Wednesday, February 12, 2020
Liza's Exploration Report
Alyssa's Exploration Report
I chose to do my informal exploration on The Tragical History of Dr. Faustus, by Christopher Marlowe, one of the texts I read for a past class. One of the first sources I found was a very interesting BBC article written in 2017 that discusses how contemporary politicians make their own deals with the devil, so to speak, and so gain as much power and influence as they like without really doing much good for the communities they represent. It touches on the concept of instant gratification in our modern culture as well, and how technology is one of the driving forces for our constant need of something pleasurable now without thinking of the long-term consequences. On YouTube, I discovered the full performance of the play at the Globe Theater, and watched some of it. The actors’ and director’s interpretations of the text were quite vivid and made the comical elements of the play all the more so. They really highlighted Faustus’s internal dilemmas in a way that made the audience almost sympathize with him for his choices and their consequences. When I made the syllabus search online, I found myself in the midst of student responses to the text, which included some connections to other works of literature I hadn't considered. A search on Pinterest yielded several depictions of Faustus conjuring and making his deal with Mephistopeles.
Sophie's Exploration Report
I chose to explore informal sources on a book I read recently, The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood. Because this novel was made into a critically acclaimed series on Hulu, it has a wide online and informal audience who analyze both the book and the adaptation. This allowed me to find a lot of different sources and encouraged me to watch the series, but it also introduced the difficulty of finding discussions about the book rather than always the series.
My first informal search was just on Google Images, where most results were photos of the main character, Offred, in the Hulu series. But through clicking through these images, I found an interesting article about The Handmaid's Tale statement on climate change. Usually, analysis of the novel focuses on gender roles and reproductive rights, so I thought the new perspective that this article took was very interesting.
Finally, through searching syllabi that include The Handmaid's Tale, I unsurprisingly found the novel on a lot of syllabi for English and Literature classes, but also discovered it on syllabi for Women's Studies and Sociology classes, which added an interesting dimension to my understanding.
Sources:
https://www.bustle.com/p/the-handmaids-tale-is-trying-to-warn-you-about-climate-change-18667636
https://www.hulu.com/series/the-handmaids-tale-565d8976-9d26-4e63-866c-40f8a137ce5f
https://www.google.com/search?q=site%3Aedu+syllabus+the+handmaid%27s+tale&oq=site%3Aedu+syllabus+the+handmaid%27s+tale&aqs=chrome..69i57j69i58.7234j0j8&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8
My first informal search was just on Google Images, where most results were photos of the main character, Offred, in the Hulu series. But through clicking through these images, I found an interesting article about The Handmaid's Tale statement on climate change. Usually, analysis of the novel focuses on gender roles and reproductive rights, so I thought the new perspective that this article took was very interesting.
Finally, through searching syllabi that include The Handmaid's Tale, I unsurprisingly found the novel on a lot of syllabi for English and Literature classes, but also discovered it on syllabi for Women's Studies and Sociology classes, which added an interesting dimension to my understanding.
Sources:
https://www.bustle.com/p/the-handmaids-tale-is-trying-to-warn-you-about-climate-change-18667636
https://www.hulu.com/series/the-handmaids-tale-565d8976-9d26-4e63-866c-40f8a137ce5f
https://www.google.com/search?q=site%3Aedu+syllabus+the+handmaid%27s+tale&oq=site%3Aedu+syllabus+the+handmaid%27s+tale&aqs=chrome..69i57j69i58.7234j0j8&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8
Magda's Exploration Report
I decided to research a little more about A Midsummer Night's Dream, and found it interesting how much the two female characters, Hermia and Helena, are being discussed in modern conversation, especially in the context of feminism, race, and beauty standards. This play certainly would not pass the Bechdel test, and going on Reddit instantly sent me to conversations about how Hermia and Helena view their own beauty, and how it is reflective of what the men in their lives think about them (https://wilson.fas.harvard.edu/stigma-in-shakespeare/helena-and-hermia%E2%80%99s-ugliness). It was also interesting to see that a lot of paintings and drawings actually focus on the relationship between Helena and Hermia rather than the relationship between the girls and their lovers, even though initially I thought the idea of romantic love was more prevalent in the book than the girls' friendship (https://www.flickr.com/photos/sofi01/8597994013). There is even an Argentinian film called Hermia and Helena that might be interesting to look into when researching further how the girls' friendship is being discussed today. (https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5880296/).
Annie's Exploration Report
Catcher in the Rye
I recently finished reading Catcher in the Rye and I really enjoyed it so I decided to find some different informal online sources to expand my ideas on the book. The first thing I found that was really cool was a trailer for a movie called Rebel in the Rye all about J.D. Salinger and how Catcher in the Rye is tied into his life and his experiences. I want to watch the movie now because I think it would expand my knowledge of the author and the historical context of the novel.
https://youtu.be/VWRhXMMb7CY
Pinterest lead me to a really cool sit filled with Literature Infographics, that give a visual aid and also key symbols, themes, and facts about the work and author. This website is good as just a general overview, also it has tons of different infographics for books which are useful brief overviews. I think this is a neat resource for reviewing major themes and plot points but also having visual aids.
https://www.coursehero.com/infographics/
Another source I looked at was quotes on Goodreads from Catcher in the Rye which reminded me of some great lines and ideas from the book. This is a useful source because it points you right to specific lines that people love without having to do all the page flipping. I read this good quote and I got all excited again about Holden Caulfied: “I am always saying "Glad to've met you" to somebody I'm not at all glad I met. If you want to stay alive, you have to say that stuff, though.”
https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/3036731-the-catcher-in-the-rye
I recently finished reading Catcher in the Rye and I really enjoyed it so I decided to find some different informal online sources to expand my ideas on the book. The first thing I found that was really cool was a trailer for a movie called Rebel in the Rye all about J.D. Salinger and how Catcher in the Rye is tied into his life and his experiences. I want to watch the movie now because I think it would expand my knowledge of the author and the historical context of the novel.
https://youtu.be/VWRhXMMb7CY
Pinterest lead me to a really cool sit filled with Literature Infographics, that give a visual aid and also key symbols, themes, and facts about the work and author. This website is good as just a general overview, also it has tons of different infographics for books which are useful brief overviews. I think this is a neat resource for reviewing major themes and plot points but also having visual aids.
https://www.coursehero.com/infographics/
Another source I looked at was quotes on Goodreads from Catcher in the Rye which reminded me of some great lines and ideas from the book. This is a useful source because it points you right to specific lines that people love without having to do all the page flipping. I read this good quote and I got all excited again about Holden Caulfied: “I am always saying "Glad to've met you" to somebody I'm not at all glad I met. If you want to stay alive, you have to say that stuff, though.”
https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/3036731-the-catcher-in-the-rye
Estephanie's Exploration Report
In one of my classes we decided to read, “Uncle Tom’s Cabin”, the play by George L. Aiken. This play was written based off the novel, "Uncle Tom's Cabin". While reading this play, I was curious to find out where the author of the novel, Harriet Beecher Stowe, got her inspiration.
The first source I discovered was an article from Smithsonian: (https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/story-josiah-henson-real-inspiration-uncle-toms-cabin-180969094/). Brought to light a story that was very similar to Tom’s (the slave and protagonist of the story). This article discusses the life of Josiah Henson, who went through a lot of hardship through his life as a slave. His story was brought to the publics’ eye because of the abolitionist, Samuel Atkins Eliot and his interest in Josiah Henson’s story. He was so captivated by it, that he even wrote a book called, “Life of Josiah Henson: Formerly a Slave.” This book was published in 1849 and received attention from many abolitionists throughout the North. Harriet Beecher Stowe was impressed with his story and asked him to tell her his story in full details.
Another source that I came across was from the website of Harriet Beecher Stowe Center, which is a Museum for and about Harriet Beecher Stowe. ( https://www.harrietbeecherstowecenter.org/harriet-beecher-stowe/uncle-toms-cabin/). It explains Harriet Beecher Stowe's history with slavery. She lived during those times and has memories of an African American woman being employed in her household. This made me think that her history could have inspired her to write "Uncle Tom's Cabin".
Caroline's Exploration Report
I chose to do my report on "Fire and Ice" by Robert Frost.
I first opened up Pinterest, because that is where I normally waste my time when I am bored. The images of art are what initially caught my eye. It is very aesthetically pleasing to see the images with the fire and ice at odds with one another. Some that are even present in the same person. This image stood out to me as one that is showing the destruction of both. https://www.pinterest.com/pin/576249714817905254/ I even saw of few from the popular "Game of Thrones" and I think my liking to that show is also what drew me back to this poem. One image showed the ice character surrounded by ice and the fire character vice versa. The images from the TV series are making this poem more popular and really reawakening its popularity.
I found a lecture from a professor about the symbolism behind fire and ice. Fire was related to desire and ice to hate. Both seem to be qualities found in people that could ruin this world. Desire can burn the world depending on what it is that people desire, and then ice can harden the hearts with hate. I found this to be an interesting analysis of the two words and two qualities that can destroy this world. I especially thought about this with the two characters from "Game of Thrones" because that is a big part of what comes up in the search while I was looking up this poem. I think the popularity of this show will really alter the meaning behind this poem and I find this contemporary analysis very interesting.
I first opened up Pinterest, because that is where I normally waste my time when I am bored. The images of art are what initially caught my eye. It is very aesthetically pleasing to see the images with the fire and ice at odds with one another. Some that are even present in the same person. This image stood out to me as one that is showing the destruction of both. https://www.pinterest.com/pin/576249714817905254/ I even saw of few from the popular "Game of Thrones" and I think my liking to that show is also what drew me back to this poem. One image showed the ice character surrounded by ice and the fire character vice versa. The images from the TV series are making this poem more popular and really reawakening its popularity.
I found a lecture from a professor about the symbolism behind fire and ice. Fire was related to desire and ice to hate. Both seem to be qualities found in people that could ruin this world. Desire can burn the world depending on what it is that people desire, and then ice can harden the hearts with hate. I found this to be an interesting analysis of the two words and two qualities that can destroy this world. I especially thought about this with the two characters from "Game of Thrones" because that is a big part of what comes up in the search while I was looking up this poem. I think the popularity of this show will really alter the meaning behind this poem and I find this contemporary analysis very interesting.
Tuesday, February 11, 2020
Caroline's Reflection of Literary Analysis 1
I saw the prewriting as another step. I already knew where I was going to take my essay and exactly what I wanted to write about, so I saw the prewriting simply as another assignment. It was interesting to get a taste of what everyone was writing, and I enjoyed reading their insights, but that was all it felt to me. I go by writing a different way - and some may see it as unconventional - but it has helped me in the past and for my thesis and all the research papers I wrote in my upper level classes. I did appreciate learning another step that could be used in writing, but it might not be one I will use. I enjoyed writing the essay and explicating the poem and it was interesting to see it quoted on my test last week, so I was able to properly identify it!
Maddi's Exploration Report
In one of my classes we read "The Yellow Wallpaper" by Charlotte Perkins Gilman. It has so many underlying themes as we have been analyzing it through psychoanalytical theory, and it's something I want to dive into a little deeper!
One of the sources I went to was Goodreads, and I looked at what people online were saying about their experience with the book. One particular review quoted Oscar Wilde in comparison to the theme of the story, "My wallpaper and I are fighting a duel to the death." These are Oscar Wilde's last words (though the commenter left off the rest of the quote, "Either it goes, or I do.") I love this frame of comparing the two authors, and it makes me want to explore more similarities between their work, especially Wilde's "The Picture of Dorian Gray". I can see how in both pieces one seems to go mad by looking at a piece of art, one a portrait, the other ugly wallpaper. However, I think the comparison focuses mostly on the themes of a slow decent into madness, and I would like to apply a psychoanalytical reading to both texts to see what deeper ideas the authors could have been presenting. Possible interpretations from the theme of a slow-developing madness could also be related to how one seems to slip into an addiction-- as both characters seemed to be obsessed with the art in front of them, until it does drive them mad.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/286957.The_Yellow_Wall_Paper
Also on Goodreads, someone posed the question to see how others thought the husband should have treated his ill wife, and it reminded me of a picture I had seen on Pinterest. It was a picture of what must be the wife, and instead of tearing at the wallpaper, she seems to be falling, or drowning in it as she would water. Though these two depictions aren't necessarily related, it led me to a thought of drowning. That perhaps a possible interpretation of the story could be seeing mental illness/postpartum depression as one drowning in front of plenty of bystanders, all of them oblivious that they could save us. I want to got back to the text and see perhaps what in her writing signified themes of drowning or being overwhelmed (in a physical sense rather than emotional.)
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/176625616628160202/
One of the sources I went to was Goodreads, and I looked at what people online were saying about their experience with the book. One particular review quoted Oscar Wilde in comparison to the theme of the story, "My wallpaper and I are fighting a duel to the death." These are Oscar Wilde's last words (though the commenter left off the rest of the quote, "Either it goes, or I do.") I love this frame of comparing the two authors, and it makes me want to explore more similarities between their work, especially Wilde's "The Picture of Dorian Gray". I can see how in both pieces one seems to go mad by looking at a piece of art, one a portrait, the other ugly wallpaper. However, I think the comparison focuses mostly on the themes of a slow decent into madness, and I would like to apply a psychoanalytical reading to both texts to see what deeper ideas the authors could have been presenting. Possible interpretations from the theme of a slow-developing madness could also be related to how one seems to slip into an addiction-- as both characters seemed to be obsessed with the art in front of them, until it does drive them mad.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/286957.The_Yellow_Wall_Paper
Also on Goodreads, someone posed the question to see how others thought the husband should have treated his ill wife, and it reminded me of a picture I had seen on Pinterest. It was a picture of what must be the wife, and instead of tearing at the wallpaper, she seems to be falling, or drowning in it as she would water. Though these two depictions aren't necessarily related, it led me to a thought of drowning. That perhaps a possible interpretation of the story could be seeing mental illness/postpartum depression as one drowning in front of plenty of bystanders, all of them oblivious that they could save us. I want to got back to the text and see perhaps what in her writing signified themes of drowning or being overwhelmed (in a physical sense rather than emotional.)
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/176625616628160202/
Ariel's Exploration Report
I was already taking an interest in reading Hamlet, specifically focusing on Hamlet himself and how he can be relatable to this day and age.
The first source I found was from a forum on Quora about the relevance of the play itself (https://www.quora.com/Why-is-Hamlet-still-relevant-popular-today) and it was intriguing to see many different reasons why people still support the play. Many people said his indecisiveness and procrastination, the portrayal of human nature and dysfunctional relationships, the “young man’s disease” of contemplating suicide and the issue of depression, and the “teen angst” of Hamlet were relatable. These answers could take me to discuss how Hamlet can be related to step-family situations, human nature of selfishness or personal gain (through Hamlet, Claudius, Gertrude – basically all the characters have their own agendas), how stressors lead to depression and suicide, etc.
Another resource I found was a 2010 prezi of what appears to be a student’s assignment (https://prezi.com/ox6xvkxx0wm1/hamlet-comparison/). “Chelsea” argues about heroic traits of Hamlet and how he can be defined as a “tragic hero,” which was interesting because I never once saw Hamlet as being heroic in any real way when I first read/watched the play. It might be a fun approach to support his antics.
The first source I found was from a forum on Quora about the relevance of the play itself (https://www.quora.com/Why-is-Hamlet-still-relevant-popular-today) and it was intriguing to see many different reasons why people still support the play. Many people said his indecisiveness and procrastination, the portrayal of human nature and dysfunctional relationships, the “young man’s disease” of contemplating suicide and the issue of depression, and the “teen angst” of Hamlet were relatable. These answers could take me to discuss how Hamlet can be related to step-family situations, human nature of selfishness or personal gain (through Hamlet, Claudius, Gertrude – basically all the characters have their own agendas), how stressors lead to depression and suicide, etc.
Another resource I found was a 2010 prezi of what appears to be a student’s assignment (https://prezi.com/ox6xvkxx0wm1/hamlet-comparison/). “Chelsea” argues about heroic traits of Hamlet and how he can be defined as a “tragic hero,” which was interesting because I never once saw Hamlet as being heroic in any real way when I first read/watched the play. It might be a fun approach to support his antics.
Hannah's Exploration Report
I decided to explore what different angles I could find on "A Streetcar Named Desire" by looking at these different sources.
The first source I went to was etsy. I did not expect to find much at this site, so I was surprised when I found different collectables and fan made trinkets. One that surprised me was that people had mugs with the quote "I have always depended on the kindness of strangers." This surprised me because I often associate coffee mugs with inspiration quotes and different things to help motivate someone in the morning. And when I read this play, this quote did not feel strong or motivated, but mostly sad.
https://www.etsy.com/search?q=a%20streetcar%20named%20desire
I also google searched images for this play. One thing that stuck out to me was an ad for this play being shown in African-American Shakespeare company. This made me wonder if there is a way to read this play through the lens of race and if in my reading I had missed that. Also I wonder what, if any, differences this production would be as they mix different cultures with this play.
https://www.african-americanshakes.org/productions/a-streetcar-named-desire/
The first source I went to was etsy. I did not expect to find much at this site, so I was surprised when I found different collectables and fan made trinkets. One that surprised me was that people had mugs with the quote "I have always depended on the kindness of strangers." This surprised me because I often associate coffee mugs with inspiration quotes and different things to help motivate someone in the morning. And when I read this play, this quote did not feel strong or motivated, but mostly sad.
https://www.etsy.com/search?q=a%20streetcar%20named%20desire
I also google searched images for this play. One thing that stuck out to me was an ad for this play being shown in African-American Shakespeare company. This made me wonder if there is a way to read this play through the lens of race and if in my reading I had missed that. Also I wonder what, if any, differences this production would be as they mix different cultures with this play.
https://www.african-americanshakes.org/productions/a-streetcar-named-desire/
Savannah's Exploration Report
I based my researching off of F. Scott Fitzergerald's, Great Gatsby. I started off my search by going to google, a classic, and searching pictures of Daisy. I discovered mostly pictures of the varied actresses that have portrayed Daisy in film adaptations. There wasn't a lot of notable pictures that popped up, but I did notice the constant detail that Daisy was always portrayed by a thin blonde lady with the classic 20's hair bob and frequently, holding a glass of wine. I think this route of exploring the tradition styles and expectations for women in this time would be very interesting.
https://www.google.com/search?q=daisy+great+gatsby&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiT9u6SlMvnAhUPCTQIHRQ3Dk8Q_AUoAXoECBMQAw&biw=1280&bih=578
Based off of this I went to the New York Public Library Digital Collections and searched "1920's women". The majority of results popped up about fashion in the 1920s. This taught me that many of the fashions were French, which made me wonder about if the world war had any affect on the fashions cross-culturally between countries. Many of the results were also very revealing outfits for their times. I think it's interesting because to me they don't seem extraordinarily revealing however I think an argument could be made that the further time progresses the "skimpier" women's fashion becomes.
https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/search/index?utf8=%E2%9C%93&keywords=women+1920s#
https://www.google.com/search?q=daisy+great+gatsby&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiT9u6SlMvnAhUPCTQIHRQ3Dk8Q_AUoAXoECBMQAw&biw=1280&bih=578
Based off of this I went to the New York Public Library Digital Collections and searched "1920's women". The majority of results popped up about fashion in the 1920s. This taught me that many of the fashions were French, which made me wonder about if the world war had any affect on the fashions cross-culturally between countries. Many of the results were also very revealing outfits for their times. I think it's interesting because to me they don't seem extraordinarily revealing however I think an argument could be made that the further time progresses the "skimpier" women's fashion becomes.
https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/search/index?utf8=%E2%9C%93&keywords=women+1920s#
Rowen's Exploration Report
I've never been a fan of "robot uprising" books, especially after reading "i, Robot." (Which was never supposed to be a robot uprising book) Sea of Rust though, by Robert C. Cargill, really stood out to me. One of the first things I found was a book review blog discussing this book as well as two others related by that them-the robot uprising. One of them actually seemed really interesting to me, and it was cool to see how, in this era when the topic has been so well covered, people are still finding things to write about it.
https://sweatpantsandcoffee.com/shelf-care-robot-overlords/
One of the other things I noticed is that there is also a "Rust Sea" in the Transformers universe, which seemed really interesting. I don't know if Cargill was a big transformers fan, and got his idea from there, but it seems possible- granted, rust is a common symbol for the decay of metal so these two seas could have developed independently. Either way, it seems like a lot of stories have some sort of desert aspect to them, some sort of wasteland. I'm curious to see how and why storytellers use these wastelands
https://tfwiki.net/wiki/Rust_Sea
On Goodreads, a lot of people mentioned that it's really interesting at the beginning, but they started to become disinterested because of some aspect of the writing.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32617610-sea-of-rust
https://sweatpantsandcoffee.com/shelf-care-robot-overlords/
One of the other things I noticed is that there is also a "Rust Sea" in the Transformers universe, which seemed really interesting. I don't know if Cargill was a big transformers fan, and got his idea from there, but it seems possible- granted, rust is a common symbol for the decay of metal so these two seas could have developed independently. Either way, it seems like a lot of stories have some sort of desert aspect to them, some sort of wasteland. I'm curious to see how and why storytellers use these wastelands
https://tfwiki.net/wiki/Rust_Sea
On Goodreads, a lot of people mentioned that it's really interesting at the beginning, but they started to become disinterested because of some aspect of the writing.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/32617610-sea-of-rust
Matt's Exploration Report
Focusing on "The Raven" by Edgar Allan Poe
We just read this poem in class and the way my professor explained it really peaked my interest so I wanted to do some exploring on the internet focusing on this poem.
The first place I went to was the all knowing google search bar. I searched "The Raven Edgar Allan Poe" and went to images to see what would pop up. The first image that caught my was a cool picture of a raven sitting atop of a skull. For some reason it was very Poe-esque. However, the image I most enjoyed was of a raven but with the words of the poem forming the raven's figure. I started thinking about the different meanings and what kinds of layers that can add to the poem by having the words of the poem form the raven. Below are the images references above respectively:
https://images.app.goo.gl/WyA6GbL1u3QbPppg7
https://images.app.goo.gl/KYxfd7ueypXFX1pZA
After searching google I went to Reddit to find some other information and posts about this famous poem. I stumbled across this link: https://www.reddit.com/r/ravens/comments/evrpwn/today_is_the_175th_anniversary_of_baltimorean/. This link gives us some information about the Ravens, an NFL team from Baltimore. Apparently, the team is named after this poem. The link above takes us to this link: https://www.baltimoreravens.com/team/history/naming-the-team. This link takes us to the official site of the Ravens that confirms that this team is named after this poem. I guess the people in Baltimore really enjoy their Poe.
All in all I really enjoyed doing some exploring focusing on a literary work. I found some cool and surprising information!
We just read this poem in class and the way my professor explained it really peaked my interest so I wanted to do some exploring on the internet focusing on this poem.
The first place I went to was the all knowing google search bar. I searched "The Raven Edgar Allan Poe" and went to images to see what would pop up. The first image that caught my was a cool picture of a raven sitting atop of a skull. For some reason it was very Poe-esque. However, the image I most enjoyed was of a raven but with the words of the poem forming the raven's figure. I started thinking about the different meanings and what kinds of layers that can add to the poem by having the words of the poem form the raven. Below are the images references above respectively:
https://images.app.goo.gl/WyA6GbL1u3QbPppg7
https://images.app.goo.gl/KYxfd7ueypXFX1pZA
After searching google I went to Reddit to find some other information and posts about this famous poem. I stumbled across this link: https://www.reddit.com/r/ravens/comments/evrpwn/today_is_the_175th_anniversary_of_baltimorean/. This link gives us some information about the Ravens, an NFL team from Baltimore. Apparently, the team is named after this poem. The link above takes us to this link: https://www.baltimoreravens.com/team/history/naming-the-team. This link takes us to the official site of the Ravens that confirms that this team is named after this poem. I guess the people in Baltimore really enjoy their Poe.
All in all I really enjoyed doing some exploring focusing on a literary work. I found some cool and surprising information!
Kayla's Exploration Report
The first Google Image that caught my eye was a picture of the children standing with their parents, staring up at their new run-down home together. I was immediately interested in the picture, because it reminded me of my family - overpowered by girls. I clicked on the picture, which took me to a news article titled, “Love, Somehow, Shines Through in The Glass Castle”. This was interesting to me because despite Jeanette’s desperate and difficult family situation, the article focused on the love between the family. The picture was a scene from the film released in 2017.
Another image that caught my eye was the night sky in the desert. A blog titled “Glass Castlez” described the scene of The Glass Castle, in which the desert and night sky are paramount details to explain Jeanette’s life. I’ve always felt a connection to this setting because the first half of the book takes place near my home.
Other images on websites show Frozen-esque castles or fan art depicting giant castles made of glass. Finally, many quotes have been made popular from the book. My personal favorite was at the top: “You should never hate anyone, even your worst enemies. Everyone has something good about them. You have to find the redeeming quality and love the person for that.”
Dylan's Exploration Report
The Sound and the Fury
I found sources on a movie that had been made starring James Franco and the idea of a film adaptation of such a convoluted and often confusing book seemed very interesting to me. The book also relies heavily on symbolism and the application of that in film would be very curious. (image.google.com)
I found sources that The Sound and the Fury is also a very common name or title for other media. From graphic novels, to TV, it appears the title itself, even if nothing else resembles it, has inspired many other genres. Perhaps only because the name itself sounds cool. (pinterest.com)
I discovered when looking at school syllabi that the book, The Sound and the Fury, was being used in a course that taught about modern love. The teacher cited this source as a source from Modern literature that displayed how love was depicted during this era. I thought this was a very interesting way to look at any book, including this one. (collab.its.virginia.edu/syllabi/auth)
James' Exploration Report
I did my research on Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. Upon doing a Google images search for "frankenstein," I was surprised to learn that the first nine images of Frankenstein were black-and-white pictures of the monster as played by the actor Boris Karloff in the 1940s film. I think the disconnect between the actual monster in the book and the popular culture interpretation of the monster is something that would be worth exploring. Why did pop culture latch onto that particular version of the monster? There is, in fact, an entire Wikipedia article on Frankenstein in popular culture (not on Frankenstein itself.) That could very well be an interesting place to start some research. Here is the link. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frankenstein_in_popular_culture. This would be particularly useful if I tried to do a reader-response criticism.
I also found some cool artwork of Frankenstein. One of my favorites is a cover for copy of the book on amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Frankenstein-1818-Text-Penguin-Classics/dp/0143131842. This picture depicts the monster looking at himself in the reflection of some water. This got me thinking about how the book deals with introspection and reflection. Is the book more about the monster than it is about Frankenstein himself? Who is the “protagonist?” Is the monster a reflection of Frankenstein? Interesting cogs are turning.
Monday, February 10, 2020
Jaidyn's Exploration Report
I based my searches on “The Little Prince” and found a lot of interesting ideas in a surprisingly short amount of time. There were a few dramatic interpretations that looked interesting. The first is a play (presumably for children) that combines the story of “The Little Prince” with “Alice in Wonderland.” This made me think about how we view “children’s literature” versus “grown-up literature” and the role that childhood plays in the minds of adults. Another play portrays the prince as having African descent and makes the pilot a woman, which obviously changes the gender and racial implications of the original novel.
There is a lot of beautiful art based on the book, most of it very whimsical and colorful. A large number of portraits of the prince also include the fox– this made me think about how interesting it is that people are so fixated on the fox, who is ultimately a tragic figure. Why does tragedy demand our attention? Perhaps the most interesting thing I found was a syllabus for a class based solely on a Chinese translation of “The Little Prince.” The professor reasoned that the book contains ideas and themes that can be understood across a wide range of cultures, and is thus a good tool for language and cultural learning. So the question: what makes the book so universal?
https://www.list.co.uk/event/1377908-alice-and-the-little-prince/ (Alice)
https://www.posterlounge.com/p/696994.html (Fox)
https://stratford-circus.com/event/the-little-prince/#data-sc-tabs-alt-index%3D%220%22=overview (African descent)
https://scholar.harvard.edu/files/melsanborn/files/syllabus_-_fiction_in_chinese.docx (Chinese translation)
There is a lot of beautiful art based on the book, most of it very whimsical and colorful. A large number of portraits of the prince also include the fox– this made me think about how interesting it is that people are so fixated on the fox, who is ultimately a tragic figure. Why does tragedy demand our attention? Perhaps the most interesting thing I found was a syllabus for a class based solely on a Chinese translation of “The Little Prince.” The professor reasoned that the book contains ideas and themes that can be understood across a wide range of cultures, and is thus a good tool for language and cultural learning. So the question: what makes the book so universal?
https://www.list.co.uk/event/1377908-alice-and-the-little-prince/ (Alice)
https://www.posterlounge.com/p/696994.html (Fox)
https://stratford-circus.com/event/the-little-prince/#data-sc-tabs-alt-index%3D%220%22=overview (African descent)
https://scholar.harvard.edu/files/melsanborn/files/syllabus_-_fiction_in_chinese.docx (Chinese translation)
Jaidyn's Reflection on Literary Analysis 1
When we first started the pre-writing activities, I realized that I was being tricked into doing something that I usually leave to the last minute or don’t do at all, and I wasn’t sure how I felt about it. But I can definitely see the value in it. Thinking of ideas is easily the most difficult part of writing. Once I have ideas and substance, tying it all together is a very doable task. And I actually love that we started with general literary sources. I usually hate research because scholarly stuff can feel dense and intimidating, so it was nice to have a different starting point, and I feel like I’ll apply these techniques to future writing projects in other classes.
James' Reflection on Literary Analysis 1
I’ve always kind of struggled with prewriting. I find that my thoughts form more clearly as I write them down. I didn’t do a ton of prewriting for this assignment. Essentially, I thought up of a claim that I liked and thought I could defend, and I went from there. I did find it useful to choose sources beforehand so that I could plan how I would incorporate them into my paper. I didn’t do much other than that, though. I suppose you could say I am a discovery writer when it comes to essays. The downside of this is that I have to do a lot of editing, but such is life.
Eliza's Reflection on Literary Analysis 1
If I'm being completely honest, I was a little bit lost when we started reading Ozymandias. I liked the poem a lot, but there wasn't a lot of depth in it for me right off the bat. But after I read through my final essay, I realized that I learned a lot about so many things, just through this poem! And what made it more intriguing to me, was that I learned it all through general resources. It wasn't thoughts that well known scholars had compiled about their experience of the poem, or what they thought about it - it was all things that I had learned about the poem, and insights that classmates had shared. It was fun to be able to put together an essay that was comprised completely of my own thoughts and thoughts of others in the class. And I was able to see these thoughts form throughout the prewriting process, and then all of them came together for the final essay. Hooray!
Alyssa's Reflection on Literary Analysis 1
Prewriting is often where I most frequently freeze, without the motivation to continue on to the next stage of putting words down on the page. However, the prewriting and thesis techniques that we used for this writing assignment were helpful in directing me toward one train of thought that I was excited about, and it was consequently easier to write on that topic. The general research we did was especially helpful for me, and largely shaped my main claim. It was a much less stressful experience finding sources and including them in my writing for this assignment than with past essays.
Sophie's Reflection on Literary Analysis 1
The prewriting process that we did during and outside of class actually helped me immensely in writing this paper. I usually have the most difficulty deciding what I want to focus on and constructing my thesis. The fact that I basically had my thesis written and ideas outlined when I started my paper made the process go a lot smoother, and I felt more organized than usual. Also, it was helpful having so many sources of research done by my classmates which showed me the value of writing through a shared platform. Overall, writing this paper was a much better experience than I usually have.
Ariel's Reflection on Literary Analysis 1
I've found that my pre-writing style has been developing this semester already. It's helpful to know that there are easy to use online databases to find more information than just trying to navigate one side of the library. I’ve also noticed how I work most efficiently when I plot out the structure of an essay, figure out what to say for each paragraph, then work on the sections I know best until I can fully write the paper, and this is great because I don’t have to write in sequential order.
Kayla's Reflection on Literary Analysis 1
Doing the pre-writing for this literary analysis paper helped me to break down the topics I wanted to focus on. It allowed me to spread the workload of the paper over a longer period of time, which gave me a better paper than if I would have just tried to read it and write about it immediately. Learning about Shelley allowed me to assign deeper meaning to the poem. Looking for other resources and information gave me more context to assign meaning to the poem. I was able to easily develop a thesis because I had already done a lot of the necessary research before beginning the paper.
Maddi's Reflection on Literary Analysis 1
The assignments we had, such as researching with general literary sources and commenting and discussing our ideas with our peers, really helped me as I wrote this essay. It felt like it all came together before I started writing it! Our prewriting assignment, where we took a formal approach at analyzing and annotating the poem, and then looking at that with the research that we and our peers had done, helped me to get comfortable with my ideas and formulate a plan. Before I even sat down to write I already had my these, my claims, and my evidences to back it up, making the writing process much easier, and really helping my paper to stay focused and clear and concise. In the future, I would like to take a similar approach to writing any kind of analysis paper-- especially discussing my research and ideas with peers!
Annie's Reflection on Literary Analysis 1
This was the first literary analysis paper that I had worked on in sometime and so I found it helpful to work on the thesis and use that as a map for my whole paper. What was new for me with this assignment was using the general literary resources. Doing research through this means helped me to find out a lot of broad information about the poem under different topics surrounding it. I found that doing this research added more ways and directions in which I could analyze Ozymandias. It also just helped me appreciate what I was analyzing and the author more—as I did the research I become more intellectually curious about Shelley and his contemporaries and how their writings influenced each other.
Sunday, February 9, 2020
Estephanie's Reflection on Literary Analysis 1
In the past, my teachers have tried to show me that putting some thought into a paper beforehand can help speed along the writing process. I never truly understood that concept until this assignment. When we were asked to find two sources based on a certain topic and piece of literature, it was easier than I thought it would be. This really helped when I had to actually start writing the paper because I could use those quotes and know where I wanted to go with my paper. This was the first assignment that made me fully understand how useful it is to put thought into a paper before you write it
Savannah's Reflection on Literary Analysis 1
When starting a paper, I always thought it would be easier to just dive right in and grind out my paper however this assignment proved me wrong. With the research done in steps beforehand it made choosing my topic so simple. I didn't have to spend extra hours on top of the writing process doing excessive research. I also found it helpful to find a few quotes that applied to my topic and go off of them to see which one sparked the most interest in me. I think the next time I write I will be definitely doing a similar prewriting process and putting in the time to research before I developed my thesis.
Matt's Reflection on Literary Analysis 1
I have never done such in depth pre-writing. At first I was uncertain how helpful it would be. However, after taking a lot of time to look into some general literary sources and looking at the literary devices in the poem, I found that ideas came easier to me when deciding what to write about. Not only that, but organization became easier and so did writing a thesis. I really enjoyed learning about what everyone was writing about in class and I felt that sparked news ideas when I finally deciding on a topic to write about. In the future, I will try to do pre-writing like this to ease the writing process.
Magda's Reflection on Literary Analysis 1
In the past I've never really done interactive pre-writing but it was incredibly helpful! Reading my classmates' blog posts gave me ideas that I'm not sure I would have found if I had just done pre-writing alone. It actually helped me decide where and what to start researching, so I wasn't researching while searching for ideas but actually had ideas before I started researching. The hardest part was probably getting the pre-writing into a draft form because I had so many ideas and no idea how to organize them. I ended up making an outline before drafting, which worked pretty well.
Hannah's Reflection on Literary Analysis 1
Prewriting was very essential to this paper for me. I felt that I was able to think of ideas, but it wasn't until I started writing them down in pre-writing that I felt I was able to have some clarity in my thoughts. Also, as I was pre-writing I felt that I got more and more excited about my chosen analysis and this motivated me to continue to work on my paper. The main aspects of pre-writing that really helped me was the paper that we filled out where we organized the different points that interested us the most in "Ozymandius", and then I began by listing my main claim and then my writing out my supporting analysis. Another aspect of pre-writing that really helped me was all the class discussions that we had, and hearing other people's ideas and the challenge of my own ideas.
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