Friday, March 7, 2008
First Essay
Originally, I was going to use the topic about comparing "Our Hurried Children" with "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?" I still might try this, but I'm not sure. The topic that interests me now is the one about individual vs. society. In "Where are you going, where have you been?", I beleive that Connie was impacted by society. If I talked about this I could also refer to "Our Hurried Children."
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
Where are you going, where have you been?
This essay was very interesting and to my liking, the dialect makes the time period evident from which this essay was written. Most likely the time period is the 60’s or 70’s.
The girl Connie was very self involved, even cocky. She only worried about herself and her appearance. Her relationship with her family was almost non-existent. Her sister was the complete opposite of her, fat and unattractive. Her mother seemed as if she was jealous of her. I think that her mother was probably like her when she was young.
When the two men appeared on her doorstep, all she though about was how she looked. She didn’t even think about the potential danger she may be in.
When she went to the door and started to have a conversation with the driver I though that she was really stupid. Hasn’t her mother ever taught her not to talk to strangers? The man came off as a sweet talker who was trying to kidnapped or do damage to her.
The guys were very awkward and scary. The author described every element of their appearance which made it easy for me to picture them. I have a feeing that the Arnold Friend was not who he said he was because he was obviously trying to portray someone younger. His sunglasses hid his eyes and his “soul.” The way he walked suggested that he maybe had an injury in one of his legs. His ability to know many things about her also frightened me. How did he know so much?
After Connie realized she was in danger, I want to know what happened to her when she tried to call someone. Why couldn’t the man come in and get her. Maybe, it would then be seen as kidnapping. And since she walked out and got in the car he didn’t do anything.
Connie really changed throughout the story. She was once arrogant and self-involved and then she changed into a more selfless person. She thought about her family and sacrificed her life for theirs.
The girl Connie was very self involved, even cocky. She only worried about herself and her appearance. Her relationship with her family was almost non-existent. Her sister was the complete opposite of her, fat and unattractive. Her mother seemed as if she was jealous of her. I think that her mother was probably like her when she was young.
When the two men appeared on her doorstep, all she though about was how she looked. She didn’t even think about the potential danger she may be in.
When she went to the door and started to have a conversation with the driver I though that she was really stupid. Hasn’t her mother ever taught her not to talk to strangers? The man came off as a sweet talker who was trying to kidnapped or do damage to her.
The guys were very awkward and scary. The author described every element of their appearance which made it easy for me to picture them. I have a feeing that the Arnold Friend was not who he said he was because he was obviously trying to portray someone younger. His sunglasses hid his eyes and his “soul.” The way he walked suggested that he maybe had an injury in one of his legs. His ability to know many things about her also frightened me. How did he know so much?
After Connie realized she was in danger, I want to know what happened to her when she tried to call someone. Why couldn’t the man come in and get her. Maybe, it would then be seen as kidnapping. And since she walked out and got in the car he didn’t do anything.
Connie really changed throughout the story. She was once arrogant and self-involved and then she changed into a more selfless person. She thought about her family and sacrificed her life for theirs.
Cathedral
The first thing that I noticed as I began to read is that there were no names mentioned. The author also used a variety of sentences. Some of the sentences sounded awkward, like the sentence in the first paragraph that said, “ He was no one I knew.” He also stated stereotypical remarks about blind people. As if he didn’t believe that blind people were human.
In the second paragraph, Carver talks about him wife’s ex-husband. He does this by talking about the man his wife married. The paragraph also tells about how his wife met the blind man mentioned in the first sentence. And the ironic part is that he said his wife always tried to write a poem about it. It was like he wasn’t giving her any credit.
After the next paragraph, the author begins to refer to himself in third person again, but in the middle of the paragraph he goes back to first person. I have never seen this before in a piece of writing. His wife’s suicide attempt was really unexpected.
I really enjoyed the conversations between the blind man, Robert, and the narrator. Robert discloses many of the stereotypical things the narrator though about blind people. I think that the narrator was really shallow and unable to realize how ignorant he sounded throughout the story. For example, the way he prayed at the table was very concerning.
The relationship between the narrator and is wife is not extremely loving. It seems as if they are very comfortable around each other and each day is a continuous cycle.
In the second paragraph, Carver talks about him wife’s ex-husband. He does this by talking about the man his wife married. The paragraph also tells about how his wife met the blind man mentioned in the first sentence. And the ironic part is that he said his wife always tried to write a poem about it. It was like he wasn’t giving her any credit.
After the next paragraph, the author begins to refer to himself in third person again, but in the middle of the paragraph he goes back to first person. I have never seen this before in a piece of writing. His wife’s suicide attempt was really unexpected.
I really enjoyed the conversations between the blind man, Robert, and the narrator. Robert discloses many of the stereotypical things the narrator though about blind people. I think that the narrator was really shallow and unable to realize how ignorant he sounded throughout the story. For example, the way he prayed at the table was very concerning.
The relationship between the narrator and is wife is not extremely loving. It seems as if they are very comfortable around each other and each day is a continuous cycle.
Monday, March 3, 2008
Happy Birthday To ME!!!!!!!!
Today is my birthday, of course, and there is no telling what's going to happen. My arms are sore and it feels like my ribs are broken from the crazy stuff I did until 4 o'clock in the morning Saturday night. Hopefully, I don't die.
Our Hurried Children
The moment I started to read this text, I began to agree with the author. I've always felt that adults were confused about whether that want a child to grow up or stay under their control. Childhood is rushed because adults automatically express to children that they should act more mature. I enjoyed my childhood and I believe it was a critical time in my life.
This essay was extremely different from those we have been reading so far because it is nonfiction and sounds more like an argumentative article. The author uses expert tesimony and facts to prove his overall point. He seems very concerned about the topic. It is a good possbility that his childhood was rushed.
I like how the essay was divided into different sections. The section entitled, "Miniature Adults" focuses on the children that live in middle-class homes and who were put under pressure to achieve academically at a young age. His first example was a boy that entered Harvard College at the age of eleven who is now lonely and pitiful.
In the section called, "The Child Inside" , Elkind makes a grat point. He states that children get confused when society says grow up fast, but remain a child. I have personally seen this myself. It is as if adults must make up their mind and choose one. He makes a good argument by listing the crimes young teenagers and preteens were arrested for. He also proves that those children listed were not disadvantaged youth who were acting against society, but teens from middle class families.
This essay was extremely different from those we have been reading so far because it is nonfiction and sounds more like an argumentative article. The author uses expert tesimony and facts to prove his overall point. He seems very concerned about the topic. It is a good possbility that his childhood was rushed.
I like how the essay was divided into different sections. The section entitled, "Miniature Adults" focuses on the children that live in middle-class homes and who were put under pressure to achieve academically at a young age. His first example was a boy that entered Harvard College at the age of eleven who is now lonely and pitiful.
In the section called, "The Child Inside" , Elkind makes a grat point. He states that children get confused when society says grow up fast, but remain a child. I have personally seen this myself. It is as if adults must make up their mind and choose one. He makes a good argument by listing the crimes young teenagers and preteens were arrested for. He also proves that those children listed were not disadvantaged youth who were acting against society, but teens from middle class families.
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