English 210 Blog
Monday, April 16, 2012
Paper 3 Proposal
Monday, April 2, 2012
Chapter 13: Alice Pyncheon
Monday, March 19, 2012
"The Fall of the House of Usher" and its Gothic Themes
Monday, March 12, 2012
The Big Two-Hearted River
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.
Monday, February 27, 2012
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 6th 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.