Discussion Question 4/19/13

Is Gatsby crazy?

I do think that Gatsby is crazy. To me, crazy is defined as doing illogical things that affect your life. He has spent the past 5 years doing everything in order to get a second chance with Daisy. He bought a big house near her and throws giant parties in order to have her somehow show up. All he wants is to be with her, and nothing else in his life matters. He has allowed his love for her to consume everything in his life. To me, this is a problem, and a sign of craziness.

On a separate note, Gatsby owns a yellow-colored car. Daisies are yellow. Therefore, he bought a daisy-colored car.

Gatsby 4/12/13

What impressions do we get of Gatsby before we meet him? How does this compare to our first meeting with him?

Gatsby is seen as a very rich man. His wealth is talked about in the book a good amount before we meet him. There is also a sense of mystery around him. Everyone discusses how he is this great man, but no one mentions any details. He is also known as a man who loves to party. All know about his over-the-top parties. This description of him is echoed once he is introduced in the book. He is a wealthy man, and throws extravagant parties. His mysterious side is also shown, as no one at the party knows anything about him. He seems like a recluse, as he does not hang out with many people at the party. Because he does not interact with many of the guests, he seems to be a mysterious person.

Mark Twain's Intentions 4/4/13

Informed by what you know about Mark Twain, his culture, and the text itself, what do you think Twain's intentions in writing are?

I think that Mark Twain is trying to display his views on the south as a whole. Originally, I believed that it was only used to critique slavery. However, as the story has progressed, I realized that Huck Finn was used for much more. One big example of this is the speech by Sherburn to the mob at his house. Throughout the entire speech, he critiques all of these people for being cowards. Although Sherburn was born in the south, he also lived up north. During his speech, he berates the mob and critiques everything about them. He looks down upon the people of the south. To me, Sherburn is Mark Twain. He lives a very similar life as they both lived in both areas. Mark Twain put himself in the story as this character, and this character looks down upon the south. Therefore, this entire story is used to show his hatred of the south. He believes they are inferior people to the north.

Satire 3/28/13

Is Huck Finn a satire? Why or why not? Is it funny? What is it criticizing?

I don't find Huckleberry Finn sarcastic at all. To me, the story is not funny at all, nor is is trying to be. This is not to say that Mark Twain is not funny. Instead, it seems to be an adventure story without any humor. It might be because the humor used fits better in the time period that it was written. A lot has changed in 130 years. The style of humor has obviously changed. I am used to the humor of current times. This may explain why I do not find the story unfunny.

Con Artist and Maturity 3/25/13

How does the newest anecdote of the two con artists continue to reveal the tension between the maturity AND immaturity of Huck's perspective and voice?

Hey Diary,

Now I didn't understand why Huck and Jim are pretending to the cons, "Oh yeah you're these famous people."  At first it confused me as to why he would choose to be
an idiot, in my opinion. Why does he agree to serve them like they are royalty?        All of the people in the boat know they are lying, but they continue to act like they're
stars. It seems like an immature thing; why would you allow these people to act and get whatever they want? On the other hand, it is kind of a mature thing.
Your best friend is a slave, and if he brought up the lie, it might cause problems. This
game of pretending is very mature of him. I am torn; I do not know which side he is
on: maturity or immaturity. Maybe Huck is both of them.

Huck Morality 3/20/13

How does Huck understand right and wrong? How does he put this "morality" to work?

Querida diario,

I think Huck has a very strange sense of right and wrong. Sometimes, he seems to have a clear moral compass. However, he is also rude other times. For example, he snuck out of the widow's house to hang out with Tom Sawyer. He knows this is something that she would not approve of, but he does it anyway. At the same time, when he has a chance to get rid of Jim, he decides to save him. This is a very kind thing to do. He could have turned him in (because he was black), but seemed to value his friendship more. These seem very conflicting. I think he knows right and wrong, but chooses to do whatever benefits him.

Adios,
Evan

Emma Changing 2/5/13

What does Emma learn with each new experience, each new man?
Does she grow? If so, how?
Static/dynamic?
Which other characters are static or dynamic?

Emma does not learn anything from each new man that she has a relationship with. Throughout the book so far, she continues to long for someone else, but never truly finds who she is looking for. If she did, Emma would not try to go after more guys. For example, if Leon was her true lover, then she would not go after Rudolphe. I believe she does not know what she wants. That is the most important thing that a person can learn in their life, and she has not learned it. Because of this, she has not learned anything. She must learn to figure out what she wants, and then she will be able to find happiness. She is a static character because her mindset does not change. She continues to look for something, but doesn't know what that something is.

Unpacking Madame Bovary Quote 1/15/13

Find lines that need further explanation, or examples given to explain what Flaubert means. What does it tell you about Emma? And/or her culture?

"She has against her the weakness of the flesh and the inequity of the law."
This quote directly means that women, in general, are weaker than men. Physically, men are stronger than women. Also, the law is favored to men. It discriminates against women. Laws are much more relaxed for men. They have more freedom than women. In general, life/society is set up to help men succeed and have an easier life.

For the entire passage, this shows that Emma partially believes that her life is hard because she is a woman. In her mind, she would not have depression if she was a male. Because of this, she hopes for her child to be a man. Emma does not want her baby to go through the same hardships that she went through. However, I do not agree with her. Men definitely have an advantage in this society. However, there are women who are happy. Not ever women in Tostes is upset or depressed. Emma's problem stem from herself, not her gender. Therefore, she should not worry about her child having a worse life because of her gender.

Significance of Ball Quotes 1/10/12

Find passages from Chapter 8 (or elsewhere) that reveal the significance/symbolic value of the ball.

Top of page 49: "some of the details faded but the wistful feeling remained with her." "Her heart resembled them: in its context with wealth, something had rubbed off on it that could not be removed."

The ball represents the life that she wished she had lived. Before, in the story, she talked about the lives she read about in books while she was in school. She wished for a life like that. However, living with Charles did not provide that excitement. She dealt with it for a while until the ball. Once she went to the ball, she knew that her life with Charles would not be good enough. She had experience what she wanted, and she would never be able to take anything less. I would predict that in the future, she will try to make her life more like the peoples' at the ball. Whether this means changing Charles or trying to leave him, she will not be able to settle for a lesser life.

End of page 32-33

This shows what she read and how she wanted a life like that. This happened way before the ball but is exactly what she wants. Her longing for a fairy tale life is rooted in her readings as a young child.