Down to Earth

Twins!

2006-05-10T08:18:00.000-04:00

I did not think I would be blogging after the final but I had to let everyone know that we had twin girls Tuesday afternoon. I made it home just in time. When I went down to the barn, Rachel (Mamma Goat), was sprawled out and in the first stages of labor. Everything went smoothly and Mamma and babies are doing fine. Eliza named hers Lilac, and Amelia named hers Faith. The babies are white with black stockings, black dorsal stripe, black penciling on the face, and light brown on their backs. From what I have read about Alpine goats this coloring would be called two-tone chamoisee. What ever it is called they sure are cute. Sorry I don’t have any pictures, I’m not that high tech yet.
Class has been fun and I hope everyone has a great summer!

Anney

2006-05-03T19:57:00.000-04:00

This is it; the last blog. I feel like ending the semester with the book Bastard Out Of Carolina by Dorothy Allison was one big bang of an ending. There is so much to discuss with this book that I was glad to do one more blog.
The Bastard Out Of Carolina was very disturbing to read at times, but also very thought provoking. The character, besides Daddy Glen, who I became the angriest with was Anney. As a reader I had to mentally step back and take a closer look as to why Anney made the choices she did. This was a challenge for me due to the fact that I have two daughters, ages twelve and nine, about the same age as Bone and Reese. Like Bone, I could not believe when Anney took Glen’s head in her lap and held him all the while Bone was suffering beside her (291). How could a woman still love a man that has done such horrific, irreparable damage to her own daughter? I would have killed him.
So, I took Raylene’s advice she gave to Bone when Bone was staring at the kids on the Baptist Church bus, “Look at it from the other side for a while. Maybe you won’t be glaring at people so much” (262). A look from the other side started with the fact that Anney did not have the best guidance when she was little, her father, when he was there “took better care of his dogs than his wife or children” (125), left them. This left Anney’s mother to take care of all the kids on her own and to deal with three boys who were out of control. Anney’s sister Ruth became a mother figure for her. At age fourteen Anney became pregnant by a guy she hardly knew and then he skipped town. At age nineteen, Anney married Lyle Parsons, became pregnant, and soon after Reese was born became a widow when Lyle had a fatal truck accident. Here was Anney “nineteen, with two babies” (7). She worked hard at the diner and her family helped out when they could but Anney seemed to be fighting an uphill battle. Then Glen Wadell came into the picture. Anney began thinking about family and happiness and hoped to find these things in Glen. He came from a middle class family so Anney thought life would be better because of this. Anney was desperate to get out of the social class of white trash she was in. Right from the beginning, when Bone was born and the county put illegitimate on Bone’s birth certificate, Anney fought the stigma of white trash and illegitimacy. Bad choices and bad luck, even though she tried so hard to make things right and to provide for her girls, Anney seemed to fall deeper and deeper into a bad situation.
For some reason Anney loves Glen. This is hard to understand but I think it is because she feels needed by him and she takes this as being loved by him. The reader has to remember that Anney has not had the best male role models in her life. Lyle Parsons was probably the best and he died. Like Bone, Anney longs to have love, a perfect home, and family. She is blinded by her own desires and thinks that if they all try harder things will work out.
The reason Anney chooses Glen over Bone is not totally out of her own desires. In a way, by leaving Bone she is punishing herself for letting these terrible things happen to Bone. A mother’s love for her daughter is incredible and Anney knows how much Bone has been hurt because of her bad choices. By leaving Bone with Raylene, Anney knows Bone will be taken care of. Bone would no longer be harmed by Anney’s poor choices in life. There really is no happy ending for Anney; whether she stays with Bone and relives what she has made happen to her daughter or leaves with Glen and takes all the bad choices she has ever made as far away from Bone as possible in order to protect her. Anney has lost Bone but she wants to do the only thing left that would keep Bone safe, and that is to leave.
As I mentioned in class I am disappointed with Anney because she does not truly live up to the Boatwright name. But even if she had it would not have fixed the wrongs that were made.

"The Heaven of Animals"

2006-04-26T05:37:00.000-04:00

“The Heaven of Animals” by James Dickey is a contemplative poem about what heaven is like for animals. Dickey describes how heaven for each animal matches the animal’s habitat, as in the first stanza,
If they have lived in a wood
It is a wood
If they have lived on plains
It is grass rolling
Under their feet forever. (l. 2-6)
In the second stanza Dickey says that even though animals have “no souls” (stz. 2, l. 1) they still pass on to heaven where their instincts are perfect. The line “The soft eyes open” is repeated in the second stanza and may refer to seeing with perfect clarity the world around. The idea of perfection arises throughout the poem and even a hint of competition appears, for example, “To match them, the landscape flowers,/ Outdoing, desperately/ Outdoing what is required” (stz. 3, l. 1-3).
Dickey goes on to imply that heaven for some animals requires blood. The animals which are predators would have a heaven where their hunting skills where perfect, “with claws and teeth grown perfect” (stz. 4, l. 5) and “More deadly than they can believe./ They stalk more silently” (stz. 5, l. 1, 2). Humans tend to cringe when animals prey upon other animals but it is a natural process and Dickey points this out with the reasoning that in heaven where things are perfect animals, which are prey, know “this as their life” (stz. 6, l. 4). The animals also know the reward of the “glory above them,/ And feel no fear” (stz. 7, l. 2, 3).
The last stanza talks about the cycle of life, specifically the center of the cycle. Dickey puts death at the center, which is interesting because most people consider death to be an end. He does this to show that there is life after death and death is part of life. Life and death is part of nature and nature is cyclic, “They fall, they are torn,/ They rise, they walk again” (stz. 8, l. 4, 5).

According to Mrs. Turbin

2006-04-18T07:02:00.000-04:00

Mrs. Turbin in Revelation by Flannery O’Connor is a typical O’Connor character. She is judgmental and self-righteous. Mrs. Turbin judged others by outside appearances, for example, she analyzed all the people in the waiting doctor’s room and placed them into her own set of social classes by how they looked; “She had seen from the first that the child belonged with the older woman. She could tell by the way they sat – kind of vacant and white trashy, as if they would sit there until Doomsday if nobody called and told them to get up” (820). Mrs. Turbin also describes the lady she visits with as “the well-dressed pleasant lady” but the mother of the boy is described as “the white- trashy mother [who] had on what appeared to be bedroom slippers, black straw with gold braid threaded through them – exactly what you would have expected her to have on” (820).
Not only is Mrs. Turbin caught up with the social placement of others but she considers where she would be placed if God had not placed her where he did. She believes that God has created social classification which shows in the question she imagines Jesus asking her, “If Jesus said to her before he made her “there’s only two places available for you. You can either be a nigger or white-trash,” what would she have said?” (820).
The tables are turned when the girl classifies Mrs. Turbin as a “wart hog from hell.” This truly hurts, scares, and angers her, “There was a woman there who was neglecting her own child but she had been overlooked. The message been given to Ruby Turbin, a respectable, hard-working, church-going woman. The tears dried. Her eyes began to burn instead with wrath” (828). The message from the girl forces Mrs. Turbin to truly question God, “she roared “who do you think you are?”’ (832). At the end of the story O’Connor points out that in the end of life a person’s faults will be burned away by the flames of God. Unfortunately for Mrs. Turbin what she considered to be virtues God saw as faults.

Diversity of the South

2006-04-12T05:14:00.000-04:00

These presentations are a great way to see the diversity of the south and the impact the south has throughout society. As northerners we do not realize the influence the south plays in our lives. Although there may seem to be a division still between north and south, these presentations show that there are many southern cultural and social issues which affect all of us. Brian and Courtney’s presentation on the ‘redneck’ and ‘southern bell’ stereotypes was a good example of terms which are used often to describe certain people not just from the south but from a certain class. The term ‘redneck’ originated in the south but has crept its way north. Courtney and Brian brought up a good point about how these names can be derogative but also taken almost as a compliment.
Tina and Cassey’s presentation about Jacob Lawrence was very insightful. He was an artist I had not heard of. The fact that Jacob Lawrence used tempera paints and brown paper to create his paintings with was very interesting. I wonder if he used this medium because it was the most available and probably the cheapest. Tempera paints can be made by mixing pigment with egg instead of using oil. Lawrences’ paintings seemed simplistic yet there is a strong sense of emotion portrayed by them.
The southern music presentation by Julie and Kevin showed there was more to southern music than just country music. As Kevin pointed out, even country music has many style, classifications, and stereotypes. Country music is not what it once was and there seems to be a lot of ‘wanna be’ cowboys, country boys, and country girls.
As with much about the south, even the food is unique. Nicole and Phil’s presentation about Cajun cooking brought up a good point about the way people cook and what they cook directly relate to how and were they live. When people move they bring with them their ways of cooking. The one pot meals were probably common for the Cajun because of their lifestyle of hunting and living off the land. A large pot of gumbo could be made one day, simmered while they were off hunting or working, and easily reheated for meals the rest of the week.
I think everyone has done a great job on their presentations. Information has been brought up which has been very interesting and has given me a fuller view of the south.

O'Connor & The Displaced Person

2006-04-04T21:49:00.000-04:00

So far, I think Flannery O’Connor is the most bizarre author we have read. She delves into religion and ethics more so than any other author so far, especially in “The Displaced Person”. Her ways of expressing her ideas about religion and ethics vary from comical to satirical. Her characters seem to have no human compassion for anyone besides themselves, but think they know what is right and wrong with the world. These characters are very judgmental of each other, for example, Mrs. Shortly’s idea of what the family of Mr. Guizac would look like, she pictured them as the three bears and was surprised that “the first thing that struck her as very peculiar was that they looked like other people” (195).
Not only do the characters in “The Displaced Person” not show compassion but they are mean, conniving, and hypocritical. Especially Mrs. Shortly, she eaves drops, tries to manipulate Mrs. McIntyre in to believing Mr. Guiza was up to no good, and tends to jump the fence on religion when it is convenient for her. One minute she is saying “that religion was essentially for those people who didn’t have brains to avoid evil without it. For people like herself, for people of gumption, it was a social occasion providing the opportunity to sing” (203), later on “she saw plainly that the meaning of the world was a mystery that had been planned and she was not surprised to suspect that she had a special part in the plan because she was strong. She saw that the Lord God Almighty had created the strong people to do what had to be done and she felt that she would be ready when she was called” (209). She thought very highly and confidently of herself.
It is interesting how Flannery O’Connor portrays people and how those people think they are righteous and God abiding. In the end, they all get what’s coming to them. But during their life were any of them truly happy? Is the fact that the farther people are from being good Christians or good people, the less meaningful and less happy their lives are, part of the message O’Connor was trying to tell?

The Movie & The Play

2006-03-28T05:01:00.000-05:00

I have been looking forward to watching the movie “A Street Car Named Desire” since we started reading the play. The beginning of the movie was a bit different then the play but the rough housing in the bowling alley by Stanley and his buddies is a glimpse into his, at times, violent character. Although, I liked Williams’ part in the play where Stanley brought home the meat and threw it at Stella. I wonder if Kazan thought it would not show Stanley’s manliness enough just by throwing some meat or if the viewer would not get the significance of it.
Also in the movie, Blanche’s character is much more intense and the viewer definitely gets the idea that something is not quite right with her, for example when she is talking about Belle Reve, her voice becomes louder and more angry, and when Stanley mentions her marriage she starts hearing voices and covers her ears. The way the actress has Blanche talk, so soft and fast than at times loud and fast, all play into how her character is suppose to be.
Even though I really did not like Stanley as a character and especially for what he represents of man, I have to admit Marlon Brando’s entrance into the movie definitely was not what I pictured Stanley to look like. It will be interesting to see how or if Brando’s image influences the character of Stanley differently from the way Williams portrays Stanley. Even Blanche seemed to be a bit taken by Stanley when he entered the room. She eyed him over pretty carefully and when she touched Stanley’s arm when the cat screeched she acted even stranger. Which leads to me to what I have been wondering for awhile, I may be way off here but let me know what you think, could Blanche and Stanley have already met when Blanche was living near the army camp? Could Stanley have been one of the officers that visited her? Stanley knew there was an army camp near where Blanche was staying, he mentions he was in the “two-forty-first Engineers” (672), on page 657 Blanche is talking to Stella: “You saw him in uniform, an officer, not here but” Blanche does not finish as to where, and lastly, on page 637, Stella shows a picture of Stanley in uniform and Blanche asks if Stanley had on his uniform when they met. It is a strange conversation. Because of Blanche’s state of mind could she vaguely remember Stanley from her past life?
Back to the movie, the sound of the train passing through and the music changing also make the scenes have more of an affect. The train represents something more than living on the wrong side of the tracks but I am not sure if it is death or the fact that there is always a way to leave.

Relationships

2006-03-20T19:32:00.000-05:00

Zora Neil Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God and Tennessee Williams’ A Streetcar Named Desire revolve around relationships between men and woman, women with other women and men with other men. This is quite different from the writers of the past which seem to focus on society and attitudes associated with dealing with society. These two writers are actually writing about love and all the complications that go with it. Hurston’s characters, Janie and Tea Cake, love each other passionately, but like Williams’ characters, Stella and Stanley, this love is not perfect. Both women seem to accept or overlook the faults of their husbands. Janie puts up with Tea Cake when he whips her to prove to others that he is in charge of her, “Being able to whip her reassured him in possession” (147). In A Streetcar Named Desire, Stanley hits Stella, which makes her leave, when he is drunk and mad but she returns when he pleads her name; “STELL-LAHHH!” (653). Both of these relationships show men and women dealing with their feelings for each other and their feelings towards others in their lives. The beatings show that the men feel a need to be in control of their wives. The women put up with this because as Stella explains to Blanche “But there are things that happen between a man and a woman in the dark – that sort of make everything else seem – unimportant” (657).
In spite of this, both couples talk about things that bother them. There has not been much give and take between men and women in the other stories. Stella and Stanley talk about Blanche and her situation and Janie and Tea Cake contemplate how to deal with Mrs. Turner and her racism. Stella stands up for Blanche because she is her sister (she has an unconditional love for her) and Janie just ignores Mrs. Turner’s tirades. The men have a harder time dealing with these bizarre women.
Hurston and Williams give the reader much to think about with their characters and their relationships. They also show how people deal with their feelings and express them to each other.

Two Views

2006-03-14T04:40:00.000-05:00

These two pieces are quite different from what we have been reading. Being black authors they are telling their side of the story about how life is for them. The similarities stop there. “The Ethics of Living Jim Crow” is a black man’s experience of growing up in a white man’s world. Wright explains about the difficulties he had with harassment, prejudice and bigotry at various jobs and how he learned to deal with them: “I learned to play that dual role which every Negro must play if he wants to eat and live” (555). Even Wright’s mother inflicts the wisdom of ‘Jim Crow Laws’ after he gets into a fight with a bunch of white kids. She tells him he “was never, never under any conditions, to fight ‘white’ folks again. And they were absolutely right in clouting (him) with the broken milk bottle” (549).
On the other hand, Zora Neale Hurston’s “How it Feels to be Colored Me” is quite uplifting. Hurston’s self-confidence and exuberance for life show through her writing. Her outlook on life is not about changing and playing dual roles to meet the white man’s standards but being herself. I especially like the lines “but I am not tragically colored. There is no great sorrow dammed up in my soul, nor lurking behind my eyes. I do not mind at all. I do not belong to the sobbing school of Negrohood who hold that nature somehow has given them a lowdown dirty deal and whose feelings are all hurt about it” (417). Hurston is incredibly confident and makes no qualms as to who she is; “the cosmic Zora emerges. I belong to no race nor time. I am the eternal feminine with its string of beads” (418). She does claim she has felt discrimination but she does not flinch away or bend to it as in Wright’s piece. Hurston states “it (discrimination) merely astonishes me. How can any deny themselves the pleasure of my company? It’s beyond me” (418).
These two writings were written nine years apart; Hurston’s in 1928 and Wright’s 1937. With Hurston’s piece she acknowledges that there seem to be two separate worlds of black and white. She does not let this change how she feels about herself or her pursuit of happiness. In Wright’s piece he is ever changing and evolving to be able to live in the white man’s world. These two writers show very different attitudes and convictions when it comes to society. Does the nine years make that much difference ? Or is it the difference between a man’s outlook on life verses a woman’s outlook on life? Or is it just two different personalities dealing with the same situations?
Note:
I wrote the above piece before the class discussion. Since then I have been thinking about how both author’s writings are important. Wrights writings of his experiences were absolutely necessary for that time and place. They held a certain shock value which was needed to inspire the reader to think about the situations of the south and to hopefully do something to change it. If they were not detailed like they were they may not have received the right amount of attention.
As to Hurston’s writings, I think they were just as necessary as Wright’s. She wanted people to see that there was more to black people than just their skin. Her skin color was not who she was. Because of the fact she was living in New York she probably had a more open audience, being a mixture of black and white. Her writings not only could influence the blacks but also the whites. She was coming from a different angle than Wright was. Hurston focused on the individual and emphasized on uniqueness (especially her own) not color. This is important in order to kill the stereotypes the whites have of the blacks. It would have been interesting as to how she would have dealt with some of the “Jim Crow Laws” that Wright lived with on a daily basis.
I found this web site which explains about "Jim Crow Laws" and how they started:
http://www.jimcrowhistory.org/history/create2.htm

"The Witness"

2006-02-28T15:00:00.000-05:00

I enjoyed all of Porter’s pieces we have read but the “Witness’ sticks out in my mind the most. It is the one story in the set whose characters are Uncle Jimbilly and Sophia Jane’s grandchildren; Maria 10, Paul 8, and Miranda 6. I thought it was unusual since the other stories revolved around Sophia Jane, Nanny, and the children.
Uncle Jimbilly is a very interesting character. He is so old that he is living history for Sophia Jane’s grandchildren. He was once a slave and retells the horrors of slavery to the children when they come to ask him to make small tombstones for deceased pets. Miranda is especially intrigued by the stories details, “Miranda, the little quick one, wanted to know the worst” (pg. 342). Paul, on the other hand, “would have changed the subject” (pg. 342). Does that sound like someone from Go Down, Moses? Marie is just interested in what she has come to Uncle Jimbilly for, a tombstone.
The children and Uncle Jimbilly represent two sides of the south; Uncle Jimbilly the side of slavery and the past; the children the side of the whites and the future. In the process of filling the children’s need for tombstones Uncle Jimbilly gives them a history lesson only a former slave could give. I think Porter describes the children’s interest in the stories very cleverly. The children are too young to have a real grasp what slavery was all about but they do know or have a gut feeling that what was done to the slaves was wrong and the white people were responsible. The children would “listen with faint tinglings of embarassment” and “they wiggled a little and felt guilty” when Uncle Jimbilly talked of slavery. Uncle Jimbilly’s connection with the children reminded me slightly of when Douglas sought out the poor white kids to help teach him to read. Douglas would talk to them about slavery and what it was like, hoping it made an impact on their lives so the future would eventually change. Uncle Jimbilly may not have had an agenda like Douglas but he did have a way of making an impact on the children.
Also in “The Witness” are the contrasts of Uncle Jimbilly’s knowledge and the naivety of the children. Porter brings together two opposites; an old black former slave and three very young, relatively well-off, white children. Their story together revolves around need and death. The children need a tombstone only Uncle Jimbilly can make, and Uncle Jimbilly needs to tell his stories to someone who will listen. The stories and the tombstone are both associated with death.
Lastly, Uncle Jimbilly has a very descriptive way about him when he is “put out about things”. These far fetched threats do not seem to bother the children because they are so far fetched. I do wonder about this and why Porter does not have it bother them more. When I was little my aunt would threaten to “cut our gizzards out” or “hang us by our toenails” if we did not behave, we always knew she would never do this but at the same time we knew she was not happy with us and meant business. Does Porter have people brush off Uncle Jimbilly’s threats because not only are they far fetched but because he is old and black and therefore is harmless? As we discussed in class there are undertones that he has a certain amount of anger bottled up inside of him.

Another Faulkner Woman

2006-02-20T04:48:00.000-05:00

Throughout “The Bear” Faulkner keeps referring to Isaac’s connection to the wilderness. Isaac is influenced by Sam Fathers Indian lineage to have respect of the land and nature. In spite of this love Isaac marries and the reader is introduced to another of Faulkner’s woman characters. Although she is part of Isaac’s life and “The Bear” is a story about Isaac’s life; “The Bear” is also about male bonding and mans connection to the wilderness. Then all of a sudden, on page 297 “and had the wife now”, Isaac has a wife. With all the names Faulkner has come up with throughout all of these stories he can not even give Isaac’s wife a name. She is always referred to as “she”, “her”, or “the wife.” Why? Does Faulkner think so lowly of the female race that he can not give one of his story characters a name?
Faulkner once again gives us a female character which is portrayed as shallow and superficial, like Sophonsiba. She wants the prestige of owning “the farm” that is rightfully Isaac’s. She claims to love Isaac and gives him another chance to have sex but all of her actions have motives. She wants the farm and figures if she can give Isaac a son which she says he “talked about” (though as a reader this is the first time learned about Isaac’s want for a son) then Isaac will want to claim what is his. I found this whole sex scene out of “wack” with the rest of the story. Was Faulkner digressing, just off on a fantasy, or showing how women can use their ways to get what they want?
So, did Isaac truly love this woman? Maybe…There is the impression that marriage was expected and assumed to happen “because each must share with another in order to come into it and in the sharing they become one” (pg. 297). Faulkner still insists that Isaac’s true love, base love, natural love is the wilderness and nature, as on page 311 “but still the woods would be his mistress and his wife.” So why doesn’t Faulkner have Isaac move out to the wilderness after his wife dies?

Pantaloon: The Real Meaning?

2006-02-15T10:23:00.000-05:00

“Pantaloon in Black” I thought was an odd title for this story. First of all I assumed pantaloon meant pants. This fact did not seem to fit with the story of Rider. So I looked up the meaning of pantaloon in the Webster’s Dictionary. It does mean a type of pants, tight pants to be exact but it also means buffoon. In turn, buffoon means a fool. Therefore, I am wondering what Faulkner was referring to when he titled this piece “Pantaloon in Black?”
Throughout the reading Faulkner refers to Rider as wearing overalls not tight pants. If Faulkner was using pantaloon as a meaning for buffoon then looking back throughout the story I can see maybe why he chose this title. For example, even though Rider’s grief for his wife was sincere, the actions he took because of his grief were truly foolish. On page 141 Rider catches a log big enough to kill him, amazingly he is able to handle it. On page 142 after he walks away from the sawmill, Rider purchases a jug of whiskey and proceeds to get drunk. Then he joins in some gambling and ends up killing a white man for cheating. When he is arrested instead of acting calmly and trying to plead his case he acts like a raving idiot. Faulkner builds up Rider’s foolishness bit by bit culminating in his own lynching.
Even though Faulkner started out “Pantaloon in Black” as trying to have readers look at African Americans in another way from the typical stereotypes, he ends up portraying the main character very stereotypical. Maybe right from the beginning of this story with the title “Pantaloon in Black” Faulkner planned on not changing any stereotypical ideas but just wanted readers to think he was. Did Faulkner really believe that African Americans were fools; that even though they may seem civilized on the outside they were just unruly, stupid individuals on the inside? There seems to be a lot of contradiction in what Faulkner wants the reader to take away from this reading.

"Was"

2006-02-07T18:55:00.000-05:00

Once I figured out who was who, the story “Was” by William Faulkner became quite comical compared to Kate Chopin’s hot and steamy writings. The characters in “Was” seem like their families may have been part of the southern aristocracy but have gone “back woodsy” sense after the war. They have the finery just have lost the finesse that goes along with it. A good example is the necktie being used by Uncle Buck only twice a year when Tomey’s Turl runs away to Mr. Huberts. The reason he wears it, I think, is to impress Miss Sophonsiba.
The character I like most is Miss Sophonsiba. Her name is quite elaborate, almost sounding sophisticated. She dresses in her finest to the extent of over doing it, with beads, earrings, perfume and a red ribbon around her neck. The ribbon being red seems risqué for a proper southern lady. Her most amazing characteristic is the “roan tooth” that would “flick and glint between her lips.” This tooth seems to intrigue Uncle Buck and in turn Miss Sophonsiba is attracted to Uncle Buck. She even so daringly sends Uncle Buck her red ribbon to wish him luck in finding Tomey’s Turl. This gesture made Uncle Buck uncomfortable for he held the ribbon “like it was a little water moccasin only he wasn’t going to let anybody see he was afraid of it.”(p.15) Uncle Buck was even more uncomfortable when he inadvertently crawled into bed with Miss Sophonsiba.
I felt like I was reading a story of the “Three Stooges”; each character bumbling about and being put into humorous awkward positions. I wonder about Uncle Bucks feelings for Miss Sophonsiba. I think he likes her but doesn’t want to admit it, may be afraid Uncle Buddy would pick on him? What exactly is the relationship between Uncle Buddy and Uncle Buck? Do they seem a little to close?
Faulkner describes how the aristocracies were not as proud as they use to be in the “old days”. One example of this is Mr. Hubert soaking his feet in the in the spring house and drinking a toddy. If he was a powerful man why didn’t he have one of his slaves bring the cool water to him? I had the sense he might have been hiding or trying to get away from the way life was. Also, Uncle Buddy and Uncle Buck moved all the “niggers” into the big house and in turn they moved into the slave quarters. Were they being practical so they would not have to take care of such a big house?

The Barn & The House

2006-01-30T19:00:00.000-05:00

Comparison of Swallow Barn & The House of Usher

Though these two stories seem quite opposite from each other, they have connecting issues of the south. For example, both stories are written from an outsider’s perspective, both are about grand, southern estates that were falling in disrepair, and the narrators and the main characters are all respectable men of the south. When comparing the two stories I thought of how they are a reflection of the south, the ideals and feelings represented on the outside as to those on the inside. On the one hand is Swallow Barn, where life is quiet, calm, serene and cozy, as stated “It is quietly seated, with its vassal out-buildings, in a kind of shady pocket or nook”. This example is how the south appears on the outside. In The House of Usher there is doom and gloom all around and portrays the darker, foreboding inside of the south. The estate has “bleak walls”, “a rank sedges” and “decayed trees” as opposed to “Lombardy poplars, springing above a mass of shrubbery” or “thick brick walls” of Swallow Barn.
Even the main characters show the contrast of the south. How one supposed united force can have two very different faces. Frank Meriwether is the laid back, well to do country gentleman. He goes about his life ever so happily. Roderick Usher on the other hand is going insane. He is described as a hypochondriac, with “ghastly pallor of the skin”. He has let his appearance degrade unlike Meriwether who is very “attentive to his dress”. Frank Meriwether doesn’t seem to have a care in the world, while Roderick Usher’s soul and mind are being eaten away by superstitions and his own morbid thoughts.
Frank Meriwether portrays the south’s exterior of everything is perfect and how it should be. Roderick Usher represents the south’s inner turmoil with guilt of the horrendous things that were done on the estate. This is interesting how two fictional pieces of literature can tell seemingly two different stories but when compared actually tell one story of a place and time. Take for example eating a peach, the flesh is sweet with juices that trickle down your arm. You keep eating because it is so good but then you reach the hard, coarse pit, hidden in the center of that so sweet peach, utterly inedible; one subject, the peach, two different aspects of it.

Jefferson and Wheatly Readings

2006-01-24T10:21:00.000-05:00

I worked on this blog response for almost an hour. I went to preview what I wrote and lost it all! I am sooo pissed right know. I don't have spare hours to waste. So, here is the condensed version of what I wrote.
Buffon is a buffoon. He seemed to have know actual contact with the Indians and only had unfounded opinions. Jefferson seemed to realize this and atleast had some first and second hand knowledge of their way of life. Jeffersons opinions about Africans sounded more like something Buffon would say, for example " Their griefs are transcient....less felt, and sooner forgotten with them." How does he know how deeply grief is felt by someone?
Why does Jefferson think "It would be unfair to follow them to Africa for this investigation".
In the Manufactures you can tell that he is partial to agriculture, for example "Those who labour in the earth are the chosen people of God", wasn't Jefferson himself a farmer.
The Phillis Wheatly poems I had a hard time understanding but her letters were very eloquent.

Third Times A Charm ( I Hope)

2006-01-19T21:49:00.000-05:00

Yes, this is the third time I have tried to create this blog. I have know idea what happened to the other two. I wonder if they are floating around in cyberspace like McDonalds wrappers along side the road, lets hope not.