Sunday, September 29, 2013

The Perks End--Part II


Part II: Quotes

1. “I would die for you. But I won’t live for you” –  This quote from the book not only illuminates the overall literary work, but it shows how Charlie needs to live his own life and be less passive when it comes to important decisions and things he wants in his life, for example the love of Sam.

2. “We accept the love we think we deserve.” – This specific quote from the novel illustrates that Charlie may not feel like he is deserving of true love. In a broader sense people feel like they are undeserving of love or cannot be truly loved because of who they are, for example, appearance, race, education, etc.

3. “Sometimes people use thought to not participate in life” – This quote from the story is very saddening, by showing how people, such as, Charlie use their own thoughts whether they be good, bad, or both to not participate in everyday life. Another perspective that could be taken from this quote is suicide. Many people give up on life because they allow their thoughts to take control and see the worst in things and feel no need to continue on.

The Perks End--Part I


Part I: Plot

 

         “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” is an exhilarating spot-on story of what it is like to grow up in high school. The unique letters from Charlie are vibrant and relative to real world circumstances. Through his letters to an unknown “friend”, the reader relates and shares the same world that Charlie describes. The ending of the novel by Stephen Chbosky is very appropriate to conclude the literary masterpiece, brought to the reader through the letters from the teenager Charlie. The conclusion is both surprising and devastating, but ultimately shines a light on what the story as a whole was trying to convey. This included friendship, coming of age, love, family, sex, and drugs, which may very be the equivalent of an average complex teenage life. As a reader, one must realize that this novel is about life…real life. One must also comprehend that this dramatic conclusion is not confined to a book, but rather an everyday occurrence with some teenagers just like Charlie. Overall the culmination of the literary work was fulfilling and inspirational, expressing not only emotions of sorrow, but urging the reader to make a difference by noticing all the wallflowers whom exist that are just like Charlie on their search to feel infinite.

Thursday, September 26, 2013

Playlist

They Don’t Know by Jon B. - I  enjoy the beat and how the lyrics reflect the viewpoint that no one    knows about how someone truy feels and loves someone.
Healing by Jagged Edge - I enjoy the beat and the lyrics  of the song.

Knockin’ Da Boots by H-Town - I enjoy the beat of the song.

Bad Habits by Maxwell - I enjoy how the tone and melody match with the lyrics and really tell a story.

Lost Without You by Robin Thicke - I enjoy everything about this song and how the lyrics relate to people in life and how you care for them.

Everyone Hurts by Kirk Franklin - I enjoy everything, but what stands out the most is the message being ministered through the songs lyrics.

Thank God I Found You by Mariah Carey - This track is enjoyable because not only is there a nice beat, but through its lyrics you understand how much you are blessed to have someone you love. To me not even neccessarily a girlfriend, but anyone in general.

You Rock My World by Michael Jackson - I enjoy this track because I like Michael Jackson music.

Diamonds by Robin Thicke - I enjoy every aspect of this song and it really speaks to me through its lyrics.

They Don’t Know by Jon B. - I enjoy the beat and how the lyrics reflect the viewpoint that no one knows about how someone truy feels.

 

Monday, September 23, 2013

Perks Questions

Who is the protagonist? How would you characterize him?
 Charlie is the Protagonist. He is always analyzing and using his head to think things through. 
 
 Which characters are round and flat?
Patrick, Sam, and Charlie’s sister are flat characters, but Charlie and Brad are definitely round.
 
Examine the family dynamics in "Perks". Would you classify Charlie's parents as good or bad? What textual evidence do you have to support this?
I would classify Charlie’s parents as decent parents, they try to support their children and keep them safe from harm. From their own experiences they want to raise their kids better than what they were, for example, the dad pledges never to hit his children because his father hit him when he was little.
 
What point of view is used and what style? Why would the author choose this method? How is it effective?
This story is told from Charlie’s point of view and written in a personal first person since it is in diary form. The author found this method most effective because it connects the reader to the events taking place in the book and can personally connect to the characters and Charlie.
 
What conflicts exist in this novel so far?
Some conflicts include the sister and the boy who hits her and the hidden homosexuality between Brad and Patrick.
 
What do you notice about the exposition of this story? Does it grab your attention? How?
In the beginning he talks like he is writing to another person who can listen to him. It grabs my attention because I want to know who he is writing to.
 
Which chapters apply so far?
Some application would include bad communion.

Wednesday, September 18, 2013

Some Point of View Types

1st Person-  point of view in which an "I" or "we" serves as the narrator of a piece of fiction. The narrator may be a minor character, observing the action, or the main protagonist of the story.

3rd Person Omniscient-   a method of storytelling in which the narrator knows the thoughts and feelings of all of the characters in the story.

3rd Person Limited-   a method of storytelling in which the narrator knows only the thoughts and feelings of a single character, while other characters are presented only externally. Third person limited grants a writer more freedom than first person.

3rd Person Objective-   the narrator only knows what someone watching would know. They don't know people's thoughts, but rather actions and words.

3rd Person Collective- a method of storytelling i which there is more than one narrator

Point of View



Point of View Alteration of Popular Mechanics

Early that day it was very chilly and I turned and noticed that the luminous white fluff on the window was melting into what seemed to be dirty water. Streaks of it trickled down from the little shoulder-high window that faced my family’s backyard. Some of the white fluff sort of slushed by on the blacktop outside, where it was getting very dark and daunting. But it was getting dark on the inside too, my parents were upstairs.

I heard many items being slung around, when my mom went to check on dad. The screaming I heard short after made me uneasy and I threw up onto the living room floor. All I heard was my mom’s curdling voice, “I’m glad you’re leaving!” There was no response, as I continued to hear such items slung into something.

My mom began to scream at my father once again, I was deeply frightened. There were many words I could not make out that my mom kept repeating over and over again. I finally heard a faint murmur of my dad’s voice; “Bring that back.” is all I could make out. As she came down the steps, her face red with anger and eyes filled with tears, she was fearfully grasping hold of a frame that had a picture of what so closely resembled me. She noticed the mess I had previously made in the floor and picked me up and took me into the kitchen.

My dad was quick to follow her down the steps, as he switched off the lights upstairs; he was holding a large case of something and was wearing his gigantic coat. My mom held me in the doorway of the small kitchen, watching my father with intense eyes. I tried to call for him, he did not answer.

I remember seeing my dad’s brow start to curl as he said, “I want the baby.” At first I was .pleased as if he wanted to hold me, but his face was not inviting. I began to cry.  “Are you crazy?” my mother queried.

My parents began to bicker and yell once again; I cried even louder. My mother, uncovered the blanket covering the top of my head. “Oh, oh” she said, looking me directly in the eyes.

Dad moved toward me and my mom. She screamed for God, while taking a step backwards almost dropping me in the floor. “I want the baby.” said dad. “Get out of here!” exclaimed mom.

She turned with me in her arms holding me in the corner of the stove. Suddenly I felt a harsh grasp around me, I looked up, and it was my father. He reached across the stove and tightened his hands on me. I tried to free myself but I could not.

My parents both had me in their hands, shouting at one another. “Let go of him”, “Get away, get away!” was a concurrent tone. My face was burning and I was screaming, I could not move, I was being dictated by my own two parents; I became a doll to them. While the two were tugging me they knocked down my favorite feature of the entire house, the beautiful flowerpot that hung behind the stove. Oh how I loved that flowerpot.

Things had become much worse, my father crowded mom into the wall, trying to break her grip from me. I was just hoping that the unbearable pain would go away from my benign body. The grip of the two was becoming even harsher as dad held on to me while pushing with all his weight to release me from my mother’s slipping hands.

Pulling me even harder my skin began to ache, “Don't”, she said,” You’re hurting the baby.” “I'm not hurting the baby”, declared my dad. The two bickered on but without regard to me, their son.

There was no light shining through the window and it was completely dark inside the kitchen when my dad tried to unwind mom’s fisted fingers from my body with one hand, while holding me tightly with the other. I began to scream like no other.

For a brief moment I felt a relaxation because my mom’s fingers were plying open, by this time I did not care what happened, I just wanted to be free of the severe pain from the pulling on my body.  

“No!” my crying mother screamed as her hands came loose from my elongated arm. She would not let me go! In a split-second she grasped my other arm. She tightly locked her hands around my wrist and leaned back. My dad would not give in; he pulled back suddenly very hard. The tugging of my undermined flesh became unbearable.

Wednesday, September 11, 2013

Self-Analysis


Self-Analysis

            I, Julius Alexander Hatcher IV, through the course of the last two years consider myself to be a static and round character in the sense of characterization. To be specific, two years ago to this day I would still be dedicated to my studies, adamantly pursuing athletics, and being a leader and lover to and of everyone. Although my life has been filled with many dynamic and commemorative achievements, the context of solely me has not altered. Two years have passed, my classes in school becoming more challenging, the realization of college pursuing me, and I have become conscious of the fact that other than conventional external effects of an uncontrollable world I, Julius, have not changed character, personality, or outlook on numerous details.

So although I consider myself a static character, I would also categorize the last two years of my life as round or fulfilling. A round character has a complex personality, like most of humanity does. So in this sense I feel enlightened because the unbearable weight of being the best of the best in everything I do and every day I arise can become stagnant. The roundness of my life makes me who I am today, a strong minded, sharp willed, spirited leader of the future. The roundness of an everyday person makes them unique, makes them special; in some way or form everyone is different, like me, separated from the rest of humanity by being Julius Alexander Hatcher IV. So yes I am round, different, unorthodox and that is okay because being boring would be no fun.

Monday, September 9, 2013

Character Analysis of “A Rose for Emily”


Character Analysis of “A Rose for Emily”

 

                William Faulkner’s short story, “A Rose for Emily”, molds a character told from a perspective of first person plural. Through this distinct narration of the story, the reader never learns of Miss Emily Grierson’s true thoughts and emotions, but rather selectively only her thoughts and emotions as interpreted by the townsfolk. Miss Emily, a static character, was well-defined by the community, but not by anything the reader truly perceives. Much like Emily the young Negro servant, Tobe, does not seem to change throughout the story, other than the fact that the two physically age. Faulkner expresses the content of Miss Emily’s character through physical description, her actions, and words of others, which connotes direct characterization by way of the first person narrative’s direct comments. Although the direct characterization is explained from a different viewpoint, in this case the townsfolk, it is consistent throughout the literary work.

            Miss Emily, subject to gossip and speculation, was viewed as a mysterious yet demanding woman. This trait may be attributed to Emily’s deceased father who restrained her entire life. Depicted in the rising action, her father was standing in front of little Miss Emily with a whip. Due to her father’s controlling actions upon her young love life, after the death of her father, Emily denied his passing and would not allow the doctors to bury him for three days. This self-centered act of rebellion was a way to take control over her father in an act of revenge, as can be inferred by the reader. This reprisal she develops in her heart keeps Emily from truly creating a relationship and leads to the demise of her sweetheart, Homer Barron.

            Homer Barron, a round character, is the gossip of the townspeople creating a perfect scenario for the two love birds. Miss Emily falls in love with this elder black day laborer and wants to marry Homer. Homer’s inability to cope with marriage, whether he is homosexual or non-committal angers Emily and revokes her revengeful traits. The character of Miss Emily continues to expedite as she travels to the local drug store to buy arsenic, “rat poisoning”. In the climax, which happens to be the conclusion of the story, the reader infers that Miss Emily Grierson intoxicated her sweetheart Homer, therefore killing him. One might infer that Emily Grierson loved Homer Barron so much that she wanted to keep him forever, which she ultimately achieved by murdering him.

            Emily Grierson, an unapproachable woman plagued with her father’s controlling rhetorical whip, lover of Homer Barron, and outcast to the townsfolk is defined by the community. The character Emily depicted in the final scene of the story suggests that she is a necrophiliac, which means she has an attraction to dead bodies. Faulkner's use of characterization to describe Miss Emily and her unforeseeable intentions was successful in bringing the story to life and to satisfy the reader. Emily Grierson, symbolized by her house, dark, mysterious, and uninviting was a monumental figure subject to uncanny behavior in the short story. Though Miss Emily Grierson was peculiar in many ways, one constant trait remained evident; her pride.  

Characterization Literary Terms


Characterization Literary Terms
 
Direct Characterization- personality of a character is revealed by the use of descriptive     adjectives, phrases, or actions throughout a literary work.
 
Indirect Characterization- personality of a character is revealed throughout a story by inferences and knowledge throughout the passage from the reader  
 
Round Characters- has a complex personality, more like a real person
 
Flat Characters- crude and one-dimensional, usually only there to fill a simple role
 
Stock Characters- character type that is quickly recognized and accepted by the reader or viewer and requiring no development by the writer
 
Static Characters- character who stays the same throughout the entire story
 
Dynamic Characters- character that changes in some way during a story

Friday, September 6, 2013

Plot & Summary Lit Terms


Plot & Structure
 
Exposition- the beginning of a story
Rising Action- the part/substance of a story in which leads up to its main point
Climax- the main point or message of a story; the most in depth
Falling Action- after the climax in which a story starts to wrap up its main points
Resolution- the conclusion; part of the story at the end where a resolved problem has occurred, whether good or bad
Conflict (include different types)- a differing viewpoint within a story which needs resolved
Protagonist- main character in a story or other literary work
Antagonist- an adversary in a story or literature work
Flashback- recurrence of events in a story that have an earlier occurrence 
In medias res- thrown in the middle of a literary work at the beginning

The Lame Shall Enter First


The Lame Shall Enter First

 

       In the story “The Lame Shall Enter First”, Sheppard, the protagonist father, renders himself to be Christ-like, but ironically does not believe in heaven or hell. He also is unable to empathize with the grief his son, Norton, exhibits for his one year laid to rest mother. So without the belief of God or heaven, the viewpoint of life and death does not provide his son for comfortable understanding of the death of his mother. To fill the void between Norton and himself, Sheppard reaches out to an underprivileged, delinquent, young child named Rufus Johnson. The exposition of this story continues by way of Rufus entering Sheppard’s household by way of the key he offered the young lad while he is away. Sheppard becomes enlightened when he sees a young and bright Rufus Johnson in his home reading an encyclopedia and pleads for him to stay. By the end of the exposition, Rufus also can tell that Sheppard resembles Christ by saying, “He thinks he’s Jesus Christ!” In contrast, Rufus, the antagonist, considers himself to be consumed and overtaken by Satan, but has strong belief and faith in The Bible and Christianity. 

 

       The rising action of this book accumulates while Rufus begins to show his love and passion for Christianity, despite being filled with sin himself. He tries to explain to Norton, to the disapproval of Sheppard, where his late mother is. The dialogue between the two about heaven, hell, and the Bible continue throughout the rising action, while Sheppard completely disregards of it. Rufus, though a complete troublemaker, achieves Grace and a connection with The Lord because he believes and tries to convey the truths about The Bible with Norton and even Sheppard.  The police make regular visits to the Sheppard household when something goes wrong around the area, assuming it is Rufus. Sheppard at first doesn’t take bail for what the offending Rufus had done, but to cease the moment and try to craft him into a better individual, Sheppard defended Rufus.

 

       As a reader of this short story I do not believe there is a certain or particular moment to be credited as a climax, because throughout the whole story the action rises and builds up until the very end as the audience is then appalled and somewhat saddened by the act of suicide by Sheppard’s real son. One could make the case that in the beginning of the story there was a hint of foreshadowing because Sheppard paid more attention to Rufus Johnson than his actual son. The reader could even argue that at the beginning he loved Rufus more than his son, Norton. 

 

       A key point in the story is when Rufus denies the special made shoe Sheppard provides for him and refuses to wear it. This symbolizes how Rufus is dependent on his handicap to maintain a healthy belief of going to heaven, despite being evil and a juvenile delinquent, pronouncing, “the lame shall enter first.” The story exhibits a great deal of irony, as the story suggests that compassion and love cannot be replaced. Through the mentioning of the suicidal event occurring by the window with the telescope and Norton, irony is exposed relating back to Sheppard wanting to acquire and create the telescope on behalf of Rufus, as he disregarded his own son. By the conclusion of the story, Rufus Johnson, a troublesome, evil filled, child who believes in good and evil makes known to Sheppard that he needs to spend more time and love his son unconditionally; but it is too late because he learns this after Norton hangs himself striving for his mother which he fantasizes seeing in the telescope through the window earlier. 

An Occurence at Owl Creek Bridge


An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge

 

“An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge” is a story about the protagonist, Peyton Farquhar, who is privileged under a somewhat wealthy Southern family. Therefore he does not donate knowledge to the trials and rigors of the Civil War. In Part II of the story, the reader learns that circumstances unknown leave Farquhar yearning for distinction and inevitably contributes to his faithful devotion to the South. Determined to achieve difference among his people, Farquhar pursues personal achievement ahead of his responsibility in his household, which begins the exposition of the story. This act of selfishness shortly leads to his demise.

                 As the action of the story begins to rise, a gray-clad soldier rode up to Farquhar’s gate and asked his wife for a drink of water. Foolishly, Farquhar eagerly inquired knowledge from the horseman and in his self-desire he took the word of the apparent soldier of the South. Ultimately the rising action of this story continues to build by the known fact that the “soldier” was in fact a federal scout. Knowing this as a reader, one could conclude that the federal scout was trying to deceive Farquhar.

                The climax of the short story begins in Part III by conveying to the reader that Farquhar is confined and is being hanged by his actions trying to devote himself towards the South. As the climax continues, Farquhar falls from the noose and into the bellowing stream below him. Conscience of motion, Farquhar, struggled down the stream while being shot at and suddenly his senses peaked and regained regularity to his physical presence after being tied up from his hanging. As water rushed past his ears, sentinels firing at will, commotion all around him adding to the climax, Farquhar found himself upon the bank of the river near the forest.

                After the climax of the story has come to a conclusion, the falling action takes place as Farquhar dissipates into the forest and marvels at how valuable everything looked, such as, the trees and sand. All day he traveled and as the conclusion nears Farquhar became fatigued, footsore, and famished. He travels along a road apparently untraveled and makes his way home towards his wife. When Farquhar returns home he notices it as he left it, bright and beautiful in the morning sunshine.

                In conclusion of the story he sees a fluttering of woman garments as he pushes open the gate and he sees his wife. He springs forward with extended arms to greet his wife and as he is about to clasp her he feels a stunning blow upon the back of the neck. Peyton Farquhar is dead, swinging from side to side, hovering over the Owl Creek Bridge as the story comes to a close. Until the very end of the story the reader is held up in the escape of Farquhar, but one can insinuate that Peyton Farquhar was hallucinating and imagining his entire escape as the hanging was in progress, prey of his own desires of distinction.