Halsey's Hip Hype

Want to turn into a vermin or an insect?

2010-11-04T17:01:00.003-04:00

Any one want to get the blog going again, now that we are all reading the same text again.
Might help with ideas and thoughts.
Personally, I still try to figure out,when I read this story, how the heck Kafka got license to turn his protagonist into a bug? I don't think this has been done in literature before this.

Want help with Deconstruction? Psychoanalysis? Marxist theory?

"a crooked smile below her jaw"

2010-08-30T19:55:00.003-04:00

just finishing up my analyses and i came upon something...
denver often describes beloved's scar as "a crooked smile below her jaw."
she also talks about Beloved cutting her head off each night..."[beloved] didn't want to do it but she had to and it wasn't going to hurt. That is was just a thing grown-up people do."
Beloved is also constantly demanding Sethe smile for her--even when she is already smiling.
Perhaps the type of "smile" she is referring to is the one Sethe left her below her jaw when she killed her...and wants her to share the same scar...especially since she explains to denver that cutting off her head (and leaving her with a "smile" scar across her neck) is just a thing grown-ups do.

maybe ?

Beloved Continued...

2010-08-30T17:38:00.002-04:00

(accidently pressed the post button to the previous blog!)

I just wanted to conclude that I thought Beloved wanted to come back to earth to tell her mother how she felt, so that her mother would learn and understand the pain she went through.

I did love how this book was able to make me feel true empathy for the characters, their pain felt so real as I was reading the book. The symbolism also had my mind spinning, but I enjoyed unearthing every piece of it. It may be overrated to say that this book was just horribly beautiful, but it truly was.

Beloved.

2010-08-30T17:26:00.002-04:00

I have never read anything like this book. It isn't a new favorite but, it definetly opened my mind up about literature. It was beautifully constructed into a message of how a slave mother felt it was her responsibility to kill her own daughter, so that she would not go through the same life she had. In some aspects of Sethe's motherhood instinct, to protect your family from danger, I can relate to in a small way. But of course no one in this AP english class has the actual connection to this woman. I also found this book mysterious. After realizing Beloved was the spirit of Sethe's daughter, it was more than Beloved trying to make her mother remember what had happened. It was that she wanted her mother to remember her, and the love she had for her daughter, not the love that killed her. Which in Beloveds eyes it wasn't her mother protecting her, she thought Sethe had abandoned her.

Dorian Gray

2010-08-29T21:38:00.002-04:00

So I finished The Picture of Dorian Gray a couple of days ago, but I was so caught up in writing the analysis that I completely forgot about the blog. Overall, I'm glad that I left this book for last. It was the most interesting out of the three and it was a good refresher of all the information from HTRLLAP. Every once in a while I found myself going back to look for details that didn't seem important at first. I felt as if I was reading the book so fast to try and figure out what was going to happen next, that I was missing all of the important details. After reading the book, however, it was remarkable how many notes I had ended up taking while reading. I really did not notice how much highlighting I had done and how much notes I had taken until I started writing the analysis. I was surprised at how much I had absorbed the information from HTRLLAP and put it to work in The Picture of Dorian Gray. While reading the book, it really was incredible to see how much the author was able to use flowers and nature to symbolise Dorian Gray's life all the time, and still manage not to make it seem so repetitive. As Dorian's nature "developed like a flower", I felt as if my own understanding of the information from HTRLLAP, along with all the information from this book, was growing as well. By the end of the book I had a new perspective towards all the symbolism that the author had included. It seemed that throughout the book, nature was used to describe the characters and symbolise their lives, especially Dorian's. However, whenever one of these characters' lives took a turn for the worse, nature and it's symbolism were the only thing that remained pure. This reminded me of Sibyl Vane. Even though Dorian Gray didn't have a heart when he claimed that his love for her had ended, she still had stayed there "like a trampled flower". It seemed to me that even through the most tragic events, Sibyl Vane would always be the one pure thing in Dorian Gray's life. Even if she wasn't mentioned throughout most of the book, when he remembered her at the end it was obvious that she really was the one pure thing that he had had in his life after all those wrong-doings. Because of this, I think that in most cases, whenever there is an event in which a character seems to be, in a way, destroyed or demoralised, there is always something pure that is still present.

the Clearing and Symbolism.

2010-08-29T20:51:00.002-04:00

At the Clearing Baby Suggs preaches to some followers of African Americans, that is less religous preaching than a theraputic one. She intructs the men, women, and children that have followed her to; laugh, cry, and dance. She tells them that "The only grace they could have was the grace they could imagine."
I think she wants these people to have a moment of freedom and independence, one that they haven't come to the reality of since they have moved to a place where slavery isn't their lives anymore. She brought them to a plave where they could embrace the feelings of sadness of their past, and laugh at their new mistakes in this new world, and dance for their freedom.
From the pain and misery that comes from complete dependence of a slave, there isn't any independence. I think the Clearing was symbolising the love that they lost for themselves, and it being refound to help them become the independent people they could now be.

Beloved and Sethe. A Quest?

2010-08-29T20:30:00.003-04:00

Paul D. wanted to make Sethe and Denver to become his family, but Beloved will come into the picture to complicate the relationship he has with the two women. I think this is how Sethe definitively falls into the role of the traveler, because after Beloved enters the story Sethe's path of a happy family with Paul D. is drastically changed. Her quest she believed had ended with her running away from enslavement from the Sweet Home, and the misery she encounters soon after finding some peace and salvation from Baby Suggs and her home. I think Beloved is going to make her stop from running from past memories, and face them and thus gain the self knowledge that a traveler seeks for in a quest. As described in the first chapter of HTRLLAP.

Beloved's "unlined hands"

2010-08-27T22:49:00.004-04:00

While Beloved is living with Sethe and Denver in human form, Morrison constantly references to her "unlined hands". The first few times this came up, I underlined it not sure of what it meant. As I was finishing the book today it occurred to me, that the lines on the palms of our hands are also referred to as life lines.
On another note, did anyone else think it was strange that Denver and Sethe never made a big deal of the fact that Beloved was back from the dead ? She dies so tragically and they are haunted by the memories and her spirit for eighteen years, but when the human Beloved shows up this all sort of dissolves, at least on the surface. Sure, Denver longed for a companion and Sethe saw it as a second chance with Beloved, enabling her to forget her painful past, but wouldn't expect them to at least wonder why Beloved had rejoined them on earth ?

HTRLLAP-All the same story ?

2010-08-27T22:10:00.003-04:00

So looking over other people's posts, I noticed I wasn't the only one struggling with the idea that all literature is just the same story. The same patterns and plots over and over, just slightly tweaked to fit a new title. But how could that be ? Wouldn't we get tired of reading the same story over and over again, or at least notice it was the same ?
As I let this sift in my mind a little more, my perspective change on this a bit. The majority of western music (anything from classical to pop, jazz to country) are based on progressions of the same four chords: I, IV, V, and vi. Sure, there are others composers could have chosen, but their pieces always ended up revolving around a progression of those four. Even on a lyrical level, songs don't branch out to new topics; it's always messages of love, heartbreak, peace, etc. I'm sure that we could all find a different aspect of life that is like this.
I haven't decided what this means, but I found it oddly comforting to see this repetition in other aspects of life. Perhaps this is a little off into left field, but what does this say about our lives and our world ? We're always searching for the next new "thing", be it a medical discovery, a high-tech gadget, or a new perspective on life, but maybe were just caught in a round about of the same stories, same hardships, same successes... Are we okay with the world being this way ?
hmmm...

The Picture Of Dorian Gray

2010-08-27T22:05:00.000-04:00

In the Picture Of Dorian Gray, season plays a very important role in showing the passing of time as well the slow ending of the life of it's main character, Dorian Gray. In the beginning of this novel it is summer. The rich scent of roses and lilac, carried by the light summer wind, spills into the studio of Basil Hallward where the young Dorian Gray is sitting for him. At this time Dorian is but a boy, innocent, naive, somewhat simple and does not know much about the world around him. Like many young people, Dorian is easily lead and once he meets Lord Henry, everything Lord Henry believes he begins to believe also. Lord Henry tells him that he is very beautiful and that beauty and youth is everything. This begins the hideous aging of Dorian's soul. After his brutal breakup with Sibyl Vane that leads to her demise, Dorian noticed the changing of his appearence upon the picture painted of him by Basil Hallward. He is utterly distraught by this pledges to be good from now on in hopes the painting's hideous changes will reverse but, after his evil words with Sibyl Vane, his fate is sealed.
On Dorian's thirty eighth birthday it is November, the air is crisp and the trees are becoming bare. Dorian's conscienceness of the changes in the painting causes him to murder its painter. Although time has passed Dorian's features remain as youthful and beautiful as the day in the painters studio. Only the canvas behind the curtain bares his evil doings.
On the night of Dorian's death it is warm, almost summer like. He decides that all he really wants is a new life. He reflects on all of his actions that both directly and indirectly lead to four deaths. He decides to get rid of the only evidence of his guilt, the painting. In doing this, he hopes to turn back time to his true youth and erase all of the terrible things he has done. instead the false apearence of summer is really winter, the end of Dorian's life and youth.

124 was spiteful

2010-08-27T12:55:00.002-04:00

It's driving me crazy. But i think I've got it. Why did Morrison choose house number 124, why not 125? Well, this book is rooted in religion, it only makes sense that she is referencing Psalm 124, the deliverance from enemies.
"If it had not been the Lord who was on our side, when men came up against us..we would have been covered by the waters; the streams would have gone over our souls.." - excerpt Psalm 124

Sometimes 124 gets moody, Morrison takes personification to a whole new level by warping this house into its own character. At first, 124 is mean, demonic almost. But as the story progresses 124 can be a protection, Denver misses its tantrums when Paul D arrives.
I am only halfway through Beloved, so I don't know how else it behaves throughout the book, but from what I've read so far, it seems to be that 124 is the captor of the characters, whether it is a good thing or a bad thing, I'm not so sure of yet.

Sethe found sanctuary in this house, as she escaped to it from Sweet Home, it delivered her from her enemies. For those of you that have finished the book, do you agree that this could be the significance of the number, or did I clearly miss the mark?

Still Writing

2010-08-27T11:51:00.002-04:00

As I am writing my analyses I am growing more and more worried; periodically doubting myself and my notions to take this class. I have not analyzed anything in quite some time so I suppose I am a little out of practice. I am somewhat glad that I will be able to enhance my analyzing skills during boot camp. Practice makes perfect right?

HTTRLLAP

2010-08-26T23:00:00.002-04:00

Usually I hate informational books, espescially ones that are related to literature or grammar. But this book pleasantly surprised me. I thought its examples of literature were very helpful to understanding each chapters concept. Unlike past books that had theorys or formulas to guide you in hypothetical situations, it was easy to connect to the authors reasoning.

Since there was never a moment of feeling lost of the information provided, I learned so much about the connections society makes through literature. Nice to Eat With You: Acts of Communion revealed to me the hidden meaning of a meal with others that "breaking bread together is an act of sharing and peace." If not peace its a time when people in literature may have motive to make a communion with others, to get problems resolved or started. Its a simple idea but sometimes essential to a story to unite characters or plot them against each other.

Symbolism! Has been clarified for me in one chapter, it is not a connotation of the authors design it is a connotation that u personally find connections to with the author. "An act of one creative intelligence engaging another." It is not only the reader searching for a pattern or something simply symbolic. It's connecting to the authors vision through past experiences with symbolism and life. I can't wait to apply what I learned to Beloved and read more about Sethe and what the murder of her daughter, in terms of symbolism.

Beloved

2010-08-26T20:50:00.010-04:00

I have finished beloved and have to say it was not a book that I ever thought I would be reading. I've never received so much insight into the life of a slave within one novel. I was frequently confused throughout the novel due to the fact that it switched between the past and present. Once I figured that out, the book seemed easier to read and comprehend.

One of the aspects of Beloved that I disliked the most was the tragic and horrific situations Sethe had to endure throughout her life. Virtually being treated like an animal every single day of her life. Knowing that her children were dealing with the same brutality only made it worse. Life as a slave was so bad Sethe killed one of her own children as if to save her from the terrible things life as a slave would bring. That action may make Sethe seem like a dark and sick person, but she only does it to save her child from the terrible life they have.

Beloved is a gruesome novel describing the most disgusting details the life of a slave withholds. On the other hand it shows how one can overcome obstacles in life and fight everyday to live for tomorrow. This novel gave me enormous insight into what the life of a slave was like. My perspective on slavery in past history has been changed considerably due to this novel.

Overall I liked this novel and am glad I have had the chance to read it. It has impacted my views on the life of slaves, and slaves overall. I now will finish up my analysis's and prepare for the school year.

WASSUP BLOGGERS

2010-08-26T12:31:00.003-04:00

YEAH...SO...This ECE English thing...
I read HTRLLAP. I liked it.
I figured I should get a little insightful, so here goes. Let's go on a journey through Colby's summer.
Mid-july, ordered the books. Began reading HTRLLAP. Finished it while on the Cape. One month later, decides to blog about it. Let's just say I need to refresh.
This book was a combination between things I knew, things I didn't know, and things I thought I knew but i guess I really didn't know at all. Kind of like one of those elementary charts. Except not. I'm not about to sum up what I read because, everyone else has already read it. And who wants to be captain obvious? Not this kid.
The selection that I found most interesting would have to be the implication and establishmation (I really wish that was a word) *establishment, that all stories are just a succession of patterns, rewrites, plot loop-de-loops, and historical congruities. Made me think, as a writer, ya know? This book was all about how to read, Christ, it said it in the title. But i couldn't help but view it only as a tool for writing. I like to write. Don't judge me. It was some sort of awakening punch, like being revived with a cold splash of water on my face.
Am I not a original? Is all my work just faceted from some other genius? Is my work a rip off?
I am not cheap! I tell myself this so I would have the steeze to finish the book without my heart breaking in two.
Then it all started to make sense. Why do writers read? So we can cheat, copy, rework, make it new. NO writing is organic. We can string the words together differently and we can give the characters new names but it's always going to be Eve and Achilles. To spare an emotional breakdown I decided to not approach the idea of where the "original story" came from. Who wants to ask God where he thought of Jesus? Not this kid. For now I'm going to accept the fact that those stories are there, like they were conjured in one of the seven days. And that's that.

The Picture of Dorian Gray

2010-08-25T13:48:00.002-04:00

I found this book to be all over the place with different themes. Because of the disorder of it I found it hard to implement the skills I learned in How to Read Literature Like a Professor. Also because the practice of these skills was new to me, I didn't think the way the book had told me to and what actually may have been symbolic to the story was not significant. After finishing this book I then skimmed over How to Read Literature Like a Professor again and noticed symbols in The Picture of Dorian Gray that I didn't upon my first encounter with the story.

For instance, I noticed that Basil Hallward and Lord Henry both had different affects on Dorian. In a way, Basil was the angel on one shoulder while Lord Henry was the devil on the other. Basil had a positive attitude towards Dorian and his affairs such as that with Sybil Vane, while Lord Henry was more realistic and didn't "sugar coat" his opinions of Dorian and his actions. He was the snake in the garden of eden tempting Dorian with a lifestyle like his. Dorian like Adam and Eve succumbed to the temptation of that lifestyle and while he thought he was enjoying this lifestyle it eventually gets the best of him.

Comparing the symbolism in this book to that of Beloved, there is far more in Beloved and I am only through a little more then half of the novel. This novel has much more symbolism and its abundance has made it more noticeable. As I am reading this I am repeatedly referring back to HTRLLAP and am able to relate it back to mostly every chapter coincedentally like the assignment....haha.

Enjoy the rest of your summer days. The majority of mine will be spent writing.

How to Read Literature Like a Professor

2010-08-25T12:41:00.003-04:00

How to read literature like a professor was for the most part interesting for me i learned allot about what what I'm reading really means and how to analyze different pieces of literature. After completing this book i feel that i have a much better understanding on how many things influence different stories. I found that reading this book was extremely beneficial to my future because now i can see more symbols in the stories that i read and draw parallels between what i am reading and books that i have read in the past.

The chapter about weather i found most interesting. I realized that there is always a reason why they include weather in stories and how different weather conditions can mean so much to the story and what the author is trying to say. Rain was one of the weather conditions that i learned allot about. Rain can be cleansing or it can be dirty. It all depends on the situation in which its used just as snow. Snow can be clean and fluffy or it can be dirty and sloppy. I never really thought much about the weather when i was reading before but now i can see how much of an impact it can really have on the story.

Another chapter of the book that i really thought was beneficial and had an impact on me was the Bible. I never realized before the impact that the bible could have in a reading that is not religious at all especially finding Christ figures. Ive never really thought about Christ figures in any of my other readings before but now i feel that i could identify them more easily in future readings. I also learned that they do not have to be exactly like Christ to be a Christ figure as long as they posses some of the same traits as Christ.

In the end i feel that How to Read Literature Like a Professor will be useful to me in everything i do in the future and has open my eyes to how much i have been overlooking in past readings and how much more there is to understanding what the author is trying to say.

Beloved

2010-08-25T12:28:00.001-04:00

Beloved was not exactly the book I had expected to read. I thought I was diving into a book where I would ride along in the adventure of a slave woman escaping from slavery and the though mountain she climbed to make it to freedom. Instead I found myself peering into the life of a misunderstood woman, an outcast in Cincinnati’s black community.
There was a livid ghost in 124, a baby so angry at her mother for sending her to a dark place, unable to live out her life by her mother’s side. The baby ghost reminded Sethe every day of that fateful decision that altered her entire life.

At times I lost myself in the constant switch between past and present. I suppose the two most often molded together whether Sethe liked it or not. I found myself cringing as I read Beloved. Sethe’s experience with Schoolteacher’s nephews was despicable. It’s so hard to comprehend that this was real at one point in time. Only 145 years ago, whites treated blacks like stock animals for breeding and work. This is just unbelievable to me.

Seethe hated being a slave so much that she killed her child because she thought death would be a more peaceful alternative to life as a slave. Although many see Sethe’s actions as sick and twisted, I understand why she killed Beloved. Her children would never be treated like animals. If she had the chance she would have killed the rest of her children and her self as well. She only wanted to be with her children forever, free from someone who lists your animal characteristics on a piece of paper. No human should be put that low.

This story is about survival, getting over your fears and facing them head-on. Denver overcame her fear of leaving her yard so save her mother from Beloved. The black women who loved Baby Suggs and turned their backs on Sethe faced their fears of her to free her from Beloved’s venomous grip. Beloved is about making something of your future; acknowledging the obstacles you’ve overcome in the past but not dwelling on them, learning from past mistakes to grow. Sethe dwelled on the past, trying to make up for lost time with Beloved. She did not see that it was destroying her.

Overall, Beloved gave me a new perspective on slavery that alters significantly than the vision the History textbooks gave me.

Now I am barricading myself in my house today to do some writing…. So excited.

Just Sayinnn

2010-08-24T21:41:00.003-04:00

Ya so I was reading The Picture of Dorian Gray and I just realized that Dorian's lover's name is Sibyl Vane. Not the same spelling, but sure sounds a lot like the word VAIN. Connection?? I think so.

I don't know if anyone else saw that or if I'm just that guy who finds stuff like that.

asd;kfarg ljdah schools almost here ksadggeh

2010-08-24T11:38:00.004-04:00

The dreaded day has almost arrived. The mad rush to complete the summer assignments is in full swing. Armed with rations and a straying mind, somehow, I find myself learning. Wait... What? That's right, learning!

I completed the books a while ago. I thought, "Hey. The hard parts over." I couldn't have been more wrong... See, I'm cursed with not having the attention span to read thoroughly. If there's a descriptive paragraph that seems to take up the majority of page, I'll skip it. It's just the way that I've been conditioned to read, because I've always figured there can't be anything too important in that monotonous run on sentence which passes off for description. But as I dive into these analyses I've come to realize that often, that's where the real treasure is. I've practically re-read The Picture of Dorian Gray, trying to find situations that apply to the chapters in HTRLLAP, but this time I'm actually noticing aspects which were invisible to me before. My understanding of Dorian Gray has tripled and has given me the ability to apply what HTRLLAP only touched upon with short examples. I've found that learning through writing is much more effective than learning through reading.

I wonder if I can grow to like Beloved... Doubtful

Beloved

2010-08-24T10:45:00.002-04:00

Beloved is a strange book…

Maybe "strange" is not the best word choice here. Beloved is a unique novel. Now that is better! :)

I have never read a book written in a similar style to that of Toni Morrison’s Beloved. Many who have blogged before me mentioned the way that Morrison uses history and the happenings in the past of the characters lives to better her storytelling. Sure, I am familiar with the style of flashbacks in literature. They can be used to clarify the understanding of a story, to give insight about a specific event in a novel, to include more details about a topic, or for many other reasons. Most of my fellow intellectuals also mentioned that they were unsure of the events and details that were taking place in the beginning of Morrison’s novel.

I myself was very confused in the beginning of reading Beloved. I was unsure of exactly what was occurring, why it was occurring, and the relationship between the characters. As I continued reading, I then became confused with the issue of when it was occurring. I thought I was just a little challenged while reading, but it was a common issue that occurred with many while taking on the responsibility of their summer reading assignment. It was not until after the first few chapters that I realized Morrison entangled flashbacks within her novel. I soon found out that was the way in which she tells the whole story. Once I made this “discovery”, the understanding of the events both taking place in the present day of Cincinnati and the past on Sweet Home became much more clear. I could then understand the relationship and importance between the two different times as well.

I truly believe Morrison had a purpose to why she included flashbacks within her novel; more than just for the purpose of telling her story. Symbolism is found right within the way she presented her novel. Morrison “carries” the story in a specific way and it is embedded with symbolism. Does this make sense? Let me clarify…

Most of Morrison’s novel is told with flashbacks. The whole time I was reading I found it rather frustrating and I found myself asking: “Why would anyone ever want to tell a story like this?” Why not just have the story take place on Sweet Home in the 1850’s and just be done with it? Now sure, there is a simple response from Morrison in that she would not have been able to capture that supernatural affect so easily and so effectively. The haunting of 124 would not exist, Beloved would not exist, and therefore, it would make for a completely different story…

My thoughts though, are that there is more to Morrison’s reasons for telling this story in flashbacks than just what I have mentioned above. There is a deeper relationship between Beloved and the way Morrison wrote Beloved. Sethe always remembers her past. It haunts her and brings her confusion, similar to the confusion bestowed upon me while attempting to get through the first few chapters of this novel. The way one reads this novel, between all the flashbacks is like Sethe’s thoughts and moments of “rememory”. Morrison wants the reader to feel and see what Sethe and her family are going through as she is on an emotional roller coaster remembering her life on Sweet Home. The supernatural affect that Morrison achieved gives the readers a sense of turmoil, like Sethe and her daughter Denver are experiencing as they are visited by the woman Beloved, a human form of the first child Sethe killed. For what and how Morrison has achieved this within her novel is what makes it so unique.

Maybe I am completely in left field on this one? Or maybe I have just dissected relationships within Morrison’s supernatural affect. I think the latter one… Everything in literature is done with a purpose. In fact, everything that occurs in life is done with a purpose and I think that Morrison’s flashback style was done with multiple purposes indeed: to tell a story, but to also reel the reader in and easily allow them to make connections to her characters. In this sense, I feel Morrison to be extremely successful.

Dorian Gray

2010-08-23T21:03:00.002-04:00

I absolutely despised this book in the beginning! The first few chapters were so hard for me to get through because of all the complicated dialogue - mostly Lord Henry's. His on-going explainations of youth and sin and every other aspect of life went right over my head. I just couldn't understand a word of it.
But finally, after maybe three chapters, my brain started to adjust to Wilde's characters and the things they were saying. And then I started to enjoy the novel.
I thought it was interesting that the same themes kept coming up. I'd began playing a game with myself, trying to find the recurring words and the different meanings of those words. Flowers and gardens, sin, fire, youth, and birds all came up repeatedly throughout the story. It reminded me of the project we did in Salazar's class with Macbeth. We were each given a word (mine was blood) and we had to find all the places it came up and what it meant each time it came up.
Other than the repetition of themes, though, I found it hard to look deep into the novel the way I did with Beloved. With Beloved I was able to take the tips from HTRLLAP and apply them to the novel so that I found tons of symbolism and such within the story. With Dorian I found more irony than symbolism and had a difficult time trying to find any parallel to any of the lessons taught in HTRLLAP. I just couldn't get it.
Besides that, I enjoyed Dorian for the most part. I loved the irony and the theme-repetition. I loved the characters - all of them so very different from each other. My favorite parts were probably when Lord Henry would go at it with the Duchess towards the end. She was one of my favorite characters - her cleverness and girl-power attitude were endearing. I also liked the twist at the end where we were left with an elderly Dorian Gray.
Like I said before, though, I didn't like the long, hard-to-understand dialogues. And I especially didn't like that long chapter explaining all of the things Dorian did in his years of selfishness.
But overall! it was pretty good. But I liked Beloved better.

Beloved

2010-08-23T13:22:00.000-04:00

Currently I am finished with part 1 of Beloved, and I am about ready to shoot myself. I'm not saying that Morrison wasn't successful in writing a good piece of literature; I am just saying that I'm not used to her writing technique. First of all it took me until I was a third of the way through the book to realize she was going back in time. As soon as I realized this, I became bored when reading the flashbacks. I enjoy myself the most when I'm not reading the flashbacks. It's also easier to understand the current parts of the novel. It seems like Morrison writes in circles in this novel - circles that end up making me dizzy by the time I finish a chapter. I also wish I was able to tell right away when she was going back in time, because when I don't, I end up completely dumbfounded. I become irritated at times throughout the novel as well; one reason is because I still don't know who Amy is. It would be much more helpful if Morrison were more blunt in her writing instead of just confusing the heck out of her readers. (well, me, at least.)

It also doesn't help that I do not enjoy reading about history. I mean I don't mind reading a story if it purely is historically significant, but reading a story where it is constantly flashing back at random times messes with my train of thought. And sometimes, reading about slave life and black history can get a little old whether the story flashes back to the 1800's or takes place during that time frame. Not that I'm not empathetic, because I can certainly feel for the characters in the novel - Sethe in particular. But sometimes I feel that there has been so much taught about and written about what black people went through in the past that it isn’t something that I would choose to read about now. I get it. It was a horrible time in our history and I’m so happy that we continue to work toward correcting those mistakes. But the flashbacks are really not keeping my interest in this book. Thankfully Morrison is a great writer. I definitely appreciate her skills as an author - I just wish she would have written a different story, Now I definitely feel refreshed after reading How to Read Literature Like a Professor, because obviously that was just a complete nightmare. That doesn't mean, however, that my head isn't pounding from struggling through this novel. Let's just hope The Picture of Dorian Gray captivates me.

Beloved

2010-08-21T12:30:00.002-04:00

There are certainly some gratuitous books that shouldn't be read in a person's lifetime, and this is one of them. Getting through every sentence of Toni Morrison's supernatural tale takes the strength requires pulling one's self out of quicksand. All in all, the novel was neither enjoyable nor was it a "light read".

What stood out in this novel weren't even the supernatural aspects, it's been done before. What did stand out in Beloved was Morrison's use of trees. Morrison uses the trees in Beloved to provide shelter and safety while both masking and enticing fear to the characters in the novel.

The tree, naturally a symbol of health, growth, and strength, kept the characters safe throughout the story. Denver used the canopy of trees and boxwood brushes in the forest as an "emerald closet", a place of solitude where she could keep her various colognes and fantasizing memories. "Veiled and protected by the live green walls, she felt ripe and clear, and salvation was as easy as a wish." The aforementioned quote describes the trees' significance to Denver, providing her with the salvation she needed from the rigors she struggles with in life. Trees didn't only protect, they masked. The trees back at Sweet Home made Sethe happy, masking the horrid life on a plantation. Unfortunately, those same trees were used to hang Sixo. The beautiful trees on the plantation served as killing trees, quite paradoxically.

Probably the most noticeable tree symbol in the book is the one on Sethe's back. The "chokecherry tree" engraved on her as a result of a whipping permanently reminds Sethe that she can't escape her past. All the guilt she hides from killing Beloved, all the bad experiences from Sweet Home (a quite ironic name), and all the problems she's dealt with are all represented on her "tree". Paul D couldn't escape the wonder of her "roots" but only came to realize the sadness and disappointment they bear. This tree represents the knowledge of the past, because every tree has rings to show how every year was lived.

No tree could make this story any better, not even one of California's giant Redwoods. Beloved was a dull read, and extremely hard to connect to. This is definitely a read I could have done without. Now it's time for analyses :)

Beloved

2010-08-20T22:34:00.004-04:00

I was really surprised at how much I enjoyed reading Beloved. At first I was a little confused and it was a bit hard to follow along and keep track of all the details. After a couple of chapters, however, I started understanding the ideas much better. It definitely helped to have read HTRLLAP before starting this book, since I couldn't read more than a few sentences of Beloved without remembering something Foster had stated. All the little details that were mentioned in Foster's book were really helpful in getting a deeper understanding of Beloved. If we didn't have to read HTRLLAP first, I definitely wouldn't have figured out all the minor things that ended up changing my perspective of different parts of the book as I continued reading.
It was really interesting to see how much the characters changed throughout the book, and how much my understanding of them and their actions improved as I got better and better at pointing out all the details that Foster had talked about. I still can't believe how much I wrote on every single page. Everywhere I looked it was as if I kept finding something that completely changed what I originally thought of that particular part or that character. Every time that a season or weather was mentioned, or anything that Foster talked about for that matter, I automatically had to analyze that section to see what the connection was between the two. I enjoyed seeing how much this changed my perspective of the characters' changing roles and attitude as I kept reading. If I hadn't known to look for those details, I would have ended up thinking of the characters in this book just like most other characters.
I enjoyed seeing how Denver more than any of the other characters. In the beginning, she thought Beloved (the baby ghost as well as the one in flesh) was the only one who was keeping her company, since she was afraid of her mother and, therefore, didn't really consider Sethe to be keeping her company. Throughout the book, she seemed to only want attention and to be loved by someone, and she thought Beloved was that person who gave it to her. In the end of the book, though, I enjoyed seeing the difference in her opinion as she started trying to protect her mother more than Beloved, whom she was trying to protect at first. It was interesting to see her change her attitude and start caring about her mother more than ever, even though it meant risking Beloved's presence.
In general, I thought this book was pretty intriguing and enjoyable. It had an interesting plot, and it was fun to put what I learned from HTRLLAP to the test.

Beloved was...

2010-08-16T21:26:00.006-04:00

...not as bad as I thought it would be. I really liked the very beginning and the very end. The entire middle where the actual plot took place I enjoyed but I lost interest during some parts where I either didn't understand what was going on or it didn't seem relevent to what was going on. Usually those were the moments when the characters had flashbacks of places they'd lived other than Sweet Home. The Sweet Home flashbacks I liked because that was the place where Sethe and Paul D and their friends "grew up" together; it's part of the reason why the characters end up where they do. So yeah, the book was good :)
I wrote all over every page! I never do that! But three chapters in I decided that I'd better go back and record what had been going on, otherwise when it came down to doing an analysis of the book, I'd have no idea where to go. I also put a post-it at the end of every chapter to remind myself of what happened in each. I never understood why teachers advised this and why other kids did it even when it wasn't advised, but now I get it. It helped a lot.
Know what else helped? How To Read Literature...!
I was amazed at how much I picked up after reading that thing. It was crazy. That paired with the writing opened my eyes up to every little detail in the story, from sicknesses to the weather to even the most obvious of things that I still wouldn't have picked up but did because of Mr. Thomas C. Foster. I was impressed with myself :) And it made the reading more bearable because I could understand it better. All in all, a success!
While I feel like maybe it defeats the purpose of a "thoughtful blog", I'm going to save my observations for my analysis because 1) if I even began writing them out in here, I'd take up the entire blog page, and 2) I'm sure most people noticed the same things I did and so would find reading them beyond pointless.
One thing that still bugs me though? I want to know what Beloved's real name was! Throughout the entire book I waited and when we came close to finding out in the last chapter? Morrison decided the people in her book and the people reading her book were better off not knowing. Beautiful >:(
On to Dorian Gray!

The Picture of Dorian Gray

2010-08-15T20:30:00.008-04:00

I have just finished Dorian Gray and have started Beloved. At this point I'm liking Dorian Gray much more than Beloved. The Picture of Dorian Gray was a good novel and was easier to understand for me by reading HTRLLAP first.

From reading the novel I learned that selling your soul for beauty is never a good choice to make. Out appearance has no affect on the type of person you are if your actions and attitude are the complete opposite. Dorian Gray gains beauty but is still an evil and vicious character. Basil's painting shows how on the outside Gray's beauty is everlasting, but how is soul is truly dark and corrupted. Basil was the opposite and was a symbol for for good within the novel; he is polite and a down to earth character. Dorian Gray takes away one of the only naturally good willed characters by murdering Basil, changing my views of him. Closure for me was gained with Gray's death in the ending pages of the novel.

I thought overall the novel was good but I didn't love the ending at all. I wanted Gray to have to live with the person he had transformed into instead of just ending his life. Now I will continue to read Beloved and analyze Dorian gray using HTRLLAP.

my thoughts

2010-08-13T17:46:00.002-04:00

When i first started to read How to Read Literature Like a Professor i was thinking how dreadfully boring it was going to be. Honestly, it wasn't as bad as it could have been. I never thought there could be a whole chapter in a book about seasons or weather, but after reading this book it really explained how there is always a bigger meaning behind the simple things that authors choose to utilize in their settings, or even how the names of characters are usually symbolic. While i was reading i found myself thinking back on previous novels i have read such as Huck Finn and Catcher in the Rye, and all the symbolism that can be found such as the ducks in central park in Catcher in the Rye. Reading this book has made me more concious about what it is that i read.

I agree with Tim when he says that Beloved was confusing. There are so many characters being introduced throughout the novel that it is easy to get confused with what was happening and between which characters. For a couple of chapters i thought that Halle was actually a girl. When i finished the book, i decided that it has a powerful message. Slavery was an issue that changed the lives not only of the people that experienced it first-hand, but the people that gave homes to the runaways as well as the children, even if they haven't yet had the dreadful experience to call their own. Beloved is a story inside the life of Sethe whom made choices that she lives to regret when it seems that the ghost of her deceased child come back to haunt her- in flesh.

In the scene where Paul D and the forty-six men were chained by the hands and locked in boxes until the rain had stopped was something that stood out to me. The fact that all forty six of those men were successful in diving through the mud and under the bars to their freedom was significant. The rain symbolised restoration and cleansing giving all those individuals a fresh start.

How to Read Literature Like a Professor # 2

2010-08-10T23:26:00.002-04:00

Now that I have been done with How to Read Literature Like a Professor, there are specific points which I have yet to elaborate on…

Foster mentions comparisons between literatures within his book multiple times. I think the key to being an avid reader is having the capability to make connections. Connections can be made to instances in the real world, to one’s own life experiences, and to other works. Within Foster’s books he mentions all of these types of connections. He speaks of making connections to the real world, to our history, and to ancient times (the world which our world today has evolved from).

Many of the points Foster makes in his book are things I feel as though I knew “subconsciously”. I knew that I could find symbolism within all the things he mentioned, but it is a matter of actually NOTICING THE SYMBOLISM. A lot of his concepts are easy to understand, and they are things that I know: such as making interpretations, making connections, relating pieces of literature, and understanding meanings. I know that studying literature comes along with all of the above, but it is some of the specific topics where Foster mentions symbolism; it is those topics that I have never thought too much about before in order to make the realization of the importance of including something.

The chapters “It’s All About Sex…” and “…Except Sex” caused me to reminisce on a class discussion in my English class last year while reading The Great Gatsby. The whole class did not pick up on the sexual innuendo that was occurring in a scene where Jay Gatsby and Mr. McKee were intoxicated and riding in an elevator. This is an example of what Foster says in his book, that “something else can mean sex”. This obviously does not only happen when talking about sex though! I also found it interesting that within Foster’s book many of his chapters are continuations of the ones before. They include exceptions or more ideas to the previous ones. Within his book itself he supports his point that the same thing can mean multiple ideas, just by the way in which he organized his chapters.

The one topic that I never thought about as adding to the symbolism in a piece of literature is “geography”. I personally found Foster’s chapter titled “Geography Matters…” to be very helpful. I learned in the third grade from the "writing diamond" process that creating a thorough, descriptive setting for your story to take place is very important. However, what I never put thought into was that geography is not only about setting, but it involves “psychology, attitude, finance, industry—anything that place can forge in the people who live there.” This made me realize the "intellectualness" that comes along with the location of a story. It really can help develop multiple things. Characters, places, space..and the psychology between them all are what geography is really all about in literature! I think that is pretty awesome now that I think about it. I never thought of it in those ways. Maybe subconsciously though? Sure! But this book has caused me to realize more symbolism CONSCIOUSLY. I think with more practice I will become both a better “analysist” ("one who analyzes literature".. and yes I just created my own word), but maybe more importantly, this book will cause me to become a better reader, a better observer.

Now with this background and insight I have received from Foster's How to Read Literature Like a Professor, I am on to bigger and better books! Here I go...

Not feeling much love from Beloved.

2010-08-10T17:29:00.008-04:00

Beloved was my curse. Every time I picked it up I had the mindset to finish another chapter, but after a mere two lines my mind strayed and the eight pages that separated me from my break become an eternity. The root of the problem comes from the nature of the book; I just couldn't find anything to relate to. This is because the book is written from a very feminine perspective, so that even the thought processes of the characters are different from my own. At one point a character can be talking to someone in the present and then their thoughts can seamlessly transition into the past without me realizing it until half a page later. This makes for somewhat confusing prose, and leads to a "two steps forward, one step back" way of reading.

The supernatural certainly plays a central role in the novel. The ghost of Beloved as a baby haunts 124 and drives society and its inhabitants away from it. But all of that changes when Paul D comes down the road and forces the ghost away. Beloved is not finished though, and now comes back in the flesh as a woman the age she would have been, complete with scars to prove her identity. Resurrection comes under the category of supernatural and furthers its role in the book. Toni Morrison manages to include the supernatural but also keep all realism, which was achieved through the time period Beloved is set in, where people were generally more superstitious.

Toni Morrison is making a statement about guilt and how humans deal with it. In this way, Beloved's ghost was not a ghost at all, but rather Sethe's way of dealing with the guilt of her horrible sin. Likewise, when Beloved came back as a woman she made Sethe pay and slowly stole her life force. Sethe is only free from her guilt (and by extension, Beloved) when she does what she should have done in the beginning, by attempting to kill who she thinks is Schoolteacher.

Time for analyses now. Fun.

How To Read Literature Like A Professor

2010-08-10T16:58:00.001-04:00

I can honestly say that after reading How To Read Literature Like A Professor, I feel that I have accomplished a great feat. My understanding of literature has dramatically improved. While thumbing through the pages, my sponge brain has absorbed more information than I thought it would have reading this book. As I read, I found it impossible not to make connections with past works such as novels, movies, plays and even music. Although I have not read many of the novels referenced in How To Read Literature Like A Professor I was able to gain a clear understanding of the reasons T. C. Foster used said books as examples.

"Nice to Eat You: Acts of Vampires" was a chapter I found most interesting. Throwing such a monster that is both captivating as well as horrifying into a story is a sure fire way to rope the interest of a reader. In literature, a vampire may not even be a vampire at all. The use of vampirism In Shakespeare's Othello is not by the introduction of a stoic, pale, fanged, undead figure...just Iago, a military man who stood beside the great Moore himself. He possesses the ability to gain the trust of others with his charming and persuasive personality. This subtle con-artist is responsible for sucking the life out of many characters in this play such as his wife as well as Othello's, and even the great Othello. He uses his sly tactics to confuse his victims, entrancing them with his "nobility," causing them to be blinded from the truth. Thus, leading to their bloody demise and feeling no qualms about it. Classic vampirism.

Since a character's heart related illness is never just about a medical diagnosis and there is a reason why vampires (the evil, undead monster) do what they do, why not tie it together? We all know vampires are evil and selfish yet charming and lonely and the only way to "kill" them is by stabbing through the heart with a stake. Why the heart? Perhaps because the undead heart of a vampire is the only thing keeping them "alive" and thirsting for the blood of a human while also in a search for a lover that will last an eternity. It all boils down to loneliness. The vampire, powerful enough to take a life at the drop of a hat, exists only for love? Interesting...

How To Read Literature Like A Professor has allowed me to have a much greater understanding of literature that I will use in analyzing future novels such as Beloved and The Picture Of Dorian Gray.

HTRLLAP

2010-08-06T10:17:00.000-04:00

My experience reading this book has been sort of like déjà vu of last summer when I had to read The ABC of Reading and Sin and Syntax. I’m not saying that this book is anything similar to those two, but when I read it I feel the same pain and agony I felt last summer reading the other two. I always thought that I knew how to read literature pretty well; I guess I was wrong. I never really suspected that the weather in a story was so important in contribution to the atmosphere and mood. Well, maybe I knew that a stormy night contributed to a darker mood, I just didn’t really care. I was aware of the fact that when a person drowns, it is supposed to affect the audience. I mean come on that’s just common sense.
It pains me every time Foster mentions Beloved. I didn’t read that book yet, and rather than helping me understand it I feel he is pretty much spoiling the book for me. I like to be unaware of all events that happen in literature before I engage in its text. I cannot stand it when Foster says something like, “You know how in this book this happens?” I just want to say back to him, “No, I don’t know how that happens, I’ve never read that book.” He is constantly talking about characters from books I have never read before and expecting me to know what the heck he is talking about. The only novel I am familiar with that Foster has talked about is Lolita because I had to read that book when I participated in a book club. When he talks about Humbert Humbert being a pedophile and disrespected by the readers, I know exactly what he means. When discussing Lolita, Foster talks about even though readers are disgusted by Humbert’s behavior and the relationship he has with this child, Nabokov does a great job of keeping the readers interested so that they cannot stop reading. I however, never finished this book so apparently I wasn’t pulled in like Foster said all readers would. Now, perhaps this would have been the case for me if I were a more avid reader, which I will try my best to be in this class this upcoming year.
Can I honestly say this book is one of my favorites? No. At least not so far. If it were I probably would have blogged much earlier. Is it helping me understand literature better? Well, no – that also may be because I haven’t read any books yet after this one so far this summer. Let’s hope and pray that once I begin reading Beloved or The Picture of Dorian Gray that I will be grateful for having read How to Read Literature Like a Professor.

2010-08-04T20:52:00.003-04:00

OK then, we are off and running. I love to see this blog actively commenting on literature. What I would also love to see is comments from you all on other people's comments. As you are well aware, AP/ECE Lit is all about the conversation. When we are in the midst of reading short stories, novels, plays, literary criticism,etc. throughout the year, grow accustom to blogging. You can share ideas, help each other, aid in the journey of understanding. What I find most relevant to teaching literature is the conversation which ensues.
When we begin boot camp in a few short weeks, the best place to test theories and ideas is right here! Blogging will become a very important part of brainstorming, revising and peer editing your essays.
Welcome to a world of intellectual stimuli. You will be pleasantly surprised at your addiction for more conversation about the books we read.
I am looking forward to a great year. More importantly, I can't wait to listen to you all teach me.
Just a few short weeks away- I am excited.
H.

Dorian Gray Thoughts

2010-08-02T19:35:00.000-04:00

When I started reading The Picture of Dorian Gray I looked up the time period. Being in the Victorian Period it would naturally be a vast gap in culture compared to my modern-biased preconceptions. Throughout the book I found the morals of the time period were different, or portrayed that way by Wilde, which is something that rarely changes throughout history of even greater distance. It’s like the Bible: timeless. The Victorian period valued beauty in art over purity and that it is worth more to be attractive than you are to be benevolent. This angered me while reading the novel, and I’m not quite sure which side Oscar Wilde was playing with…evil or good?

Dorian Gray starts as a naive character when he is being painted. This foreshadowed his coming of age to develop during the book, something that can show a persons’ true identity. After the portrait was finished Harry influences him that all that matters in life is beauty and pleasure. Dorian becomes very shallow which is shown through Sibyl Vane, who he loves and ultimately destroys. He has no guilt or want for repenting other than to fix his ugly deformed portrait that he locks away and ponders at. It drives him mad and leads him to kill Basil, the painter who sealed Dorian’s future.

Constantly I pictured Basil to be the angel and Lord Henry to be the devil. They are two extremes on opposite sides of the line. Harry is unfaithful, rude, pessimistic and evil. Basil is polite, down to earth, and looks deeper than skin. This was shown when he didn’t want to show his most beautiful artwork (portrait of Dorian) because he thought it was sinful.

Dorian had the choice of which side he wanted to fulfill, something each human must make because humans are filled with good and evil. Dorian’s murdering of basil was the epitome of him ridding of his pure angelic personality and his ultimate subdue to Harry's wickedness. “Harry is never wrong” according to Dorian.

Overall I think there is a moral in the story that you should never sell your soul for beauty. I enjoyed reading this novel. Also, the epigrams in the preface helped me grasp Wilde’s point of view about art, though his perceptions are very scrambled. Art and beauty were the main theme in this novel, and both go hand in hand. But what makes art beautiful? It is in the eyes of the beholder.
I will now try and analyze this book according to HTRLLAP.

Beloved

2010-08-01T18:36:00.003-04:00

In the early chapters of Beloved i found myself feeling unsatisfied. I was confused often with the different family members. The name Baby (before i realized the last name was Suggs) confused me a lot. But it seemed as the story went on, more details came through and transitions between time periods came into focus easier.

Once finishing Beloved, i decided that it was a decent book. What truly fascinated me was the topic on which it focused. Slavery is a huge topic to describe, and the reason it is so good is because it derives from a lot of emotion. Black people were once treated as animals (sometimes worse) just to make a profit for the whites. At one of the highest periods, over 7 million blacks were slaves. Along with this emotionally strong background, Morrison did some crazy things with characters.

For one, Beloved changed everything. She changed the way Sethe lived, mostly beacause of the similiarity to the daughter Sethe murdered. Beloved changed Paul D by allowing his heart to glow red again and help to open the box of emotion that had been closed his entire life. She helped Denver by allowing her to spread herself past 124 and into the real world. Beloved was a very powerful symbol in this novel (thus the title)

Morrison also allowed a role switch between Sethe and Beloved that I thought was a very engaging thing for an author to do. Sethe, now the child and bedridden person that Beloved helped her to become and Beloved in the mother roll. Two characters that were powerful the entire book only to see themselves at thier weakest by books end. Denver, out of all the characters, seemed to be the one to carry on and be the strongest.

How to Read Literature Like a Professor

2010-08-01T16:03:00.002-04:00

After I finally finishing How to Read Literature Like a Professor, I can honestly say that I now have a new understanding of what is taking place in both literature as well as television and movies. This book was very informative and has opened my eyes to notice more symbolism in the stories I have read and watched. I now realize that all literature is related and I have been able to draw parallels in story lines that I couldn't prior to reading this book.

For example, now realizing how much the Bible influences literature, I thought back to The Scarlet Letter. I knew this novel was greatly influenced by religion but never thought to relate the Bible to it. I now can easily see the symbolism between Hester being banished to the outskirts of the colony for committing adultery and Adam and Eve being banished from the Garden of Eden for succumbing to Temptation and eating the fruit off the tree. As I looked back on the story I saw how much this part of the Bible was related to this novel.

After reading this novel I have gotten back into analyzing the story more then the language used to tell it. It has helped me see that everything in the author has written is a symbol and is important to the story. I have already noticed much of what I have learned as I have begun reading The Picture of Dorian Gray.

How to Read Literature like a Professor

2010-08-01T11:45:00.004-04:00

I have finished HTRLLAP and have gained some valuable knowledge. This novel gave me many new strategies and tips to use when reading pieces of literature in the future. Some of the chapters that most caught my attention were the ones pertaining to how many things in literature relate to Shakespeare or the Bible; and how weather truly affects literature. I was truly surprised when I thought about it, and saw how much literature is affected by Shakespeare and the Bible. Many phrases ideas, and quotes used by authors today can be referenced back to one of the two.
It opened my eyes when I learned that weather in most cases isn't just weather. Weather is used as a "plot device" and can have a number of affects within a literature. Rain can be used to symbolize the cleansing of a character, as well as the ending of rain can symbolize a new beginning for a character. I am familiar with most of the novels Foster references to which helps my understanding even further. I find the information from each chapter very helpful, and look forward to using the information while reading the other novels.

The Picture of Dorian Gray

2010-08-01T09:59:00.002-04:00

The post I added last night did not copy completely off my word document so here we go again.

The Picture of Dorian Gray was extremely intriguing. When I first picked up the book I was not very optimistic. Lord Henry’s rants about psychology were at times dull and hard to follow. Most of the time, I was able to pull out the points he was trying to make. He was definitely a true cynic. He believed that one’s vanity should be highly esteemed and that being educated just made a person ugly. He thought it was better to have a black soul and a beautiful face than to be an ugly person with morals. Much of early England had this mentality. I think that this is a horrible outlook on life. As the saying goes “Beauty is only skin deep.” People should only judge you upon your character. Lord Henry continued to cherish Dorian despite the awful rumors he heard in town.

It saddened me deeply to watch Dorian go from an innocent boy, to a corrupted man, so concerned with his beauty that it destroyed him. The self-portrait that Basil Hallward painted for Dorian made apparent that appearances can be very deceiving. Although Dorian went beautiful and unchanging on the outside, the portrait displayed his soul as dark and morbid. I think that Dorian’s pollution was due to Lord Henry’s influence. Basil should not have sulked at having to share Dorian’s friendship with Lord Henry. Rather, he should have been a rival influence to Lord Henry to keep Dorian from completely losing his innocence.

The overwhelming theme in this novel is beauty. What is beauty really? Is it how you appear to others, or how you appear to yourself? I would rather be content with myself than to create a false image of myself to gain others’ approval. I am living for myself, not for others. Lord Henry didn’t have to wake up every day and despise himself like Dorian did. He didn’t believe that something with such an angelic face could be capable of malice. Dorian was haunted by the grotesque image that appeared on the once perfect face of the portrait. I pitied Dorian. No one should live like that. In the end though, I think he deserved the fate he received. Dorian lost my sympathy after murdering Basil for trying to raise Dorian from the hell he had created for himself. I also dislike Dorian for blackmailing Alan Campbell, making him feel so badly about himself that he would take his own life. He had asked too much of Alan, when he demanded him to destroy Basil’s body. Alan was not the only person Dorian destroyed. Dorian was a cruel man. He didn’t deserve the second chance he so craved.

The Picture of Dorian Gray

2010-07-31T23:20:00.003-04:00

The old adage "Beauty is only skin deep" comes to mind when reading The Picture of Dorian Gray. The Victorian mindset of the time period was enriched with a love of surfaces - a superficial belief that outer appearances dominate inner appearances. Dorian's handsome qualities combined with society's craving for them instigate both the rise and fall of Dorian Gray.

The rise of Dorian Gray is the fault of Basil alone. Basil believed Dorian to be an artistic masterpiece that he must capture upon canvas. Dorian was worshipped by Basil chiefly for his beauty (detailing Wilde's artistic philosophy and social beliefs). Wilde, being an aestheticist, believed art had no other purpose than to be beautiful. Basil used Dorian ("used" being a loosely related term) strictly to copy onto canvas for his own artistic triumph (though stating that his art is "sinful" by reflecting parts of himself is a work attempted to capture the full beauty of Dorian). Basil's feelings of worship of Dorian are similar to Lord Henry's feelings towards women: an object of decoration. The adoration by Basil and Lord Henry reflect Wilde's social view. Wilde himself adored a man in the same way Basil and Lord Henry did, though Wilde's homoerotic tendencies ventured out further than Basil and Lord Henry's did for Dorian ([Wilde] tried for "gross indecency").

All the adoration Dorian experiences lead swiftly to his downfall. As society only judges him and sees him for his exterior, the more he does to preserve it. He makes a deal with the devil to preserve his youth and only let Basil's portrait of him bear the marks of age. Lord Henry instilled the thought that "[t]here is absolutely nothing in the world but youth!" All of Dorian's sinful crimes go unnoticed because he is only recognized for his "innocence" and "purity of face", leading to his breakdown. Lady Narborough said it best: "You are made to be good - you look so good." Society didn't judge Dorian based on his crimes, they didn't even notice his sinful soul because his exterior was so beautiful.

I believe The Picture of Dorian Gray to be a tragedy, a wrongful death to a gifted man. The superficial ideals held by Victorian citizens corrupted the naive mind of Dorian Gray, making beauty the only thing worth preserving.

2010-07-31T22:05:00.000-04:00

Beloved

2010-07-30T22:33:00.003-04:00

I enjoyed reading "Beloved." I was at music camp and a tuba player noticed me reading it and said he felt sorry for me because I had to read it. He hated reading "Beloved." However, I have a completely different opinion of this book.
Originally, I was confused about this book. I had a difficult time keeping track of the characters and when each event took place. However, by the third chapter, I was able to keep track of most of the details.
Initially, it seems as if Sethe is holding her family together. Only Denver is left and she is determined to take care of her. Denver feels insecure about leaving her house. She does not like new people entering her house, including Paul Jr. She is immature for her age and relies on Sethe too much.
When Beloved comes into their lives, Sethe and Denver switch roles. This should not happen until the mother is elderly and forgetful, but it occurs early in this case. Denver needs to take care of Sethe because Beloved is destroying Sethe's life. Denver earns enough to take care of herself because all of the new clothes and food are going to Beloved. Sethe becomes frail. When Beloved dies again, Sethe is bedridden. Denver continues to take care of her, much as a mother would for her sick child.
I found the mother-daughter switch to be quite fascinating. It is sad when this occurs for a mother in her late eighties and a daughter in her mid-sixties, but it is worse when the daughter has recently become an adult and has to take care of her mother. This has made me think about life. It has made me think about how many events in life are sudden, such as losing a job, while others build up over time, like a daughter needing to take care of a mother. Illnesses and deaths especially impact lives.

How to Read Literature Like a Professor

2010-07-30T22:15:00.002-04:00

This book is fairly easy to understand. I have read some of the books that Thomas Foster refers to, so that helps me to comprehend the book more. He explains the other books that he refers to thoroughly enough that I am able to understand what he is talking about without having read the books.
I noticed in the beginning of the book it seemed like Thomas Foster was talking about the collective unconscious when he wrote that there is only one story. I continued to notice this throughout the book. I have always thought of the weather as meaning more than just whether it was raining or foggy, so I was able to guess what the weather means while reading "The Picture of Dorian Gray" and "Beloved." For most of "The Picture of Dorian Gray" I pictured the setting as being extremely foggy, which makes sense because Dorian is confused about himself and the portrait. I did not see how I could analyze the chapter called "If It's Square, It's a Sonnet," so I just analyzed the poem in the beginning of "The Picture of Dorian Gray."
I believe this book is important for reading between the lines in other books. I will most likely be referring to this book in the future when I am looking for symbolism and meaning.

Dorian Gray

2010-07-29T10:36:00.012-04:00

This book has such an interesting concept driving its story. To be able to see the state of one's soul, would certainly be a defining experience. Unfortunately for Dorian, him being able to see his soul came with the price of eternal youth, something that otherwise would seem to be a good deal. But as Dorian says in the last chapter, it would of been "better for him that each sin of his life had brought its sure, swift penalty along with it. " Instead, each immoral decision of his life was only punished by a seemingly superficial change in a portrait of himself. The little voice in our heads telling us to do the wrong thing is only silenced by the thought of the consequence. When there will be no consequence, there is nothing to silence the devil in oneself and so Dorian succumbed to immoral choices again and again. His soul paid the price.

*Spoiler Alert*

The end is most curious. When Dorian's servants enter the top room, the scene they found was very unexpected. Dorian's last thought was to destroy the painting that had brought him so much pain. I had the sneaking suspicion that destroying the painting would also kill Dorian Gray, as the painting was really his soul. But when the servants enter the room, the painting is untouched and in its original state, while Dorian Gray is old and decrepit, with a knife in his heart. I have two different theories on what might have happened:

My first and probably most likely explanation is that as Dorian went to stab his portrait he became so disgusted with the state of his soul, that he thought it better to take the easy way out of his troubles, and let the world draw its own conclusions from his portrait. This is certainly believable, because Dorian often seemed guilty even when his policy was to leave the past behind him. Acts like firing his original housekeeper on nothing but a guilty whim support this.

My second theory is that Dorian did not realize that the portrait was not only a reflection of his soul, but actually was his soul. So if he wanted to destroy the portrait, he would actually be killing himself. But stabbing the portrait wouldn't actually destroy what he hated, he would have to strike at the source of his soul in his own body. Maybe subconsciously he knew that he would have to stab himself to destroy the hated picture.

I'm still a little confused, these are just some of the ways I interpreted the end.

How to Read Literature Like a Professor

2010-07-28T23:56:00.002-04:00

Thomas C. Foster’s How to Read Literature Like a Professor defends my own thoughts on interpreting a piece of literature, but with more depth and on a higher level. He preaches around the ideas: Memory, Symbol, and Pattern. He speaks about the way in which they influence the meaning of a work. Within Foster’s chapters he revolves around the ideas that everything included in literature has a purpose, and relates to something else. Just as literature has a purpose, whether it is to teach a message by joining a character on a quest to learn a lesson, or to simply entertain, I have a purpose to reading this book… to gain knowledge that will help me better understand the PURPOSES within novels. I was about a fourth of the way done with this book, reading a little every now and then, and finally when I dove in to it, I did not remember too much from the previous chapters. So with a purpose, I decided to restart How to Read Literature Like a Professor with the purpose of actually gaining insight on how to decipher literature. Go ahead and call me stupid, but with this purpose intended I am more consistent with my reading, and able to actually dissect what Foster is teaching. For me this was a good choice and I can truly say that I am getting something out of this book…

When “learning” literature, one idea has always amazed me: a whole classroom of students, (let us say: of fourteen) can read the same novel, or short story, the same poem, or article, or even watch the same film or listen to the same song, and each and every individual, along with their teacher of course, can gain something different from the piece they have all viewed. This idea of “getting something different” out of a piece of literature revolves around the concepts of interpretation. INTERPRETATION: An explanation or conceptualization by a critic of a work of literature, painting, music, or art form; the critical explanation of analysis of the piece. I think of interpretation a little more deeply than this definition from the Free Online Dictionary. Interpretation is the analysis of a way each individual sees anything, it is influenced from their own thoughts, their own upbringing, the pieces they have read, and their own LIVES. INTERPRETATION TRULY IS THE BEAUTY OF LITERATURE. (At least I think so.) All fourteen students in this class can gain a different message from a piece, or learn a different lesson. That is what I find amazing. As long as one has evidence and details to back up why they interpret a work in a certain way, can they be wrong? No! Reasoning is the key and true elegance in literature.

“So I have to explain that just as intercourse has meanings other than sexual, or at least did at one time, so not all communions are holy. In fact, literary versions of communion can interpret the word in quite a variety of ways…Generally, eating with another is a way of saying ‘I’m with you, I like you, we form a community together.’ And that is a form of communion.” These quotes on pg. 8 are similar to my thoughts on interpretation, except by reading How to Read Literature Like a Professor, I have also learned that there are many different meanings (not just interpretations) for one idea. This may sound like an easy concept; (of course I already knew that something can have more than one meaning) it is the context and way in which the meaning is used that can create different depictions in a work of art. By reading this book it is teaching me to keep my eyes open and my mind alert while reading. This sounds corny, but it is training me to me a detective, and to notice specifics and the reasons why something is included in a piece. Foster’s point in the expert above is an example of the different ways in which communion can be used, or deciphered. The only way in which I ever saw “communion” is when Christians line up to receive the Body of Christ on Holy Sabbath Day. This book is helping me to acknowledge the use of literary devices and the process of including one thing, but really meaning something else as well. The discovery of different meanings for one concept is what eventually creates different interpretations from readers. This is how Foster’s and my thinking are connected.

I use quotations around the word “learning” in one of the above paragraphs because I do not think of literature as something to be learned. Sure we read it, discuss it, critique it, but this process is more of a discovery, the decoding of specific pieces and the many individuals’ perspectives who view it. Yes it is a learning process, but we do not learn literature, we gain knowledge by analyzing works and discovering themes within them. Interpretation allows for many different themes in one piece to be discovered, some in which the author intended, and some in which were entangled subconsciously in his or her rhetoric or plot.

Another thought of Foster’s, which many others mentioned in their blogs, was that “there’s only one story” (in other words, all stories derive from one “birth” story.) I somewhat agree with this claim. The way I see it and what I think Foster really means by this is: sure, works are all influenced by other works. They are influenced by more than just other novels. Real life, movies, music, history, all these things show up in literature and many more things that I am sure I have not even thought of. It is done subconsciously, which I think is the interesting part. Someone comes up with a totally completely original idea to write about, but by the end of the novel, it is “not only theirs” (it will involve “influences” from somewhere or another.) What is also interesting is that some use information of another to create their own consciously. That is what an allusion does; it is a direct or indirect reference to something else. In particular this makes me think of movies because some are “based on a true story” or “based on the novel…” I find it interesting not to just think that “there’s only one story”, but that there is both subconscious and conscious connections between pieces of literature.

Quickly I want to touch upon one last thing. I was not a fan of the chapter “If It’s Square, It’s a Sonnet.” Foster’s words: “I figure the sonnet is the only poetic form the great majority of readers ever needs to know. “ What about the great Edgar Allen Poe, Robert Frost, or Langston Hughes just to name a few? I know in all of my English classes we have spoken about these men and their works, which are not all sonnets… If we study their poetry, they must be important. Satires, Ballads, Blank Verse, Free Verse, and the list goes on of what we have studied so far. There has to be significance and I disagree with Foster’s claim, I think that the typical reader should have knowledge of more than just sonnets. Poetry is full of expression, it’s filled with anything really and I think it is something that should be looked at more in depth than only sonnets, like it is in my classes today. Why does Foster talk about references to Mythology, the Bible, and of course Shakespeare so much? Why do we still read Shakespeare although his time was moons ago?… It is because this work is timeless. It still influences lives today, it is still a part of our culture, and this is why we make our selves suffer, or enjoy the frustrations of trying to understand Old English.

These are just a few main points that How to Read Literature Like a Professor has triggered in my thought process and discoveries of literature. As I finish this book I would like to go back and talk about a few more specifics within my next blog!

HTRLLAP

2010-07-28T20:42:00.002-04:00

After weeks of trying to read this book, I finally isolated myself in my room and finished it. Some of the chapters in the story interested me like "Now, Where Have I Seen Her Before" That chapter kept my attention because I always have moments like that when I read. But other chapters like the vampires and the its all political chapter did not stick in my head and put me to sleep. The test case at the end of the book made it seem like it was easy to find the examples Foster explained throughout his book, but when I moved on to The Picture of Dorian Gray, it was a lot harder.

After reading some of Dorian Gray, I tried to use some of the skills that he talked about in his chapters but it did not really work out. I was waiting for Dorian or Lord Henry to fall into some water or something obvious like a hole so i could relate it to Alice in Wonderland. I still have not seen any curtains so i know there have not been any sexual activities. I think if I continue to read the book something will eventually come up. If not then i should probably go back to HTRLLAP to reread the chapters I skimmed through.

HTRLLAP

2010-07-28T20:32:00.002-04:00

Okay, so this book took me a ridiculous amount of time to read and I'll be the first to admit that I spaced out a lot while reading it. BUT it didn't bore me to tears and there were a few chapters that caught my attention - the ones i recall being on sonnets, the Bible, and sex (haha). Thankfully Foster was pretty straight-forward and almost conversational. It frustrated me that every chapter didn't flow into each other since that's what I'm so used to in novels. Instead each chapter was like a lesson, which I do realize was the point. I liked the way he kept referencing back to the same pieces of work and the same authors in each chapter - it made it easier for me to remember what he'd already explained about each specific story instead of introducing something completely new which would have lost me. And now I'm really interested in reading some of the stories he used to explain his points which makes me wonder if we'll be reading any of them in class(like Oedipus Rex)?
Anyways, I did take away some tips and tricks from the book. I know I'll definitely pick up on a lot of smaller details along the way in my reading which will hopefully help me get a lot more out of what I read in the future. Already I've noticed a lot of the things Foster mentioned that goes on in literature in movies. Like the whole quest thing. Hopefully in the future I'll be able to read and pick up on everything he mentioned and more - that way I'll be able to truly explain why I like or dislike a book. Because now, after reading this book of lessons, I feel like an amateur.
Now to test my skills on/with Beloved.

Question: I know that we're supposed to do a chapter-by-chapter analysis of Beloved using HTRLLAP, so are we supposed to blog about each chapter or just take notes? The same question goes for the one chapter analysis (?) of Dorian Gray.

HTRLLAP

2010-07-28T13:29:00.002-04:00

So am about halfway through HTRLLAP, it took me a little longer to read because I thought we had to do a chapter analysis for every chapter on this book. But this book has opened my eyes to ideas in literature that I never would have thought of myself. Even from the first chapter, explaining that every trip is a quest, it made me realize that whatever you read can be interpreted a different way, and you may see a "trip" as being just a trip or you can see it as being a quest. Some chapters in this book I didn't find too helpful, and others I found very interesting. For example, the chapter "When in Doubt, It's from Shakespeare..." bored me very easily and i didn't really understand how that chapter was relevant. But then the chapter saying that rain is more than just rain was one of the chapters that opened my eyes the most. It showed me how the setting in literature can often be more than just a random setting. It could set the mood, or show a transformation in one of the characters, and many other things. The gloominess in the rain could bring about something good, which was mentioned in the chapter "April showers bring May flowers." But altogether this book opened my eyes to how symbols can mean nothing to some people, and it can mean a great deal to others.

I guess this is my HTRLLAP post...

2010-07-26T11:53:00.011-04:00

I've come back from Georgia so I suppose that means its time to start blogging :/

Well HTRLLAP has been completed and The Picture of Dorian Gray is close to completion as well. I can’t say that HTRLLAP gave me any epiphanies, or influenced me too greatly, but after reading most of Dorian Gray I have to admit to an increased attention to smaller ideas and symbols that normally I would have passed over. Little things, like when Dorian Gray was wrapped in many furs one night, have blossomed into symbols to me, where Dorian is trying to hide what is inside by outward, superficial, layers. The real difference after reading HTRLLAP is that I understand that nothing I see as a symbol can be wrong, because my reading is my own experience so the meanings I take from that experience can never be wrong. Other then that, HTRLLAP will be a good reference to check when I am unsure of the particular meaning of something in a book.

It seems like many people are hung up on the idea Foster presents that all literature originates from one story, and so, no work of literature is original. Foster is not implying that everything is the same, just that everything is borrowed. From the beginning of our lives we are influenced by our surroundings and every part of who we are comes from the ideas and influence of them. A person cannot form an original opinion, because from their birth they have experienced the opinions of the people around them. For example, when children are younger all they have experienced of politics is what their parents have shown them so they share, or maybe more like steal, the opinions of their parents. Go into an elementary school during an election year and ask a child who they support. Then ask them who their parents support. I guarantee you they’re one and the same. Similarly, literature is stolen from other sources. Writers who like certain ideas or styles tend to emulate them, and it is shown in their work and often only subconsciously. This is how genres are created. Some of the oldest stories known to man, the Greek myths, all follow a certain style which always includes someone as a hero, even though they were written/told by different people. The Bible itself claims that, “there is nothing new under the sun,” in Ecclesiastes 1:9. It proves its statement later, with the inclusion of its own hero, who happens to be the son of God, not unlike many of the Greek myths.

So what is Foster saying when he says no literature is original? He means that writing cannot be inherently unique, because nobody has lived free from the influence of their society. An idea can breed in a person’s mind to become different from its original source, but its connection to the host is undeniable. In this way, nothing is completely a by-product of a single person, but rather, uniqueness is achieved by the variation of one person's experiences from another.

How to Read Literature Like a Professor

2010-07-25T21:55:00.003-04:00

I can't honestly say that I enjoyed reading this book, but Thomas Foster did do an incredible job in presenting his ideas and making them easy to understand. Symbols are everywhere in literature, and you just have to learn to look for them. Foster is able to explain all of the symbols we already knew of, as well as bring new ones to light. Although I have not read most of the books he mentioned, I do comprehend what he means when he says that all literature is connected one way or another. Whenever he mentioned a book that I have read in the past, I was able to make the connections and better understand his point. It is much easier to take notice of all the little symbols that are included in a book when you have something to relate them to.
As Foster makes very clear, you have to dig much deeper than what is obvious in order to fully comprehend a book, or any piece of literature for that matter. You have to understand that everything in literature is there for a reason. A simple trip to the market isn't just that. It's a quest, and your job is to find all the little symbols. After reading this book, I know that I have to concentrate not just on what is obvious, but also on the little things that can affect my understanding of a piece of literature. I might not be able to get ALL of the symbols that are included in a book, or understand how everything is connected, but looking for all these details will make my understanding of that piece much clearer.

How to Read Literature Like a Professor

2010-07-25T17:27:00.004-04:00

After reading HTRLLAP I have two beliefs:

1) All literature is the same, yet not alike.

2) Positive is negative, and vice versa.

Now, to expand.

Taking "All literature is the same, yet not alike" for face value does not make much sense, but this belief is validated throughout HTRLLAP. As Foster hinted to throughout his book, and as Emily stated in her blog, there is a single story that all others generate from. Though I find Foster's belief in this "Adam and Eve of stories" a bit annoying and perplexing to say the least, it is legitimate. Everything has an origin. We can trace our lineage back to nomads in Africa who migrated across all corners of the Earth, so why not with literature. The first stories were passed down orally (fables, myths, legends), but once we as a people became civilized enough to construct a language who was the first to write these stories down? Homer's Odyssey was written hundreds of years after the Trojan War took place, but there had to be written work before that. If we see literature as a human lineage, with mothers, fathers, grandparents, and even the occassional inbred child, every work will originate from the same place (or area considering we originated on the African continent). Therefore, all written works are inherently related and contain the same genetics. As for them being alike, they aren't. Human phsychis are never alike, we all have our own thoughts and beliefs and the ability to think what we want when we want to. Since every writer is different, every written belief and code within his or her work will be different, and unalike. Foster's claim that there is a single parent to all of literature is completely valid, though incomprehensible.

Foster continuously stated that if the reader reads one thing, it stands for something else. Rain, for instance, is a cleanser though on a dark and stormy night (Yes, I made that connection) it doesn't seem to pleasant. So if negative is positive, positive is negative? Yes, but not all the time. As Foster says, literature is never an exact. But in the example from Angela Carter's Nights at the Circus (from the Chapter entitled Fights of Fancy): having wings does not mean freedom, and being locked in a cage does not mean containment. They inversely mean each other, as I gather. Fevvers, the winged circus preformer, is contained because of her wings, a natural symbol of freedom (Positive: Wings --> Negative: Contained in a cage). On the other hand her containment as a circus "freak" allow her to challenge various Victorian-age boundries concerning sexuality and behavior (Negative: Containment in a cage --> Positive: Sexual and social freedom). Foster's recognition of the story's paradoxical view of freedom enhances the belief that "Yes is No" and "Right is Left" in the literary sense.

Reading HTRLLAP has opened the amount of symbolism and counter-symbolism I can see when reading. Thinking of literature in a historical context, which is what I'm best at, has made finding symbols and the author's encoded messages much easier since the writer was most likely responding to their current time period, whether they realize it or not. I'm barely into The Picture of Dorian Gray and I have a lot of background knowledge on Beloved (both from Foster and prior knowledge), so the scavenger hunt is on I guess. Until next time...

HTRLLAP

2010-07-25T16:05:00.002-04:00

Reading HTRLLAP really opened my eyes as to what the real meaning behind a story can be. Throughout most of the book the author explained symbols that I thought most people would already have knowledge of, but he creatively throws in those select few that not many people would have thought of. Doing so helped to keep me interested in what he was trying to teach me.
Yeah, I'm not going to write like 3 pages about this book because I'm not some acclaimed book critic, but reading HTRLLAP has made me change how I interpret the things I read. When I read things now, I feel as if I can truly analyze all of the hidden Easter eggs that the author has purposely placed in the readings. It's somewhat of a scavenger hunt for me now. I read slower just so I can catch all the curveballs that the author tries to throw at me (yee I used a metaphor). It's like getting two stories in one and I actually enjoy it.

The Picture of Dorian Gray

2010-07-24T15:35:00.003-04:00

While i was reading Oscar Wilde's novel i found myself saying in my head multiple times "what is going on?" Until i realized that i bought the edition which contained both the 1891 and 1890 verisons of the story. To my surprise, the 1891 version certainly helped to explain a lot more and went deeper into the novel. Also aiding asistance was keynotes that helped to explain the reason for Wilde's citations into the Victorian age and other references.

Art was a huge symbol in this book. Since i had the 1891 version, i also got to read a preface from Wilde illustrating his philsophy on art and its meaning. Trying to decipher the epigrams which were in this preface i came to a conclusion from what he is saying; art has no purpose. But, since i am a history freak, i decided to look through the book and find out what time period Wilde was writing in or the time in which he was writing; and it was the Victorian Age. This period's art focused on morality; a subject from which Dorian Gray himself relied on.

Another subject talked about on every page was the necessity and the meaning behind youth and beauty. Lord Henry's very first conversation with Dorian was on this topic and how eventually he will lose this beauty and youth; and become much like Lord Henry and miss out on things he wished he would have done. I have come to the conclusion that this book wanted to get the message across that the price of youth and beauty is extrelemy high. Dorian had to gave evrything; including his soul.

HTRLLAP

2010-07-23T20:42:00.004-04:00

I have been finished with HTRLLAP for awhile now but figured i would finish Picture of Dorian Gray before talking about it because i knew it would change my understanding of the novel. HTRLLAP helped to change my view on reading; because it is never just reading. It can be as simple as trying to understand a simple theme or as complex as analyzing the rain (it is never just rain). Every chapter of Dorian Gray i tried to use some of the ideas, hints, and tips from HTRLLAP.

The most useful tool HTRLLAP had to offer was the idea behind symbolism; which can hide the meaning of a book. The rain, the way someone talks, religion and all of the other things mentioned can change the pace of a book. I just hope i can interpret literature like this . I tried with Dorian Gray; being successful a few times.

The summer reading list last year was all about LANGUAGE and those novels really did change my view on it (for as dry as they were). This selection is all about LITERATURE. And HTRLLAP has already moved my brain out of analyzing and into interpreting.

How to Read Literature Like a Professor

2010-07-22T22:12:00.000-04:00

HTRLLAP was not the most interesting book to read, but Thomas Foster used analogies, and ideas that were considerably easy to comprehend. I was not familiar with all the stories that he connected his ideas to, but I looked a few up and it helped me grasp his ideas better.
Foster made ideas and strategies, to not just read literature emotionally but dig deeper and get the depth of what the author is talking about, easy to comprehend because he didn’t just explain what he was talking he looked at things from the readers point of view. With all the strategies to read at a higher level of thinking by Thomas Foster I think that analyzing the other books will be a lot easier.
All the chapters in HTRLLAP were very helpful. The one I found most helpful was in the beginning of the book when Foster talked about the three most vitals areas to focus on while reading, memory, symbol, and pattern. These three key elements have helped me not just read with emotion but to grasp a better concept of literature.

How to Read Literature Like a Professor

2010-07-22T16:55:00.001-04:00

Today, I am blogging from the island of St. John. It has taken me a long time to add some input to this blog because of my own stupidity. I will openly admit this. I noticed just last week that I was half way into the wrong book. Instead of reading How to Read Literature like a Professor I was reading How to Read Novels Like A Professor. This was a mistake I will never make again. Instead of handling my business myself, I handed my Mom the reading assignment paper with the list of books I would need to buy for Summer Reading. Well either my Mom messed up the title or the Borders Bookstore employee at the other end of the phone. Instead of checking the books I received in the mail a few days after I blindly dove into How to Read Novels Like a Professor to get it over with so I could move on with the novels with a story line. When I checked the blog a week later I was seeing a different title pop up everywhere I looked; How to Read Literature Like a Professor. After a mild freak out about wasting my time reading the wrong book, I called the Borders Bookstore in the Crystal Mall to put the right book on hold. I was praying they would have it because I was leaving for vacation two days later and I knew my parents would not be too pleased if they had to pay an extra $40.00 to ship my new book overnight. When I went to trade How to Read Novels Like a Professor for How to Read Literature Like a Professor the clerk refused to do a swap. She told me my book was not in "re-sellable" condition, probably because I had been reading it in the lake and my cousin thought he'd be hilarious and do a cannon ball next to me while my book was propped up in my hands vulnerable to the water. Well all I can say is, lesson learned.

I can't exactly say I enjoyed HTRLLP because that would be a lie. It was however considerably more enjoyable to read than Sin and Syntax. I tend to favor novels with a little bit of romance and action. I started How to Read Literature Like a Professor with a very grim outlook after reading 150 pages of How to Read Novels Like a Professor. It had not encouraged me to jump right into HTRLLP to say the least but, Thomas Foster was able to spice up his teaching with witty comments to make his book much more interesting. I have to say that this book did broaden my understanding of how to analyze the literature I read. I never would have thought that going to the market to get a loaf of bread would be a quest for a protagonist. Before reading this I always believed that a quest would have to amount to something that had a huge relevance to the story. I found most of the chapters extremely helpful, but I don't know how I will be able to connect novels I read to Shakespeare, to the Bible, to fairy tales, to Homer and to Greek and Roman mythology. I am not that well read. I have only read a few of Shakespeare's works and I only know the most famous stories from the Bible, and of Greek and Roman mythology. According to Foster my story of the Odyssey is completely warped so there goes any connections with using Homer's works. I always thought there was a big wooden horse. I know about Romulus and Remus and of Icarus but my Greek and Roman mythology only goes so far having only spent a few months on it in the sixth and ninth grades. I can always make connections using modern literature that I've read. According to Foster, these modern authors are "just reworking an already established message already introduced by the Bible and Shakespeare and so on. These authors use these old messages while "exploring changes or continuities in attitudes from one era to another." There will always be temptation and sin in literature, but I don't necessarily have to always correlate it to Adam and Eve do I? I guess there is a little bit of Adam and Eve in every story with temptation and sin they just have different titles and characters.

I did appreciate the discoveries I made while reading HTRLLP. The whole point of reading this book was to find new ways to analyze literature. I love how Foster digs deep and can find those small connections between vampires and Wall Street Traders. I just don't know how I will be able to do the same and make connections between Seethe's escape from slavery being like Moses saving his people and bringing them across the Red Sea only for the Pharaoh to try and drag them back through the Red Sea again. I suppose that is why Thomas Foster is the English Professor and I am not. This book has highlighted the fact that to read well, you need to practice. If I want to do well in this course I am going to have to practice more so I will be able to reference a plethora of books, novels, and poems, while I am reading and analyzing. I am ignorant to much of Christianity although I do call myself a Christian. To become more aware I need to read. All literature is connected, the only way to see beyond the words on the page in front of me, is to read more books. I found that when Foster explained his points through books I have read, his ideas were much clearer to me. I think that I will be able to make these extraordinary connections as he does when I have been able to completely devour a book and learn its ins and outs and have been able to see beneath the page to understand its full meaning.

2010-07-06T21:22:00.001-04:00

My thoughts after reading How to Read Lit. :

* Overall, this book urges the reader to look deeper into the author, sentences, time period, and ALL possible symbols (even if they were not intended). Foster uses common symbols like weather and illness and describes their connotations and how it makes the book more interesting and complex. He gives various examples, but even he knows he has "only scratched the surface". When reading this book I kept thinking "duh" but when I read I found I would have missed certain things. Literature is a bottomless pit when it comes to interpretation.

* I have a pet peeve about the book. Foster says there is only one story and all others derive from that one story. I agree that there is only one story: the one of human life. What I do not agree with is the fact that he thinks no literature is original because of this one story. If that were true then the one story wouldn't have been original and would have come from something else: but it cant come from anything else, because hypothetically there was nothing else.I certainly do not understand where this one story originated, all I know is that its stamped into each and every human.

P.S. Foster mentions Toni Morrison A LOT, so I don't think it's a coincident that we are reading Beloved.

2010-06-25T09:13:00.002-04:00

APES, that stands for APEnglish student. We have added, the ECE/APES, or as I call it, Itchy Apes. This is your new status at MHS, an itchy ape.
I know it is early in the summer, I return to MHS on Monday to teach summer school, yeeha, but you should be thinking about tackling How To Read Literature Like a Professor. HTRLLAP.
Once you have this book in your repetoire, you will have many of the tools you need for next year.
So, get busy, enjoy, and if you come across a particular passage or idea you want to share with us, BLOG! I am chomping at the bit.

2010-06-10T18:48:00.002-04:00

Well, this is one dead beat blog. I am hoping to resurrect life into it with new students. There is a true purpose to blogging, and that would be to bond, to think and write together, to learn to share in a safe environment
OK new AP/ECE'rs, I am counting on you.

To write or not to write, that is the question!

2010-01-13T20:47:00.004-05:00

I'm really starting to dislike Hamlet right now :( I like the story itself but can't stand the process of not knowing what to write about next. If you keep talking about the same thing, it gets boring. If you switch topics to often, it gets jumpy. ??? Now I see why Hamlet has such a problem with taking action, it's not easy. :)

Life of Pi

2009-08-30T09:53:00.003-04:00

I'm really confused about this book because the only thing that made me wonder what was going on was when Pi was wanting to die but then he starts talking to Richard Parker about the food and then all of a sudden he's talking to his brother? I dont get it was it his real brother or was there even person there? But some how he got the will to live and the sea pushed him to a deadly island. This part just really doesn't make sence to me at all

Life of Pi

2009-08-29T20:27:00.002-04:00

Throughout this book it had a great deal of twists and turns and it seemed to change when you wouldn't expect. I continually question the importance of the island that he had spent so long on. What was the signifcance behind that and did it have a meaning that explains the end of the story? I felt that the story he explained to the men in Mexico may have actually been the true story. It seemed to make sense and the fact that each character could have represented the respective animal is believable. In the end it left me with so many thoughts going through my mind. I am not really sure which is the correct story and what symbols could help me with figuring it out?

Who is Beloved?

2009-08-26T18:41:00.004-04:00

Good job Cassandra! I didn't even notice that. In the book, Beloved is supposed to be Sethe's murdered daughter but at one point in the book it says that she could be a young woman who's run away from years of abuse, so tramatized that she's forgotten who she is. I think Beloved truly is Sethe's murdered child but near the end of the book it's mentioned that a young woman with a swollen stomach is seen walking near the river. ??? If it's Beloved does that mean that she wasn't Sethe's dead child come back to life or had the infants spirit possessed her body or what? And if it isn't Beloved, how could she know all those things about Sethe ( Where your diamonds? Your mother ever fix your hair? and so on...) Massively confusing.

Just a thought on Beloved.

2009-08-26T13:16:00.003-04:00

In Beloved I know that 124 is what they use to refer to their house, but is the number 124 also a representation of Sethe's children? Sethe had four children and if you count them one by one, they would be 1, 2, 3, 4, but the third child was murdered. That would take the number "3" out of the order and leave 1, 2, 4 (124). Did anyone else pick up on this, or am I just thinking too much about it?

Life of Pi

2009-08-20T23:55:00.004-04:00

I finally got into this book, the first few chapters bored me beyond belief and it took me a long time to drudge through them, but, now that things start happening quicker, the book is starting to draw me in. Pi's constant self contradiction of practicing 3 different religions and his dedication to Mr. Kumar's science makes me wonder how it will all play in to his exit from the country and journey across the pacific.

Life of Pi

2009-08-19T18:14:00.002-04:00

The way this book some how got intereting was amazing. At first, it was SO boring reading about Pi talk about different animals. But now that the book actually is talking about a plot, its got me hooked. I agree with Alicia when she says it feels like your right with Pi. I think its due to the way Pi discribes his every thought. I feel like Im really understanding the way he thinks and the way he is trying to survive. I thought it was a bit odd for Pi to try and tame the tiger. Isnt it harder after an animal gets too old? Then again, after the tiger ate all the other animals, Pi could be his only way to keep living.(because Pi caan fish and has water) I cant wait to read on and see how Pi survives. The odds are so against him.

Life of Pi

2009-08-19T12:22:00.002-04:00

Ms. Halsey you were right the sea is my favorite part through out the whole story. The way he makes you feel that your actually along side of him during his adventure is what really makes the whole book. When he finally realizes that he is going to be on this boat for a while and he starts turning the boat into his own house was probably my favorite part because he has gone through so much having the deal with the tiger then not having anyone else around him to keep him company.
Im starting to think that when he had his first interaction with the tiger and not having him attack him yet I think that the tiger will take him in as one of his own. I don't think that the tiger will end up hurting Pi. But I guess we are going to have to wait and see....

Life of Pi

2009-08-16T20:22:00.003-04:00

I kept putting this book off due to the lack of interest I had in it. But, now that I have gone past the first 75-100 pages it has become really interesting and it is tough to stop reading. I didn't believe that it would ever get any more exciting even though it was supposed to but if you do read on you will begin to become hooked as I did just make sure it's not to LATE! I like to think that many of us will be able to connect with Pi as he is placed on a lifeboat trying to survive with many dangerous animals. Though we may not have been placed in this exact situation a lot of us rely on ourselves for daily survival or everyday living. I still do continue to look for important symbols as though i do believe that the tiger has great meaning to the ending of this book. I look forward to reading the rest of this book.

How to Read Literature like a Professor

2009-08-15T23:55:00.002-04:00

I honestly intended on saving How to Read Literature like a Professor for last. If anything, I expected it to be a how-to book without a plot line that would be hard to get through. My plans changed, though, when I read the more than positive reviews it was getting on this site. As I began reading it I further regretted not reading it sooner. Not only was it insightful, but to my surprise it was also enjoyable. I now find myself re-reading the other two books only to find symbols and patterns non-existent to me prior to HTRLLP. For example, in Beloved, I now view memories as a form of torture Sethe used to punish herself for the loss of her daughter. When she realized Beloved may be that very daughter, she stated she was "excited to giddiness by the things she no longer had to remember." This implies that she no longer had to use memory to feed her guilt for what happened to her daughter. Before HTRLLP, I had a simple-minded view on literature, but now, with practice, I look forward to broadening my horizons.

2009-08-05T09:26:00.002-04:00

August 5th.

Wow, this blog is disappointing. This is supposed to be a way for you all to discuss literature with each other to help bring meaning to it. If you have had me as a teacher before, you know that my philosophy is that You, the student, need to arrive at understanding by prying and probing. I will not give you answers because I do not have answers! I only have my own intellectual probes.

Literature is like a game, but you must be willing to play. That means serious concentration and hard work, like asking questions, trying to find symbols, meaning. Remember, people write books to share a story. The story usually has some sort of meaning or message about what human beings endure and how we learn. Reading is like a glimpse into another person's philosophy on what they believe is important to know in this world.

READ ON!

Halsey

Life of Pi

2009-08-01T14:29:00.002-04:00

As I continue to read this story it seems to become a little more interesting but at the same time I feel that I am becoming more confused. I really liked the part about when Pi's father takes them to the zoo to show them an example of what a tiger really can do. It makes the kids very scared and also extremely mad at the father but i feel it is very important for them to understand the concept. They also get the understanding of how dangerous all of the animals in the zoo really can be. I think that this part must have a greater meaning to the story because on the front cover of the book you see a man that seems to be hiding in the back of a boat as well as a tiger who is in the front of the same boat looking as if he is in charge. I started to get confused when the book switched over to all of this religion talk. I didn't quite get all the need for this talk and was wondering if it played a larger role in the book later on? I mean all that i know is that Pi loves his religion and doesn't want anybody to take the belief he has in god from him.

Life of Pi

2009-07-27T18:31:00.002-04:00

As I continue to read this book I become more and more lost as to what Yann Martel is really trying to say. I feel like it is just becoming random. It talks about different animals and different facts and opinions about them. I feel like it keeps jumping from one subject to another. For example, it jumps right from the topic of an animal's "flight distance", to how animals seek to escape the zoo. Maybe this could all just connect later on in the book. One part that I have read about, that actually caught my attention, was when Pi's father brought him and his brother into the tiger's cage to show them how dangerous they are. I think this was a bold and unnecessary move by their dad because it could be a scary experience. But on the other hand it was a good idea to show them the dangers of all the animals in the zoo, seeing as how they'll be around them alot. I can see the connection that the beginning of the book is going to have with the end by looking at the cover. I feel like what his dad teaches him about the tigers will help when he is stranded on the boat with the animals. I think that all that he is learning will be the difference between him living and dying. One question i have is, what are the random chapters of italicized words? Could they possibly be recalections of maybe pi or his dad? Or maybe a back story?

Life of Pi

2009-07-18T19:35:00.002-04:00

In the beginning of this book it seems that they start to talk about random animals in the wilderness. They give a big explanation to why they are more happy living in a zoo then in the wild. What is the need for this? Also, i was unsure of why every few chapters they have a very brief chapter explaining a character, why is this so important? The characters name seems to have an importance behind it seeing as how they took a great deal of time to explain how people used to make fun of him for it and due to this he had to use an abbreviation. I feel it is not a great read and is pretty boring in the beginning. I hope it becomes a bit more interesting.

HTRLP

2009-07-16T09:45:00.003-04:00

When I first started reading this book I thought it was going to be another book telling you exactly how to read literature and the do's and don'ts, but I was completely wrong. I actually really liked the book because it put the whole concept into a real world view for me.

Quick Question:

So once we're done with all the books we do an analysis essay comparing one book to HTRLP and then the other

How to Read Literature Like a Professor

2009-07-15T17:47:00.003-04:00

I am glad that you decided to add HTRLLAP to our reading list. I had expected that this would be just another boring how-to book, but was happily mistaken. I was quite surprised to learn how much symbolism went unnoticed in my previous reading experiences. To be honest, this book made me more eager to apply what I've learned to my writing rather than my reading. None the less, I am sure that I will never again be able to read a novel or watch a movie without trying to find a deeper meaning.

Thoughts about Beloved

2009-07-04T21:09:00.004-04:00

When I first started reading Beloved, I was more than a little confused but as I read on, I started to get into it and the dialouge made much more sense. It appears to get better as you progress through each chapter and although Sethe's memories and the constant "flashbacking" make it a bit difficult to follow and even harder to understand, I'm really starting to like this book. :)

Life Of Pi

2009-07-03T21:33:00.002-04:00

This book seems to be pretty boring through-out the first couple of chapters. However i learned alot about the main character, Pi. He seems to be ashamed of his name. I saw this by the way he approached telling people it at school. He used the same tactics of telling the teachers, by writing it on the board, and even starting a sort of joke by putting 3.14. I think that it was really cool how he got his name, from a pool, and it showed a lot of meaning of his life. I can tell that Pi is really into animals by the way he explains the sloth and the way he talks about the zoo. He seems to know alot about all animals too. I can tell this by the way he talks about the animals way of life and how they live the same way forever and dislike change. He is constantly talking about the zoo and shows its a main part of his life. I thought it was very interesting the way he shows how zoos are actually good; giving animals a place to live in safty. I need to read mope to fully understand Pi.

Life of Pi

2009-06-30T17:53:00.002-04:00

I'm really starting to get into the book now and enjoy it more. The I read the easier it is to understand Pi and the way he thinks and why he reacts to certain things in the book. A part that really stuck out to me so far while as I was reading was when he was talking to one of his favorite professors at the zoo. It stuck out to me because his teacher is an athiest and Pi considers religion a huge part of his life and follows by it every day. But what I thought was interesting was during the conversation Pi had to stop talking to him because he said he didn't want the one thing that he loved taken away from him, he didn't want to change his feelings about god. I thought this part was interesting because it shows to me that Pi doesn't have a mind of his own and that he gets convinced easily by people and changes his mind because of what people tell him. I don't think Pi can make decisions for himself, he always follows the rules and hardly gets himself into trouble. I could be wrong about that statement but I suppose I'll have to read more to learn more about Pi and his journy

Life of Pi

2009-06-29T12:13:00.003-04:00

The first four chapters bored me to death but after that it gets a lot better in my opinion. Does the rest of the book contain these random explanations of the living habits of sloths and other animals or is that just filler material in the beginning? Besides those strange tangents though I am having an easy time reading this book.

Life of Pi :)

2009-06-12T21:06:00.002-04:00

So far this book has been pretty interesting. I liked the part how Pi explained how he got his name because there was a lot of background that goes into his name. I also feel like he uses animals to express his feelings in way and that can be pretty neat and interesting.

Question about HTRLLAP

2009-06-12T16:01:00.004-04:00

I don't understand what we have to do for How to Read Literature like a Professor. The direction says to "analyze your choice of book according to each chapter in HTRLLAP; however, I just finished reading the first chapter and I'm not sure how to analyze my choice of book based on it. This chapter discusses the common theme of quest that many novels use (though some can be more concealed than others). This was a short chapter, and I don't know exactly what is "analyze my choice of book." Is it which book that has the theme of a quest that I like? Or which book mentioned in the chapter that I like better?

Also, do we enter the entries on the Blog, or in our own journals?

Jing

Welcome

2009-06-11T19:23:00.003-04:00

Hi new bloggers.
The reason we blog is to begin a conversation that we will continue all year. We talk literature and ideas, life and conflict; we share thoughts, characters, and experience. These are not limits, must suggestions.
Reading is a lot more fun when we read together. Oprah, I know, cheesy, but she brings people together through book clubs and discussions of literature. We all have different interpretations, and the more we share our ideas, the deeper our reading.

So, welcome, feel free to share your ideas as you begin your summer reading assignments.

I will be commenting in the background and posting when I have some new ideas.

Happy voyaging through literature and have a great summer.
Halsey

2008-12-23T08:02:00.001-05:00

I wanna blog again. Anyone wanna blog with me?
Sophie's World is book of choice this winter vacation. How are you ECE students liking it?
And in the Maritime World - How is Ishmael? What a different perspective, huh?
Let's blab about books.

Jane Eyre - Just in time!

2008-09-01T20:59:00.051-04:00

Well although I enjoy reading, Jane Eyre was something I really did not enjoy. Although the story of Jane Eyre was sad and enticing, I must say that the book bored me! I did however notice the detail and depth that Brontë had put into the story and I was excited to read such descriptive writing. While I read, the words literally painted a picture in my head, giving me a clear view of what was going on. And because Jane Eyre is written in the first person narrative, it was easy to fathom Janes thoughts and emotions as she meets people like Mr. Brocklehurst and Ms. Scratcherd to Helen, her first friend.

With Brontë's descriptive writing, I saw that Mr. Brocklehurst made it his job to bring misery to Jane's life while attenting Lowood. From what Jane was thinking, it was easy to conclude that Brocklehurst was a male version of Mrs. Reed. He, along with Ms. Scratcherd were cold, cruel and insesnitive, especially toward Jane. We can also see that Helen had made such an impact on Jane's life. When Jane learned that Helen was dying, her sadness was for me, tangible. Helen was dear to Jane and through her actions and speaking. It was clear that Jane felt alone, much like her life prior to meeting Helen.

On another note, has anyone seen the movie? After I finished the book I watched the movie. Though much the same, the movie cut out some important scenes from the book! Regardless of my dislike toward the novel, I was upsetting that the key parts of each chapter of the book was taken out or altered. When Jane first meets Rochester in the novel, it was nighttime when Rochester had slipped while in the movie, Jane had bumped into Rocherster out in the lane and during the evening. I suppose it does change the mood a little bit and after Rochester meets Jane in the garden and he claims that he"sometimes has a queer feeling with regard to you". Although im not entirely sure what he's saying, I do know that he's saying he has an awkward feeling around her. In the movie, he mentions something interesting about her since their first encounter. Now, meeting a stranger in the middle of the night would be awkward, sepecially if you had caused them to fall . However, if you met on a beautiful afternoon, that might just cause some unforseen romance. Maybe it's just me, im not that good at explainations.

Thursday has earned a place on my bookshelf

2008-08-31T16:11:00.002-04:00

Late, late, late. It's true; I really am. Although, I will have to say that The Eyre Affair was just astounding; especially for Fforde's first novel-honestly, I loved every second of it, especially when it made me laugh; and the play on names had that covered. Especially Jack Schitt; best first impression I think I've read in a while. Also, I must mention that the wordplay he uses in his character's names definitely paints a good description of them even before Thursday describes their appearance, or their actions. For instance, Acheron and Styx Hades; pretty difficult to miss it. And it accurately pertains to their personalities-Hades being the god of the Underworld, and being the least pleasant of the three brothers (Zeus, Poseidon, and Hades), therefore getting a pretty bad rep. The first names being the rivers leading to the underworld. Also Dr. Runcible Spoon will always be one of the best names I've had the pleasure to read.

It must be said that the bookworms thoroughly fascinated me. Mycroft's are probably the best bookworms, and the most creative. Who has ever heard of an animal that feeds on prepositions and its waste products are apostrophes; simply unique. And their vast memory capability and intelligence-I'd want one as a pet, as part of my geeky side.

I really like how it's somewhat a modern version of 1984; although, I don't know too much on that novel, haven't gotten to it yet. The world is very advanced, but also somewhat backwards. The Crimean War seems to have become the second "Hundred Years War" for England. Also, in a fashion somewhat similar to Big Brother, the Goliath corporation has almost a stranglehold grip on England. It really shows two villains in the novel, obviously the psychotically evil Hades, and then the slightly more subtle to the world, Goliath. They pretty much run the country, seeing as "England is still indebted to them," I believe it stated they had a fair number in the judiciary and Parliament.

Also, Jane Eyre, the woman, and Thursday really strike me as somewhat parallel. They both have things in their pasts they found as major difficulties, life seems to pile it up on them, and they both, in their own respective ways, turn out to be heroines. I'm sure Fforde had this in mind, especially because it's entitled The Eyre Affair, and it really makes the lack of Jane Eyre actually being in it-I can't be the only one who thought she'd play a much bigger role in the course of the novel, not only the last portion, really. However, one could look at Thursday as being a pretty spot on substitute, which, in effect, would make sense to the title of the book.

While reading, I couldn't help but, like Heather was, reminded of Harry Potter and Artemis Fowl; two books I enjoy quite a lot when I was younger (and still do, matter of fact) and thinking of them really let me enjoy the books even more. Some of the humor really reminded me of the Harry Potter series, and a the characters really brought out characters from the Artemis Fowl series. For example, Artemis and Mycroft, both geniuses so that's a given. Thursday kind of reminds me of Holly, mostly attitude-wise; now, not fully her, but maybe her and a fusion of Harry Potter. Overall, it really did make me think of the Harry Potter septology when reading it; the both kind of hold a alternate version of Britain, no, not just Britain, an alternate version of the world.

I really did enjoy this book, and How to Read Literature Like a Professor definitely made the experience more enjoyable-having Jane Eyre under my belt was a great accessory, too. I'm glad it's a series, because I shall surely be getting the next book to read! Thanks Halsey!

~John C. (Truly sorry I posted this when I did.)

Life of Pi

2008-08-28T09:55:00.002-04:00

Aside from the two versions of Pi's story, the thing that most attracts my curiosity is the island. Of all Pi's descriptions throughout the novel, it is the strangest. The concept of the algae itself with all of its curious properties (its formation into an island with trees, its acidity at night) is undeniably a difficult one to wrap my head around, having never experienced anything remotely similar. But when I consider the ocean and the many things that science has yet to discover, it is not so strange to accept the possibility of its existence. After all, many animals are nocturnal and I have heard of plants which respond to sunlight; some flowers open and close their petals with the rising and setting of the sun. I have also heard of carnivorous plants, like the Venus fly trap. With this in mind, it no longer seems unusual that Pi made such a discovery at sea.

What is puzzling is the fact that there is only one life form than can live symbiotically with the island: the meerkats. Their presence raises numerous questions: Where did they come from? Why are they the only animals on the island? How did they discover the secret to survival on the island? All of these questions do seem to clarify one thing for me, though. It makes it all the more likely that Pi's original story, the one with the animals, is the truth. Where Pi's representation of himself as the tiger is a convincing argument for the human story, the island persuades in favor of the animals.

It is such an outrageous concept, though not impossible, that it would take much creativity on the part of a weak, exhausted, malnourished human to invent and describe to others. I'm not convinced Pi would have been up to creating so many far fetched details. The island also explains how he managed to survive without food or water, when he should have died. Pi makes an unexpected recovery from a boy suffering from blindness, starvation, and dehydration. It is unlikely that he would have survived without coming upon the island, yet, he did. Improbable though it seems, the island must be real and so, therefore, must be Richard Parker and Pi's original tale.

thoughts on The Eyre Affair

2008-08-27T14:02:00.000-04:00

Okay. Phew. I just finished The Eyre Affair-- I know, I'm a guilty practitioner of procrasination! I'm a little sick of my mind-voice after all this reading, but s'all good, I rather enjoyed it. Thursday's a fun character!

I don't know what it was about this book, but I found it a little harder to find those little signals between the lines HTRLLAP taught me to look for. Perhaps it was because there was a lapse of time from when I read HTR and then read Eyre Affair. Anyway, hmm, I remember a mental note about cars... When I first started reading the book all I could really think about was Harry Potter and Artemis Fowl and Tamora Pierce's heroines and how all this war/politics stuff was going over my head as well a wealthy portion of the name dropping made throughout the book.

At first I was like "AGHHHH THURSDAY REMINDS ME OF EVERYTHING AND NOTHING ALL AT ONCE" and I couldn't do that whole thing where you relate it to the oldest story you could come up with. All I could think of were modern stories; not being permitted to say Acheron Hades's name had Voldemort (He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named!) all over it and the SpecOps reminded me of the LEPrecon in the Artemis Fowl series. I did, however, catch on a couple of the silly jokes in characters' names-- Jack Schitte, for instance-- and how Acheron and Styx are rivers to the underworld (even before Thursday mentioned it).

Perhaps it was because I read Eyre Affair before Jane Eyre (smart idea? You tell me) that I didn't catch on to Landen and Thursday being a Mr. Rochester and Jane of sorts until I saw them interact with those characters in the book. Then again, it did get blatantly and skillfully obvious. Love, absence, reunited but love is kept at bay, then interuppted at the ankles of marriage? I dunno, seems pretty clear to me. And Jane sure got a lot less "screen" time than I thought she would...

And Mycroft... I had to struggle to come up with any inventors forced to use their inventions through blackmail, and I'm reminded of the father in The Great Mouse Dective, and was Belle's father in Beauty and the Beast another example? I'm sure there's a story for that too that's a bit more ancient, and biblical or mythological.

Acheron Hades was a pretty awesome villan. Personally I think he's right up there with Scar from the Lion King. Wait! Acheron Hades, extraordinary villan whose greatest adversary is a comparsively weaker, smaller creature who wins by fate, or luck, or perhaps even domant skill, or whatever have you? That sounds familar... Ah.. Harry Potter and Voldemort again but even that has a source... Hmmm David and Goliath? Yes! That'll do. I wish they explained exactly what Hades was.... was he a werewolf? That sounds silly, unless I missed something. Maybe he was simply a beast, like Grendel or something, but I don't know that story.

I find it funny how Jack Shitte's company was just that-- jack shit indeed! I was quite amused when he revealed the Stonk was a big bluff. All this time he's been nothing but a puffer fish full of hot air until Thursday came along and pricked a hole in him. Could that be Fforde's way of taking a stab at lying politicans? At the selfishness of corporate big business and commercialism? Is he making a stand on his view of the War on Terrorism? Wait, I don't think the book is young enough for that. Well, we could still relate it to that if we wanted to. I think he's saying how those kinds of big names and people and places sacrifice what's really important in the name of more monetary things; Schitte was willing to work with a highly dangerous man in order to obtain a weapon of all weapons. All he wanted was something superficial, an object, a clear-cut way to being the best by winning a war, instead of defeating evil, as every hero in every book must try to do. It's no wonder Schitte didn't win, OR get what he wanted.

And surely there is some satire in Fforde's world's obsession with literature. What is he trying to say through that? Is he taking a stab at a lack of culture, or lack of appreciation for classical literature? The show of Richard III was down-right ridiculous and came off to me as an organized and impromptu riot. Replace the Shakespeare with, say, I don't know, a presidental campaign, and there's no telling that entire playhouse would've ended up as cleanly as it did. Honestly, I'm impressed with the countless things Fforde has touched upon, and how much crap Thursday had to deal with throughout this novel. Lucky Landen, ehhhhh?

Jane Eyre

2008-08-26T18:44:00.000-04:00

Sometimes I feel guilty for not reading lots of great classic literary works, but I think the majority of people would agree with me that some books seem too difficult to get through. A good number of the time these classic books have a lot of description and just not enough action. Jane Eyre though was a perfectly balanced novel and led to a quick reading. I read it within weeks of school’s close and fell in love. In fact I recommended it to a fellow Bronte sister’s enthusiast and she too was enamored with the book. Not only did we gush about the amazing plot, but rented the BBC movie version and compared it to the book.

While watching the movie, I was surprised at how accurately it portrayed my first visions of the characters and surroundings. This- I think- is due to the avid descriptions that the author composed. It must have been easy for the director to envision Bronte’s original images. Although the descriptions in the book weren’t so thorough that they were painful. Instead a more vivacious text made the characters seem to pop out of the book and come to life.

One thing I also was surprised to see was that Jane Eyre seemed to show undertones of gothic influence. It seemed a little at odds with other timeless love writers from the early 19^th century that I’ve read. Jane Austen in particular was only 30 or so years prior Bronte’s time, and only one of her books had any gothic influence. However in that book- Northanger Abbey- Austen also parodied gothic stories as her character Catherine showed the folly of an over active mind stimulated by gothic novels.

Albeit, a part of me was also thoroughly not surprised that Jane Eyre was quite suspenseful and dark at times because of Charlotte’s sister, Emily’s reputation of depression and her gloomy love story Wuthering Heights. Overall- Jane Eyre was a great book!

HTRLLAP

2008-08-26T16:14:00.050-04:00

As we all know, procrastination sucks, and I'm failing at getting out of that habit. On a better note, I've just completed reading HTRLLAP, although I don't really count chapter 27 as a legit chapter. To me, it was just a combination of all the chapters meshed into one, then is utilized with another story (The Garden Party, By Kathering Mansfield) to give us an example of how they work.

Making on a comment about Johns comment about the overuse of rain in stories, I do actually agree with you on that. Using The Matrix: Revolutions to support my comment, rain can symbolized much more than just life and restoration. Neo (meaning "new"), the protagonist of The Matrix, had been reborn from Mr. Anderson after his appearent death at the hands of the evil Agent Smith. But getting back to my point, in scenes 27-30 of the Revolutions, Neo and Agent Smith fight under the pelting rain. Rain, being restorative as Foster states can also mean death. Neo is fighting to restore the world, to save it from what it has become under Agent Smith. Unfortunately, Neo dies at the hands of Agent Smith yet again under the cover of rain. Yet, Smith dies at the hands of Neo too, ultimately restoring the world. Everyone and everything returns to its original state, it returns to the green world that Foster talks about because the final scene of Revolutions is at a green park, being overlooked by the world, clearly signifying the world as being restored by the rain in which brought life anew to the people of Zion and the Matrix.

Well I'm going to end here before sounding like a big nerd. 1 more book to go thankfully, and then just the responses and the analysis. Shouldn't take too long.

Life of Pi

2008-08-25T12:28:00.001-04:00

Easily the most confusing and intriguing question that can be asked about Life of Pi is which story, if any, is true. Both the story with the animals and the one without seem, to me, to be equally plausible. If the central story of the novel is untrue, Pi has certainly invested much effort into weaving a believable tale. His personal background as the son of a zookeeper lends strength to his story and infuses some of the more obscure and otherwise improbable details with authenticity. As someone who would like to have faith in all of humanity, the idea of Pi's struggles along with the zebra, hyena, Orange Juice, and Richard Parker certainly is more appealing than the one with the cook, the sailor, and Pi's mother, and is the story I would like to believe.

However, I cannot count out the second version of events told by Pi to the officials of the Japanese Maritime Department. Though not delivered with the same attention to detail and seemingly heartfelt sincerity, it is not an unlikely alternative. The lack of finesse in its deliverance could simply be owed to the fact that Pi is uncomfortable with the true story and, in his shame, chose to gloss over some of the more unpleasant events aboard the lifeboat. Of all the evidence pointing to one story or another as the true happenings, the fact that Pi chose to represent himself as the tiger is the most compelling argument in favor of the human story. Pi's attitude towards Richard Parker is a complex mix of fear, gratitude, hate, and love. He claims that he would not have survived without him, which holds true if Pi, as a tiger, was able to do things that the deeply religious youth would have been incapable of prior to this experience - things like killing the cook. Richard Parker easily transforms from his role in the original story into an alter ego of Pi, one that is willing to do what is necessary to keep playing in the game of life where Pi, the innocent Indian boy, would have faltered.

The ending of Life of Pi certainly left me mystified with much to ponder. Whichever story contains the truth of Pi's journey, there is one thing I don't doubt. Pi is a strong, courageous character who fell prey to the ocean's power and was certainly left physically and emotionally scarred, though wiser and more appreciative of life for his experience.

Life of Pi

2008-08-24T09:38:00.001-04:00

Considering Life of Pi from the point of view of someone entering into a Maritime Studies class, perhaps the most important question I could address is what role the sea plays in this novel. The ocean seems to appear as both a comfort and a cause of distress for Pi. It is easy to identify its negative qualities because its sheer size and exposure to the elements combine to make it a constant danger. Weather and the size and strength of the swells are unpredictable for a youth with no experience traveling by sea who possesses very little equipment. Pi is utterly at the mercy of greater powers than himself. He must also cope with the other forms of life that call the sea their home. Armed only with his survival manual, he must discover which creatures pose a threat and how best to avoid danger and which offer sustenance to the starving man, and how best to capture and make use of their bodies. Pi's excursion aboard the lifeboat leave him drained of all but the merest traces of life.

And yet, despite the fact that the ocean is the cause of nearly all of Pi's troubles, it is the only thing with the power to infuse him with the strenght and will to live. The sea is vast, ever present, and unchanging. The mere fact that it remains so unyielding is comforting to Pi because he always knows what to expect, even if it is something he does not like. The sea also presents the perfect stage for taming Richard Parker. Pi himself admits that he doubts his chance of survival without the tiger on board alongside him. Pi' s ability to establish dominance over Richard Parker and forge a cooperative relationship with another being gives Pi a source of sanity when everything else in his life has been upended. Richard Parker is something solid and familiar considering Pi's background in zookeeping and his open, loving personality. Richard Parker hardens Pi's resolve and enables him to survive in the face of the unknown. The tiger and the ocean both are a certainty amid much uncertainty.

How to Read Literature like a Professor

2008-08-23T12:14:00.003-04:00

After reading Sin and Syntax last summer I was apprehensive about reading How to Read Literature like a Professor. I thought I would have to force myself to read chapters in order to get through the book. Thankfully this was not the case and through reading this book I have noticed so many more things in other various books. A particular chapter I liked was the meal time one. It’s very interesting to think that one meal can tell you a lot about the different relationships between characters.

When I was watching the movie The Notebook I recognized this occurrence. (It’s based on a book, so I’m assuming the literary devices used visually are characteristics in the actual writing) During a meal with Ally’s parents Noah wears all black attire in comparison to the rest of the group who is garbed in white. It was designed like this to make him stand out from the rest of the rich people and make him seem like he does not belong. But does the black signify more than that? I’m assuming that through history poorer folks “nice” clothes were not traditionally white because that would be impractical as poor people do not have the means to keep white clothes pristine. Therefore it’s definitely an inference to his monetary situation, but I also thought it was a foreshadowing to Ally’s parents reaction to him. White and Black are strong contrasts and normally infer Good and Bad. I think Noah was wearing Black because it was an allusion to Ally’s parents thinking Noah was Bad for their Good daughter.

Another literary device that was transformed visually was the weather. When Ally returns to see Noah after many years they go for a boat ride and right before the truth about what happened in the past comes out, it starts to rain. This most certainly is representing the upcoming turmoil. When it starts down pouring Ally is screaming at Noah and the big realization that her parents hid his 365 letters from her is revealed. But the event is more effective in the viewers mind becuase the turbulent scenery which plays off the characters intense emotions.

In any case, I have found that How to Read Literature like a Professor has not only affected how I perceive events in books, but also in the movies I have watched. Different events happening in any media of a story is a giveaway clue to the meaning behind the event, and can help you identify elements key to a deeper knowledge of the story.

Life of Pi

2008-08-21T14:39:00.002-04:00

The title character in Life of Pi undergoes a remarkable transformation over the course of the novel, beginning with the curious youth growing up in Pondicherryand ending with the scholarly adult we meet at the very start of the book and whose voice we hear as the narrator of his extraordinary life. Pi's incredible journey at sea, though not soley responsible for the changes in his character, greatly influences and amplifies the process of maturation from adolescence to adulthood. For Life of Pi, a book about tragedy, faith, and adventure, among other things, is very much a story about growing up and the experiences that enable and, at times, force humans to do so.

Pi's dire circumstances amid the unique and terrifying setting of the Pacific Ocean, bring about the loss of innocence that seems to characterize the development from child to adult. Starvation, dehydation, and desperation force Pi to adapt to his surroundings in order to survive; he is left to choose between committing what he considers atrocities and sacrificing his life for his ideals. The harsh realities of life adrift at sea bring light to the darker side of humanity for Pi. The blind, unswerving faith that allows the innocent to place a deep trust in people and in their own security in this world was first shaken when Pi's father showed him the dangers of a hungry tiger and of the multitude of other occupants at the Pondicherry zoo. Pi's adventure aboard the lifeboat, coping with the difficulties posed by Richard Parker and the raw elements of nature, all but destroys this feeling of eternal safety.Though he retains his faith in the power of God and manages to cling to hope even in the darkest of times, Pi's view of the world is drastically altered.

As he turns to a new life in Canada, he recovers his old habits - he reverts back to his vegetarian diet and resumes the practice of all three of his religions - but he is not the same Pi as the one that set out on the Tsimtsum. He cannot change what happened on that lifeboat and he uses what it taught him in his daily life. Pi's story is one of struggle, triumph, and, at times, defeat. The probablity of being stranded in a lifeboat, fighting to survive with limited supplies at sea is very low for any of us in this Maritime class, but it made me realize that we all encounter obstacles just as Pi did and must find our own solutions. While our struggles are not nearly so dramatic or life threatening, our experiences are eye opening and life altering. Every day we learn and grow and deal with both the good and the bad consequences of being human - but perhaps in more subtle ways than Pi.

Literature now shall be read as a professor would

2008-08-20T21:10:00.004-04:00

I've been meaning to get this up since Saturday. I'm sorry! I've just been busy! It's been typed out in a word document since then, and now, well, here it is! Okay, so I've finished all the books and I have to say, I enjoyed them all. I decided to write this one on How to Read Literature Like a Professor, and the other one that I'll have up by Sunday or Monday, not sure if I'll be around this weekend or not; alas, enough small talk, I'll put up what I wrote.

Amazed. Simply opened my eyes to new ways of seeing literature--just a brand new understanding of the craft of writing! Foster definitely seems to make a good professor, he knows his stuff. Although, some stuff I've known for awhile but it was nice to have a refresher course, especially having it taught in his more amusing lessons than the ones taught in school. Did that sound too harsh? Either way, it wasn't supposed to say our schooling sucks...if you're in the right classes, anyway. I just want to analyze each chapter here, to share my thoughts; however, that'd be boring so I won't subject anyone to doing that. Instead I'll bring up somethings that I thought of while reading the book.

How about I start off with good old Will? Honestly, I knew this prior to, as Salazar would say, "Having HTRLLAP in me," he's everywhere! Even if I go to online forums, I see quotations, usually unknown by the poster that they're quoting the our go-to-playwright. On one particular one, people will mess up and since there is no edit button, they must post again and usually include "My kingdom for an edit button!". And that's only the start; when I think about books or films I've read or seen in the past, I think to myself, "Huh. Maybe Shakespeare really did influence that in some way." Quite often the undying thirst for revenge reminds me of Hamlet or Othello. I'm not sure why, but only in Sophomore year I realized The Lion King was somewhat inspired by Hamlet and the second one based on Romeo and Juliet; you think those would be obvious, too. Anyways, I am going to sound so lame for this, but it's there, when someone dies, people on the Internet use a picture of them and caption it with "Good night, Sweet Prince." Really, I see his quotes used everywhere. It'd be nice if everyone knew their origin, though. That's probably enough Shakespeare. Sorry for the rant.

Just a quick note on the chapter on weather; am I the only one who thinks rain is actually a bit overused? Just watch Lost, I mean, it's in every episode almost and definitely has significance, especially with the character Locke--then again, everything on that show has meaning, I only am saying that it may be a tad overplayed, however much I do like its significance in anything, really.

Onto the chapter about Christ. I have, in fact, found examples of this prior to reading the book. One we all learned in tenth grade is Simon from Lord of the Flies. Coincedentally enough, he is the only character I actually liked in that book. Anyways, to look at an example that anyone could recognize is Harry Potter. Yes, I've used him before, but we all know him one way or another; if we know him, it'll be easier to see the connection. The biggest, and the one that is constantly shoved in our faces about the boy is that he brings "redemption to the world"; he must defeat pretty much the epitome of evil; familliar? If you read the last book, you know another one on that list that he fits, although I won't give away any finale plot elements here, just in case. Lastly, he, as Jesus did, has diciples. Hermione and Ron are the obvious ones, but practically the "good part" of the Wizarding world could fit the bill. I hope you enjoyed my geeky blog post. I'll stop here, but if anyone wants to add observations from other chapters or even the ones I mention, feel free to--in fact, I'd love to hear your opinions and examples.

Enjoy the rest of your summer, even though it's dwindling down D :

~John C.

Life of Pi

2008-08-12T14:39:00.002-04:00

The conclusion to Life of Pi was unexpected and shocking. At least now I understand why Pi in designated locations stated he was a vegetarian. Anyone in an environment relative to both plots would feel the carnivorous vibes. When both stories were revealed, it was interesting how the animals readily became people. It was almost as if Pi developed a dual personality while out at sea. During the rough events, he became the tiger or predator; neither of which, had previously defined him. By assimilating animals for people, he was able to overcome the events and continue his life. The only section in the story that doesn't perfectly match up is the island. I wonder if its sole purpose is to illustrate a transformation in Pi.

2008-08-08T13:06:00.002-04:00

Oh my!!
I was just reading through all of your responses and thoughts!
I want to be a senior again and go back to Maritime class!!
I miss you Halsey!

I think im gonna continue coming on this site to read what you guys think about all the books you read! If it helps go to the Archives August 2007 and read our responses to Life of Pi from last year!

Good Luck and Happy Reading!
~Jackie

2008-08-07T14:38:00.002-04:00

I just wanted to say...

I feel very accomplished that I picked up on the whole 1984 thing.

But I really didn't enjoy reading The Eyre Affair. It definitely wasn't my cup of tea. The only time I couldn't put the book down was near the end - because I just wanted to finish it. It was creative and well written (I loved the humor) I just couldn't get into it. Maybe once I start the lit analysis (because I have yet to do that oops) I can find more "beauty" in the book.

I did like the other two books however. I loved Jane Eyre, as I posted before and How to... was surprisingly interesting.

This was kind of lame post but I figured I should get my two cents out there.

By the way... I'm really not enjoying the fact that we only have 3 weeks of summer left.

2008-08-07T08:12:00.002-04:00

August 7th. I'm thoroughly enjoying The Eyre Affair. The names of his characters totally make me laugh, and the whole idea of Richard III being performed by audience, interrupted by audience, memorized by audience is a riot to me. I'm heading into 1984 soon because it is now in the sophomore curriculum, and I am quite sure this is an entire spoof on Fahrenheit 451 and 1984. I'll let you know what I find. In F451, books are banned, society does not value them because they make people think in individualistic fashion. They have firemen who burn books. Goliath sounds like Big Brother in 1984. I love the literary allusions, biblical, etc. One reason I chose this book was to see how much you know already, and what you can begin to pick up on your own. For instance, the question of the dodo bird, and why would this make a great pet? Anyone google the history of the dodo bird yet? Be active, inquisitive readers!

Maritime readers - Life of Pi always leaves me with more questions than answers. I think the one question you should focus on is what is the role of the ocean? That becomes an essential question throughout the course. How does it change Pi?

I'm missing a lot of bloggers. If anyone knows of students who are in the Maritime class or the AP/ECE class, please text them and let them know that blogging is a part of your summer reading grade. Hate to make it that way, but it was in the summer reading assignment, and you guys should be big, beautiful and responsible going into senior year.

Hope to hear from more bloggers soon.
Halsey, feeling the angst of the academic year upon her.

The Life of Pi

2008-08-04T12:45:00.002-04:00

I haven't quite finished the novel yet. In fact, I'm still in the water. When reading Pi's experience with Richard Parker, I searched back within the text to his first reaction, where he witnessed a tiger feed.
From the descriptions provided on page thirty-three to page thirty-six, the reader can definitively answer: “Are tigers dangerous?” When I read the passage, I was shocked by the father’s actions. Ravi and Pi were already amazed by the ferocity Mahisha, a five hundred fifty pound tiger, exhibited when the family approached her cage. To feed a hungry tiger, who hasn’t eaten for three days, in front of children who already understand just how dangerous they are, is surreal. On the contrary, I not surprised that the father sacrificed the goat because he already put them in a cage with rhinos as an experiment. The father has to be preparing them for their migration from India to North America with the zoo animals. Therefore, deduced from the cover and back of the book, it is a fact that Pi will become stranded on a boat with a four hundred and fifty pound tiger that will indeed become severely hungry. This education his father provided him with will become useful because in terms of size, Pi is like a goat to the tiger.

Eyre Affair

2008-07-31T14:06:00.049-04:00

So while I'm typing this I'm bleeding excessively. But to the point, The Eyre Affair to me has been a strange book thusfar, yet also interesting. I've just picked up this book the other day and have already read through five chapters since last evening (I had just got back from surgery an hour ago). This book really got me reading. I felt horrible when I had to put it down. But anyway, a made up comic-book universe where time travel and cloning is real is not really that original but what really got my attention was the protagonists life.

Using How to read lit as a basis for discovering how The Eyre Affair was written, I seemed to remember another book I've read recently that follows a certain pattern or theme that The Eyre Affair uses. At the beginning of every chapter, a little excerpt is taken from another source. This is much like Into the Wild. However, Into the Wild includes excerpts from other books and literary pieces. What The Eyre Affair includes is little tid bits of information from other characters in the story, regardless of their appearence or lack of appearence in the story. When I had first encountered this sort of writing style in Into the Wild, I fell in love with it. Having even a few short sentences from a secondary or tertiary party greatly contributes to the story. Sometimes the chapters themselves make little sense, but when applying what I've learned from the beginning excerpt I have a better understanding of the chapter and sometimes the book itself.

On another note, I would have to mention the existance of the dodo bird in The Eyre Affair. Why does Fforde choose to resurrect the dodo bird? There are many other extinct species that he could have chosen but for some reason or another he choose a flightless bird. Perhaps Fforde choose the dodo because of its other meaning; out-of-date (fashion-wise). And fashion pertaining to a world completely opposite from ours where as the text indirectly states, is critically important to society whereas in our time, literature takes a back seat to most common human interests such as sports.

Question about Life of Pi

2008-07-31T12:41:00.001-04:00

Why did Pi choose to be represented as a tiger when he told his story to the officials from the Maritime Department?

I find it interesting that Pi chose to represent himself as a tiger. Perhaps this is because the tiger is a noble and proud animal that is admired and respected. Is it possible that Pi wanted people who heard this story to think highly of him by representing himself as a tiger? Or was the tiger just the explanation Pi gave himself so that he could accept what happened. By becoming an animal, he was able to do things that he could not do as an ordinary human.

Pi begins his ordeal of being lost at sea when the ship that is carrying his family sinks and because he was on deck when it happened, he is able to escape. Then once the ship has sunk, the tiger, Richard Parker, emerged from the water and began to swim towards the life raft that Pi had found. Perhaps this is, in reality, showing how the situation made Pi emerge as a stronger or more resolved individual.

Also, as a whole, it might be easier for him to tell his story if he substitutes the people involved, with animals.