Out of the many poems I read this week, I chose a few which had the most meaning to me. The first poem to catch my attention this week was “Those Winter Sunday’s” written by Robert Hayden. All of the things the speaker’s father did for their family, such as starting a fire every morning, were done out of love. The significance of the title of the poem became evident as I read further into the poem. Even on a Sunday in the middle of winter, when most people want to remain curled up in bed, the father performed daily tasks for the benefit of his family. Throughout the poem, the speaker’s regret is evident. The speaker wishes he would have thanked his father for all the things he had done for him. One line in particular caught my attention: “love’s austere and lonely offices.” This line speaks of the offices held by parents. Parents are continually giving to their children without many “thank-you’s.”
Another compelling poem was “Daystar” written by Rita Dove. The poem is about a mother looking for an escape from her household duties if only for a short while. Toward the end of the poem, the mother was escaping not only her children but her husband as well. The mother was looking for a place where she could mean nothing to anyone and where no motherly or wifely duties existed. The woman chose the empty backyard. The mother had become overwhelmed by the things which needed to be accomplished. I think anyone who has dealt with children can understand just how overwhelming the daily tasks can become.
“Marks” by Linda Pastan was another poem packed with meaning. The woman was constantly being judged by her family. The manner, in which the speaker discusses her “marks,” or judgments, makes her irritation very evident. Not only are her actions judged, but each family member has their own grading system. If the family has the right to “grade” the woman, she has the right to leave the judgment system. I do not think it is right for the woman to leave her family, but I do not think they should judge her actions, especially when most of her actions are done to benefit other members of the family.
Therefore, I encountered a lot of great poetry this week and chose to discuss the ones which really struck a cord in me.
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Tuesday, July 15, 2008
Compelling Drama
Reading Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll House was a great way to dive into the unit on drama. A Doll House contained some interesting characters and the relationships between the characters were constantly changing. But I am getting ahead of myself. The first character to catch my attention was Nora. The main part of Nora’s personality to catch my interest was her naïve approach toward money. When Nora learned Torvald would be working at the bank, she assumed they would immediately have an unlimited supply of money. Obviously Nora has had very limited experience with money and a salary. With Nora’s attitude toward money I was shocked she was capable of getting a loan to save her husband’s life.
But just when I was beginning to think Nora may not be so naïve after all, Mr. Krogstad came into the picture. Nora’s naïve approach to money was very evident in her loan from Mr. Krogstad. I will acknowledge that Nora was at a tough place in her life, but did she really not comprehend that forgery is illegal?
Another interesting character from A Doll House was Dr. Rank. When Dr. Rank expresses his wishes for Torvald and Nora not to see him on his death bed, I was very confused. Dr. Rank had such a close relationship with the Helmer’s. Dr. Rank was at the Helmer’s home almost every day and enjoyed visiting with both Nora and Torvald. Therefore, Dr. Rank’s wishes not to see the Helmer’s at the end of his life seemed so out of place. It seems to me you would want the people you love the most around when you are nearing the end of your life. I cannot help but wonder if Dr. Rank’s love for Nora caused him to shut out the Helmer’s at the end of his life. It is very possible Dr. Rank was trying to keep Nora from having to see him on his deathbed.
Torvald was also an interesting character. Throughout the story, Torvald seemed to be a simple man who wanted to provide for his family. When Nora was struggling with what to do about her problems with Mr. Krogstad, I thought she could have been honest with Torvald. But Torvald proved why Nora was unable to share her problems with Torvald. When Torvald found out about Nora’s loan, he betrayed her and was more concerned about the shame it would bring upon his name.
Now that I have discussed the main players in A Doll House, I have one other critical point to discuss. From the first time I read the title of the play in the syllabus, I wondered what the meaning behind the title was. My first thought when I began reading the story was that the Helmer’s had purchased a doll house for their children for Christmas. Then, as I read further into the story I knew this was not the case. But it was not until the end of the story when the meaning behind the title became evident. Nora felt as though she was living in a doll house and that Torvald treated her as though she was nothing more than his own personal doll.
But just when I was beginning to think Nora may not be so naïve after all, Mr. Krogstad came into the picture. Nora’s naïve approach to money was very evident in her loan from Mr. Krogstad. I will acknowledge that Nora was at a tough place in her life, but did she really not comprehend that forgery is illegal?
Another interesting character from A Doll House was Dr. Rank. When Dr. Rank expresses his wishes for Torvald and Nora not to see him on his death bed, I was very confused. Dr. Rank had such a close relationship with the Helmer’s. Dr. Rank was at the Helmer’s home almost every day and enjoyed visiting with both Nora and Torvald. Therefore, Dr. Rank’s wishes not to see the Helmer’s at the end of his life seemed so out of place. It seems to me you would want the people you love the most around when you are nearing the end of your life. I cannot help but wonder if Dr. Rank’s love for Nora caused him to shut out the Helmer’s at the end of his life. It is very possible Dr. Rank was trying to keep Nora from having to see him on his deathbed.
Torvald was also an interesting character. Throughout the story, Torvald seemed to be a simple man who wanted to provide for his family. When Nora was struggling with what to do about her problems with Mr. Krogstad, I thought she could have been honest with Torvald. But Torvald proved why Nora was unable to share her problems with Torvald. When Torvald found out about Nora’s loan, he betrayed her and was more concerned about the shame it would bring upon his name.
Now that I have discussed the main players in A Doll House, I have one other critical point to discuss. From the first time I read the title of the play in the syllabus, I wondered what the meaning behind the title was. My first thought when I began reading the story was that the Helmer’s had purchased a doll house for their children for Christmas. Then, as I read further into the story I knew this was not the case. But it was not until the end of the story when the meaning behind the title became evident. Nora felt as though she was living in a doll house and that Torvald treated her as though she was nothing more than his own personal doll.
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Intriguing Fiction
Alright, here come my insights into the two stories which intrigued me the most in the fiction unit. I want to start with “A Pair of Tickets” which was written by Amy Tan. “A Pair of Tickets” is a heart-wrenching story which began with the separation of a mother from her young twin daughters. I cannot imagine the pain the mother, Suyuan, must have suffered because she did not know what had happened to her young children. Not long after losing her children, Suyuan found out her husband and the rest of her extended family had died. Had Suyuan not lost her family, she would not have met a new man and chosen to start a family with him. Suyuan remarried, moved to the US, and had another daughter, Jing-mei. One point I really questioned at the start of the story was whether culture could be embraced just because you travel to a certain area in you cultural home? I think Tan meant Jing-mei realized the impact of her culture at a specific point on the trip to China, and not that she became Chinese at that exact moment.
Suyuan may have started a new family, but she never stopped searching for her twin daughters. Even after Suyuan’s husband had given up on finding the twins, Suyuan continued her search. I found it strange that a wife would not share so deep a pain with her husband. I think Suyuan was trying to spare her husband from having to deal with the loss she felt at all times. Then, in the story came a great piece of irony. Suyuan spent her whole life searching for her daughters, and shortly after her death word came from China that the twins wanted to meet with her.
Another crucial part of the story was Jing-mei and her father’s journey to China to reunite with the twins and other family members. Upon first reading the story, I was disappointed in the lack of information about the meeting of the sisters. After reflecting back on it, Tan was able to make the event even more profound by keeping the ending simple. The sisters had been re-united and all understood one crucial thing: they all resembled their mother. Tan was able to emphasize her main point, which was the journey to re-unite the family with the twin daughters, by not having a lengthy section on the reunion.
On to the second intriguing story of the fiction unit, “Boys and Girls,” written by Alice Munro. The family in the story raised foxes to collect the furs. The first thing which struck me as interesting was the difference between the names the boy and the girl gave to their pets. The girl chose “girly” names such as Maureen and Diana. The boy, named Liard, chose more masculine pet names such as Harold and Mexico. But not all of the names chosen for the foxes agreed with the gender of the child. Liard chose the name Maud for a fox after a former hired hand.
All throughout “Boys and Girls,” there is a strong gender bias. The father treats the daughter with little, or no, respect even though she is expected to do the same amount of work as her brother. The different treatment of the children based on gender reflects the time period in which the story was set. The story talks about the mother spending the majority of her time in the house doing household chores. It was a rare occurrence to find the mother outdoors unless she was hanging the wash out to dry. Also, I cannot help but thing Tan did not give the girl a name because it helped to strengthen the gender bias. In that period of time, our society was very male dominated. Without a name, the girl was destined to become jus t a “girl.” The son was given a name in the story which helps to strengthen the fact of a male dominated society.
I have one last critical point, which is the girl’s struggle to find her place in the world, to discuss from “Boys and Girls.” The girl wants to be able to help her father with the chores which are considered to be “male” chores. Several times during the story the girl is chided for not behaving like a young lady. The girl continues to ignore her families strong suggestions she should act more like a young lady. At the end of the story, the young girl chooses to let the horse, Flora, run free. When the girl decides to let Flora run free, she seems to seal her fate of being the young lady everyone had tell her she needed to be.
Suyuan may have started a new family, but she never stopped searching for her twin daughters. Even after Suyuan’s husband had given up on finding the twins, Suyuan continued her search. I found it strange that a wife would not share so deep a pain with her husband. I think Suyuan was trying to spare her husband from having to deal with the loss she felt at all times. Then, in the story came a great piece of irony. Suyuan spent her whole life searching for her daughters, and shortly after her death word came from China that the twins wanted to meet with her.
Another crucial part of the story was Jing-mei and her father’s journey to China to reunite with the twins and other family members. Upon first reading the story, I was disappointed in the lack of information about the meeting of the sisters. After reflecting back on it, Tan was able to make the event even more profound by keeping the ending simple. The sisters had been re-united and all understood one crucial thing: they all resembled their mother. Tan was able to emphasize her main point, which was the journey to re-unite the family with the twin daughters, by not having a lengthy section on the reunion.
On to the second intriguing story of the fiction unit, “Boys and Girls,” written by Alice Munro. The family in the story raised foxes to collect the furs. The first thing which struck me as interesting was the difference between the names the boy and the girl gave to their pets. The girl chose “girly” names such as Maureen and Diana. The boy, named Liard, chose more masculine pet names such as Harold and Mexico. But not all of the names chosen for the foxes agreed with the gender of the child. Liard chose the name Maud for a fox after a former hired hand.
All throughout “Boys and Girls,” there is a strong gender bias. The father treats the daughter with little, or no, respect even though she is expected to do the same amount of work as her brother. The different treatment of the children based on gender reflects the time period in which the story was set. The story talks about the mother spending the majority of her time in the house doing household chores. It was a rare occurrence to find the mother outdoors unless she was hanging the wash out to dry. Also, I cannot help but thing Tan did not give the girl a name because it helped to strengthen the gender bias. In that period of time, our society was very male dominated. Without a name, the girl was destined to become jus t a “girl.” The son was given a name in the story which helps to strengthen the fact of a male dominated society.
I have one last critical point, which is the girl’s struggle to find her place in the world, to discuss from “Boys and Girls.” The girl wants to be able to help her father with the chores which are considered to be “male” chores. Several times during the story the girl is chided for not behaving like a young lady. The girl continues to ignore her families strong suggestions she should act more like a young lady. At the end of the story, the young girl chooses to let the horse, Flora, run free. When the girl decides to let Flora run free, she seems to seal her fate of being the young lady everyone had tell her she needed to be.
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