Thinking Outside the Box

I firstly want to say that Sartre's play, No Exit, was an excellent story that I very much enjoyed reading. Okay, back to business. Plato and Sartre both address the subject on our limitations of thinking in certain situations. Plato's took place in a dark, dank cave where it was isolated from the outside world. Sartre wrote his characters in a situation that puts them literaly in Hell. Plato viewed our limitations of thinking through the eyes of the cave prisoners, which was very restricted in a sense whereas compared to someone who has lived beyond that of the cave. Sartre viewed our limitations of thinking through the eyes of the three main characters inside that room in the Second Empire building... right smack in the middle of Hell. Garcin, who used to run the pacifist newspaper, views the situation as something he doesn't want to deal with and would rather think to himself than work it out. Estella, the one who died of pneumonia, mainly focused on her own personal accounts and reminisced on her past love life. Inez, who reveals a dark past, spoke her mind towards the situation more than the other two and was nearly pessimistic about everything, which annoyed the hell out of the other two characters. It's like that one quote: "People can look at the same sitautions and arrive at different conclusions." The extended metaphor would be Plato's cave and Sartre's own personal Hell in which there can ultimately be no escape based on the limitations of our thinking. Plato believes that our limitations are controlled by the environment in which we reside in. Sartre's characters arrive at a place they were unfamiliar with and they're take on it are completely different. How they end up solving it was reluctantly admitting that they were to stay in this infernal... inferno forever and learn to deal with each other. Plato arrives at a conclusion that only YOU can control the limits you are willing to push by thinking outside the box and exploring out there with your mind.

A/N: I love the quote in No Exit when Garcin yells: "HELL IS--OTHER PEOPLE!!" The ending also gave me chills as well as made me laugh a little by them accepting that they're just going to have to deal being with each other FOREVER. Ah, well. :)

Literary Analysis: The Glass Menagerie

GENERAL

1. A memory takes us back during the Great Depression in the 1930’s where citizens were trying to survive desperately. Tom Wingfield, the apparent narrator in the story, recalls a time during that era when he was taking care of his mother and sister after his father left them when he got back from WWI. However, Tom had always craved adventure and to go live in a world unlike the mundane life he was living in. His mother, Amanda, called him selfish for not trying to take care of the family. He was always going to go see movies, drinking with his friends, and partying as if there was no tomorrow. Tom would speak in metaphors and poetic verses. He was a writer and loved to read, which worried Amanda about his earning for something much better and running off. She had always described him as a younger version of his father. However, Amanda was more focused on her daughter, Laura, who is described as a very fragile and shy young woman in her own isolated world. Laura hardly opens up to anyone and collects glass animals that she polishes often. Amanda, recalling back to her days as a teenager, wants Laura to receive gentlemen callers much like she had in her days. Amanda also wants her daughter to type on a typewriter, which Laura fails to do because of her shy personality. This, among Tom’s incessant outings, angers Amanda. When Laura complains about her near crippled leg and shyness as an excuse to drop out of typing, Amanda rejects her excuses and pushes for gentlemen callers. Laura exclaims to them that she used to have a crush on a nice, ordinary, young man named Jim who used to call her Blue Roses. Amanda continues to reminisce about her husband. Amanda and Tom soon engage in a fight about Tom’s behavior, which Tom outbursts that he absolutely loathes staying here and working at a warehouse and would rather someone bash his brains out. When Amanda continues to accuse him, Tom’s yells sarcastically about him worshiping Satan and committing heinous crimes. In a rage, he breaks Laura’s glass animals on accident. The next night when Tom comes home drunk, he and Laura discuss the movies and how one might escape a coffin. Tom finally apologizes to Amanda, which leads into Amanda asking Tom if he could help her find Laura a gentlemen caller. Tom eventually tells her that he has asked a friend to be Laura’s gentlemen caller. Amanda grows elated and preps herself and Laura for the caller when he got there. Laura then hears that the caller is none other than Jim, the man she had a crush on. Laura grows nervous and is too nervous to answer the door for Jim and her brother. She is finally pushed by her mother to answer and greets him shyly before Tom and Jim start talking about work, movies, and the Union of Merchant Seamen that Tom has joined. Laura goes to lie down because she feels nervous and Jim accompanies her after the lights go out. While Amanda confronts Tom about the electric bill, Jim gets Laura to open up when they begin talking about old memories during school. Laura shows Jim her glass collection and says that the unicorn is her favorite because of how it differs to the other horses. They begin waltzing to music and Jim accidentally breaks the horn off her unicorn. Laura exclaims it’s a blessing and after flirting with one another, Jim kisses her. However, Jim sadly announces that he is engaged to a woman named Betty. Jim does not deny that he does have affections towards Laura and her frail, yet, unique personality. Sadly, Laura gives Jim the broken unicorn before he leaves. Amanda finds out about Jim’s engagement after he leaves and immediately turns on Tom in anger. Having enough of the fiasco, Tom leaves for a “movie” and abandons his family for good. In his ending speech, he exclaims his guilty conscious will always be there for leaving his sister in her frail nature, which is as translucent as a piece of glass.

2. There are multiple themes played out in The Glass Menagerie. However, one that stood out to me was the confinement role that played out in nearly each character. Tom was confined to a life where he is suddenly the man of the house and putting up with the tedious process of taking care of his family every day wore on him like a pair of stinky socks. He was young and full of excitement. So being trapped in a life where no adventure ever happened, he resulted to neglecting his work and abandoning his family much like his father did. Amanda, too, is confined to her own world where her past comes back to her and shadows her every movement. How she reminisces about the old days keeps her in a state of the past at time. Laura takes on the title within her own little world of glass animals, hence the title of the play. However, Laura is the one who doesn’t leave her shell until Jim comes along and even after she remains ramified between her life in glass and the outside world.

3. William’s tone is told through Tom. Since it’s a very depressing memory that leaves a rather daunting background, the tone is that of melancholy and is also very dramatic. Tennessee William’s tone is always very dramatic when it comes to his plays. He likes to emphasize certain themes and morals in his stories through his tone. His tone is also reflective with the flashbacks and many memories thought back on in the play.

4. Symbolism: The mention of blue roses and jonquils refers to the characters Amanda and Laura. This helped describe their character. Amanda’s jonquils represent herself in the past and how she sees her daughter as beautiful and elegant and she is when she was her age. Laura’s blue rose symbolizes her individuality because there is no such thing as blue roses. She is one of a kind according to Jim and he is the one who gave her the name by recognizing her uniqueness.

Flashbacks: There are multiple flashbacks being used in the play. Usually Amanda is the one who is thinking back to certain dates but the whole story is a flashback, or memory, told by Tom so this really helped summarize the setting and what exactly was happening.

Foreshadowing: The use of the fire escape foreshadows Tom’s actual escape from his confinement at the house. The fire ESCAPE is used in a figurative symbol by referencing to Tom almost escaping by using the fire escape and then coming right back to where he was until he did finally manage to escape what he calls hell.

Metaphors: Tom uses an extensive use of metaphors near the beginning of the play. This helped define the kind of character inside of Tom. It describes how much knowledge he has and how he puts it into words by writing. He also reads a bunch of Shakespeare books, which is why his nickname is Tom Shakespeare. Also, glass menagerie is a metaphor for Laura’s life and how she is just a caged creature made of glass because of her frailness.

Imagery: William’s writing contains a lot of descriptive imagery in the play in the beginning where he introduces the setting to the readers and in important parts during the play like when Tom knocked over Laura’s glass animals on accident. His portrayal of everything happening around the characters and within the characters is vivid enough for the readers to understand the story.

CHARACTERIZATION

1. The direct characterization is hardly in any of the play. Really, it’s a play. So, there isn’t really any direct characterization happening because indirect characterization is prominentally shown through the dialogue of the characters. The indirect characterization happens in every act. The physical appearance is described in scene one through Amanda and Tom. However, Tom is described to be in a navy suit in the beginning of the play so there’s one direct characterization. The personalities are described through the dialogue through the bickering and mannerisms they show in their dialogue. Laura is described as “transparent as a piece of glass.” Act II scene 2.

2. William’s diction does change through each character by how they are acting and the traits they show in the play. For example, Laura is the innocent one who only wants what’s best for the situation. So the diction is much softer and easy to understand her character whereas Tom is fastidious and rough in the diction he is written in. Amanda is also critical and demanding much like Tom’s but there is an underlying weak structure within her words whenever she thinks about her past.

3. The protagonist, who I think is Laura, is static nearly the entire play until she meets up with Jim. Then her character takes a turn when she is comfortable opening up towards Jim. She was so clumped up inside her reserve manner that she had shunned away from reality much like her mother and brother. Even after Jim leaves, she starts to go back into that shell of emptiness.

4. I felt as if I had come back reading a character in a story because they all didn’t relate to someone who I would know. I think it’s because I’ve read so many characters that are much like these ones that I lost focus of meeting that person and just read it as an interesting character that I’ve seen in other books before, but somehow different than the others. An example would be my reaction when Jim meets up with Laura once more and the awkward shyness between them for a few moments had me seeing my own sister, who is a character in her own way.

Sorry for the late update but... well, my excuses are running out and I'm just glad that I'm getting this done today for now I shall be spared of any dooky landing on me. Well, here ya go!

Allegory of the Cave Sonnet

Having ever been so captivated by such a sight
The light, oh most precious warmth in which to bask
With everlasting glow caressing figures in the night
As they gambol across canvases wearing but one mask
The mask of a thousand shapes so as to captivate us all
Brings about tranquility, immobilizing movement
Spreading warmth in our bellies, allowing us to fall
Into the depths of our oceans, which shows the containment
Of our captivation with displayed knowledge on the wall
Shooing out the fear towards the unkown path of discomfort
For the bliss of our ignorance is greater than them all
That there is nothing to know outside in that world of hurt
And captivated by this light I am never alone
Thus forever, that I shall never leave my comfort zone

Writing a sonnet is hard. This took me longer than I wanted it  take to but I'm pretty satisfied with it. This is through the eyes of one of the prisoners shackled in the cave and observing the light splaying shadows over the interior wall of the cave. He speaks for himself and the others shackled in the cave. (As you can tell, he's adapted to the daily life in the cave and shows ignorance to the outside world.) Please comment, guys. :) I'll take whatever you throw at me. (Questions, comments, concerns, etc.)

Socrates "Allegory of the Cave" Q&A's

 
1. According to Socrates, what does the Allegory of the Cave represent?
- The Allegory of the Cave represents the human's (prisoner's) perspective on reality based on what is given to them. It represents the restricted freedom in explored knowledge by their ignorance and complete submission to their comfort zone. The prisoners have no motivation to go out into the light becuase they have been presented a view on what they call reality. They don't know anything other than those shadows, which has settled into a comfortable position in their minds.

2. What are the key elements in the imagery used in the allegory?
-The shackles holding the prisoners against the wall is used to describe the prisoner's restriction to knowledge outside the cave and also their ignorance towards that outside world. The shadows represent their reality and its offerings. The fire splaying the shadows signifies the prisoner's only source of light, as if that were their own tiny sun feeding them life.

3. What are some things the allegory suggests about the process of enlightenment or education?
-It suggests that education also works the same way and enlightenment expands the growth of ideas. School limits the knowledge shown to students, but away from those desk shackles is a world full of the unknown to those learners. Facing reality is a very important aspect to life itself and how we live it. Knowledge is powerful and stripping it from us cuts off our view of reality.

4. What do the imagery of "shackles" and the "cave" suggest about the perspective of the cave dwellers or prisoners?
-The shackles and the cave suggest that the prisoners are completely caught up in their own ignorance of reality. Those shackles are what is physically holding them back, but their mindset also explains why they are holding back in the cave they reside in. What they see before them is the only reality they believe they will only ever need for they know nothing else that sparks a desire for something else.

5. In society today or in your own life, what sorts of things shackle the mind?
-Well, for one, school shackles the minds of students by providing only a limited amount of education that the teachers give. They are drawn into a routine that they grow comfortable in, much like other things in society.

6. Compare the perspective of the freed prisoner with the cave prisoners?
-The freed prisoner has seen what is out there and also the darkness that the cave prisoners are in. His perspective is larger and much more vivid than those of the cave prisoners. He prefers the outside light rather than the dim one inside the cave because the outside knowledge he has gained is a lot better than the restricted knowledge in the cave. The cave prisoners know no better becuase of that lack of knowledge. Their perspective is more miniscule and dank compared to the freed prisoner.

7. According to the allegory, lack of clarity or intellectual confusion can occur in two distinct ways or contexts. What are they?
-It can occur in a way where those won't experience the outside knowledge and reality out there simply becuase they are addicted to their comfort zone and are too frightened to leave. Either that or they don't understand why they would need to go ino that other world. It can also occur in a way where little information is given that leaves confusion and fear towards those prisoners.

8. According to the allegory, how do cave prisoners get free? What does this suggest about intellectual freedom?
-Is ignorance bliss? NO! But, seriously, you can either argue with the prisoner for the rest of your pitiful life or you can him/her to see the truth on what is out there. The process would be rather tedious, but worth it for the sake of another's intellect and it's saving them from hiding away in a world of resistance.

9. The allegory presupposes that there is a distinction between appearances and reality. Do you agree? Why or why not?
-Oh, yes, I full heartedly agree to this. There is a difference between appearances and reality through perspective. Your appearance can defy what is really reality. Other times, appearances speak the truth, but reality is also an explanation of things. Both appearance and reality is an illusion in life that is hard to describe and distinct from one another.

10. If Socrates is incorrect in his assumption that there is a distinction between reality and appearances, what are the two alternative metaphysical assumptions?
-I actually think Socrates is spot on with his assumption between reality and appearances. It's really how others view it becuase everyone views it differently. I'm not sure what other alternative assumptions there are.

The BIG Question...

This question has been rolling around my head ever since I've been analyzing animation and cartoons since I was a child enjoying the simple works of character movements. And it's probably really easy to answer to those in the professional field of animation, but I'm working my way there and so this question is important to me in getting there.

What is it that truly makes a character look so life like in animation? How does it work exactly?

Now, I could probably find this answer easily on the internet, but I usually crave a visual perspective on how animation works. I'm pretty good when it comes to learning visually. :)

P.S (Sorry for the late update.)

 

Cat on a Hot Tin Roof Lit. Analysis

GENERAL
 

1. In the mid 1950’s on the Mississippi Delta is a very large plantation where a party takes place. Big Daddy, who owns the large estate, and his wife, Big Mama, have a gathering with the family to celebrate Big Daddy’s birthday. Brick, his youngest son, came with his wife, Margaret. Gooper, the eldest son, brings his wife, Mae, as well as his five children. The reverend and doctor of the town arrive for the party as well. Big Daddy had arrived from the clinic with news that he didn’t have cancer, which leaves Big Mama in an ecstatic mood. Margaret addresses to Brick about their loveless marriage ever since he began drinking. She describes herself as a “cat on a hot tin roof” because she has been left undesired by Brick, which makes her bitter, nervous, and dissatisfied. Brick is rather indifferent towards everyone around him, especially his wife. Brick also has a broken ankle from when he hurdled on the track field and broke his ankle in doing so, leaving him leaning on a crutch. Margaret goes on about Brick’s friend, Skipper, and how they loved hanging out together before Skipper died. She also has realized her mistake before by mentioning that her and Skipper had made love once. Brick is furious with her at the mention and tells her that they can’t possibly conceive a child if he couldn’t stand being with her. When the party takes place, Margaret detests the fact that Gooper and Mae had brought their “no-neck monsters”, as in children. She knows that they’re rubbing the fact that they have children in her face as well as trying to get Big Daddy to leave them the estate instead of Brick, who is the favorite. Big Daddy, a large, burly man, goes to talk to Brick alone to try and gather information out of him about his drinking habit and his lack of affection towards Margaret. Big Daddy also talks about his hated affection towards Big Mama and that he was sick of her, but continues trying to press on with the subject at hand. Brick tells Big Daddy that he doesn’t know why he drinks and explains that he’s looking for a “click” to make him peaceful. When Big Daddy questions him about Skipper and their relationship, Brick tries to escape from the conversation, complaining that their conversations are never materialized. Big Daddy detects that Brick his hiding something and forces him to stay, which Brick quickly denies any homosexual feelings that he had for Skipper, which angers Big Daddy that Brick isn’t telling the truth. Brick solemnly states to leave Gooper the estate and not him. Then Brick announces that Big Daddy does have cancer and he did have feelings for Skipper. Big Daddy goes on a rampage shouting about liars and goes to bed. Later, everyone surrounded Big Mama to tell her the truth about Big Daddy having cancer. Big Mama doesn’t want to believe it but tells Maggie—Margaret— to fix Brick up if he was going to run the plantation, which angers Gooper and Mae. They present her with a will so as to leave the plantation to them but Big Mama rejects it with disgust. Big Mama declares to Brick that nothing would make Big Daddy happier than for him to have a grandchild from him. Without warning, Maggie announces to everyone, including Big Daddy, that she is pregnant. Mae shrilly accuses Maggie that she’s a liar as Big Daddy and Big Mama take leave. Maggie doesn’t know what Mae is talking about and leaves to her room with Brick. Brick, after a few drinks, announces that he has found his click, but still acts indifferently, which saddens Maggie. She hides all the liquor he has and refuses to give them back until after she is satisfied from her desires. After she affirms her love for him, Brick vaguely replies, “Wouldn’t it be funny if that were true?”

2. The theme of the novel (play) is the mere concept of mendacity. Throughout the entire play, mendacity has marked its territory in each character. Multiple secrets escape to further move the plot along and the characters react to the incessant lying going on. The largest lie in the play included everyone keeping a secret about Big Daddy having cancer, except Big Mama, who had always believed that Brick will run the estate alongside with Big Daddy in that fantasy world of hers. When Big Daddy had caught Brick lying to him at the end of Act II he said, “This disgust with mendacity is disgust with yourself.” Pg 127. It really put Brick’s character into perspective as well as Big Daddy.

3. The author’s tone is rather depressing in the play because there is just so much relationship problems with the characters. The readers feel sympathetic for those characters by how other characters treat them. It was depressing to read Big Daddy’s obloquies towards Big Mama whenever they were near each other. The solemn air surrounding the conflict between Brick and Margaret was clarified by the author’s tone. Thirdly, the inevitable depressing truth about Big Daddy’s cancer affected the characters.

4. 1) Foreshadowing: At the end of Act I, Margaret had announced she had seen a gynecologist, foreshadowing for the later announcement about her “having” a child with Brick. Pg. 63. She also said that she would work out the problem when they got there. The mention about Brick and Skipper was foreshadowing their relationship. Pg. 57.

2) Symbolism: Brick’s crutch symbolizes a number of things in the play. For one thing, it symbolizes his manhood. Brick’s rendered immobile whenever Maggie or Big Daddy take his crutch away from him. That’s when he is really stranded. Maggie throws it in Act I, pg. 58, and Big Daddy takes it from him in Act II, pg. 109.

3) Motif: A recurring concept in the play is mendacity, or lies. This is pretty static throughout the entire play. The lies between Big Daddy and Brick in Act II, Maggie’s lie about her conceiving a child just to make Big Daddy happy in Act III, and Brick’s lie to Maggie about his drinking problem in Act I.

4) Metaphor: The title says it all. Maggie occasionally brings up the talk of her being a cat. She refers herself to a cat because she’s a “cat on a hot tin roof”. Even the other characters say that she’s catty. In the beginning of Act I, Maggie describes herself as that. Pg’s. 40 and 55. Also, Big Daddy mentions in Act II that the old man made out of bones laid his cold and heavy hand on his shoulder, which is a metaphor for death catching up to him, Pg 93.

5) Imagery: Even though it’s a play and mainly consists of dialogue, the author gives the reader a good understanding of where everything is by having the imagery being described by the characters. He had a descriptive introduction of where everything took place and how everything was set up, specifically for a theater. At the beginning of Act I we are given this clarification.

CHARACTERIZATION

1. An example of direct characterization was in the beginning of Act I with the description of Margaret. She is described as a pretty young woman with anxious lines in her face. Her voice is also described as rapid and drawling in the beginning. Another example of direct characterization would be Big Mama. She appears as a short, stout woman who wears flashy gems all the time. Since this is a play, indirect characterization is common. A good example is when, in the every start of Act I, Maggie describes Mae and Gooper’s children as “no-neck monsters.” She also describes them as little pigs running about. Another example of indirect characterization is when Big Mama is describing Brick and his red hair in Act III, which is a physical characteristic I didn’t know about until the end.

2. Tennessee Williams, when focusing on his characters, will change his syntax/diction through certain characters. Big Daddy uses rather offending language and describes relationships in lengthy paragraphs whereas Brick uses short and vague sentences in the play. The diction/syntax really reflects off of the character’s personalities. William used that southern diction through the entire play, but certain characters will alter the syntax through their characterizations/personality.

3. The protagonist, Maggie, is stays static through the play until she becomes more forceful towards Brick at the end of the play, becoming a stronger person with the realization that she is better than her drinking husband and could love him more fully. But, in all honesty, she is still that catty and hysterical character in the play nearly the whole time.

4. I felt as though I’d met a person, because, as a fan of acting, I read plays and become engrossed in the characters and having to connect with the character I feel I would know a lot better than any of the other characters. The character I connected with the most was Maggie because she’s a very interesting and funny character who I loved reading about. She was also one of the more innocent of people in the play. For example, her attitude with Gooper and Mae’s children had me laughing and instantly becoming close to her character and who she was about.

 

Vocabulary List #11

Affinity: relationship by marriage

Bilious: of or indicative of a peevish ill nature disposition

Cognate: of the same nature

Corollary: A proposition inferred immediately from a proved proposition with little or no additional proof

Cul-de-sac: a pouch

Derring-do: a daring action

Divination: The art or practice that seeks to foretell future events or discover hidden knowledge due to the interpretation of omens

Elixir: A substance capable of prolonging life indefinitely

Folderol: a useless accessory

Gamut: an entire range or series

Hoi polloi: the General populace

Ineffable: incapable of being expressed in words

Lucubration: to study by night

Mnemonic: intended to assist memory

Obloquy: abusive language

Parameter: an independent variable used to express the coordinates of variable point and functions of them

Pundit: a learned man

Risible: provoking laughter

Symptomatic: having the characteristics of a certain disease but arising of a different cause

Volte-face: a reversal in policy

Sentences coming soon...

Procrastination Problems

Feeling as though your procrastination habits are growing to an extent where you're thinking to yourself, "Man, this is getting ridiculous."? Well, I happen to have that feeling... nearly every day. So, I've decided to use the internet as a way to help get rid of this feeling.

http://depression.about.com/cs/selfhelp/a/procrastination.htm

Oh ho yeah, this really boost my self esteem. Thought I might share the ideas on this site on getting rid of procrastination. :)

Shakespeare Sonnet XII (12)

 
When I do count the clock that tells the time,
And see the brave day sunk in hideous night;
When I behold the violet past prime,
And sable curls, all silvered o'er with white;
When lofty trees I see barren of leaves,
Which erst from heat did canopy the herd,
And summer's green all girded up in sheaves,
Borne on the bier with white and bristly beard,
Then of thy beauty do I question make,
That thou among the wastes of time must go,
Since sweets and beauties do themselves forsake
And die as fast as they see others grow;
And nothing 'gainst Time's scythe can make defence
Save breed, to brave him when he takes thee hence.

This is still undecided. This is one I really like though, but if I find one that I like better than this one then I shall post that other one instead. But here is the one that I currently am planning to do. :)

Growing My Plan

Researching those sites was difficult at first... probably because I wasn't exactly sure how to word what I really wanted to look up. So, after a thousand tries of wording what I wanted to search, I found some interesting sites and checked them out. Discarding the bunk, I went with my top five. I'm hoping to collaborate with other groups when diving into Hamlet by using our sources to study with. Commenting posts to our blogs will prove to be a productive way of gathering what we know and how we can channel them into a study session. Thus... this is my plan.

AP Hamlet PLN

http://aplove.blogspot.com/2007/11/ap-lit-hamlet-actscene-notes.html

This site is a very well said analysis of Hamlet. It's neat, easy to read, and it's also really helpful as a study guide. This was one of the top in my list for the easy access on Hamlet and the information you can find about the play on here.

http://www.gradesaver.com/hamlet/study-guide/short-summary/

I really liked the knowledge shared about Hamlet on this site becuase you could test yourself, study key facts about Hamlet, and share information with others or add input. I was wary about this site at first becuase of the advertisements showing every now and then but I liked how they set up the information on Hamlet.

http://www.artsvivants.ca/pdf/eth/activities/hamlet_guide.pdf

Okay, I gotta admit, I love pdf's. Mainly because they look neat and are easy to follow. But, anyway, this is a useful site to look up when studying Hamlet. There are questions to think about and are really important when pertaining to the play.

http://blogs.monashores.net/bradshawk/files/2010/02/Hamlet-ACT-I-V-Study-Guide.pdf

Much like the first one, this pdf also has great questions and references about Hamlet. Not much to say about anything else though. It's a good site that others should check.

http://www.cummingsstudyguides.net/xHamlet.html

This, too, was a really awesome site to check out for info on Hamlet. It has a LOT of things to say about the play and a great part about it is that it also gives references to the pages and textual quotes . All in all, it definitely gives satisfaction.

Vocabulary List #10

aficionado: an ardent devotee; fan, enthusiast


Jessica was a hardcore tennis aficionado and is very passionate in every game she plays.


browbeat: to intimidate by using overbearing looks or words; bully


Jack browbeats Piggy into giving him his glasses to start a fire.


commensurate: having the same measure; of equal extent or duratio, adequate


Jackie's talent with acting is commensurate along with Beka's talent for acting.


diaphanous: very sheer and light; almost completely transparent or translucent


The ghost's diaphanous appearance frightened Coraline.


emolument: profit or fees from office or employment


The emoluments were stored in Josh's greedy hands at Smarty Mart.


foray: a quick raid, usually for the purpose of taking plunder; a quick, sudden attack


The worm's foray lasted but a few minutes, leaving the citizens devastated with the mysterious lost of their belongings in Bikini Bottom.


genre: a class or category of artistic endeavor having a particular form, technique, or content


Sarah quite enjoys the science fiction genre whereas Michelle perfers fantasy.


homily: usually of a nondoctrinal nature/an inspirational saying or cliche


The biblical homily that was said daily to John brought music to his ears everytime he heard it.


immure: to enclose within walls/to shut in, seclude or confine; to imprison


Students argue that they feel as though the school is trying to immure them by adding more fence around the perimeter.


insouciant: free from concern, worry or anxiety; carefree; nonchalant


Timon and Pumba are both insouciant with their lives with the simple phrase: Hakuna Matata


matrix: something that constitutes the place or point from which something else originates, takes form, or develops/a formative part


The gelatinous monster enveloped the matrix from which he arrived.


obsequies: funeral rites or ceremony


The obsequies for the victim of a shark attack was performed in the ocean.


panache: a grand or flamboyant manner; verve; style; flair


Brittany's Halloween party was panache and flashy to a point where it resembled a rave.


persona: the narrator of a character in a literary work, person's perceived or evident personality


Roger's personas take a dramatic turn whenever he takes his characters too far and starts trouble.


philippic: any speech or discourse of bitter denunciation


Both men raged on in a fury of nasty philippics to one another during the heated debate.


prurient: having, inclined to have, or characterized by lascivious or lustful thoughts, desire


Shakespeare has an odd way of showing his prurient fascination towards death in his plays.


sacrosanct: extremely sacred or inviolable; not to be tresspassed or entered upon


Cows are extremely sacrosanct to people in India and I find it unexplainable.


systemic:of or pertaining to a system/pertaining to or affecting the body as a whole


The systemic vitamins taken by Nikki were helping her from catching the spreading cold.


tendentious:having or showing a definite tendency, bias, or purpose


Most of my friends are very tendentious when it comes between studying and partying.


vicissitude: change or variation in the course of something; alteration or interchange


Kelli's vicissitude in school when becoming sick really screwed her over as she fell behind in her work.

Literary Analysis: Lord of the Flies

GENERAL

1. A horrific plane crash sends a group of young British boys—youngest six and oldest twelve—stranded on an island with a dead pilot. The plane was evacuating the boys away from Britain during a raging war. Two boys, Ralph and Piggy, are found alone on the beach and discover a conch, which gives Ralph the idea to rally up the other boys that were on the plane with the conch. As the boys gather, they agree that Ralph will be their leader. Jack, a leader of the boys’ choir group, argues that he should be leader but Ralph compromises that he will be the leader of the hunting group to which Jack agrees. As the plot moves forward, Jack and his group of hunters begin to question Ralph’s authority as leader. Being the leader of a large group of boys proved to be difficult to Ralph as no one seemed to want to build a fire seriously as a way to contact a rescue. The boys start to grow nervous about a ‘monster’ hiding in the jungle and are convinced even more so when they stumble upon a dead man with a parachute draped over him, believing it was a deformed ape by how it was hunched over. (There was an airplane battle over the sleeping boys from which the dead man came from.) Jack’s bloodlust for killing pigs has increased and a chaotic revelry is thrown for their success. They had decapitated a pig and mounted the head on a stick as a sacrifice to the ‘monster’, which his pig is later defined as the Lord of the Flies. Simon, another innocent boy, discovers that the ‘monster’ is actually a dead man and that it was all their imagination. Simon, unfortunately, is killed by the boys that night when they believe him to be the monster. Jack forms his own tribe and leaves Ralph, Piggy, and a pair of twin boys to survive by themselves. Ralph and Piggy go to confront Jack. Jack and Ralph engage in a fight and Piggy is killed by one of the boys dismantling a boulder and letting it crush Piggy, shattering the conch. Ralph flees from the animalistic boys trying to kill him and Jack sets the island on fire, trying to smoke out Ralph’s hiding place in the jungle. Ralph stumbles upon a navy officer on the beach from which they were signaled by the fire and is so traumatized by the past events that he weeps. The other boys weep as well when they see that an adult is now amongst their midst. Their upsetting experience on the island was finally over.

 
2. The theme of the novel circles around the idea of a base of government and how we govern ourselves. William Golding had a most creative idea towards removing authoritative adults from a society that is ruled by preadolescents. The fact that they are preadolescents makes the situation even worse. It’s maintaining a civilized structure of living that makes it a challenge to these young boys. Most of them don’t even know how to take care of themselves with the youngest being around six years old. It’s easy to switch from living a life where rules were followed to living a life where freedom is put to extreme measures. We see these within the characters, too, where Ralph is all for civility and Jack is one who swells in power. That animalistic impulse still lies within those characters and are carried off when split apart from an organized society.

 
3. The author’s tone is daunting, suspenseful, and rather heart-rending. Speaking in third person, Golding really emphasizes his tone in important scenes that deal with symbolism or foreshadowing such as the death of characters. His suspenseful tone is used during Jack’s first hunt for a pig. The suspense of him killing the pig is forceful onto the readers when Jack finally strikes that blow or lowers the knife. The daunting tone reflects off of the symbolic pig’s head absolutely covered in flies. When the Lord of the Flies (pig) speaks to Simon, there is a very chilling feel to it that has the readers on edge. Plus, the imagery also captures that daunting tone. The heart-rending tone comes with the death of characters such as Piggy and Simon. Piggy’s death, especially, since the readers had a connection to that character and felt sympathy for Piggy’s struggles.


4. Symbolism: This really helped me understand the book with how Golding used symbolism to create foreshadowing, an establishment of the theme, and how it was used to move the plot. The conch is an excellent example of symbolizing a ground set of rules and how they are followed. It symbolizes order in society. “They obeyed the summons on the conch, partly because Ralph blew it, and he was big enough to be a link with the adult world of authority.” Pg. 50.

 Foreshadowing: I pointed out some foreshadowing that dealt with the deaths of Piggy and Simon. Simon began with the Lord of the Flies scene where the pig head mentioned having fun with Simon. This tells the reader that something horrible will happen with Simon. Also, in the beginning of chapter six, boulders begin rolling off the Castle Rock cliff, foreshadowing Piggy’s death.

 Imagery: Golding adds a lot of details to the imagery in nearly every scene. His descriptions of the island, the crash, the characters, and the monsters inside the island and the boys is detailed enough to place the reader into the story. This also really helps the reader picture the situation as if a painting is shown right in front of them. It’s a powerful message that Golding uses to his advantage in the book.

Simile: This device was mainly used when describing the scenery or when one of the characters was performing an action. It’s also one of the few devices that are easily pointed out in the story. Golding used many. “Ralph lolled in the water. Sleep enveloped him like the swathing mirages that were wrestling with the brilliance of the lagoon.” Pg. 9. “Inside was peacock water, rocks and weed showing as in an aquarium.” Pg. 26.  

 Personification: The readers get a feel of the animation happening with Golding’s device, personification. The inanimate objects come to life and it clarifies that each inanimate object has a feeling of life in them. “Clouds of birds rose from the tree-tops, and the something squealed and ran in the undergrowth.” Pg. 12.

 
CHARACTERIZATION

1. In the beginning of the story, Golding uses direct characterizations with the characters, Piggy and Ralph. Piggy was described as a short, fat boy with round glasses who is asthmatic. Ralph was described as a skinny boy with fare hair and a rather pale complexion. The indirect characterization comes with the character Jack. He describes him with direct characterization but then describes his personal character with indirect characterization. He describes Jack’s nature by how he acts when leading the slaughtering. My impression of Jack at the end was that he was: “You’re a beast and a swine and a bloody, bloody thief!” Pg. 117. It completely changed from innocence to a cold blooded murderer; a dictator who deals with too much power.

 
2. Golding’s diction and syntax is fairly simple to understand; simple and powerful to each character. His diction is fairly static throughout the book, but his intensity increases with certain characters. Simon is a good example when focusing on him. Golding writes him as an innocent character and plays around with how Simon speaks and the description of the character. They are nice and short sentences, but it conveys a message that Simon is more than likely going to be an important character later on when speaking of his innocence. Jack is a whole other story. He’s the antagonist of the story, which he is given detail to his actions and his dialogue is more demanding and lengthy than Simon’s. So Golding really expresses his characters through the change of diction.

 
3. The protagonist, Ralph, is pretty much static/ flat through the entire story because he has leadership that never wavers EXCEPT for in the scene when Simon is killed. Both Piggy and Ralph become caught up in the tribe’s animalistic nature of chants. They’re blind to the fact that the beast doesn’t exists because, even though they don’t contribute in the killing of Simon, they still believe that Simon was the monster when emerging from the bushes. They didn’t stop the tribe from killing Simon nor did they stop chanting along with the group. But, they’re behaviors became back on track after the traumatic realization that they had killed a close friend on the island. They still maintained that sense of civility.

 
4. I felt as though I had come back feeling like I had met a person. The character I had a connection to the most was Piggy. This mainly goes towards my childhood being fairly similar to Piggy’s and how similar we were. I was a weak link in elementary and junior high and was picked on by friends. But it was also how Golding wrote Piggy’s character. His quotes spoke to me every time he tried to say something worth saying. I became frustrated when no one would listen to Piggy except Ralph and Simon. I felt VERY emotional with the death of Piggy and I felt as though something detached from me personally. “How can you expect to be rescued if you don’t put first things first and act proper?”

 
Favorite quotes: “Sucks to you’re ass-mar!”

                           “Kill the pig! Cut his throat! Kill the pig! Bash him in!”

                           “Maybe there is a beast… maybe it’s only us.”