Guest Blogger: Aaron B.
I think we’ve kind of exhausted the topic of point of view and I’m glad that were moving onto a different topic. From reading “Turn of the Screw” all the way to our latest novel “As I Lay Dying” this unit has been a long one, even more so because of the four to five page paper due on Monday. We’ve taken a look at every possible type of point of view and I really found the latest short story very interesting. “A Dill Pickle” when I read that the first time I thought it was a limited omniscient story since Mansfield seems to only let the reader into the girl’s mind. Except for in the last lines, “She had gone. He sat there, thunder-struck, astounded beyond words…. And then he asked the waitress for his bill. ‘But the cream has not been touched,’ he said. ‘Please do not charge me for it.’” When the reader gets a peek into what the man is thinking. I was shocked to see that the story could be viewed in a totally different point of view, from an imagination in the man’s mind. Once Edmonds threw that curve ball it actually seemed possible but I still found myself saying, “No way!”
I’m dreading this paper because I’ve had so much going on that I haven’t had much time to work on it and plus I’m a major procrastinator. I have started writing about how the authors use verisimilitude as a style to propel their story lines, but I keep thinking that there would be an easier technique to cover. Another technique I was examining was that of point of view, but I fear that a lot of other people are using that as theirs and I want Mr. Decker to have a variety. On the other hand it has to be done by Monday and we have plenty of information to use to write four or more pages. After this paper is done I have a feeling that the year is going to fly by and it will be graduation day in no time.
Enough of this point of view stuff, let’s move on to alienation. This new unit is like a breath of fresh air; plus it already seems pretty interesting. Estrangement or alienation as we learned today is a separation from the outside world, from all people and nature itself. Franz Kafka, a master of this topic seems to be an amazing writer, I found his parable that we read in class very interesting and I’m looking forward to his novella “Metamorphosis”. Although alienation uses a lot of negative imagery I’m ready to move on and experience something completely different. Now I wonder what we’re going to have to with this unit, but I’m not going to worry about that. Since Mr. Edmonds hyped up Kafka so much he has me wondering more about this great author and how he creates alienation in his writing.
posted by erdecker @ 3:18 PM
5 comments
5 Comments:
I had almost the same thoughts Aaron! I procrastinated, yet was still nice enough to Decker/ Edmunds to write about a different topic than the other obvious ones.
Half of me is excited to read Metamorphosis, yet the other half is not. The novel seems interesting, maybe as interesting to read every night before bed, but it also explores the concept of alienation which may be quite depressing...
Another depressing book......
Wow, you're right. Every book we've read this semester has been depressing.
Anyways, alienation is a pretty common occurrence in our lives. We like to be together with our friends, and we don't like to be alone. But it makes for an interesting book topic, because when we're alone we can be ourselves and not have to worry about what other people think. This is a lot different from the typical perspective we get of people, and a lot more interesting to read about.
I agree, but you can be alienated from yourself as well. I'm sure we've all experienced when we realized we were something we didn't want to be. Alienation isn't neccesarily from society as a whole.
I think thats what makes this topic so interesting. It can be something as shallow as not letting someone sit at your lunch table, or as deep as finding out who you are.
p.s i agree all of our books are super depressing haha
Alienation is something that almost everyone faces at one point or another. Many of us face it in different ways such as through our schoolmates, co-workers, teammates, and our fellow community members. Alienation is a topic that may not be in a large scale because like what Marina said it can occur in a smaller scale. Alienation occurs when an individual is at a situation or a place that has different moral or standards than the individual. We all tend to alienate people that are different from what we call "normal" I guess its part of human life
Ramon F Banzon
It's funny to have been able to read this post and comment on it the very last day of the semester, being the procrastinator that I am. The paper that I worried so much about (I did symbolism, by the way) turned out to be easy and go so well that I barely remember expending the effort to do it. I'm also quite happy that we got One Hundred Years of Solitude - it certainly isn't nearly as depressing as Ethan Frome or As I Lay Dying (the latter isn't so depressing really, but its title kind of kills it) - and best of all, my essay was done in only a half hour. I even had this weird feeling while writing the essay... I think some people might describe it as "enjoyment".
As for the procrastination when writing a paper, sometimes it's because you can't think of ideas... but sometimes, it's because the ideas are coming to you. While the paper I did yesterday was done by the end of the hour, a few of my classmates only had a few lines. They were thinking the whole time, and that isn't procrastination.
- Thomas
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