great works ii – 2850 jta 12:25-2:05: love letters from the world

1. In Kafka’s “Metamorphosis”, Gregor Samsa’s transformation into a cockroach and the alienation he received from his family symbolizes how outsiders are viewed and treated by society.
2. In Kafka’s “Metamorphosis”, Gregor’s tragic death is the point where he finds true happiness and freedom as he’s at the end of his transformation where he no longer has to conform with the norms of society.
3. In Carlo Fuentes’s “Aura”, both Consuelo and Felipe achieve happiness by entrapping themselves in a dreamlike state where they engage in each others’ fantasies and forget about the limits of reality.

Bo Lo

Victoria Barreras

Marvin Lee

In the first section (pg 767-776), Endgame is essentially an expression of absurdism. In many cases, the characters doesn’t seem to know why they are still completing whatever tasks they have left to do, but still try to fulfill each other’s needs. Hamm speaks about how close he is to hell, as if it’s right next-door. “Old wall! Beyond is the…  other hell. Closer! … Hollow bricks! All that’s hollow! That’s enough. Back! (776).” Even though Hamm knows that displeasure is extremely close, he chose to back away from it. Hamm also expresses how nature has forgotten them even though nature still exists (771). The characters show care for each other, asking about their health. “How are your eyes? How are your legs? (769)” But even though they care for each other, the end of the day still ends without much fun (771).

According to section 2 (pg 777-785), I agree that Endgame is absurdism. The characters realize that their life is irrelevant, but this does not stop them from catering to each other’s desires. Clov says, “Mean something! You and I, mean something! Ah, that’s a good one. (778)” Clov and Hamm laugh and joke around at the crazy idea that their life can have any meaning when Hamm notices things going on with his body. Although both of them believe that their life is unimportant, Clov still does things to make Hamm happy. For example, since Hamm is blind Clov acts as his eyes and describes what he sees when using the telescope. Hamm talks about nature a lot and his admiration for it so hearing about outside makes him feel hopeful. Another example is when Clov fetches a dog toy for Hamm so he can feel better. He tells Hamm, “he’s standing” as he holds the dog upright as Hamm groups the toy. This makes him happy and if his life was worthless what would be the point of happiness and hope.  

Based on section 3 (pg 786-795), I would have to say that Endgame represents nihilism instead of absurdism because it’s more about the nothingness of life rather than the humor and irrationality behind life. Hamm said to Clov, “Did you ever have an instant of happiness?” (788) to which Clov replies, “Not to my knowledge” (788). Later on, Hamm says to Clov, “It’s the end, Clov, we’ve come to the end. I don’t need you any more” (793). This shows the characters’ views on the true meaning of life and the true meaning of life is that there is no meaning in the end and that there is no true genuine happiness in life and that when life comes to an end, there is nothing more that can be said or done.  While it’s true that throughout their lives, the characters have tried to make each other happy and cared for one another as seen in sections 1 and 2, the end result is that the idea of the ‘self’ slips into nonexistence. The journey ends and the individual consciousness ceases to exist.

Bo Lo

Victoria Barreras

Marvin Lee

“Aura” by Carlos Fuentes.

[Attributes of using second person]

With the usage of the second person, it helps elicit a stronger impression to the reader. The reader is placed into the narrator’s shoes and given emotional impacts that other perspectives can’t express.

The story is written in second person which is fairly uncommon. This perspective is used to make the reader feel like they are a part of Fuentes’ world.  The story also used other perspectives, such as first- and third-person, which allow the reader to become an observer in other characters’ roles and actions. However, in a dream there usually isn’t an observer, only a person that is having the dream. In “Aura,” the reader is made the sole person that is experiences the events in the story as they unfold.

[Section 1]

Within the first section of the reading, the narrator expresses his uncertainty of whether or not he should give the advertised job offer a chance since it’s foreign to him. By using the perspective of the second person, the reader is able to read the mind of the narrator. The raw feelings are shown, especially when he’s in many foreign situations. “You wonder if another young historian, in the same situation you are, has seen the same advertisement, has got ahead of you and taken the job already,” (832). Even though the narrator loses the thought throughout the day, the same situation succumbs the next morning. Through slight consideration, the narrator grows out of his comfort zone and gives the job a chance by going in for an interview. After the narrator received the job offer, he felt uncomfortable needing to sleep at his work area.
The author’s use of second person makes it feel as if the reader is in the story and experiencing it firsthand. There is a mystery in the story and we see the narrator expressing that, “You can’t see her in the black of the starless night, but you can smell the fragrance of the patio plants in her hair, can feel her smooth, eager body in your arms; you kiss her again and don’t ask her to speak” (842). The narrator’s use of the word, “you” and his descriptive choice of words intrigues the reader and it draws the reader further and further into the story. As the story progresses, the mystery gets deeper and it takes the reader along for a ride. The emotions are so vivid throughout the story and it’s primarily because of the use of the second person.

In Tagore’s short story, “Punishment”, one of the ethical problems is the fact that women are considered to be inferior to men and they have no say in how they want to live as they are under the control of their husbands. An example of this is when Chidam says, “If I lose my wife, I can get another, but if my brother is hanged, how I can I replace him” (895)? While both a wife and a brother are considered family, the brother is considered to be irreplaceable while the wife is not so the brother’s life – a man’s life is seen to be much more valuable than the life of another woman. Chidam was willing to sacrifice his wife’s life to save his brother’s life and the wife is so fed up with her husband’s uncaring attitude towards her that she chose to die rather than to remain married to her husband. She broke free of her husband’s oppression by choosing the path she wanted to take. In the end, when she is about to be hanged for a crime that she did not commit, she declared that she did not want to see her husband and her last words showed that because of her husband’s lack of compassion and respect for her, she had no regrets about her decision.

Bo Lo

Victoria Barreras

Marvin Lee

Emily Dickinson #712, pg 487-488
During the nonexistence from the human world, you’re left to travel with Death for eternity while revisiting the places that you’ve been throughout your life for the last time. In the poem 712, Emily Dickinson wishes for relaxation after everything is finally over, death allows us to have a peaceful and settled mind. New laws are followed in the different world, in which the writer states, “We slowly drove – He knew no haste and I had put away my labor and my leisure too, for his civility.” In our current society, speed is what we crave and process on. Here in the city, we are always rushing to get from place to place. Our minds are so unsettled as we are constantly processing new thoughts and experiences. Contrarily, by following Death, everything slows down and is taken down a notch. Our lives tend to slow down when death affects us in anyway. When we are faced with death, we often have to forget and give up on things such as “labor” and “leisure”. We do not think about things like life and work when we are close to the end, we don’t worry about the events that have happened to us in the past. During an encounter with death, Emily was only worried about the moments she was about to experience. This poem can be applied to our day-to-day life as we are usually preoccupied with things that seem irrelevant at the moment of death. It is at that moment where our need for haste comes to an end.

Bo Lo

Victoria Barreras

Marvin Lee

Correspondences (469-470)

1. Colonnade

A row of columns supporting a roof, usually trees or other tall objects

People that give support to and take care of nature

2. Glades

An open space in a forest

Man goes through nature while getting stares from others

3. Dwindling

Diminish gradually in size, amount, or strength

Echoes that fade away as time passes

4. Thronging

A crowd present in an area

Echoes coming together to become one

5. Prairies

A large open area of grassland

Everything is new and untouched, while other places are contaminated

6. Pervasiveness

Quality of spreading widely or being present throughout an area or a group of people

Scent that is enjoyable and fills our body with pleasure

Interpretation

Charles Baudelaire used a lot of symbolism in his poems. He compares humans and their mindsets to nature. Often we forget that we are one with nature. When we remember that we are a part of nature we can go gain a better understanding of ourselves and nature. He describes this connection that we have with nature by using this mystical world he creates. We also think that he sends a message about how one should follow the morals they set for themselves and not follow anyone else’s thinking in order to be able to achieve true happiness. The main theme that he tries to show is that everything that involves human life corresponds to things found in nature.

How is this Interpretation Relevant
Our interpretation is that we have gotten out of touch with nature and that can obviously been seen in today’s world where most of us live in cities and we’re always in a rush to get somewhere so we don’t pay attention to the world around us. For example, people who walk out onto the streets are usually on their cellphones and they’re not talking to each other or paying attention to the changes around them. In a way, we have become so disconnected from the world even though these new technologies were meant to bring us closer together. True happiness comes from within and is derived from one’s own views and morals and we shouldn’t conform or compromise our principles just to please others. In today’s world, our politicians all say one thing but they do something else once they get elected and the reason for that is because they think it will get them even more votes in the future and make everyone happy but no one is truly happy with the way Washington works today. Both of these interpretations show the problems in the world today.

1. In Feng Menglong’s narrative, “Du Tenth Sinks the Jewel Box in Anger,” the emphasis placed on money and power is varies greatly between Du Tenth and Li Jia and that difference eventually resulted in Li Jia’s betrayal that left Du Tenth heartbroken.
2. In Feng Menglong’s narrative, “Du Tenth Sinks the Jewel Box in Anger”, severe tensions between the value systems adhered to by Du Tenth and Li Jia ultimately led to the downfall of their romantic relationship as a result of Du Tenth’s blinded attachment to love and Li Jia’s allegiance to money and power.

Henrik Ibsen’s play, Hedda Gabler, portrays one of main characters, Hedda Tesman as a very manipulative woman who uses her wit to control her friends and family. In Act 2, during a conversation with Mrs. Elvsted and Ejlert Lovborg, Hedda remarked on Ejlert, “Because otherwise people might get the idea that you don’t, deep down inside, feel really bold, really sure of yourself….That condescending little smile when you didn’t dare join them at the table (814).” Ejlert originally refused a drink because he was a recovering alcoholic and through her words, Hedda basically hinted on the “idea” that the others at the party would think that Ejlert couldn’t handle his alcohol due to a lack of confidence. Hedda mentioned the “smile” Judge Brack had on his face when Ejlert didn’t join him for punch. Hedda was able to make Ejlert feel insecure and in an effort to prove how “bold” he was, Ejlert downs a few glasses of punch. As Ejlert drank on, he asked Mrs. Elvsted inappropriate questions which he later apologized for and admitted that what he did was stupid. Hedda was clever in not directly saying that Ejlert couldn’t handle his alcohol so as not to make him upset with her but she did manipulate Ejlert into drinking alcohol after he abstained from it for years.

Both Du Tenth from “Du Tenth Sinks the Jewel Box in Anger” and the narrator of “Life of a Sensuous Woman” are prostitutes who have had significant effects on the lives of men. Both women are seen as independent but they are different when it comes to their views on love. Du Tenth falls in love with Li Jia and shows him great sincerity and devotion as seen here, “Truly, affection as deep as unfathomed sea; loyalty as heavy as mountains, but higher” (501). Li Jia ended up betraying her in the end by trading her for some money and Du Tenth is heartbroken over this and remarks, “You have abandoned me at mid journey and betrayed my earnest heart” (516). The narrator is different from Du Tenth in that she isn’t interested in love but rather lust and she can’t seem to satisfy her sexual needs so in the end she has slept with more than 10,000 men. The narrator is simply chasing after sexual pleasure and money and her way of thinking prevented her from finding true love. A clear similarity between the two characters is that money ruined both characters’ ability find meaningful love in their lives.