Resolution - Frankenstein

"Blasted as thou wert, my agony was still superior to thine..." (166).

The creation spoke these words to the deceased Frankenstein in the final scene of the novel. It kind of struck me as odd when reading this line. "My agony was still superior to thine" just says to me, "Hey Victor, sorry about everything, but I still went through more than you ever did, so my life is worse." If the creation was really so remorseful I don't know why he would find it necessary to throw that line in while he was speaking to him. It just seemed a little insensitive to me at least. My suspicions were also correct that the creation would be on the boat with Victor and Robert. I was not expecting them both to die though. I was hoping Victor would finally get revenge and go back to a normal life. But I suppose he would never really be able to have a normal life again regardless without any loved ones left in his life.

Insights - Frankenstein

"Nothing is so painful to the human mind as a great and sudden change," (146).

This quote from the novel really stuck out at me when I read it. I find an unbelievable amount of truth in this phrase which helped make the book more universal in my opinion. This quote was spoken by Victor while contemplating earlier events of the day when Elizabeth was taken from him by his creation. Death is a perfect example of a great and sudden change that pains the mind, especially when it is unexpected. Other surprising events, such as a destructive accident of some sort, also can cause much pain because of all the anxiety a person has about it and all the questioning and worrying and wondering what will happen next. Any change though, no matter how big or small, that causes a break in routine always results in bothersome to painful thoughts. The mind can be our worst enemies at times. We blame others, then ourselves, then we question why such a thing would happen until we cannot think straight any longer. This ultimately leads Victor to his demise. He becomes so distraught at himself for making the creation that killed his wife that he is driven to starvation, dehydration, and other harsh extremes for revenge. His pain causes him to completely forget everything else but his need to kill his creation.

Foreshadowing - Frankenstein

"No, it is not thus; your form so divinely wrought, and beaming with beauty, has decayed, but your spirit still visits and consoles your unhappy friend," (114).

Victor speaks this line to Robert when telling him about his best friend Henry. His word choice to describe him foreshadows his death to come, like saying his body is decayed but spirit is still alive. This foreshadowing keeps the reader locked into the novel to find out what will happen to Henry, Victor, and the creation. Shelley foreshadows many times throughout the novel, always hinting at bad things that are to come. This line was way more obvious though as to what would happen than other foreshadowing phrases used in the book. It helped get the idea across that Victor's creation meant what he said and would keep his promise. He would definitely not be afraid to kill someone Victor cared about if he did not get what he wanted. This also put the idea in my mind that Henry would not be the only close individual to Victor who would be killed later on, which was proved to be true when Elizabeth was killed.

Rhetorical Question - Frankenstein

"His tale, and the feelings he now expressed, proved him to be a creature of fine sensations; and did I not as his maker, owe him all the portion of happiness that it was in my power to bestow?" (105).

This line spoken by Victor asks himself whether or not he should make a companion for his creation. He understands his creation's reasoning and tries to come to terms with himself for making another one. Victor has been severely affected mentally by his creation since day one. First he stops caring for himself just to make the thing, then he undergoes frequent depressions about what he has done. Every time he does something bad thereafter, Victor again blames himself and beats himself up about what he has done. The happy young man from the beginning completely vanishes into a depressed individual who has nothing figured out anymore. It would be a very difficult decision deciding whether or not to make another creature, especially when being threatened. Victor always seemed to seek answers but unfortunately never really found any.

Simile - Frankenstein

"She sang, and her voice flows in a rich cadence, swelling or dying away, like a nightingale of the woods," (83).

This simile is used by the creation to describe Safie's singing voice. He had never heard a human sing and was amazed at the beauty of it. I liked reading about the creation's first experiences. It was interesting thinking about what it would be like to not have any words or ability to describe what was going on. When we all learned about this kind of stuff, we were too young to remember what it was like. But for the creation, he was very aware that he was different and had no idea what was going on. I cannot imagine how difficult that would be and how lost one would feel in that situation. This creation was lucky that he had a superhuman mind and was able to catch on quickly! Otherwise it would have been terribly difficult to catch on.

The Creation's Diction - Frankenstein

"'Be calm! I entreat you to hear me, before you give vent to your hatred on my devoted head. Have I not suffered enough, that you seek to increase my misery? Life, although it may only be an accumulation of anguish, is dear to me, and I will defend it,'" (69).

Upon Victor's first true interactive encounter with his creation, they converse with each other and the monster tells him a long story about his journeys over the past couple of years. What I find unusual is that Victor's creation speaks just as eloquently if not more so than Victor himself. How is it that this monster can speak this way when he has basically been alone his whole life which has lasted a mere two years? It bothered me to read these words spoken by this creation. I was expecting at least some more simple diction and phrases, not words like accumulation, entreat, and anguish. Some people I know today barely know what those words mean, let alone a monster that has only been alive a few years. It kind of made me lose some of my engagement in the book. The conversation became less believable which made it more difficult to continue on. But then again, little things like this probably bother me far too much. Others may not have been affected at all.

Stereotype - Frankenstein

"'Devil,' I exclaimed, 'do you dare approach me?'...'I expected this reception,' said the daemon. 'All men hate the wretched; how, then, must I be hated, who am miserable beyond all living things!'" (68).

From the beginning, Victor had always been terrified of his creation. He ran from him and did not see him for two whole years while letting him wander about. He was terrified based on the monster's large size, yellow skin, thin black lips, and overall appearance. Victor never tried to be with his creation for more than a few seconds, although I cannot blame him. However, his ideas were very stereotypical. Upon the awareness that his creation could have killed his brother, he stereotyped even further by calling him a demon and many other negative names. When meeting him, Victor calls him the devil and tells him to leave. He soon realizes that his stereotypical views of him were not all true. He did not want to hurt Victor or anyone for that matter. He just desired new knowledge about humanity and what was around him, very similar to Victor's desires.

Foreshadowing - Frankenstein

"Thus I spoke my prophetic soul, as, torn by remorse, horror, and despair, I beheld those I loved spend vain sorrow upon the graves of William and Justine, the first hapless victims to my unhallowed arts," (60).

Concluding Chapter VIII, Victor foreshadows further tragedies to occur throughout the novel. He says that William and Justine were the first victims. This implies that many more people will become victims of the monster Victor created. This foreshadowing further enhances the eerie tone of the novel by indicating tragic events will occur. Again this literary tool functions to build the curiosity of the reader as to what kind of events will happen next. Knowing more people are to die causes the reader to develop theories as to who will be the next victim. Reading the novel is made easier and goes by more quickly when one is thinking and developing inferences. Without the use of these literary tools, the novel would not flow and build up to the climax.

Tone - Frankenstein

"It was a dreary night of November that I beheld the accomplishment of my toils," (34).

This sentence opens Chapter V, setting an eerie tone for the remainder of the chapter. Because of this change in tone, the reader is made aware that something bad is about to happen. This signal helps to keep the reader anticipating what will happen next. The tone also helps the reader to infer that this creation will not produce desirable outcomes. In order to properly demonstrate the occurrences in the novel, the change in tone must take place. Without these changes, anticipation would be diminished making the creation chapter seem dull and less undesirable. Contributing to the tone was Shelley's word choice throughout the chapter. She describes Victor's feelings of "anxiety that almost amounted to agony" and describes the darkness of the room as his "candle was nearly burnt out."

Metaphor - Frankenstein

"The world was to me a secret which I desired to divine," (18).

Victor was describing to Walton how he viewed the world. Curiosity overcame Victor and he sought out much knowledge about how the world worked and the laws of nature. This curiosity and thirst for discovery overcomes Victor and drives him to become obsessed with his experiments to create life. After he solved this "secret" of the world however, he ultimately regrets discovering it. Seeking such knowledge for power never results in a good ending. It reminds me of the movie Bruce Almighty in which a man is given God's powers for a short while. He discovers just as Victor does that having so much power and knowledge is not always a good thing and often causes more trouble than good. Our own desires are not always what is best for everyone else.

1984 - Resolution

"But it was all right, everything was all right, the struggle was finished. He had won the victory over himself. He loved Big Brother," (298).

The resolution of the novel was very disappointing to me. I expected Winston to lead a revolt against the Party and help make the world the way it once was. It was sad that Winston actually conformed. But I think it may serve as a more realistic example than having a happy ending. Conformity was his only way to survive. He had to make himself believe. Convincing oneself of something for so long often times actually makes one believe it to be true. Winston fell in love with Big Brother because Big Brother was his only means for survival. As an animalistic society, survival was top priority. Love in an animalistic sense means recognizing what helps sustain life, in this case Big Brother. The book serves more to demonstrate the harsh effects of totalitarianism and corruption rather than to provide a story of a hero's conquest at revolting which I believe I failed to recognize until this point.

1984 - Paradox

"Stupidity was as necessary as intelligence, and as difficult to attain," (279).

This paradox appears as Winston is trying to force himself to conform to the ideals of the Party. He does everything in his power to stop his prior thoughts from escaping his mouth. Winston is intelligent and he knows it. He is certain of the fact that the Party lies and that the world used to be greatly different. But in order to survive such a world, he needed to get rid of this intelligence or find a way to bury it away so it would not be clear to others. Stupidity was what all the true followers of the Party had. Stupidity was conformity without any thought. It meant never questioning, being curious, or seeking answers. It meant blind acceptance of whatever was handed to you. Winston recognized such stupidity in his world which is what drove him to seek revolt. After torture though, he seems to wish he was just as stupid as all the rest.

1984 - Theme

"Power is inflicting pain and humiliation. Power is in tearing human minds to pieces and putting them together again in new shapes of your own choosing," (266).

One of the major themes towards the end of the novel is that physical pain has incredible control over a person's emotional state. Winston along with many other prisoners in the Ministry of Love are tortured beyond belief in order to get them to change their opposing views of the Party and Big Brother. Winston eventually begins conforming to their ideas because he will do anything to stop the pain. Knowing that he cannot escape the bed he is strapped to and knowing that he has no control over the pain that is inflicted upon him causes him to force himself to conform to the views of the Party. This is how the Party gains their power. By taking over the physical human body, they begin to take over their emotional state as well. Most would listen to authorities if it meant that the physical torture would be put to an end. This is a very universal theme in some ways. If someone is tortured, the one who is inflicting the torture will inevitably get what they want, giving them more and more power and control over that individual.

1984 - Irony

"'Who denounced you,' said Winston. 'It was my little daughter,' said Parsons... 'I don't bear her any grudge for it, in fact I'm proud of her...'" (233).

Parsons being sent to jail because of his daughter and him being accepting of it shows just how corrupt the government in 1984 is. It is a sad but true irony of this fictional world. Citizens have been so brainwashed that they go so far as to say they are proud of their own child for turning them in and getting them sent to the Ministry of Love. Children are taught to look out solely for themselves, even if that means betraying their own caregivers. They are animalistic and seek only self protection. Loving relationships are becoming more and more nonexistent as more generations appear. The only way a person can obtain full self protection is by doing everything possible to follow the Party and all of their rules, no matter what that entails. This fear and corruption causes the Party to gain more and more power as the future generations begin to populate society.

1984 - Foil Characters

"'I've got the book,' he said as they disentangled themselves.

'Oh, you've got it? Good,' she said without much interest and almost immediately knelt down beside the oilstove to make the coffee," (200).

The differences between Winston and Julia become the most apparent when he receives Goldstein's novel. Upon receiving the book Winston is excited and craving to know about the past and what he can do to change the future. Julia shows significant disinterest. She seems to care less about the past and future, but more about her present life and happiness. Winston wants to know why things are the way that they are. He seeks knowledge and understanding. Julia just wants to be content with her life and obtain personal pleasure. She seems to give no thought as to why things are the way that they are. She just accepts it and tries to find other ways to compensate for drawbacks to the Party's complete control.

1984 - A Life of Fear

"He could keep on her track till they were in some quiet place, and then smash her skull in with a cobblestone," (101).

This was a notion that passed through Winston's mind when he saw Julia had followed him to the antique shop and was worried she would report him. This shows how much fear and paranoia these people were living with. They would ultimately do anything to prevent themselves from being reported. Even plan how you were going to kill someone who just walked by. When reading this sentence, it also seemed somewhat animalistic of Winston to say. He spoke of tracking her to a quiet place then going in for the kill, just as an animal hunts his prey. That is what these people have basically been reduced to in the eyes of the government - animals. There is no honesty, integrity, or the like. There is only a basic knowledge of what they must do in order to survive from day to day.

1984 - Orthodoxy

"The whole climate of thought will be different. In fact there will be no thought, as we understand now. Orthodoxy means not thinking - not needing to think. Orthodoxy is unconsciousness," (53).

This line is spoken by Syme when speaking of what job he was working on for the party. Syme informed Winston that he was helping to delete words from the dictionary and create a stronger knowledge of the Newspeak language. Having less words entails less ways to describe oneself. The people were becoming more limited with each new day. With limited word selection, the people would have no means of describing or even truly knowing how they feel because there would be no words for it. It limits an individual's ability to think. Everything quite honestly becomes nothing. Thought would not really even exist. How can someone truly think about things if they have no way to understand anything? Language is a key component to being aware of everything - thoughts, feelings, the surrounding world. Without it, the people of Oceania could most definitely be considered unconscious. This would give the government ultimate power and ultimate control without ever having to worry about rebellion. How could anyone consider that to be orthodox?

1984 - Imagery

"He looked around the canteen. A low ceilinged, crowded room, its walls grimy from the contact of innumerable bodies; battered metal tables and chairs, placed so close together that you sat with elbows touching; bent spoons, dented trays, coarse white mugs; all surfaces greasy, grime in every crack; and a sourish, composite smell of bad gin and bad coffee and metallic stew and dirty clothes," (59).

Imagery is definitely one of the most noticeable aspects of this novel. Every new place was described in perfect detail with nothing left unmentioned. This is a crucial component to fully understanding the novel and what this totalitarian world was like. With George Orwell's frequent descriptions and attention to detail, the reader is truly in Oceania seeing what the characters are seeing. It provides a better foundation to understand how drastically different this new world is from what used to be. The descriptions always depict a dirty, rundown area. Everything feels gloomy and almost sickly. This also coincides with the differences in people as well as with these previously stated differences in the two worlds. People used to have more life, more freedom, more happiness. Now they lived in a world of gloom but were too brainwashed to know any better. They all just accepted the way things were.

1984 - Symbol

"The paperweight was the room he was in, and the coral was Julia's life and his own, fixed in a sort of eternity at the heart of the crystal," (147).

Previously in the novel, Winston purchased a paperweight from the antique shop because he is fascinated with anything from the past before this new world. This object became a huge symbol for everything Winston hoped for and desired. The paperweight was glass with a piece of coral trapped in the center of it. Here he uses another metaphor to explain the symbolic nature this object represents. The outside surface of the paperweight he compared to the room in which he and Julia rented to be alone together, and the coral he compared to himself and Julia. When in this room, Winston wished they could stay inside forever, just as the coral will forever be within the glass. The glass provided protection to the coral in that nothing could damage it in any way. It was protected from everything in the outside world. When in this room, Julia and Winston were protected as well. They did not have to deal with any thought police, telescreens, etc. Winston's ultimate desire was to stay there forever inside such a safe world of freedom.

1984 - Metaphor

"The room was a world, a pocket of the past where extinct animals could walk," (150).

After spending the night at an old man's antique shop with Julia, Winston falls in love with the idea of having a place all alone to himself where no one could tell him what to do. No one could watch him or punish him. He finally felt free, if only just for a few hours every now and again. The metaphor he uses for this room was undoubtedly the best way to describe the experiences it gave him. It shows that it is everything Winston desires to have in his life once again. The "extinct animals" refer to all the people living in such totalitarianism. It shows that at one time, these "animals" were alive and thriving. But they became "extinct" as time went on and they had their lives taken away from them by dictators who gained total control over them. To Winston, being the "extinct" animal that he was, this new world where he could "walk" again or be free was the ultimate dream and desire that he wished for all people.

Death of a Salesman - Reflective Entry

After completing my reading of this play, I had many questions that remained ambiguous. One of them was did Linda know that Willy was unfaithful to her? It is not clear how long Willy has been delusional. Did she stay with him to keep an eye out on him? I would think she would know that he had an affair based on all the talking he did with himself. I would think that something would have been revealed through his hallucinations and flashbacks. She seems so in love with him, even through his lying and odd behavior. She continues to try to build him up, even though he has not done much to earn it. "Willy, darling, you're the handsomest man in the world...And the boys, Willy. Few men are idolized by their children the way you are," (1563). In reality the boys do not seem to idolize their father, especially not Biff. She frequently told her sons to stop aggravating Willy or leave. She still chose him over her children. I never quite understood why Linda tries to make him out as a better person than he is.

Death of a Salesman - Question 2

Death of a Salesman could be described as a tragedy. The play gives an account of Willy's life shortly before death in which we learn of his tragic flaw and his downfall. Through witnessing his flashbacks and hallucinations, the reader/viewer of the play is able to understand where Willy went wrong in his life. Willy often thinks of situations he regrets, such as the time he cheated on his wife and when Biff caught him. He regrets how his relationship ended up with his son as he recalls when Biff yells at him,"You fake! You phony little fake!" (1618). Willy had the potential to be a hero to is family if he would have overcome his pride and work for his neighbor in order to provide for his family rather than continuing to lie and borrow money. His excessive pride led to his downfall, as he frequently flashed back to the moments he regretted. These thoughts consumed him and all that he could think about was making things right with his family, leading to his tragic death that left Linda completely alone.

Death of a Salesman - Question 6

The theatrical component of music is used to contribute to Death of a Salesman. The playwright indicates Willy's flashbacks or hallucinations through this physical effect given in the stage directions.

"Willy: I'm getting awfully tired, Ben. (Ben's music is heard. Ben looks around at everything.)

Charley: Good, keep playing; you'll sleep better. Did you call me Ben?

...

Ben: His flute. He played the flute

Willy: Sure, the flute, that's right! (New music is heard, a high, rollicking tune.)

(pages 1568,1571)

The music takes Willy back to previous times in his life and serve as a reminder of his past. The music also helps to signal to the reader/audience when these flashbacks or hallucinations are occurring throughout the play. Without this cue, the play would be more difficult to follow along with.

The Glass Menagerie - Reflective Response

After thinking about this story, I decided I do not really care much for Tom. As stated in my previous post, I think the whole play just seems like a sad excuse for how he ended up exactly like his own father. Unless my interpretations about this play are completely wrong, I think he is honestly just a jerk. Obviously I can understand why he would be sick and tired of working to support his family, but I think he makes things out to be far worse in the play than they actually were. He makes himself out to be so much better than the rest of his family. He only discussed the flaws of others to try to make the audience sympathize with him. This was not exactly reality. Through his portrayal he tries to justify his father's actions along with his own to make himself out to be rising above his hardships, when in reality I think he may have just been running from them.

The Glass Menagerie - Question 7

Unlike most plays I have read, time is never an established factor in Tennessee Willaims' The Glass Menagerie. Because Tom is recalling everything from memory, the sequence of events is not necessarily in chronological order. This play also seems like it takes only a few days when in reality it could have been much longer. Amanda asked Tom to find Laure a gentleman caller. What seemed to be the next day could have really been days or even weeks in reality. I believe time was changed so greatly because Tom was trying to justify his own actions of leaving his family. With each scene in the play, the audience perceives Tom and Amanda as near rivals with one another. They were constantly arguing or Amanda was nagging at him. This makes the audience side with Tom in his decision to leave. But in reality, each moment that passed between Amanda and Tom could not have been so angry and spiteful. The audience only sees what Tom chose to show them. There is another side to every story. In the final stage directions, Amanda is described as having "dignity and tragic beauty." Her gestures are also described as "slow and graceful." In this final portrayal of Amanda, she does not seem quite like what Tom was describing. She was comforting her daughter lovingly; she was not nagging or making Laura feel inferior by any means.

The Glass Menagerie - Question 6

A large component of The Glass Menagerie was the contribution of music. The main theme song was titled "The Glass Menagerie" as well, composed by Paul Bowles. This song was cued at carefully selected moments in Tom's recollection of the past. It was played most often surrounding Laura's mood changes to sadness, inferiority, or embarrassment. On page 1239, the song is first introduced when Amanda inquires about gentleman callers to Laura. "What? No one - not one? You must be joking!" At this comment, Laura becomes ashamed and distances herself from the others behind the portieres, serving as a great indicator of her feelings of embarrassment and inferiority. This song was symbolic of Laura. She herself was like the glass collection she had: fragile, unusual to others, and easily broken.

Othello - Reflective Entry

The end to Act V did not surprise me all that much since this play was carried out as a typical Shakespearian tragedy. What was unexpected was Iago's silence in the last part of the act. I was expecting more rebuttal from Iago, but instead he merely says, "Demand me nothing. What you know, you know. From this time forth I never will speak a word," (V.ii.302-303). At any other point in this story, Iago would have fabricated an explanation to get himself out of this situation. In this last scene though he decides to just remain silent. I do not understand what caused this change. I cannot see Iago feeling guilty for anything he caused, especially since he stabbed his own wife just minutes before, so I do not know why he would decide to let himself be taken in so easily.

Othello - Question 5

Othello presents largely the theme of seeking revenge. The entire plot is centered around Iago's plans to get revenge first on Cassio then Othello. In addition, Iago's plans cause other characters to seek revenge as well. After witnessing Iago converse with Cassio, he believes it has been confirmed that Cassio has slept with Desdemona. As a result, Othello plans different ways to kill Desdemona to get his revenge by either hanging her (IV.i.174), chopping her up (IV.i.184), or by poisoning her (IV.i.188). This revenge increases the pleasure of the theatrical experience for the audience. Revenge heightens suspicion as to how far the characters will go. The lesson seems rather didactic due to the fact that all characters had negative consequences for their actions, suggesting that Othello was intended not only to give a pleasurable theatrical experience, but also to teach a lesson that seeking revenge has dire consequences.

Othello - Question 2

Othello is a dramatic tragedy. It is also primarily romantic. This is evident through the passion and emotion shared through the characters' responses and statements. When Othello is made aware that he has wrongly murdered Desdemona, he exclaims, "Whip me, ye devils, From the possession of this heavenly sight! Blow me about in winds! Roast me in sulphur! Wash me in steep-down gulfs of liquid fire! O Desdemona! Desdemona! Dead! Oh! Oh! Oh!" (V.ii.276-281). It is important to know the classification of a play before experiencing the play. It helps to prepare the audience for the outcome of the play. In this case the audience would know not to expect a happy ending. It also helps to pick up on foreshadowing which builds the suspense as the play ensues.