Open Prompt Revised: Lord Of The Flies

 1976. The conflict created when the will of an individual opposes the will of the majority is the recurring theme of many novels, plays, and essays. Select the work of an essayist who is in opposition to his or her society; or from a work of recognized literary merit, select a fictional character who is in opposition to his or her society. In a critical essay, analyze the conflict and discuss the moral and ethical implications for both the individual and the society. Do not summarize the plot or action of the work you choose.

               Often times in Literature, a character must be in opposition to society in order to do what is right.  In Lord of the Flies, Ralph is a character of innocence that has to face the harshes of society that his opponent Jack creates on the island. 

                When the boys land on the island alone, they create a unity amongst each other and agree to cooperate in order to be rescued. When Jack steps up to claim power, the boys blindly follow in his footsteps and do as they are told. However, Ralph is in a conflict with the way Jack runs the island with his morals and guidelines. Jack acts like a savage; he believes that hunting pigs, doing dances around a fire and talking to dead creatures will allow them to be rescued. Ralph is startled by Jack’s immaturity and refuses to listen to his orders. 

 Ralph wants order. He wants people to be assigned a specific job and work together equally amongst each other. However, Jack wants to show that his clan is the best, and that the hunters should have more respect due to the fact that they provide food to the other boys. When the boys go hunting, Jack kills a pig.  This act of killing leads him to believe that he is powerful and has the right to kill anyone who is in opposition to him. Each character slowly but surely loses their innocence except Ralph and his friend Piggy who can truly see the beast that is manifested within everyone.

                Ralph’s rebellion towards the rest of the uncivilized society on the island shows how he morally makes right decisions and turns away from immature actions. His morality and faith come into question when Jack challenges him to become savage-like. Although Ralph is tempted, he turns away and continues to control the beast that lives within him as he slowly watches his peers become corrupted.

Open Prompt Revised: The American Dream

1993. "The true test of comedy is that it shall awaken thoughtful laughter." Choose a novel, play, or long poem in which a scene or character awakens "thoughtful laughter" in the reader. Write an essay in which you show why this laughter is "thoughtful" and how it contributes to the meaning of the work.

A true piece of comedy is said to evoke "thoughtful laughter" which causes one to think intellectually about a joke or subject. In "The American Dream", Edward Albee promotes thoughtful laughter by presenting scenarios where intellectual thought must be applied. Albee uses techniques such as tone and diction to show how the manipulation of power and rebelling against societal norms creates humor.

 Mommy is proven to be masculine; she is given more power than Daddy. The idea that women have more power than men shows a "backward society", which contrasts the norm that men have more authority than women. This technique promotes laughter when  Mommy forces daddy to laugh at her jokes or when she forces Daddy to answer the door. When Daddy is hesitating to answering the door, Mommy states "You're indecisive, you're a woman" ( Albee 18), this shows that not only is Mommy aware of the lack of coherent thought that women possess, but also that Daddy's inability to be more masculine is a flaw in his character. It is evident that Mommy is strong and firm in her actions, and Daddy is weak and has no control in his. After observing the relationship Mommy and Daddy foster, the audience can clearly see how the manipulation of power promotes laughter.

Mommy and Daddy commonly address each other in a child-like tone. When Mommy goes shopping and ends up buying the same hat twice just to feel that she bought a "beige colored hat" rather than a "wheat colored hat", Daddy applauds at her immature behavior when she throws a fit in the store. This promotes thoughtful laughter because the audience has to think about how oblivious Mommy behaves in public and how Daddy supports it. In this sense, Mommy is once again given more power. 

Albee uses diction and tone to show how Mommy is given more power than Daddy. Through a series of events that contrast to idealistic values, he promote "thoughtful laughter" that displays the manipulation of power in a backwards society. 

Open Prompt Revised: Death of A Salesman

2007. In many works of literature, past events can affect, positively or negatively, the present activities, attitudes, or values of a character. Choose a novel or play in which a character must contend with some aspect of the past, either personal or societal. Then write an essay in which you show how the character's relationship to the past contributes to the meaning of the work as a whole.

            Often times in literature, a character’s attitude is influenced by their past and can be expressed likewise in their current attitude. In Arthur Miller’s Death of A Salesman, Willy’s confidence and actions are derived from his past, even though he is currently a failure. Miller claims that Willy's ego comes from his brother's words of wisdom and his past successes as a salesman. 

            Willy used to sleep with receptionists in order for big businesses to buy from him and allow his business to flourish. This was his money making tactic that boosted his self esteem. As he aged over time, his appearance did also. His business started to diminish when less women were willing to sleep with him, this eventually led to his failure. Although he cannot support himself like he used to, his mind is always set in the past, so he still believes that he is just as successful as he used to be.  

            Willy’s deceased brother Ben is a successful man who metaphorically went into the “jungle”  and  became rich. He took a leap into the world of opportunities and found himself a wealthy living. Willy thus takes Ben’s advice and tries to think what Ben would do in certain circumstances. He believes that in order to be successful, one must adhere to examples of a superior power in order to lead their own lives. Ben’s past conversation with Willy still run through Willy’s mind as if he were still alive. Willy still has hope, even though time has significantly passed. 

            Willy’s attitude is not influenced by his failure, but rather his past successes. This allows for him to maintain a positive outlook on life. 

Open Prompt Revised: The Road Not Taken

Robert Frost's poem "The Road Not Taken"  is about the struggles of making decisions. The last 2 lines of the poem "I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference." shows the outcomes of the decisions made and this effectively claims that the "road less traveled" is actually the better decision to be made. 

The last 2 lines of the poem claims that the decision the author made on which road to travel was an obstacle, but he was glad that he took the one less traveled by. In the first stanza, the author regrets that he was unable to travel both roads, and "stared" down both paths, deciding which one would have a better outcome. This stanza is metaphorical for when one has to look at both sides that are presented to him or her and acknowledge which one would have a better outcome.  

These last two lines are effective because it claims that the "road less traveled by" is the decision that is less favorable but, "...that has made all the difference." meaning that it is more beneficial. The traveler saw "two roads diverged in a yellow wood" but had taken time to contemplate which one was better.This describes when one is portrays the pros versus the cons in a decision. Thus, it is effective because it shows how the author conclusively was led to the road less traveled, and how it impacted him. 

The "Road Not Taken" is symbolic for the the tough decisions that people have to make in life, and analyzes the decision making process and how the outcome is effective because it is least favorable. 

Close Reading: "Americans: Undecided About God?"

The controversy over what the holidays represent for certain individuals has been a debate for decades. In the article, Eric Weiner, discusses how he is conflicted when it comes to a subject of God, and describes how is a "None" who has no religion and how he is proud of it. Weiner uses diction, and syntax to further allow his readers to understand his disappointment in the concept of believing in God.

Weiner talks about how he thinks God is "for suckers" and that subject is only discussed in "mocking or derisive tones". He reflects his emotions through his diction. This allows the audience to understand where he stands on this subject matter, and how he may feel that the holidays are shameful because they celebrate religious beliefs. He also believes that "there is very good religion out there" because people feel obligated to feel pain or consequence when they commit a sin and God will always "smite them". These choice of words clearly represent that religion has a negative impact on people rather than a positive one. 

The syntax in this article uses shorter sentences to emphasis points. Such as when Weiner explains that "None are the undecided of the religion world", here the readers can understand that the Nones attitude is just "I don't know, but let's find out". This syntax makes the article more visually appealing and comprehensive. Although this may not necessarily display Weiner's disappointment in believers, the readers can see his perspective on why religion leads him to believe so, since he does not have one himself. 

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/11/opinion/sunday/americans-and-god.html?ref=opinion

Response to Course Material 12/10

Wow. It's hard to believe that we are nearly half way done with this class. I almost feel overwhelmed when I think to myself all the knowledge I have acquired in just nearly 3 months. I will admit, I have never read anything like Ceremony ever before, and it is a difficult read in my opinion. Thankfully, in class discussions, peer advice and a little bit of research is getting me through annotating this book. Native American Literature is a different world to explore, and I am glad that I am understanding the realms in which this world exists.
The eras presentation was a good topic to touch on, and prezi isn't all that bad. I was nervous when I first started using it, but it's compatible. Hopefully I will keep on improving on my essays, and will nail the next one ( I HOPE). 

Open Prompt: December 4th

2007. In many works of literature, past events can affect, positively or negatively, the present activities, attitudes, or values of a character. Choose a novel or play in which a character must contend with some aspect of the past, either personal or societal. Then write an essay in which you show how the character's relationship to the past contributes to the meaning of the work as a whole.

            Often times in literature, a character’s attitude is strongly influenced by their past and can be expressed likewise in their current attitude. In Arthur Miller’s Death of A Salesman, Willy’s confidence and actions are derived from his past. Arthur Miller uses Willy’s success as a salesman  in the past and his brother Ben’s words of wisdom to further present why Willy has such a high self esteem as a salesman  currently when he is failing in life.

            When Willy was young, he used to sleep with women who were receptionists to big businesses to allow for his business as a salesman to flourish. This was his tactic to making money, and boosting his self esteem as a character. As he ages over time, his appearance does also. Less women were willing to support his business, and his business also started to diminish. Willy’s thoughts and conscience is always focused on the past, so when he promotes his business in the current life, his motivation is his past success.

            Willy’s deceased brother Ben is a successful man who went into the “jungle”  and  became rich. Willy thus takes Ben’s advice and allows for himself to lead his life in such a manner that Ben would. In order to be successful in Willy’s eyes, one must adhere to examples and superiority to lead their own lives. Ben’s past conversation with Willy still run through Willy’s mind as if Ben were still alive. Not realizing that time has passed and it’s too late to go into the “jungle”, Willy still keeps hope.

            Willy’s attitude is not influenced by his failure, but rather his past. This allows for him to keep a positive outlook on life due to his past success as a salesman.