Fifth Business by Robertson Davies

Setting: 1969 Canada. While the setting changes throughout the novel, Deptford is Dunstan's home.

Key Characters: Dunstan Ramsey, Boy(Percy) Staunton, Mary Dempster, Paul Demptser(Magnus Eisengrim), Liesl

Plot: The whole novel is a letter to the Colbourne College Headmaster as an angry response to his incorrect send off. The opening scene describes Percy hitting Mary Demptster with a snowball with a rock causing her to go into premature labor. This begins his overwhelming guilt. Soon he finds himself in love with Mary Dempster and befriends her son Paul, teaching him magic. Mary has sex with a tramp causing an uproar in the community. Mary brings back Dunstan's older brother. Dunstan believes Mary is a saint and thus begins his love with Hagiology. Dunstan goes to war and sees an illuminated statue of Virgin Mary and Child and takes it as a sign of Mary Dempster. Dunstan continues to live a life for others, meeting a jesuit Padre Blazon. In a sort of extreme series of events, Leola attempts to kill herself. Again Dunstan is a just a supporting character. Dunstan again meets with Paul(now Magnus Eisengrim) and joins the Magic Show. Liesl(seen as the "devil") tells Dunstan that his life is Fifth business and he is just there to be a character in other stories. Dunstan then makes love to Liesl. The book ends with Boy being killed by the rock that caused Mary Dempster to go into premature labor.It is important to remember that the piece is letter persuading the Headmaster that his life is meaningful. He constantly emphasizes the physical appearances of females and even states misogynistic opinions, except for Mary Dempster. Dunstan is considered a non-believer but his Presbyterian roots cause him to carry a tremendous amount of guilt which later defines who he is and can possibly explain his love for Saints(humans who make a difference not divine spirits). To me, Dunstan is a fool-saint because as he acts purely, he does bring unluckiness and tragedy to wherever he goes.

Theme: Mankind writes its own story. Dunstan accepted the role of fifth business and made it his story, figuratively and literally.

Author: Robertson Davies does a great job with this book. His use of Carl Jung archetypes adds an interesting aspect to the novel. Certain archetypes and tarot cards like the Magician and the Devil are seen through out the novel as portrayed in the characters of Magnus Eisengrim and Leisl. Mary Dempster parallels Virgin Mary and is considered a fool-saint. Dunstan is almost the namesake of the novel because he is "Fifth Business". There is a sort of irony in writing a story about having no story. Robertson uses the stone as a symbol of the circle of life, uncertainty and karma. Essential the stone embraces its very shape, a circle. It starts the novel and ends it as well starting Paul's life and ending Boy's.

Quotes

“by himself, by the woman he knew, by the woman he did not know, by the man who granted his wish, and by the inevitable fifth, who was the keeper of his conscience and the keeper of the stone.”

By far the most important quote in the novel. Who killed Boy? Well it has no concrete answer. Only that the members of his story would some way be a part of it. But, isn't that the case with anyone. You could argue that any member of ur life in some way shape or form can lead to your death. I think that's almost the point. In the end, it's just him having to deal with his conscious and karma for the way he treated the ones in his story.

"Percy had been throwing snowballs at me, from time to time, and I had ducked them all; I had a boy's sense of when a snowball was coming, and I knew Percy. I was sure that he would try to land one last, insulting snowball between my shoulders before I ducked into our house."

Thus is the center of all the guilt in Ramsey's life. He thinks of this moment as being responsible for his fifth business role. While he was just doing what he always did, avoid the snowball, the guilt is almost unbearable for him. This moment marks the goal of his life: repay his guilt.

Hamlet by Shakespeare

Setting: Denmark back in the day

Main Characters: Hamlet, Claudius, Ophelia, Gertrude, King Hamlet, Laertes, Young Fortinbras

Plot: The plot centers around the play's namesake: Hamlet. Hamlet sees a ghost of his dead father King Hamlet. Instantly he feels the filial obligation to avenge his dead father, who was killed by his brother and now King, Claudius. Hamlet acts crazy causing Claudius to search for the root cause of such insanity. Hamlet's love Ophelia decides to obey her father and betray Hamlet. Hamlet is enraged by such a betrayal and yells for Ophelia "to go thee to a nunnery". Throughout this scene, Hamlet's words play on two levels. In one sense his words imply those of a lover asking if she is serious. On another level, Hamlet is talking to Ophelia as if she were a prostitute. These two levels emphasize the Madonna-Whore complex in literature. Soon Hamlet's insanity is wide spread but is he actually insane? His words work on many levels implying thought, not gibberish. Hamlet acts as a christ-like figure and asks Gertrude to cast away her sin and incestuous sheets. After Hamlet kills Polonius, Ophelia kills herself and Laertes leads an uprising. Meanwhile Hamlet questions himself and his god and looks for verification by sending players to reenact a play of his father's murder. The final scene, like all shakespeare tragedies, end with every main character dying. However, to me it was a unique tragedy because Fortinbras survived and won! This wasn't a massacre it was a purge of sinners.

Theme: Filial obligation means not taking revenge and acting in your own self-interest, but rather improving the lives of your loved ones. Faith in one's religious and filial duty trumps all other aspirations.

Author: Shakespeare puts so much in this text. By far, his use of language is unparalleled. One of the key tools Shakepeare uses, is the use of foils. Foils in Hamlet as a means to provide meaning to the piece. Having Fortinbras come out as the victor shows that he was the only one not being selfish and the only one to truly follow his parent's wishes. But what of King Hamlet? One of the most interesting details in Hamlet is that King Hamlet is in purgatory for his sins. This is a huge deal to Hamlet, but acting as the hand of god led him to his own downfall.

"Go thee to a nunnery"-Hamlet
One of the most passionate scenes in Hamlet contains this phrase. These words work on multiple levels. On one level Hamlet is angry at Ophelia and asking her to join a Nunnery. On another level he is aking her to go to a prostitution house.

"To be or not to be"-Hamlet
Shakespeare's use of Sililoques are unmatched. In this sililoquy, shakespeare questions his faith with god. He loses his innocence. From now on, Shakespeare is a sinner. Controlled by the desire to avenge his father and save his mother, he acts along his own accord(not that of God)

Pride and Prejudice- Jane Austen

Setting: England early 1800's in a rural town

Key Characters: Elizabeth Bennet, Mr. Darcy, Mr. Bingley, Mrs. Bennet, Jane Bennet, Mr. Wickham

Plot Summary: A story of love, lust and feminist critique? Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice transforms past a simply love story and becomes an icon for feminist critiquing for the rest of the 1800s. The story begins centering on the Bennet family. They are a lower middle-class family with five daughters who seek social mobility through marriage. The main protagonist is Elizabeth Bennet, a proud and independent female. Throughout the novel she is the icon of feminism. She is smart, independent and unapologetic. Elizabeth Bennet meets Mr. Darcy at a dance and instantly dislikes his snobbish attitude. Her pride and class prejudice causes them to part separate ways. In a sub-plot, Jane Bennet, a traditional and beautiful foil to Elizabeth, falls for Mr. Bingley, a wealthy businessman. During many social encounters the most influential character is Mrs. Bennet. Mrs. Bennet tries to manipulate the social setting to create a favorable marriage. However, her actions do quite the opposite. By far the most influential scene is the cobra dance. Through a lot of useless plot developments the end result is by far Jane Austen’s greatest statement. The marriages describe Jane Austen’s views. The strong independent woman ends up the richest and happiest. Followed by the traditional woman Jane. Thus promoting individuality and intelligence, but not over love and marriage.

Theme: The promotion of female individuality and intelligence, but not over romance and marriage.

Jane Austen is an interesting writer. She in many ways was like an 1800's Stephenie Meyer. She wrote a relatively simply book with no real meat, but the story itself is the message. It's very plot driven. The actions and results of the story are what really shape the message, as opposed to intricate symbolism. Jane Austen's ability to us flowing  sentences and exciting plot has led to her fame in the writing community.


"It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife."
This instatntly materializes marriage. Women are a possession that are to be good at music, sewing, cooking and good grace. This sets the tone of independence and idolizing of Elizabeth.


"A lady's imagination is very rapid; it jumps from admiration to love, from love to matrimony, in a moment."-Darcy
Darcy shows his misogynic tone and his opinion of the fragility of women and their desire to fall in love. However, this differs greatly form Elizabeth. This difference leads to their love.

Ceremony by Leslie Marmon Silko

Setting: Laguna reservation

Significant Characters: Tayo, Betonie, Auntie, Tseh, Josiah, Rocky, Emo

Plot: The archetypal story of cycles and journeys. Tayo struggles to find his true identity as he is troubled by war and his brothers death. Tayo switches from his white to his native Laguna side throughout the story.  Tayo feels guilty for condemning the rain in the war and realizes the gravity nature plays. Nothing is purely good or bad. Everything has a purpose even rain. Tayo falls into habits of alcholism which is expected from the white washed natives. However as advice from the Indian medicine man Kuo'oush fails, Tayo looks toward Betonie. Betonie is like Tayo because he is half white and understands that ceremonies must adapt to the times. Betonie's Ceremony leads Tayo all through out the Laguna making reference to the cardinal directions and color scheme. Tayo meets Tseh and lives there for a summer. She then warns Tayo and send him on his way. Tayo completes the ceremony and the drought ends. Tayo finds out that Tseh is actually A'moo'ooh, the she-elk spirit. The ceremony and rain is Tayo's rebirth and fulfillment as a hero.

Theme: There is no pure evil or good only a combination of the two and just as sacred as traditions are, they must adapt to the times. Mistakes are much harder to fix than they are to create which is why we must never forget our traditions and values.

Author: Silko is a fairly progressive writer in the native community because she discloses ancient Laguna history and culture. She does this through short vignettes of cultural texts which play a deep role in the story. The poems interrelate to the story to create this full cycle of work. The story works on many levels and is to not be taken as an independent work. It is very much part of a larger scheme in describing native culture and the transforming beliefs. Betonie condemns natives more than whites because she is criticizing the assimilating population. This a key theme in the play and Silko does a fascinating job of playing on the hybrid race and role of Betonie and Tayo. By creating a hybrid character, it eliminates the racial part and creates a bigger emphasis on culture.

Key Quotes:
"They never thought to blame the white people for any of it; they wanted white people for their friends"-Tayo

A key moment when Tayo understand the witchery of the white man. Tayo sees the truth and where his culture and background lies. The white men took everything from them and yet they craved to see their acceptance? They war helped no one. It just spread the white man's hate. Tayo realizes this and understands that drinking at the bar is the last thing he should do.

"They saw his outline but they did not realize it was hollow inside.” -Tayo

Again this is an epiphany moment for Tayo. He sees the hallowness and the emptiness that has consumed him. He is not whole and will never be whole until he completes the ceremony and becomes whole again. He has to discover himself and his identity before the outline fills in.

Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller

Setting: 1950's during the post World War 2 industrial boom. Middle-class house and family.

Significant Characters: Willy, Biff, Ben, Happy, Linda, Charley, and Bernard

Plot: The plot focuses on the endeavors of the Loman family. Willy is Biff and Happy's father. He works as saleman selling his body and soul chasing the ideals of his brother Ben, hoping to sell the dream to his children. Biff is confused about his future goals. On one hand he can follow his father and sell his heart and seek the american consumerist dream, or he can go out west and become a farmer and reject the dream for substance. Biff battles with himself while Willy is simply lost in his dream. He is a slave to consumerism. Driven insane, he can't understand Biff. Lost in the past "glory" days, Arthur Miller uses flashback vignettes to paint progress the plot. By far, the most important memory is Willy's infidelity. This changing moment is when Biff loses his innocence and grows up. This is also the point when Willy is driven insane with guilty. With nothing left but an insurance policy and an unpaid mortgage, Willy gives his life for his dream. He and Linda are "finally free" from the burdens of consumerism. Biff rejects the consumerist age and decides to go west. Happy, however, stays back to continue Willy's legacy. Charley acts as a foil to Willy. Charles decides to study hard and build meaningful friendships, improving himself from the inside, rather than the exterior as Biff does.

Theme: The American dream of consumerism is a fake ideal without substance and true meaning. The dream lacks meaningful relationships and more over provides false hope. Willy lives in the past and the future and never seizes the present(Carpe Diem).

Author: Arthur Miller's heavy usage of flashbacks and dream-like vignettes disturbs the line between dream and reality. This technique adds to the false facade of the american dream. Willy is chasing dust and a memory. There is nothing to it and in the end he dies for it(cashing in on his life insurance thus paying his bills). Willy is constantly battling with a memory of his rich older brother ben. Arthur uses this to show the internal conflict within Willy. The prodigal sun, Biff and his foil brother Happy are used to show the competing schools of thought. Old vs. New. Materialism vs. Substance.

Key Quotes: "We’re free. . . ."-Linda
Free from the material grasp. Free of mortgage payments and debt. Many things conplete Linda's statement but what is most significant is deep slave imagery. Willy was a slave to the dream. He worked day and night with the only escape being his life insurance. This is a very radical belief: economic slavery.

"Walked into a jungle and comes out, the age of twenty-one, and he's rich!"-Willy

This is the dream. To walk into the capitalist jungle and walk out rich. However this dream is very similar to the 1890's dream as well. In fact, the dream is the same except the jungle changed and rich has taken on a different meaning. Jungle can mean a physical jungle as well. In fact the founding frontier philosophy that founded America was exactly this. But monetary wealth was not the primary focus in the old dream. The dream was to live a rich life. A life of adventure and outdoorsman, not fat cat capitalism.

The American Dream by Edward Albee

Setting: Middle-class household

Significant Characters: Grandma, Mommy, Young Man, Daddy, Mrs. Barker

Plot: Absurdist play emphasizing the rejection the American Dream as an empty and fake ideal. It starts with Mommy and Daddy waiting for Mrs. Barker while Grandma bring beautifully wrapped boxes inside. Mrs. Barker arrives and no ones knows why except for Grandma. There is sexual tension and disputes between what color Mommy's hat is. This again promotes the absurdist nature of the play while also emphasizing the meaningless of the American Dream. A young man arrives which Grandma calls the American Dream. The young man is empty inside and only has a hot body. He feels the pain of his twin's death(mommy and daddy's bumble of joy).

More Analysis: The Grandma is the old dream and acts outside of the play as the mediator to the audience. She knows all that is going on and acts more so as an outsider. Mommy and Daddy are the american people. I think Edward Albee works to show the controlling force of women in the relationship and often highlights the negative aspect of men letting their women control and immaculate them. Mrs. Barker is the power authority(government figure) who asserts her power but blindly. She has no idea why she is even in the house or her purpose, emphasizing the clueless nature of government.

Theme: "Emptiness" of the American dream. Just as the typical middle class house is empty and the Young man has no inner emotion, so is the American Dream. It lacks love, feelings and meaningful substance.

Author: Edward Albee uses an Absurdist style to help create an interesting criticism. While some authors use parodies or conceit Albee uses Absurdism. He has the most Absurd and meaningless dialogue regarding hat color to show exactly that, the American dream is meaningless. In fact the whole play is so absurd that you can argue that it is meaningless, thus correctly symbolizing the American Dream.

Key Quotes: "I no longer have the capacity to feel anything. I have no emotions." - Young Man
Shows the emptiness of the American dream. There is no emotion and no love. There is only a false exterior.

"WHAT a masculine Daddy! Isn't he a masculine Daddy?"-Mommy

This is used to patronize Daddy and show the power relations. Mommy has all the power especially after the vasectomy. American Dream in many senses is a criticism on powerful females like Mommy and Mrs. Barker who try to control things.

Open Prompt revised #4

1976. The conflict created when the will of an individual opposes the will of the majority is the recurring theme of many novels, plays, and essays. Select the work of an essayist who is in opposition to his or her society; or from a work of recognized literary merit, select a fictional character who is in opposition to his or her society. In a critical essay, analyze the conflict and discuss the moral and ethical implications for both the individual and the society. Do not summarize the plot or action of the work you choose.

The will of the common man rising against the power majority strikes a patriotic chord in the hearts of all Westerners. Thus, it is no surprise that this theme has transcended into the field of literature, in particular 1984 by George Orwell. In 1984, Orwell creates a character, Winston Smith, who fights the Big Brother government by breaking moral codes and attempting to destroy ethical barriers resulting in a novel that criticizes a centralized government.

Winston Smith's first signs of protest can be seen in his moral disobedience in standards of the Big Brother government. For instance, Winston's first "sin" is obtaining a diary, knowing full well that the punishment for owning such is death. Why choose this detail in the novel? Why a diary? George Orwell wants to not only show rebellion in Winston's heart, but also describe the Big Brother regime. The Big Brother government is a centralized power that through the use of the media chooses to propagate and manipulate its upper class into supporting the regime. Therefore Orwell chose a diary to illustrate Winston's desires to become an individual in a society of groups. Instantly, Orwell makes a connection to Winston's diary and democracy, rule of the individuals. 

The next big moral "sin" Winston partakes in is sex, which is an attempt by Winston to completely detach himself from ethical barriers of the Big Brother regime. Sex is biologically natural. However in the Big Brother government, it is banned. Again, you see that Orwell is, through Winston's rebellion, trying to paint a picture of how unnatural the big brother regime is. Orwell, like the English philosopher John Locke, is arguing that a government is built for the people and must promote individuality, not conformity.Why is this such an important point? Though the novel's title is 1984, it was written in the late 40's right after the devastating world wars. Thus the idea of "unnatural" government held a lot more weight because it alluded to regimes like Hitler's Third Reich and Mussolini's Italy, as well as the upcoming Soviet Union. 

The final "sin" Winston is guilty for is love, which in itself describes the foreignness of the Big Brother Regime because love is seen as an innocent treasure in Western society. Winston falls in love with Julia and finally he is able to experience life outside the Big brother regime. He experiences true freedom for the first time and craves it. Never does Winston fully recover from this drug of wanting to be free. Thus by breaking moral codes, he grows to crave a free government, not a centralized regime.

By defining the protagonist as a good and regular guy who breaks all the moral codes in this overbearing centralized society, George Orwell is implicitly criticizing all centralized government, primarily relating to the centralized Soviet Union, which was the main centralized regime of the 1950's.

open prompt revised #3

1990. Choose a novel or play that depicts a conflict between a parent (or a parental figure) and a son or daughter. Write an essay in which you analyze the sources of the conflict and explain how the conflict contributes to the meaning of the work. Avoid plot summary.

Parental conflict is an everyday experience for the  average teenager. However, in literature, it can often have deeper implications. On such example is in The American Dream by Edward Albee, in which the conflict between Mommy and Grandma  describes a generational change as opposed to a mere act of rebellion and the transformation of the American dream through time.

Mommy illustrates the growing trend in consumerism in America. Mommy enjoys the thrill of getting "satisfaction" of purchasing a "baige" hat opposed to a "wheat" hat, a reference to agriculture(the mark of the previous generation). Mommy, while looking up to authority, tries to increase her own social status. Mommy respects Mrs. Barker and engages in an implicit battle with Mrs. Barker over Daddy's satisfaction. Mommy is obsessed with the material world and makes it a job to remind that fact to Daddy, who is still nostalgic of the old beliefs that Grandma promotes.

Grandma, a manifestation of the older American dream, is constantly belittled by Mommy. Though Grandma is an elderly lady, she is the one with all the cards. She manipulates Mommy, Daddy and Mrs. Barker while also acknowledging the audience, which is significant because it creates a piece that isn't just a play but a deeper statement on the changing society and the changing American dream. The conflict between Mommy and Grandma alludes to the dismissal of the old frontier dream.

The surge in comsumerism in America marked a period in which the old frontier dream that founded the country became non-existent and the materialistic society became the new United States of America. Edward Albee highlights such changes through the fued he creates between Mommy and grandma.

Open prompt revised #2

1970. Choose a character from a novel or play of recognized literary merit and write an essay in which you (a) briefly describe the standards of the fictional society in which the character exists and (b) show how the character is affected by and responds to those standards. In your essay do not merely summarize the plot.

The love triangle in Titanic has captured the hearts of billions of people across the globe. In Shakespeare’s A Midsummer’s Night Dream, Hermia, like Kate Winslet in Titanic, faces the momentous battle between society and true love. In A Midsummer’s Night Dream, Shakespeare uses the rigid Ancient Greco society to create a comedic twist on Hermia and her love interests through the use of supernatural powers, just like in Ancient Greco epics.

The opening act in A Midsummer's Night Dream displays the rigid societal norms of the Greco Society. While Theseus is portrayed as a lawful and just leader, in modern terms his ruling would be highly controversial. The suppression of Hermia's voice in the ruling is the first huge piece of evidence that shows how rigid the society illustrated in the play is. On top of that, Theseus states that the ruling is a "gift" to Hermia, who is furious that her voice is neglected. Forced to obey her father, Hermia is twisted by society and her longing to be with Lysander. Though Hermia chooses to run away, it is important to note that none of this would have happened if the societal norms weren't so strict. 

Due to these strict norms, Shakespeare creates a comedic play, while using supernatural powers to emphasize the Greco society. A Midsummer's Night Dream could very easily be a Homeric epic. In ancient Greece, the Gods were not perfect, selfless, deities, often they mirrored the humans. Gods were just as selfish and arrogant as the humans. In Shakespeare's comedy, the Gods are no different than the humans. In fact, the main supernatural conflict is so closely intertwined with the human conflict that the Gods use the humans as pawns in their overbearing battle, just like in an Homeric epic. A key example of such is when Oberon makes his own wife Titania fall in love with a beast, but in doing so he begins to intertwine with Hermia's love affair as well. Thus causing the foundation of any good Shakespearean comedy, love triangles. Another aspect of Shakespearean plays is the use of a vivid setting. Since plays are primarily visual, having this supernatural experience happen in a forest seems almost too perfect. Nature is often associated supernatural Gods. Whether it be Buddhism and the Bo Tree, or in the Old Testament when Moses seeks God on a mountain, nature is always closely related to supernatural spirits. Thus by using the setting, Shakespeare adds to the idea of Ancient Greek Gods on Mount Olympus interfering with mankind and love.

The rigid Greco society in A Midsummer's Night Dream has many implications, primarily the use of supernatural powers to mirror those of the ancient Greek Gods. By doing so, Shakespeare creates a hilarious mortal comedy filled with love triangles and plot twists.

Open Prompt revised #1

1983. From a novel or play of literary merit, select an important character who is a villain. Then, in a well-organized essay, analyze the nature of the character's villainy and show how it enhances meaning in the work. Do not merely summarize the plot.

Was it Batman's goodness or the joker's evil that made Batman Gotham's dark knight? Bram Stoker, author of Dracula, would probably argue that the Joker made Batman a hero, not the other way around. Similarly, in Bram Stoker's Dracula, it was the evil character Dracula who not only sends the plot rolling and enhances character development,  but also allows the text to surpass a fictional novel and be readily applicable to early 20th century Europe.

Count Dracula bears all that is evil and often said to be the devil. However, Dracula's greatest evil is far more symbolic than physical. It is his general persona. He is the destroyer of innocence, particularly in females. Had Stoker created a villain that tormented men, the evilness of Dracula would be lost. Though Stoker creates this pure evil villain, there is a certain fondness he conveys with Dracula. Towards the beginning of the novel, Dracula slowly kills Lucy and then turns her into a vampire. The conversion of Lucy by blood is far more symbolic. The loss of innocence through blood transfusion alludes to sex and loss of virginity (often a parallel to innocence).  Again, Dracula doesn't just kill Lucy in the physical world, but also the spiritual and religious world. Dracula is the complete villain: he is foreign (from Transylvania), he attacks females (pure and innocent ones) and he not only kills their bodies, but ruins their souls so they can no longer go to heaven.

Why create an absolutely evil entity?  The idea of an absolutely evil entity is contrary to most ideologies that stress balance or Yin and Yang. However, Dracula is a very symbolic character so making him an absolutely evil entity is a very bold statement. The first conclusion that arises when looking at Dracula is that he is the manifestation of all things foreign in Britain during the early 20th century. Dracula is not only from Transylvania, but he is also anti-christian in the sense that any holy relic will burn him. Alone, this piece of evidence is insignificant, but in the grand scheme of early 20th Britain, Xenophobia was as big of a topic as it is in the sunbelt states in present-day United States. The greater implications that associate Dracula and the whole Anglo-Saxon superiority novel in general is what makes Dracula a must-read when studying British history.

Dracula in Stoker's famous novel is not just any villain used to create a conflict, he is the central key to the novel. His pure evil essence makes him a unique villain whose implications stem far past the details of the plot.

Review #4-present and future

Currently, we are looking at my favorite author Shakespeare. A genius in any era of time, Shakespeare's words resonate in any body of language. However, what we are looking at is not just Shakespeare, it's Hamlet, his most profound play! Hamlet is a great play because of the diction. While discussing this play in class, it's the words that are of greatest concern. The plot is okay, but nothing special. However, the diction is filled with biblical and philosophical allusions. Hamlet is my favorite character because he a genius who is essentially alone. I think it's interesting to look at a sole hero, acting on his own belief system. Hamlet acting on his love for his parents seeks to avenge his dead father and cleanse his lost mother. However, what may seem to be a physical battle is just about anything but that. Hamlet is looking for redemption in his parent's soles. Yes an intellectual who is very religious and spiritual, to me a unique character. Sorry religious readers, it's not often that you see a man of science, logic and phychology acting as a god-like character. The plays also has many sub-plots decribing women, primarily Ophelia and Getrude, as well as true friednship.

In the future, I see us working on AP test multiple choice stuff and doing more reading in preparation for the exam. I'm not looking forward to this test....

Review #3 looking at the texts

Oh the joys of opening a book... Though I can't read, many of my classmates have enjoyed reading The American Dream, Pride and Prejudice and Ceremony.

Here's a summary/analysis of each:

The American Dream is a satirical play that criticizes the idea of the american dream. Unlike most other novels or plays about the american dream, the main characters, apart from the grandma, remain clueless on the unattainability of the american dream.

Pride and Prejudice by the 19th century Stephanie Meyer(not exactly a compliment), is a novel describing the economic relations of the 1800's through the life of Elizabeth Bennett. While studying the diction of the play as well as the details, I drew the conclusion that many females of the time solely relied on marriage as gaining weath and a future. However, many women were forced to compromise on their indepence which was Jane Austen's biggest critique of the current society.

Ceremony was my least favorite text. mostly because I didn't really understand it. The text was unique and opened my eyes to a different culture and different writing style. It is essentially a composition of oral traditions fused with the american writing style, Silko's writing works on many levels. The implications are very profound as the text itself is meant to be seem as an oral tradition and ceremony within itself.

review #2- Delving into AP land

In the first sememster, we focused on tearing apart a text, AKA close readings. We used Diction, Imagery, Details, Language and Syntax to find effects in texts. These effects are used as evidence to formulate a hypothesis(or meaning) for the piece. In essence, a close read is an experiment. A question is posed, the prompt, and you must use your observations, techniques, to formulate and thesis, hypothesis. Within each technique, there are specific subcategories. These subcategories are essentially how you go about analyzing a text. For instance in diction, you look at the elevation of speech, regionalism, and connotations of certain phrases. These sub categories are what you look through during your second read, when you mark up your text.

The introduction and thesis was another spot that we, as a class, spent a lot of time on. We looked at the three sentence intro format as well as the thesis statement. The thesis must include every aspect of the prompt in order to obtain a high score on the AP exam. The thesis statement is the end product of a string of arguments. These arguments are stated in the topic sentence of each body paragraph and thus elaborated on in the respective body paragraph. Together it forms a cohesive and high scoring essay.

Review #1-The beginning

The beginning of the year consisted of knowledge enhancement. We worked on learning the basics for literary analysis. This includes learning allusions! The Bible and Greek mythology can be found in just about any text. The references are so widespread that they provide a basic foundation of literature and archetypal understanding. These texs are rich with stories that are repeated millions of times through out the course of literary history. Without this knowledge, one's understanding of literary elements would be incomplete. Another interesting thing we did was read Foster's How to Read Literature. This book described certain aspects of literature that are repeated and thus meaningful, such as weather, hansel and gretel and cardinal directions.