Comparing The Swimmer to Good Country People

In both stories, the main characters have somewhat of a "dream" or goal. In "The Swimmer", Neddy's goal is obviously to swim in every one's pool throughout the county, whereas in "Good Country People", Mrs. Hopewell's dream is that her daughter will stop being so "ugly" (in every sense of the word) and act more like her other two daughters. Obviously, Mrs. Hopewell's dream is not realistic as she cannot expect to change other people and although Neddy's dream is realistic, it almost seems pointless- just a diversion to take his mind off of the problems in his life he apparently doesn't want to deal with. I thought the characters' names in "Good Country People" were interesting- Mrs. Freeman, who I assumed to be a black woman, has a name that would obviously suit her well- Free Man- She is also sort of a free spirit- often keeping up on what's going on in the house and with each character more than Mrs. Hopewell herself does. Mrs. Hopewell's name almost seems ironic- She does seem very hopeful, and at times, seems more optimistic about life than seems necessary- the only thing she never seems very optimistic about is Joy/Hulga- who's names are also interesting. Her mother obviously named her Joy due to her own optimism, where Hulga actually seems to suit her much better. There didn't seem to be any interesting naming in "The Swimmer".
In "The Swimmer", readers are unaware of Ned's problems until the end of the story. I kept reading wondering why this guy found so much pleasure in swimming in everyone's pool. It wasn't until the one neighbor mentioned something about the house going up for sale and the children not being well that I realized there was definitely more going on in the story than I had thought. Also, in "Good Country People", it comes as a shock that the bible salesman is actually a devious little creature only out to take weird items from women. The first time Hulga lets her guard down, she is deceived and humiliated. I didn't see a lot of common elements in the two stories other than the shocking endings- but in "The Swimmer", I wasn't sure if the ending meant that his family had left him or if they just weren't home yet. I liked "Good Country People" better than the swimmer- mostly because there was more characterization and I felt as though I could relate to the charcters whereas in "The Swimmer", we know very little about Ned's life other than the fact that he's trying to forget major parts of it.

Hurston- View of Treatment of Women

Through her story, "Their Eyes Were Watching God", Hurston obviously attempts to portray the oppression of women in (ironically) a time when Blacks were still overcoming their oppression. The sheer fact that Janie's Grandmother forced her to marry a much older man (mostly because he had a lot of land) demonstrates the view of women during this time. Women were dependent and taught to be obedient. Janie's grandmother didn't force her into the marriage to be cruel, rather, she felt as though she was protecting Janie and ensuring her protection and a "good life". It wasn't so important, though, if the life was what Janie wanted. Janie obviously did not love her first husband and was with him only through obligation to her Grandmother. She had no one else, and felt as though she had no other option. However, she soon felt very confined and realized she could not bear to live a life she had not cosen for herself. She defied tradition when she ran off with Joe Starks, but felt she had to do so in order to make her life her own. This was obviously unacceptable in Janie's time, which demonstrates her lack of conformity. Janie had issues with doing things the way they were supposed to be done and wanted nothing more than to live her life in any way which made her happy yet this was not customary. For 20 years, Janie lived with Joe Starks even though after a while, she knew she was not living the life she wanted. She felt trapped because together, they had established Eatonville, and she had made many friends there and knew no one anywhere else. She felt torn between the fact that Joe had provided well for her yet she still always felt as though something was missing in her life. After Joe's death, when she was finally free, she was criticized, even by her best friend, for not mourning longer. For Janie, she felt as though her life had just begun when everyone around her assumed her life wa supposed to fall apart after the death of her husband. It was almost as though it was unheard of for a women to be independent and able to move on with her life. Hurston is trying to show that even women tended to stick to the traditional roles of women- being dependent on men and not deviating from traditional roles. Janie meeting Tea Cake demonstrated that women are able to be in control of their own lives and make their own decisions so long as they do not give in to the demands of others. Janie could have easily dismissed her feelings for Tea Cake, knowing how the town would react, but she chose to ignore their reaction and do what made her happy. She knew she could not listen to their warnings and that she had to learn to make her own mistakes so that for once, some part of her life could be her own. She never lived until she met Tea Cake. The relationship was not out of obligation or to satisfy anyone else's expectations. It was the one thing she could decide for herself. As we discussed in class, even Tea Cake wasn't the perfect man. he still beat Janie simply to display his dominance over her, but he gave her something no one else could- the chance for her to be free. He allowed her to play checkers, go fishing, work along side him, and she did these things because she wanted to and because no one else had ever given her a chance to lear. Through all the obvious views on the treatment of women, Hurston uses Janie to show the possibility of perseverance and the ability to break free from any oppression. Women were treated as submissive animals but they almost allowed themselves to do so by doing nothing to change the situation they were in. Granted, not every Black woman had a Tea Cake to sweep them off their feet, but many women in Janie's position wouldn't have ran off with him in fear of what the townspeople, family, and friends would say. Many wives felt too comfortable in their submissive relationships (Phoebe), to make any changes, and many felt even if they did make changes, they would fail. Janie refused to allow anyone to take her life away from her and she represents the ideal of how oppression can be changed. Hurston seemed to have more hope for women than most and this is shown through Janie.

What are Years versus The Emperor or Ice Cream

I almost think I like the traditional "How do you feel about..." questions because I had a really hard time coming up with comparisons between the "sound elements" of these two pieces of work. I chose What Are Years? by Moore because I noticed a obvious sound pattern while reading it. "what is our innocence, what is our guilt?"- She already starts with repetition. "All are naked, none is safe"- all and none are opposites but the repetitious feeling is still present. "dumbly calling, deafly listening"- the "d" sound is repeated here, flowing the poem right along. "stirs the soul to be strong"- I should knwo the technical name for multiple words starting with the same consonant... asonance maybe? Regardless, that is what it going on here. "He sees deep...who accedes"- all these words have the same middle sound which also gives the feeling of pushing the reader right along through the poem. The ending sounds of each word from the last two lines of each stanza are also very similar. "others and stirs" have the same general ending sound, as do "surrendering and continuing" as well as "mortality and eternity". I really liked the sound elements that exist in this poem. I felt like I was being bumped along through the poem and I had no difficulty noticing various sounds throughout the poem.

The Emperor of Ice Cream had similar sound elements through it. "bid him whip" all have the same middle sound and "kitchen cups concupiscent curds" all have that hard "c" or"k" sound. This poem, similar to What are Years kept me rolling along, mostly through the first stanza. "Let be be finale of seem" has the same middle "ee" sound to it. Similar to What are Years, the ending sounds of the last words of the last 2 lines in each stanza are similar. "seem" and "cream" obviously rhyme as do "beam" and "cream". "Dresser of the deal" both start with the hard "d" sound. In the second stanza of this poem, I started to lose the sense of sound elements which was not the case in What are years. Both authors tend to use a repetitious sound, either in the beginning, middle or end of certain words and both give the reader the effect of being guided through the poem in a faster pace that most other poems.

T.S. Eliot's The Wasteland

You weren't kidding about this being a difficult text. After reading it three times or so, there were still only a couple of things I noticed n relation to modernism. First off, Eliot uses more description in this work than any of the other authors we have covered. The notes on page 1078 stated that this work is actually "anti-modern" as it "interprets modernity as an experience of loss". This confused me because I thought most modernists viewed modernity this way. This work was definitely fragmented as were most of the other works we read as well. Each fragment of the piece is dealing with completely different issues told by different "characters" or "personas". Eliot's biography on page 1419 stated that this writing was a sort of anti-political movement known as "New Criticism" and this was clearly evident in the text.

In the first section, "The Burial of the Dead", the narrator is speaking about mass deaths when he mentions the crowd flowing over London Bridge and he states that he "had not thought death had undone so many" (1432). I assumed this dealt with the war and just when I thought I was understanding, the line, "That corpse you planted last year in your garden, Has it begun to sprout" appeared and truly confused me. I couldn't tell is Eliot was drawing attention to the lack of emotion over the loss of so many men or if there was some other meaning. The second section to me was the most descriptive and therefore the least like modernism as we have known it. I don't understand the role of the woman who is supposed to get a new set of teeth and what significance "Albert", who has been away at war, has on this section. The third section also references war "But at my back in a cold blast I hear" and death is then referenced after. Eliot then takes the perspective of Tiresias, who forsees all the damage the war is evidently causing. This was one of the few references in the text I could almost understand.

The poem appears to jump around from having a rhyme scheme to not having one, which correlates to what we discussed in class about the authors not giving in to what we, as readers, expect. Eliot uses the word, "Unreal" multiple times throughout the text almost as if to demonstrate how horrific the effects of the war have been and he obviously references war and death multiple times as well. I had a hard time seeing what was so different about this modernist work in comparison with others that we have read. I constantly flipped back to the notes on modernism to try and make comparisons and find things that didn't necessarily match the definition of modernism but the only main difference I could find was the use of description and the fact that this work is longer than most others. Eliot's pessimistic view of the world post-war was evident through this text but the things he made reference to made it very difficult to grasp the true meaning of the work.

Impressions of an Indian Childhood

This was definitely a sad story. I thought it was ironic that on page 1008, Bonnin states, "She taught me no fear save that of intruding myself upon others", yet in the end, her lack of fear seems to contribute to the sadness she feels in leaving her mother to be in the "hands of strangers whom my mother did not fully trust" (1019). It seems as if Bonnin is writing about her memories of a happy child and the story ends where her new, uncertain life will begin. The main message she seems to be trying to relay is that as a child, she was so excited about going to live with the "palefaces" and pick apples from an apple tree, yet she had no idea what kind of effect leaving her mother and culture behind would have on her. She was so excited about going with the missionaries that she failed to recognize the importance of the bond she had with her mother and neighbors and I think she feels as though she lost a huge part of herself in the move she made. She recalls all these happy memories and probably feels extremely guilty looking back, realizing the significance of the "decision" she had made. I don't necessarily understand why her mother allowed her go to with the missionaries, as she herself did not trust them and told Bonnin not to believe their lies.

The title of this story is important to me as "Impressions of an Indian Childhood" seems to hint toward the existence of a non-Indian childhood. Bonnin seems to be writing this story with the attitude as though her life had changed significantly (obviously) after she went East with the missionaries. She takes the time to specify her age at key events and even says, "The first turning away from the easy, natural flow of my life occurred in an early spring" when referring to when she left her mother (1017). She remembers her childhood prior to leaving with the missionaries as being "easy" and seems to have many vivid, happy memories. She more than likely regrests leaving and feels naive for ever believing that leaving her family and culture behind would be a great experience. If I had to choose one main idea through reading this story, I would have to say that it is to value one's homeland, customs, and culture as Bonnin appeared to be torn between her feelings toward her childhood with her mother and her desire to go East and become educated by the missionaries. Her story focuses heavily on her relationship with her mother so I believe this story deals with the importance of family and never wanting to neglect one's way of life.

Du Bois and Washington

Booker T Washington states, "It is important and right that all privileges of the law be ours, but it is vastly more important that we be prepared for the exercises of these privileges" (763). Washington Obviously hates racism and prejudice and attempts to find a solution for dealing with these issues in America. He states that he is aware of the criticism of his ideas and statements but fully believes he is right and will continue to stand for what he believes in. Washington believes that equal rights will come to the blacks-in time. He tries to always be somewhat politically correct in that he never comes out and fully blames Whites for the oppression of his race and he admits that blacks need to put forth effort to make changes as well. He believes in universal suffrage yet he makes a comment about blacks he knows of have become wealthy with the help of Whites but would refuse to ask those same Whites for advice in casting their ballots. He appears slightly ambiguous in his beliefs about universal suffrage, almost criticising his own race for avoiding collaboration with Whites by reason of principle. He states as well that he believes the voting tests should be designed equally to prevent the case in which he mentions a poor, uneducated Black cannot vote while a white man of the same status is allowed. Washington almost seems to underestimate the capabilities of Blacks when he states that they must realize that "there is as much dignity in tilling a field as in writing a poem". He continuously mentions that racism is not going to end overnight and that blacks must learn to be content and feel dignity in everything they do and not feel less human in comparison with Whites and the jobs they perform. He states that Blacks must begin at the bottom and work their way to the top and not expect equality overnight. He encourages Whites to see the benefits of free blacks and for all to come together to form one nation and encourages the blacks to be patient throughout the process yet he admits that this time will come when the Whites are ready to grant equality to the blacks.
Du Bois points out that Washington did have many triumphs but also made many mistakes in his ideas. He refers to Washington as a "compromiser between the South, the North, and the Negro" (888). His most compelling argument against Washington is that he "accepts the alleged inferiority of the Negro races"(889). He believes that Washington implies that the Blacks can only survive by being submissive. He criticises Washington's expecting Blacks to give up political power, civil rights and higher education and focus on accumulating wealth. Du Bois adds that Washington's ideas are ambiguous in that he expects Blacks to become wealthy business-men yet without suffrage, this would be impossible. He believes that the constant prejudice against Blacks is a result of their degradation yet Washington himself underestimates (thus degrades) Blacks. Du Bois believes that Washington's efforts have in effect pushed the burden of equality from the nations' shoulders to the Blacks' alone. He does add that Thrift, Patience and Industrial Training for all are great principles of Washington's but he counter-acts his own principles and beliefs by appearing to apologize to the Whites for things that were out of the Blacks hands. Du Bois appears to be angry at Washington for apologizing for the blacks and expecting them to temporarily settle for less than equality in order to appease the Whites into eventually granting equality.
When first reading Washington's address, my first thought was that he appears to be trying to flatter the Whites into eventually agreeing with him and granting equality. He does appear to be convincing Blacks to "pick their battles" but I also felt as though he made a lot of genuine statements as well. He makes it clear that he does not expect special privileges for Blacks, but only wants to be equal. He scorns the fact that uneducated Whites have more privileges than uneducated Blacks. He appears to be trying to motivate and encourage his own race to be proud of who they are and help them recognize that they are not yet equal and they must take baby steps to eventually one day get there. Du Bois obviously wants equality as well but resents the fact that Washington feels the need to announce the inferiority of Blacks in order to do so. Washington's beliefs seem to be more of a compromise between the two races where Du Bois feels no need to apologize for Blacks' inferiority when it wasn't their fault they were inferior in the first place. He does not feel that Blacks should have to compromise their dignity and "pick their battles" to get what they rightly deserve. Both Washington and Du Bois have the same goals, they simply differ in what they are willing to compromise to obtain them.

Henry James and Edith Whart

Although I had some trouble understanding all of "The Art of Fiction", the main idea that I took from the article is that Henry James feels as though criticism on novels is too harsh. He appears to disagree with Mr. Besant's views that a novel must be written from experience as James goes on to explain that everything written comes from experience in one way or another. He states that there is a general sense that fiction writers should apologize for their writing as it is "make-believe" but he does not share this feeling because their is truth in everything written. He states that a novel "does attempt to represent life" (554). He goes on to say that for a novel to be considered "good", it truly depends on the taste of each individual reader and what he/she generally likes or dislikes. There are many definitions of a "good" fictitious work. He believes that a novel is a work of art that is impossible to teach to others as an artist may be able to teach to pupils. James believes that everything is an experience, whether or not the author is writing about something they actually lived through. He explains that even a glimpse of something makes a picture and that that picture is in itself an experience. He appears to criticize Mr. Besant's beliefs that characters "must be clear in outline". He explains that it is difficult to define HOW characters are "clear in outline". In Edith Whart's story, "Souls Belated", she never once gives a physical description of Lydia and Gannett, but through the dialogue between them and the events that take place, it is easy for a reader to feel as though they know the characters. At the conclusion of James' article, he gives advice to a novelist and states that "I should remind him first of the magnificence of the form that is open to him" and also "try and catch the colour of life itself" (567). In short, James simply wants novelists to capture the essence of life whether or not they personally experienced the ideas they are writing about.

Comparing James' views on fiction to Edith Whart's story is a difficult task for me. I am not sure if my assignment it to compare his views on fiction to Whart's writing or to the events that took place in the story concerning Gannett's writing (or lack there of since he met Lydia). As I stated before, a main connection I saw between James' views and Whart's writing is that there is no physical description of the characters but as a reader, I am still able to clearly see who they are and this lack of description does not take away from the meaning of the work. The events are interesting to me, as a reader, but may not be to another. Whether or not Whart actually experienced a situation similar to that of Lydia whereas she had left her husband for another man only to find that this new relationship cannot continue due to her own morals and beliefs, Whart still captured a valid experience that many others can relate to and choose to like or dislike as they please ( as James explained). As far as connecting James' ideas to the events in the actual story regarding Gannett's lack of writing during the time he is with Lydia, I do not see any clear correlations so I'm hoping that it is safe to assume that the assignment is to compare James' article to Whart's writing. I had a hard time understanding exactly what James was trying to say as at first he appeared to agree with "Mr. Besant" but later appeared to be disagreeing with him and I never understood who Mr. Besant was in the first place. However, if what I have concluded James was trying to say is at least partially correct, I agree that criticism on fiction novelists is too harsh and that it is impossible to dictate rules in which they must follow when writing about a particular situation. I do not necessarily understand the "betrayal" James speaks of when people read fiction because a person usually knows it is "make-believe" when they start reading. As Whart's story was published before her introduction states she actually separated from her husband, I assume that most of this work was fictitious but possibly based on some reality in that she was in an unhappy marriage.