lying in bed

Read “Lying in Bed” by G.K. Chesterton and write a blog post that analyzes the 4-5 most important strategies used by the author.

rhetorical strategy 1: metaphor
He compares his carpet to turkish delight
"I found the Turkey carpet a mass of unmeaning colours, rather like the Turkish Empire, or like the sweetmeat called Turkish Delight."

rhtorical strategy2: allusion
He makes an allusion to a bible passage verse when discussing his wallpaper
"I could not understand why one arbitrary symbol (a symbol apparently entirely devoid of any religious or philosophical significance) should thus be sprinkled all over my nice walls like a sort of small-pox. The Bible must be referring to wallpapers, I think, when it says, “Use not vain repetitions, as the Gentiles do.”

rhetorical strategy 3: parallel sentence structure
This sentence has a parallel structure separated by a semicolon
"Especially this is so in matters of hygiene; notably such matters as lying in bed.."
the parallelism is "matters of something"

rhetorical strategy 4: descriptive words
he uses lots of descripritve adjectives to spice up the writing
"rich and mingled colour like some strange fairy rain;"
rich, mangle, and fairy all make the writing much more fun to read

preparing for synthesis question

Read Preparing for the 2007 Synthetic Question and blog a bit (100-200 words) about what you learned from the advice and where the advice seems to fall short.

the article gives a really good job informing us how we should get started. Like how to read and analyze the information give and how to start off wit the thesis. it is helpful advice in that regards. Getting started can sometimes be the hardest part. But, the advice falls short in describing HOW the sources should be included in the essay. It is important not to just plop the quotes in and the article doesn't really give good examples of how to really SYNTHESIZE the sources! It kind of misses the big picture!!!

a modest proposal

Read A Modest Proposal by Jonathan Swift. In a 300 word blog post: What’s the purpose of this piece? How does the satire serve a rhetorical purpose or put forth an indirect claim? Please excerpt 3 sections and comment more directly on them.

The purpose of this piece is discuss teh numbers of poor and homelsss women with fatherless children.
"I do therefore humbly offer it to publick consideration, that of the hundred and twenty thousand children, already computed,
twenty thousand may be reserved for breed, whereof only one
fourth part to be males; which is more than we allow to sheep,
black cattle, or swine, and my reason is, that these children are
seldom the fruits of marriage, a circumstance not much regarded
by our savages, therefore, one male will be sufficient to serve
four females. That the remaining hundred thousand may, at a year
old, be offered in sale to the persons of quality and fortune,
through the kingdom, always advising the mother to let them suck
plentifully in the last month, so as to render them plump, and
fat for a good table. A child will make two dishes at an
entertainment for friends, and when the family dines alone, the
fore or hind quarter will make a reasonable dish, and seasoned
with a little pepper or salt, will be very good boiled on the
fourth day, especially in winter."
this exerpt from the passage seems like it should be a sarcastic joke, but i can't tell if the author is serious or not. IT seems a bit strange to recommend that people eat children. I don't know what to really think from this passage. It also talks about breeding children like cattle and basically diminished children as not human and on teh same level as teh animals we breed and eat.

hamlet blog

1. Why does Hamlet wait so long to kill Claudius? What are the reasons for his hesitation? How valid are they? How many times does he have the opportunity to attack Claudius? What are his reasons for not doing so?

hamlet has doubts at first that the story he has heard from the ghost is actually true. They are valid doubts because he has no proof that his uncle has killed his father. He has 2 opportunities to kill his uncle. The first time it is because of his doubts and the second because his uncle is praying and if hamlet were to kill his uncle then, he would go to heaven and hamlet wants his uncle to go to hell.

2. Hamlet claims that his madness is feigned, an “antic disposition” which he puts on for his own purposes (I.v.172). Why would Hamlet want to feign madness? How can an appearance of insanity help him achieve his ends? Is he really sane throughout the play, or does he ever cross the line into madness? What about Ophelia’s mad scene? Is it real or feigned? Is there “method in her madness” as well, or is she entirely irrational? Why has she gone mad? (What two reasons do her songs suggest?)

hamlet feigns madness so his uncle doesn't find out that hamlet knows the whole story. This way his uncle will be caught by surprise and hamlet has the advantage. I think he crosses the line into madness when he calls of the wedding and when he kills ophelia's father because he is just blindly attacking and killing anyone that appears to be his uncle. He has "gone mad" with hate. Ophelia's mad scene is real though. She first goes mad when hamlet rejects her in marriage and the then when her father is murdered.

3. Pay attention to the treatment of the women characters Gertrude and Ophelia. Is there any basis for the Freudian interpretation of an Oedipal attraction between Hamlet and his mother? Hamlet does seem obsessed with his mother’s sexuality. How old is Hamlet? How old do you think Gertrude is? Is Hamlet’s disgust at Gertrude’s sexuality justified? To what extent is Gertrude guilty? Was she “in on” her husband’s murder? Has Claudius confided in her since the murder? How does Hamlet’s perception of his mother affect his behavior or attitude toward Ophelia? Why does he tell Ophelia to go to a nunnery? Does Hamlet really love Ophelia? If so, why is he cruel to her?

Hamlet and ophelia kiss and he is obsessed with her sex life with claudious. Hamlet is in his 20s and i think Gertrude is in her late 30s-40. I think it's justified because it creeps him out that his mother is with his uncle/ the man who killed his father. Gertrude is guilty that she is with his uncle. No she was not in on her husband's murder and no claudious has not confided in her since the murder. Because of his mother's incest, Hamlet turns bitter towards women and rejects ophelia He tells her to go to a nunnery and not get married because he wants to bad marriages because he is so creeped out. But he really did love ophelia because after she dies he tells his brother he really did love ophelia. he was cruel because he was bitter.

4. Suicide is an important theme in Hamlet. Discuss how the play treats the idea of suicide morally, religiously, and aesthetically, with particular attention to Hamlet’s two important statements about suicide: the “O, that this too too solid flesh would melt” soliloquy (I.ii.129–158) and the “To be, or not to be” soliloquy (III.i.56–88). Why does Hamlet believe that, although capable of suicide, most human beings choose to live, despite the cruelty, pain, and injustice of the world?

hamlet concludes that people chose to live in pain because of fear for what will come next after death. I think there is also the religious aspect since suicide is a sin and those who commit it will go to hell.

5. Choose a soliloquy in the play to look more closely at. Paraphrase it and then connect it to the larger themes in the play.

I chose the first soliloquoy "o,What a rogue and peasant slave am i!" act 2 scene 2 lines 555 to 635. This soliloquoy is where Hamlet plots how he will catch Claudious and make a final judgment of whether or not he is guilty of murdering his father. HE goes on a rampage about his trap to test Claudious if he reacts guiltily to watching a play that mirrors the murder of his father. This is connected to the larger theme of the play on wether or not: claudious is guilty and hamlet is mad.

downe essay

Bring home “As he himself puts it” and write a sample paragraph for the following prompt in which you include a quote from the prompt in your response and use the qualities and advice suggested by Graff/Birkenstein.

Downe tried to convince his wife that America is better than england by giving her an anecdotal story in which he actually experienced a better life. "a farmer took me one day in his waggon int o the country, from Hudson, to see a factory, and I dined with him, and he would not have a farthing, and told me I was welcome to come to his house at any time; they had on the table pudding, pyes, and fruit of all kind that was ins season, and preserves, pickles, vegetables, meat, and everything that a person could wish and the servants set down at the same table with their masters." This is a story of great wealth especially in food and the kindness of the people in America to share this wealth. This is something that differs from life in england that is better.

oppising opinion on social issues

HW: Blog post: Write two paragraphs putting forth an opinion about an important social issue (Gun control, Affirmative Action, Cats are better than Dogs). Choose an issue you care about but write one paragraph according to how you actually feel and the other according to how someone who disagrees might feel. Try to make is so that someone from the outside wouldn’t know which of these you agree with.

opinion: abortion

first opinion: If you were a rape vistim and became pregnant, would you want tobring a baby into the world? Not only is that unfair to you as it is a constant reminder of the traumatic experience, but for a child to know that the only reason for their exsistence is from rape, that is positiviely barbaric! I would certainly not want to be that child and i don't knwo many people that would. Abortion is a clear reason to handle this issue. Prohibiting abortion in this instance is unnecessary and does more harm than good.

vs.

Second opinion: Life, all stages of life, is a precious gift and should be treated as such. As soon as an egg is fertilized, there is life. Destroying this life destroys teh possibility of a future contributing human being. In essence, abortion is murder. And the worst form of murder, murder on the helpless. An embryo clearly has no choice or say in their death and abortion makes the choice for them. Abortion is evil.

Juxtaposing Essay

Women During War Times















There are two images that convey the spirit of the time and the power that women bring to the table. In this case the table is the balance of power both in America and in a global setting. One comes from World War II during a time when 15 million American women were building 8,000 aircraft models monthly. This is an incredible image is also apparent with Rosie in full color and minimal context. Vanessa has more subdued color but an abundance of visual context.

The effect of these images is striking. These women are significant and not to be underestimated. They empower other women, and empower our nation. The sense of nationalism nearly jumps off the image as these two icons show the world what is right about America.

Does Vanessa inspire other women to enlist and become gunners? The answer is undoubtedly yes. She conveys strength, composure, confidence, and importance. She commands respect. She makes women proud to be making a difference where they were forbidden just a few decades earlier. How do our adversaries view this when their view of women suggests they have minimal rights and are not entitled to education or positions of power? This image may have far more effect on the women outside America than those inside. Imagine the feeling of awe to a young Afghan woman who is afraid and confused about becoming the property of an older man in her own life, and then sees that much is possible in a different part of the world for young women

With this background understanding of the two images, the comparison is not yet complete. There are more interesting aspects to explore in each image’s visual rhetoric. Color was used as one way to enhance the messages behind the imagery. The primary colors in Rosie stand for the basic need for women. In the image there are three basic colors, red and blue and yellow, which contribute to our understanding of this basic need. By not complicating the poster with multiple colors and leaving it simple the message comes across loud and clear: your country needs your help. In Vanessa’s photograph the colors are different shades of grey and blue. These bland colors enhance our understanding that she has a tough job with tough decisions. Nothing is black and white and no color dominates the image. This color balance present in the images adds to our understanding in a subconscious way.

Each of the compositions further adds to their impressions. In Rosie, she is dead center with nothing going on behind her; she is the main and only focus of the poster. Once again the image was made simple, which made it effective. Vanessa, however, is overshadowed by the arterial weapon and pushed to the right of the image. This makes it so that the weapon and her job come across as the most important part of her life.
The focus of the painting, where our eyes are drawn to, is a third tool used. When first looking at the Rosie image, my eyes are drawn immediately to the bold words, “We Can Do It!” and then to her determined face. This is effective because her determinedness empowered the words for women as if Rosie is adding to them saying, “You bet we can do it!” In Vanessa’s photograph, my eyes are drawn immediately to the huge weapon and then to her face. The weapon also draws our attention because Vanessa is not the center of the image like Rosie was. Having the weapon first grab our attention and then seeing Vanessa’s face exaggerates the surprise that a woman is manning this heavy, powerful weapon.

The women individually give insight into their message by their stance and facial expressions. The posture of both women in the images is different, but for a reason. Rosie is flexing her arm to show strength and symbolize power. Vanessa, however, is at ease to show that she is comfortable in her job. She looks natural. But a similarity between the two images is the confidence they secrete. Rosie has one eyebrow cocked, which seems to make her say, “Dare to question me?” With her ‘muscle pose,’ set jaw-line, intense stare, and pursed firm lips she oozes confidence in herself. By having her not smile she becomes more powerful and serious to show that helping the war efforts is no light task. Vanessa also displays this same confidence level with her intense stare and set jaw-line. She too is not smiling to show her seriousness and power.

What if the fictional Rosie could meet with Vanessa and talk to each other? Sixty years of cultural differences would make for interesting conversation. They would have much in common through their experiences. Rosie was the first to be recruited for a war effort moving away from the domestic focus. Vanessa is the first to be a female aerial gunner in the US Air Force.

Through the power of the images and the history behind them, the comparison of the two women becomes clear. Their similarities and differences, both through imagery and historical context, enhance the messages they send; Rosie with “We Can do It!” and Vanessa with “I have proved we can do it!” Vanessa is the completion of Rosie’s campaign showing that women can break the stereotypes and fulfill their lives. Both women are symbols of power and strength; they’re just from
different eras in the United States.






Bibliography

“Rosie the Riveter.” Image. County College of Morris. 01 Nov. 2007. 15 Apr. 2008. .


“Vanessa Dobos.” Image. Dave Hayes.edu. 5 Feb. 2006. 21 Apr. 2008. .


Widener, Chuck 2nd Lt. “A new breed of gunner.” Airman. 2003. 21 Apr. 2008. .


“Women in War Jobs - Rosie the Riveter (1942-1945).” Ad Council. 2008. 21 Apr. 2008. .


“WW2 Aircraft Production Numbers.” World War II. 1988. 21 Apr. 2008. .