Character thing #2

 So a brief recap: my character, who would prefer to remain anonymous, just moved into college. Okay.  

It's the first week into College and I already love the freedom, but hate the work. I'm in a constant struggle to keep up with my schoolwork, and I'm not sure what I'm supposed to be learning. But I figure I better find out quick cause I'm gonna get tested on it. But I'm likin the Dorms so far. Yesterday I got a note from the Dean's Office. It was like one of those office notes that you got in High School that told you to go up there or whatever. But this one told me that my interview was tommorow, which is today so I'm about to go check it out. 

Canterbury Tales Character Analysis: The Knight

"That greater there was not beneath the Sun."

This is one of the expository lines that Chaucer uses to tell us about the Knight. It's obvious that Chaucer likes the Knight, but why?

Well First of all I think that the Knight is humble. Chaucer tells us that the Knight came back home to a parade that everyone was at. The Knight was wondering why it was so chaotic, so he asks,"Do you so much envy my hounor that you must cry and complain?'' I think that the knight sees the people's reaction as a little overboard and Chaucer admires that about him.

Secondly, the Knight was a war hero. It tells us in the exposition of the knights tale that " many a rich country he had won." Which tells us that he conqured some stuff. But I think that Chaucer admires how genuine the Knight is. It talks about how the Knght's chain mail was rusty, like he had just gotten back from an expidition. Chaucer is kind of like Holden Caufield, he doesn't like any goddamn phonies. 

Chaucer also describes the knight as chivalrous, which is a pretty big deal back in those days. He also describes him as wise. But the biggest thing of all is the fact that Chaucer made the guy with all these qualities a knight. A knight who, usually, represents goodness and chivalry in literature,( the white knight) So I don't think that's a coincidence, that was intentional.

Direct Characterization-

Chaucer directly characterizes the knight, describing what he does and where he's been. I think that this is a sign of  adoration from Chaucer. It's like someone who's informing us of all the good things someone has done, if that makes sense. But here are a few examples.

" That was old time known as Scythia , there he wedded he the queen hippolyta."

''... and his Chivalry."

2) I think that Chaucer was giving the readers a contrasting character that one could compare with all the others. It's hard to know what good is when it's not clearly defined, and that's the purpose of the Knights tale.

"... his host of chivalry the Flower ( talking of the knight) ..."

Characterization #1

So how would I describe my future, college bound, self? Well, a tall guy with an easy-going attitude walks through the doors of the dorm. He's carrying a box with carefully picked out belongings. The essentials of course. Toothpaste, a phone charger. But also taking with him other more intimate things, each with it's own importance. He walks up to his assigned room and starts the process; of moving in, of getting to know his roomate, of living on his own. This is move-in day, the unoffical start to college.

Canterbury Tales #1

The prolouge of Canterbury Tales gives the reader some context. It tells us of a Pilgrimage to Canterbury to pay respect to a martyr. It does not, however give us any charecterization. It does'nt introduce the speaker or anyone for that matter. The purpose for it was just to give us some brief context as to what was going on.

It starts off telling us that it's April and it has just rained. So it gives us a positive feeling, or mood. So that's how it's set up. I'm interested to see if Chaucer changes the mood to contrast not only the moods but meanings throughout the story.

Vocab #3

Obsequious- to be attentive or obedient,- it is good to be obsequious in class.

Beatiude- extreme blessedness or happiness.

Bete Noirre- a person or thing one particularly dislikes.- A bete Noirre is like a pet peeve.

bode- be an omen of  a particular outcome.- Benny busting the guts out of a baseball was bode for the rest of the movie.

Dank- a moist particularly disagreeable feeling or smell. 

Ecumenial- representing a large number of christian churches. The congregation was ecumenial

Fervid- intensely passionate, the guy was a fervid football fan.

Fetid- smelling very unpleasant- that fart was very fetid.

heyday- the prime of something.

Incubus- one that has sexual intercourse while the other is sleeping.????

Infrastructure- Stuf that's built. like roads. buildings, etc...

inveigle-persuade someone by means of flattery- He was trying to inveigle me into buying that car.

Lagniappe- small gift given to the buyer of a product in olden days. 

Prolix- Lengthy, usually tedious.

Protege- Almost like an apprentice.

Prototype- the test type.

Sycophant- someone who patronizes, or acts obsequiously to gain an advantage.

Tautology- saying the same thing twice in different words.

Truckle- Barrel shaped cheese.

One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest Literature analysis

1) Summary

"Chief" Bromden is a patient at a psychiatiric hospital in oregon. He has been labled as a "chronic", or incurable, and has been at the hospital since world war two. He serves as the narrator of the story. Soon after this Randle McMurphy arrives at the hospital. He was a convicted felon who faked insanity to escape hard labor. McMurphy starts to provoke Miss Ratched, the nurse of the partiicluar ward. Chief refers to her as "the big nurse." One night McMurphy attempts to throw a shower control panel through a window so as to escape. But he can't pick it up because it's too heavy. So a couple days later he want's to watch the World Series. He tells everyone on the ward,, like Mr Martini, Harding, and the studdering Billy Bibbit. Everyone seems to be on board until Nurse Ratched comes and argues that messing with the mens' routines can be harmful. So they decide to have a vote, and since everyone is afraid of "the big nurse" Miss Ratched has her way. One day the men on the ward are having a group discussion, facilitated by Miss Ratched, when many of the men reveal to McMurphy that they are there "voluntarily," and could leave any time. This surprises McMurphy because most of the men complain about the place so much but they can leave anytime they want. 

Soon after this the ward loads up on a bus, but McMurphy hijacks it and takes the men on a fishing trip. Miss Ratched is very upset with McMurphy. Then a while after this, McMurphy smuggles his girlfriend Candy and her friend Sandy into the ward. Billy Bibbit is Clearly attracted to Candy, so McMurphy insists that they sleep together for the night. Meanwhile the rest of the ward is causing havoc and getting drunk, which makes a big mess. The next morning the ward is rounded up into the day room, but Miss Ratched notices that Billy is missing. The "black boys" search for him and find him in a room with Candy. He has barely woken up when they find him and isn't studering. Miss Ratched is furious but Calmly asks Billy what his mother will think of this. Billy breaks down crying and is hauled off to the doctors office. Billy is left alone in there and kills himself, because he'd rather die than deal with the shame. This outrages McMurphy, who attacks Miss Ratched and nearly strangles her to death. After all this McMurphy is lobotomized and turned into a vegetable, cant move or talk. So that night chief smothers McMurphy with a pillow, killing him. Then Chief picks up the shower control panel and heaves it through a window through which he escapes, never to go back again.

2) The theme of this story can be succinctly described as a comment on the free will of humans, and the cruel treatment of people who are different, an allusion to the McCarthyist thinking of the early 50's. 

3) Chief's tone in the story is almost indifferent, its informative but definitely biased towards McMurphy. 

- " The Big Nurse" 

- " ... the nurse would have done what she did, even if McMurphy wasn't there."

- " The Black Boys." 

4) - Irony, McMurphy is faking his insanity but, he still gets lobotomized.

    - Diction, When Chief is explaining things the diction shifts, it sounds like an illiterate person with an accent explaining something. 

    Syntax, Kesey has a good balance of long explanations followed by long sections of dialouge.

    Allegory,-  the hospital patients represent misunderstood victims of communist fear during the McCarthy era. The Big Nurse is obviously McCarthy.

6) -Use of Tragedy, Billy kills himself.

7) Foil, The Nurse and McMurphy are foils, or opposites of each other.

8) Imagery- even though Chief talks like an illiterate indian, he still gives great descriptions of his surroundings.

9) Symbolism- McMurphy represents people standing up for themselves, The nurse represents oppression.

10) Motif- The shower control panel is a motif that, in the end, represents freedom.

Characterization, 

1) Chief, he tells you about himself all in the first few pages so he is defintely directly characterized.

2) Miss Ratched, he has been there as long as she has so he has picked up some idiosyncracies that he tells about.

1) McMurphy is characterized by what he does for the most part, all the mischief he creates, and the confidence he has to stand up to miss Ratched. 

2) The Black Boys, they are never really described much in detail, but their actions reflect the dark, corrupt people they are.

1) The syntax and diction of Chief talking is very distinct, but when Kesey starts to describe a character the diction shifts into more detailed and image filled descriptions.

1) the protagpnist, McMurphy, is definitley dynamic. He goes from a mischevious faker to a man in a virtual coma. I think he is a very obvious dynamic character.

I felt like I kinda met Chief, I mean when you have a prevalent voice through the whole story it makes you kinda feel that way. 

Vocab #3

Accolade- an award or privilege granted as special honor or as an acknowledgement of merit.- Miguel Cabrera earned the accolade of MVP.

Acerbity- sourness, harshness, as of temper or expression.- Some people can display acerbic qualities when stressed.

Attrition- gradually wearing down your opponent.- It's a war of attrition.

Bromide- a trite and unoriginal idea or remark, typically intended to soothe or placate. "When life give's you lemons make lemonade."

Chauvinist- aperson displaying aggresive or exxagerated patriotism.- Some southern republicans are known to chauvinist.

Chronic- constant or habitual- Some people are chronically late.

Expound- to present and explain, systematically and in detail.- I expounded my presentation.

Factionalism- A group of persons forming a cohesive, usually contentious minority within a larger group. Gangs are a good example of factionalism.

Immaculate- perfectly clean, neat or tidy.- The classic car was in immaculate condition.

Imprecation- a spoken curse.- She placed an imprecation on him.

Ineluctable- unable to be resisted or avoided, inescapable.- I was put into an ineluctable situation. 

Mercurial- subject to sudden or unpredictable changes of mood or mind.- People can mercurial sometimes.

Palliate- Make a disease or its symptoms less severe or unpleasant without removing the cause. Lots of medicines today palliate the affliction they claim to alleviate.

Protocol- standard operating procedure, rules by which things are done.- We must follow the protocol.

Resplendent- attractive and impressive through being richly colorful or sumptuous. - The scenery was resplendent.

Stigmatize- describe or regard as worthy of disgrace or great dissaproval.- Some people stigmatize politicians and what they do.

Sub Rosa- denotes secrecy or confidentiality- The corporation had sub rosa activities.

Vainglory- excessive celebration or pride over ones own achievements, - Do narcicists tend to have vainglory qualities?

vestige- a trace of something that no longer exists- The Stonehenge gives a vestige to the civilization it created.

Volition- the faculty or power of ones will.- My volition will help me through tough times.

Beowulf through a feminist lens

It is commonplace to think that great epics, or the monomyth hold the important values in a culture or society.  But back when Beowulf was written, women were certainly not as valued as they are today. Was it because they were weaker than men? Whatever it was one question remains. What would Beowulf be like if told from a feminist perspective? This is a largely speculative and ambiguous question, but Beowulf from a feminist perspective would not be a Monomyth, and might portray the Woman as weak.

The Monomyth is a story that transcended cultures and peoples that were so inexplicably different, except in the story, or the myth that they all had a variation of. The monomyth usually embodies the views of a society, and since most of the strong characters are men, they must've put men on a pedastal, apogee, apotheosis. So women probably were'nt viewed favorably, so if the protagonist in beowulf was a woman, she probably wouldn't be a hero, A hero has to take risks, That is the defintion of a hero. But a woman character, or even a real life woman back in the day, would probalby be reluctant to take risks. So in this aspect, it wouldn't be a monomyth. Next, look at Grendels Mother. She does not represent the view that women are all evil and cruel, but the subtlety that she was not even given a name sheds light to the fact that women were viewed as unimportant. 

Also, a feminist view on Beowulf might portray her as weak. We live in a culture now that is virtually free of sexism for most of us, most of the time. But that is way different than back in the day. As was stated before, the lack of a name for Grendels Mother, along with the lack of a strong female character goes back to the presumption that women were not viewed with importance. 

So I think that culturally, feminine beowulf was just impossible. It would be like our box office hit being a patriotic terrorist. Now that is more of a hyperbole than what I intend, but what I do intend is that the culture doesn't even allow for either. Beowulf was a story that needed to be masculine, but I don't think theres anything wrong with that.

Will study for food

So I'm going to go to college next year and even though I'm probably going to go to a CSU, its still like 7,000 dollars a year. So for, hopefully at most, 5 years, the grand total for tuition is 35,000 dollars. That doesnt include off campus housing so lets call it an even 40,000. So I personally don't have 40 grand just laying around to go to college, and I don't want to take out a student loan. So I guess I need to get a scholarship, of some kind. I'm looking at a few scholarships that may just be a few hundred dollars, but in this case somethings better than nothing. 

I think my target goal should be 5000 dollars. I think that's do-able. Then get a job and save up some money and a tuition is paid for. Or I guess I could just gp to Hancock.

 Fall Vocab #2 

Accoutrements-  additional items of dress or clothing- Some people wear many accourtrements that are unnecasary.

apogee- the highest point of something- The apotheosis of something could also be described as an apogee.

apropos-adv. when a speaker thinks that someone's comment has no relevance to a situation or context.- The politicians answers were apropos.

Bicker- to argue- the brothers bickered on and on.

Coalesce- come together to form a singular unit- the football team coalsced to win CIF.

Contretemps- unexpected and unfourtunate occurance- The fire was a contretemps.

Convolution- a twisted interpretation- there was convolution over tupacs death.

Cull- select from a large quantity- the coach had a cull of players to choose from.

Disparate- So different there is no use for comparison- like apples and oranges

Dogmatic- Pricinples that are incontroversibly true- DNA in living systems is the central dogma to biology

Licentous- promiscuous- The dude was licentuous.

Mete- punishment- The judge allowed mete for the triple homicide killer.

Noxious- to feel like you want to throw up- the roller coaster made him noxious

Polemic-strong attack, ad hominen- the editorial was full of polemic letters toward Brobama. 

Populous- a region full of people- LA is a huge populous.

Probity- having strong moral principles- the puritans had probity.

Repartee- conversation with quick wity replies- talking with that clown was like having a repartee.

Supervene- occur later than planned, changes the situation- In the hangover, Doug's tardiness supervened the wedding.

Truncate-Shorten something by cutting the top or end- I truncated the grape vines in the vinyard.

Unimpeachable- not able to be doubted- Dogmatic things are unimpeachable