Caroline Parry's Reflection of Final Paper

I am very grateful to have learned a lot this semester.  What really helped me was learning how to add non scholarly sources to papers.  For this final paper, it helped to look at those first and get a general idea and then to build off those sources.  It made the paper more interesting to read song lyrics, have fanart images, and to hear from intelligent people who haven't published in journals.  My writing process has changed by looking at those less scholarly sources at the beginning and then building a rough draft based on what I find.  I then would go to more scholarly sources and weave all that information together.   I also learned to better talk with people about my work and have more useful peer reviews.  I still don't love doing them, but I have found them effective.  It's been great to write more about what I want for my last paper of my college career!     

Caroline's Current Research Questions

My paper's focus is talking about the importance of using scholarly literary criticism in contemporary and pop culture works - including TV shows with support of less scholarly and multimedia sources.

My questions are:
1. Are you aware of sources that use literary criticism on pop culture?
2.  What would you consider to be the best online database for literary criticism?
3. How would you use non-scholarly sources in a paper and how much would you use in comparison to scholarly sources?

Caroline's Reflection on Literary Analysis 2

Informal or Multimedia Source - I used both fanart and a YouTube Video for this paper.  I think the Fanart was really important for this paper because it has so much to do with a contemporary show and ideas.  The YouTube video connects a contemporary story with a historical event perfectly.  I really enjoyed how we were able to use informal stories.  They are important today and they do offer fabulous insights to scholarly literature.  I also learned how to implement informal sources in a scholarly way.  It is harder to find out who did it or why, but you are able to get many ideas from hundreds of comments and what not.


Literary Theory - I used the personal history from the two authors and archetypes to write my paper.  I toyed with a few of the other theories, but these two seemed to have the best connections between the two pieces and the most supportive of my thesis.  To understand both pieces it is important to understand both the histories of the authors.  I also enjoyed talking about the archetypes because they are follow and contradict common archetypes.

Writing Process - I really enjoyed writing this paper! It also led me to watching some of GOT again.  I had so many ideas, but it was hard to nail down my thesis.  Once I had that, everything came so easily.  I talked with my brother about the paper a lot and he had lots of ideas for me and we bounced ideas off one another.  I always enjoy talking to people about my papers.  Looking up the histories of two well known authors was also interesting.  I was able to understand more about Robert Frost's other poems also.

Critical Approaches to Fire and Ice by Robert Frost

I have always loved Robert Frost's work.  I find this one especially important today because of the popularity of "A Song of Ice and Fire" by George Martin.  I think there is an interesting parallel between the two and my liking to the latter has renewed my interest in the former.   I am hoping one of these theories will help me connect the two. 

• Archetypal: I went over how Frost used fire and ice as symbolism vs. what else they could be symbolizing.  Fire is used as desire, destruction, and hatred.  The world burns because of it.  Ice is also hatred, but can see stubbornness and also calm.  Either way the world is going to end - it's just if it will be fire or ice.  
• Source Study: He uses the poem as an analysis as the life that one lives - so the world is individual.  HE wrote this poem as a self reflection of his own work.  Is he going to die in fire, having obsession rule over him or ice and have hatred be his demise? 
• Biographical: Frost left Harvard before finishing his degree.  Then he moved to New Hampshire with his family.  He wrote a lot during this time, but he lost two children.  Since his poem is about him viewing himself as dying in fire or ice, I think this connects well with his familial situation because he was worried that his career and schooling would take time away from what is important, like his family.   
• New Historicism: It was published in 1920.  This was a tumultuous time in America, after thee war, during the roaring 20s and right before even more arduous events.  Frost was looking at people and their life choices, like he was worried about their souls.  It was his call to people to not let their desires or obsessions cloud what is really important.  

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. 

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! 

Caroline's "Ozymandias" Prewriting

General Literary Resources - Author Biography - Caroline Parry

I am looking up books that can help explain the life better of Percy Shelley, author of the famous sonnet Ozymandias. It is important when studying a poem, to know about the author himself.  Readers can learn about context to better understand the writing and more can be said about why it was written and even reference any personal experiences. 

T.J. Hoggs The Life of Percy Shelley 
T.J. Hoggs does a great study on the life of Percy Shelley.  He writes a lot about the beginnings of his life and into his more professional career.  A lot was written about his poem, Ozymandias.  Contemporaries were curious about this sonnet and how he described tree like legs that were left, this did not fit what was really left by statues in Ancient Egypt and Ancient Greece.  Hoggs describes how Shelley himself was a traveler, so he was likely to have seen these.  So there is some discrepancy as to how personal this writing is to Shelley.  This looks like a wonderful source to use when learning about his life.  It is online and I am able to get a good look at the book, though it would be easier to hold it in my hands.  It is linked on the internet archive. 

Keats-Shelley Journal 
This I found on JSTOR (the website that truly helped me write my research papers).  Although it talks about Keats, adding contemporaries to the study of Shelley helps researchers gain more information about the context and the history about what they are reading.  This is why I found this source applicable.  The journal talks about other things that Shelley read and other pieces to compare his poems too.  It also references one of his writings, and how he was draw to certain statues or colossal figures, which obviously inspired his writings.  This is a good source because it deals a lot with contemporaries and even has some of his own writings. 

I think, with looking at these two sources, it can be agreed that Shelley was a intellectual man.  He broadened his horizons by study works from his contemporaries.  He was also well traveled, which can really influence his writings.       

The True Meaning of Screwtape's Letters

By: Caroline Parry

Screwtape writes letters to his humble servant, Wormwood, about bringing people's souls to "Our Father Below", but is that truly the meaning behind his famous letters? 

Dear Screwtape,

My affectionate teacher, you taught me much about, “Our Father Below”.  A lot which was new to me and something which I never would have thought about before.  It is written that, as humans, we have the power to turn to the light or the dark.  There is power for us to choose and fight for our side in this great war.  You wrote about this in context with prayer: “Whenever there is prayer, there is danger of His own immediate action” (17).  You don’t write who we should pray too, but we have the power to pray and choose, whereas, I choose to pray to Our Father Above, dear Screwtape.

Screwtape, you taught me about the power of people, as a whole, “We want the Church to be small, not only that fewer men may know the Enemy, but also that those who do may acquire the uneasy intensity and the defensive self-righteousness of a secret society or a clique” (33).  I grew up in a family who loved, Our Father Above, and we don’t see Him as the Enemy, but in your teachings to Wormwood, you tell us to band together and teach others about Him, so we can conquer the Father Below.  There is great fear in numbers.  You know that, and we do too.  It is our earthly goal to grow our numbers to fight off you and the power of down under.  I spent eighteen months of my life working in Bolivia to bring people to the Real Father, and I would do it again if I knew that it would mean there would be fewer of you. 

Caroline's Literary Moments

Les Mis (Theatrical Experience)
I have seen this play live 3 times - once a few months ago in London.  Every time it is utterly magnificent.  I have never read the book - it is quite daunting - but I feel like after each showing, I don't need too (some of you may not agree with that).  It is one of the longest running plays, and viewers can see how much love the actors have for their job.  Also, a book does not have the wonderful music inside of it, like "Empty chair at Empty Tables".

Screwtape Letters (Reading Literature Privately)
I like books with stories, self help books really have no interest to me.  This one, which is a little bit of both, captivating me with each word.  I learned so much about repentance and love and better oneself and I have never annotated a book more - not even a textbook.

Romeo and Juliet (Memorization of Literature)
I had to memorize the prologue in ninth grade, maybe a few of us did.  I don't believe that is one of his better plays, but I think the prologue is beautiful and really sets a stage for a wonderful show.  I actually remember most of it!  I also think with it being one of his more popular shows, it is an important piece of literature to read and have a personal experience with. 

Jesus the Christ (Religious Literary Experience)
I read this twice while on my mission, and I want to read it maybe ten more times.  This is a wonderful account of Christ's life! Talmage did a wonderful job sharing the story of Christ from the beginning of time and into the future.  I love how there are scriptures from both the Bible and the BofM and quotes from prophets and many other written words.  I wish it wasn't such a large book and it was easier to read, but it is worth every word and every hour spent on it. 

Poem (Foreign Literary Experience)
So this might be a little different than what is expected, but while on my mission, I wrote multiple poems in Spanish, which was my mission language.  It was incredibly hard - especially with rhyme and scheme, but I treasure those poems.  They helped me write something that I couldn't share with those around me.  Even going back to read them now brings back feelings that English wouldn't. 

Lord of the Rings (Cinematic Literary Experience)
I haven't read all 3 of the books, but I have seen the movies too many times to count.  Peter Jackson really made the movies exactly how they should be.  The actors chosen so well, that they really emulate the characters in the books.  He truly did everything a director should do to a movie from a book adaption, they really could not have been any more perfect.  Like Les Mis, it makes me feel like I don't even have to read the books, and really, who has time to read 10 pages just about trees.  JRR Tolkien is amazing!

Caroline's Academic Writing Self-Assessment

Last semester I was able to write and present my Senior Thesis for my art history major.  It was a very long process with lots of writes and rewrites.  I used my paper from a previous class and reworked a lot of it.  I had lots of angles and lots of research included to make it a strong paper.  I am - and was in my thesis - able to find lots of information and quotes that supported my theories.  I enjoy writing papers and telling my opinions and thoughts, which are supported by facts.  Especially in art history, where i presented a new angle on a very popular artist.  I tend to struggle with following an outline and focusing all my thoughts into a coherent paper.  I don't enjoy doing peer editing, I have my own way of editing and working with people on my papers, so peer editing is extra work for me. 

Caroline's Shelfies

I will have to give more thought to my profile, but here's the start

Only a small stack of my many, many books.