" 'Just kidding,' she said. 'I was just kidding.' But he gazed at her, appalled and frightened, his Magic Marker buttocks turned away now toward all of downtown, a naked pseudowoman with a blue bracelet at the wrist, trapped out on a balcony with - with what? 'Really, I was just kidding!' " (page 370).
I feel that Zoe is so eccentric because she is insecure with the person that she is. She is self-conscious during uncomfortable situations that she tries to get the attention off of herself. This makes her more sypathetic as a character because I truly feel bad for her not feeling comfortable in her own skin. I feel that the costume party is significant because all of these people are putting on a mask. They are trying to hide the people they really are. Zoe, for instance, never comes up with her own sentences. She uses jokes that she has already formulated in her mind. She cannot come up with her own work. It all is kind of sad. It all stems from the fact that she is uncomfortable with the person she is. She is self-conscious of her chin and her speech impediment. She needs to take off her mask and be herself. Jokes are important to Zoe because she is afraid to be serious around others. She would rather have others enjoy her presence and her jokes than know her on a deeper level. She is trying to disguise the person suffering from life itself underneath all the humor. Zoe speaks both sarcastically and ironically. It is kind of difficult to distinguish the difference between the two. Men in the story have a trouble of really getting to know Zoe. However, she kind of does this to herself because she doesn't really let people in.
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
"The Drunkard" by Frank O'Connor
"I was still thirsty. I found if I stood on tiptoe I could just reach Father's glass, and the idea occurred to me that it would be interesting to know what the contents were like. He had his back to it and wouldn't notice. I took down the glass and sipped cautiously. It was a terrible disappointment. I was astonished that he could even drink such stuff. It looked as if he had never tried lemonade" (page 347).
There are many sources of humor in this story. First off, the boy starts off the story acting as if he is annoyed with his father's drinking. I find it funny that the boy ends up drinking himself. Irony fills this story. For instance, on page 345, the author states that "The father was stepping out like a boy, pleased with everything." I just find it ironic that the father acts like a boy at time, and that the boy acts like an actual drunkard. It's as if they switched roles. It is also humorous when the boy yells at ladies who laugh at him. He cusses. It is also funny who the twelve year old boy "thinks deeply about life / death." It's just an interesting story. THe humor arises from distortion of life because everything is kind of out of whack. There are also undertones of pathos. For instance, the mother thinks that the boy drank because he was trying to protect his father. The mother is proud of him, even though this really wasn't the case at all. The boy was just curious. It shows that he is human. I feel that the central theme of this story is that parents definitely influence their children to act a certain way. However, everyone is given the choices to live justly and accordingly. The title refers to the boy. At first, I thought that the title was referring to the boy's dad. Then I realized that this is probably also talking about the son. Maybe it is like that common phrase: "like father like son..."
There are many sources of humor in this story. First off, the boy starts off the story acting as if he is annoyed with his father's drinking. I find it funny that the boy ends up drinking himself. Irony fills this story. For instance, on page 345, the author states that "The father was stepping out like a boy, pleased with everything." I just find it ironic that the father acts like a boy at time, and that the boy acts like an actual drunkard. It's as if they switched roles. It is also humorous when the boy yells at ladies who laugh at him. He cusses. It is also funny who the twelve year old boy "thinks deeply about life / death." It's just an interesting story. THe humor arises from distortion of life because everything is kind of out of whack. There are also undertones of pathos. For instance, the mother thinks that the boy drank because he was trying to protect his father. The mother is proud of him, even though this really wasn't the case at all. The boy was just curious. It shows that he is human. I feel that the central theme of this story is that parents definitely influence their children to act a certain way. However, everyone is given the choices to live justly and accordingly. The title refers to the boy. At first, I thought that the title was referring to the boy's dad. Then I realized that this is probably also talking about the son. Maybe it is like that common phrase: "like father like son..."
"The Lottery" By Shirley Jackson
"Tessie Hutchinson was in the center of a cleared space by now, and she held her hands out desperately as the villagers moved in on her. 'It isn't fair,' she said. A stone hit her on the side of the head" (page 271).
After reading this story, I really tried to figure out the significance as to what the 'lottery' was. After much thought, I realized that the 'lottery' is actually something that people don't want to win. If a person receives the lottery in this story (aka the black dot), then that person is to be killed. I find this incredibly ironic because in real life, people WANT to win the lottery. Here, it is casted as a terrible thing. When I first read that the story was title 'The Lottery,' I expected a person to win the lottery and to have a happy ending. I honestly am not very surprised. These short stories are killing me because I am a hopeless romantic who loves fairytales. These short stories that we've read over the past couple weeks are crushing my dreams of fairytales, and this just makes me sad. A scapegoat is an innocent being who is blamed for another person's fault. Tessie is the scapegoat in this story because she did nothing wrong, but the town decided to kill her nonetheless. This story kind of reminds me of the story of Jesus. Okay, yes, I always tie things back to my faith, but my faith is the one thing that I love to talk about. Jesus was the chosen one. He came into this world as a human, like everyone else. Even though He didn't do anything wrong, He still was chosen to be killed. It is sad, but He had to live a painful death. Was it fair? No, but He had to do it for the benefit of all. I don't know what the probability was for someone to die in this story, but I am just upset that Tessie had to be innocently killed. (It also freaks me out that her name is very similar to mine, and she was stoned to death.... I do not like these tragic ends to short stories! I want a cute love story where everyone lives happily ever after!)
After reading this story, I really tried to figure out the significance as to what the 'lottery' was. After much thought, I realized that the 'lottery' is actually something that people don't want to win. If a person receives the lottery in this story (aka the black dot), then that person is to be killed. I find this incredibly ironic because in real life, people WANT to win the lottery. Here, it is casted as a terrible thing. When I first read that the story was title 'The Lottery,' I expected a person to win the lottery and to have a happy ending. I honestly am not very surprised. These short stories are killing me because I am a hopeless romantic who loves fairytales. These short stories that we've read over the past couple weeks are crushing my dreams of fairytales, and this just makes me sad. A scapegoat is an innocent being who is blamed for another person's fault. Tessie is the scapegoat in this story because she did nothing wrong, but the town decided to kill her nonetheless. This story kind of reminds me of the story of Jesus. Okay, yes, I always tie things back to my faith, but my faith is the one thing that I love to talk about. Jesus was the chosen one. He came into this world as a human, like everyone else. Even though He didn't do anything wrong, He still was chosen to be killed. It is sad, but He had to live a painful death. Was it fair? No, but He had to do it for the benefit of all. I don't know what the probability was for someone to die in this story, but I am just upset that Tessie had to be innocently killed. (It also freaks me out that her name is very similar to mine, and she was stoned to death.... I do not like these tragic ends to short stories! I want a cute love story where everyone lives happily ever after!)
Monday, December 5, 2011
"Popular Mechanics" by Raymond Carver
"She would have it, this baby. She grabbed the baby's other arm. She caught the baby around the wrist and leaned back.
But he would not let go. He felt the baby slipping out of his hands and he pulled back very hard.
In this manner, the issue was decided" (page 345 [handout]).
The story's final lines hold symbolic meaning. Yes, I think that the author is leaving this up to interpretation whether who got the baby. However, I do think that maybe the baby was pulled so hard in both directions that the baby simply died. Neither parent deserved the child, so maybe that is how the issue was "decided." Perhaps the answer lies with the author of the piece, or maybe like the story that we read about last week (I think it was "Eveline"???), the author is leaving the answer up to the reader's imagination. The few details in the description of the story establish the tone. First off, the story is set in the end of the snowstorm. The snow is melting, and it is now "slush." In the winter, it is really dreary without the sun being out all the time. I simply think of winter as kind of a dark, dreary time. That's why we always put up lights and such to add light to this darkness. Or maybe that's just me, I don't know. However, the literary elements also add to the tone. When the mom and dad are yelling at each other, there is no quotation marks. Everything is just simply stated. It's almost as if the parents' words do not deserve true punctuation. The child, for one thing, does not deserve to be hearing these things. It's just kind of sad though because children are what generally hold a family together. One would think that these two parents would make their relationship work for the benefit of the child. However, even their this moment, greed comes out of the parents and neither can give it up. How could a parent do this to his child?! I don't like this. The words are harsh and the violence is worse. In this case, actions truly do speak louder than words.
But he would not let go. He felt the baby slipping out of his hands and he pulled back very hard.
In this manner, the issue was decided" (page 345 [handout]).
The story's final lines hold symbolic meaning. Yes, I think that the author is leaving this up to interpretation whether who got the baby. However, I do think that maybe the baby was pulled so hard in both directions that the baby simply died. Neither parent deserved the child, so maybe that is how the issue was "decided." Perhaps the answer lies with the author of the piece, or maybe like the story that we read about last week (I think it was "Eveline"???), the author is leaving the answer up to the reader's imagination. The few details in the description of the story establish the tone. First off, the story is set in the end of the snowstorm. The snow is melting, and it is now "slush." In the winter, it is really dreary without the sun being out all the time. I simply think of winter as kind of a dark, dreary time. That's why we always put up lights and such to add light to this darkness. Or maybe that's just me, I don't know. However, the literary elements also add to the tone. When the mom and dad are yelling at each other, there is no quotation marks. Everything is just simply stated. It's almost as if the parents' words do not deserve true punctuation. The child, for one thing, does not deserve to be hearing these things. It's just kind of sad though because children are what generally hold a family together. One would think that these two parents would make their relationship work for the benefit of the child. However, even their this moment, greed comes out of the parents and neither can give it up. How could a parent do this to his child?! I don't like this. The words are harsh and the violence is worse. In this case, actions truly do speak louder than words.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)