“Eveline” is a short story about a 19 year old girl named Eveline who is about to leave to Buenos Aires with her lover, but then comes to a realization that this is not what she wants or what her mom or family would want.
Level One Question:
Where is Eveline supposed to go with Frank?
Level Two Question:
Why do did Eveline decided not to go with Frank?
Level Three Question:
If you were put in Eveline’s place, what decision would you make?
The theme of this story is that people, whether they want to or not, can sometimes feel tied to their families and cannot break away. They can feel like the have a duty to them.
This story has James Joyce’s main themes. The young woman, Eveline, lives in the declining middle-class of society. Her family has to struggle and work hard just to make it through. Eveline and Harry rarely got any money from their dad since he wasted it on alcohol. Any hard earned money was used in a pub, instead of for food, a better home, or a raise in the social class. She had to live a life without much happiness and money.
Eveline tried to get about from this boring life of “self denial and drab duties” because she wants something more. Frank becomes her escape from this environment when he asks her to go the Buenos Aires with her. She believes that if she goes with him that she will be happy and will not have any worries. However, once she is about to leave with Frank, she keeps thinking about how she promised to her mom that she would “keep the home together as long as she could” and this causes her to have an epiphany. She realizes that tradition and respect for her family is important. When she has to choose between happiness and her home, she chooses her home. She knows she has to do her duty to take care of her family as she promised. She thought she would have chosen happiness, but in reality, she had too many tires to her home and Dublin. She cannot free herself and perhaps she is afraid of uncertainties and insecurities of the outside world.
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Monday, September 8, 2008
Araby
“Araby” is a short story about a young boy who is obsessed with a girl and his obsession leads him to Araby or bazaar where he has an epiphany about himself, his desires, and the reality of life.
Level One Question:
Who does the boy get the money from?
Level Two Question:
What was the boy’s epiphany and why did he have it?
Level Three Question:
How is the bazaar symbolic?
The theme of this story is reality versus fantasy. People can sometimes be tricked by other actions or appearances and believe things that are not true. Gradually over time people will become mature and realize that love is not just a physical attraction and fantasies may never come true.
The narrator of this story is an adolescent boy who is experiencing his first love. It seems that he is only in love with her because of her looks. In fact, the only have said “a few casual words”. He thinks he knows the girl because he lays “on the floor in the front parlor watching her door” and he stalks her. He feels that he needs to go to the Araby to buy Mangan’s sister a present to show his love for this girl. He takes the trip to the bazaar late at night and with only a small amount of money when he follows his dream. This fantasy turns to disappointment as he realizes that he was a “creature driven and derided by vanity”. He comes to the epiphany that the girl was only a passion of his adolescence and was only a dream. In reality, the boy cannot have the girl because she is most likely not interested in him at all. Although he followed his dream, it turned out to be a false hope, but one that would allow him to distinguish reality from his desires.
The title of the short story, “Araby”, can be seen as a quest to the bazaar, where the main character experiences an epiphany. This is similar to the quest of the Arabs, who are primarily Muslims, when they travel to Mecca to pray. Here, they are enlightened by their prayers and religion. After they pray, they realize that they must redirect their lives in the name of their god, or cause. Likewise, the boy in the story makes his journey to the bazaar in search of something for a girl, and his purpose changed. He experiences an epiphany and realizes he has wasted time on an unattainable dream, which causes him to view himself as “a creature driven and derided by vanity; and (his) eyes burned with anguish and anger”.
Level One Question:
Who does the boy get the money from?
Level Two Question:
What was the boy’s epiphany and why did he have it?
Level Three Question:
How is the bazaar symbolic?
The theme of this story is reality versus fantasy. People can sometimes be tricked by other actions or appearances and believe things that are not true. Gradually over time people will become mature and realize that love is not just a physical attraction and fantasies may never come true.
The narrator of this story is an adolescent boy who is experiencing his first love. It seems that he is only in love with her because of her looks. In fact, the only have said “a few casual words”. He thinks he knows the girl because he lays “on the floor in the front parlor watching her door” and he stalks her. He feels that he needs to go to the Araby to buy Mangan’s sister a present to show his love for this girl. He takes the trip to the bazaar late at night and with only a small amount of money when he follows his dream. This fantasy turns to disappointment as he realizes that he was a “creature driven and derided by vanity”. He comes to the epiphany that the girl was only a passion of his adolescence and was only a dream. In reality, the boy cannot have the girl because she is most likely not interested in him at all. Although he followed his dream, it turned out to be a false hope, but one that would allow him to distinguish reality from his desires.
The title of the short story, “Araby”, can be seen as a quest to the bazaar, where the main character experiences an epiphany. This is similar to the quest of the Arabs, who are primarily Muslims, when they travel to Mecca to pray. Here, they are enlightened by their prayers and religion. After they pray, they realize that they must redirect their lives in the name of their god, or cause. Likewise, the boy in the story makes his journey to the bazaar in search of something for a girl, and his purpose changed. He experiences an epiphany and realizes he has wasted time on an unattainable dream, which causes him to view himself as “a creature driven and derided by vanity; and (his) eyes burned with anguish and anger”.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
A Good Man is Hard to Find
“A Good Man is Hard to Find” is a short story about a self-centered and manipulative Grandmother who eventually is the reason for her and her family’s death, yet she manages to find “good” in the man who killed them.
Level One Question:
What is the Grandmothers only son’s name?
Level Two Question:
Why doesn’t the grandmother react when her son and her grandchildren are killed?
Level Three Question:
Have you ever been manipulated into doing things that you do not want to do?
The theme of this short story is that people can be selfish and can try to manipulate situations to benefit themselves or to try to change others.
In this short story, the family takes a road trip and the kids do many things to entertain themselves and it eventually leads to the parents getting annoyed. This reminded me of when my family used to take road trips to West Virginia or to state parks in Indiana. Typically, my brother and I would listen to our own music or do our own thing for the first part of the trip until we got bored. Then, we would play games with each other for the rest of it. We would play “I Spy”, tick-tack-toe, and card games. However, by the end of playing these games with each other, we would become annoyed with one another. We should start doing things to make the other mad, such as poking the other and saying “I’m not touching you” or by calling each other names. This would cause us to make a lot of noise. In result, this would start to annoy our parents who would then yell at us. By the end of the car ride, everyone would be in a bad mood and exhausted, and because of this we did not take many long road trips when we were young. Our parents decided flying was the best decision for traveling long distances.
Level One Question:
What is the Grandmothers only son’s name?
Level Two Question:
Why doesn’t the grandmother react when her son and her grandchildren are killed?
Level Three Question:
Have you ever been manipulated into doing things that you do not want to do?
The theme of this short story is that people can be selfish and can try to manipulate situations to benefit themselves or to try to change others.
In this short story, the family takes a road trip and the kids do many things to entertain themselves and it eventually leads to the parents getting annoyed. This reminded me of when my family used to take road trips to West Virginia or to state parks in Indiana. Typically, my brother and I would listen to our own music or do our own thing for the first part of the trip until we got bored. Then, we would play games with each other for the rest of it. We would play “I Spy”, tick-tack-toe, and card games. However, by the end of playing these games with each other, we would become annoyed with one another. We should start doing things to make the other mad, such as poking the other and saying “I’m not touching you” or by calling each other names. This would cause us to make a lot of noise. In result, this would start to annoy our parents who would then yell at us. By the end of the car ride, everyone would be in a bad mood and exhausted, and because of this we did not take many long road trips when we were young. Our parents decided flying was the best decision for traveling long distances.
Rocking Horse
“The Rocking-Horse Winner” is a short story about a young boy, Paul, who lives in an “unlucky” family that is overly concerned about the need to have more money, and because of this Paul, wants to be “lucky” so he starts gambling on horse races to make money.
Level One Question:
What does the house “whisper” to Paul?
Level Two Question:
What is the significance of the rocking horse?
Level Three Question:
Do you think money brings happiness?
The theme of this story is that money does not always bring happiness and luck does not necessarily mean one will be wealthy. People who are overly materialistic often are unhappy as they find little meaning in life other than the need to obtain more tangible possessions. This was the case with the mother in D.H. Lawrence’s short story. Paul’s mother was unhappy and dissatisfied, yet she never knew what her fault was. She never spent quality time with her family and was not able to love as the center of her heart was “hard.” She found fault in everything and believed that neither she nor her husband were successful as there was never enough money to satisfy her. Instead of applying herself and being content with what she had, she always wanted more. She wanted more money to buy possessions, which she thought would buy her happiness. Since this did not happen, she blamed everything on having “no luck”. This became such an obsession and an excuse for everything that even her children and the house were “haunted by the unspoken phrase: There must be more money!”
This obsession of blaming everything on no luck and needing more money also haunted her son, Paul. It caused him to go crazy since he wanted to find a way to have luck. He would ride his rocking-horse furiously in search of luck, and on this horse he would try to figure out who would win the next derby race. When he started to become lucky with predicting the winner of the races, he could not stop thinking about the upcoming races and how much money he should bet. Paul wanted to be lucky and make money so he could give it to his mother to make her happy. The pressure of riding the rocking-horse to predict the winner of the races drove him mad. The final time he was on his rocking horse, he figured out who was going to win the next big race and he was saying the horse’s name, Malabar. He then passed out and later died, but he was right about the winner of the race. Although it brought his mother about eighty thousand pounds, it made her feel like her heart had “turned actually into a stone.”
I think it is sad how Paul’s mom negatively impacted Paul. She caused him to be worried about money all the time and made him go searching for “luck” which ended up killing him. Although he did get lucky and made great sums at horse races, it did not make his mom happy. It left her cold, callous, and incomplete.
Level One Question:
What does the house “whisper” to Paul?
Level Two Question:
What is the significance of the rocking horse?
Level Three Question:
Do you think money brings happiness?
The theme of this story is that money does not always bring happiness and luck does not necessarily mean one will be wealthy. People who are overly materialistic often are unhappy as they find little meaning in life other than the need to obtain more tangible possessions. This was the case with the mother in D.H. Lawrence’s short story. Paul’s mother was unhappy and dissatisfied, yet she never knew what her fault was. She never spent quality time with her family and was not able to love as the center of her heart was “hard.” She found fault in everything and believed that neither she nor her husband were successful as there was never enough money to satisfy her. Instead of applying herself and being content with what she had, she always wanted more. She wanted more money to buy possessions, which she thought would buy her happiness. Since this did not happen, she blamed everything on having “no luck”. This became such an obsession and an excuse for everything that even her children and the house were “haunted by the unspoken phrase: There must be more money!”
This obsession of blaming everything on no luck and needing more money also haunted her son, Paul. It caused him to go crazy since he wanted to find a way to have luck. He would ride his rocking-horse furiously in search of luck, and on this horse he would try to figure out who would win the next derby race. When he started to become lucky with predicting the winner of the races, he could not stop thinking about the upcoming races and how much money he should bet. Paul wanted to be lucky and make money so he could give it to his mother to make her happy. The pressure of riding the rocking-horse to predict the winner of the races drove him mad. The final time he was on his rocking horse, he figured out who was going to win the next big race and he was saying the horse’s name, Malabar. He then passed out and later died, but he was right about the winner of the race. Although it brought his mother about eighty thousand pounds, it made her feel like her heart had “turned actually into a stone.”
I think it is sad how Paul’s mom negatively impacted Paul. She caused him to be worried about money all the time and made him go searching for “luck” which ended up killing him. Although he did get lucky and made great sums at horse races, it did not make his mom happy. It left her cold, callous, and incomplete.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Poetry Response #2
The poet, DonnaVorreye, cleverly compares words to wallflowers. She alludes to the fact that words can be like distant on lookers or “shy shadows” at a dance that do not participate in the activities, but long to be a part of the action. Words, like girls at a dance, do not want to be ignored but rather asked to dance or used in a literary work or common dialect. The author personifies words because they want to be noticed, just like humans would like to be. The poem “Wallflowers” suggests that it is importance to want to choose the best word to communicate and express one’s thoughts. It is necessary to appreciate a word’s nuance when using it for there can be great satisfaction in having chosen the perfect word to describe a person, thing, or situation. Vorreyer points out that if people do not have a love of words and use them, many words could disappear from our modern language. This would be a great loss as each word has its special meaning and helps people express their thoughts. In another way, words that are left hanging on the wall are detrimental to writers and readers because the art of writing cannot be fulfilled without them.
Vorreyer’s desire to keep words alive by taking unused words and turning them into “blooming flowers” made me better understand the need to learn vocabulary. Our weekly vocabulary tests broaden our knowledge and appreciation for words. By learning new words, we can more effectively communicate. When we take the vocabulary tests, we have to write the words, define them, and use them in a sentence. By doing this, we make the words “ours”, we give them a “home”, and we give them a chance to “bloom”.
Vorreyer’s desire to keep words alive by taking unused words and turning them into “blooming flowers” made me better understand the need to learn vocabulary. Our weekly vocabulary tests broaden our knowledge and appreciation for words. By learning new words, we can more effectively communicate. When we take the vocabulary tests, we have to write the words, define them, and use them in a sentence. By doing this, we make the words “ours”, we give them a “home”, and we give them a chance to “bloom”.
Monday, August 25, 2008
I Stand Here Ironing
“I Stand Here Ironing” is a short story about a mother who realizes that she did not give her daughter all the attention she needed, nor did she show all the affection she should have during her childhood, and as a result, her daughter has trouble fitting into society and is in a state of depression.
Level One Question:
What is Emily’s gift?
Level Two Question:
Why is “Somebody” capitalized on page 15?
Level Three Question:
Do you think affection and love are vital like the story implies?
The theme of this short story is that it is often human nature to put work and yourself ahead of others and loved ones. By doing this, loved ones often feel neglected, which causes them to become depressed and have flat personalities that could have been fixed through love and affection.
Emily “was a child seldom smiled at”. Instead of taking time to talk to Emily to see how she was feeling and what she wanted, her mother would try think how to “iron out” the problems between herself and her daughter. Her mom could not deal with Emily’s moodiness, which was caused by her feeling alienated from society, so she sent Emily to boarding school and to live with relatives. All of this moving is one of the sources to why Emily had a rough childhood, especially through the years when her personality and self-esteem were supposed to develop. This caused Emily to feel like she did not fit into society and this in turn caused her to have little confidence. In addition to feeling alienated, Emily was deprived of affection. The boarding school that she attended rejected showing any affection. Not only would the school not allow her to have any possessions or to keep letters from her family that would be of sentimental value, it believed in maintaining an “invisible wall” between parents and their children to prevent love or affection. These things caused Emily to have a nervous condition, even to the point where she would no longer eat. Emily was in a state of depression with no love and no one to care for her. This caused her to start acting, which was her way of becoming “Somebody”.
Level One Question:
What is Emily’s gift?
Level Two Question:
Why is “Somebody” capitalized on page 15?
Level Three Question:
Do you think affection and love are vital like the story implies?
The theme of this short story is that it is often human nature to put work and yourself ahead of others and loved ones. By doing this, loved ones often feel neglected, which causes them to become depressed and have flat personalities that could have been fixed through love and affection.
Emily “was a child seldom smiled at”. Instead of taking time to talk to Emily to see how she was feeling and what she wanted, her mother would try think how to “iron out” the problems between herself and her daughter. Her mom could not deal with Emily’s moodiness, which was caused by her feeling alienated from society, so she sent Emily to boarding school and to live with relatives. All of this moving is one of the sources to why Emily had a rough childhood, especially through the years when her personality and self-esteem were supposed to develop. This caused Emily to feel like she did not fit into society and this in turn caused her to have little confidence. In addition to feeling alienated, Emily was deprived of affection. The boarding school that she attended rejected showing any affection. Not only would the school not allow her to have any possessions or to keep letters from her family that would be of sentimental value, it believed in maintaining an “invisible wall” between parents and their children to prevent love or affection. These things caused Emily to have a nervous condition, even to the point where she would no longer eat. Emily was in a state of depression with no love and no one to care for her. This caused her to start acting, which was her way of becoming “Somebody”.
Sunday, August 24, 2008
"The Lesson"
“The Lesson” is a short story about a poor group of kids who go into a rich part of a city to realize that the economy, democracy, and the world are not fair.
Level One Question:
Who is Miss Moore and where did she take the kids?
Level Two Question:
Why would the students not have seen this before, even though they live close by?
Level Three Question:
What would you do/how would you react if you saw this situation?
The purpose of “The Lesson” is for the reader to see fortunate people and how they benefit from wealth through the eyes of a little girl. In addition to the girl’s point of view, the reader also sees how the other kids react to the teacher and to the stores. The author is doing this to show the reader that the poor do not always know about the world outside of their normal lives. This is exemplified when the children are oblivious to how much an actual boat or model really costs. They are used to making contraptions by themselves, which are cheap. They have never been in this setting before.
This short story also shows how some poor people can be afraid or they feel awkward to be in public around rich people. They feel like interlopers when they try to assimilate into the wealthy culture. In this story, the poor recognize that they are in a lower class and they feel inferior. I believe the teacher, Miss Moore, brought the kids to upscale New York City to show them how the wealthy live and how there are inequalities in society. By doing this, the children started questioning democracy and were trying to make sense of why people were living in poverty. I also think she did this to motivate the kids and to get them to think they belong anywhere that the rich belong. At the end, this shows through when Sylvia says “but ain’t nobody gonna beat me at nuthin.” This means she is willing to work hard to improve her status in society and will strive to be better than others, including the rich people in F.A.O. Schwartz.
The theme of this story is that poor people do not have an equal opportunity to experience the same things as rich people do. Despite this, poor people still have morals and will strive to be their best.
Level One Question:
Who is Miss Moore and where did she take the kids?
Level Two Question:
Why would the students not have seen this before, even though they live close by?
Level Three Question:
What would you do/how would you react if you saw this situation?
The purpose of “The Lesson” is for the reader to see fortunate people and how they benefit from wealth through the eyes of a little girl. In addition to the girl’s point of view, the reader also sees how the other kids react to the teacher and to the stores. The author is doing this to show the reader that the poor do not always know about the world outside of their normal lives. This is exemplified when the children are oblivious to how much an actual boat or model really costs. They are used to making contraptions by themselves, which are cheap. They have never been in this setting before.
This short story also shows how some poor people can be afraid or they feel awkward to be in public around rich people. They feel like interlopers when they try to assimilate into the wealthy culture. In this story, the poor recognize that they are in a lower class and they feel inferior. I believe the teacher, Miss Moore, brought the kids to upscale New York City to show them how the wealthy live and how there are inequalities in society. By doing this, the children started questioning democracy and were trying to make sense of why people were living in poverty. I also think she did this to motivate the kids and to get them to think they belong anywhere that the rich belong. At the end, this shows through when Sylvia says “but ain’t nobody gonna beat me at nuthin.” This means she is willing to work hard to improve her status in society and will strive to be better than others, including the rich people in F.A.O. Schwartz.
The theme of this story is that poor people do not have an equal opportunity to experience the same things as rich people do. Despite this, poor people still have morals and will strive to be their best.
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