As influential and unique of a writer as he was, Ghalib “argued for a secular merger in shared ways of everyday life” and believed that “being human was more essential than, and prior to, being either Muslim or Hindu, believer or infidel”. What he is trying to convey, in my opinion, is that devoting life to religion and continuing to show affection to a divine deity is not the way one should live. Strong devotion to religion will only suppress an individual and refrain themselves from living a more prosperous life. Ghalib’s perception of a prosperous life is reflected by the numerous ghazals that he himself established. These ghazals adhere to the connection between romanticism and divinity. Conclusively, Ghalib provides the notion that romanticism can only be experienced with the hindrance of divinity and the art of devotion.

Life shouldn’t be driven by the dependence on God. Merely devoting one’s self to religion is immoral because God himself is “that Idol of an Infidel” (Line 18). In stating that “God himself is not faithful to the faith that focuses on him” (Footnote 5), why should the average man hold dependence and devotion towards Him? This question is explained thoroughly in, “My tongue begs for the power of speech”, where Ghalib transitions from praising the gifts that God provides man to the same gifts that torment and bring misery to their lives. The speaker accepts the gift of voice or the “power of speech” given by God. But, the power of speech is hindered by the simultaneous gift of silence. What Ghalib is trying to hint at is that this gift is contradictory along with the many gifts that God provides man. The reason being that through the power of speech, “silence gets its style of representation” (Lines 4-5). The gifts that God gives include the “melancholic weeping of disappointment” (Line7-8), “the blood of slaughter’s victims” (Line 17), “the flood of tears” (Line 22), and “the colors of grief” (Line 23). These “gifts” allude to the disappointment and sorrow-filled lives of humans. The contradiction stated above is envisioned through the fact that “devotion is the veil” (Line 31). In other words, if man continues to devote their lives to God, they can only expect more grief and agony. And what can God do in regards to these terms? He can only remain hidden under the veil, “hidden from human eyes”. Man’s devotion is compared to a “farce-like search for mercy” (Line 37). Because God is hidden under that veil, devotion is of no value, and it is only left to mockery. God does not hold the answers to life, He only, according to Ghalib, “keeps our hubris hidden” (Line 32).

Ghalib’s use of this highly structured form, ghazal, influences the meaning of his poems. The refrain concept of the ghazal, where a line is stated repeatedly, is evident in three significant poems, “My tongue begs for the power of speech”, “It was essential”, and “I’ve made my home next door to you”. These redundant phrases emphasize the general message that Ghalib seeks to convey. They are the foundation of his poems. The message that he wants to convey refers to his views on religion and his perspective on God. In staying alive “for a few more days”, Ghalib has the opportunity to critique his religion. In continuing to “wish for death for few more days” (Line 60), Ghalib is able to make his voice be heard and use “the power of his speech” to criticize the gifts that God provided for man, to unravel God from beneath the “veil.” The statement “Your gift to us” is the means by which Ghalib ridicules the devotion of man to God and God’s inability to provide for man. Ghalib establishes himself “without a word being said”. In adding to his critique, Ghalib does not seek permission from God in letting his voice be heard. He hints at the fact that man is superior to God when he states, “You still can’t find my whereabouts without my help, without a word being said” (Line 3-4). The ghazals are the transitions of Ghalib’s thoughts from one context to another. They stem from his desire in wanting to stay alive, so that he can criticize God and his devotees, and do so by the power of his own authority. This sheer brilliance of a man is what makes Ghalib unique. He has the ability to express his ideas across the borders of his poems. Normally, a poet’s thoughts and ideas are secluded in one poem. But, Ghalib breaks the barriers in shifting his ideas, in this case, across three different poems.

Ghalib’s love for poetry and his belief that this form of literature is exceptional to all others is also recognized in the works of Emily Dickinson. In poem 657, Dickinson “dwells in possibility”, which is a “fairer house than prose” because it is “more numerous of windows- superior- for doors” (Line 1-4). The poet views poetry as a means of opportunity, to bring oneself to light, and attain betterment. The metaphorical comparison made between doors and poetry, and not windows, alludes to the idea that poetry establishes a broad path in attaining that opportunity, whereas windows merely show a glimpse of that same opportunity and prevents one from properly obtaining it. In, “Petition: My Salary”, Ghalib definitively states that, “it’s a violation of etiquette not to praise poetry” (Line 31-32). Therefore, poetry holds a substantial value to Ghalib because it has the ability to “rain down pearls” (Line 30).

Emily Dickinson’s poems are often described experimental because in her poems she usually writes about simple everyday facts in a very unique and different way. She is often the observer of the poem and she talks about her experiences and how she sees simple things like a bird eating a worm (poem 328) through her eyes. For example in poem 328, there is a bird eating an Angleworm and she describes it in detail using anthropomorphism. She writes “he drank a Dew from a convenient Grass”, which is like a human drinking from a glass. Also, in poem 465 she is describing her death in a very unique way. She talks about what she sees, what she hears (Fly buzz). She uses many of her senses and I think that in lines 13 and 14 she uses her vision and her hearing talking about the buzz and the color of the buzz being blue, to show two other actions which are the moment of her death and her leaving.

She generally uses a formal soft tone something that one of her great inspirations, John Keats, used. Moreover, their poems have a lot of descriptions about nature and beauty and how the two are connected. Another thing that I thing they have in common is that some of their poems appear hopeless. For example, Keats poem “When I have fears that I may cease to be” and Dickinson’s poem 258, are both poems that the writers sound a bit hopeless. In her poem 258, Dickinson seems to have pain and problems that are internal. In line 9 of the same poem she directly writes “ None may teach it-” which is like saying that no one can help her overcome her problems.

Throughout her poems, we can see that she uses a lot of dashes in different times and places and she also capitalizes words, not only the ones that the line started with, for many different reasons. To start with, the dashes usually served as bridges between sections of her poems to show that they are separated. She might have also used the dashes so that the reader pauses when there is a dash or even as a period. She could also use them as a parenthesis to emphasize what she just wrote. Moreover, dashes could serve to indicate interruption or a shift in her thoughts. She also capitalized words to give more emphasis to these words. Another possible version of her use of capitalization could be the fact that she spoke German, which is a language that typically capitalizes nouns.

Seeing her original handwritten versions doesn’t really change my interpretation of the poems but it definitely brings more emotions. You can see even more and feel her words when she wants to emphasize them because you actually see the original ones capitalized.

Emily Dickinson Archive: http://www.edickinson.org/

Includes manuscript versions of her poems, and a lexicon for definitions from her dictionary. After reading the assigned poems, choose two favorites, and look at the manuscript versions. In lieu of a quiz Monday, you should bring in a 1-2 paragraph response about looking the manuscript versions of the specific poems you chose. Did it change your impression or experience of the poems at all? How so? If not, why?

This NYTimes article sums up some of the controversy surrounding her manuscripts and their digitization: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/23/books/enigmatic-dickinson-revealed-online.html?partner=rss&emc=rss&_r=1&

And finally, Dickinson’s place setting from The Dinner Party (the Judy Chicago project–we looked at Wollstonecraft’s early in the semester):http://www.brooklynmuseum.org/eascfa/dinner_party/place_settings/emily_dickinson.php

Below are a few upcoming Writing Center workshops that will help you with the skills needed in this course. All workshops take place 12:30-2 in the Feit Seminar Room (NVC 8-190). You can register on the Writing Center website: http://writingcenter.baruch.cuny.edu/our-services/workshops/spring-2015-workshops/

Developing Thesis Statements: Thursday 3/12

Analyzing Texts (this will help with close reading skills): Monday 3/16

Evidence, Analysis, and Claims: Wed. 3/18

Controlling an Argument with Topic Sentences: 3/19

Comparing and Contrasting: Fri. 3/20

Why does she act such a weirdo? What makes her committed suicide? I believe that she’s a woman who wants to be one of human beings, not an ordinary woman. Hedda wants to be independent, to pursuit her desires, to be free from any ritualistic traditions. It, “Hedda Gabler”, instead of Mrs. Tesman, literally, shows that she is far from the ordinary women. She keeps the last name from her father, and believes that’s the way to keep her identity. As this title, it describes many unusual aspects of the protagonist.

At the end of the Act3, Hedda gives a pistol to Lovberg as a souvenir, and says, “Here, you use it now.” “In beauty, Eilert Lovborg. Promise me that”.(P827). It’s definitely not the way of reaction to a person who lost everything: the wife and dream. What does it mean by passing over the gun to this desperate man? Furthermore, when Brack describes about Lovberg’s suicide, Hedda says, “I’m saying that here, in this- there is beauty.”, “Eilert Lovborg has come to terms with himself. He’s had the courage to do what had to be done”.(P833). Guess a man is laughing at someone’s car accident. What would you say to him? Hedda responds as same as the man to the people around. How embarrassing. At last, Hedda committed suicide after she plays a dance melody on the piano. Why did she do that? Hedda places great emphasis on dying beautifully. The dance music is a sort of beautiful prelude to her death.

Through all the extractions above, I can tell that Hedda is a strong egocentric person. And she keeps saying “beauty” repeatedly. I believe this beauty means that making one’s own decisions by one’s thoughts, beliefs, and faiths. Passing over the pistol to Lovberg, describing Lovberg’s suicide as beautiful, and adhering to her values by playing a frenzied dance melody before her death solemnly indicate that Hedda respects courageous conduct of one’s.

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From the first two acts of the play, Hedda Gabbler gets exposed to the reader as her true intentions and manipulative behaviour get revealed.

From the very introduction, Hedda is seen to have very high standards. This can be seen simply from the house George Tesman had bought solely for her pleasure. Ibsen goes in great detail describing each aspect of the house showing the value of what it was worth e.g. “Beyond the glass door, a piano. On both sides of the upstage doorway stand shelves displaying terra cotta and majolica objects” (P 782). This all seems like a very big price to pay for a lower-class scholar like George Tesman. Unfortunately for George, the house basically means nothing to Hedda as her true thoughts surface as the drama progresses.

Hedda’s arrogant mind-set is displayed on numerous occasions as she chooses to stick with her full name Hedda Gabbler to distance herself from those who she believes are beneath her in importance. Aunt Tesman even goes as far as to wear an expensive hat especially for Hedda, but only for Hedda to unintentionally criticise it. This can all be seen as examples of her stubborn relentless personality. In addition, Hedda and George do not have the best relationship. Hedda clearly believes she is of higher class and does not worry about everyday struggles such that of a Tesman’s rival, Eilert, who is back in town and stands between his chance of getting a better job. However, it is fair to say that George does acknowledge her rudeness and would like for her to see his family as her own now they are married.

Furthermore, Hedda’s manipulative behavior can be seen by the way in which she tricks Mrs. Elvsted to speak of her secrets under the impression that she cares about her personal life. However, Hedda is only satisfying her own curiosity to see if she had an affair with Eilert as they both clearly share past experiences with him. By this point, Hedda isn’t even considering the feelings of her own husband as she claims his profession bores her and she plainly views him as a “specialist”, whilst Eilert is very successful with his newly released book. This excites Hedda much more as she uses this knowledge as a gateway to get back in contact with Eilert. This is all revealed in the conversation she has with Brack, which shows a great deal of flirtatious behavior. Hedda even goes as far as to ask Brack if he can convince George to change his profession to something that is more exciting through her eyes. Hedda sates “he’s a very diligent archivist anyway. Someday he might do something interesting with all of it” (P 802), this shows she is desperate to see a change if she is ever going to have genuine feelings for him like the ones she had for Eilert when he was successful. Finally, towards the end, one can see that the woman who Mrs. Elvsted worried would shoot Eilert with a pistol was indeed Hedda. Overall, Hedda enjoys the level of control she has over Eilert, Brack and even Mrs. Elvsted as she keeps their conversations very secretive right in front of their eyes. Hedda is portrayed as a very teasing woman who enjoys company.

The whole drama shows Hedda’s paradoxical marriage, romantic, and life attitudes, these contradictory things finally result in her tragedy ending. At the beginning of Act I, it shows”A large, pleasantly and tastefully furnished drawing room, decorated in somber tones.”(P 782) The room is elegant and the furniture is grace, but the tone is dark and the atmosphere is negative, this is controversial and conveys a depressive feeling. This also indicates that Hedda is not satisfied with her present life. Hedda is an upper-class lady, but she marries to a lower-class scholar. We can realize that she despises Tesman and Aunt Julie’s lifestyle from her words, for instance, Hedda says Aunt Julie’s new hat is old and umseemly, and Hedda even calls her Miss Tesman instead of Aunt Julie, Hedda actually dose not think they are family. Ibsen even use her ante-marital name Hedda Gabler to emphasizes her upper-class status.

Then why Hedda chooses to marry Tesman? When Judge Brack asks her, she says, “Well, he’s a very diligent archivist anyway. Some day he might do something interesting with all of it.”(P 802) Hedda thinks Tesman is a reliable husband, and he has got the PhD degree and may have a bright future. Though she does not love him，she is pusillanimous to against the temporal situation that she need a sumptuous life. Lovborg can not provide this life to her since he is dissipated with bad reputation (before he writes the book). Hedda dose not dare to go on with him, she cares about ohters’ comments. Thus she finally marries to a “diligent archivist”. However, Hedda gets tired to her marriage quickly after the honeymoon. She says Tesman is a specialist who is “not so much fun to travel with. Not for the long run anyway.”(P 802) She falls into the contradictory situation again. On the one hand, she needs the materials, thus she could not leave Tesman,; On the other hand, she desires a man who really understands and inspires her, so she still cares Lovborg.

The paradoxical situation makes her depressive especially after Lovborg writes the book and wins wonderful reputations. When she knows the affairs between Lovborg and Mrs. Elvsted, she gets vicious and takes a series of ridiculous actions. She foments the relationship between them. When Hedda and Lovborg waits for Mrs. Elvsted, she suggests Lovborg that Mrs. Elvsted does not totally trust in him, this makes Lovborg angry and he decides to leave with Tesman and Brack. Hedda may think that she can still affect Lovborg’s mood and she is happy about that. She even images Lovborg with vine leaves in his hair. As far as I am concerned, though Hedda loves Lovborg, the love is somewhat ridiculous. She does not dare to go on with him when he is not successful, but she cannot stand Lovborg betrays her when he becomes successful. Maybe all she cares about are her own feelings and happiness.

In “Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave” chapters X through XI, Douglass continues to expose the recurring theme of enslavement through various cruelties and his oppressed state as a slave eagerly yearning freedom.

During the previous chapters of the narrative Douglass describes the experiences of other slaves and gives the reader glimpses of slavery through what he has witnessed. As the narrative progresses, the theme of freedom becomes more cognizant. Douglass for the first time becomes victim of the cruelty brought forth by slavery. The inhumane cruelty and misfortunes of his master caused an oppressed state and transformed him to become a slave. He states “My natural elasticity was crushed, my intellect languished, the disposition to read departed, and the cheerful spark that lingered about my eye died; the dark night of slavery closed in upon me; and behold a man transformed into a brute!”(264). Such behaviors had endangered his inspiration of education, which was one of the greatest aspects to his escape from slavery and pathway to his freedom.

The cruel treatments of slavery however, were the nostalgic drives that eventually caused Douglass to yearn freedom. “This battle with Mr.Covey was the turning point in my career as a slave. It rekindled the few expiring embers of freedom, and revived with me a sense of my own manhood. It recalled the departed self-conscience, and inspired me again with a determination to be free” (268). After standing up for himself and undergoing the inhumane experiences with Mr. Covey Douglass’ self-knowledge arose again.

Towards the end of the narrative self- knowledge was the main device that allowed Douglass to be conscious of the burdened caused by slavery. Eventually his freedom was obtained physically but his mental state of awareness was the road map to his freedom. Once Douglass becomes free interestingly enough in his narrative he chooses not to disclose entirely how he escapes slavery.  This tactic was so he would still make it possible for other slaves to become free as well with less chances of getting caught.