Dickinson Response:

Emily Dickinson is a very complex and talented poet.  This poem of hers is about pure truth and that there is no substitute for it. In this poem, Dickinson draws our attention by giving the poem a very ironic title. From the mere reading of the title, something clicks into my mind- if we have to only tell the truth why should we be telling it at an angle or inclined to a certain direction? Do we have something to hide? On the other hand, it’s sending a message that we should be careful how we tell the truth.

The author acknowledges that the truth will never be hidden for long; she compares the truth with light which cannot be hidden. The more you try to cover it up the more it shines brighter and brighter. Therefore it is always good and in our best interest to tell the truth. But as I read this poem my question is this, what drove the author to write such a powerful message on the truth? Was it a personal experience or an observation?

“The truth must dazzle gradually” shows how sequential the truth emerges. This gives an idea that the truth comes to be known slowly by everyone as the lighting comes slowly from the heavens and the entire world sees it. Dickinson also shows how impossible it is to hide the truth forever; she compares this impossibility with all men going blind. All in all, the entire message is clear that telling the truth is the best option and if it isn’t told it will surely come out sooner rather than later.

Manifesto:

Manifesto of Futurist Woman

A futuristic woman is shown to be the empowered woman who according to the author should not be inferior to a man. This woman is a fiction being that the author acknowledges does not exist. However, the author tries to show how woman and the man are complementary, and both have similar characteristics. The irony is when the author says that without feminism aspects are incomplete. On the other hand, the woman should have the aspects of a man to achieve this equality. The author despises those women who fold their arms and wait for their husbands for provision. The author sees the submissive women to the point of crying in front of their husbands to be inferior to prostitutes. The author thinks that women should stand on their own feet and claim their rightful place amongst men.

In politics across the world, politics are dominated by men, having less than 1% women in top leadership. This is a complete irony given that half of the world’s population is made up of women. A study done by political scientists at Harvard University reveals that women do not vote for their fellow women. (Blanton S. et al. 38) This undermines their say and influence in the modern society. When we talk about an inferior woman becoming a futurist woman then the support must come from their fellow women first before they get to the masculine aspect. What women require to bring a revolution in the world is unity and support within themselves. If this happens, their male counterparts will have no choice but to oblige.

Reference

Blanton, Shannon L, and Charles W. Kegley. World Politics: Trend and Transformation . , 2017.

The specific definition of ‘realism’ has been debated by a number of scholars. According to readings as well as the art publications, the truthful, impartial reflection on reality is shown through a number of types of artistic creativity. Eliot described realism as ‘the principle that all beauty and truth are to be attained with a faithful and a humble study of nature.’ According to her, realism was not limited to mean a naïve concept which writing can be clearly taken to represent the world in reality, Eliot saw realism as an ethical choice as shown in her essay ‘The Natural History of German Life’ , when it says : ‘Art is the nearest thing to life; it is a mode of amplifying experience and extending our contact with our fellow-men beyond the bounds of our personal lot.’

Adam Bede is considered to be George Eliot’s earliest full-length publication, however not the first fiction:. Around 1865 Eliot considered herself an essayist, editor, and lastly reviewer, but she later mentions that ‘it had constantly been a vague illusion of mine on the fact that some time or other I may draft a novel’. She personally feared of being ‘deficient in dramatic power’, which is considered the limit of realism. On the other hand, Adam Bede’s story on the gripping of seduction showed that Eliot had no particular need in worrying. And as “Scenes of the Clerical Lifes” had a decent response, it was Adam Bede that became the bestseller.

The dictionary basically describes ‘Tradition’ as an ‘inherited, customary or established thought pattern, behavior or action (as a practice religious or a custom of social nature)’. Eliot starts the essay with a general take towards ‘Tradition’. She argues that every country and race does possess a creative and crucial turn of mind, as well as emphasizes the need of critical thinking.

Eliot made a comparison of her literature works to painting. This was because impressionism development was considered as a partial response by artists to the issues presented by painters. Both landscape and portrait types of paintings were considered somewhat lacking and lacking in reality as photography shaped lifelike imageries much more competently and reliably.

Realism intersects with the depiction of religious subjects or religion. Examining various faith traditions via devotional images and sacred spaces gives a framework on a thematic survey of societal duties and artistic styles and provides contemporary insight into the faith traditions and contemporary art.

Realism intersects with the representation of social class. Social realism is basically an international art of movement, which includes the painters work, printmakers, filmmakers and photographers, drawing attention to the daily conditions of the the poor and working class. Social realists are crucial of the social beliefs that maintain these conditions. In conclusion, the movement’s features vary from country to country; and almost utilize a kind of critical realism.

In “Incidents In The Life Of A Slave Girl” Harriet Jacobs talks about the life of oppression and tension during her childhood. It’s a narration full of distress and breathtaking happenings that surround the little girl from when she was six years old. Growing up, Jacobs is forced to deal with the  sudden passing of her mother. She mourns her mother and learns about women in slavery at a very young age. She highlights that she knew about slavery from her mother’s death when she heard other people whispering about slavery.  Later on Jacobs experiences even more traumatic events as her friends died and a little later her father who was her only hope died. Slavery was proving to be harsh and punishing to the slaves. After the death of her father the reality of slavery appeared to her and her brother Willie. They confronted each other as they tried to figure out their entire life in slavery. For example, food was not adequate and one was prevented from visiting relatives like grandmothers who had something for the children to take. The slaves were treated worse than dogs and Jacobs came across a slave groaning in pain as he was being whipped by his master. This was a traumatic experience for her as a young girl. The narration depicts the condition of a female child in the hands of slavery and the abuse she had to go through.

The Seneca Falls declaration of 1848 was brought about in efforts to fight for the rights of women in slavery. It aimed at discussing the religious, civil and social rights and conditions of women and female children. The role of women in society was to be revisited and strict policies were developed. The event brought about a heated talk about the rights of women in voting and though many elites disregarded the issue but attendees such as Fredrick Douglas proposed the universal suffrage to be followed and on that day the women signed the documents that demanded their rights be granted. The convention was geared towards moral, civil and social rights where revolutionary ideas were brought out and the struggle for the rights of women to vote began.

Fredrick Douglass on the other hand speaks eloquently and strongly about the age of slavery and his experience before escaping from slavery. He spoke to the people about the oppressive nature of slavery and the masters. He called the government that supported slavery oppressive, unreasonable and unjust to humanity. He said that oppression made the bright men mad and that it was not the right thing for any state to do. He talked about the fathers of the citizens’ dream of having a place equal to everyone and the manner in which a few greedy people killed this dream.

Looking at the three narratives, it is clear that the Jacobs narrative was more directed at women’s place in society and was from a personal experience of slavery while growing up similar to the case of Fredrick and the Seneca Falls declaration. In Jacobs’s narrative the slavery was real from a young age which other documents aren’t able to relate to on a first hand basis. To promote her arguments Jacobs’s narrative should include styles such as painting real pictures of the old days and also use of other first hand experiences involved in those days.

Keats’ To Autumn captures the beauty of the autumn through Keats’ eyes who gives the poem a classical touch that goes a long way in establishing the authenticity of the poem. Sticking to the traditional styles of poetry, Keats uses iambic pentameters to display the structure and style that is synonymous with the typical romantic poems. Looking at the landscape that is described by Keats, it’s easy to realize a typical rural English countryside. As a romantic poet, he uses nature as a tool for the promotion of his ideas. Several similarities and differences can be singled out from the two poems. First off is the fact that both poems focus on autumn, though to a varying degree, for Hughes, the autumn is given a negative connotation while Keats offers a more positive tone in his description, an element that can be associated with his romanticism context. For Hughes, the first line of the poem not only repeats the title of the pome but also conveys the intended message of the cycle of seasons. In other words, the reader is able to connect the progression of seasons from summer to autumn. He uses strong words such as wrung and plucked, indicating the seasonal transition to invoke strong imagery within the reader’s mind. This is proven in the quotation: “There came a day that caught the summer, Wrung its neck, Plucked it…..”

When compared to Keats’ “To Autumn” a striking difference can be found in the use of a sweeter and more appealing language, where Keats uses a more mellow voice in describing the same transition. For example; “Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun;, Conspiring with him how to load and bless, With fruit the vines that round the thatch-eves run.” Additionally, both poems utilize personification as a way of creating an illusion with the changing seasons effectively. For Hughes, an example can be found in: “And what shall I do with the sun?, The day said, the day said. Roll him away till he´s cold and small’” and Keats example being; “And fill all fruit with ripeness to the core; to swell the gourd, and plump the hazel shells.”

While Keats’ poem offers the reader a more subtle, seamless and appealing transition from summer to autumn, for Hughes, the story of autumn can only be told through the violent events that indicate the death of summer. Assonance is another major similarity that springs up from both poems. Both poets utilize this style at the very end of each line in their poems, such as Hughes’; “Stuff them with apple and blackberry pie They´ll love me then till the day they die”, and in Keats’ poem: “And still more, later flowers for the bees, Until they think warm days will never cease.” The beauty of autumn can still be appreciated in both poems, though with differing perspectives influenced by the context and setting the writers chose.

Link:

http://a-poem-a-day-project.blogspot.co.ke/2015/09/there-came-day-and-his-name-was-autumn.html

Toying with Wrathful forces: How Frankenstein’s Monster Has Been Adopted in Film

Since its publication in 1818, Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley, has attracted a plethora of adaptations ranging from cartoons, plays, novels, movies and television programs. One such adaptation is the movie, “Victor Frankenstein”, starring James McAvoy and Daniel Radcliff as Victor Frankenstein and his aide respectively. The movie was released in November 11 2015, as a film adaptation of the novel with contemporary elements added to the 200-year old science-fiction horror story. A link to the movie is https://fmovies.se/film/victor-frankenstein.09m3/4qv65k.

The film was directed by Paul McGuigan, and produced by Davis Entertainment and TSG Entertainment companies, with 20^th Century Fox being its distributor. The film first premiered in Los Angeles. It tells the story of Victor Frankenstein through the eyes of his aide, Igor. Although the story of the movie follows the general idea of the novel about an artificial creature created by a scientist, which turns out to be a huge monster, it side tracks from the original story in various aspects, and attempts to offer various explanations which the author left out of the novel.

The first interesting thing I noticed about this film is that it attempts to respond to Shelley’s novel by explaining how the monster was created. The movie begins by stating that a lot is remembered about the monster, but not the man, and it adds that sometimes the monster is the man. This implies that what Victor Frankenstein created, although accidentally, might have been a version of himself. Additionally, it is also interesting to see that the original story didn’t explain how exactly Frankenstein created the monster, except for the information that Dr. Frankenstein discovers an important principle of life which was not known to basic scientists. In the film, however, the scientist is shown to use body parts stolen from corpses and shocked by electricity. The film also shows how the monster is killed by its creators, which departs from the original story in which the monster decided to kill itself out of guilt.

Notably, at some points, the film adaptation departs from the story line in the original novel, but at certain points, the two stories seem synchronized. For example, while the entire first chapter of the novel is dedicated to offering a background of the main character as a child, and his family (including mother, father, siblings and future wife), the film adaptation only focuses on Frankenstein’s life as an adult. Chapter two of the novel shows that Frankenstein attends the lecture by Mr. Waldman, which was when he begins to love physical sciences, especially chemistry. The earlier segments of the film capture Frankenstein’s enthusiasm with physical sciences, and how this leads him to make the monster.

Additionally, the film and the book also share some thematic similarities, including fiction, horror and ethical issues that arise from experiments involving corpses and human life. In both versions, the scientist is portrayed as a man struggling to kill his creation after realizing that it is vicious and may cause more harm than good.

Ever since I was a young kid, I was also acting a few years older than my actual age. Why? I’m not exactly sure but I do think its in part due to the age gap between my siblings and I. The closest sibling in age to me is my brother, who is 8 years older than I am, then my other brother who is 12 years older and then my sister who is 14 years older. They’re all married with children now and as I was growing up I was always around them and their friends which may be the reasoning to my maturity.

Family baby

This was not my decision

What more can I do

During my senior year of high school, my schedule was extremely flexible so, naturally, I started to show up to the family office to try and get myself involved in the family business. I never really loved school but was able to accept the fact that there wasn’t really a choice and maintaining good grades weren’t an option, rather they were a must. As the year progressed, I slowly went from answering phone calls and doing basic non proprietary office tasks to assuming more major roles in the business. Once I graduated and that summer rolled around I was working full time, all summer long.

College is starting

Rather continue working

Why do I need school?

As I was preparing to start college I was planning on working 3 days of the week and doing 2 full days of school, that way I would be able to max out my days and not waste any of my time. A characteristic that my entire family has is that we like to always keep things moving and keep occupied at all times. Unfortunately, as a freshman you are a placed in a block schedule so my plans did not work out. The first semester I was barely able to go to work, Fridays and sometimes for about an hour or two after school.  After getting a taste of the work life over the summer and then going back to school I was starting to miss it. No worrying about any assignments due that night or anything of that nature. My mom didn’t love that I was getting so involved at work because she knew it was going to affect my grades. Now, a year later, I am beginning to realize that my mom was right, and always will be. I’m starting to feel the pressure that I grew up too quickly and am not enjoying these years to their fullest potential, and so I am extremely conflicted.

Not sure what to do

Do I work or go to school?

Balance is needed

I have decided that its time to step back from work to balance out my life and school work. Although the semester is only starting, I am already feeling a difference and feel more relaxed. Balance is such an important factor and I’m glad I realized it now rather than later on in life.

Hey everyone, my name is Michael Rosilio, and I’m a sophomore at Baruch College. I was born and raised in Brooklyn and am majoring in Real Estate Finance. The essay by Kant had many valid arguments, Kant wrote the essay in 1784 to basically reply to a question that had been earlier put forward by a government official. The official had posed a question concerning removing clergies from marriages and Kant’s reply was the most famous one. In his essay, he emphasized on the then present situation. The situation present at the time was that there was a big difference between the previous eras and the present and also the fact that the world was moving to a new kind of direction. Kant through his essay discusses why enlightenment was absent and what it would take for enlightenment to flourish.

According to Kant, enlightenment is what is achieved when a person frees themselves from the inability to make decisions on their own that leads to them relying on other people’s opinions in decision making. That inability is what Kant referred to as immaturity. According to Kant immaturity hinders people from using their own judgement and understanding their surroundings, which leads to people depending on others to help them decide things for themselves.

Kant draws his argument by comparing how the government influences its citizens to how tamed animals are controlled; Kant argues that the government uses a set of ideas and beliefs to tame its people which then leads to the citizens to naturally agree with those ideas and beliefs without questioning them; a situation that intensifies their immaturity. Kant feels that this government influence is the same as that of tamed animals in the sense that they cant cross certain boundaries because they have been made aware of the danger that lies ahead.

Kant feels that it is difficult to achieve enlightenment due to the fact that it is usually hard for a man to achieve maturity on his own. However, he argues that maturity is easy to achieve when a number of people act together. This is because it is difficult for a person who has been relying on other peoples’ opinions to break from the chain and begin thinking on their own. That person may feel that the imperfections in their decision making will be exposed when they make mistakes while thinking on their own.

Kant feels that freedom is essential for enlightenment to be achieved. He argues that people should be free to express their thoughts openly because that will help influence the decisions being made by those holding authoritative positions. Freedom brings about constructive criticism and it is that lack of such freedom that made it difficult to achieve enlightenment. I do believe we are currently living in an enlightened age due to all of our advances in society & technology, however not the entire world, rather only a specific amount of countries that are so called “first world countries”. The sole fact that we are allowed to think freely In this country proves we are living in an enlightened age.