Part 1: I think Zora Neale Hurston settled on the title she did because religion and power were two things that were represented throughout the text. The "God" figure, or the figure in charge, shifted throughout the book. People tried many times to be the leader, in some cases better than others, and they attempted this in a variety of different ways. The leader needed respect from the people they led, and they gained this in a variety of ways as well. The real leader, however, showed itself during the flood, when man had no control over anything, no way to demand his respect. Therefore, all eyes were turned to the real power, God, the supreme leader who the others strove to emulate. My reading was effected by the title by making me notice the instances where leadership occurred in the novel, and made me more aware of how Hurston felt about leadership and religion.
Part 2: God was a motif in Hurston's story. She could have created a title with a similar effect by simply using another one of her motifs. The mule, for instance, represented women and their struggles throughout the book. Therefore, "The Tough Life of a Mule" or something similar, would create the same effect as the actual title by representing a motif that was in the book. The reader's perspective would be altered by this new title because their attention would be more focused on the mule motif representing the oppression of women rather than Hurston's take on leadership which is represented by the God motif. This creates a different sense of what Hurston finds most important in her writing.
Part 3: My title, "The Tilting Banana Tree," incorporates one of my main motifs, just like Hurston did. Reading it for the first time, the title may seem a bit ambiguous, but it gets explained as the reader gets deeper into the book, when the motif has been developed more. Hurston's title is also ambiguous at first. After careful reading, however, one can easily see the connection it has with God, the flood, and leadership. My title also mirrors my theme by using my most important motif. This will help the reader know what to look for in my story, and understand it better when they have found it.
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Journal #7: Quotation Analysis
*Not Late! I accidentally saved this journal to my drafts instead of publishing it the night it was due. That is why it was published the next day. I talked to you about it after class the day after it was due.
Anthropomorphism: "Lewis's pleading eyes changed to a look of solemn understanding, and he left the shack in search of a rare fulfilling meal" (Josephson 2).
"He was soon panting and heaving from the effort of spinning his old carcass around" (Hurston 56).
These two passages both use anthropomorphism to describe an animal character. These animal characters, however, both represent bigger issues in the stories, making them motifs. The mule is protrayed by Hurston as a harder working, oppressed, and underappreciated being, much like women were viewed in that time period. The mule eventually gains its freedom, prompting Janie to yearn for the same. The dog Lewis in Josephson's story represents a being who is dependent on his owners, until he runs away to find his own luck. This represents Josephson's character Christopher, who is unhappy with his condition but unable to do anything about it until the foreign man comes.
Imagery: "His bare calloused feet instinctively clutched at the course sand which they had been deprived of for so long, and which they were once so intimately connected with" (Josephson 1).
"His prosperous-looking belly that used to thrust out so pugnaciously and intimidate folks, sagged like a load suspended from his loins" (Hurston 77).
Both Hurston and Josephson use long stretches of imagery throughout their story. Their imagery serves the purpose of revealing something important about a character. In Josephson's case, the imagery reveals that Christopher used to have some connection with something represented by the sand that was broken off a long time ago. Hurston, likewise, uses imagery to characterize Jody, showing that he is weakening with age, and is less able to project his leadership.
Motif: "Lewis gave Christopher another long look of deep understanding, and they continued to watch the sun setting over the western horizon, over America, beckoning Christopher to follow" (Josephson 4).
"He could be a bee to a blossom-a pear tree blossom in the spring" (Hurston 106).
Hurston and Josephson use multiple symbols throughout their stories. These symbols serve the purpose of representing something that the protagonist is trying to gain. In Hurston's case, Janie is always on the quest to find love. The tree motif always appears when love is the subject, helping the reader understand Janie's feelings towards love by comparing them to "blossoms" and such. Josephson uses the sun motif in his story to represent Christopher's desire to escape the island. It sets over America in the west, with Christopher watching it every night.
Anthropomorphism: "Lewis's pleading eyes changed to a look of solemn understanding, and he left the shack in search of a rare fulfilling meal" (Josephson 2).
"He was soon panting and heaving from the effort of spinning his old carcass around" (Hurston 56).
These two passages both use anthropomorphism to describe an animal character. These animal characters, however, both represent bigger issues in the stories, making them motifs. The mule is protrayed by Hurston as a harder working, oppressed, and underappreciated being, much like women were viewed in that time period. The mule eventually gains its freedom, prompting Janie to yearn for the same. The dog Lewis in Josephson's story represents a being who is dependent on his owners, until he runs away to find his own luck. This represents Josephson's character Christopher, who is unhappy with his condition but unable to do anything about it until the foreign man comes.
Imagery: "His bare calloused feet instinctively clutched at the course sand which they had been deprived of for so long, and which they were once so intimately connected with" (Josephson 1).
"His prosperous-looking belly that used to thrust out so pugnaciously and intimidate folks, sagged like a load suspended from his loins" (Hurston 77).
Both Hurston and Josephson use long stretches of imagery throughout their story. Their imagery serves the purpose of revealing something important about a character. In Josephson's case, the imagery reveals that Christopher used to have some connection with something represented by the sand that was broken off a long time ago. Hurston, likewise, uses imagery to characterize Jody, showing that he is weakening with age, and is less able to project his leadership.
Motif: "Lewis gave Christopher another long look of deep understanding, and they continued to watch the sun setting over the western horizon, over America, beckoning Christopher to follow" (Josephson 4).
"He could be a bee to a blossom-a pear tree blossom in the spring" (Hurston 106).
Hurston and Josephson use multiple symbols throughout their stories. These symbols serve the purpose of representing something that the protagonist is trying to gain. In Hurston's case, Janie is always on the quest to find love. The tree motif always appears when love is the subject, helping the reader understand Janie's feelings towards love by comparing them to "blossoms" and such. Josephson uses the sun motif in his story to represent Christopher's desire to escape the island. It sets over America in the west, with Christopher watching it every night.
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Journal #6: Pastiche Rewrite
My rewrite was mainly focused on mirroring Hurston's syntax in my story. I have long passages of imagery just like Hurston, but mine are composed of mainly all long sentences. Hurston has a few long sentences followed by a very short one. I was very happy with how my story and character development turned out in my first draft. Therefore I only made a few minor tweaks to it and focused mainly on the imagery and sentence structure of my paper. Along with the syntax changes that I mentioned earlier, I also switched around the order of some of the sentences. This improved the flow of those passages and more accurately represented Hurston's writing where a long metaphor is slowly tied in to what is actually happening. My dialect might need some revising in the future, but I am waiting until I get more feedback before I make any big changes to it.
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Journal #5: Their Eyes Were Watching God
Blake began to feel Jealousy. Jealousy, that demon forever gnawing at the foundation of other people's success. The one that never can be shooed off like a cockroach, cheating death and always returning. What need has Jealousy for honor, for that is what it is trying to destroy. He menacingly hides, waiting for self-pity to set him off. Been tirelessly waiting for his turn to enact turmoil. Blake was waiting to feel the venomous bite piercing his skin any day now. He felt weak and unprepared for it. Lucky Daniel! He didn't deserve to win that trophy. Blake had put in his best effort, but Daniel came out the Winner. The judges were once competitors themselves, but they didn't know a thing about how to fairly judge the competition. Blake convinced himself he would be alright if he quickly found the antidote to the venom induced on him. He wouldn't be overcome. That is what he hoped. But Stacy could already sense it, she knew. But she would soon know anyways, for the crowd had started to gather around Daniel on the majestic champion's podium. Girls he couldn't have known were lining up to congratulating him. Just standing beneath the podium waiting their turn. Subtly, that demon's venom, had slowly seeped up to his head.
Statement: I compared the emotion of jealousy to a creature as did Hurston with death. The creature starts out as a simple demon, but aspects of this demon grow throughout the passage. Hurston's passage was an interpretation of Janie's thoughts about death, which changed throughout the length of the passage. I tried to mirror this by developing the character Blake throughout my passage. Janie's thoughts about death were very contradicting and confusing, creating an ambiguity. I created my own ambiguity by never revealing what the competition was that Blake competed against Daniel in. Lastly, I mirrored the syntax of Hurston's passage, matching the sentence length and structure. This was meant to give the passages a similar rythm and feel when read together.
Statement: I compared the emotion of jealousy to a creature as did Hurston with death. The creature starts out as a simple demon, but aspects of this demon grow throughout the passage. Hurston's passage was an interpretation of Janie's thoughts about death, which changed throughout the length of the passage. I tried to mirror this by developing the character Blake throughout my passage. Janie's thoughts about death were very contradicting and confusing, creating an ambiguity. I created my own ambiguity by never revealing what the competition was that Blake competed against Daniel in. Lastly, I mirrored the syntax of Hurston's passage, matching the sentence length and structure. This was meant to give the passages a similar rythm and feel when read together.
Journal #4: Their Eyes Were Watching God
Pg. 76
"The years took all the fight out of Janie's face. For a while she thought it was gone from her soul. No matter what Jody did, she said nothing. She had learned how to talk some and leave some. She was a rut in the road. Plenty of life beneath the surface but it was kept beaten down by the wheels. Sometimes she stuck out into the future, imagining her life different from what it was. But mostly she lived between her hat and her heels, with her emotional disturbances like shade patterns in the woods-come and gone with the sun. She got nothing from Jody except what money could buy, and she was giving away what she didn't value.
"Now and again she thought of a country road at sun-up and considered flight. To where? To what? Then too she considered thirty-five is twice seventeen and nothing was the same at all.
"'Maybe he ain't nothin',' she cautioned herself, 'but he is something in my mouth. He's got tuh be else Ah ain't got nothin' tuh live for. Ah'll lie and say he is. If Ah don't, life won't be nothin' but uh store and uh house'" (76).
Syntax: In this passage, Hurston used mostly lengthy and drawn out sentences in order to represent the long passages of time described by those sentences. The sentences were also not too complex, hinting that the experiences they described did not include anything dramatic or momentarily significant. Many of the sentences start with the same word, she, indicating repetition which was present in what the text was explaining.
Word Choice: The word choice in this passage is very material. Hurston uses a lot of personification to describe Janie's feelings, so many unrelated objects such as wheel, hat, heels, woods, sun, and others are connected back to the experience Janie is feeling through the use of metaphors and similes. Many words were negative, representing Janie's feelings of hopelessness during this time.
Tone: The tone was very negative and gave a sense of oppression during the passage. Hurston portrayed this with words such as gone, nothing, rut, beaten, emotional, disturbances, and shade. This feeling of hopelessness helps the reader understand the situation Janie is in, and it also shows that some of Janie's independent fire is starting to fade away due to the oppressive relationship with Jody.
Sound Devices: When Janie is talking, "Maybe he ain't...and uh house" (76), she uses the word "nothin'" three times. Hurston does this in order to install in the reader's mind the thought that Janie is giving up on her independence. The negative connotation of "nothin'" helps the reader grasp the negative feelings that Janie is feeling.
"The years took all the fight out of Janie's face. For a while she thought it was gone from her soul. No matter what Jody did, she said nothing. She had learned how to talk some and leave some. She was a rut in the road. Plenty of life beneath the surface but it was kept beaten down by the wheels. Sometimes she stuck out into the future, imagining her life different from what it was. But mostly she lived between her hat and her heels, with her emotional disturbances like shade patterns in the woods-come and gone with the sun. She got nothing from Jody except what money could buy, and she was giving away what she didn't value.
"Now and again she thought of a country road at sun-up and considered flight. To where? To what? Then too she considered thirty-five is twice seventeen and nothing was the same at all.
"'Maybe he ain't nothin',' she cautioned herself, 'but he is something in my mouth. He's got tuh be else Ah ain't got nothin' tuh live for. Ah'll lie and say he is. If Ah don't, life won't be nothin' but uh store and uh house'" (76).
Syntax: In this passage, Hurston used mostly lengthy and drawn out sentences in order to represent the long passages of time described by those sentences. The sentences were also not too complex, hinting that the experiences they described did not include anything dramatic or momentarily significant. Many of the sentences start with the same word, she, indicating repetition which was present in what the text was explaining.
Word Choice: The word choice in this passage is very material. Hurston uses a lot of personification to describe Janie's feelings, so many unrelated objects such as wheel, hat, heels, woods, sun, and others are connected back to the experience Janie is feeling through the use of metaphors and similes. Many words were negative, representing Janie's feelings of hopelessness during this time.
Tone: The tone was very negative and gave a sense of oppression during the passage. Hurston portrayed this with words such as gone, nothing, rut, beaten, emotional, disturbances, and shade. This feeling of hopelessness helps the reader understand the situation Janie is in, and it also shows that some of Janie's independent fire is starting to fade away due to the oppressive relationship with Jody.
Sound Devices: When Janie is talking, "Maybe he ain't...and uh house" (76), she uses the word "nothin'" three times. Hurston does this in order to install in the reader's mind the thought that Janie is giving up on her independence. The negative connotation of "nothin'" helps the reader grasp the negative feelings that Janie is feeling.
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Journal #3: Their Eyes Were Watching God
1: "Every morning the world flung itself over and exposed the town to the sun" (pg 50).
-Personification
2: "The store itself was a pleasant place if only she didn't have to sell things. When the people sat around the porch and passed around the pictures of their thoughts for the others to look at and see, it was nice" (pg 50).
-Alliteration
3: "Take for instance the case of Matt Bonner's yellow mule" (pg 50).
-Motif
4: "He had seen Death coming and had stood his ground and fought it like a natural man" (pg59).
-Anthropomorphism
5: "As soon as the crowd was out of sight they closed in circles. The near ones got nearer and the far ones got near. A circle, a swoop and a hop with spread-out wings. Close in, close in till some of the more hungry or daring perched on the carcass" (pg 61).
-Imagery
Analysis:
1: In this instance, personification was used in order to represent the passing of night to day. The sun, which comes out during the day, has symbolized god throughout the book. The personification makes it seem like it was a human effort to expose ourselves to god's gaze every day. The word flung has a defeated and halfhearted connotation, suggesting that the effort to do so was not done with enthusiasm. This all concludes that Hurston was trying to represent people's resentment to always being watched over by others that are more powerful.
3: The mule motif has been developed ever since the start of the book, where it was compared to women, having to always do all of the work for the men. The reappearance of this motif as an actual physical character in the book lets Hurtston develop her motif much more literally. The mule's abuse and neglect after years of hard work allude to Hurston's idea that women were undergoing the same oppression. The characters reactions to the mule were also used as a tool by Hurston to let us see the character's feelings towards this gender situation. For example, Janie is very surprised when Jody bought the mule just to give it freedom, because Jody is usually very restrictive towards Janie. When the mule dies, Jody becomes even more oppressive towards Janie, symbolizing the loss of freedom because of the death of the mule which represented it.
-Personification
2: "The store itself was a pleasant place if only she didn't have to sell things. When the people sat around the porch and passed around the pictures of their thoughts for the others to look at and see, it was nice" (pg 50).
-Alliteration
3: "Take for instance the case of Matt Bonner's yellow mule" (pg 50).
-Motif
4: "He had seen Death coming and had stood his ground and fought it like a natural man" (pg59).
-Anthropomorphism
5: "As soon as the crowd was out of sight they closed in circles. The near ones got nearer and the far ones got near. A circle, a swoop and a hop with spread-out wings. Close in, close in till some of the more hungry or daring perched on the carcass" (pg 61).
-Imagery
Analysis:
1: In this instance, personification was used in order to represent the passing of night to day. The sun, which comes out during the day, has symbolized god throughout the book. The personification makes it seem like it was a human effort to expose ourselves to god's gaze every day. The word flung has a defeated and halfhearted connotation, suggesting that the effort to do so was not done with enthusiasm. This all concludes that Hurston was trying to represent people's resentment to always being watched over by others that are more powerful.
3: The mule motif has been developed ever since the start of the book, where it was compared to women, having to always do all of the work for the men. The reappearance of this motif as an actual physical character in the book lets Hurtston develop her motif much more literally. The mule's abuse and neglect after years of hard work allude to Hurston's idea that women were undergoing the same oppression. The characters reactions to the mule were also used as a tool by Hurston to let us see the character's feelings towards this gender situation. For example, Janie is very surprised when Jody bought the mule just to give it freedom, because Jody is usually very restrictive towards Janie. When the mule dies, Jody becomes even more oppressive towards Janie, symbolizing the loss of freedom because of the death of the mule which represented it.
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Journal #2: Their Eyes Were Watching God
Rules for a Caribbean accent:
1: All "th" sounds are replaced with a hard "t" sound. (ex: with vs. wit)
2: All a, eye, o or uh sounds are replaced with "ah." (ex: come on man vs. cahmon mahn)
3: All sentences must end with the word man. (ex: What's up? vs. Waht ees up mahn)
4: All "i" sounds sound like "ee." (ex; It is hot! vs. Eet ees haht!)
5: All "th" sounds are replaces with "d." (ex: That is crazy man! vs. Dat ees crazy mahn!)
6: "My" becomes "me." (ex: That is my brother. vs. Dat ees mi brahdah)
7: All "er"and "al" endings to words become "ah." See example above.
8: "Tr" sounds are turned into "ch." (ex: tree vs. chee)
9: "Fr" sounds become "fw." (ex: from vs. fwom)
10: "H" is removed from the start of words. (ex: have vs. ave)
11: "V" sounds are replaced with "b." (ex: very vs. bery)
Pg. 2
Seeing their former teammate return to the beach they had played on together years ago brought back the jealousy they had all held when he left them in pursuit of a professional soccer career. There was no hesitation to start degrading his present condition.
"Where ees hees sahca jahsee (soccer jersey) fwom dat pwofessionah sahca teem he be playing ahn mahn!-Why deed he cahm back too see ahs (us), he mahst naht ave been bery sahccessful now mahn!-Now he ess crahwling back to us now mahn!- Why ess he naht driving no fahncy sports cah (car) now mahn!- Why ees hees hair not een crazee braids lahk ours mahn!- Ah wonder eef somwahn (someone) stole hees expenseeve sahca cleets mahn!- Ah bet dat sahca teem left heem een da dahst (dust) mahn!"
When he approached within earshot of them on the beach, they put on their best smiles and gave a warm Jamaican welcome of "ay mahn!" which was politely returned by him. "Ay mahn!" They waited for more but he kept on walking down to the beach.
They noticed his strong, muscle knotted calves from years of playing soccer on the beach with them, and could sense his quickness through the way he walked. They remembered the times he had made them look silly by dancing around them with the soccer ball in front of the girls, and now wondered if he was vulnerable enough to exact revenge on in the form of a rematch.
1: All "th" sounds are replaced with a hard "t" sound. (ex: with vs. wit)
2: All a, eye, o or uh sounds are replaced with "ah." (ex: come on man vs. cahmon mahn)
3: All sentences must end with the word man. (ex: What's up? vs. Waht ees up mahn)
4: All "i" sounds sound like "ee." (ex; It is hot! vs. Eet ees haht!)
5: All "th" sounds are replaces with "d." (ex: That is crazy man! vs. Dat ees crazy mahn!)
6: "My" becomes "me." (ex: That is my brother. vs. Dat ees mi brahdah)
7: All "er"and "al" endings to words become "ah." See example above.
8: "Tr" sounds are turned into "ch." (ex: tree vs. chee)
9: "Fr" sounds become "fw." (ex: from vs. fwom)
10: "H" is removed from the start of words. (ex: have vs. ave)
11: "V" sounds are replaced with "b." (ex: very vs. bery)
Pg. 2
Seeing their former teammate return to the beach they had played on together years ago brought back the jealousy they had all held when he left them in pursuit of a professional soccer career. There was no hesitation to start degrading his present condition.
"Where ees hees sahca jahsee (soccer jersey) fwom dat pwofessionah sahca teem he be playing ahn mahn!-Why deed he cahm back too see ahs (us), he mahst naht ave been bery sahccessful now mahn!-Now he ess crahwling back to us now mahn!- Why ess he naht driving no fahncy sports cah (car) now mahn!- Why ees hees hair not een crazee braids lahk ours mahn!- Ah wonder eef somwahn (someone) stole hees expenseeve sahca cleets mahn!- Ah bet dat sahca teem left heem een da dahst (dust) mahn!"
When he approached within earshot of them on the beach, they put on their best smiles and gave a warm Jamaican welcome of "ay mahn!" which was politely returned by him. "Ay mahn!" They waited for more but he kept on walking down to the beach.
They noticed his strong, muscle knotted calves from years of playing soccer on the beach with them, and could sense his quickness through the way he walked. They remembered the times he had made them look silly by dancing around them with the soccer ball in front of the girls, and now wondered if he was vulnerable enough to exact revenge on in the form of a rematch.
Monday, February 13, 2012
Journal #1: Their Eyes Were Watching God
I perceive Janie as a woman with high self-esteem and little regard for what other people think of her. This is expressed in the writing by the way she carries herself. "The men noticed her firm buttocks like she had grapefruits in her hip pockets; the great rope of black hair swinging to her waist and unraveling in the wind like a plume; then her pugnacious breasts trying to bore holes in her shirt. They, the men, were saving with the mind what they lost with the eye. The women took the faded shirt and muddy overalls and laid them away for rememberance. It was a weapon against her strength and if it turned out of no significance, still it was a hope that she might fall to their level some day" (pg2). The words words strong, great, plume, pugnacious, bore, and strength all have similar connotations relating to strength and respect. She carried herself with these traits even though she was dresses only in muddy overalls and a faded shirt. The onlookers may have talked down about her, but this was only done behind her back, and done with a hint of jealousy "still it was a hope that she might fall to their level some day" (pg 2).
The narrator seems to be reflecting back on her life through the story she is narrating. "Ships at a distance have every man's wish on board. For some they come in with the tide. For others they sail forever on the horizon, never out of sight, never landing until the Watcher turns his eyes away in resignation, his dreams mocked to death by Time. That is the life of men" (pg 1). Zora Neale Hurston is trying to say something about the nature of men that most likely stems from her own life experiences. She had multiple husbands, and her last love was a much younger man who had to leave her because of occupational disputes. She was alluding to him when she included the part about men's eyes always being on the horizon (her love's job prospects). Hurston then goes on to say that "women forget all those things they don't want to remember, and remember everything they don't want to forget. The dream is the truth. Then they act and do things accordingly" (pg 1). This part states that women do the things that need to be done, while the men just chase their "mocking" dreams. The mood of these two passages is one of irritation, because Hurston was unhappily looking back at the situation that was ruined by her love.
The narrator seems to be reflecting back on her life through the story she is narrating. "Ships at a distance have every man's wish on board. For some they come in with the tide. For others they sail forever on the horizon, never out of sight, never landing until the Watcher turns his eyes away in resignation, his dreams mocked to death by Time. That is the life of men" (pg 1). Zora Neale Hurston is trying to say something about the nature of men that most likely stems from her own life experiences. She had multiple husbands, and her last love was a much younger man who had to leave her because of occupational disputes. She was alluding to him when she included the part about men's eyes always being on the horizon (her love's job prospects). Hurston then goes on to say that "women forget all those things they don't want to remember, and remember everything they don't want to forget. The dream is the truth. Then they act and do things accordingly" (pg 1). This part states that women do the things that need to be done, while the men just chase their "mocking" dreams. The mood of these two passages is one of irritation, because Hurston was unhappily looking back at the situation that was ruined by her love.
Thursday, February 9, 2012
Blog #4: Sample test
1: "times 3.12.83 reporting bb dayorder doubleplusungood refs unpersons rewrite fullwise upsub antefiling" (pg 44, 1984)
2: " It was the lonely hour of fifteen." (pg 77, 1984)
3: " He felt as though a fire were burning in his belly." (pg 108, 1984)
4: " He sat and watched the freckled face, still peacefully asleep, pillowed on the palm of her hand." (pg 126, 1984)
5: " War is peace" (pg 184, 1984)
2: " It was the lonely hour of fifteen." (pg 77, 1984)
3: " He felt as though a fire were burning in his belly." (pg 108, 1984)
4: " He sat and watched the freckled face, still peacefully asleep, pillowed on the palm of her hand." (pg 126, 1984)
5: " War is peace" (pg 184, 1984)
Wednesday, February 8, 2012
Blog #3: Dialect
Dialect is defined as a provincial, rural, or socially distinct variety of a language that differs from the standard language, especially when considered as substandard (Dictionary.com). This can happen when speakers of one language are separated physically, socially, or culturally. Each group adapts the language until it is unique to their group, in which then in becomes a dialect. In literature, dialect is used for a variety of purposes. It may be used in dialogue to make it accurate to what that person might actually sound like, helping the reader build a more accurate picture of the character. It may be used to show differences between two groups represented in the writing, and it may be used to portray a character or group of people as more or less intelligent, and be used as a degrading tool. In the novel Their Eyes Were Watching God, Zora Neale Hurston used dialect to make the dialogue between characters accurate to what it would have sounded like in real life in that time and place. "Honey since you loose me and gimme privilege tuh tell yuh all about mahself. Ah'll tell yuh" (pg 13). Some, however, interpreted her use of dialect as degrading the African-American population by making them sound unintelligent.
Blog #2: Diction
Diction is defined as a style of speaking or writing as dependent upon choice of words. This basically means that the writer uses word choice to influence how one perceives what is going on in the writing. Different words may mean the same thing, but the length, sound, feeling, complexity, and other factors all can affect how we think about what was written. For example: the imposing king inspected the disordered crowd of peasants vs. the majestic king gazed over the jumbled crowd of peasants. The sentences mean basically the same thing, but the way we imagine the situation is much more complex than what can be expressed by only the definitions of the words. The first sentence in the example may have seemed happier and less serious than the second one purely because of the word choice describing the sitation. Colors are very useful for creating diction because of all the non-color connections we make to simple colors. Red can mean blood, pain, or anger while white might bring on a feeling of cleanliness, or purity. Authors use diction to influence the mood and tone of the writing, and to better describe characters or situations.
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Blog # 1: Summer Reading
I enjoyed the novel 1984 the most. I thought that the author did a good job representing how someone would feel in that type of society through his characters. He made the characters easy to relate with and understand, even though they were in incredibly different circumstances. I liked how he displayed his view of what humans are like through the actions of his characters in hopeless situations. I don't neccesarily agree with his belief that people are inherently evil (Winston truly wishing his love Julia was being tortured instead of him), but his methods of proving this point through the plot was done well.
I least enjoyed the novel Their Eyes Were Watching God. I know it is a lame reason, but the english dialect that the author wrote the dialogue in was very time consuming to interpret. I know it was used to make the dialogue more accurate and authentic, but the time needed to make sense of it shifted my attention from what was actually happening in the book. Now that I have read it, however, this shouldn't be much of a problem because I already know the plot. On a positive side, I did enjoy the plot of the story. Janie's constant movement both physically and situationally kept the plot interesting. Her drive to live independently and be respected was probably a very rare thing to achieve during that time, and I found it interesting how the author had her come about achieving that.
I would analyze the odd behavior of Meursalt in The Stranger. He seemed to have no feelings for other people other than those that benefited himself. His lack of empathy was very difficult to relate to, even though his motives and actions were very simple. Using knowledge gained from IB Psychology, I would guess that the author was trying to depict this character from a Freudian perspective. He appears to have only an Id (basic selfish instincts), and seems not to have developed a Superego (the opposite of the Id, where society teaches one to care and relate to others, or have morals). This book was probably written around the time that Freudian theories were popular, so it would be an understandable that the author try to incorporate those ideas in characterizing Meursalt.
I least enjoyed the novel Their Eyes Were Watching God. I know it is a lame reason, but the english dialect that the author wrote the dialogue in was very time consuming to interpret. I know it was used to make the dialogue more accurate and authentic, but the time needed to make sense of it shifted my attention from what was actually happening in the book. Now that I have read it, however, this shouldn't be much of a problem because I already know the plot. On a positive side, I did enjoy the plot of the story. Janie's constant movement both physically and situationally kept the plot interesting. Her drive to live independently and be respected was probably a very rare thing to achieve during that time, and I found it interesting how the author had her come about achieving that.
I would analyze the odd behavior of Meursalt in The Stranger. He seemed to have no feelings for other people other than those that benefited himself. His lack of empathy was very difficult to relate to, even though his motives and actions were very simple. Using knowledge gained from IB Psychology, I would guess that the author was trying to depict this character from a Freudian perspective. He appears to have only an Id (basic selfish instincts), and seems not to have developed a Superego (the opposite of the Id, where society teaches one to care and relate to others, or have morals). This book was probably written around the time that Freudian theories were popular, so it would be an understandable that the author try to incorporate those ideas in characterizing Meursalt.
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