Vocab #9

aficionado (noun): a person who likes and usually pursued interest or activity
I am an aficionado for soccer.

browbeat (verb): to intimidate by overbearing looks or words
The class browbeat him into agreeing.

commensurate (adj): having the same measure, equal
Pay would commensurate with how hard we worked.

diaphanous (adj): very sheer and light; almost transparent
The fabric she picked out for her curtains were diaphanous

emolument (noun): profit, salary
She earned $65 for emolument in tips.
foray (noun): a quick, sudden attack
The team planned a foray against their opponents.
genre (noun): a category of artistic endeavor having a particular form
She preferred to read books that fit the horror genre.

homily (noun): a sermon, and inspirational saying or cliché.
The pastor's homily inspired many from the crowd.

immure (verb): to enclose, shut in
The man immured the child in the basement.

insouciant (adj): free from concern, worry
Her insouciant attitude disappeared when she learned of the paper she had to write.
matrix (noun): something that constitutes the place or point which something else originates
The Continental Congress was a matrix for the Declaration of Independence.

obsequies (noun): a funeral rite or ceremony
The obsequies was held in the church down the street.

panache (noun): a grand or flamboyant manner.
She was told that her story must have panache.
persona (noun): a person, character in the story
The story began by describing the persona involved.
philippic (noun): any speech of bitter denunciation
The curmudgeon's speech was philippic and not heart felt.

prurient (adj): having restless desire or longing
The prurient child finally got the toy.
sacrosanct (adj): not to be entered or trespassed on
He considered his land to be sacrosanct.

systemic (adj): of or pertaining to a system
Systemic factors have labeled these people as bipolar.

tendentious (adj): showing a definite tendancy, bias
The book she was reading was tendentious towards gay rights.

vicissitude (noun): a change occurring in the course of something
After every possible vicissitude, they finally made a decision.

The Performance of Utterance in Shakespeare

Not a play about a man who can't make up his mind, but a play about a man who could not make real what was found in his mind

Austin divided the performative ability of language into three main forces:
*the locutionary force:  the ability of language to deliver a message
*the illocutionaryforce: what is done in being said, such as denying a request, giving an order, etc.; *the perlocutionary force: what is achieved by being said, the consequences of one's utterance, such as an order being followed (or refused)

Shakespeare's characters frequently develop through "self-overhearing." This is considered the "road to individuation", a process which allows the character to realize their own utterances and then hopefully realize themselves.

Theory of performativity: sentences which are not only passively describing a given reality, but they are changing the (social) reality they are describing. Or  an antithesis for "sticks and stones may break my bones but words may never hurt me."

Shakespeare's characters have the opportunity to self-overhear through the required soliloquys needed to deliver necessary information about what the character is thinking.

The most important scene where performance utterance is relevant is the conversation between Hamlet and the ghost of his father.

If the person who has sworn to do something does that something, that is a perlocutionary effect of his utterance,  the illocutionary force of having sworn has compelled him to that action.

 The emphasis on the emotional contexts of utterances is important for those trying to understand Hamlet and Austin's philosophy for that matter.

Hamlet's evolution is an evolution towards faith, closure, and acceptance not action

Fredrik deBoer wrote the paper to determine how performative utterance could pertain to Hamlet but instead, learned that Hamlet is a man who uses that performative power in the unending task of the realization of the self

Thoughts on Hamlet (In Progress)

After watching the video of Act 1 scene I and reading it as a class, my first interpretation was that this was going to be a creepy and dark horror story of some sort. However, it as not as melancholy as I first thought, it isn't a happy cheerful story. It is sprinkled with sadness, murder and revenge. In Act 1, you are introduced to Hamlet while he is mourning over the loss of his father and the fact that his mother just married his father's brother. But, by Act 3, he is completely different character plotting revenge for his father's death against his uncle. The last noticeable difference I picked up on was his careful planning of plotting how he would kill his uncle. By preparing a play in act 2 and choosing not to kill his uncle in the middle of prayer, to how quickly he reacted when he assumed that it was Claudius behind the curtain and took a sword to Polonius.

What I think about when i think about act 3

Hamlet's decision to reenact his father's murder is brilliant. It is sneaky yet open where everyone sees but only Hamlet and Claudius really know what it is. Before hand, I had guessed Claudius would react to where Hamlet would notice but I did expect him to cry and run out of the room and feel as much remorse as he showed. It was also shocking for me to read that Hamlet found his uncle kneeling asking for forgiveness in his room. Another event that was an upset for me, was that Hamlet was so careful before act 3 on how to kill Claudius and restrained himself when he saw his uncle praying but as soon as he heard a shuffle behind the curtains when talking to his mother, he instantly killed the person with his sword certain that it was his uncle but in fact was Polonius.

Literature Analysis #3: The Sun Also Rises

Plot:

The novel begins with Jake Barnes, an American journalist, going about his everyday life in Paris. In the beginning stages of the novel, we see many references to when Jake was in the military during World War 1.  Jake gives a background story of his friend, Robert Cohn, who is also a veteran. Following, Jake takes a date to the dance club where he sees Lady Brett Ashley. They met when she was treating him for an injury during the war, which left him sterile. Even though they both love each other, she will not commit to a relationship because of this. Brett leaves for Spain, thinking it will be better for the both of them. Jake and Bill, a friend, decide to leave for Spain and do some fishing, and then plan to meet Cohn on the way to Pamplona, where there is a fiesta. The three guys meet up with Brett and Mike and at the fiesta Brett falls “in love” with a guy named Romero and Mike keeps messing with Cohn and accuses him of following Brett around. Cohn reaches his breaking point and attacks both Mike and Jake then goes on to find Brett. He then walks in on Brett and Romero and beats Romero almost into unconsciousness. Fortunately, Romero was able to continue to compete and when the fiesta ended, him and Brett went to Madrid. While in San Sebastian, Jake receives a telegram from Brett asking him to meet her in Madrid. She tells him that she is over with Romero and wants to return to Mike. In the taxi, they are both sad because they know they good have a good time together.

 

Theme:

Lost Generation: World War I challenged the idea of faith, making it hard for the characters to follow the traditional beliefs that gave life meaning. Jake, Brett and their friends are lost and wandering in a “meaningless world.” This is why they are constantly seen drinking, dancing and not really doing anything productive with their lives.

 

Tone:

The author’s tone is quite dark and subdued. The character’s prove this when they talk about how they continue to drink until they forget their problems. This shows what the trauma of the war did to their emotional and mental health.

Examples:

“I can't stand it to think my life is going so fast and I'm not really living it.”

“This is a hell of dull talk...How about some of that champagne?”

 

Literary Techniques:

1.       Irony: The tone is dark and gloomy yet the title of the novel is very optimistic; even though the sun sets, the sun also rises meaning that things will always get better.

2.       Symbolism: The bulls symbolize passion and energy.

3.       Diction: The first person narrative structure is typical but he has an “almost poetic” style that is intense and unique. The author uses short sentences and avoids adverbs and adjectives.

“You’re going to work today?”

He nodded his head. “They start now, at 10:30.” (pg.92)

4.       Imagery: Hemingway uses this to describe the fiesta.

“There were pigeons out in the square, and the houses were a yellow, sun-baked color.”

5.       Allusion: There are allusions throughout the novel referring to World War I.

"When did she marry Ashley?"
"During the war. Her own true love had just kicked off with the dysentery."
"You talk sort of bitter."
"Sorry. I didn’t mean to. I was just trying to give you the facts." (pg. 46)

6.       Similes: " He looked a great deal as his compatriot must have looked when he saw the promised land,” (pg. 29)

7.       Indirect Characterization: Jake’s view of Cohn indirectly reveals aspects of Jake’s personality that he does not mention straight out.

8.       Dialogue: The dialogue is very brief; characters rarely speak more than two sentences at a time.

“You’re sure this thing has trout in it?” Bill asked

“It’s full of them.”

“I’m going to fish a fly. You got any McGintys?”

“There’s some in there.” (pg. 123)

9.       Verbal Irony: "Besides, what happened to me is supposed to be funny. I never think about it." (pg.19)

10.   Hyperbole: "It's enough to make a man join the Klan," (pg. 93)

 

Characterization:

1.       Direct:

·         “, but he learned it painfully and thoroughly to counteract the feeling of inferiority  and shyness he had felt on being treated as a Jew at Princeton.” (pg.1)

·         “Brett was damned good-looking. She wore a slipover jersey sweater and a tweed skirt, and her hair was brushed back like a boy's. She started all that. She was built with curves like the hull of a racing yacht...” (pg. 29)

                Indirect

·         “He was not in love yet but he realized that he was an attractive quantity to women.” (pg. 16) Cohn married the first woman who paid him any attention says something about his character. And his reaction towards her leaving him showed that he does not really see himself clearly or realistically.

·         While fishing, Bill asked Jakes if he ever loved Brett. Jake tries to avoid the questions but eventually gives in and admits he did. This shows that Jake is quiet and likes to keep things to himself.

2.       The author’s diction does not change when he describes the characters. He focuses on their relationships with others and their conversations to develop each character. When introducing new characters, he gives a brief two sentence introduction and then has them start conversing with one another.

3.       Jake Barnes, the main character in the novel is both a round and dynamic character. In the beginning of the novel he is fine just floating through life doing nothing productive after leaving the army. But as the novel progresses, with the introduction of Brett, the reader can see Jake changing emotionally and starting to care.

4.       Compared to other novels, I didn’t enjoy this book as much. I still liked it, but if I can’t connect and really get into a book, it is hard for me to get a lot out of it. By saying that, I don’t think I met a character but I did read one, they just didn’t grab my attention like other characters have in other novels.

“Would you like to go to South America, Jake?” he asked.

“No.”

“Why not?”

“I don’t know. I never wanted to go. Too expensive. You can see all the South Americans you want in Paris anyway.”

I can relate to Jake in this, because he didn’t want change. He liked just floating around in his day to day life. It easier as humans to stay in the same routine rather than do something different.

Vocab #8

abase: to reduce or lower
The judge abased her punishments.

 abdicate: relinquish a throne
Hamlet's father abdicated the throne when he died.

abomination: a vile or disliked action
The marriage of Claudius to Hamlet's mother was an abomination.

brusque: abrupt in manner
Claudius was brusque toward Hamlet.

 saboteur: a person who commits sabotage
Claudius is considered a saboteur in "Hamlet."

debauchery: excessive indulgence in sensual pleasures
Claudius' mind was filled with debauchery.

 proliferate: to increase in number
His army proliferated after his speech.

anachronism: a thing belonging to a period other than which it exists
She was proud to be an anachronism walking down the street in a poodle skirt.

nomenclature: a set of names or terms
Claudius, Hamlet, and Bernado are terms of nomenclature in "Hamlet."

expurgate: to amend by removing words
The teacher expurgated words so the class could understand better.

 bellicose: eager to fight
He was described as bellicose.

gauche: lacking social grace
Claudius was gauche in act 1 scene 2.

 rapacious: inordinately greedy
Claudius is considered rapacious in Hamlet.

 paradox: a self-contradicting proposition
Claudius' speech is a popular paradox in "Hamlet."

 conundrum: anything that puzzles
"Hamlet" can be a conundrum unless elaborated on.

 anomaly: a deviation from the common rule
Marrying a brother's wife is an anomaly in our society.

 ephemeral: lasting a short time
The ghost was ephemeral.

rancorous: full of bitterness
Hamlet is rancorous towards Claudius.

 churlish: mean or rude
Claudius was churlish towards Hamlet.

 precipitous: extremely steep
The hill to the castle was precipitous.

Dear Ophelia

Dear O,
This does seem like a complicated situation. Since I don't have all the information, the first thing I'd say to do it determine why your brother and father hate the prince so much. If they do have a logical answer, I would recommend following their advice because their job is to protect and they want to keep you safe. However, I do understand that you cannot just leave the one you love. I would fine someone who is very close to the prince and ask them what they think about the prince's feeling towards you, if they seem genuine or not.  But at the end of the day, go with what you feel. And if it doesn't go right, just shake it off and move on. Everyone makes mistakes but that is how they grow and become a better person.
-Advice Column

Literary Fiction and Empathy

From what the article said and based on my own experience popular fiction tends to focus on the plot whereas literary fiction chooses to focus more on the characters and their development. Since the authors of literary fiction focus on characters, it helps the reader understand others better. Hamlet is a good example of this. It is filled with many soliloquys and based on the first one we read, the readers sees what Hamlet is feeling; his anger and depression towards his father's death and his mother's reaction to it. Literary fiction, in general, is more open to interpretation and therefore each reader can get a different experience from it.

Green Eggs & Ham

a) What do you know about Hamlet, the "Melancholy Dane"? 
I know that Hamlet is a tragedy written by Shakespeare and I remember the seniors each year having to read it so I know it is an important topic for high school students.

b) What do you know about Shakespeare?
From what I can recall, Shakespeare tends to write tragedies and sad stories. I remember reading Romeo and Juliet my freshman year and I remember the gist of the story.

c) Why do so many students involuntarily frown when they hear the name "Shakespeare"?  
I think students tend to frown on this topic just because it is quite difficult to read because it is older English with words we don't know.

d) What can we do to make studying this play an amazing experience we'll never forget?
Personally, I don't have any ideas on how to make it "amazing" but I think it would be nice to have an actual presentation where we can see what it happening rather than relying on us just because our class is pretty quiet.

What I Meant to Say Was...

My thesis in the midterm was, "In Chaucer's writing, 'Canterbury Tales,' Chaucer focuses on satirizing marriage and society." Honestly, I was really flustered and stressed and therefore this is what came from it.
What I meant to say was...
"In 'Canterbury Tales,' Chaucer satirized different elements of society to relate with the other members of society." I think this thesis statement creates a better idea for the reader of what I am going to write but is general enough that I can manipulate my writing to support it.

Vocab #7

shenanigans (n): Mischievous persons
ricochet (v): To deflect or move in this way
schism (n): Division
eschew (v): To abstain or keep away from
plethora (n): An abundance
ebullient (adj): Overflown with fervor or enthusiasm
garrulous (adj): Excessively talkative
harangue (n): Scolding or intense verbal attack
interdependence (n): mutually reliant on each other
capricious (adj): fanciful or witty
loquacious (adj): talking much or freely
ephemeral (adj): lasting a very short time
inchoate (adj): not fully completed or developed
juxtapose (v): to place close together
perspicacious (adj): having keen mental perception
codswallop (n): nonsense
mungo (n): cloth made from recycled material
sesquipedalian (adj): having many syllables or use of long words
wonky (adj): unreliable
diphthong (n): A complete speech sound that begins with one vowel and changes to another

The group finally landed in Italy. On the way off the plane Eeeeeee Eeeeeeeeeee dropped his phone and it ricocheted off of the wall. A shenanigan snatched it up tried to eschew it away from Eeeeeee. Fortunately, the other two body guards, Torque Lewith and Dan Smith, created a schism and their interdependence helped them get the phone back. After that mix-up, the group went back to focusing on the game. They need to put their capricious minds together and through the plethora of information in their heads to find their next clue. All of the sudden Eeeeeee Eeeee becomes ebullient. He began talking in a garrulous manner with an excessive amount of dipthongs. The groups excitement was ephemeral and they quickly knew that his idea was completely codswallop and he was wonky. Tension began to rise when Annette had a harangue with Eeeeee Eeeeee and told him to shut up. Torque was able to calm everyone down and with his perspicacious mind he was able to infer that the makers of the race was not going to juxtapose each clue. Although he had an inchoate thought, the rest of the group knew he was on to something. Torque then pulled out a mungo from his bag and started writing down the clues they had so the group could find their next destination.

If I Just Had More Time

If I were to do it all over again, I definitely would have started studying earlier. The reason I hadn't was because I was overwhelmed with other homework so I just kept pushing it off. But if I had known it was going to be pure memorization I would have made time to study. I also would have reviewed Chaucer's tone and writing style but I had absolutely no clue that was going to be on the midterm. I thought it was just strictly vocabulary.

A Comparison's Tale

Chaucer keeps the same tone and theme throughout most of his tales. In "Skipper's Tale" and "The Miller's Tale" both are focused on adultery and unfaithfulness. In both stories the wife cheats on the husband with another man. The other thing I noticed in both tales was the fact that no one ever got convicted for their actions. Both of these tales are good examples that showed that Chaucer satirical towards marriage and liked to take a humorous approach on his writing.

Tale of Canterbury Tale

My group read "The Skipper's Tale" by Chaucer. I summarized and answered the questions on paper so I would have something for the presentation. My computer is not cooperating so I don't know how to upload pictures of it so if you want proof just ask (:

Literature Analysis #2: The Great Gatsby

1.       The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald takes place in New York during the 1920’s. The narrator, Nick Carraway, tells about the events that happen during his time in New York. Soon after moving into West Egg, across from Jay Gatsby, he visits his cousin, Daisy and her husband Tom, in East Egg. While there, Jordan, a friend of Daisy, tells Nick that Tom is having an affair with Myrtle. A few chapters later in the novel, Nick attends one of Gatsby’s “famous” parties.  A little bit later in the novel, Gatsby comes over to Nick’s house and invites him to lunch. At lunch, Gatsby introduces Nick to Meyer Wolfshiem, a criminal. Nick notices that Gatsby avoids the Buchanan’s and Jordan later her tells him that Gatsby use to be in love with Daisy and she thinks he still is. Gatsby asks Nick to arrange a meeting with Daisy and when they do meet they begin an affair. Tom quickly dislikes Gatsby, and Daisy invites him to lunch to make Tom jealous. Tom then forces the group to go to the Plaza hotel, and there he shares with Daisy that Gatsby’s fortune is all through illegal activities. On the drive home, Gatsby lets Daisy drive and she hits and kills Myrtle instantly. Wilson, Myrtle’s husband believes the driver must have been the man his wife was having an affair with so he goes to Gatsby’s house and shoots him before taking his own life. Nick is disgusted with everything that has happened in New York so he decides to move back to the Midwest.

2.       The theme of this novel is the shallowness of the higher society. All of the characters, excluding Nick, are very selfish and have ugly personalities. They do not respect their spouses and are having an affair with one of the main characters in the story.

3.       The author’s tone is ironic. All of the main characters spend the entire time working for something (their lovers) which was not worth it because they died in the end anyway. Also, having an affair was not common in the time era this novel was written.

4.       Foreshadowing: The author hints to the downfall of Gatsby. “He snatched the book from me and placed it hastily on its shelf muttering that if one brick was removed the whole library was liable to collapse.” (ch3)

Irony: The author has Daisy stay with Tom at the end of the novel, when he led the reader to believe that she would leave him.

Aphorism: “Time is money” or “The early bird always get the worm.”

Flashback: Jordan begins her story by saying, “One October day in nineteen seventeen.” (pg79)

Similes:  “In his blue garden men and girls came and went like moths among the whisperings and the champagne and the stars.” (ch43)

Diction: “Her laughter, her gestures, her assertions became more violently affected moment by moment and as she expanded the room grew smaller around her until she seemed to be revolving on a noisy, creaking pivot through the smoky air." The word violently implies that she could hurt someone. (pg35)

Symbolism: The bad rainy weather shows that the story isn’t going to end well. (pg89)

Theme: "He must have felt that he had lost the old warm world, paid a high price for living too long with a single dream." This quote refers to the other noticeable theme in the novel, the American Dream. (pg158)

Personification: “The settee squeaked fashionably.” (pg157)

Hyperbole: “As it did that night when we hunted through the great rooms for cigarettes.” (pg147)

5.       Direct Characterization: 1. "His speaking voice, a gruff husky tenor, added to the impression of fractiousness he conveyed.  There was a touch of paternal contempt in it, even toward people he liked - and there were men at New Haven who had hated his guts." Nick describing Tom Buchanan. 2. "I married him because I thought he was a gentleman," she said finally. "I thought he knew something about breeding, but he wasn’t fit to lick my shoe." Myrtle talking about her husband George.

Indirect Characterization: 1. “She got up slowly, raising her eyebrows at me in astonishment, and followed the butler toward the house. I noticed that she wore her evening dress, all her dresses, like sports clothes-there was a jauntiness about her movements as if she had first learned to walk upon golf courses on clean, crisp mornings. ” Nick describing Jordan Baker.

2. “She had a fight with a man who says he’s her husband.” A lady tells Nick the reason why she is crying.

6.       The author’s syntax and diction changes and becomes more descriptive when talking about a character. The novel is focused on the actions of the characters and how they don’t reflect what typically would happen in that time period so it is important for Fitzgerald to describe the characters.

7.       Jay Gatsby is a static character. He stays mysterious for the entire novel and therefore the reader can’t see changes if he does evolve or not. He is a round character. The reader is able to see many different sides of Gatsby and his many different traits. He is not defined by simple one trait.

8.       After I read this novel, I felt like I lived in West Egg and knew all of the character’s because the author had developed them so well. One example of this would be

“It was a strange coincidence,” I said.

“But it wasn’t a coincidence at.”

“Why not?”

“Gatsby bought the house so that Daisy would be just across the bay.”

With this conversation, I really felt like I was on the inside of all the drama that was unraveling.