Word Choices - AP English Literature - Blog

Black Sheep?

As soon as Mr. Heidkamp announced that we had to post about our favorite romantic comedy, I thought of "Hitch" with Will Smith. I have always found this movie to be funny, but now I noticed that it is a slight variation to the genre. the hopeless character is a male and does not become an ideal (manly) man. The movie sticks to tradition with a wedding at the end. In my opinion, it has the best aspects of the genre without a few of the bigger drawbacks.

 

 

I Do Not Understand Why People Do Not Like Rom Com's...

I'm sorry, regardless of the cheesiness, no matter how awkward they can get, I love romantic comedy movies. Now don't get me wrong, I am an avid movie watcher into many genres, but I still love them. Save for a few, they must be taken with a grain of salt because, sure some of the situations may happen in people's lives, which some do take to heart, but for the most part it's best to remember that is just a movie. 

Now, personally I have watched many of these movies, and no not alone... But with friends, and, my mother... But my top three are definitely The Proposal, Love Actually, and Notting Hill, with favorite being Notting HIll.

This is a movie with Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant. It's a just a good ol' love story between the lives of a movie start (Julia Roberts) and a normal british man (Hugh Grant) who impossibly fall in love, suffer a split neither could take, and a happy sappy reuniting at the end of the movie.

I have two parts of the movie though that I would like to share with you. The first is a line and quote that I personally love and will never forget, but just makes you smile a little.

 

 

And the second, is that wonderful sappy coming together again of the characters, watch from 1:35 to 3:30

 

 

Love this movie, give it a watch, oh and this isn't the only love story that happens in this movie either ;)

 

Slavery in modern times.

Although there is much child slavery as well as sweatshops in the world today, I am going to focus on the biggest enslaver of Americans of all races, genders, and religions. Who runs the modern day plantations? As my Consumer Education class has made increasingly apparent, credit card companies intentionally loan money to people who are the most likely to pay only the minimum payment, collecting interest over the years that quickly grow more expensive than the original products and services. Americans  pay dearly to quench their thirst for acquiring material goods instantly, usually drowning in debt later in life.

The documentary my teacher has started playing for my class is called "Maxed Out" and although it is depressing to see how scheming major companies and banks actually are, I strongly recommend this rude awakening. 

Veblen provided a way to explain why people in poor conditions make these indebting purchases. He noticed that the rich perform two major tasks alien to the general population, conspicuous leisure and conspicuous consumption. After more than a century of repeated messages and the mutation of the American Dream, the lower and middle classes take on goliath debts in order to experience the same sensation the rich used to have to themselves; in most cases, conspicuous consumption. 

People have to realize that only people who can afford to waste money and time should have that feeling. I say this especially because nearly every time, the consequences outweigh the benefits.

Feel free to make conclusions and draw connections as you wish. Anything you guys write is better than silence. 

Selling Death - Cheaply!

Today's episode of Mad Men was not new to me, as I'd seen it the preceding year in AP Language with Ms. Holtschlag. However, I viewed it today with new eyes, ones now accustomed to the dramatic over-turnings of seemingly established and objective truths that I fear (and hope) will be increasingly common to this class as the year dwindles. Life has no meaning - this we know and have all but closed off.

Life is not the issue on the table with this episode, though; death is. Well, when I artfully contrast life with death, I am referring to the timeframe of life, not to the state of being alive, and I refer to death as its cessation.

Society has a death wish. At first this idea seemed hackneyed, forged glancingly, hastily, and unreliably among true truths like a spiderweb between two moving cars on the highway. Once I tried to provide myself with as many counterexamples to the my prejudice against the idea as I could, though, I quickly realized not only that society does, but that the wish is pervasive and can be blamed for much of what we consider ideal. Sure, cigarettes kill you, but isn't that kinda cool? Every time you light up a Lucky Strike without ending your drag with a flurry of bloody gasps, you're cheating death. What a guy, huh? The ladies must be all over you. Of course, another of my such counterexamples was that we love roller-coasters. I think their appeal goes beyond adrenaline highs and extends into our excitement that something might go wrong. The cars might stop. Our heads might get so filled with congealed blood after the cars stop upside-down (Taken 2-style) that we'd keel over in place with no regrets to spare. Our death wish even translates to vicarious bloodlust - see Tool's song "Vicarious" for a more streamlined rant on the subject.

I propose a slogan for this death wish that society so rarely acknowledges: "YOLO" (Ye Olde Loss of Obedibility).

Camus' Characters in a Matrix

So in class a couple days ago, we watched clips of the Matrix and a character (I don't remember his name) made the point that people weren't ready to face the fact that they were living in a computer program. We then talked about how this denial is similar to people's denial of extistantialism and that the systems, such as love and family, do not exist

While reading Part II in the Stranger, I noticed that the some scenes illustrated this point perfectly. For example, the young clerk had a negative response to Meursault's denial of faith because the young clerk believed that "all men believed in God, even those who turn their backs on him. That was his belief, and if he were ever to doubt it, his life would be meaningless (pg 69)." Just like the people in the Matrix, the young clerk refused to deny the system of faith. 

Meursault's trial itself also illustrates this point. Meursault is being condemned not because of killing a man, but because he does not act the way society wants him to. All of the testimonies given against Meursault focues on his seemingly detached emotional state, how Meursault did not cry during Maman's funeral, how he spent the day with Marie the day after his mother's funeral, and how he accepted a cigarrette over his mother's casket. People turned away from Meursault's explanation that he and his mother did not expect anything from each other (pg. 88). This fact demonstrates how the system of family holds no meaning for Meursault, and also how quickly others are condemning him for that. 

I know this is kind of irrelevant, but I had a couple of questions: Why does Marie keep on smiling during her visit with Meursault (pg 4)? And why does Meursault pay so much attention to the robot woman and the reporter during the trial? 

 

Life

I was trying and trying to find something to blog about but I couldn't really find anything because I don't have anything new or interesting to add to the discussion on either dead man or KONY 2012. I'm not a strong believer in commenting on things or saying things for the sake of saying them so I didn't really want to blog. So instead I decided to blog about something that has been bugging me and something I actually have something to say about: Toddlers in Tiaras. 

This is a, thankfully, obscure show that I didn't know a lot about. However, while I was babysitting a week ago the young girl I was babysitting watches the show religiously. This is a show about young children, usually from ages 2-9 that compete in beauty pagents. I think this is wrong on so many levels I barely know where to begin. 

I will admit that I understand that this is maybe a different culture than I am used to and a different way of life, however I don' t think that it excuses this behavior, especially of the adults. Just to start, in the episode I watched with her on of the mothers had pagents sons, two little boys that competed in pagents, and this mother said that she would love to turn her little boys into girls. In many other instances mothers have said that their daughters must win or there will be consequences. The parents are involved to the extent that their child's win is more of a personal victory for them. One mother even said her daughter must win the prize money so that the mother could use the money to splurge on herself. I was dumbfounded that these people even exist in the world. Parents that use their children for their own ego and their own wallet? Really?

The interesting part is that every single one of these mothers say three things:

1. I won't ever allow my daughter to spray tan or wear falsh eyelashes. (But they all do)

2. I am not a stage mom.(They all are)

3. I will allow my child to stop as soon as they want to (Some of the kids can't talk yet...)

This is disgusting. There are people in this country that allow their toddlers to get a spray tan, wear hair pieces, put on tons of make up, wear false eyelashes, and sometimes fake teeth. Even worse though is that there are people that watch it.

The Endless Circle

After reading the "White Savior Industrial Complex", I deeply reconsidered what it means to be supporting a cause. In this day and age, I am constantly reminded that the media never tells you the full truth and that you can never have enough information about things going on outside our homes. No widely known about organization or company can do anything major without getting criticism. Although, Teju Cole's criticism is very accurate and does bring up good points, it's makes you think if anything will every be good enough for the world. Cole's argument that white people like to pretend that they are heroes helping desperate victims from evil criminals does hold a lot of validity and closely mirrors the arguments of Achebe. Sure, privileged United States citizens do forget what countries and situations help create their material lifestyles. We also are not fully aware of what our government is doing or how are government policies affect other countries. But again I am brought back to a feeling of in accessibility and futility. It seems that the best way to help any foreign country is to be fully informed about their situation, which seems impossible with our media today. It's and endless circle of misinformation and criticism.

Dan Brown, Not the Author

If you have about seven minutes, watch these videos please.

 

 

 

So maybe you know Dan Brown, maybe you don't.  Basically, he just likes to make thought-provoking videos about interesting topics, often ones involving social media.

Dan spends these two videos talking about the KONY 2012 situation, and I have to say, I agree with much of what he is saying.  His mentions of ethos, pathos, and logos definitely reiterate the important aspects of a good argument, and I agree that much of the KONY 2012 video was based on manipulating emotion.  The one part of Dan's first video that I especially like is how he believes that the change must come from within the oppressed nation.  It is not the United State's or anyone else's responsibility to take command in this situation.  The US is not involved in anything in Uganda (that I am aware of) and there are more pressing matters closer to home.  Dan's second video shows a clip where the people of Uganda react to the KONY 2012 video with outrage.  The US cannot do anything for Uganda if they are not willing to be united themselves.  And as well, it is likely that the US is ignorant to the real situation and the Ugandan's outrage could be coming from a misrepresentation of their position.  In fact, I'm sure that the majority of the US is ignorant to the reality of the situation in Uganda... seems like Heart of Darkness all over again, doesn't it?

Traces of Morrison in "Desperate Housewives"

The back cover of Song of Solomon reads, “Morrison introduces an entire cast of strivers and seeresses, liars and assassins, the inhabitants of a fully realized black world.” ... Or maybe just the inhabitants of Wisteria* Lane? It’s actually not so far-fetched that Morrison’s characters, her story’s “inhabitants”, are not a far cry from those of the juicy ABC hit series Desperate Housewives.

I know, I know. Song of Solomon deals with the literary and cultural heritage of black Americans, their identities and roles in society; Morrison chronicles a young black man’s transformation as he learns important life lessons and discovers himself through discovering his cultural/ familial heritage. Desperate Housewives chronicles the [scandalous] lives of a bunch of middle-aged white ladies who are, at best, conniving gossips.

But when you look deeper, you discover that Mark Cherry is (almost) the Tony Morrison of television. Because these women have learned throughout their eight tumultuous seasons on the mysterious Wisteria Lane the same lessons Milkman has through his journey in Song of Solomon (though their experiences may be a little different). The nature of their relationships allows these women to experience betrayal. Murder is commonplace on the Lane, and it usually involves a twisted plot of deceit and secrecy. Milkman deals with the same elements in his own journey toward self-realization.

I think that common plot elements are not only indicators that Mark Cherry (like Morrison) deserves a Noble Prize, but also that these issues, no matter how extreme, are all at play when it comes to making discoveries about human nature. Milkman can “fly” in the end of Song of Solomon because he releases his concerns for materialism, he acknowledges his stupidity (achieving self-awareness), and he transcends societal boundaries that hold him down. In Desperate Housewives, the resolution is most satisfying when the women reach out and connect with each other, rather than pursuing their own personal goals.

By including the motifs of betrayal, deceit, friendship, love, and identity in his own show, Mark Cherry subtly hints at the universality of Morrison’s microcosmic bildungsroman, Song of Somon. While Morrison achieves this on a more intellectual level, both Mark Cherry and Morrison tell us about human nature and, sometimes, how to transcend our individual boundaries, because, as Milkman learns, self awareness arises out of compassion for others.

*I would like to add (as another point of comparison) that Wisteria Lane is named after a flower...an important motif in Song of Solomon. If this doesn’t say something about the universality of Morrison’s subject matter, it could indicate that Mark Cherry is pretty well-read.

Afternoon Delight/ Endless Night

I really like the movie “Dead Man.” Except for the gross parts. But the movie is pretty compelling-- especially when it deals with the motif of expression/communication.

The motif first appears when William Blake has a miscommunication with Mr. Dickinson about his job. For the rest of the movie, it seems that Billy Blake is does not have very much luck with linguistic expression and communication. For example, there is a cultural and lifestyle barrier between Nobody and Billy, which causes Billy to shout, “All your Indian talk...I haven’t understood anything you’ve said!” (or something along those lines...)

It is ironic that William seems to struggle with self-expression, understanding, and communicating with others, because when William meets Nobody, Nobody draws the connection between Billy and the English poet, William Blake. Billy doesn’t talk much, but the clear difference between Billy and William Blake lies in the former’s incapacity for eloquence, and the latter’s talent for it.

The most compelling part for me, if you follow my train of thought, is when Nobody tells Billy that soon, his gun will speak for him. Sure enough, Billy Blake realizes his own form of self-expression, when he kills the two law-enforcement officers looking for him. Before he shoots the men, Billy says, “I am [William Blake]. Do you know my poetry?” When Billy shoots the two men, and recites the lines from Blake’s poem (“some are born to endless night”), it is as if Billy Blake were articulating death itself.

So, my question is: who is the Dead Man? It seems that it is William Blake (the poet and Johnny Depp...), but it is also paradoxical that Billy, a dying man, has also the ability to pronounce death as a form of expression.

Language Itself is Power

There is a scene in the T.V. show "Freaks and Geeks" (I couldn't find the clip...) in which an  English teacher asks a student about the book they're reading in class. Kim, the student, responds, "On the Road is about...America... and being...on the road." Well, now that we've started Conrad, I sort of feel the same way. Kim Kelly's Jack Kerouac is my Joseph Conrad.

Admittedly, Heart of Darkness is one of the hardest books we've read this year- for me at least. But even though I find Conrad at times almost incomprehensibly dense, I still marvel at the complexity and elegance of his language. Furthermore, the fact that English was not Conrad's first language amazes me, because he has a unique talent for writing coloquially and also capturing the comlexities of subconscious thoughts on human nature. He reminded me of what James Joyce taught me in A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man: that language is a powerful art. I may not fully grasp Heart of Darkness yet, but I do think that Conrad has some pretty insightful, revealing observations about people that he communicates, intelligently, elegantly, and nobly, in his writing.

So, all I can really say about Heart of Darkness right now is that it's about...imperialism and...greedy Europeans and... did I mention imperialism? Okay, I understand it on a slightly deeper level than that. But despite Conrad's depth and complexity, I still appreciate the artfulness of his writing, and that counts for something in English class, right?

Game of Thrones Tragedy

     Game of Thrones, the new HBO serires based off of the book sereis A Song of Ice and Fire, captures an example of a true tradegy within the story. The show takes place in the fictional nation called the Seven Kingdoms, a country where greed, coruption, and self interests rule supreme over all else.The show primarly follows the story of Ned Stark, a lord of the northern part of the kingdom who is known amongst the nation as a noble and honorable man. At the begining of the show, the top advisor of the king of the Seven Kingdoms dies under mystserious circumstances. This event causes the king of the Seven Kingdoms, Robert Baratheon to choose Ned as his new top adisor due to his reputation and their close freindship. Shortly after arriving in the capital of the kingdom to assume his new postion of power, Ned begins to investigatge the death of the former chief advisor. Twords the middle of the season, Ned discovers that the Kings three children are actually incestious bastards that were birthed as a result of an affair that the queen and her brother sharded. Although he intially intended to tell the king about his discovery, he immediately warned the queen that he new her secret and advised her to flee the kingdom with her children before he told Robert. However the king dies in a hunting accident before Ned gets the chance to warn him about the queen. As a result, the queen arrests Ned as an enemy of the state and her son whom has assumed the title as the new king eventually executes him.

    Although most people judge Ned Starks actions as extremely stupid, his reason was justifiable. Ned did not want to be responsible for death of the queen and her children. Even though he could have easily kept this information a secret, he decided to do the right thing and warn the queen. He tried to do the thing that is morally right in an immoral world. As a result, his actions lead to his death much like the classic tragedies of ancient Greece and Elizabethan England.

Wolf Gang Kill them All: Semi Parallel part 2

apocalypse now heart of darkness and dead man all have evidence of representing a personal journey in a persons life everyone experiences a journey but this is more of an enlightnenment like thing its like people go through a river of learning or a train of success or they just live in cleveland in there mind but then by a simple twist of fate there life changes and they get off that train and start really seeing things or go into the jungle and find that the things they once found to be savages have some secrets about them that maybe there views on life were a little boxed up a little narrow minded but all the time while this is hapenning they are slowly dying growing and dying growing but dying and now the people and things that were keeping them alive the cowboys mom and dads friends and bankers they are now the ones trying to kill them trying to keep em down so you take to the side of the unknown the indians or the savages you live there way and you find that its very dark but your not going to go back to the people who are going to kill you yyou are not safe anywhere and it starts affecting you and you become a killer a knowlegeable killer with a dead shot but you still do not care about tobacco or the greed or any petty serenity and all the time people think your a poet but your not your just named one and really your just lost stuck between rock and roll and a hard place just looking for the sea.

semi parallel: like the euphrates and tigris or a river runs through it or some fruity comparison

On the surface Dead Man may seem like pointless weirdness, or in high school terms "super random." And although I find the symbolism loose and confusing, I do think that there is still a very clear message to the work. This is one of many times I have seen the film but i think it made more sense this time because of the work we had done with, Heart of Darkness and Apocalypse now. 

Besides all of them having a symbolic river in it (as I cleverly alluded to in the title), these three works have many parallel motifs and they all serve similar purposes as works of art in their respective culture. It was because of the close relationship Dead Man had to more explicit work like Heart of Darkness that I could figure out these Purposes. 

All three of these movies form a powerful message on a couple or more different levels. At least two or more levels. One level being sociological or a criticism of actual tangible events in a culture (imperialism, savage wars, western bruteness) and the next a more ontological or 'deep' meaning. It happens that we may be blessed with several 'deep' meanings in each work.

I personally I have noticed allusions to intellectual discovery and universal development as an allegorical theme in each.  to be continued for the extra points...