Surprise: One of the sketches in The Shack on Mango Street that surprised me was “The First Job”. In this sketch, Esperanza accepts a job as a nanny for a wealthy family. She soon realizes that the job isn’t what she thought it would be because she has to clean the whole house, in addition to watching the kids. This surprised me because it highlights the exploitation and injustice that many low-income workers face, and it was unexpected to explore this issue in a book aimed at a younger audience. Confused: The vignette that confused me was “The Hips”. In this vignette, Esperanza reflects on the ways in which women are objectified and sexualized in society. While I appreciated the message of the sketch, I was confused by Esperanza’s seeming implication that all women with curvy hips are somehow connected to their own objectification. This seems to reinforce harmful stereotypes and could be interpreted as victim-blaming.
Jiaying Chen
First, Bettelheim sees the story of “Little Snow White” as a story about the psychological struggle of complex maturation, especially in overcoming the Oedipal complex. He believes that the stepmother represents the child’s fear of separation from the mother and the desire to eliminate the father. This can be seen in Oates’ “Where are you going, where are you from?” through the character of Arnold Friend, who represents the fear of sexual awakening and the threat of male authority. Similarly, Sexton’s poem “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” highlights the psychological tensions of young girls through the protagonist’s attempts to cope with the world of adult sexuality. Second, Bettelheim argues that fairy tales provide a safe way for children to cope with anxiety and fear. In “Little Snow White,” the forest represents the subconscious, while the dwarf symbolizes aspects of the mind. Oates’ stories and Sexton’s poetry also use symbolism to explore the psychological tensions and fears of their characters. For example, Oates uses the car as a symbol of freedom and danger, while Sexton explores themes of jealousy and aging through the role of the evil stepmother. Finally, Bettelheim argues that fairy tales offer a sense of hope and resolution as the protagonists overcome obstacles and achieve personal growth. In “Little Snow White,” the character eventually triumphs over the evil stepmother and lives happily ever after with the prince. Similarly, in Oates’ story, the character of Connie must face the fears of adulthood and sexuality, but ultimately chooses to face them head-on. Sexton’s poetry also offers a sense of resolution as Snow White accepts her finitude and the inevitability of aging
In my understanding, the story can be seen as a cautionary tale about the dangers of youth and childishness, the power dynamics between the sexes, and the temptations of evil. The interpretation of the “inverted fairy tale” is particularly thought-provoking. The story follows Connie, a young girl who becomes obsessed with her beauty and the attention she receives from men. She is drawn away from the safety of her home and into the clutches of the villain Arnold Freund, who represents the quintessential wolf in sheep’s clothing. This reversal of the classic fairy tale of a young girl encountering a dangerous wolf in the woods is powerful and disturbing, highlighting the dangers posed by too much trust and naivete. I think the story can also be read as a commentary on gender power dynamics. Arnold Freund uses his muscle power, personal charm, and manipulation to seize Connie, who appears vulnerable and powerless in his presence. Connie’s mother, on the other hand, is portrayed as weak and submissive, constantly deferring to her husband’s wishes. Thus, the story can be seen as a critique of a patriarchal society in which men have power over women, leaving them vulnerable to exploitation and abuse.
I read Lu Xun’s poem “Swimming,” and my initial assumption was that the poem represented a puzzle that had to be solved. I may have focused on finding a clear interpretation of the poem and ignored the emotions and themes that the poem conveys. However, after reading Hirsch’s essay, I would realize that this assumption would limit my understanding of the poem, which Hirsch suggests should not be “solved” like a puzzle, but should be felt and experienced. In this poem, I would realize that the theme it conveys is not just the technique and skill of swimming, but a deeper sense of being and thinking about the meaning of life. I would realize that there are multiple interpretations of this poem, and that your interpretation is only one possibility.
From what I understand, reading poetry requires a proper attitude and skill. In William Shakespeare’s Eighteen Sonnets, I believe that having the proper attitude and skill is necessary to understand the beauty and message of the poems. The poet compares his beloved to a summer’s day, but he asserts that she is more beautiful and peaceful than any summer’s day. To understand and appreciate the subtleties of this comparison, the reader needs a certain attitude and skill. For example, when the poet says, “And summer’s lease hath all too short a date,” he implies that summer is short-lived and temporary. Readers must be willing to recognize and accept the transience of life and have the skills to understand the language and imagery used in the poem. In addition, the reader must have the proper attitude to appreciate the message behind the poem about the eternal nature of beauty. The following quote illustrates this point: “But thy eternal summer shall not fade Nor lose possession of that fair thou owest. Nor shall Death brag thou wander’st in his shade. When in eternal lines to time thou growest:” Here, the poet implies that the beauty of his beloved will never fade or disappear because he praises her in his poem, making her immortal. To fully appreciate this idea, the reader must have an open mind and a willingness to consider the possibility of beauty’s eternity. In addition, the reader must have the skill to understand the metaphorical language that describes the beauty of the beloved as an “eternal summer” that will not fade with time.
Lyrics of greeting cards like “Why do I love you so much” express deep love and passion for someone. The lyrics may express the feeling of being overwhelmed by love and a deep emotional connection to the person mentioned in the greeting card. The tone may be romantic, sensual, and perhaps even poetic. On the other hand, Browning’s sonnet “How Do I Love Thee? (also known as Sonnet 43) is a classic love poem that expresses deep and abiding love in a more structured and formal way. The poem, composed by Elizabeth Barrett Browning, is in iambic pentameter five-step long stanzas and follows a strict rhyming format (ABBA ABBA CDCDCD), a form typical of Petrarchan poetry. The poem reflects a deep, mature and enduring love that transcends time and circumstance. Although both the greeting card lyrics and Browning’s sonnet express love, they differ in tone, style and depth. Greeting card lyrics may be more modern, casual and direct, focusing on the emotional experience of love in the moment. Browning’s sonnet, on the other hand, is a more eloquent, formal and thoughtful expression of love, exploring the complexity and depth of emotion. It uses carefully chosen words and follows a strict poetic form in order to convey a love that endures and transcends time and space. Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)
For my research essay I will be using “Salvation” by Langston Hughes. “This story also deals with the influence of identity, authenticity, and social forces on individual choices. Provides a powerful and moving critique of how religion shapes personal identity and community expectations. I have found an informational article to support my thesis. I used the JSTOR database to Search related materials.
What surprised me about this story was that Madame Forestier said at the end that her necklace was fake. It was worth at the very most five hundred francs. the couple had worked hard and lived in poverty for ten years to buy the necklace. Little did they know that it was just a fake. What intrigued me about this story was that when the necklace was lost, I was curious to know what the couple would do. How do they compensate for this expensive necklace for them. What confused me was the fact that the heroine was a very vain person. She thinks she was born to have expensive jewelry and live a good life. Mathilde spends all her time doing heavy housework. she is no longer as beautiful as before, she looks like other women from poor families. Ten years passed in this way.
By reading the story “A Good Man Is Hard to Find,” I discovered that the “inside” of the story is about the elusive definition of “good man. definition. The grandmother’s reckless use of the label “good man” suggests that “good man” does not mean “moral” or “good “. For the grandmother, a man is a “good person” if his values are consistent with her own. But the grandmother was not actually a good woman. She was flawed and weak, and her age did not entitle her to special respect or reverence. In the last moments of her life, the grandmother suddenly realized that The Misfit was a fellow human being and a child of God. She took pity on him and tried to comfort him. This revelation came to her at such a time, and allowed her to die with peace in her heart. Ironically, The Misfit, while acting like a monster, creates a situation in which the grandmother experiences a moment of true selflessness before she dies.
After I read the play “Oedipus the King”, I found that human beings will subconsciously run away from the wrong things they have done, for example, Oedipus finally knows that he is the murderer of his father. He gouged out his own eyes. It shows the typical Greek tragic conflict – the conflict between man and his fate. The author expresses his doubts about the justice of the gods, complains about the injustice and cruelty of fate, and praises the strong will and heroic behavior of the hero in his struggle with fate, in response to the doom suffered by such a hero who has done countless good deeds for the people and the country. Therefore, despite the tragic ending, the spirit of disobeying the “divine command”, knowing that it cannot be disobeyed, is an affirmation of the spirit of individual autonomy and a reflection of the advanced ideology of the Athenian slave-owning democrats.
As the drama begins, the citizens of Thebes plead with their king Oedipus to lift the plague that threatens to destroy the city. He has sent his brother-in-law Creon to oracle that the plague will end when the murderer of Laius (the former king) is killed or banished. So the king set out to find the killer, who ironically was the killer but he didn’t know it. who is the man proclaimed by Delphi’s prophetic rock as the bloody handed murderer, the doer of deeds that none dare name? Now is the time for him to run with a stronger foot than Pegasus38 for the child of Zeus leaps in arms upon him with fire and the lightning bolt, and terribly close on his heels are the Fates that never miss.(line545-550) The chorus warns that the murderer will be pursued by the gods. If he does not stop what he is doing, he will be punished I do not know what to say; I am in a flutter of foreboding; (line570) The choir represents the citizens, who have doubts about the revered king
After reading the novel “Araby” by James Joyce, I think I would use the word lost to describe the boy in the story. At the beginning of the story, the boy is curious about his friend’s sister and has a crush on her. Here he has his first lost, he can’t concentrate, either at school or at home, and he keeps thinking about the girl. He waits for her to appear and converse with her. His second lost was when the girl told him she wanted to go to the fair. It was the only thing on his mind, and his uncle’s late return made him too anxious to think about anything else. The last lost was at the fair, where he lost himself because he didn’t know what gift he should bring back to the girl. His fantasy was wonderful, to bring back a gift to meet the girl. But the reality is that he doesn’t think about what to bring back. This is a reflection of the fact that adolescent boys always have good fantasies but rarely think about reality.
After reading the story “The Lesson”, I noticed that the main characters, Sylvia and Sugar, have a change in how they see things and the people around them after a visit to a toy store with Miss Moore. Both Sylvia and Sugar are children growing up in the commonwealth and have limitations in how they view things. They also view the people around them with contempt, as living in the slums has distorted their worldview. After going to the toy store, they find that the price of one toy is enough to buy furniture for their whole family. They begin to think about what kind of world this is, something they never knew before. This is exactly why Miss Moore brings them to the toy store. After they came back from the toy store, they kept thinking about it too.
After reading “Salvation” by Langston Hughes, I think the character of this boy is very honest, to be precise, he is a very honest person to himself. Until the end of the story, he did not lie to himself, he was convinced that he had not seen Jesus. Secondly, the boy is a very innocent person. He could not bear to deceive the one he loved, and he felt ashamed and guilty for lying to himself. I found a very ironic fact in this story, that people always think it is right to follow the masses. They ignore their inner thoughts. The boy saw that other people were saved, and his aunt and pastor wanted him to admit that he saw Jesus. He did so, he followed the masses and lied that he saw Jesus. This was his change. At first, the boy held on to his thoughts, but in the end, he followed the masses and was saved.
I believe you shared “The Most Handsome Drowned Man” as the first story of the course because you wanted to show us the need to be compassionate and welcoming to strangers. The women in this story were kind enough to be welcoming and make clothes for a complete stranger, even when they were confronted with one. The men run around for him, trying to determine who he is. It made me think of the many new immigrants nowadays, many of whom come from war-torn countries. They are “strangers” to us, maybe they are poor and don’t have money to buy a dress that fits. We need to be as kind as the woman in the story to help them and welcome them. At the end of the story, they make the door of the house bigger and the ceiling higher, maybe they want the stranger to make the village a new home.
