The two characters who are most victimized would be Blanche and Mitch. Blanche is a victim to many negative characteristics. Clearly, Blanche is a victim of her pride and her delusions caused by the past. She is trapped by her inability to get over her husband's death and creates her own dream world in order to escape it. It is because she is a victim that she creates all this drama and a bad image of herself but she just refuses to acknowledge this fact due to her pride. Her flaws drives her to her downfall in which the whole cast soon knows about her sinful actions in Hotel Flamingo and back in Laurel, her hometown. Her past creates this fear of loss in which she is another victim of. She fears losing aristocracy and true happiness with real love. This forces her to find comfort in any man and those who remind her of Allan, her husband. She pretends to be of high-class and as if she is desirable to men to quiet reality. As a tragic victim to all these characteristics, it is sad to see the effects of being victimized drive her into the end of her road, which points to going to a mental institution.
Mitch on the other hand, is not a victim of himself but rather he is a victim to others. He is also tied to his family duty. His mother is seriously ill and her only wish is for Mitch to bring home a wife that is worth her praise. With this pressure, Mitch has no choice but to find someone who may seem easy to approach so that he can marry her within a limited time. Blanche somewhat fulfills this requirement. Mitch knows that she is old and he is willing to give her an opportunity of love for the sake of making his mother happy. Blanche has high standards and it requires a man to double his effort in order to court her. He was willing to give crazy Blanche a chance when all the readers can see that Blanche is obviously not worthy of Mitch. He is sacrificing his own ideal of a woman and working hard to accommodate a woman who is high maintenance to accomplish his mother's wish. Sure, Mitch may have fallen for Blanche but soon he realizes that Blanche becomes a liar and in the midst of trying to fulfill his mother's wish, he becomes yet another victim to heartbreak. He thought that Blanche could have been the one but now all his efforts and sacrifice has been negated. Blanche was just using Mitch for companionship whereas Mitch had put him himself out there for real love. Throughout the play, it seems that we only see Mitch as a tragic victim and barely a winner.
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Sunday, March 8, 2009
Black or Blanche?
Tennessee William's play, A Streetcar Named Desire, Blanche is well-known as the delusional aging woman at the beginning but as the story goes on, it is evident that she is slowly changing into a more real person. At first she is displayed as the high-class sister that does not tolerate dirty common people when she herself does not seem to go off any better. She had just lost the family property and yet she still lies to herself by trying to play off as a young woman with class. She is blinded by her pride which leads her to lie about her age and the situations she has gone through. Blanche is glued to her pride such that all she cares about is her appearance and what people say about her. In advantage, she knows Stella would believe whatever she says and that is why she always nags Stella to tell her what people say about her and lies about her life.
The one moment we finally see Blanche start to change is when she opens up to Mitch. She seems to really care about Mitch which is evident when she talks nervously about him to Stella. Blanche even doubted that she may not be able to actually get Mitch to fall in love with her. Mitch is a very sincere gentleman and that may be the reason why Blanche decides to tell him her past. We see a real side to Blanche where she is willing to open up, put her pride aside, and tell Mitch her shame. Also, she has been too occupied in thinking about her relationship with Mitch to even fully fight with Stanley anymore. Blanche is starting to become more vulnerable and unable to hide that. Even more, now that most of the characters know about Blanche's mistake in Flamingo, Blanche is even more vulnerable at this point. She now has to fear rejection from Mitch.
The one moment we finally see Blanche start to change is when she opens up to Mitch. She seems to really care about Mitch which is evident when she talks nervously about him to Stella. Blanche even doubted that she may not be able to actually get Mitch to fall in love with her. Mitch is a very sincere gentleman and that may be the reason why Blanche decides to tell him her past. We see a real side to Blanche where she is willing to open up, put her pride aside, and tell Mitch her shame. Also, she has been too occupied in thinking about her relationship with Mitch to even fully fight with Stanley anymore. Blanche is starting to become more vulnerable and unable to hide that. Even more, now that most of the characters know about Blanche's mistake in Flamingo, Blanche is even more vulnerable at this point. She now has to fear rejection from Mitch.
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Stop. Drop. and Realize.
In James Joyce's short story "Eveline", the main character lives a miserable life with her father and her brothers. Her mother had died and that was when the family became in such a miserable state. She is so unhappy with her father's constant yelling and abuse along with the unappreciated effort she puts in keeping the household together. This causes her to want to run away with a boy named Frank. She plans to go with him to Buenos Ayres on sea and leave everything behind.
Before this journey could begin, Eveline slowly analyzes the pros and cons of this decision. This draws to her paralysis in the story. She flashes through memories of her mother where her mother had told her to try and keep the family together for as long as she could. Along with those memories, she remembers how nice her father could be and the happy days she had had with her family. These flow of flashbacks literally puts Eveline motionless right before Frank and the ship that could sail her to her new life. She is paralyzed as she has an epiphany that she cannot leave her family behind because she had promise her mother to fulfill that duty. This sudden realization forces her to leave her possibly happy life with Frank and sacrifice her love for the sake of her family.
In Joyce's "Araby", a boy falls in love with a girl and offers to buy her a gift from the bazaar in Araby since she could not go herself. Through frustrating patience with his uncle, the boy finally gets money for transportation to the bazaar and arrives seeing many stands closing. He goes into an open shop where this woman is flirting with two soldiers. At this point, the boy is paralyzed when he does not buy anything because it is then that his epiphany hits. He realizes that the girl he is about to buy something for may not even feel the same way he is. The sound of the flirting woman tells him that the girl of his dreams may just be playing around with him.
In both cases, the main characters are paralyzed and has an epiphany related to love. Eveline has to deal with the love for her family and mother as the boy in "Araby" realizes that love is what makes him a fool. Both of the protagonists were fooled. Eveline was convinced that her love for Frank can make her happy but her responsibilities come first. The boy in "Araby" thought that buying something for his crush will bring them closer to love but it is his rationality and logic that knocks him out of this state. Both of these characters cannot love what they want so they have to deal with reality.
Before this journey could begin, Eveline slowly analyzes the pros and cons of this decision. This draws to her paralysis in the story. She flashes through memories of her mother where her mother had told her to try and keep the family together for as long as she could. Along with those memories, she remembers how nice her father could be and the happy days she had had with her family. These flow of flashbacks literally puts Eveline motionless right before Frank and the ship that could sail her to her new life. She is paralyzed as she has an epiphany that she cannot leave her family behind because she had promise her mother to fulfill that duty. This sudden realization forces her to leave her possibly happy life with Frank and sacrifice her love for the sake of her family.
In Joyce's "Araby", a boy falls in love with a girl and offers to buy her a gift from the bazaar in Araby since she could not go herself. Through frustrating patience with his uncle, the boy finally gets money for transportation to the bazaar and arrives seeing many stands closing. He goes into an open shop where this woman is flirting with two soldiers. At this point, the boy is paralyzed when he does not buy anything because it is then that his epiphany hits. He realizes that the girl he is about to buy something for may not even feel the same way he is. The sound of the flirting woman tells him that the girl of his dreams may just be playing around with him.
In both cases, the main characters are paralyzed and has an epiphany related to love. Eveline has to deal with the love for her family and mother as the boy in "Araby" realizes that love is what makes him a fool. Both of the protagonists were fooled. Eveline was convinced that her love for Frank can make her happy but her responsibilities come first. The boy in "Araby" thought that buying something for his crush will bring them closer to love but it is his rationality and logic that knocks him out of this state. Both of these characters cannot love what they want so they have to deal with reality.
Monday, February 23, 2009
stop buggin' me
In Franz Kafka's "The Metamorphosis", Gregor the protagonist is described to be a giant insect but it is arguable about whether he is really a bug or its just a metaphorical comparison. Kafka meshes the reality of Gregor's life to the fantasy of him transforming into a bug.
The beginning of the story starts out with descriptions of his transformation such as "He was lying on his hard, as it were armor-plated, back and when he lifted his head a little he could see his domelike brown belly divided into stiff arched segments on top of which the bed quilt could hardly keep in position and was about to slide off completely."(p. 89) He is described as a physical being with the parts of an insect. Along with that, his habits such as hiding under the couch, his inability to get out of bed due to his back, and his liking to fetid foods supports the notion that he may really have turned into an insect.
But then again, there is also the side where this metamorphosis is more symbolic than real. This "transformation" may symbolize the empty, boring life of Gregor. If he really was a bug, why would his family still care for him instead of trying to kill him? The transformation can be a comparison to Gregor's inability to work anymore. He may be deeply ill and like the description of an actual bug, he can be unable to get out of bed, has a change in appetite, and is growing to be more undesirable. In my opinion, Gregor is metaphorically changed into an insect to show the significance he plays in the family. He is finally turned into this vegetable that cannot do anything to provide for the family and we see how the family reacts to this. Possibly, his change reassures Gregor himself that he is needed in life and that all his work is worth it. Gregor is no longer useful and like a bug, he stays in the house doing nothing but waiting for death and taking up space. Once he had died, his family moved on to a better life making it seem as Gregor's life as a metaphorical bug seem insignificant.
The beginning of the story starts out with descriptions of his transformation such as "He was lying on his hard, as it were armor-plated, back and when he lifted his head a little he could see his domelike brown belly divided into stiff arched segments on top of which the bed quilt could hardly keep in position and was about to slide off completely."(p. 89) He is described as a physical being with the parts of an insect. Along with that, his habits such as hiding under the couch, his inability to get out of bed due to his back, and his liking to fetid foods supports the notion that he may really have turned into an insect.
But then again, there is also the side where this metamorphosis is more symbolic than real. This "transformation" may symbolize the empty, boring life of Gregor. If he really was a bug, why would his family still care for him instead of trying to kill him? The transformation can be a comparison to Gregor's inability to work anymore. He may be deeply ill and like the description of an actual bug, he can be unable to get out of bed, has a change in appetite, and is growing to be more undesirable. In my opinion, Gregor is metaphorically changed into an insect to show the significance he plays in the family. He is finally turned into this vegetable that cannot do anything to provide for the family and we see how the family reacts to this. Possibly, his change reassures Gregor himself that he is needed in life and that all his work is worth it. Gregor is no longer useful and like a bug, he stays in the house doing nothing but waiting for death and taking up space. Once he had died, his family moved on to a better life making it seem as Gregor's life as a metaphorical bug seem insignificant.
Sunday, February 15, 2009
good turned bad
Nathaniel Hawthorne's short story, "Young Goodman Brown", is a portrayal of seventeenth-century Puritan society. It is a tale of a young Puritan man who is drawn into a covenant with the Devil which causes him to think differently about his neighborly townsmen. Hawthorne's message within the story is that the positivity in religion does not continuously and dominantly strive. There will always be negativity along with positivity even in the purity of religion because that is the balance of the world. Goodman Brown as a Puritan is taught to believe in the purity of God and is devoted to the church and to take a walk on the dark side forces him to question this purity.
Faith is one of the biggest aspect of religion, but even Brown realized faith can turn bad also. In the beginning of the story, goodman brown had to depart from Faith, his wife. ""What wretch am I, to leave her on such an errand! She talks of dreams, too. Methought, as she spoke, there was trouble in her face, as if a dream had warned her what work is to be done to-night. But, no, no! 't would kill her to think it..."(p. 233) This symbolized him leaving his own faith of God since he is traveling to see the other side of heaven. Faith was worried that her husband will be harmed especially when she cannot be with him just as if actual faith is being drawn apart from him. More over, Faith later on joins Goodman Brown in the dark forest which shocks Brown when he says ""My Faith is gone!" cried he, after one stupefied moment. "There is no good on earth; and sin is but a name. Come, devil! for to thee is this world given.""(p. 238) Even faith, the one pure piece of Brown, has turned towards the devil and it automatically makes Brown doubt purity.
Goody Cloyse is anothe rexample of purity gone wrong. She is Goodman Brown's teacher of cateschism and she represents the "best of the best" of Puritan society. When he sees her in the forest, he exclaims ""That old woman taught me my catechism!" said the young man; and there was a world of meaning in this simple comment."(p. 236) and that showed his doubt in purity once again. Her piety and righteousness are the models he looks up to and to see her as a part of the devil's covanent, shatters those values. He is hurt and confused that such a pure woman would be in the same group as the devil.
There is no such thing as a world full of only purity, innocence, and positivity. Evil will always coincide with good and as a puritan since young, Brown finally realizes that after his adventure in the forest. Even the purest of the purest can be sinful because that is life.
Faith is one of the biggest aspect of religion, but even Brown realized faith can turn bad also. In the beginning of the story, goodman brown had to depart from Faith, his wife. ""What wretch am I, to leave her on such an errand! She talks of dreams, too. Methought, as she spoke, there was trouble in her face, as if a dream had warned her what work is to be done to-night. But, no, no! 't would kill her to think it..."(p. 233) This symbolized him leaving his own faith of God since he is traveling to see the other side of heaven. Faith was worried that her husband will be harmed especially when she cannot be with him just as if actual faith is being drawn apart from him. More over, Faith later on joins Goodman Brown in the dark forest which shocks Brown when he says ""My Faith is gone!" cried he, after one stupefied moment. "There is no good on earth; and sin is but a name. Come, devil! for to thee is this world given.""(p. 238) Even faith, the one pure piece of Brown, has turned towards the devil and it automatically makes Brown doubt purity.
Goody Cloyse is anothe rexample of purity gone wrong. She is Goodman Brown's teacher of cateschism and she represents the "best of the best" of Puritan society. When he sees her in the forest, he exclaims ""That old woman taught me my catechism!" said the young man; and there was a world of meaning in this simple comment."(p. 236) and that showed his doubt in purity once again. Her piety and righteousness are the models he looks up to and to see her as a part of the devil's covanent, shatters those values. He is hurt and confused that such a pure woman would be in the same group as the devil.
There is no such thing as a world full of only purity, innocence, and positivity. Evil will always coincide with good and as a puritan since young, Brown finally realizes that after his adventure in the forest. Even the purest of the purest can be sinful because that is life.
Saturday, February 7, 2009
Notification: Miss Emily has joined fb.
WALL:
Toby wrote at 9:13am
Hello madam. What food would you like for lunch today?
Emily wrote on 9:30am
The usual. And don't forget to make enough for three: me, Homer and daddy.
Toby wrote at 9:35am
Yesum.
Above is an image of Emily Grierson which she would post on her facebook to show that she is still stuck in time thinking she is young and beautiful. The conversation also shows how she does not want to feel lonely since she keeps thinking of the two men that she believes will always be by her side. Toby is merely a servant to Miss Emily and does not share any personal friendship with her. If Miss Emily was to get a Facebook page, her page would be pretty blank with privacy settings such as allowing limited people to see her profile, search for her, or to be able to write on her wall. She may have friend requests from fellow townsmen as an act of pity but it would not be a surprise if she rejects their requests. Emily would not allow others to comment on her because people may feel sorry for her and say something that will remind her that her father is dead or how sad her life is now. I do see Toby and Homer Baron to be on her friend list. Toby and Homer are the only two people who come physically in contact with Emily which shows a lot of trust or from Emily. There would be a picture of her and her father in her album along with a picture of her and Homer if there is one. Those pictures will never be taken off since she can not get over the fact that these two people are no longer with her. However, all these settings I have chosen may be wrong since these are all assumptions gathered through gossip by the community and the narrator that creates this possible image of Emily Grierson. This is one version of Emily that we can imagine since no one truly knows the real Miss Emily.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Uhhhh...
Uhhhh...
4 I have told you
2 that I
3 would not tell
3 him secrets
2 but I
5 did because he did
2 not know
3 how to be
3 a good friend
5 but please forgive me
2 i am
3 your best friend
As for my version of parodying William's "This is Just to Say", I followed the form, the number of stanzas, and the number of syllables within each line. Although, I did change the title's syllable count because I felt that 'Uhhh..' is used a lot during times of lying and doubt and it would be more effective. Along with that, I also chose not to use any punctuation because that is the most significant and noticeable feature of this poem. Other than the form, the original poem gave a sense of apology where I had parody also. Instead of apologizing for eating some one's plums, the person in my version is apologizing for spilling a secret to someone for a rational reason. My version mocks the original because it is more sincere than Williams'. I feel that my last line "your best friend" has a stronger sympathy towards the apology.
4 I have told you
2 that I
3 would not tell
3 him secrets
2 but I
5 did because he did
2 not know
3 how to be
3 a good friend
5 but please forgive me
2 i am
3 your best friend
As for my version of parodying William's "This is Just to Say", I followed the form, the number of stanzas, and the number of syllables within each line. Although, I did change the title's syllable count because I felt that 'Uhhh..' is used a lot during times of lying and doubt and it would be more effective. Along with that, I also chose not to use any punctuation because that is the most significant and noticeable feature of this poem. Other than the form, the original poem gave a sense of apology where I had parody also. Instead of apologizing for eating some one's plums, the person in my version is apologizing for spilling a secret to someone for a rational reason. My version mocks the original because it is more sincere than Williams'. I feel that my last line "your best friend" has a stronger sympathy towards the apology.
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