other pieces of equipment aboard the speaker’s ship. I also came across images of the speaker’s “dive” into the ocean and the “wreck” at the sea bottom. As Rich’s poem continues through the stanzas, I began to notice the “wreck” and it’s possible meanings much more, and the speaker’s equipment began to come together as one identity. Both the “wreck” and the image of the “speaker” changed in my eyes after finishing Rich’s poem, as I believe the “wreck” went from being an actual shipwreck to a symbol of America’s negative outlook on the work and productivity of females, and the speaker herself transformed from being a female to a lost identity.
I know from history classes in high school that the 1970’s were a time of feminist movements, and I believe Adrienne Rich is criticizing those who did not support the movement and who looked down upon the female as a work force and productive member of American society. As the speaker climbs down the ladder and into the ocean in the second and third stanzas, she is stepping into the battle grounds for the feminist movement. In lines 37-38, the speaker’s “mask is powerful/ it pumps [her] blood with power,” possibly referring to the fact that there were some men who supported the feminist movement for equality. As the speaker continues in stanzas six and seven, we get images of the damage done to the “wreck” and the “drowned face.” I believe these are symbols of the many women who fought for the feminist movement and did not see their work accomplish the final goal.
As line 72 begins in stanza eight, I perceived a change come upon the speaker as “the mermaid whose dark hair/ streams black, the merman in his armored body” came to be. This is the beginning of the loss of identity for the speaker as she too is becoming a victim of the oppression towards the feminist movement. I also began to believe after some re-reads that the speaker leads to the idea of society never appreciating the accomplishments of female work. “The half-destroyed instruments” in line 83 portray the women who have dedicated their time for the feminist movement to no avail, and “the fouled compass” in line 86 exposes the suggestion that some women have lost their drive for the movement due to how difficult the struggle was for equality. Finally, “our names do not appear” in line 94 suggests that once the movement has ended and equality is attained, the identities and work completed by the feminist movement will most likely be lost in history.
Rich, Adrienne. “Diving into the Wreck”. The Norton Introduction To Literature. Allison Booth, J. Paul Hunter, Kelly J. Mays.-9th ed. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2005.
Shipwreck image:
Scuba diver image:
Woman image:
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Reason For My Blog Title
An underground band by the name of "Rebelution" has never hit the public mainstream when you think of contemporary music. In fact, I had never heard of them until this past Summer. I came across the band while searching for music on my downtime, and I feel like I found a song that is truly golden. Rebelution really only have one great song, and that is "Heart Like A Lion." After listening to this song hundreds of times, I believe that anything in life can be accomplished as long as you put your mind to it, set goals, believe in yourself, and not let the distractions in life set you back.
This song has really touched me with its message that no matter what happens in life, you always have control of what you can accomplish as an individual. Having a "heart like a lion" means being a strong individual, like a leader instead of a follower. My life is very much sports orriented, and this song always gets me pumped up before a sporting event or before I am about to go to the gym to workout. I chose to make "Heart Like A Lion" my title because I am ready to make the most out of my next challenge in life, and that is Winter Quarter's ENL 3 class. Im not the best at analysis, the fastest reader, or the best writer, but I will not pass up the opportunity to make myself a better writer and a well-rounded individual in the literary world. I live for competition and love when I "run on all cylinders" and the song "Heart Like A Lion" puts me in that mental stature where I believe I can do anything. If the title is anything to me, it's a motivational saying and I wont let myself do anything less than the best work I am capable of.
This song has really touched me with its message that no matter what happens in life, you always have control of what you can accomplish as an individual. Having a "heart like a lion" means being a strong individual, like a leader instead of a follower. My life is very much sports orriented, and this song always gets me pumped up before a sporting event or before I am about to go to the gym to workout. I chose to make "Heart Like A Lion" my title because I am ready to make the most out of my next challenge in life, and that is Winter Quarter's ENL 3 class. Im not the best at analysis, the fastest reader, or the best writer, but I will not pass up the opportunity to make myself a better writer and a well-rounded individual in the literary world. I live for competition and love when I "run on all cylinders" and the song "Heart Like A Lion" puts me in that mental stature where I believe I can do anything. If the title is anything to me, it's a motivational saying and I wont let myself do anything less than the best work I am capable of.
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