Essential Questions for the Romanticism Unit
The romantics' beliefs are reflected on their writing because they talk about how the main character makes their own choices and does what they think is best, no one in their story is making them do anything they don't want to do. Now, the others characters might try to influence the main character, but that main character will still make their own choice. This is a big aspect of individualism in the romantic writings. Making choices shows that the character, as an individual, can think for themselves and not for anyone else. For example, in "The Scarlet Letter", Hester Prynne makes the choice of not sharing her and Dimmsdale's secret because she wants to protect Dimmesdale and make sure that he keeps his high place in the town. In the short story, "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow", Ichabod Crane decides to not stay with Katrina Van Tassel after the party, even though he thought she was the love of his life. In both of these examples, these characters made huge choices that greatly affected both of them, but this shows that these characters can think for themselves. Optimism is also reflected in the romantic writings. In the romantic writings, they show that characters hope for better outcomes in the future. For example, in the song, "Swing Low Sweet Chariot", the enslaved people are the one who sing this song, and they hope for freedom in the future. They sing this song to keep their hopes up, and they know that eventually they will become free, no matter if it's from escape or if it's from death. In the story, "The Scarlet Letter", Hester and Dimmsdale both agree to running away with Pearl so they can live to be a happy family. They are hoping that this will happen in the future, and they start preparing for this. Optimism and individualism are both reflected in romantic writings.
Romanticism is a movement in the arts and literature that originated in the late 18th century, emphasizing inspiration, subjectivity, and the primacy of an individual. Gothic romanticism, or dark romanticism is a literary sub genre centered on the writers Edgar Allen Poe, Nathanial Hawthorne, and Herman Melville. Southern Gothic romanticism is a sub genre of Gothic fiction unique to American literature that takes place in the American South. These three different types of romanticism are similar because they all take place in the romanticism movement in the 1800's. They all also celebrate individualism. The Gothic and southern Gothic romantics are similar in many ways. They are both based on dark, creepy stories, and they are both sub genres of romanticism. These romanticism's are different because they both have different genres of writings. The Gothic romanticism and the southern Gothic romanticism are both different from the regular romanticism because both of those romanticism's are based on dark stories while romanticism isn't, romanticism talks about happier feelings than Gothic romanticism does. Southern Gothic romanticism also emphasizes grotesque characters that make the story unusual.
The southern gothic movement is a response to literary movements because it has the traits of other literary movements in it. Southern gothic romanticism has gothic romantic traits in it as well as romanticism traits. The gothic romanticism is shown in the southern gothic usually by the darkness in the character and not as much darkness in the setting. For example, in the story, "The Life You Save May Be Your Own", the man, Mr. Shiftlet, has a dark, selfish character, and he shows it when he leaves his wife at a diner and takes off with the car that he has been wanting ever since he laid his eyes on it. Southern gothic romanticism also has romanticism traits in it too. In the stories, "A Rose For Emily" and "The Life You Save May Be Your Own" both have the romanticism trait of love. They also value individualism. These two stories share the trait of love, in "A Rose for Emily", Emily falls in love with a man and they live together until they die. In, "The Life You Save May Be Your Own", Mr. Shiftlet in a way fell in love with the car that he saw in the garage at Lucynell Crater's residence. These stories also share a value of individualism. In, "A Rose for Emily", Emily expresses her individualism by isolating herself. In, "The Life You Save May Be Your Own", Mr. Shiftlet expresses his individualism by riding by himself to Mobile. Southern gothic romanticism manipulates romantic literary conventions because it uses different traits from different types of romanticisms to make its own type of romanticism.
The American culture prompted the dark sides of romanticism by changing the style of writing. At the time, Americans were changing from the romantics to another style of writing. Writers were changing the romantics by adding dark setting and traits to their stories. It made the stories more entertaining and it changed up the romanticism. The American culture was changing as well, and the writers were writing about how it was changing. They wrote what the people wanted to read and be entertained by, so as the culture changed, their writing styles changed.
The writings of these time periods greatly influence the writing of today. This is because the great writers of today get their ideas from writers in the past. They also connect to other writings that they like or have read. They also connect to the events or a time period in the past. These romanticism writings have influenced the way our authors write, by giving them ideas and inspiration on what to write. Our amazing stories travel back to the influence of the author, and what influenced them.
Saturday, November 29, 2014
Gothic Romanticism
Gothic Romanticism with Poe, Hawthorne, and Baudelaire
An interpretation of "The Fall of the House of Usher" is the Usher's weakness and nervousness are the results of Madeline Usher's being a vampire. Madeline eventually in the end kills Usher, but the way Usher acts after her death is extremely odd, because he knows that they buried her in her tomb while she was still alive. He was worrying about what would happen to him if she broke out, that was the reason why Usher was acting to strange. The interpretation of Madeline being a vampire is understandable, because reading the story, the reader is under the impression that Madeline actually dies and gets buried by the narrator and Usher. In the end of the story, Madeline breaks out of her tomb and she finds Usher and kills him. Before she kills him, the narrator described her as pale, wearing white, and covered in blood. Also, she makes the same noises that the narrator reads out of the book, "Mad Trist", and it makes it sound to the reader that she is stalking them and trying to scare them. Vampires are supposedly well preserved as well, and when they buried Madeline in her tomb, Usher noticed that her cheeks were still rosy red. This gives the reader suspicions that Madeline might not be dead, or that she is a vampire. In the story, it says, "but then without those doors there did stand the lofty and enshrouded figure of the lady Madeline of Usher. There was blood upon her white robes, and the evidence of some bitter struggle upon every portion of her emaciated frame." This quote describes to the reader how Madeline looks after she broke out of her tomb. The reader can infer that Madeline has killed anyone who has gotten in her way or tried to stop her, because the narrator describes to us that there is blood on her white robes. This quote best supports the interpretation of Madeline being a vampire. Also, another good quote that supports the this interpretation is, "the mockery of a faint blush upon the bosom and the face, and that suspiciously lingering smile upon the lip which is so terrible in death." This quote supports the interpretation because it is telling the reader that there is still blood in her body that is running, and the muscles in her face haven't fully relaxed because she is still smiling, even though she is already dead. This goes back to the thought that vampires extremely well preserved and they don't change looks over time. These quotes are what support the interpretation that Madeline Usher is a vampire. Usher's weakness and nervousness are a part in this because he knew that when he buried her that she wasn't actually dead, but he wanted to get rid of her, and he was scared because he knew that she was going to come back and get revenge on him. She did get her revenge by killing him, but she also kept making sounds in the house and giving him clues that she was going to come get him. These sounds get extremely clearer while the narrator is reading "Mad Trist", because she imitates the sounds from the book at the same moment they are read aloud. This scares both Usher and the narrator. Usher gets so scared over time since they buried Madeline, that he becomes weak and feeble and he can hardly move or do anything because he is nervous about what Madeline will do to him. He is trying to protect himself from her evil.
In the story, "The Masque of the Red Death", the author, Poe, is criticizing human nature directly. He is doing this by saying that Prince Prospero is separating the people in his society. He separated the people who were sick with the red death and the poor people from the rest of the society. He walled the society to keep the healthy and wealthy people from the poor and sick people. Poe criticizes in his story that people run from their problems instead of facing their problems themselves. He does this again by separating the people in their society. He separates them instead of trying to solve the problem, which won't help any because the problem (the red death) will start to spread more and spread faster. Poe communicates this criticism to the reader by again, stating that Prince Prospero walled his society to keep the red death out, or anyone who was associated with the red death. In the story, it says, "A strong and lofty wall girdled it in. This wall had gates of iron. The courtiers, having entered, brought furnaces and massy hammers and welded the bolts." This quote is describing the wall that the Prince put up, he intends to make sure nobody gets in or out of the wall. In this quote, it says, "he summoned to his presence a thousand hale and light-hearted friends from among the knights and dames of his court, and with these retired to the deep seclusions of one of his castellated abbeys." This quote is saying that the Prince wants to get and protect all of his friends from the red death. He wants to protect his friends and help them instead of helping everyone else, so he puts his friends behind the wall with him so they are all safe. He keeps everyone else out. This quote sums up all of this criticism about running away from one's problems, "The external world could take care of itself." This quote sums up the fact that the Prince doesn't care about anyone else, only himself. He wants to protect only himself and make sure that the red death doesn't come near him. Poe agrees with this human nature, and he shows it by saying, "And was now acknowledged by the presence of the Red Death. He had come like a thief in the night." This is saying that the Red Death eventually came, even though the Prince went to extreme measures to keep it away. This is a good example of when someone tries to run away from their problems, their problems always find a way to come back.
In the story, "Dr. Heidegger's Experiment", the author, Hawthorne, criticizes the human nature of selfishness. He does this by telling us about the experiment, which is based on if water from the Fountain of Youth will really make people younger. It proves to be true, and the people that Heidegger tested the water on become younger from every glass of water they drink. The act of criticizing selfishness comes in when the four people who are becoming younger, want to drink more of the water. They want it for themselves because they only care about how they look, especially the old woman, Widow Wycherly, and she proves this by saying in the end, "the widow clasped her skinny hands before her face and wished that the coffin lid were over it, since it could be no longer beautiful." This quote proves that the widow is selfish and she only cares about how she looks. It is also the same for the other three gentleman. This is expressed directly because it is an experiment that Heidegger makes, and it proves that all those four people care about is looking good and being young. Hawthorne expresses this criticism by telling the reader what these four people think in their minds about the Fountain of Youth and its water. What these four characters think about the water goes back to them being selfish and wanting to be young. Hawthorne does have a similar attitude towards this human nature, and he proves it through Dr. Heidegger. He does this by making the doctor a character who isn't selfish and who won't drink the water, because he doesn't care whether he is young or not. He cares about how he lives his life and if he is happy or not, he doesn't care about how he looks. This quote says, "if the fountain gushed at my very doorstep, I would not stoop to bathe my lips in it--no, though its delirium were for years instead of moments." This quote says that the doctor doesn't care about youth, he cares about being happy and enjoying the moments he has, and letting them go as the years go by. This is how Hawthorne expresses his similar attitude through Dr. Heidegger. A person should care about their happiness, not their looks.
An interpretation of "The Fall of the House of Usher" is the Usher's weakness and nervousness are the results of Madeline Usher's being a vampire. Madeline eventually in the end kills Usher, but the way Usher acts after her death is extremely odd, because he knows that they buried her in her tomb while she was still alive. He was worrying about what would happen to him if she broke out, that was the reason why Usher was acting to strange. The interpretation of Madeline being a vampire is understandable, because reading the story, the reader is under the impression that Madeline actually dies and gets buried by the narrator and Usher. In the end of the story, Madeline breaks out of her tomb and she finds Usher and kills him. Before she kills him, the narrator described her as pale, wearing white, and covered in blood. Also, she makes the same noises that the narrator reads out of the book, "Mad Trist", and it makes it sound to the reader that she is stalking them and trying to scare them. Vampires are supposedly well preserved as well, and when they buried Madeline in her tomb, Usher noticed that her cheeks were still rosy red. This gives the reader suspicions that Madeline might not be dead, or that she is a vampire. In the story, it says, "but then without those doors there did stand the lofty and enshrouded figure of the lady Madeline of Usher. There was blood upon her white robes, and the evidence of some bitter struggle upon every portion of her emaciated frame." This quote describes to the reader how Madeline looks after she broke out of her tomb. The reader can infer that Madeline has killed anyone who has gotten in her way or tried to stop her, because the narrator describes to us that there is blood on her white robes. This quote best supports the interpretation of Madeline being a vampire. Also, another good quote that supports the this interpretation is, "the mockery of a faint blush upon the bosom and the face, and that suspiciously lingering smile upon the lip which is so terrible in death." This quote supports the interpretation because it is telling the reader that there is still blood in her body that is running, and the muscles in her face haven't fully relaxed because she is still smiling, even though she is already dead. This goes back to the thought that vampires extremely well preserved and they don't change looks over time. These quotes are what support the interpretation that Madeline Usher is a vampire. Usher's weakness and nervousness are a part in this because he knew that when he buried her that she wasn't actually dead, but he wanted to get rid of her, and he was scared because he knew that she was going to come back and get revenge on him. She did get her revenge by killing him, but she also kept making sounds in the house and giving him clues that she was going to come get him. These sounds get extremely clearer while the narrator is reading "Mad Trist", because she imitates the sounds from the book at the same moment they are read aloud. This scares both Usher and the narrator. Usher gets so scared over time since they buried Madeline, that he becomes weak and feeble and he can hardly move or do anything because he is nervous about what Madeline will do to him. He is trying to protect himself from her evil.
In the story, "The Masque of the Red Death", the author, Poe, is criticizing human nature directly. He is doing this by saying that Prince Prospero is separating the people in his society. He separated the people who were sick with the red death and the poor people from the rest of the society. He walled the society to keep the healthy and wealthy people from the poor and sick people. Poe criticizes in his story that people run from their problems instead of facing their problems themselves. He does this again by separating the people in their society. He separates them instead of trying to solve the problem, which won't help any because the problem (the red death) will start to spread more and spread faster. Poe communicates this criticism to the reader by again, stating that Prince Prospero walled his society to keep the red death out, or anyone who was associated with the red death. In the story, it says, "A strong and lofty wall girdled it in. This wall had gates of iron. The courtiers, having entered, brought furnaces and massy hammers and welded the bolts." This quote is describing the wall that the Prince put up, he intends to make sure nobody gets in or out of the wall. In this quote, it says, "he summoned to his presence a thousand hale and light-hearted friends from among the knights and dames of his court, and with these retired to the deep seclusions of one of his castellated abbeys." This quote is saying that the Prince wants to get and protect all of his friends from the red death. He wants to protect his friends and help them instead of helping everyone else, so he puts his friends behind the wall with him so they are all safe. He keeps everyone else out. This quote sums up all of this criticism about running away from one's problems, "The external world could take care of itself." This quote sums up the fact that the Prince doesn't care about anyone else, only himself. He wants to protect only himself and make sure that the red death doesn't come near him. Poe agrees with this human nature, and he shows it by saying, "And was now acknowledged by the presence of the Red Death. He had come like a thief in the night." This is saying that the Red Death eventually came, even though the Prince went to extreme measures to keep it away. This is a good example of when someone tries to run away from their problems, their problems always find a way to come back.
In the story, "Dr. Heidegger's Experiment", the author, Hawthorne, criticizes the human nature of selfishness. He does this by telling us about the experiment, which is based on if water from the Fountain of Youth will really make people younger. It proves to be true, and the people that Heidegger tested the water on become younger from every glass of water they drink. The act of criticizing selfishness comes in when the four people who are becoming younger, want to drink more of the water. They want it for themselves because they only care about how they look, especially the old woman, Widow Wycherly, and she proves this by saying in the end, "the widow clasped her skinny hands before her face and wished that the coffin lid were over it, since it could be no longer beautiful." This quote proves that the widow is selfish and she only cares about how she looks. It is also the same for the other three gentleman. This is expressed directly because it is an experiment that Heidegger makes, and it proves that all those four people care about is looking good and being young. Hawthorne expresses this criticism by telling the reader what these four people think in their minds about the Fountain of Youth and its water. What these four characters think about the water goes back to them being selfish and wanting to be young. Hawthorne does have a similar attitude towards this human nature, and he proves it through Dr. Heidegger. He does this by making the doctor a character who isn't selfish and who won't drink the water, because he doesn't care whether he is young or not. He cares about how he lives his life and if he is happy or not, he doesn't care about how he looks. This quote says, "if the fountain gushed at my very doorstep, I would not stoop to bathe my lips in it--no, though its delirium were for years instead of moments." This quote says that the doctor doesn't care about youth, he cares about being happy and enjoying the moments he has, and letting them go as the years go by. This is how Hawthorne expresses his similar attitude through Dr. Heidegger. A person should care about their happiness, not their looks.
Friday, November 28, 2014
Socratic questions- "The Black Cat"- Edgar Allen Poe
"The Black Cat" by Edgar Allen Poe - Socratic Questions
1. Who does the Man kill with the ax in the basement?
* The Man kills his wife in the basement by intentionally putting the ax in her head. The story describes this by saying, "this blow was arrested by the hand of my wife. Goaded by the interference into a rage more than demonical, I withdrew my arm from her grasp and buried the ax in her brain. She fell dead upon the spot without a groan." This quote is saying that the Man killed his wife with the ax intentionally because he tried to kill the cat with the ax, but she stopped him and he got angry and killed her.
2. Why does the Man start abusing his animals and wife and treating them badly?
* The Man starts to abuse and hurt his animals because he starts to have a growing dislike inside of him that was making him moody, and irritable. He began to lose feelings for others, including his wife and animals. This is when he starts to neglect his animals. He also starts to ignore his wife. He not only ignored his wife, but he also starts to abuse her with foul language and with personal violence. He does all of this because of a horrible, feeling and dislike growing inside of him. He doesn't abuse Pluto at first, but eventually when he comes home one night drunk, he takes out one of Pluto's eyes with a knife. The Man is going crazy and he doesn't mind it at all, but reading it makes it sound to the reader like the Man is enjoying this. In the story, it says, "I grew day by day, more moody, more irritable, more regardless of the feelings of others. I suffered myself to use intemperate language to my wife. At length, I even offered her personal violence. My pets, of course, were made to feel the change in my disposition. I not only neglected them, but ill used them." This quote describes to the reader that this man is changing and he is turning into a fiend or a monster who takes his anger out on everyone and everything around him. This is again, because of the growing hatred inside of him.
3. Today in the world, why would someone commit a crime like the Man in this story did?
* In today's world, people have a couple of reasons of committing the same crime that this man did in Poe's story. A man could kill his wife for her money, he could kill her out of greed. This is a common crime that happens often today. Another reason why a man would commit this crime is because he might be drunk and not know what he is doing. He might do it on accident, but it is still a crime if he did it intentionally or accidently. A man might also commit this crime because he abuses the woman, and the woman tries to resist him and he doesn't want her to do that, so to fix it, he might think the only solution is to kill her and hide her so he won't have to deal with her anymore. These are common reasons why a man would commit the same crime that the Man committed in Poe's story. The only exception would be that these men wouldn't accidently hide a living cat with the corpse, and the men wouldn't risk their chances of getting caught by showing them the spot of where they hid the corpse.
4. How do internal conflicts affect the character?
* Internal conflicts are what cause the character in this story to go insane. The growing hatred inside of the Man is his internal conflict. The way that this is shown in the story is when he takes out his anger on the animals and his wife. he couldn't keep the feelings inside of him, he had to find out a way to vent and to let them out and the only way he could think of is abusing his wife and animals. This internal conflict is a theme in the story because it is what makes the story. He also gets a feeling of guilt that haunts him from killing his first cat, Pluto. He tries to forget about Pluto, because he really loved him and he hung him, but he can't forget because the guilt adds onto the internal conflict that he has within himself. The internal conflict leads him to extreme insanity and he ends up killing his wife.
5. How does the diction affect the feeling or the mood the reader gets from reading the story?
* The story, "The Black Cat" has a painful, nightmarish, haunting mood. It is also an excellent example of Gothic romanticism. The diction has a great affect on setting the mood to the reader. The diction brings extremely good detail, that in some parts is a little gruesome. But it still has an excellent choice of words that bring life to the story and makes it seem real. An example of the diction that Poe uses for detail is, "I withdrew my arm from her grasp and buried the ax in her brain. She fell dead upon the spot without a groan." This is an excellent example of the diction that Poe uses. Poe uses the detail "buried the ax in her brain" instead of using something else that doesn't sound so gruesome like, "cutting her head open with the ax." Also, he says, "She fell dead upon the spot without a groan", he uses this sentence describing what his wife's corpse did instead of saying something like, "she fell to the ground." Poe uses the diction in his story to make it interesting and entertaining.
Thursday, November 27, 2014
Southern Gothic Romanticism
Southern Gothic Romanticism
Southern Gothic romanticism is a sub genre of Gothic romanticism that focuses on the South and has supernatural, unusual ironic events that happen in the story. Southern Gothic romanticism also features grotesque in their stories. A character in a southern Gothic romanticism is usually considered grotesque if they induce empathy and disgust. Different features of Gothic romanticism are freakishness, imprisonment, violence, and sense of place. The stories, "A Rose for Emily" and "The Life You Save May Be Your Own" are both examples of Southern Gothic Romanticism. Both of these stories take place in the South, and they both have odd scenes that happen in the story. For example, we know that in the story, "A Rose for Emily" it takes place in the South because at Emily's funeral, it says that there were old men dressed in their old confederate uniforms. A scene that the reader would find odd is found in the end of the story. This is the scene or part where they find Emily's husband laying in the bed, dead, and starting to decay. This was frightening to the reader, because it was something that wasn't expected at all. The story says, "The man himself lay in bed", and "The long sleep that outlasts love, that conquers even the grimace of love, had cuckolded him. What was left of him, rotted beneath what was left of his nightshirt." The first quote explains that when the people from the funeral open one of the rooms in Emily's house, they found her husband, known as "the man" laying in one of the beds. The detail about the man comes in the next quote, which tells us that the man was in love with Emily, and that he was in bed with her when he died. This quote also tells us what is happening to his body, and we can infer that he had been left there for a long time. In the story, "The Life You Save May Be Your Own", we know that it takes place in the South because at the beginning of the story, Mr. Shiftlet tells the old woman that he is from Tarwater, Tennessee, but then he says that he is from different places and he tells the old woman different names that he could be because he is establishing the point that they have never met and how could she tell if he was lying. But all of the places he tells her are in the South, so the reader can infer that this story takes place in the South. The reader can also tell this from the way the old woman and Mr. Shiftlet talk, with the words they speak. An odd scene that happens in this story is also towards the end, when Mr. Shiftlet and the old woman's daughter, Lucynell Crater just get married and they are driving in the car that Mr. Shiftlet fixed. In this part of the story, they stop at a diner to get Lucynell something to eat, and when they walk in their, she falls asleep with her head leaning on the table. Mr. Shiftlet orders and pays for her food, and he tells a boy to watch over her, and he leaves the diner alone, leaving Lucynell, his new wife, sleeping in the diner with a server boy. He takes off driving and he finds a boy on the road, figuring he ran away from home, and he picks him up in the car and continues on driving. He starts talking to the boy about mothers, and he gets extremely angry and jumps out of the car. But Mr. Shiftlet doesn't mind, and he keeps driving and he drives toward Mobile, Alabama, and the story ends. This scene confused the reader a lot, it started to get extremely confusing when Mr. Shiftlet leaves Lucynell in the diner sleeping. This makes the reader wonder if he ever loved her, or if he even wanted any of this to happen to him. It confused the reader even more when he picks up the boy off the side of the road and makes him angry talking about mothers. This shows the reader that Mr. Shiftlet that he doesn't care about anybody, and that he acts like he has no heart and he can do whatever he want. He also shows a character of greediness, because the reader can infer from everything that happened in the story, that all Mr. Shiftlet wanted was the car parked in the garage. From the very beginning, he shows interest in the car, because he always looks at it and says that it is a nice car and always asks about it. Then once he fixes it and repaints it, he drives it around and goes to town with it and he takes Lucynell with it to go on their honeymoon for a weekend. But when he leaves her in a diner and picks up the boy and then the boy leaves, from all of the interest Mr. Shiftlet showed in the car, the reader can tell that that's all he cared about. These two stories are excellent examples of Southern Gothic Romanticism. These two stories compare to romanticism because they both show traits of romanticism. Both of these stories show love at some point in their stories, even though that love might not have lasted long. These two stories also show a trait of romanticism, they both show the individuality of a person. For the story, "A Rose for Emily", the individuality is shown and represented in how Emily stays isolated in her house her whole life until she dies. Also in the story, "The Life You Save May Be Your Own", the individuality is shown in Mr. Shiftlet because he only cares about himself and what he wants. These stories also compare to Gothic romanticism because they both show a darkness in their stories. In "A Rose for Emily", the darkness is shown when the author describes Emily's house and when the author talks about Emily's isolation. Darkness is shown in "The Life You Save May Be Your Own" when the author shows the reader the real evil in Mr. Shiftlet, when his selfishness is revealed.
In the story, "A Rose for Emily", Miss Emily's crime goes unnoticed until her death because she is isolated and kept to herself. She doesn't bother anyone around her, and they don't bother her. Her crime was not paying her taxes. The crime goes undetected because the government didn't want to make a big deal about it, or make a big scene. In the story, Miss Emily says, "I have no taxes in Jefferson, Colonel Sartoris explained it to me." Every time the people from the Jefferson government tried to tell Emily that she needed to pay her taxes, she would always deny it and say that she had no taxes. A factor that contributes to the crime going undetected is when the government would send her tax notices in the mail and she would send the tax notice back to the government with a note, saying she didn't have to pay taxes. Another factor is when no body would talk to her, or bother her at all. She was alone besides the man who lived with her and went to town to get supplies and food. Emily usually never left her house.
In the story, "The Life You Save May Be Your Own", the hitchhiker that Shiftlet picks up makes the story work because it shows how Mr. Shiftlet really acts. It shows Mr. Shiftlet's real character. Mr. Shiftlet is bragging to the boy about his mother, knowing that the boy had just run away from his home. Even as Mr. Shiftlet can tell that the boy doesn't want to talk about it, he keeps going on about how his mother is the best and it is better than the boy's mother. Mr. Shiftlet is a rude, selfish man, and this scene shows this character the best out of the story.
Southern Gothic romanticism is a sub genre of Gothic romanticism that focuses on the South and has supernatural, unusual ironic events that happen in the story. Southern Gothic romanticism also features grotesque in their stories. A character in a southern Gothic romanticism is usually considered grotesque if they induce empathy and disgust. Different features of Gothic romanticism are freakishness, imprisonment, violence, and sense of place. The stories, "A Rose for Emily" and "The Life You Save May Be Your Own" are both examples of Southern Gothic Romanticism. Both of these stories take place in the South, and they both have odd scenes that happen in the story. For example, we know that in the story, "A Rose for Emily" it takes place in the South because at Emily's funeral, it says that there were old men dressed in their old confederate uniforms. A scene that the reader would find odd is found in the end of the story. This is the scene or part where they find Emily's husband laying in the bed, dead, and starting to decay. This was frightening to the reader, because it was something that wasn't expected at all. The story says, "The man himself lay in bed", and "The long sleep that outlasts love, that conquers even the grimace of love, had cuckolded him. What was left of him, rotted beneath what was left of his nightshirt." The first quote explains that when the people from the funeral open one of the rooms in Emily's house, they found her husband, known as "the man" laying in one of the beds. The detail about the man comes in the next quote, which tells us that the man was in love with Emily, and that he was in bed with her when he died. This quote also tells us what is happening to his body, and we can infer that he had been left there for a long time. In the story, "The Life You Save May Be Your Own", we know that it takes place in the South because at the beginning of the story, Mr. Shiftlet tells the old woman that he is from Tarwater, Tennessee, but then he says that he is from different places and he tells the old woman different names that he could be because he is establishing the point that they have never met and how could she tell if he was lying. But all of the places he tells her are in the South, so the reader can infer that this story takes place in the South. The reader can also tell this from the way the old woman and Mr. Shiftlet talk, with the words they speak. An odd scene that happens in this story is also towards the end, when Mr. Shiftlet and the old woman's daughter, Lucynell Crater just get married and they are driving in the car that Mr. Shiftlet fixed. In this part of the story, they stop at a diner to get Lucynell something to eat, and when they walk in their, she falls asleep with her head leaning on the table. Mr. Shiftlet orders and pays for her food, and he tells a boy to watch over her, and he leaves the diner alone, leaving Lucynell, his new wife, sleeping in the diner with a server boy. He takes off driving and he finds a boy on the road, figuring he ran away from home, and he picks him up in the car and continues on driving. He starts talking to the boy about mothers, and he gets extremely angry and jumps out of the car. But Mr. Shiftlet doesn't mind, and he keeps driving and he drives toward Mobile, Alabama, and the story ends. This scene confused the reader a lot, it started to get extremely confusing when Mr. Shiftlet leaves Lucynell in the diner sleeping. This makes the reader wonder if he ever loved her, or if he even wanted any of this to happen to him. It confused the reader even more when he picks up the boy off the side of the road and makes him angry talking about mothers. This shows the reader that Mr. Shiftlet that he doesn't care about anybody, and that he acts like he has no heart and he can do whatever he want. He also shows a character of greediness, because the reader can infer from everything that happened in the story, that all Mr. Shiftlet wanted was the car parked in the garage. From the very beginning, he shows interest in the car, because he always looks at it and says that it is a nice car and always asks about it. Then once he fixes it and repaints it, he drives it around and goes to town with it and he takes Lucynell with it to go on their honeymoon for a weekend. But when he leaves her in a diner and picks up the boy and then the boy leaves, from all of the interest Mr. Shiftlet showed in the car, the reader can tell that that's all he cared about. These two stories are excellent examples of Southern Gothic Romanticism. These two stories compare to romanticism because they both show traits of romanticism. Both of these stories show love at some point in their stories, even though that love might not have lasted long. These two stories also show a trait of romanticism, they both show the individuality of a person. For the story, "A Rose for Emily", the individuality is shown and represented in how Emily stays isolated in her house her whole life until she dies. Also in the story, "The Life You Save May Be Your Own", the individuality is shown in Mr. Shiftlet because he only cares about himself and what he wants. These stories also compare to Gothic romanticism because they both show a darkness in their stories. In "A Rose for Emily", the darkness is shown when the author describes Emily's house and when the author talks about Emily's isolation. Darkness is shown in "The Life You Save May Be Your Own" when the author shows the reader the real evil in Mr. Shiftlet, when his selfishness is revealed.
In the story, "A Rose for Emily", Miss Emily's crime goes unnoticed until her death because she is isolated and kept to herself. She doesn't bother anyone around her, and they don't bother her. Her crime was not paying her taxes. The crime goes undetected because the government didn't want to make a big deal about it, or make a big scene. In the story, Miss Emily says, "I have no taxes in Jefferson, Colonel Sartoris explained it to me." Every time the people from the Jefferson government tried to tell Emily that she needed to pay her taxes, she would always deny it and say that she had no taxes. A factor that contributes to the crime going undetected is when the government would send her tax notices in the mail and she would send the tax notice back to the government with a note, saying she didn't have to pay taxes. Another factor is when no body would talk to her, or bother her at all. She was alone besides the man who lived with her and went to town to get supplies and food. Emily usually never left her house.
In the story, "The Life You Save May Be Your Own", the hitchhiker that Shiftlet picks up makes the story work because it shows how Mr. Shiftlet really acts. It shows Mr. Shiftlet's real character. Mr. Shiftlet is bragging to the boy about his mother, knowing that the boy had just run away from his home. Even as Mr. Shiftlet can tell that the boy doesn't want to talk about it, he keeps going on about how his mother is the best and it is better than the boy's mother. Mr. Shiftlet is a rude, selfish man, and this scene shows this character the best out of the story.
Wednesday, November 12, 2014
Romantisicm
"The Legend of Sleepy Hollow"
The story, "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" captures the readers attention because it is an excellently descriptive story. In the story, Irving gives a bunch of detail and descriptive words to make the story more exciting and more inviting to the reader. For example, when Ichabod Crane is describing the setting of the Van Tassel house, he says, " [The house] is in one of those green, sheltered, fertile nooks in which the Dutch farmers are so fond of nestling." In this quote, Ichabod Crane is describing the setting of the house, but before he says, "the stronghold is situated on the banks of the Hudson." Ichabod could have just said this quote instead of adding all the detail about the Dutch farmers, but adding saying that it is a green, sheltered, fertile place makes the setting sound inviting and a place that is comforting and relaxing to the Dutch farmers and to the Van Tassels. This story also captures the readers attention because of all of the mysteries it has in it. For example, the biggest mystery that this story holds is in the end, when we don't exactly know what happens to Ichabod. It is similar to a cliff hanger, but there is no other story that goes with it to tell us what happens to Ichabod, so we have to infer, or predict what happens to him. The end of the story says this about Ichabod, "The brook was searched, but the body of the schoolmaster was not to be discovered." When the headless horseman threw his head at Ichabod the night before, Ichabod fell off of Gunpowder by the brook, and he laid there while the horseman and his steed, and Gunpowder ran passed him into the night, and that's all we know about what happened to Ichabod. The mysteries of this story, and the excellent detail is what captures the readers attention and is what makes the reader want to keep reading this story.
"Swing Low Sweet Chariot"
This song, "Swing Low Sweet Chariot" is a song about enslaved men and women who wish to be set free. It is about escaping the physical conditions of slavery because when these men and women sing this song, it gives them hope that one day they will be set free. It also helps them take their mind off of the physical work and pain they go through every single day. This song comforts them when they work, so in their mind, they are thinking or singing the song while physically, they are working. In other words, it puts their minds in a different place from where they are now. This song is about religious hope and faith because it gives these enslaved people hope that one day they will be set free, and that they put all of their faith in God so that their wish of being freed will come true. All of their hope and faith goes to God, they depend of Him to survive. This song can relate to different people of today as well. This song can relate to the people or children who are being abused or beaten. This song relates to them because they also wish that one day they will get away and be set free from the person or people who are hurting them and treating them badly. These people also hope and pray to God that He will protect them and help them, these people also put all of their faith in Him, just like the enslaved people did in the past. This song is also reflective of its time period because it reflects and shows what the enslaved people wished and thought about all day when they were working. It also reflects what the time was like in the past when they were over worked and what the enslaved people would do to plan on how they would escape. The song, "Swing Low Sweet Chariot" is an extremely emotional song and it raised the hopes and spirits of the enslaved people while they were working.
The story, "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" captures the readers attention because it is an excellently descriptive story. In the story, Irving gives a bunch of detail and descriptive words to make the story more exciting and more inviting to the reader. For example, when Ichabod Crane is describing the setting of the Van Tassel house, he says, " [The house] is in one of those green, sheltered, fertile nooks in which the Dutch farmers are so fond of nestling." In this quote, Ichabod Crane is describing the setting of the house, but before he says, "the stronghold is situated on the banks of the Hudson." Ichabod could have just said this quote instead of adding all the detail about the Dutch farmers, but adding saying that it is a green, sheltered, fertile place makes the setting sound inviting and a place that is comforting and relaxing to the Dutch farmers and to the Van Tassels. This story also captures the readers attention because of all of the mysteries it has in it. For example, the biggest mystery that this story holds is in the end, when we don't exactly know what happens to Ichabod. It is similar to a cliff hanger, but there is no other story that goes with it to tell us what happens to Ichabod, so we have to infer, or predict what happens to him. The end of the story says this about Ichabod, "The brook was searched, but the body of the schoolmaster was not to be discovered." When the headless horseman threw his head at Ichabod the night before, Ichabod fell off of Gunpowder by the brook, and he laid there while the horseman and his steed, and Gunpowder ran passed him into the night, and that's all we know about what happened to Ichabod. The mysteries of this story, and the excellent detail is what captures the readers attention and is what makes the reader want to keep reading this story.
"Swing Low Sweet Chariot"
This song, "Swing Low Sweet Chariot" is a song about enslaved men and women who wish to be set free. It is about escaping the physical conditions of slavery because when these men and women sing this song, it gives them hope that one day they will be set free. It also helps them take their mind off of the physical work and pain they go through every single day. This song comforts them when they work, so in their mind, they are thinking or singing the song while physically, they are working. In other words, it puts their minds in a different place from where they are now. This song is about religious hope and faith because it gives these enslaved people hope that one day they will be set free, and that they put all of their faith in God so that their wish of being freed will come true. All of their hope and faith goes to God, they depend of Him to survive. This song can relate to different people of today as well. This song can relate to the people or children who are being abused or beaten. This song relates to them because they also wish that one day they will get away and be set free from the person or people who are hurting them and treating them badly. These people also hope and pray to God that He will protect them and help them, these people also put all of their faith in Him, just like the enslaved people did in the past. This song is also reflective of its time period because it reflects and shows what the enslaved people wished and thought about all day when they were working. It also reflects what the time was like in the past when they were over worked and what the enslaved people would do to plan on how they would escape. The song, "Swing Low Sweet Chariot" is an extremely emotional song and it raised the hopes and spirits of the enslaved people while they were working.
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