Paper 3 Proposal

I am choosing A Mercy and Lullaby for my paper. I was wondering if there was any way I could use three social forms and have each paragraph about another social form seen in each novel? If that is possible, my thesis would talk about a need to belong, the role of a female, and discrimination.

            If this is too much, then I think I will stick on the social form the need to belong to something or someone, and have each paragraph talk about different things the characters cling to. In Lullaby, Ayah clings to her memories, taking care of her husband, and nature. In A Mercy, I would talk about Sorrow’s imaginary friend that she holds on to, Florens’ attachment to Lina and the blacksmith, and Lina’s motherly senses that she holds on to, she will take care of anyone.

            I am still trying to figure out how to talk about the form of both pieces and where they would fit into the paper.

Working thesis: Whether it is to others, nature, or ideas, the female roles in both A Mercy and Lullaby portray the social form of a need to belong to something. 

Chapter 13: Alice Pyncheon

Chapter 13, “Alice Pyncheon,” does seem to be a very important chapter in the novel. However, it is hard to know what facts to rely on in the story because Holgrave relies on rumors and insinuations of the story. The accuracy of what exactly happened is suspect. What we can gather from the story, though, is very telling of the Pyncheon family and Holgrave himself. The story of what happens to Alice shows how greedy her father is. Gervayse does not stop Maule from hypnotizing Alice because he thinks of all the money that is in the deal for him. This greediness goes all the way back to Colonel Pyncheon, and describes traits of the Pyncheon family.

Although this is the follow-up after chapter 13, it is also interesting how Holgrave has captured Phoebe with his story. Holgrave’s connection to the Maule’s is unclear, but he seems to have the same powers as Maule. Also similar to Maule, he seems surprised by how much of an effect he can have on people, and does not seem entirely aware of his abilities. However, Holgrave seems to be purer than Maule, he does not follow through with his power. This is extremely important, because he seems to be breaking family traits, if he is connected to the Maules.

This chapter is extremely dark and focuses on the supernatural. Maule’s hold over Alice is almost paranormal, and her hypnotic state when she recalls who has the deed, is also supernatural and gothic in nature. This chapter, after having many chapters that do not seem as eerie and suspenseful, brings the novel back to its gothic roots.

Chapter 13 is very important. Not only does it heighten the sense of suspense and eeriness seen in gothic writing, it gives further insight into the Pyncheon family and their greediness, and further connects Holgrave to the Maule family. 

"The Fall of the House of Usher" and its Gothic Themes

Gothic literature mixes elements of horror and romance. Often the setting is extremely detailed to add to the horror. The setting usually has a history of its own, which adds dread as well. Many times the setting, or the house, in the story is deteriorating, which is similar to our view of a haunted house today. Gothic stories involve the supernatural, and often describe the protagonist’s fall into madness or death. There are often psychological elements in the novel, and there is often a reasonable explanation for what happens in the pot. It is hard to trust the narrator because they are affected in some way by the story.

Edgar Allan Poe’s Fall of the House of Usher incorporates many elements of Gothic writing. First of all, the setting around the House of Usher is described in great detail, along with the inside of the house. The narrator uses words that immediately give the reader chills, and instantly foreshadows dread that will occur throughout the story. The house also has a history of its own. All of Usher’s family has lived there; and they have a history of illness, which makes Usher ill himself, because he expects to be ill. Usher believes the house to be sentient, and the narrator describes it himself with human features; he says the windows are “eye-like” twice.

Fall of the House of Usher also has a more reasonable explanation. Opium is brought up many times throughout the story; Usher claims he was an opium addict. This could mean that the old friends did drugs together, and much of what they are seeing and hearing are hallucinations. Also, if Usher is not using opium anymore, than his symptoms of illness could be possible withdrawal. Usher and his sister both have unexplained illnesses. However, Usher thought he would get ill because of the history of illness in his family. Usher and his sister seem to both be hypochondriacs.

It is hard to trust the narrator in the story because he is so frightened.  Often when people are frightened, details become skewed and many ideas get expanded to become even more horrifying. Also, if the narrator was on opium, his recollection of what happened is definitely distorted.

Poe’s The Fall of the House of Usher present many themes of Gothic writing; he combines horror and romance to create an extremely chilling story.

The Big Two-Hearted River

Some themes seeen in Hemingway's story are destruction, nature, and recovery. The scene Nick is sitting in has been completely destroyed by a fire. Everything is burnt down, and things that Nick remembered about the town are no longer there. After re-reading "The Big Two-Hearted River," I am thinking that the town of Seney is where Nick lived before. He knows the area very well, and is looking for specific landmarks; the homes on the hill, the bridge by the railroad, and finally the river. Nick's town being demolished reflects how soldiers may feel when the return home; everything is different. Places that they used to really enjoy have a different feel and no one understands what soldiers have been through.

However, Nick is still surrounded by nature, and seems to be calmed by that. Nick seems very observant of everything around him and is happy to be alone in nature. I think this ties in with the theme of recovery. I think Nick is coming back from war and is trying to recover from everything he has seen and been apart of. He is happy being alone because he often feels alone, no one can understand what he has been through at home. Being in nature by himself may be Nick's way of recovering from war. He seems content the whole way through, maybe just happy to be alive.

Symbols in the story are the grasshopper, the river, and the fish. The grasshopper is a very important symbol. When Nick sees the grasshopper, he realizes it is blackened from all the soot from the fire. The grasshopper illustrates a soldier coming back after he has seen so much destruction. They're feelings are hardened and they often will not talk about their experiences. Just like the grasshopper, no one knows how long returning soldiers will stay like that before they return to their natural selves.

To me, the river represents how soldiers can always find a constant when they come home from war. Whether it is their family, their favorite restaurant, or in Nick's case, a place to sit and think. Nick seems very calmed by the river, and he knows it will be there, regardless of all of the destruction surrounding it.  I think the fish represents how Nick is not over his experiences in war yet. His fishing becomes a battle between him and the fish, and is much more of a fight than the normal peaceful fishing experience. Nick is finding things to fight instead of calming down and forgetting about the war.

The iceburg theory is very noticeble in this story. Hemingway's writing of the piece really only scratches the surface of Nick's life, and leaves the rest up to the imagination. "The Big Two-Hearted River" seems to be just a series of small observations at first; however, with analyzing further, the reader is able to make a series of inferences about Nick's life and his background that add depth and intrigue to the story.

The Things They Carried: Response to On the Rainy River

It is easy to say that I would flee to Canada if I were drafted for a war, especially a war myself and most of America didn’t support. However, thinking about all of the memories and people I would be giving up would stop me, just like Tim O’Brien. I think he is accurate in saying it is cowardly to not flee; the thought of leaving behind everyone and everything you have ever known is terrifying. I tried to put myself in Tim O’Brien’s shoes; I pictured myself sitting on a boat so close to Canada, and tried to imagine what memories would come to mind.

I first pictured my childhood, and slowly more and more memories came to me throughout my life; my sisters and I playing hopscotch in the summer; all three of us sleeping in the same bed whispering secrets all night; my little sister asking me what I was going to have for breakfast every night; watching Snow White every day; waking up at 4am Christmas morning; playing with American Girl dolls; Backstreet Boys Millenium album; crazy hair day in elementary school; starting the Harry Potter series; violin lessons; my grandparents; Luke’s funeral; choir retreat in the fall; bonfires and s’mores; Camp Honeyrock; my first 6^th grade dance; standing on the Great Wall; my first day of high school; my six best friends backpacking trip; Lollapallooza; white outs for the football games; standing on the cliffs in Knysna, South Africa; senior prom; training to Chicago; graduation on the football field; college music auditions; my parents dropping me off at college; the list goes on and on.

These memories would stop me, as they did Tim O’Brien, from fleeing to Canada. I would be unable to leave all of the memories of people and places and things that have affected me and made me who I am today. It is very ironic that O’Brien sees his decision as going to war cowardly; many people believe that is the brave thing to do. However, it takes a lot of courage to run away from everything you have ever known and completely start over. All of these memories would force me to make the same decision that O’Brien made; I would be a coward and I would go to war.

America by Allen Ginsberg

When I first read Ginsberg’s “America” to myself, it seemed like a serious poem with a few satirical lines in it. However, when listening to the recording, I realized it was much funnier than just the words let on. This is because of how Ginsberg reads the poem; the rhythm of the words often switches, but Ginsberg highlights the humor in his tone of voice.

Allan Ginsberg is a poet of the Beat generation. The rhythm of “America,” is very similar to his poem “Sunflower Sultra,” which we listened to in class. The Beat generation valued improvisation and was influenced by jazz. This is very obvious in his writing; the writing seems almost like a stream of consciousness and all of the words and lines flow together. In Ginsberg’s reading of the poem, he takes dramatic pauses that start a new thought, or sometimes to stress a humorous line.  Also, the reading includes extra thoughts not in the written poem and gets rid of certain lines. This further shows that the idea of the poem is spontaneous and improvised. To really understand the structure of “America,” I think the poem is supposed to be heard rather than read.

The poem has very irregular meter. There is really no consistent number of stressed and unstressed syllables per line, mainly because each line is dramatically different in length. The rhythms seem to be mainly falling, but in many instances, Ginsberg will stress many syllables in a row to make a point. For example, in line 29, Ginsberg states, “America I used to be a communist when I was a kid I’m not sorry.” When he reads the three words “I’m not sorry,” all three words are stressed in a row. This gives off a very humorous interpretation of the line to the listeners, but also inflects that he is maybe purposely going against certain ideals about American society.

“America” has a hard rhythm and meter to discern, because it is written to be heard rather than read. The poem is very influenced by jazz and improvisation, and comes off more as a flowing stream of consciousness. 

Habitation by Margaret Atwood

Margaret Atwood’s poem, Habitation, talks about the challenges of marriage. The poem is basically stating that the idea of marriage is still almost primitive; something humans cannot quite understand and need to work at. It is not natural to humans. Atwood is also saying that marriage is work, and needs to be built from the ground up. Furthermore, Habitation describes the core of a marriage. Atwood is saying that marriage is based only on love, not physical trappings. The idea of a home and white picket fence is not what binds a couple for a lifetime.

Atwood uses many analytical shapes in Habitation. Firstly, the way the poem is written is almost backwards. It starts speaking of a home, and then moves to the edge of a desert, to glaciers, to making fire. I think this further illustrates the idea that a marriage is written from the ground up. On a page, the last line of the poem about making fire is the most primitive idea, and it moves all the way up to “A marriage/is not a house or even a tent” (line 1-2). This aesthetic device shows the reader that marriage takes a long time and needs to have a solid foundation to grow on. The innovation of fire has been the basis of so much growth and progress in society today. In the poem, building fire represents the idea that relationships need to be built off of something strong that can sustain a couple, like love. Fire represents passion, which is needed to fuel a relationship and keep a couple strong through marriage.

Another aesthetic device Atwood uses in Habitation is repetition of the word edge. She uses the word three times, first the edge of a forest, then the edge of a desert, and finally the edge of a receding glacier. The three different places could be where a relationship is headed. I think Atwood is stating that couples may not know what they are getting themselves into when they agree to marry. At the edge of a desert, couples could be heading into a life-threatening situation, and Atwood is saying that the basis marriage is very difficult to keep alive. The edge of a receding glacier could mean that couples might feel like they are trapped with no where to go but down, and will drown themselves trying so hard to make a relationship work. Also, the repetition of the word edge may mean that happiness in a marriage is always on the edge; arguments are constantly on the verge and can happen over the most miniscule problems.

The last analytical shape Atwood uses is the way she breaks up the poem. The first section basically introduces where the poem is heading. Each section is broken up by idea. The last section is just one line, “we are learning to make fire” which stands alone because the only thing that will really create a strong marriage is passion and love, symbolized by fire. Atwood’s poem uses many aesthetic devices and shows that marriage needs to be built from the ground up, the basis being love.