| Ode on a Grecian Urn |
[Dec. 3rd, 2006|10:15 pm] |
John Keats’ Ode on a Grecian Urn
Of the selected odes by john Keats I think that my favorite is Ode on a Grecian Urn. I had read a couple years ago in high school, but when I read it again this year I understood it much better. I wish that we could have talked about it in class to get another commentary or interpretation. Throughout the ode Keats emphasizes that the characters on the urn are forever and unchangeable. This can emphasis can be seen in the third stanza in the repetition of “ for ever” in “for ever piping songs for ever new…for ever warm and still to be enjoy’d, for ever panting and for ever young.” Another good example is in the second stanza when describing the young lovers, Keats tells the young lover “do not grieve; she cannot fade…for ever wilt thou love, and she be fair.” (956) Although the young lover will never be able to kiss his love again, her beauty and her love will be forever. I also like the first few lines of the second stanza which begin: “Heard melodies are sweet, but those unheard are sweeter.” (956) Keats seems to be saying that the unheard melodies are sweet and more cherished because they have not been heard and therefore are not affected by time, since they will forever be on the urn. Keats seems to have some sort of admiration for the everlasting marble lovers as they will never have to see the leaves fall or “bid Spring adieu.” (956) I think that it is important to note that “Spring’ is capitalized. I feel that having the word capitalized adds emphasis and slight personification. Keats sees that if the leaves fall, then the lovers’ happiness will end with the changing of the seasons and the absence of the bright and happy season of spring. |
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| frankenstein trial |
[Nov. 19th, 2006|09:22 pm] |
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In class on Friday we held a mock trial of Victor Frankenstein, his monster, and society for the crimes of the monster. I thought the trial idea was very creative. If the situation had been more realistic I think that I would have had a very difficult time if I was a member of the jury. In the trial I was a member of the team trying to defend Victor Frankenstein. Our main argument was that Frankenstein did not actually commit any of the murders, in fact, he created life. He was not the one that physically killed his family members. The acts of the murders were carried out by the monster. Yet I do see where a gray area arises in the questioning of Victor’s responsibility of the actions of the monster. Most of the class seemed to think of Victor as the monster’s “father.” As a defender of Victor, I disagree with this father-son view of their relationship. Yet, a little more realistically, I do feel that Victor should have been held somewhat responsible for the monster, but not completely. I see the relationship between the monster and Victor comparable to that of a dog and its owner. The dog is able to do whatever it pleases, but it should be acting under the influence of the owner. I think that the murders are a result of Victor’s neglect of the monster- not just in teaching the monster right and wrong, but guiding his actions. I am a little angry with Victor for not watching the monster, especially when members of his own family were beginning to be killed. If this trial was to actually be held, I would hold the monster responsible, but consider Victor as an accomplice and sentence him as one. |
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| Poetry |
[Nov. 5th, 2006|09:14 pm] |
What is a poet? What is poetry?
In reading the quotes on poetry by some of the most famous poets ever, I found that most of them had very similar ideas of what poetry really is. I found that some, such as Dickenson and Yeats, believed that poetry was from some internal source within us. Dickenson mentions the fire that burns within when reading poetry. Yeats, on the other hand, speaks of poetry being an internal argument with himself. Both seem to say that poetry has a much deeper depth in the thought process in interpretation. Keats and Roux seem to support this observation. Keats feels that poetry should reach “the Reader as a wording of his highest thoughts, and appear almost as a Remembrance.” I understand this quote to mean that poetry require and invokes the deepest of thoughts, such as when we recall a memory that is stored in the depths of our minds. Hill says that poetry speaks to the heart, not the head. I agree with this point of view in regard to invoking of emotion. Although I believe that poetry does excite the mind and thoughts, I feel that real poetry should excite not only the mind but also the heart and deeper emotions. The usual subject matter of poetry is not some scientific information, but usually a reflection of an emotionally meaningful event or revelation. In past discussions on poetry I found many feel that poetry is ruined for them when it is overanalyzed in searching for literary devices and allusions and best kept when read only for its pure meaning and expression. |
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| Pandemonium |
[Oct. 29th, 2006|11:03 pm] |
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Pandemonium is a very exaggerated and dramatized film version of the lives of Williams Wordsworth and Samuel Taylor Coleridge and their tumultuous relationship. The movie follows Wordsworth and Coleridge as they are working on Lyrical Ballads. It is this period of collaboration between the poets that causes them to disagree and end their friendship. I feel that the director chose to put so much emphasis on Coleridge’s opium use purely for the appeal to mass audiences. The movie and history seem to show that in Coleridge’s episodes on opium we wrote the best poems. He then realized that the more opium he used, the more good poems he wrote. The poems written under the influence attracted the most attention from the public. I feel that after everyone found about his tainted state when writing them, the poems attracted more attention. I feel that now that it is common knowledge of his opium use, people today are more interest in him and his poetry. I feel that readers are not interested in the message and imagery of the poem, but more so about the far-fetched phrases and idea the stem solely from the effects of the opium. I feel that if there was no opium element in the writing of these poems, the poems and Coleridge himself would not be as famous as they are today. I also question how jealous Wordsworth was of Coleridge’s poetry, especially because it came so swiftly during opium usage. I can understand that Wordsworth would be jealous of how much Coleridge was producing, while he himself was having a severe case of writer’s block, as seen in the blank paper scene. |
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| Wordsworth-sublime and childhood |
[Oct. 22nd, 2006|11:06 pm] |
Going back to last week’s discussion of William Wordsworth, I was very interested in the main themes of his poetry, especially the sublime in nature and the role of the child and man. When I think of the sublime, I think of a depth of thought and feeling that is almost impossible to express. Wordsworth saw the sublime as something grandiose and beyond external beauty. He also saw it only in nature. When I thought of Wordsworth and Coleridge traveling through nature and just immersing themselves in the elements, I immediately thought of Emerson, his time at Walden, and how the nature around him caused him to “transcend.” I feel that Wordsworth explains the sublime as the deepest feeling and description of nature, behind the beautiful and the picturesque. I feel that the beautiful and the picturesque are pleasing and do not provoke distaste, yet they do not evoke any true deeply-rooted emotion.
Another theme of Wordsworth’s poetry was the child and man of humanity. I was able to focus and reflect on this concept in the analysis of the poem Ode: Intimations of Immortality from Recollections of Early Childhood. The poem showed how in early childhood man is naïve and generally happier than when grown up. Wordsworth seems to say that it is the process of growing up in the world that man becomes jaded and confused. Wordsworth felt that the children are the ones that understand the infinite and thus have no concept of immortality. To a degree, I agree with Wordsworth in these beliefs. I remember having a conversation with some friends about how great life was when we were young children because we felt no outside stresses, such as school, relationships, and life or loss of. However, Wordsworth seems to have a much darker view on the corruption of man in adulthood than I do. |
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| coleridge |
[Oct. 19th, 2006|08:30 pm] |
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Coleridge’s main goal in the Lyrical Ballads was to reflect his feelings of the point of poetry. He wished to “excite the sympathy of the reader” by following and recognizing nature. Coleridge also felt that poetry was to make the readers use their imagination. Following Wordsworth’s example, Coleridge wrote his poetry for the everyday, common people. He felt that poetry should be written in the common tongue so that everyone could read and understand. The subject of the poems also reflected everyday life “found in every village and its vicinity.” (634) In his Biographia Literaria Coleridge says that his main goal for his contribution to Lyrical Ballads was to address the supernatural. He wanted to engage the reader’s imagination to raise such doubt that the reader must put complete faith in the poet and poem. He knew that Wordsworth’s focus would be on the custom and ordinary and felt that the supernatural would complement Wordsworth’s work. In Rime of the Ancient Mariner Coleridge wanted to present the supernatural as seen in the albatross “that made the breeze to blow.” (582) The poem also shows the cyclic nature of life and nature. More specifically, he showed the cycle of crime and punishment and the subsequent feelings of penance and guilt. Due to his killing of the albatross, the mariner’s crew was killed, leaving him all alone. However, it is in this isolation that the mariner come to appreciate nature and beauty in the stars and sea around him. It is only after his new-found sense of the appreciation of nature that the supernatural spell of the albatross is lifted. |
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| readings |
[Oct. 17th, 2006|10:53 pm] |
In-class Readings
Thus far I have really enjoyed the in-class reading by my peers. Some read the poems a little differently than I personally would have, but I guess that everyone is different. Some poems I would have probably read a little slower and/or with more of an emphasis on certain words and lines. I also think that it is interesting to see which people chose which poet and then which poem they chose. Although I do not know any of my classmates very well, I was surprised to see the poems they had chosen. I read my poem by Williams Wordsworth, Ode: Intimation of Immortality from Recollection of Early Childhood, last Monday. During the first couple of time that I read the entire poem, I read it silently to myself. Finally, when I began to prepare for the presentation, I began to read it out loud. I found it surprising how much of a difference there was between the two. Certain lines naturally grouped together when read aloud, but did not seem to smoothly flow when I had read them to myself. Also, other lines took on new meanings in their new groupings. In making this observation about the differences between silent and oral readings, I remembered Dr. Kimberly telling the class that poetry was meant to be read aloud, not only to pass it on, but to effectively share the poem. Although I did spend a substantial time rehearsing the pace and tone of my selection, I do not feel that I effectively expressed them in class due mainly to my nerves of reading to the entire class. I feel that my pace was much faster than what I had intended. Yet I am glad that I am able to recognize that importance of the speed of pace in the presentation of a poem and how the interpretation and reception of the poem can be effected. |
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| Elizabeth and Darcy |
[Oct. 8th, 2006|11:29 pm] |
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My favorite couple in Pride and Prejudice is Elizabeth and Darcy. I thought they were one of the most interesting and complex couples of the novel. From the introduction of the characters at Bingley’s, the reader knew that they would eventually be together. From the beginning I knew that Elizabeth was meant to be with Darcy. I did not know, however, that they would encounter so many dramatic situations and complicated relationships in the course of their relationship. I feel that Austen set up Elizabeth and Darcy’s relationship such that the readers understood their fate so that they would not get bogged down with the story’s intricacies. As in the relationship between Bingley and Jane, Austen shows that in the end all that really matters in a successful and happy relationship is mutual love for one’s spouse. For me, the most shocking scene of the novel occurred in Darcy abrupt and somewhat surprising proposal. Neither Elizabeth nor the reader was expecting him to confess his love in such a manner. His timing is what surprised me the most. The timing could not have been the worst for Elizabeth after hearing of Lydia’s behavior and the termination of Jane and Bingley’s relationship due to Darcy’s convincing. I definitely would not expect him to plan anything romantic or really share his inner feelings and love for Elizabeth. I feel that Austen used the manner of the proposal to reinforce Darcy’s extreme sense of pride. It seems as though he went into the conversation feeling confident in a positive reception from Elizabeth. When he was turned down, he was not sad, but feverishly angry. His anger stemmed from his pride. He was just so confident in himself, especially his money and status, that he completely overlooked his own attitude and pride, the main characteristics determining Elizabeth’s opinion. Of course, she realizes that he is a bad man, but rather a very thoughtful gentleman. |
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| relationship |
[Oct. 1st, 2006|10:18 pm] |
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All in all, I really enjoyed reading Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. All of the characters were so different and complex that the story was quite interesting. I feel that Austen provided a complex plot full of twists and back-stories. The various characters and their personalities provided humor and distaste. Austen made the characters with such a broad range of personalities to represent the different social circle and also to serve as satire of society’s views of marriage. Austen uses the various relationships and marriages to portray to the reader her thoughts on marriage, love and money. First, there is the marriage of Mr. Collins and Charlotte Lucas that one cannot really call a relationship. Their marriage was that of convenience for both, as Mr. Collins lacked an agreeable personality and Charlotte was well past prime marrying age. Their union would raise her status and give him a spouse. In the case of Lydia and Wickam there was no mutual love, especially in the end. The relationship resulted from Lydia’s obsession with the service men. Wickam’s attraction to Lydia came from his greed and admiration of her wealth and the payment he would receive by marrying her. Jane and Bingley were destined to be together. Though they had some external forces working against them, their true love prevailed. I think that this relationship was used by Austen to show love is vital in a marriage. Jane and Bingley’s love for each other shows that the difference in their status and wealth should not mean anything in the grand scheme of things. In this relationship I could really see Austen authorial commentary on the procedures of courting and marriage in her time. Though the ideal marriage would not have Jane and Bingley together, Austen clearly disagrees. |
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| Jane Austen and life then |
[Sep. 24th, 2006|09:58 pm] |
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I have really enjoyed reading Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice this past week. When I am reading I really have the sense that I am in the time and place. Some of the traditions and aspects of daily life are very strange to me. I could never accept that my father’s money and property would go to some stranger because I was a girl and did not have a brother. This practice of entailment makes no logical sense. If the money and property were earned and maintained by my father, then it should be his choice of where and to whom it should go to in his passing. After knowing what life is like now for women, I do not think that I would ever willingly live in a time like the Bennet’s. I cannot fathom having my marriage arranged by my father and some “suitor.” As seen in the Party House video from Monday’s class, marriage seems to be more of a prize at the end of some strategy game more than a loving relationship. In Austen’s time, there was so much riding on one’s marriage. The highly-regarded reputation of the family could either be positively or negatively altered by one’s decision in spouse. There were also many aspects to consider when choosing one’s spouse, such as the other’s status, wealth, occupation, and reputation. Though these aspects are considered today, they are not the basis of one’s marriage. At least I hope not. I also would have a problem with the amount of parental involvement in one’s courting, engagement, and eventual nuptials. Some degree is understandable, such as Mr. Bennet’s visit to Bingley as an introduction. But I am against Mrs. Bennet’s scheming and prodding into Jane and Elizabeth’s relationships. |
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