The video Chocolat was really interesting in a number of ways, especially as the ending note for this course. The movie was difficult to follow at times, and I had a hard time finding a singular meaning which usually films have. The storytelling was well done, and overall I didn't have much trouble following what happened, but looking back, there are a number of themes that I could pick as possible meanings from the film, and that bothers me. Compared to other readings about racial problems throughout history, it wasn't the best, however I did enjoy it more than Heart of Darkness and the early slave narratives. That being said, I did enjoy the film and the different narratives it gave on different issues. As stated earlier in class, I don’t entirely grasp the need for the frame narrative, or some of the simpler details.
The movie’s themes were all jumbled together and no one theme really had a chance to develop and shine. There were hints at the dividing line between the whites and the blacks, but there was also the infidelity issues, as well as family ties. With so much going on, I couldn’t really focus and allow myself to dissect a certain line of meaning.
I can sort of see the reason for concluding on this movie, my thought being that it brings these stories more to life. Things Fall Apart is a pretty strong story, but most people are visual learners, and the added bonus of actually seeing these themes played out on screen would be a huge benefit. Despite this, the fact that the movie was not as clear as it could have been and left us with so many questions may have dampened that effect of visual learning.
Project proposal(even though it’s really late) I’m probably going to write a paper and focus on comparing/contrasting some of the works that focused on slavery and the tension between the Africans and the colonists. I’ll probably use Chocolat, Things Fall Apart, and Heart of Darkness as my source materials.
Response 7 (2/28/14)
I think the most important difference between Ivan and Nora is that Nora's play breaks the social norms that surrounded them. In today's society, granted, it is easier to break norms and get away with it because people are more open. However, that doesn't change the fact that people did feel oppressed back then and it's proof of how much power societal norms have over people. There's no reason now for someone to live unhappily even though it's the "social norm." Humans should have a right to live happily and be themselves. I think Ibsen was just ahead of his time/realized how wrong society was.
I hadn’t realized at first how similar A Doll’s House and The Death of Ivan Ilych are before today. The male authorities, the societal norms, all down to the characters themselves were actually quite similar. I was surprised at how the similarities also played into the differences. The façade of a happy family was the goal in both of the households, however, Ivan managed to keep his façade because he was the man, and didn’t realize until it was too late that he was unhappy. Nora managed to realize soon enough to be able to get out and try to make it on her own.
I really do disagree with the critics that Nora “flip-flopped” at the last minute and turned into a rebel. I believe that she knew that she was playing house all along, but because she loved Torvald and thought that he loved her back, she stayed in it for love. Once she realized that the love wasn’t there, she had finally had enough and she got out. Maybe Ibsen didn’t say much about the total injustice of society, but he was doing his part to start the movement and make a difference.
Response 6 (2/23/14)
Last week's reading has just been quite depressing. Ivan Ilych was just trying to find happiness in his life, albeit mostly in the wrong ways. Happiness doesn't come from a successful career, or more money, but rather from meaningful connections with people. It reminds me in particular of a quote that's been floating around recently, "People were created to be loved, things were created to be used; the reason why the world is in chaos right now is because things are being loved, and people are being used." On Friday we discussed what’s really important in life, and mostly it boiled down to experiences and happiness. I think that what Tolstoy was trying to get at was that Ivan had an unsuccessful life because he ignored all of these factors and instead furthered his career. Money was his “friend” and because of this, in the end(and from the beginning), no one really cared about his death.
So many people today are concerned with how much money they make and how great of a job they have. Yet so many people are unhappy. There are things in life much more important than money, being in a “good” job, and even education. Being happy, creating lasting bonds with people, and making a difference in the world are much more important. I am not fond of the phrase, but YOLO could be taken a bit more seriously. Teens use it to convince others to do stupid things; but if taken that there’s no extra time to spend being angry or upset, then it’s not a bad phrase. We spend so much time in school or work being unhappy and chasing after meaningless goals. Why not spend that time doing things you actually want to do and can make a difference? You only get one shot at life, live it to the fullest.
Response 5 (2/7/14)
Snow days can be nice. There’s a beauty and cleanliness that comes with the falling of snow. In my opinion, snow is like poetry in motion, like a story trying to make itself known to the world.
I guess our readings are just not catching with me as much as they are supposed to be. I did think after both my classes that “The Lake” reminded me a lot of the photography colloquium that I'm currently taking. We are constantly discussing and coming back to the idea that a photograph is a stolen moment of time that is frozen forever. The image is a way of capturing that moment in time and keeping it forever, so the memory can be relived over and over. Even after the moment is captured, the people or things(time) in it are dead. They exist no more, so therefore the photo is a depiction of something that is already dead. “The Lake” reminded me of this because he basically wants a Harry Potter version of a photo. He wants the lake, a continually moving and changing ‘being’, to be the reminder, or memory, of this woman that is gone.
Mortality is a constant among humans, we can’t escape it, and yet, most of us can’t accept it either. Instead we do everything within our power to control time and control our dying forms. Pictures are just one aspect of this effort towards self-preservation. Technological advances are headed towards allowing cryopreservation, stopping the evidence of aging, and cloning. These are just a few examples of the ways in which humans are trying to control and stop time’s power over our lives. Humans try and play God by trying to rule their own lives and not leave it up to those who know better than us.
Response 4 (1/31/14)
Looking at the romantic hero and comparing them to contemporary references added yet another whole new layer of meaning to Faust for me. I've never been a big fan of reading plays, so this particular reading has been especially uninteresting to me. I thought Faust was kind of an idiot for letting the Mephistopheles lead him down the path he took. Sadly, even after last week I lost interest again, and I couldn’t bring myself to enjoy the reading. I did however like the poems we read for today.
As interesting as it is to call Napoleon anything close to a hero, reading these poems felt like I was reading about someone whose death was an absolute tragedy. I was almost sad at the passing of a “great hero.” The emotions made me wonder that many people are painted in a one sided light and their followers often have not heard or heeded the other side’s argument. There’s probably many people who have this one sided view of someone that they believe to be a hero, yet this person is a terrible villain.
It tied interestingly to an argument I saw on Facebook. The participants were arguing over what is the difference between fact, opinion, and being “mean.” These poets would have stated what they believed to be facts about Napoleon that he was a hero, and would have taken offense to the other side of the argument, even though those may have been facts as well. I have seen many such arguments where the two sides argue their points, and don’t stop to check any real facts. There is no unbiased opinion anywhere, so what can even be called real facts? Where is the line drawn between opinion and slander? When does calling a belief narrow-minded become calling a person narrow-minded? Food for thought.
Response 3 (1/24/14)
I’ll be the first to admit that while reading this, my mind wandered and I was quite bored. The story of Faust is easy to follow, and not a difficult read. However, today when we went through and deconstructed some of the deeper meanings of his speeches, I was very drawn to some particular phrases and the meanings behind them. I guess I was so busy with other tasks and homework that I didn’t think to deconstruct the meaning behind the words I was reading, and it was a good reminder that a lot of writing has much deeper meaning that meets the eye.
“Alas, that to the pinions of the mind No wing corporeal is joined as their ally.”
I loved this idea, skipped over it in my first reading obviously, but I’ve always had the urge to fly. My mind has never reached any “boundaries” in learning or otherwise and I used to devour books and absorb knowledge for the fun of it. I loved learning new things just to prove that I could. I used to be deathly afraid of heights, but I still had that longing to fly. However, I never felt that same connection to birds as many people do. I found my “flight” through horseback riding. I always loved the idea that “the wind of heaven is that which flows between a horse’s ears” and when I accidentally found out that I was pretty good at jumping, there was nothing keeping me tied to the ground. I flew.
“Wagner is happy reading Harry Potter and Faust wants to be Harry Potter.”
“Two souls abide, alas, within my breast,[…] The one clings with a dogged love and lust With clutching parts unto this present world, The other surges fiercely from the dust”
I felt like these two quotes went hand in hand, and I realize that one was from class discussion, but it fit so perfectly in my mind’s eye that I couldn’t resist. As odd as it may sound, I know some people who feel very strongly connected with certain animals. When faced with certain scenarios, these people react in a way not normally exhibited by humans. I would explain it as having another side of your soul that you usually don’t show to anyone; for me, it’s another way that I get my wings. I’m lucky enough that I have two very close friends that understand who I am completely. I love the freedom that I feel when I’m around these people, I don’t have to hide my wings from them and I can feel free to stretch and use them. There’s a certain beautiful quality about being completely free to be who you are and not hide from others. It’s a freedom quite unlike the freedoms that we’ve been talking about in our last few classes. And it’s a freedom that’s almost more important because it affects everyone individually.
Response 2 (1/21/14)
This week I had a hard time connecting to any of the readings, probably because personal life got in the way, but I also couldn’t find myself in the situations. I respect Jacobs and what she went through to get the freedom she deserved, and I liked her story more than Douglass’ because it had more feeling. However, I had a hard time agreeing with her justifications and the way she solved her problems. I didn’t agree with her courses of action.
The Inquisitor I just found difficult to read and I’m not a fan of the Catholic Church. The idea that humans probably can’t handle complete freedoms and need someone to tell them how to act or who to be intrigues me. Throughout my process of “growing up” and moving away from my parents’ I have come to realize that it does take a lot of willpower and brain power to make your own decisions and happily live with the consequences. I have the benefit of a psychology major as a best friend, and I love discussing the reasoning behind a lot of the actions people make or the way society views certain things. We’ve talked about a topic very similar to this before and I think it’s interesting how some people can’t really survive on their own because of this very reason, they don’t want the freedom of choice. They don’t want to make a decision and then later realize that the second option would have been a better choice in retrospection.
Whitman’s poem was much easier to relate to because of this very idea. He spoke of wanting to be free like the animals and just be governed by the laws of nature. I found this odd because animals have a very simple life. For the most part they don’t make their own decisions, if they are hungry, they hunt, if they are scared, they run. Animals are the least driven by moral or social issues. Animals have a completely different freedom than in the Inquisitor. The Inquisitor would like to create a world where humans are more like the animals and was arguing that Jesus would confuse them.
Response 1 (1/11/14)
Freedom isn't free. Everyone deserves the right to make their own decisions and to be their own person, not tied to anyone else. Despite this, there are always those that strive to rule over others or the world. Because of this, what should be a right becomes a privilege for select groups. Throughout my college experience, I have started noticing more and more how much certain groups have their freedoms restricted. Not even by law, but also by prejudice in the minds of people of the world. Because of this prejudice, there are fewer positive options for these groups as far as ways to express themselves. As a member of majority groups, I'm just now realizing this and how much it can affect those that I know that are in the prejudiced groups. It has caused a change in me that there's a lot more wrong with the world than I had originally thought.
Coming back to Frederick Douglass, I vaguely remember reading this story during high school, but the details had left me by this point, so it was interesting to re-read some of it. His story is interesting because the way he writes it is so detached and almost emotionless, as if he really is telling the story of someone else's life. I found that interesting because of how much he changed and how far he had come from his beginning. It's as if by the time he earns his freedom, he's a completely different person than the rebellious slave he had been. The section where he tells the boys that he will never be free, and where he talks about considering suicide really strike me at how much all minority groups are affected. It's really sad how many people feel like this everyday. If only the world was a bit more loving and accepting.
The video Chocolat was really interesting in a number of ways, especially as the ending note for this course. The movie was difficult to follow at times, and I had a hard time finding a singular meaning which usually films have. The storytelling was well done, and overall I didn't have much trouble following what happened, but looking back, there are a number of themes that I could pick as possible meanings from the film, and that bothers me. Compared to other readings about racial problems throughout history, it wasn't the best, however I did enjoy it more than Heart of Darkness and the early slave narratives. That being said, I did enjoy the film and the different narratives it gave on different issues. As stated earlier in class, I don’t entirely grasp the need for the frame narrative, or some of the simpler details.
The movie’s themes were all jumbled together and no one theme really had a chance to develop and shine. There were hints at the dividing line between the whites and the blacks, but there was also the infidelity issues, as well as family ties. With so much going on, I couldn’t really focus and allow myself to dissect a certain line of meaning.
I can sort of see the reason for concluding on this movie, my thought being that it brings these stories more to life. Things Fall Apart is a pretty strong story, but most people are visual learners, and the added bonus of actually seeing these themes played out on screen would be a huge benefit. Despite this, the fact that the movie was not as clear as it could have been and left us with so many questions may have dampened that effect of visual learning.
Project proposal(even though it’s really late)
I’m probably going to write a paper and focus on comparing/contrasting some of the works that focused on slavery and the tension between the Africans and the colonists. I’ll probably use Chocolat, Things Fall Apart, and Heart of Darkness as my source materials.
Response 7 (2/28/14)
I think the most important difference between Ivan and Nora is that Nora's play breaks the social norms that surrounded them. In today's society, granted, it is easier to break norms and get away with it because people are more open. However, that doesn't change the fact that people did feel oppressed back then and it's proof of how much power societal norms have over people. There's no reason now for someone to live unhappily even though it's the "social norm." Humans should have a right to live happily and be themselves. I think Ibsen was just ahead of his time/realized how wrong society was.
I hadn’t realized at first how similar A Doll’s House and The Death of Ivan Ilych are before today. The male authorities, the societal norms, all down to the characters themselves were actually quite similar. I was surprised at how the similarities also played into the differences. The façade of a happy family was the goal in both of the households, however, Ivan managed to keep his façade because he was the man, and didn’t realize until it was too late that he was unhappy. Nora managed to realize soon enough to be able to get out and try to make it on her own.
I really do disagree with the critics that Nora “flip-flopped” at the last minute and turned into a rebel. I believe that she knew that she was playing house all along, but because she loved Torvald and thought that he loved her back, she stayed in it for love. Once she realized that the love wasn’t there, she had finally had enough and she got out. Maybe Ibsen didn’t say much about the total injustice of society, but he was doing his part to start the movement and make a difference.
Response 6 (2/23/14)
Last week's reading has just been quite depressing. Ivan Ilych was just trying to find happiness in his life, albeit mostly in the wrong ways. Happiness doesn't come from a successful career, or more money, but rather from meaningful connections with people. It reminds me in particular of a quote that's been floating around recently, "People were created to be loved, things were created to be used; the reason why the world is in chaos right now is because things are being loved, and people are being used." On Friday we discussed what’s really important in life, and mostly it boiled down to experiences and happiness. I think that what Tolstoy was trying to get at was that Ivan had an unsuccessful life because he ignored all of these factors and instead furthered his career. Money was his “friend” and because of this, in the end(and from the beginning), no one really cared about his death.
So many people today are concerned with how much money they make and how great of a job they have. Yet so many people are unhappy. There are things in life much more important than money, being in a “good” job, and even education. Being happy, creating lasting bonds with people, and making a difference in the world are much more important. I am not fond of the phrase, but YOLO could be taken a bit more seriously. Teens use it to convince others to do stupid things; but if taken that there’s no extra time to spend being angry or upset, then it’s not a bad phrase. We spend so much time in school or work being unhappy and chasing after meaningless goals. Why not spend that time doing things you actually want to do and can make a difference? You only get one shot at life, live it to the fullest.
Response 5 (2/7/14)
Snow days can be nice. There’s a beauty and cleanliness that comes with the falling of snow. In my opinion, snow is like poetry in motion, like a story trying to make itself known to the world.
I guess our readings are just not catching with me as much as they are supposed to be. I did think after both my classes that “The Lake” reminded me a lot of the photography colloquium that I'm currently taking. We are constantly discussing and coming back to the idea that a photograph is a stolen moment of time that is frozen forever. The image is a way of capturing that moment in time and keeping it forever, so the memory can be relived over and over. Even after the moment is captured, the people or things(time) in it are dead. They exist no more, so therefore the photo is a depiction of something that is already dead. “The Lake” reminded me of this because he basically wants a Harry Potter version of a photo. He wants the lake, a continually moving and changing ‘being’, to be the reminder, or memory, of this woman that is gone.
Mortality is a constant among humans, we can’t escape it, and yet, most of us can’t accept it either. Instead we do everything within our power to control time and control our dying forms. Pictures are just one aspect of this effort towards self-preservation. Technological advances are headed towards allowing cryopreservation, stopping the evidence of aging, and cloning. These are just a few examples of the ways in which humans are trying to control and stop time’s power over our lives. Humans try and play God by trying to rule their own lives and not leave it up to those who know better than us.
Response 4 (1/31/14)
Looking at the romantic hero and comparing them to contemporary references added yet another whole new layer of meaning to Faust for me. I've never been a big fan of reading plays, so this particular reading has been especially uninteresting to me. I thought Faust was kind of an idiot for letting the Mephistopheles lead him down the path he took. Sadly, even after last week I lost interest again, and I couldn’t bring myself to enjoy the reading. I did however like the poems we read for today.
As interesting as it is to call Napoleon anything close to a hero, reading these poems felt like I was reading about someone whose death was an absolute tragedy. I was almost sad at the passing of a “great hero.” The emotions made me wonder that many people are painted in a one sided light and their followers often have not heard or heeded the other side’s argument. There’s probably many people who have this one sided view of someone that they believe to be a hero, yet this person is a terrible villain.
It tied interestingly to an argument I saw on Facebook. The participants were arguing over what is the difference between fact, opinion, and being “mean.” These poets would have stated what they believed to be facts about Napoleon that he was a hero, and would have taken offense to the other side of the argument, even though those may have been facts as well. I have seen many such arguments where the two sides argue their points, and don’t stop to check any real facts. There is no unbiased opinion anywhere, so what can even be called real facts? Where is the line drawn between opinion and slander? When does calling a belief narrow-minded become calling a person narrow-minded? Food for thought.
Response 3 (1/24/14)
I’ll be the first to admit that while reading this, my mind wandered and I was quite bored. The story of Faust is easy to follow, and not a difficult read. However, today when we went through and deconstructed some of the deeper meanings of his speeches, I was very drawn to some particular phrases and the meanings behind them. I guess I was so busy with other tasks and homework that I didn’t think to deconstruct the meaning behind the words I was reading, and it was a good reminder that a lot of writing has much deeper meaning that meets the eye.
I loved this idea, skipped over it in my first reading obviously, but I’ve always had the urge to fly. My mind has never reached any “boundaries” in learning or otherwise and I used to devour books and absorb knowledge for the fun of it. I loved learning new things just to prove that I could. I used to be deathly afraid of heights, but I still had that longing to fly. However, I never felt that same connection to birds as many people do. I found my “flight” through horseback riding. I always loved the idea that “the wind of heaven is that which flows between a horse’s ears” and when I accidentally found out that I was pretty good at jumping, there was nothing keeping me tied to the ground. I flew.
I felt like these two quotes went hand in hand, and I realize that one was from class discussion, but it fit so perfectly in my mind’s eye that I couldn’t resist. As odd as it may sound, I know some people who feel very strongly connected with certain animals. When faced with certain scenarios, these people react in a way not normally exhibited by humans. I would explain it as having another side of your soul that you usually don’t show to anyone; for me, it’s another way that I get my wings. I’m lucky enough that I have two very close friends that understand who I am completely. I love the freedom that I feel when I’m around these people, I don’t have to hide my wings from them and I can feel free to stretch and use them. There’s a certain beautiful quality about being completely free to be who you are and not hide from others. It’s a freedom quite unlike the freedoms that we’ve been talking about in our last few classes. And it’s a freedom that’s almost more important because it affects everyone individually.
Response 2 (1/21/14)
This week I had a hard time connecting to any of the readings, probably because personal life got in the way, but I also couldn’t find myself in the situations. I respect Jacobs and what she went through to get the freedom she deserved, and I liked her story more than Douglass’ because it had more feeling. However, I had a hard time agreeing with her justifications and the way she solved her problems. I didn’t agree with her courses of action.
The Inquisitor I just found difficult to read and I’m not a fan of the Catholic Church. The idea that humans probably can’t handle complete freedoms and need someone to tell them how to act or who to be intrigues me. Throughout my process of “growing up” and moving away from my parents’ I have come to realize that it does take a lot of willpower and brain power to make your own decisions and happily live with the consequences. I have the benefit of a psychology major as a best friend, and I love discussing the reasoning behind a lot of the actions people make or the way society views certain things. We’ve talked about a topic very similar to this before and I think it’s interesting how some people can’t really survive on their own because of this very reason, they don’t want the freedom of choice. They don’t want to make a decision and then later realize that the second option would have been a better choice in retrospection.
Whitman’s poem was much easier to relate to because of this very idea. He spoke of wanting to be free like the animals and just be governed by the laws of nature. I found this odd because animals have a very simple life. For the most part they don’t make their own decisions, if they are hungry, they hunt, if they are scared, they run. Animals are the least driven by moral or social issues. Animals have a completely different freedom than in the Inquisitor. The Inquisitor would like to create a world where humans are more like the animals and was arguing that Jesus would confuse them.
Response 1 (1/11/14)
Freedom isn't free. Everyone deserves the right to make their own decisions and to be their own person, not tied to anyone else. Despite this, there are always those that strive to rule over others or the world. Because of this, what should be a right becomes a privilege for select groups. Throughout my college experience, I have started noticing more and more how much certain groups have their freedoms restricted. Not even by law, but also by prejudice in the minds of people of the world. Because of this prejudice, there are fewer positive options for these groups as far as ways to express themselves. As a member of majority groups, I'm just now realizing this and how much it can affect those that I know that are in the prejudiced groups. It has caused a change in me that there's a lot more wrong with the world than I had originally thought.
Coming back to Frederick Douglass, I vaguely remember reading this story during high school, but the details had left me by this point, so it was interesting to re-read some of it. His story is interesting because the way he writes it is so detached and almost emotionless, as if he really is telling the story of someone else's life. I found that interesting because of how much he changed and how far he had come from his beginning. It's as if by the time he earns his freedom, he's a completely different person than the rebellious slave he had been. The section where he tells the boys that he will never be free, and where he talks about considering suicide really strike me at how much all minority groups are affected. It's really sad how many people feel like this everyday. If only the world was a bit more loving and accepting.
202 Responses (Fall 2013)