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

Maria:

Passage 2 offers an interesting use of second person as it describes what Felipe is seeing in the house as well as his emotions for Auro. The second person allows the reader to relate more to Felipe and almost feel the emotions that he is feeling.  On page 836, the narrator says, “You’re thinking about this as you follow her out of the room, and you discover that you’ve got to follow her with your ears instead of your eyes: you follow the rustle of her skirt, the rustle of taffeta, and you’re anxious now to look into her eyes again”. If first person were to be used, the quote would be “I’m thinking about this as I follow her out of the room, and I discover that I have to follow her with my ears instead of my eyes: I follow the rustle of her skirt, the rustle of taffeta, and I’m anxious now to look into her eyes again”. The translation to first person rather than second person still allows the story to feel personalized and does not allow for much difficulty while translating. It sounds more like a narrative of Felipe rather than personalized to the reader. The use of second person serves as a guide  to the reader and seems like there is a commanding voice that is enabled Felipe to think and act; it is somewhat supernatural. On the other hand, the use of first person makes it seem like Felipe is in charge of his actions and he is describing his thoughts and actions.

Tara:

As Maria stated the use of second person gives us the feeling that we are in the scenario and experiencing what Felipe is experiencing. I think when translating the passage into first person , you also still have the ability to envision what is happening. It gives you the impression that you are hearing Felipe’s thoughts and feelings. However, translating the quote into third person would be“ He’s thinking about this as he follows her out of the room, and he discovers that he has to follow her with his ears instead of his eyes: he follows the rustle of her skirt, the rustle of taffeta, and he’s anxious now to look into her eyes again”.  This translation takes away the feeling of being in the scenario and makes the quote seem much less personal. The original quote states “you’re anxious now to look into her eyes again” I think Fuentes used second person for his work because he wanted the reader to feel that sense of anxiety that Felipe was feeling. By translating the quote into third person this would take away the personal feel Fuentes’s work gives the reader.

1. Can the lawyer in “Bartleby the Scrivener”  be considered a hero during his time employing Bartleby, could he have done anything to make the outcome different?
2. In Kafka’s “Metamorphosis” explain how Gregors transformation may have caused each of his family members to experience a metamorphosis as well.

-Tara

NICOLE &TARA

The Metamorphosis can be connected to Allegory of the Cave by relating Gregor to one of the prisoners in the cave. The last few pages of The Metamorphosis speaks on the death of Gregor and how his family neglected him. His open mindedness to accept life for what it is and how crazy it seems is similar to the prisoner who sees the shadow of the birds and escapes to see reality. Both readings describe dark places where they experience being uncomfortable. On page 239 of The Metamorphosis Gregor describes his experience being locked in a room. “ What now?” wondered Gregor, and looked around in the dark. He soon made the discovery that he could no longer move.” Gregor experiences a trapped feeling that the prisoner also experiences in his cave. Both readings also look for the reality of life. Gregor goes to work and accepts the reaction of the clerks and is okay with either outcome. The prisoner escapes the prison after seeing the shadows and finds that there are in fact real animals outside of the cave.

Tara:

Kafka’s Metamorphosis can be compared to Plato’s Allegory of the Cave in that Gregor’s family is similar to the prisoners in the cave who refused to accept reality. Gregor’s family found their son had become a cockroach, and this was not a complete shock to them. As the story goes on Gregor dies after being mistreated by his family for quite some time, and they still were not distraught over losing their son. Once they discovered Gregor’s dead body the family is described as “ Sitting back, comfortable in their seats, they discussed the prospects of their future; it turned out that on a closer inspection these were not all bad,” (241). This description can be compared to the prisoners in the Allegory of the Cave because his family clearly realized Gregor had died, yet their first instinct was to discuss the future. Like the prisoners Gregor’s family did not want to accept the truth that Gregor was dead, they wanted to continue living their lives as if they did not just suffer a great loss.

Maria:

3) Many people see this ending as somehow unrealistic. Do you agree? Why or why not? How does it being realistic, not entirely realistic, or both contribute to your understanding of the ending?

The ending of the story was very dark as it concluded with Georg killing himself. I see this ending as an somewhat of an unrealistic approach as the story only described one situation in which Georg and his father was argueing. However, this shows how deeply disconnected their relationship was; in that the suffering led Georg to commit suicide. Georg’s father had such a large impact on Georg when he says “I condemn you to death drowning”, that Georg look it pretty literal by committing suicide off a bridge. The ending being unrealistic, at first makes it difficult to understand the meaning behind Georg’s death however, thinking about the purpose of the death at the end of the story, allows the readers to see beyond the plain text. Georg felt truly hurt by his father’s words as well as his family situation. The darkness in his father’s room was a symbol of the relationship they had towards each other. Even when Georg attempted to open the window to let some light in, Georg’s father said he preferred it to be dark. This in turn had a significant impact on Georg which is shown at the end.

Nicole:

Great response Maria. I like how you related the death of Georg with his tainted relationship with his father. However, I don’t think the ending was unrealistic. I can see why one would say the ending seemed a little unrealistic at first, but if you read closely to the story we can tell how tainted and damaged the relationship with Georg and his father affected Georg, which can possibly result in him harming himself. I do agree with you when you said, “However, this shows how deeply disconnected their relationship was; in that the suffering led Georg to commit suicide”. He always felt anxious and on his toes and throughout the story we recognize his constant cry for his dad’s approval. If his dad wasn’t happy with him he wasn’t happy with himself either. The disapproval of his father caused a lot of darkness in his life, which is why when his father condemned him to drowning, he actually went through with it.

Tara:

What is the significance of the very last line of the story: “At this moment, almost endless traffic rolled across the bridge”?

In Kafka’s ending of The Judgement I think he wanted to show us how the approval of Georg’s father was extremely significant. Georg went to his father’s room to receive some sort of guidance or acceptance from him; but the outcome was very different. I agree with nicole that the ending is realistic because Georg had such a strained relationship with his father already. The things his father said to him during their argument showed Georg that things between him and his father would probably never change. The last line in the story “At this moment an almost endless traffic rolled across the bridge” signifies Georg’s freedom through his suicide. His last line before he died was “ But dear parents, I have always loved you” this shows that escaping his father’s judgement through suicide was not an act out of anger. The endless traffic rolled over the bridge after Georg committed suicide because that is what he wanted to do. He didn’t want people to know or feel sorry for him, his decision to commit suicide was his attempt to find happiness.

Nicole:

Monkey seemed to be on the verge of reaching his bliss when he is on his adventure to reach his goals. His realization of his true self peeks through as he is on his journey with the other monkeys on page 11. He describes the difference between two languages and about how birds and beasts have their own separate language. “Birds have their own language; beasts have their beasts talk.” This can be interpreted as monkey comparing his motivation to the motivation of others. It seems that throughout the story monkey is always willing to take risks and go on adventures for what he truly wants, and at this point in the story, he seems determined to keep going until he is satisfied and reaches his bliss. The story then goes on to further explain how monkey tries to be a leader to the other monkeys by motivating them as a group to continue this adventure.  ‘“we none of us know where this stream comes from. As we have nothing to do this morning, wouldn’t it be fun to follow it up to its source?” with a loop of joy, dragging their sons and carrying their daughters, calling out to younger brother and to elder brother, the whole troupe rushed along the streamside and scrambled up the steep places, till they reached the source of the stream. They found themselves standing before the curtain of a great waterfall.’ This is a source of bliss for monkey. The waterfall can symbolize his accomplishment of meeting a new obstacle or something greater than what has already achieved.

Maria:

Nicole, I completely agree with you that through those quotes he is always willing to stay on his journey to enlightenment and bliss. He seems to be very eager and determined to keep on going as well as inspire others to go along with him. I do think this will change as he encounters obstacles and challenges along his way.

Monkey appropriately fits into the Heroic Journey model because after setting on his journey to find enlightenment he hits a rough patch with his companion Tripitaka. The stage Threshold: Point of letting go refers to the moment of one’s heroic journey in which the person comes close to giving up. In the text, Monkey had a setback in his journey when he killed the robbers who had stopped him and Tripitaka. Tripitaka was furious with Monkey that he had gone about his old ways and told Monkey he could not go with him to India. Monkey was at the Point of Letting Go when he says “All right! I’ll give up being a priest, and won’t go with you to India. You needn’t go on at me anymore. I’m off!”. Monkey is comfortable and used to being a king, so much that when Tripitaka yelled at him, Monkey could not take the critique. This put him very close to the edge of letting go of the journey he is on. If Monkey can give up that easily, it makes me wonder how serious he is about the journey he is on and what will happen when he faces more serious challenges.

Later on in the text, Monkey gets close to giving up on his journey when he  encounters a dragon that swallowed one of the horses. Monkey says to Bodhisattva, “…But if we are going to have encounters like this all the time, I shall have hard work keeping alive at all, let alone any thought of achieving salvation. I’m not going on!” Monkey is getting overwhelmed by all the unexpected encounters he has and if considering if the journey is worth it. I do not think Monkey realized how difficult the journey, as it is not only a physically effortful journey but also requires a lot of mental strength.

Tara:

Maria your perspective is very interesting because Monkey does seem to give up quite often, and he becomes agitated with Tripitaka easily. Monkey loses his patience and it does seem as if he is close to letting go when criticized by Tripitaka. I do feel that throughout the journey he will attempt to accept other people’s critiques and even accepts help from others and certain points. Tripitaka experiences call to adventure during his heroic journey shortly after he and Monkey began their journey. After Monkey became angry with Tripitaka for scolding him when he killed the robbers, Monkey ran away. During this time Tripitaka came across an elderly lady. Just when he was set on traveling to India alone without a disciple, she convinced him otherwise. On page 21 the women states “ You surely don’t expect to get there with only one horse and no disciple to wait upon you?”. In this statement she is persuading Tripitaka to rethink his decision to travel on his own. She then fully persuades Tripitaka when she offers to find Monkey and states “I’ll go look for him and send him back to you. Make him wear this cap and coat. If he disobeys you, say the spell, he’ll give no more trouble and never dare to leave you.”(22). The women convinced Tripitaka that this journey would not be possible without Monkey, and by giving him the cap and coat she gave Tripitaka control over Monkey. Although Monkey and Tripitaka began their adventure before this incident, once Tripitaka was giving the opportunity to have control over Monkey; that was his true call to adventure.

Maria Loginova:

The significance of Monkey being given the name Sun Wukong, meaning “Wake-to-Vacuity” can be due to his journey towards wisdom. Wake to Vacuity can be defined as beginning a journey to empty the illusion that one is separate from everyone else. To be exposed to emptiness is to open the self to the truth; that people are all connected. In order for Monkey to achieve enlightenment, he must combat the six perfections. One of the six perfections, wisdom is important to Monkey because to be wise is not only to be smart but understand what will make the journey to enlightenment successful. On page 434, the immortal youth asked Monkey, “Are you a seeker of the Way?”, this highlights the importance of wisdom in attaining enlightenment and surpassing emptiness as to be a seeker is to actively learn and try to understand. Monkey needs to experience wisdom in not only learning about the Daoist ways but also learning what the deeper meaning to his journey is. For example, on page 433, the woodcutter said “What a bonehead fellow you are!… I have just finished telling you these things, and you still don’t understand. If I go with you, won’t I be neglecting my livelihood? And who will take care of my mother?…” This shows that Monkey needs to find wisdom within himself and learn from the people around him. Monkey expressed gratitude towards the woodcutter who told Monkey about his life and the commitments he has to others. Monkey needs to think about the paradox that he in fact left the other monkeys behind without a king.
Nicole Mazza:

Great response Maria! I like how you incorporated the meaning of sun wukongs name into the dialogue between him and the woodcutter. I agree that monkey is in search for wisdom. He spends a lot of time on his journey looking for answers on ways to find eternal life. I also realize that monkey is in search of something deeper than eternal life, a life with meaning. His thirst for wisdom derives from his emptiness in his current life. According to the text you referred to, it seems that monkey becomes persistent and more optimistic as his journey continues regardless of any negative comments given by the wood cutter. Monkey realizes there has to be more to life than what he already has lived. One part of the story stood out to me where it explains monkeys journey. “ The monkey king searched diligently for the way of immortality, but he had no chance of meeting it” page 431. This was interesting to me because it can be interpreted in different ways. Monkey could’ve had no way of meeting immortality because he had yet to find someone to explain the ways of eternal life, or immortality can be seen as a way to fulfill his emptiness and he felt that he’d never find it. I Also believe monkey looks for deeper meaning to take into a potential eternal life. When being asked what his surname was he replies “i have no xing. If a man rebukes me, i am not offended; if he hits me, i am not angered…” Page 435. This was interesting due to it being similar to Buddhist religion where they practice this kind of peace for their own deeper searching within themselves.

Tara Lewkowicz:

Nicole, I liked your response however I had a different perspective with Monkey’s encounter with the woodcutter. I thought that what the woodcutter was saying to Monkey was indeed negative, however Monkey could have taken that knowledge and gained wisdom from it. He could have had a small look at the life of someone who actually is discontent and has valid reasons to feel that way. Monkey was given the name Sun Wukong which translates to “ Wake to Vacuity”. Vacuity to me means emptiness or the lack of content. Monkey’s journey towards wisdom intertwines with the thought of him having to wake up from “vacuity”. He should learn to be content with the knowledge he has discovered, and life he has lived. On page 428 Monkey was explaining to the other Monkeys why he was not content, in which he said “ If we die, shall we not have lived in vain, not being able to rank forever among the Heavenly beings?” Monkey felt that although their lives on the immortal mountain was nice, he wanted to search for more. Monkey can potentially overcome this feeling of discontent by achieving one of the six perfections which is wisdom. Wisdom would allow Monkey to realize the beauty he has in his life, and learn from and take in the things he discovers through his journey. While on his journey, Monkey discovers a woodcutter who is singing a tune. Monkey immediately assumed he was immortal but was later told on page 433 “ the tune of that lyric is named ‘ A Court Full of Blossoms,’ and it was taught to me by an immortal, a neighbor of mine. He saw that I had to struggle to make a living and that my days were full of worries: so he told me to recite the poem whenever I was troubled.” Monkey was unaware of the feeling of struggle to make a living and having to worry about surviving each day. Monkey would obtain wisdom from understanding the woodcutters life and realizing that his life is much more fulfilling than he thinks it is.

I think the main theme in this poem is to accept your flaws as a human being. Part of being human is having flaws and having “misfortune” however, the only way to overcome this feeling is to accept it. As human beings we make mistakes and often compare ourselves to others when it comes to “loss or gain”. This is something that needs to be ignored in order to achieve ultimate love for the world and oneself. People tend to feel inferior to others and this is something which will prevent you from achieving ultimate happiness. Tao feels you should “surrender yourself humbly” meaning accept your flaws as a human, and accept who you are as a whole. Then you will have the ability to “love the world as your own self; then you can truly care for all things”. Meaning once you accept your flaws you will then see all of the importance in the world besides your own desires and flaws.