Animals more effective than people

During Wednesday’s discussion we considered the idea of blindspots in response to Red Hands. I thought the excerpt was quite ironic actually and I liked that Vollman put the two short stories together. After finishing the reading I realized that I was disturbed by what Vollman had written. But rather than being upset about the loss of human life in the department store bombing, I felt sad for the mouse, the animal. I began to wonder, why is the thought of torturing or cruelty to animals so much more effective than the same action toward humans? Someone even mentioned in class they felt the same. There is something powerfully disturbing about harming an innocent creature. Some emotions are brought to the forefront more clearly through animals rather than people. This is important to keep in mind for the project– that animals as well as people can be incorporated to evoke emotion and mood.

Half-Breed

While reading Tripmaster Monkey, it occurred to me that perhaps this search for identity is more common than we care to talk about.  I must admit that I have never really struggled to place myself in society.  I’m a third generation American who grew up surrounded by both my mother’s parents, my father’s parents, and all of the aunts, uncles, cousins, and other extended family you can imagine.  I grew up in the Lutheran church like both my parents and grandparents did.  I know the stories about my family’s past, and our German ancestory is still very present in our holiday traditions.  There are very few mysteries about who I am, where I came from, or where I fit into society.  However, this is not everyone’s experience.  My own best friend is half korean and half caucasian.  She is constantly asked “What are you?” by people as if being of more than one race makes a person not human.  While trying to keep in touch with her asian ancestory, she must also balance the heritage of her caucasian half.  I was also reminded of the song “Half Breed” by Cher (yes, I’ve listened to Cher).  In this song she talks about how she never felt that she fit into society because she was half Native American and half European American.  It seems like the majority of people are “mixed” and struggle to strike a balance between their varying familial pasts.  Maybe this “hybrid” is actually more common but considered a hush-hush topic and therefore mistaken as the minority.

Recitatif

The storyline in Recitatif by Toni Morrison was very interesting to me, so I thought, what can I take from this and incorporate into my own writing. I think one of the most important qualities present in Morrison’s short story is the insight into the character’s psyche. As Twyla reminisces on her past at the orphanage, and even on her run ins later with Roberta, the reader gets a peek into the mind of first a young girl confused about her place in the world, and later a young woman still questioning her place. The entire short story subtly suggests that Twyla is in constant search of an identity, Morrison allows a deep connection between the reader and the character to develop through detailed accounts of the past and descriptive telling of her thoughts. For instance, when Twyla is just a girl, her view of her mother is very naive but typical for a child/parent relationship. Later, as a mother, the incident with picket signs between the two grown women cause the reader to question the thought processes of Twyla. I think it is important to use such methods in my writing that allow the reader to feel a connection to the text.

Socialism in America?

After reading The Plot Against America, I really did begin to wonder if such atrocities could ever happen here in our homeland.  My first reaction was “no way”. The American people would never sit by and let policies that take away our rights guaranteed under the U.S. constitution pass. However, after watching the clip of Glenn Beck and his speech on the socialist policies of President Obama, I began to wonder. It is true that Obama’s policies will raise the taxes on individuals who have worked hard and earn an income higher than that of the deemed “middle class”, and grant tax breaks to those with lesser incomes, a real life Robin Hood. However, isn’t that the opposite of capitalism? It seems to me that increasing taxes of the wealthy and lessening those of the poor to balance out the socioeconomics of our country is much less capitalist than it is socialist. But the majority of the American people don’t seem to have any complaints about such things. The middle class and the poor are content and the upper class too small of a minority to have an effect.  And so I wonder, could Glenn Beck be right? Could the ideas presented in The Plot Against America not be as far fetched as I thought?

Happily Ever After

Earlier in the week while discussing Separating, someone asked if the idea of divorce- being that more than half of all marriages end in divorce- has become cliche. I say absolutely not. While it is true that divorce is extremely common, I think most people think of marriage as their dream come true. My aunt recently got married and looking through the pictures all I could think was “awww”. Though it is sad to say, statistics say their marriage will end eventually. The thought however did not cross my mind. That is not what the general population thinks of when “marriage” is mentioned. Yesterday my mom called to tell me that one of my childhood friend’s parents are getting divorced. All I could think was, oh no. I always thought they were happy, that’s what society tells us marriage is like. Though divorce is common, the side effects of it are no less traumatic for those who go through it. We are raised thinking that marriage is forever, and while that may not be the case, happily forever after is still the cliche.

Little Girl

Poetry is not my strong point.  I was never really introduced to poetry that I liked and therefore always kind of shied away from it.  So you can imagine my surprise when reading the macabre poems by Sylvia Plath and Anne Sexton, that I actually liked them.  I was surprised for two reasons: 1) I am not a  fan of poetry and 2) I would never expect myself to like reading the dark words referencing one’s suicide.  And while it wasn’t so much the topics of their poetry that fascinated me, it was the way they wrote.  In Anne Sexton’s poem “Little Girl”, she writes about her pregnancy in detail and gives such a beautiful account of her belly, with child. Granted, this poem is not morbid but I thought it was creative and I really enjoyed reading it.  Everything flowed so nicely, and while she was depressed and suicidal she deeply cared for her unborn daughter (aw).  Who knew poetry could actually be fun to read…

Sidewalk

We spent class Wednesday talking about Kerouac, Ginsberg and the rest of the beat generation’s desire to belong to a subculture that deviated from the norms established by society.  I have to admit that it’s hard for me to totally grasp their need to do so.  I have never really been the type to contradict rules, regulations and norms just for the sake of being different.  I tend to follow the guidelines for no other reason than “just because”.  But while walking back from class Wednesday I was making my way down the sidewalk when I got stuck behind a group of people walking at a particularly slow pace.  In my head I was like “Oh great. It’s gonna take me longer to get back to my dorm.  I have so much stuff to do.”  And then it occurred to me, I don’t have to walk on the sidewalk.  I know it’s silly because of course you can walk around, but I almost never step off the sidewalk.  I follow the grid-like pattern that weaves and winds through the grass.  It reminded me of our discussion when we were talking about the group of men who were driving down back roads to avoid traffic.  Though they still followed a pre-determined set of roads, they did not allow themselves to be constricted by the normalcy and patterned way of thinking that most others did.  Stepping off the sidewalk was a way of stepping outside of the norm.

Poetics

The letter from Bishop to Lowell deals with the differences between figurative and confessional poetry.  It got me thinking… Why is it that we often classify things that are confessional as art?  What about upfront and candid speaking is considered poetry?  Perhaps the element of vulnerability and openness which allow people to see straight into the thoughts and feelings of the author bring an artistic element.  However, there is a fine line between what is considered artistic and what becomes crude.  However, often times photography and other forms of art are classified as too direct if nothing is left to the imagination.  Too much detail and obvious declaration can sometimes come across as obscene.  I began thinking about the other forms of art that get described as inappropriate because they are blatant and in your face.  However, I feel like generally poetry escapes that strict categorization.  It is perfectly acceptable for most people if a poem lacks symbolism and clearly states an idea.  But a photograph of a person or object without special care sometimes seems like exploitation.  What makes poetry the exception?  I don’t know that it can be pinpointed, but maybe that’s what Bishop was hinting at…

The Cold War

After our discussion in class yesterday I was slightly frustrated with myself.  We had spent the past week looking at Ragtime and talking about how we never question history, and yet I  happened to read the first few chapters of The Cold War without wondering if there was more to it than what I was reading.  It wasn’t until class that i actually thought back on what I had read and the things I had previously learned about the Cold War to question and interpret my opinions on the events.  While I had always imagined the United States and the “good guys” and the Soviets as “the enemy”, it was not because of pop culture or stories from my parents that influenced me.  Rather it is my perspective on capitalism vs. communism that played a greater role.  In history and even economics class we learn about the benefits and opportunities that capitalism presents people with.  Likewise, we learn about the people under communist rule that go hungry and live in poverty.  Because the USSR was in favor of a form of government that I associated with negative qualities, I automatically presumed that they had undesirable ideals in mind.  And because the United States was trying to spread ideals that I personally found pleasant, I categorized the two sides- United States good; Soviet Union bad.  However, after our discussion I think perhaps I was wrong.

Ragtime

Yesterday in class we discussed Tateh and how he not only acquired great wealth but how he altered his whole persona to embrace this new kind of identity and status that his monetary gains had brought him.  As we were talking I began to think about how his outlook seemed to drastically differ from Houdini’s perspective of things.  Both were immigrants who lived in immense poverty.  Both developed a talent and become extremely wealthy.  However, Tateh openly accepts his new status.  Houdini has a kind of internal conflict that Tateh doesn’t appear to exhibit.  For some reason Houdini feels a fool around the higher ranks of society.  It’s as though Houdini believes that money and wealth is not the key to social mobility as the capitalist system suggests.  It is almost as if he thinks of society in the sense that while you may change your socio-economic level, your class is determined at birth and is not so easily altered as the American dream implies.