This image always gets any viewers attention. 1950. Jackson Pollock

Was an American painter and a major figure in the abstract expressionist movement. He was known for his unique style of drip painting.

Something in this unique and confusing painting brought out certain emotions. I always believed that, that was the power of art. Sometimes it didn’t have to have a meaning but the emotion within it that then comes out of you was the real art. The black and white colors, showing good and evil and the different stages within those all mixed together. To me it meant chaos and that in order to have good in you its always mixed in with a little darkness.

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! Was unfortunately the only four letter word Sarit hears every morning. And so her day begins… 7:26am…Right foot down, left foot following. First thing she does is rush to the restroom so her brother doesn’t shower for 3 hours before her. Sarit then quickly gets dressed picking the nearest thing to her, grabs her bag and slams the door behind her. She walks out of her apartment building and makes a right saying hi to the traffic cop she sees every morning still wondering if, holding her hand up to the cars who have to stop anyways at the stop sign, is a hard job? Then she makes a left going straight for three long blocks till she sees the train station. As she hops on down the stairs she gets a whiff of the Dunkin Donuts coffee hitting her nose. Already dreading the fact that her commute is an hour, but it’s Monday, AND it’s raining.  People are not nice in the train, shoving, making mean faces, quiet mumbling of rude remarks. This is what Sarit hears Monday-Friday. Not many know this but Sarit is claustrophobic. Ironic right? She takes crowded nasty MTA trains every day towards the most crowded city just to get a college education, her mom should be proud. She sees the E train coming her way, praying there is breathing and standing space in it, forget hoping for a seat.

Lexington 53^rd street stop is here, she gets off and runs to the 6 train. Up the escalator she runs, makes a sharp left, then runs down the stairs, goes straight, runs back up an escalator, and just makes it into the train. Hearing an MTA employee flashing a flashlight towards the train rider saying good to close the doors, remembering how deep his voice was. As she stands for three stops Sarit smells the best breakfast sandwich and remembers not only about her empty heart but an empty stomach the goes along with it, haha just joking but breakfast shouldn’t be skipped it’s Sarit’s favorite meal of the day too. Sarit had one more stop till 23^rd street then all of a sudden the train stops. The announcer says, “TRAIN TRAFFIC AHEAD OF US!” Sarit rolls her eyes because there’s always traffic. Why? How? Like aren’t we all going in the same direction, what’s the hold up? The train dispatcher closes the train doors so fast it could slice your hands off.  Finally the train begins to move again. 23^rd street stop, she bumped into an old lady, felt badly for the homeless man so she gave him a dollar, begins to run down 2 blocks, makes a sharp left and enters the school.

Freud’s theory is a bit of a far stretch in my opinion. I agree with some of the aspects he mentions like the stages a child goes through and the change in connection with the parents in the beginning to present day. I agree that it is all about the parents upbringing that helps us shape our views on life, does make us who we are, and places strategic permanent ways of thinking about life in our subconscious.  Yes, I guiltily admit that I did wish for new parents once or twice in my childhood but don’t believe that my phantasies connect do to that. Every person is different and generalizing this concept onto everyone I disagree with but hey maybe that’s where they pitched all these catch phrases in cinema/motion pictures today that always state “oh she has daddy issues”, “that’s cause you hate your dad” which I also don’t fully agree with being brought up in a one parent household.

Walt Whitman’s, “Song of Myself”, was a great piece of writing that in my opinion is everywhere and yet, still all at the same time. Describing everything and seems messy but so well understood too. “I breathe the fragrance myself and I know I like it” I like how he begins by talking in first person about himself and what’s to love and not love about himself. It’s a sort of stubborn writing, kind of like the strong spoken Jane Eyre. He then draws his views towards the audients by asking rhetorical questions such as, “Have you felt so proud to get at the meaning of poems?”. This quote is similar to when Jane is asking “Do you think, because I am poor, obscure, plain and little, I am soulless and heartless?”. It’s towards the audients and to engage them more to think and react. She questions herself but knows the truth about who she really is and does this “thinking out loud” scene which I admire the most about her. And AGAIN Walt shifts us to telling the audients how to think in a demanding tone, “You shall no longer take things at second or third hand…. nor look through the eyes of the dead, nor feed on the spectres in books”. This quote is perfect to be told to Jane because this is what should’ve been her advice all throughout her life. Unfortunately, she has to tell herself this towards the end of the book. Whitman’s quote , “I am a free human being with an independent will… You will hardly know who I am or what I mean, But I shall be good health to you nevertheless.” What Walt Whitman means is that you will truly never know who a person really is because everyone is unique. He also wants to state that even if you are unique you are still “you, and that is truer than true, there’s no one on earth who is youer than you” from the wise words of Dr.Suess of course. You should always be yourself because we are from the same “dirt” Earth, born the same way, feel the same way, then why should I have to feel less than or different than anyone else. We are the same humans, just different beings.

Jane and the theme of hope really is a main theme that we neglect in the book. Jane struggles from the youngest age event at her peak in life and this poem “Hope” by Emily Dickson, does the best job comparing with Jane in poetic language. “Hope’ is the thing with feathers…That perches in the soul”, I perceived Jane as the bird in the poem. The bird that sings and the idea of Jane “singing” to me means that she’s living. Living and speaking. It may be a voiced opinion or a change and she will let you know that she is there and outspoken. “I’ve heard it in the chillest land – And on the strangest Sea – Yet – never – in Extremity, It asked a crumb – of me” this last part of the poem develops and describes that Jane throughout all her struggles and hardships could’ve begged for a different life but humbly remained and with low points in her life I would argue as to why Jane didn’t end her life. But, just like the bird, Jane has parted with her parents, got through life on her own, and remains the same.

Society norms are the thing of the past with today’s day and age. People have more freedom and equality is immensely emphasized but there are still struggles we go through.  Jane Eyre and Audre Lorde face a problem by growing up at a different time where their status in life was metaphorically labeled as “the submissive”. Whether it was Jane, a powerless 10- year- old orphan or Lorde a black lesbian poet isolated from the world, both struggling with gender roles. Their futures are oppressed and they both demand to be heard.  Jane comes from an abusive household where her cousins and aunt abuse her mentally and physically making Jane desire liberty and change. In that society, few opportunities were available for women and Jane wanting to be a governor which made things worse for her.

I liked Lorde’s quote “We can sit in our corners mute forever while our sisters and ourselves are wasted, while our children are distorted and destroyed, while our earth is poisoned; we can sit in our safe corners mute as bottles, and we will still be no less afraid.” This quote moved me because it’s the truth. Truth is what we fear yet what we seek to find and with the words of Audrey Lorde it points out an issue even though she was scared to even exist, she would still speak because speech from other historical women was her motivation to live.

“Women are supposed to be very calm generally: but women feel just as men feel, they need exercise for their faculties, and a field for their efforts just as their brothers do…”. This quote expressed by Jane was so simply put. She explains that women’s roles shouldn’t only be household chores but much more than that and there should be no gender inequalities because we all feel the same way therefore should be allowed to be in the same positions.

This reading was very insightful. It right away begins with a cliff hanger, a question that already makes you think and makes you question your beliefs. This reading answers the real question we all have in this day and era. How fast society changes and how your thoughts could become your reality. In the Enlightenment era different ideas of reason came about and different definitions people had about it. At first we believed we had no voice that only the higher powers such as Queens, Kings, princes only did. But, then we realized they are ordinary regular people and that’s when it all began. Many began to think spiritually, logically, or religiously through the help of the enlightenment writers.  The Enlightenment thinkers and era made people become their own individuals who have ideas and a mind of their own, with a balance of judgment, their senses and knowledge. All this resulted to birth of new nations and new rules introducing modernism. Idea of status and class positions came about in the late seventeenth century and was questioned as well. In every new century, change was occuring more and more and there were more questions that wanted to be answered. Eighteenth century- is slavery ethical? And what about women’s power? I believe because of these writers give us some answers and their thoughts we wouldn’t have the change we do today. All these famous books spread the thoughts of these writers which then led from just a thought to changes and from changes into new acts, rules and rights. The amazing, open-minded, diverse society we have today.