Friday, January 24, 2014

Hemingway's writing style

In Hemingway's "Hills Like White Elephants" his writing style is illustrates clearly throughout. It is a very emotional piece but Rather than load on adjectives in order to display emotion, he conveys the emotion through implication. Based on the content and setting the reader can understand the the emotion displayed by the characters. Normally i would stay that this is a strange literary technique if it wasn't such a success when I read it. Another thing I find inspiring about Hemingway is that part of the influence in his short to the point writing style. As an aspiring journalist i find this very interesting

My Response to Elliot's criticism of Hamlet

I do not agree with T.S. Elliot's critique of Hamlet. This play is my favorite work of Shakespeare's, play poem or otherwise. Elliot makes the argument that because Hamlet does not have an object to display all of his honest emotions onto. This makes it impossible to know Hamlet's true intentions or true character. However I believe it has more to do with the complexity of Hamlet's character and less to do with a fundamental flaw on the part of the playwright . I believe this is a result of his new critical lens of analysis. If Elliot were to take a psychoanalytical lens for example he would've come to a completely new idea. He might have came up with the conclusion that Hamlet's inconsistencies were a result of his unstable psyche, as I concluded.

Trifles being a false tale of feminine heroism

I really enjoyed Trifles by Susan Glaspell. This is one of the few stories which i found easy to view with a feminist perspective. I truly was able to sympathize with Minnie Foster being oppressed and put down by her over-bearing and serious husband. The symbolism of the bird whose life was chocked out of it by Mr. Wright was very powerful. I kept thinking of "To Kill a Mockingbird" and the innocence that tend to accompany birds within literature. However I did not her crime to be justified nor did I stand by Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters' action in withholding evidence to protect Minnie Foster. Although i respect her struggle it didn't sound like anything he deserved to die for.

my sonnet

I have always appreciated the sonnet. in my AP literature class in High School it was the very first poem i was required to write. Honestly its the only type of formal poem I still enjoy. There is a challenge in making an interesting point in only 14 lines. Since then after studying several classical authors like John Donne and Shakespeare I have come a long way in sonnet writing. Here is one of mine:

Ode to my cigarettes

Cigarettes have become my secret love.
Since I can go outside and take a puff,
Day after day I thank the stars above.
When I’m getting stressed I can’t get enough.
After all, I’m troubled and have a lot of work.
Please do not lecture me or bring me down
Regardless, after my cig ill have a smirk.
So about my little habit that’s gotten around town;
I’m young and don’t have cancer yet
Maybe I’ll soon quit in a year or two
But now I wouldn’t stop smoking to win a bet.
And please; I’d take cigs instead of you,
So please leave me alone, I won’t go broke,

And really, there are worse things I could smoke.

A good Man is Hard to Find

In the short story "A Good Man Is Hard to Find" the serial killer was my favorite character whose name is the Misfit. I found this fascinating even though the Misfit is responsible for the deaths of everyone in the family, he is still the most interesting character in the story. He seems to have the most accurate commentary on morality out of any other character in the story which is ironic because he has the least out of any other character. I really appreciated his ability to perceive the Grandma's true character through all of her bs. This commentary is also why I appreciated ending of the story because the second final line of the story was "She would of been a good woman," The Misfit said, "if it had been somebody there to shoot her every minute of her life." and the final line was about how killing was "no real pleasure". He could tell that the grandma was only being kind in her fear of death and he acknowledged the necesity of murder but was unwilling to enjoy it.

Last Night by Sharon Olds

The next day, I am almost afraid.
Love? It was more like dragonflies
in the sun, 100 degrees at noon,
the ends of their abdomens stuck together, I
close my eyes when I remember. I hardly
knew myself, like something twisting and
twisting out of a chrysalis,
enormous, without language, all
head, all shut eyes, and the humming
like madness, the way they writhe away,
and do not leave, back, back,
away, back. Did I know you? No kiss,
no tenderness–more like killing, death-grip
holding to life, genitals
like violent hands clasped tight
barely moving, more like being closed
in a great jaw and eaten, and the screaming
I groan to remember it, and when we started
to die, then I refuse to remember,
the way a drunkard forgets. After,
you held my hands extremely hard as my
body moved in shudders like the ferry when its
axle is loosed past engagement, you kept me
sealed exactly against you, our hairlines
wet as the arc of a gateway after
a cloudburst, you secured me in your arms till I slept–
that was love, and we woke in the morning
clasped, fragrant, buoyant, that was
the morning after love.

So I decided to pick Last night by Sharon Olds for my poetry presentation. I was really happy with my choice. This is partially because in terms of content, it reminds me of of the John Donne and the other Metaphysical poets. Donne is an old favorite of mine and the disconnect between sex and love. granted in the metaphysical poets there tends to be much more of an element of chastity interfering with sex rather than lack of love but i enjoy the commentary on the relationship between the two. I also enjoy the message in itself, at least as i analyze it; that physical intimacy can lead to emotional intimacy.


My opinion on New Criticism

I happen to enjoy many of the critical poets. William Stafford and Randall Jarrell  are some of my favorite poets. Though I have never been a fan of T.S. Elliot I enjoy the complex and intricate messages that they convey with their poetry. The economical word choice is very compelling. However I am not a fan of the new critical lens of analysis. I do believe that there is simply more to analysis than just the text. It is important to understand the author and the time that he came when trying to completely comprehend what the poem or work is about. especially if the work is cryptic e.g. Browning.  Before I ever read a book or poem i read a bio of the author so i understand why he/she wrote what they wrote.