Close Reading #3- Isn't That Ironic?

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/11/17/how-to-live-without-irony/?ref=opinion

Christy Wampole informs one of the negative outcomes of living in a post-modernistic society. In her commentary in the New York Times, she discusses the effects of irony on America as a whole, and the potential threats it serves. With Wampole's sophisticated use of imagery, diction and details, she convinces the audience that irony has harshly impacted our daily lives and will continue to do so.

In Wampole's commentary, she warns her reader's of how to spot an ironic character. Wampole classifies a hipster as "the archetype of ironic living". Hipster's are defined as an easy target for mockery. Wampole describes hipsters as "[a] contemporary urban harlequin [which] appropriates outmoded fashions (the mustache, the tiny shorts), mechanisms (fixed-gear bicycles, portable record players) and hobbies (home brewing, playing trombone)."Hipster's have an ironic stereotypical image that they are easily recognized for; "The hipster is a scholar of social forms, a student of cool (Wampole)."The details that are included give the readers a perfect description of a hipster. This opening description is crucial because the rest of the article goes on to describe how hipsters use irony in their lives. Therefore a general understanding of a hipster needed to be established.

The use of imagery within this article is very important because it allows the audience to visually recognize the effects of irony in daily life. Wampole states that irony is now used as a self-defense technique because it "functions as a shield against criticism". Living an ironic life is a way of avoiding problems that one may feel uncomfortable to face, but with irony, it offers an easy escape. Wampole creates an image of a giant shield that protects you from all of your fears and awkward situations. This image helped me realize how irony offers a get-a-way to real life problems that need to be faced. When Wampole compared ironic living to a shield, I was able to see the overall effect on individuals. Wampole successfully utilizes her literary techniques because it allows the audience to grasp her message because she provides an example that most individuals can easily relate to.

Lastly, in Wampole's commentary on ironic living her use of diction truly persuades the audience. Oftentimes the word nostalgia is used to describe the attitude of hipsters living in irony. Wampole complains about the new culture's attempt at life, "the nostalgia cycles have become so short that we even try to inject the present moment with sentimentality." Her diction here comments on the frustration seen at rushing though the best parts of life. The image of loving every minute of life has taken over the true enjoyment, and that is a message Wampole convey's through her complaints of the ironic generation growth. Wampole accomplishes her goal through her persuasive literary techniques. 

Open Prompt #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 shell serves as a physical object of power to the boys. 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. 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. 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.

Response to Course Material #3

In class we finished up The American Dream, looked at the AP multiple choice section, performed some sort of skit after reading chapter 4 in our textbook, and watched Death of a Salesman. To me, it was a relief on the day that our close readings were due. I was happy to sit in a powwow and discuss the parts I had trouble understanding on my own. This discussion felt like a conclusion to my thoughts on The American Dream. I liked how we related characters from that play to the ones in the works we read in our textbooks. The performamces of the similarity in tone between works was not only hilarious and entertaining, but it actually made sense to me! It was so useful to actually SEE the tone be played out. Learning about the strategies of the AP multiple choice test makers was very interesting! It was also a vert easy concept to grasp and apply because it was all so logical. I had seen all of the distractor answer choices before in previous tests, so I knew exactly what was being taught. I feel like now, I'll be more focused on the question itself, than the choices. I've noticed myself making more literary connections in my life than usual! Last weekend I was watching the movie Rise of the Lychans and I noticed how one of the main characters clearly resembled the heroic character of Jesus. He resembled him so much to the point where he was chained down, being whipped while his lover was dying on a post (that clearly resembled a cross) nailed to it at her hands. That was why I was like okay do you notice all this too?? And my non-AP friend thought I was over analyzing it!!!!! That frustrated me so much because I know that Ms. Holmes would agree with me, along with my 6th hour, when I say that this archetype is obviously present!

Summary/Analysis of "The American Dream"`

Author: "The American Dream" by Edward Albee was written in 1960, and is considered to make use of some absurdist techniques.

Setting: The play takes place in Mommy and Daddy's living room. Other rooms in the apartment are accessed through arches and act as exits for the characters, but the scene never shifts to a different room.

Plot: The story begins with Mommy and Daddy waiting for the arrival of Mrs. Barker. Mommy impatiently tells Daddy a pointless story of her hat tragedy. She remains control over the entire conversation as she must remind Daddy to pay attention, and she asks him to repeat her words to prove himself. This is one main way Mommy asserts control over Daddy throughout the play; with her power of speech. Mommy's story is interrupted by the entrance of Grandma, and her overload of beautiful boxes. The boxes are questioned, but the focus changes too quickly for the mystery of the boxes to be revealed! Mrs. Barker arrives unsure of the purpose of her own arrival. They discuss unimportant things weaving around Mrs. Barker's reasoning for being there until a bumble is mentioned. The Young Man arrives in search for a job and talks to Grandma. Grandma ends up giving Mommy and Daddy the perfect satisfaction without them even knowing it. The Young Man replaces Grandma and the play ends with everyone happy (at the moment).

Significant Characters:
Grandma
-old American Dream vs. new American Dream
-speaks the truth
-symbolizes the American Dream
-violent language

Mommy
-emasculates Daddy in every way possible
-example of consumerism, obsessed with money
-control freak
-self-centered
-mutilated her son


Daddy
-no backbone
-a woman
-whipped

Young Man
-new American Dream
-represents the purchase of satisfaction

Author's Style:
Albee's use of repetition throughout his play highlights the oblivious repetition in society. This technique is seen a lot and contributes to the plain tone. Emotions are rarely expressed in this work, they are simply spoken with no regard. There is no point of view in this play or use of symbols. Albee used irony to express the acts of Mommy and Daddy.

Quotes:
"Grandma: I didn't really like wrapping them; it hurt my fingers and it frightened me. But it had to be done(Albee 71)." Grandma is referring to the boxes in this quote. This represents a person's disparity  for approval and the price one will pay for an exterior value. The pain of wrapping was well worth the beautiful boxes.

"Young Man: Oh, almost anything... almost anything that pays. I'll do almost anything for money(Albee 109)." The picture perfect, young man is intrigued by Grandma's potential job offer. This quote represents the willingness of a person to do anything for money. Money seems to be the foundation of the new American dream (Young Man).

Theme: The label of satisfaction is valued more than satisfaction itself.

In the American Dream, Albee conveys the theme that the label of satisfaction is valued more than satisfaction itself. This theme is introduced in Mommy's story with her hat. Mommy happily purchases a beige hat, because beige is elegant and classy, like Mommy of course! Mommy is satisfied with her beige hat until the chair woman, Mrs. Barker calls it a wheat-colored hat. Not even a wheat hat; wheat-colored. Therefore Mrs. Barker making a statement towards the middle-class. Mommy refuses this wheat-colored hat and demands a beige hat. She blames this misunderstanding on the artificial lighting, clearly it wasn't her fault. She left wearing a beige hat, and she was satisfied for the label of satisfaction, rather than truly satisfied knowing she got the same hat. To conclude the theme, Mommy and Daddy were satisfied with the Young Man. This is extremely ironic because his twin wasn't good enough the first time. Therefore, since they have the label of a perfect family; Mommy, Daddy and the Young Man, they are satisfied.

Close Reading #2- Gum is Good

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/10/20/your-assignment-for-today-chew-gum/

In the New York Times, Ezekiel J. Emanuel shared his opinion on the benefits of gum chewing in his commentary, "Your Assignment For Today: Chew Gum". In this work, Emanuel discusses the positive effects of chewing gum for young children. He believes that chewing gum should be required in school to promote children's oral health. He persuades the writer through his use of diction, syntax and details.

As I begun to read only the first paragraph, I was immediately interested in the article. Emanuel introduces the topic as he reminisces, "When I was growing up, you would be sent to the principal's office for chewing gum in school. We were told chewing gum was bad; it caused cavities". This opening phrase is structured perfectly for him to begin his argument. He contrasts the ways of the old versus the new generations. He states the consequences and the reasons behind them; it caused cavities. His structure is a great start it leads him into a discussion of the discoveries of the new generation. He supports his opinion with the benefits of chewing gum, and backs it up with claims explaining the reasoning. 

Emanuel includes an array of details to convince the audience that gum is overall beneficial. The writer provides astonishing facts which make the readers question why this isn't already in affect. What I found most shocking is that more than 50 million hours of school are missed each year because of dental problems (Emanuel). This statement allows the readers to take a step back and overlook the overall affect. 50 million hours of missed school is a big statement, especially to the one's concerned with education; the parents. Therefore Emanuel succeeds in connecting with his targeted audience. 

Throughout Emanuel's commentary, he keeps his readers intrigued with the help of his sophisticated diction. Emanuel informs the readers in the second paragraph of the new use for gum as he writes, "Like chocolate and coffee, gum is now being rehabilitated." The word he emphasizes on here is rehabilitated. He applies this action to the gum, almost personifying it. With this, the gum can be re-defined, similar to cherished treats such as coffee and chocolate. Emanuel appeals to a new, more broad audience here as he uses items many people can relate to.

Open Prompt #2

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. 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 assumtion gives the readers one opinion of Gatsby, and most likely the opnion 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 intelluctual figure, but a man that is involved in depreciating means of soceity. 

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 noone else was able to see in Gatsby. His glasses, are a symbol of intelligence, and his name, Owl-Eyed Man, also contributed to this. He is wise like an owl, therefore he was able to see what others couldnt. 

Response to Course Material #2

The most recent assignment that was most beneficial for me was the peer review responses.
I thought this assignment helped me see how my peers approached the same assignment. Reading others works let me see other opinions and stand points. I also really apperciated the feedback I recieved. I thought this allowed me to reflect on my own work, then read what my fellow Team AP members had to say.

Learning the major stories that we often allude to in literature through
the allusions presentations led by our classmates was a fun, and informative approach. The morals were easy to understand because they were summed up by students my age who were learning it just as fast as I was. Each group had different ways of teaching the class their stories, so eventhough we spent a lot of time on the subject, it always remained interesting. After learning these things it reminded me of when I originally learned about Greek mythology; Freshmen year in Ms. Huntley's class. When I learned about Greek mythology I could reconnect the stories of Odyseuss, and I finally realized what she was trying to teach us. I like how I can always connect everything I learn to my past experiences.