Prompt Revision #4

1980. A recurring theme in literature is the classic war between a passion and responsibility. For instance, a personal cause, a love, a desire for revenge, a determination to redress a wrong, or some other emotion or drive may conflict with moral duty. Choose a literary work in which a character confronts the demands of a private passion that conflicts with his or her responsibilities. In a well-written essay show clearly the nature of the conflict, its effects upon the character, and its significance to the work.

In Herman Melville's novel Moby Dick, Captain Ahab's passion to seek revenge is much more relevant to him than leading his crew at sea. Many characters will go to wits end to fulfill a desire, but in Ahab's case, he is willing to put the safety of his crew at stake. Ahab's strong desire for revenge shapes his character as he becomes obsessed and is willing to take outrageous measures in order to capture this life-threatening animal. Through the relationship between Ahab and Moby Dick, Melville makes it clear that one who has a strong desire to achieve something, will do so, irregardless of the obstacles present.

Captain Ahab's first encounter with Moby Dick is the main reason behind Ahab's motivation. In attempt to capture the great sperm whale, Ahab's leg was torn off by Moby-Dick, and ever since then Ahab has primarily focused on getting revenge on this beast. His selfish ways prevent the crew from going forth on the whaling mission, as Ahab knows he is only looking for one whale. The crew members, unsure how to react to their captain's absurd commands, go along with everything and try to avoid tipping Ahab off even more. Captain Ahab's job was to lead this ship, but he puts himself before the entire crew, pursuing his personal mission. 

Carrying out and completing the capture of Moby Dick is Captain Ahab's biggest dream. The inevitability to be reminded daily of the suffering and pain Moby Dick has brought upon would make one go insane, as Ahab did. The desire to avenge himself became his big picture, a life focused on getting even with an animal. Ahab's obsession caused him to disregard all other matters of importance, such as his family and the health of his crew. The obsession over Moby-Dick made Ahab into a new person. He was full of nonsense, anger and contradictions and none of the other characters knew how to approach Ahab's delicate situation. 

In conclusion, Herman Melville displays the power and influence of a desire on one's life, in which a person will be selfish and follow one's passion until he/she is contempt. 

Ceremony Summary/Analysis

Author: Leslie Marmon Silko

Setting: Southwest United States, the Laguna Pueblo reservation, the bars, and the most significant aspect- the landscape.

Point of View: third person omniscient. The narrator is very descriptive, and even more descriptive when it comes to landmarks and natural elements.

Style: at first it was very fragmental as were Tayo's thoughts, but as the novel progressed the flow did as well. A lot of very lengthy and over-descripted sentences, poems every so many pages that were always centered and often in multiple stanzas

Plot:

-Tayo has returned from a Veterans Hospital after WWII to his home at the Laguna Pueblo reservation. He is very traumatized by his experiences, especially loosing Rocky and “seeing” Josiah

-Tayo struggles adapting back into his life

-Copes with other veterans, Harley, Leroy, Emo and Pinkie, by going out to bars and telling war stories

-Tayo doesn’t think he can stand his sadness and confusion much longer so he wishes to go back to the hospital

-Grandma calls in the first medicine man, Ku’oosh, who performs an old ceremony on Tayo but its no longer applicable

-Ku’oosh’s ceremony helps Tayo, and initiates his reminiscence of his life, focusing on the summer before he left for the army

-That summer…

-Rocky and Tayo enlisted in the army after finishing high school

-Josiah fell in love with Night Swan

-Josiah invests in some Mexican cattle and Tayo helps care for them

-There was a drought and Tayo creates a rain ceremony to avoid the results of previous droughts

-Ceremony is successful and it rains the next day

-The rain keeps Josiah from visiting Night Swan so he gives a note to Tayo to deliver for him and then she seduces Tayo

-Ku’oosh sends Tayo to Gallup to see the second medicine man, Betonie

-Tayo is at first skeptical of Betonie and his odd ways but then he opens up

-Betonie tells Tayo that a new ceremony must be created and completed because of how the world is now

-Betonie tells him stories about his grandfather and why new ceremonies are now in need, then he sends Tayo home to finish his ceremony

-Tayo follows the stars to Ts’eh’s house and spends the night with her

-Tayo goes up the mountain in search of Josiah’s cattle. He finds the cattle on a white man’s land, breaks through the fence, which releases the cattle to who knows where

-He looks all night for the cattle until dawn when a mountain lion comes up and after the animal is honored, he follows its tracks to the cattle

-Two patrolmen find Tayo leaving the pasture and plan to arrest him for trespassing, but the white men notice the lion’s tracks and leave Tayo to go hunt the animal

-Down the mountain Tayo meets a hunter who lives with Ts’eh and they go back to her house where she has fenced Tayo’s cattle until Tayo and Robert return with a cattle truck

-Tayo returns home but knows the ceremony isn’t complete because of the drought

-Ts’eh and Tayo spend the summer together

-Robert comes to tell Tayo that Emo has been spreading rumors about him

-Ts’eh tells Tayo that Emo and the white police are coming after him, but she also gives Tayo advice on how to avoid them

-Tayo successfully avoids the police, then sees Harley and Leroy, who have joined forces with Emo too

-Tayo continues to run from these things that Betonie warned him would occur during his ceremony and he ends up at an abandoned uranium mine

-He realizes this is the final stage of his ceremony as he looks down to see the gaping hole left in the earth

-Pinkie and Emo arrive and unknowingly to them, Tayo watches Harley get tortured

-Because of the wind, Tayo makes it through the night

-Goes home, then to see Ku’oosh who tells him the drought has ended as well as the destruction of the whites

-Tayo spends the night at Ku’oosh’s house to officially complete the ceremony then he returns home

Significant Characters:
Tayo- half white, half Laguna Pueblo, PTSD after WWII, must complete his ceremony
Grandma- helps Tayo, a lot of knowledge on the stories
Auntie- takes Tayo in as an orphan, rude, selfish, and consumed with aspects of the white culture
Rocky- son of Auntie, had a lot of potential, best friends with Tayo, dies in the war
Josiah- Tayo's uncle, Tayo looked up to him alot, loves Night Swan
Emo- drinks a lot, talks about the great memories from the war, hates Tayo
Night Swan- Mexican, Josiah's girl who suggests he raise cattle, self-aware woman
Old Ku'oosh- Laguna medicine man, very traditional, sends Tayo to a medicine man that can create new ceremonies
Betonie- half breed like Tayo, creates a ceremony for Tayo, very wise and patient

Quotes:
"Next time, just remember the story (Silko 94)".

Josiah gives Tayo this advice as he reassures him that everybody makes mistakes which disrupt the order, but without the common mistakes there would be no order in place, or needed. I think this quote is important to Tayo's character and the novel as a whole. Initially, Tayo struggled remembering important things as a result of the war, and now Tayo is reconnected with the Earth because of his ability to remember the stories which make up his culture. Throughout the entire book, Silko keeps coming back to her stories. Remembering bits and pieces of the stories will help as those same aspects show up again and a connection is able to be formed.

"Indians or Mexicans or whites--most people are afraid of change (Silko 92)".

This quote comes from Night Swan when she comforts Tayo about his half-breed insecurities. I think this quote is important, especially coming from Night Swan, because it just shows how alike everyone truly is. Just because one's appearance may be different than others, that doesn't mean one's actions and emotions operate differently. All people of all races are still people, irregardless. I like this quote because it highlights the strenghts of Night Swan as a person and I bet Tayo really needed to hear something like that.

Theme: It's never too late to fulfill one's purpose

I thought this theme was appropriate for Ceremony, because like a circle there is no end or beginning, so it is never too late to hop on track. In Ceremony, Tayo starts off very troubled and has little faith in himself that he will ever be able to recover and live a normal life. With determination and help from others, Tayo finally has the to heal- and he does! Little by little as Tayo rebalances the elements in his life and he realizes he is headed in the right direction. Sometimes, when the balance of order is disturbed and everything is spiraling downward, even then it's not too late. There is always a way to balance everything back out by fulfilling one's purpose.

Response to Course Material #8

I initially thought that reading Ceremony would be relaxing, and a nice fresh breath from all these plays. And initially it was, until I found myself reading the same story over and over and over again! Or at least that's what it felt like. I found the Laguna Pueblo stories to be very interesting, and it was cool to see each aspect interconnect with each other, but after a while it got very repetitive and boring. There were several spots in the book where I had to re-read to assure myself it was indeed the exact same story with the exact same theme, only with different animals and a new setting! I eventually found these little stories pointless and annoying. Overall, I thought Leslie Silko did an outstanding job with the novel and it was nothing like I had ever read before. I enjoyed learning about a completely new culture and especially comparing their lifestyle to ours.

Finally... we have begun with our very last work! Our fifth (if you combine Hamlet and R&G are dead) piece- Fifth Business. The only reason I am gleaming with joy discussing Fifth Business is because it means we are that much closer to being done with school! However, summer isn't the main focus here, hence the assigned blog post, but reading Fifth Business outside in the summer would be a great focus. Well, time to actually talk about Fifth Business. I'm definitely intrigued by it to say the least, in my opinion writing 250 long pages in teeny tiny print about one's life story to defend one's reputation (which isn't even at stake) because it was trashed by a meaningless individual, is a waste of time. That is my personal opinion and others could really like this plot line, who knows. Anyway, I'm enjoying Fifth Business, definitely an easy read which is nice every now and then.

Lastly, it seems as if the AP has swooped in out of no where, and I'm here... unprepared, waiting for the attack. As painful as it is, I have to accept that the AP is coming and it's coming fast.  In class recently, we've spent time looking at intro's and open prompts. I like reviewing and learning different helpful techniques and tips to remember on test day. Sometimes I feel like it may be more of a review to the rest of the class, but to me whenever Ms. Holmes talks it's pure genius and essential for the AP. I should probably start reviewing the terms each day. I think a little bit at a time will help and I know those words are critical to know for the test.

Prompt Revision #3

1970 Also. Choose a work of recognized literary merit in which a specific inanimate object (e.g., a seashell, a handkerchief, a painting) is important, and write an essay in which you show how two or three of the purposes the object serves are related to one another.

In William Golding's novel, "Lord of the Flies", a group of English schoolboys are deserted on an island where their plane has crashed. The boys form what they can of civilization based on a conch shell. The conch serves as the greatest source of power available to the boys as they must survive through the society they have created themselves.

The conch announces the creation of the civilization. The boys must create a plan, or some sort of system of survival in order to get though their struggles together. The conch is discovered by Ralph and Piggy and they first use it to gather all of the boys around the island. This is the first way the conch is used as a way to unite the children. The conch symbolizing unity is important because unity is what they need to establish first before a civilization is built. The conch represents the foundation of the mini-civilization. This powerful conch allowed order to be placed on the island.

The conch is also used as a symbol of power. The conch determines who holds power at a given moment. During the boys' meetings, the conch is used to control thoughts and ideas by giving the person holding it the power to share their voice. One would fear what would happen if the power of the conch was abused. The order that the conch brought to the secluded society represents the democratic system that had been subtly put into place.

 However, similar to a democracy, when the rules are not obeyed, chaos breaks loose and the democracy falls apart. This trend is demonstrated in "Lord of the Flies" when the civilization begins to fall apart and the conch looses its power. The unity the shell once brought is now destroyed because of the barbaric behavior of the boys. The shell no longer has the influence and control it once had on the boys. The final destruction of society is when the conch shell is crushed by one who once believed in the power of the shell. The conch shell is constantly being referred to in this novel because of the importance it served to the success of the boys. The foundation of the boys' had been ruined, just like their attempt at civilization.

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead Summary/Analysis

Author: Written by Tom Stoppard in 1965, R&G is his most famous play

Setting: The play begins with R&G walking wondrously, arrive at the Elsinore Castle, and then somehow end up on a boat

Plot:

Act 1

-Ros and Guil are flipping coins, which all mysteriously land on heads. Can’t remember anything

-Guil is very concerned with finding a logical reason for the coins

-Ros is confused of why Guil is so concerned with resolving this

-Ros finally remembers how the morning begun; a messenger sent for them

-Now that they have some understanding, they still can’t come up with any direction or what to do next

-The players run into Ros and Guil

·      Players offer performances to watch or to take part

·      Neither catch on for a while, and as the players are about to take off each time either Ros, or Guil, call them back for some reason

·       Guil makes a bet with the Player; Guil tricks player into loosing, then the Player tricks Guil by standing on a coin that landed on tails

-There is a shift in lighting, and Ros and Guil are in the Elsinore castle. Claudius and Gertrude assign Ros and Guil to their mission

-Ros wants to go home, but Guil convinces him to finish the play and act through his lines

-Ros and Guil play a question game, in attempt to practice confronting Hamlet

-Ros and Guil finally meeting up with Hamlet

Act 2

-Hamlet claims to be mad when the wind blows a certain direction

-Ros and Guil are very puzzled by this statement and get angry because Hamlet beat them at their own question game

-Ros and Guil try to establish the direction of the wind

-Ros suggests for Guil to lick his toe

-Ros screams “Fire!” to the audience, then flips a coin but doesn’t tell Guil the result

-Players enter and announce they will be performing The Murder of Gonzago tomorrow

-Ros and Guil talk to the players, and figure out that the players were mad because they were left performing without an audience

-All discuss the play that will be performed tomorrow and its purpose, and Hamlet’s behavior

-No conclusions are drawn, players leave to memorize lines

-Ros and Guil talk about death; what happens after death, life in a box, religion…

-Gertrude enters and asks them how their talk with Hamlet went

-Ros and Guil watch Hamlet talk to Ophelia

-Players enter, player is covering a coin and Ros reaches down to get it and his hand is stepped on

-Players run through the rehearsal of The Murder of Gonzago

-Ros and Guil can’t recognize their own characters in the play

-Guil argues with the player that actors ‘deaths’ aren’t real deaths

-Play ends with the spies bodies lying on stage with the lights dimmed, then the lights come on and Ros and Guil are in their spots

-Claudius sends Ros and Guil to find Polonius’ body

-Can’t decide what to do or where to go

-R&G briefly see Hamlet dragging Polonius’ body off stage, then denies it when confronted by R&G

-R&G talk about taking Hamlet to England

Act 3

-Ros and Guil find themselves in a place of darkness not knowing where they are

-Hamlet lights up the stage with a lantern to reveal they are on a boat

-Neither Ros or Guil can decide on what to do, but Guil enjoys being on a boat because he is free

-R&G find Hamlet sleeping, and are unsure what to do

-Ros does a coin trick to Guil, then Guil realizes he had coins in both hands just to please Guil

-Guil wants to know how much money Claudius gave to Ros, Ros tells him he got the same as him

-They remember they have a letter with instruction, but can’t remember who has the letter

-R&G act out what they will do when they get to England, and Ros opens the letter and reads it revealing the command for the English King to kill Hamlet

-R&G hesitate to proceed on giving the letter to the King because Hamlet is their friend and he didn’t do anything wrong

-Hamlet blows out the lantern and replaces the letter from R&G while they are asleep

-R&G wake up and hear music, Ros searches for the origin of the sounds

-Realize sound is coming from barrels, when the music ends the players come out on stage

-The players tell R&G that they are on the ship because they had to run away from Elsinore because their play made Claudius angry. They talk about freedom and control, and Hamlet’s behavior (Hamlet spits into the audience while they are talking)

-Pirates charge the ship and the player, Hamlet, and R&G jump into the three barrels to hide. Lights go out

-Lights come back on and Hamlet’s barrel is missing

-R&G act out the meeting with the king again, Guil opens the letter discovering it has been changed, commanding their execution, not Hamlet’s

-Guil argues with the Player about death, and Guil stabs the Player with a fake knife

-Ros realizes they are about to die and Guil is in denial

-Ends with the final scene of Hamlet (Hamlet, Claudius, Gertrude and Laertes are dead) and the English ambassador says that he has fulfilled Claudius’s wishes.

Author’s Style: very descriptive stage directions, based off of and interconnects with Hamlet, a lot of word play, comedy

Narrative Voice: none, it's a play!

Significant Characters:

Rosencrantz: easygoing, not concerned about the meaning of things (coin flipping), confused about his situation and Guil’s reactions, pragmatic, very caring for Guil, sensitive, more positive than Guil, does what Guil tells him.

Guildenstern: anxious, philosophical, tries to reason with logic, desperate for a rational explanation, easily frustrated, gives commands to Ros, snaps at Ros often but always comforts him.

Both R&G are two very confused characters, little description on their physical appearance is given, spend a lot of time asking questions and receiving no answers.

The Player: comes off as very mysterious, like he knows something the others (R&G) don’t, mentions doing/seeing things before so he has experience in the plays, doesn’t help R&G to the extent they’re looking for, full of wit, life of an actor

Quotes:

“Ros: My name is Guildenstern, and this is Rosencrantz.” Pg. 22

àThis quote gives the readers a preview of the mass of confusion that will continue between the two throughout the play. I find this comedic because they don’t even know who they are! The level of confusion is so high, and remains at this level, that one can’t even identify themselves.

“Ros: It could go on for ever. Well, not for ever, I suppose. (Pause.) Do you ever think of yourself as actually dead, lying in a box with a lid on it?” Pg. 70

àThis is the first time Ros asks a philosophical question and expresses concern for the meaning of life or what happens after so. This quote is significant because it highlights character development in Ros. As Ros becomes more entangled in his confusion he is curious on what is really going on.

“Guil: I like to know where I am. Even if I don’t know where I am, I like to know that. If we go there’s no knowing.” Pg. 95

àI found this quote very ironic because they most definitely don’t have a clue of what’s going on. This quote is in terms of traveling to England, and Guil’s stubbornness to proceed. Guil is hesitant because he won’t know of his whereabouts, and this standard for Guil is completely disregarded throughout the entire work. Stoppard is showing us that your fate will continue even if you’re not ready.

Theme:

Each decision one makes will affect the next and one’s choices will always end at with one’s fate, no matter how hard such destiny is avoided.

à Ros and Guil spend a lot of time discussing their circumstances, options and results; there is always a choice to be made between the two of them. Stoppard uses the setting and the plot to prove to R&G that their choices will not affect their destiny. As the play opens, R&G are wandering endlessly as they run into the players. R&G eventually decide to keep walking, but when they arrive to Elsinore they meet the players again and eventually a performance is given which is what they were trying to avoid originally. Stoppard connects everything to show R&G their miniscule decisions will not affect Stoppard’s greater picture. 

Response to Course Material #7

Words could not express how happy I am to be completely done with Hamlet! I found it really interesting how Stoppard created an entire play from Hamlet, and also that he directed the screen play. There were similar motifs and themes in both works as well as major differences. I came up with this theory that Stoppard wanted to be the director of his movie to leave minimal room for interpretations so no one else could recreate R&G portraying something other than what Stoppard intended. This is one of the major differences between the two authors. Shakespeare left out a lot of detail on purpose, but Stoppard is making a statement by including every trivial detail and action such as a lot of stage direction, which is unseen in Hamlet. Stoppard doesn't give the audience a choice of what they interpret, just like Rosencrantz and Guildenstern don't have control over what they do. 

It's slowly starting to hit me that the AP is right around the corner. It's bittersweet because that means the year is almost over and I will be graduating soon, but it also makes me realize how unprepared I am. The AP will definitely be a major challenge, especially going off of the scoring for the essays, but I do like a good challenge. My writing has improved from earlier this year, so with some more practice I think I stand a chance. The multiple choice however, that will need A LOT of practice. I find preparing for the AP in class is very helpful. On my own I have many questions and it's easier when we are discussing efficient methods to go about such difficulties. It's also helpful to see I'm not the only one struggling. 

So far in our first novel, Ceremony, I really like it! When Ms. Holmes introduced to the book I was bit intimidated because the context seemed very unfamiliar but I was excited to learn all about Tayo as well as Leslie Silko's writing style. I'm looking forward to finishing the book but definitely not annotating. I thought annotating the plays was fine but this novel will be a little different... 

Revised Open Prompt #2

Open Prompt #2----NEW POST

1994. In some works of literature, a character who appears briefly, or does not appear at all, is a significant presence. Choose a novel or play of literary merit and write an essay in which you show how such a character functions in the work. You may wish to discuss how the character affects action, theme, or the development of other characters. Avoid plot summary.

In the novel, The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald includes a character that we know of by the name Owl-Eyed Man. The Owl-Eyed Man does not appear very often in the story, but all of his apperances are significant to the story as a whole. Few characters know of the Owl-Eyed Man, but he seems to know many things about the characters. He sees it all without creating a disturbance, just like an owl. His meaning towards the novel may be much more complex than his exterior suggests. 

Fitzgerald introduces us to the Owl-Eyed Man early in the story.  He is first seen reading in the library of Gatsby's house at one of his parties. Owl-Eyes believes that Gatsby is superficial and along with his personality, the books in the library are also fake. He suggests that similar to Gatsby, the books look nice on the outside but they are filled with blank pages. This assumption gives the readers one opinion of Gatsby, and most likely the opinion of many other people including the guests at the party. As Owl-Eyes discovers that the books are actually real, he begins to see Gatsby in a different light. Nick Carraway's reaction of Owl-Eyes affects his first impression of Gatsby and the guest he has at his parties. After the party Nick sees Owl-Eyes getting out of a car that was driven into a ditch. The drunken crash changes the impression of Owl-Eyes. He is no longer an intellectual figure, but a man that is involved in depreciating means of society. 

The eyes appear again, but this time on a billboard. The eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg that watch over the Valley of Ashes can be related back to the Owl-Eyed man. Although this isnt the same concept, the eyes serve similar purposes. The eyes on the billboard watch over everything, they see it all. They represent the unfiltered view of society; they watch everything that goes on and nothing can be hidden from their sight. Just like Owl-Eyes it represents the sight of knowledge. Nick is first startled by the billboard and he isnt sure what to make of it, similar to his first encouter with Owl-Eyes. The billboard contributes to the theme that someone is always watching, even when one might think not. 

 At the end of the novel, there are few people to show up at Gatshy's funeral, and the Owl-Eyed Man is one of them. The Owl-Eyed Man was one of the few who truly understood Gatsby, or he understood him more than any other character. He was able to see something that no one else was able to see in Gatsby. His glasses, are a symbol of intelligence, and his name, Owl-Eyed Man, also contributes to this. He is wise like an owl, therefore he was able to see what others couldnt. He had the ability to look past the superficial boundaries.