Popular Mechanics

"In this manner, the issue was decided. "

If by issue the author means having a baby in one piece, then yes the issue was decided. I think this story is extremely symbolic and ironic. Divorce tears families apart. In this case it tears baby apart. What I don't understand is the title. Is the splitting solution popular? This makes me think that maybe I'm just being sick and twisted. On the logical side, maybe the baby is still the issue, but splitting isn't the resolution. The issue wasn't resolved afterall. SO maybe the state of the baby changed. Rather than dying, maybe the baby no longer matters. The couple could just be fighting for the sake of fighting. The baby issue vanished, and they decided that the real issue of divorce became the forefront of arguments.

You're Ugly, Too

"It's a bonehead. It's this thing that looks like a giant bone going through your head." pg 355

You're a bonehead! Newsflash miss thing: you aren't funny! Zoe (with an umlaut on the e) has to be one of the most emotionally irrational characters I've ever read. She wants to be pregnant, she wants to hook up, and then she wants nothing to do with Earl. Someone needs to tell her that she's not as brilliant as she thinks. The only irony I can find is that Zoe thinks she's extremely sarcastic and ironic, but she's not at all. She's just a jerk. When a perverted doctor joke is funnier than you, that's when you know you aren't funny. The story was a straight forward bore, but I was waiting on the edge of my seat for something to happen. I'm still waiting...

The Drunkard

"'It was God did it to you were there. You were his guardian angel." pg 351

I feel like this mother and I know different Gods. The God I know would never get a little boy hopelessly drunk to help his alcoholic father. This is not funny at all!First of all, show some respect. Don't go to a funeral just to get drunk afterward. Most importantly, someone teach that kid that curiosity killed the cat! Alcoholism is very genetic. This one binge could start the boy's battle with alcoholism. I feel like the author should have thought of the seriousness of alcoholism before writing this.

The Lottery

"'Nothing but trouble in that,... Pack of young fools." pg 268

This is the worst lottery I have ever heard of.Who would every want to win death upon one of their family members? Why would any sane reader see that coming? They wouldn't. The townspeople were so casual about the lottery. They were even outraged by the thought of getting rid  of the lottery. It's not like killing a random person will actually make the harvest any better. How dare other communities take a turn for the humane! These people are so stuck inside their superstition that they can't see how awful the Lottery is! I realize that these kinds of games used to be the norm in socciety, and I thank God that times have changed. In fact, times have changed so much that I cannot fathom the merciless killing, but my ancestors very well could have participated in something like this.

Miss Brill

“No doubt somebody would have noticed if she hadn’t been there; she was part of the performance after all,”

Miss Brill does not fit in because she thinks she fits in. Make sense? She tries so hard to dress and act the part of a well liked French speaking person that she clearly stands out. She assumes that everyone thinks she fits in when really they think she's a bit ornate. In the process of trying to win over others, Mrs. Brill has lost herself. The theme is to avoid doing just that. By watching Miss Brill almost embarrass herself, one can learn that life is not about performing as what society would see as normal, or ones perception of normal. Just be yourself. Miss Brill tries so hard and it does not even work. Life is to short to pretend to be someone else. Be yourself and people will notice you because of your uniqueness. Try to blend in with what is expected, and no one will remember who you really are.

Eveline

"Her eyes gave him no sign of love or farewell or recognition."

 pg 222

The author admits to writing about "spiritual paralysis" in Dublin's citizens. By this he means their spirits, or emotions, and not their spirituality. Yes, Eveline has had a rough life, but she has almost resigned to the fact that nothing happy will ever happen to her. Even when she had the chance to leave with her true love she stayed because she is so trapped inside her nightmare of a life. I don't think trapping yourself is a very helpful theme though. It's not right for an arthur to tell his readers to lose all sense of emotion and follow their responsibilities over their heart's desires. Maybe the story is begging readers to not be Eveline. Maybe people should not hold negative memories so closely. Moreover, maybe we shouldn't dwell on the past.

A Worn Path

"' My grandson. It was my memory had left me. There I sat and forgot why I made my long trip.'" pg 229

The grandson in this story is obsolete. Alive or not, Phoenix continuously makes a difficult trip for him in her old age. The poor woman has gone through the same routines in life for so long that it does not even matter to her that her grandson may be dead. In a sense, Phoenix is dead because she is so obliviously closed off to the real world. For Phoenix, making the trip marks living, but she is only technically alive. The trip has become emotionless and not memorable. She is making the tripfor the sake of making the trip, not to aid her grandson. I think a lot of people live that way. Going to school to go to school, but not with the intent of getting an education. Going to church, but not with an intent to improve spiritually. Phoenix's journey reminds us to embrace what we have in life, and to look around and take it all in as we grow up.

Once Upon a Time

"YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED"

The story as a whole is a warning, but not a warning to intruders. The mother in the story becomes so obsessed with protecting her child that she does not know when to stop. In the end it is her protection that actually kills him. In that light, it is a warning against technology, and security. These things can overshadow the important things in life. Also, its a warning about getting wrapped up in anything. The fact that the son saw the security system as a "thicket" rather than protection shows that he felt trapped, but the mother had no clue. She had lost sight of the reason for her own security obsession. By reading this story, YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED about getting caught up in miscellaneous desires of this life.

Hunters in the Snow

"'He was old and sick. Couldn't chew his food anymore. I would have done it myself but I don't have a gun."

As if the bad situation couldn't get any worse, Kenny wasn't having a psychotic break down after all. Tub on the other hand could not have taken this very well. I would like to think that shooting your friend is troubling enough, but shooting your friend for no reason must be traumatizing. However, this whole short story questions what traumatizing really is. I myself would draw the line at almost getting ran over by my friends, but that didn't seem to phase Tub. Then, he shoots his friend on accident, but he manages to make it through that one and reconnect with Frank. Most importantly, they don't even make it to the hospital! Their friend died on their watch, but it's just thrown in there as if it's a trivial fact!

Everyday Use

"When I looked at her like that something hit me in the top of my head and ran down to the soles of my feet. Just like when I'm in church and the spirit of God touches me and I shout."

I wish I could encounter someone like Maggie. She was a breeze to understand simply because she is an angel despite her major set backs. I think Maggie looked even more moral because her sister was the polar opposite. Maggie was been permanently distorted because of a fire, yet she manages to stay grounded and traditional like her mother. On the other hand, Dee has always been rebellious and dramatic even though she wasn't injured in the fire. More importantly, Dee was not initially proud of where she came from. With Dee, she did not love anything, but loathed lots of things that caused her to pick the alternative as her choice. Maggie, however, was consistent in liking the way her mom lived, and felt no need to make a scene about it. Also, Maggie could respect her ancestors without coming up with a crazy name.

Hunters in the Snow

"Frank, when you've got a friend it means you've always got someone on your side, no matter what.That's the way I feel about it anyway." pg 198

I just want to hug Tub. He's not the sharpest tool in the shed, but he evokes such sympathy. I mus admit when the author described Tub as large I immediately thought he was going to be clumsy, loud, and irritable.However, I was very wrong. Tub is the understanding man in the bunch. I mean, if my best friend told me she was a pedophile I couldn't say I would stay by her side, but Tub knew Frank needed support in his hard time. He is also very vulnerable. He shoots Kenny not out of anger, but because he honestly thought Kenny would shoot him. Also, Tub is ashamed of himself not only for shooting his friend, but for being addicted to food.

Bartleby the Scrivener

"I would prefer not to."

Bartleby might just be the most aggravating character I have  ever read about. He is constantly saying he'd prefer not to, but he never actually says no. This leads me to believe that Bartleby is awkward, indecisive, and dramatic. However, after I was done reading, I began thinking that maybe Bartleby is genius. He's a brilliant copyist, and he knows his boss is a pushover. By saying "I would prefer not to" he knows his boss will not fight back for long and he will get out of doing some work. Even after he is fired and  reufuses to leave, Bartleby knows his boss will not force him to do anything. Annoying? Yes. Brilliant? Very. I wish I knew why he died though.

Overall Struggle: Characterrization

I was under the impression that short stories would make it easier for me to understand the characters. I was sadly mistaken. I learned more about what the charaters did, but I feel just as in the dark about who they are. These might as well be poems still. I didn't know if Edie's female boss was depressed or just a mad person, or if Mr. Das was ignorant or missing brain cells. Maybe the diction in short stories is meant to help just as the diction in poems acts as an aid. What I've learned in this unit is that short stories may just be very long and only a little more straight forward versions of poems. I understand the events now, atleast. I just like getting to know characters so I can relate to characters. Because I couldn't do that, I feel like I missed something in all three stories. Sorry I cannot understand what would drive a woman to sleep with a decomposing body. Maybe that professor was right. Maybe relating yourself with a character is a bad technique for that very reason.

How I Met my Husband

"We heard the plane come over at noon, roaring through the radio news, and we were sure it was going to hit the house, so we all ran out into the yard."

The ending hit me like a plane. I have never been so blind sided by a book in my life. For the record, I hardly ever finish any stories, but still. The plot, the attention to detail of the handsome pilot, it all pointed toward him being the husband. I think the structure always favors the protagonist through attention to detail of the events they're involved in and the length of time the author takes to describe them. In this case, everything pointed toward the pilot being the good guy! It all fit together perfectly: the maid feels  lonely, but then she spots a popular young lad who instantly sweeps her off her feet then carries her off into the sunset. Has this author ever heard of disney? You can't just alter Cinderella like that! We even had the  seemingly ugly step sister that was jealous of Edie, but who was actually an honest fiance. But then BAM! turn of events and sir pilot was never seen again, and oh Edie meets her husband who is just a normal mailman. Talk about a let down. The pilot gets three fourths of sthe story and he doesn't even win in the end. Men these days.

A Rose for Emily

"After her father's death she went out very little; after her sweetheart went away, people hardly saw her at all."

Maybe I read the entire thing wrong, but I was not scared at all. It was a long story about a smelly  entitled woman who slept with a dead body. I believe we have crossed over from scary to flat out insane. Honestly, the story drug out about three pages too long for me. The word drug is used appropriately, because she drugged heself. I do not see how half of the flashback was necessary. Everything seemed repetitive and lackluster. Maybe this is because Miss Emily's skeletal affair was repetitive and lack.... life, but I found it to be a waste of time. I also don't get how her father could free her of all tax payments for her entire life. In the real world, when you don't pay you're taxes you go to jail. Maybe I hated how fiction it all was. However, it did bring out the Sherlock Holmes in me. I believe that the bones belong to her former lover (only because sleeping with your father on a nightly basis is a whole new realm of crazy that I refuse to consider) who she killed when she found out that he was attracted to men. It was Miss Emily, in the bedroom, with the custom toilet seat. My only question is, how was everyone in her china painting class ignorant of the smell of decaying flesh?

Interpreter of Maladies

“Is it really pain you feel, Mrs. Das, or is it guilt?”

I'm quickly beginning to understand that the purpose of structures and plots are to create suspense or those cherished awkward moments amongst the characters. Although the excessive drama makes for a terrible trip, each argument between the Das couple, obvious race divide, and confession felt like the climax to me. The short story was constructed for that very purpose: to show just how emotionally charged the storyline is. Before letting the reader calm down, something else is going on. I believe this parallels the feelings of Mr. Kapasi. Unfortunately, the poor man would be humiliated in real life because he couldn't have been more wrong about Mrs. Das. HE thought eveyrhting was happening so quickly, just as the plot twisted and turned in my mind, but really it was a straight and forward plot of a simply failing marriage.

Elegy for My Father, Who is Not Dead

"he talks about the world beyond this world
as though his reservations have been made."

I believe this entire poem to be a conflict of religion. The dying father believes in the after life, but his child does not. This brings up much unrest about the father's deathly condition. He is at peace with his state when his child is not. The child longs for my time now, while the father isn't worried because he knows he'll have more time with his child in the future. He believes that the afterlife will be a fresh start and an excellent opportunity to rekindle a loving relationship with his child. On the other hand, the child seems a little bitter as if they were severely wronged by the father. It almost feels like the child may not think the father is worthy of heaven. I mean, they're writing an elegy for their living father. Luckily, the day of his dying is not drawing near quickly. The child just seems to know that this is how his/her father's passing will be, and he's/ she's already dreading it.

Lonely Hearts

Is it you?
Please say some poem junky uses this for their e-harmony advertisement. I believe this is really some sort of letter or atleast not verbalized. This writer describes themself, asks for a lover, and asks a rhetorical question in each stanza. Ironic enough, as the poem goes on, the writer becomes more specific. Oddly enough, I cannot figure out the gender of the writer. They will take a lover who is bisexual, straight, or gay. This writer merely needs a companion. Limitations are put on the type of person he/she will go for because he/she has a child, is jewish, and likes slim non-smokers who are under twenty one. Other than that, hey this writer will take anyone. I have a feeling that these rhetorical questions were all answered with "No. You're a creep and I'm from America."

Death, be not proud

"Thou art slave to Fate"

Dylan Thomas is trying to humble death. With anger in every word, he proclaims that death has no power over him inr rhyme. I thought poems didn't have to rhyme, but oh well. The point being made is that death is not the matermind of loss, but cause of death is. Death simply hangs around as diseases and accidents get the job done, but Death gets the glory when the person is gone. Thomas realizes this, and wants to put an end to it. Death isn't even that terrible because it is only after death that we can enjoy eternal life. In that way death isn't "mighty" at all, and doesn't deserve the credentials it has. The whole poem reminds me of a adolosecent fight that ends with "well I don't like you, so HAH!"

Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night

"Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,

Rage, Rage against the dying of the light."

This poem is jam packed with repition.  The speaker is pleading with his father to not succumb to od age. He wants his father to live life to the fullest instead of just kicking back and giving up because he's older now With words like "rage" I can assume that the speaker doesn't want his father to go down without a fight.

I also noticed that the progression of the second line of each stanza parallels the progression of the latter years oflife. The elderly go from wise yet powerful, to frail and memorable, to grieving, and finally blind to the life around them.

This good night can not be too awesome. I think the good night implies the ignorance of old age. When one gives into being old, they also give up many aspirations and goals they had dreamed of achieving because they begin to simply wait for death all of the time. This son is just so emotional that he's desperate to see his father reject his age. The son is asking his father to be wise because good many are emotional, wild men miss out on the true essence of life, and grave men don't even experience life.

Depression, Party of Two?

This thou perceiv’st, which makes thy love more strong,
To love that well which thou must leave ere long

Fall is always a time of death and decay, in shades of lovely reds and yellows. Trees lose there leaves, and woodland creature get all set for their annual naps. The speaker of "That time of year" feels like his relationship is going through the same dying cycle. He feels himself withering way, but he also feels his mistress holding on. This leads me to believe that maybe the speaker is ill. However, I would not say he is morbid because Fall  is one of four seasons which cycle year round. This knowledge leads me to believe that the relationship is having some sort of rough patch but it will be reborn eventually. The last line of the poem (as seen above) indicates that the speaker is well aware that the relationship is strong at this point, so either he has soom unfortunate news to break to his maiden or he's depressed.

Hazel Tells Laverne

"ya little green pervert
am i hitsm with my mop
an has ta flush
the toilet down three times"

The classic fairytale about the Princess and the Frog finally gets a twist that I can enjoy. The uneducated vernacular shows that the speaker is of a lower social class. Most women, when told that they can be a princess, will do anything for the title. Being a princess is everyone's dream. However, because of this woman's social class,  she doesn't waste time dreaming about an unlikely life. In fact, the speaker doesn't even consider the possibility of kissing the frog or becoming a princess. She is what we would call a realist. The poem goes to show that the less fortunate don't waste their time on sreams because they hardly ever come true.  I believe that this is the more likely ending to the classic fairytale.

Getting Out

"Taking hands
we walked apart, until our arms stretched
between us. We held on tight, and let go. "

I think the female speaker is remembering her divorce. First she sees the time just before the divorce where she was miserable. The diction lends the time to be more torturous and loving as if they knew the marriage was doomed to fail. The speaker then seems to become bitter as she recollects the times when her husband attempted to just leave or avoid divorce. They are described as "locked into blame" as if it's almost against their own will to get the divorce. Finally back in present tense, the speaker's feelings on her divorce are sorrowful. She still constantly thinks of her ex husband and knows that she'll never fully get over him. The once married couple will always have a strong connection even though the marriage didn't work out.

Creep.

"What I will say, I will not tell thee now,
Lest that preserve thee; and since my love is spent,
I’d rather thou shouldst painfully repent,
Than by my threatenings rest still innocent."

The speaker is a ghost, hence the eerie tone throughout the poem. I can also infer that this woman that he is watching has wronged  him;moreover, she murdered him. She has found a new man and the ghost is not happy about it. The ghost haunts her. Call me crazy, but I think that there is no ghost and the ghost is just symbolic of her guilt. Guilt keeps her up at night and will not let her be happy with her new lover. Coldsweats are described so I think that no one knows that she murdered him. She is extremely paranoid about the truth getting out, and the guilt ghost is playing on the paranoia. The guilt ghost will eventually convince her to turn herself in.

Crossing the Bar

"The flood may bear me far,
I hope to see my Pilot face to face
When I have crossed the bar."

Literally, the poem begins at nighttime, and is set on the ocean; however, I believe it is all symbolic for a death bed. THe speaker begins by hearing God's call for him to leave Earth. He, like every other human, wishes that he could die painlessly. He doesn't want people to be sad when he leaves this Earth because he realizes that it's the natural cycle of life. The speaker simply hopes and prays that he can make it to heaven. He is not scared of death, rather, he has accepted it and is now anxious for the next life. I would say he's at peace with how he's lived his life and now he's excited for his next  life with God.

My Mistress' Eyes

"I love to hear her speak, yet well I know,
That music hath a far more pleasing sound."

The love affair has lost it's luster. Shakespeare conveys this through dimming the colors used to describe her lips and hair. He also sets a contrast between red roses and her cheeks. Not only is the writer saying that the mistress has lost her appeal, but the secret relationship is fading as well. While he will not stop comitting adultery, the speaker begins to doubt if sneaking around is worth it. The affair was once exciting and perfect (or godly), but now he is aware of how bland it has become. When it all began, the mistress seemed to be much more beautiful because the speaker lusted for her. Now that he has had her she has lost her appeal and thus her beauty and sensuality, but the speaker has no choice but to live with his actions.

Much Madness...

"When someone tells you that you can't be who you are, you tell them you're a little monster and you can do anything." -Lady Gaga

Dickinson is officially off the luney bus. She sort of is reminding me of Gaga. By saying that insanity is normal Dickinson is merely trying to make herself normal. It wouldn't be called insanity if it were normal, Emily. It's a biography. Dickinson is trying to make her life ironic. Well I find it to be ironic that everyone insists she's a writing-genius and yet I always call her crazy after I read her poems. The most amusing thing is that she writes as fact, like Gaga. Because a controversial woman wrote it, it must be a universal fact. So be crazy like Dickinson, or be Gaga's Little Monster if you want to be considered normal because Dickinson said so. Make a lifestyle of not conforming along with the million other hipsters in the world.

Ozymandias fail

Correction: This is an epic fail. This king of kings is so boastful about how awesome he is, but his kingdom is in ruins. However, the irony goes way beyond the literal kingdom of the man with the long name. Ozy was a political figure who was sure that he was the sole reason why his kingdom was once successful. In that sense, It's about time. The poem insists that  politics cannot sustain a successful kingdom forever. I'm particularly irked by the fact that he is referred to as "king of Kings". You aren't God, man. Oh no. Is the author implying that God's kingdom will fall? Here it goes again. Poetry makes me cynical.

this is why I don't do laundry

She's a psycho. I've never been so sure in my life. Setting your failing relationship equal to laundry? That has to be ironic in itself. If you're so pathetic that you analyze doing you're laundry, you should probably be single. If you can compare your lover to doiled clothes, it's probably not working. Moreover, if you cannot look at a shirt without thinking about adultery, you should check in to some kind of facility. Seriously, I doubt you've ever even had a boyfriend.

America, the Beautiful?

Did someone say American Irony?...



This poem. This poem. There's a complete void of any sort of punctuation and it's in quotes so it can only mean one thing: we have an American Idiot on our hands. This speaker is just so excited to get out all of his American love that he can't even stop to take a breath or finish a thought because he just loves Ameria oh so much, but wait. IF he loves America so much why did he never finish any of the songs? Also, the tone completely contradicts all of my thoughts. I almost feel like it's mockery, but it couldn't be. Everyone loves America. Right? I don't know. What I do know is that the patriot is all about liberty, and yet he won't be mute. Maybe the writer has a hidden agenda. But the quotes mean that the speaker is also the writer. The text leads me to believe he's a veteran, and a veteran wouldn't bad talk America.

If Barbie is so Popular, Why do You Have to Buy Her Friends?

I would first like to say that all of this poetry analysis has made me completely cynical about everything. It all goes back to death in my book.

The irony behind all of this is that Barbies are supposed to be perfect, but even they become inferior in our minds eventually. Another unique technique in the poem is the parallelism between barbie's popularity and her playmate's life. This all leads to the ultimate female cliche: we're all beautiful. Atleast the poem goes about it in a sick and twisted way. As Barbie becomes less popular and gets mutilated, the playmate takes her own life because she can't take the scrutiny. The ultimate irony that I found is that Barbie is supposed to symbolize the perfect American Woman, but she completely destroyed the pubescent girl's life and is thus not an attainable goal. Happy go lucky Barbie is many a girl's nightmare.

Star of Wonder. Star of Light.

Bright Star demonstrates the structure of our faith. I believe the bright star embodies because it's described as steadfast and watching. Next, the clergy of priests are obviously the waters because they are said to be priestlike. The new snow symbolizes the new believers that God speaks to. The unnamed woman might be the church because it's based on the paschal mystery that no one can prove to be factual. This belief can be described as sweet unrest.

In other words, God watches as priests pass his word on and make a lasting impact on converts who take the word and stick to it (or freeze). Because of this system, the church thrives despite it's ups and downs and the uncertainty of it's base.

It's Time For a Hillbilly Moment

I cannot get passed the vernacular of Toads. He just seems so uneducated so inadvertantly, I cannot take the writing seriously. Maybe this points to the fact that he should not be taken seriously or he is not taken seriously. On my third read I finally began dissecting this Toad. I believe that there's two toads. The first one is a sort of metaphor. this virtual toad is figuratively dropping solid waste material all over the speaker's life and on his neighbors'. The speaker feels a need to tell everyone to appreciate what they have (because they aren't that  unfortunate), but he knows this is a far fetched idea. This is where toad two enters. The fairytale toad that helps everyone live happily ever after. Atleast the speaker recognizes that toad two doesn't exist.

A Graduation Foreshadowing

This is foreshadowing to the speech we will all hear in May with more formal diction (unless Bryan Rainey is valedictorian then it will be exactly like this). The poem in its entirety is a speech addressing some sort of graduation. With that in mind, it is typical to ask for no tears. The poem is taking "dont cry because it's over. Smile because it happened" to a whole new level. Even though the school is just a structure, the speaker addresses it as if it has emotions about the graduation. With this anthropomorphism, the speaker says his bitter sweet good byes and promises to remember the school. He also takes time to remind the class that the school will always me their common link and their home. Funny how all valedictorian speeches hit home now more than ever. Nice choice.

The Joy of Picking Your Siblings' Lives Apart

This lady is very critical of her siblings. I think she played a major role in the upbringing of her sisterand sent her off to live on her own. Unfortunately, her sister is failing, specifically because she's gone broke. The chef is very disappointed but has hope that her sister will get through it. The brother is not so fortunate. She accuses the brother to be heartless and emotionless. He's described as a sour person. It also says he barely has enough heart for two people so that may be the chef and her sister. I'm thinking that the sister worked hard to raise her siblings and now that they're failing as human beings she is having a psychotic episode via cooking.

The Creeps Come Out in February

How many ways can a person say awkward? Kind of like how one should not mention diarrhea in a college essay except this time it's testicles in a poem. If this is art I am perfectly alright with having no creativity. "He shoots. He scores." refers to..... let's just say the male half of the reproductive process. However, I'm stunned to analyze that the tone was bitter towards the cat's shooting percentage, but not hateful. The awkward mood reaches it's climax when the reader realizes that February equals winter and winter equals cat living inside. So what do you get when you put an unfixed cat in a house with a cat lover? Please don't answer that. It's already awkward enough to have a teacher read this.

Regret

Sometimes the poorest man leaves his children the richest inheritance. ~Ruth E. Renkel

In "Those Sunday Winters" the character looks back on his memories of his late father. On the outside, he thinks of the common occurrence of his father splitting wood at the crack of dawn to warm the house. He is stung by regret for not being as thankful. However, the father drove out more than the cold. Cold is often used to symbolize cold natured people, or generally bad times.The man's father mingled in his son's life, tried to help in any way possible. Like many children, the son probably hated his dad for butting into his life, but now that he is mature he truly appreciates it. The man regrets never truly thanking his father for protecting him throughout their lives together.

Get out of London!

London is demolished. The conventional society has been completely corrupted. The cries mentioned may be that of the past happiness and functionality. The soldier is a synecdoche for the entire army and sighs because he can't even help London at this point, because it was destroyed by something other than manpower and war. London has become humanistic so the church has lost it's shine. Instead of the prime minister running the streets, it is the street walker that is greatly influential. This new society is a curse placed on London that will not easily be lifted. However, this may not be what the harlot wanted. The harlot is described as "youthful" which gives her a sort of innocence in the situation. If the harlot embodies the population of London, then their city has been corrupted against their own will.

What does a Panther even look like?

But really, I don't even know what a panther is. So that got me thinking about the symbolism of the poem. Without the title, I never would've thought of a Panther, so why should it be about a panther? It shouldn't. The whole poem is an extended and almost implied metaphor comparing an imprisoned or confined man to a caged panther. Both ave lost the will to escape what is confining them, but dream of the life outside the bars, figuratively or metaphorically.

Then that got me to thinking that maybe the panther was chosen because it is unknown. The reader will assume that a panther is similar to a lion or tiger, but really has no idea. Similarly, a man chained down by racism or an innocent man that is put in jail for life may seem like every other different racial man or convict in the world, so people are quick to stereotype. These men lose hope in letting the truth be known, and only find comfort in their dreams.

Can You Feel the Love Tonight?

This is exactly why I hate poetry. Spring is completely happy-go-lucky. The birds are singing, the flowers are beautiful, the world is perfect.  This has young love written all over it. The lambs mentioned that have their "fling" are the young love birds, who are Thrushes to be more exact. In other words, I have read Disney's next movie where they all live happily ever after. The only thing stopping me from being positive that I've nailed this one is the very last stanza. Could the writer be asking God to cloud over or hide sin so that our lovebirds can have the perfect life for a while longer? Or, is he praying that God smite them for being so naive?

By the way, Lion King is out in 3D. Get excited. (:

I'm Trapped in a Glass Case of Emotion!

Emily Dickinson's "I felt a Funeral, in my Brain" is what my parents like to call melodramatic. The character is stuck in a life of agony and woe, as if they are at the most depressing funeral in the history of the world. But if it really is her funeral, why is she still using so much imagery? I may be wrong, but people generally cannot describe their own funeral so (this is a shocker) the poem is symbolic. A piece of the character is dying inside. She has given up on some aspect of her life and is apparently devastated about it, but knows she can do nothing about it just as a person cannot walk in "lead boots". The character's life will always be the epitome of death and agony. Side note theory, the character is going emotionally psychotic as if she were buried alive.

"The Nature of Proof in the Interpretation of Poetry": does it exist?

"Our perception of a work of art is not something that is fixed. It depends as much, if not more, on the period in which the work is being viewed and on our expectations of it as it does on the period in which it was created."

I think this essay is complete nonsense. I try my hardest to avoid poetry because it's too abstract for me, but I have been forced to dabble in the literary unit through the years. What I have come to realize is that poetry is like painting a picture with your words. Poetry is for the most creative writers with the most spectacular diction. Poetry is very emotional and moreover extremely unique.

In these respects poetry is more relatable to drawing and painting than to writing an essay or analyzing a novel. Unlike Perrine, I believe poetry speaks to different people in different ways. A reader with a charmed life will analyze differently than a reader with thousands of skeletons in his/her closet. Aspects of our life such as our hometowns, our families, and our friends impact how we think. No one has the same life so no one has the same brain.

That being said, I cannot agree with any aspect of Perrine's lecture. Maybe I missed something he said or I'm not understanding correctly, but it's my interpretation and I'm sticking to it.

Brave New World 20!

"Les utopies apparaissent comme bien plus realisables qu'on ne le croyait autrefois.Et nous nous trouvons actuellement devant une question bien autrement angoissante : Comment eviter leur realisation definitive?...
Les utopies sont realisables.La vie marche vers les utopies.Et peut-etre un siecle nouveau commence-t-il,un siecle ou les intellectuels et la classe cultivee reveront aux moyens d'eviter les utopies et de retourner a une societe non utopique, moins "parfaite" et plus libre." -Nicolas Berdiaeff

"Utopias appear to be more realizable than was thought in the past. And today, we face a much more anguishing question. how to avoid their definite realization? Utopias are realizable. Life progresses towards utopias. Maybe a new century is starting, a century where the intellectuals and the educated class can dream of means to avoid utopias and to to return to a non utopic society, less perfect and more free."

Aldous Huxley started his novel with this quote to set the tone of the book. I finally found my last similarity with the twisted author. This book is our nightmare. According to his quote choice, this is exactly what Huxley does not want to happen to the world. Huxley is hoping that this novel will encourage a reader to be that intellectual that stops the creation of utopias. He is begging his reader to enjoy the imperfections of life instead of fixing them. Granted, there was no need to write a book this crazy to ask for help, but I respect him for his purpose.

Brave New World 19

"Slowly, very slowly, like two unhurried compass needles, thefeet turned toward the right; north, north-east, east, south-east, south, south-west; then paused, and, after a few seconds, turned as unhurriedly back towards the left. South-south-west, south, south-east,east..." pg 259

Really now? Thank you for the lesson in directions. There's just a protagonist dead, but let's end the book with directions. People will close the book not knowing how to overcome anything, but we can sure read a compass! Another thing, why didn't Huxley ever say the word dead? I mean if you can kill a character off you should atleast announce it to your reader. I mean, I am making the unfair assumption that other people finished the book. A happy ending would've been nice. The book just got more and more cynical as I read so I suppose that it's only fitting to end like this. Well, now I can say I've read a Sci-Fi book. I really didn't like it. Atleast this means it's over.

Brave New World 18

'"we-want-the whip."' pg 257

Okay, so I read to the end of the book before doing my last few blogs. But before I did, I was guessing that some soma-ed up Alphas were going to torture and kill Savage. I assumed Huxley was going to use the plot of Jesus' Passion to symbolize that the Savage was all that was good in the world, and, with his death, everyone would realize their wrong doings. Oh no, Huxley had to take his sick mind and twist the plot.

However, I still believe that the Savage stood for Religion, but not as a christlike figure. The Savage is Religion. Let's walk through the steps.

1.  Christianity initially had a large following, mainly because it was very different and the talk of the town. Dare I say, Delta Minuses and media?
2. Next, Christianity became a spectacle more than a religion. With extremists making scenes, and phonies claming to be Jesus or knowing the apocalypse is near, Christianity is mocked more than it is followed, but people still claim to be faithful so they can see what will happen next. Just like my quote.
3. This is followed by the current stage of our faith: the fake christians. These days, people act immorally, indulging in worldly pleasures, then go to church. Our own version of an orgy-porgy at the Reservation. 
4. Lastly, just as John killed himself, Religion will smolder, not from being attacked by an outside force, but because of the people in the church who can only claim to believe. The idea of salvation will no longer sound glorious in comparison to worldly happiness. Similarly to the past, indulgences will corrupt faith until the fundamentals of Christianity are replaced with fundamentals of the immoral society.

This is depressing. Yet another reason to say it: I hate this book.

Brave New World 17

"Christianity without tears—that’s what soma is." pg 238

Initially, the analogy between soma and the religion I cling to was completely disgusting. The thought of comparing salvation to a little holiday high just sounded horrendous. But then it hit me: the world already favors getting high. Think about it. Christianity brings happiness in the next life while soma (drugs) brings happiness instantly. It's much easier for anyone to turn to drugs than  to look up and just trust that someone will save you from your troubles. This whole time I've turned a blind eye to the unspoken analogy: the crazy science Centre and the real world.

As if that wasn't enough of a reality check, Huxley wrote all of this long before even my parents were born. He knew that the morality of our country was fading into the backround. He knew that somewhere down the road, it'd be frowned upon to turn to what's good and just.

Brave New World 16

"Actual happiness always looks pretty squalid in comparison with the overcompensations for misery. And, of course, stability isn't nearly so spectacular as instability. And being contented has none of the glamour of a good fight against misfortune, none of the picturesqueness of a struggle with temptation or a fatal overthrow by passion or doubt. Happiness is never grand." pg 221

squalid- foul or repulsive

Ahh, all that glitters is not gold. All is normal in the book. Continuous happiness will never amount to overcoming hardships. Happiness on it's own isn't rewarding, but the work done to strive toward it is immeasurably satisfying. The people in this sick science world were never actually happy, because they never did anything for their own well- being. They don't fully know what happiness is because they know nothing of sadness. I just love themes.

In life, we live cautiously, scared to make a mistake. This way, we do no wrong and cannot be punished. By living in a state of neutrality, we never fall into the pit of despair, but also never experience the awesome wonder of a mountain top. Scared of failure, many people miss out on life's experiences.

Brave New World 15

"Linda had been a slave, Linda had died; others should live in freedom, and the world be made beautiful. A reparation, a duty. And suddenly it was luminously clear to the Savage what he must do; it was as though a shutter had been opened, a curtain drawn back." pg 210

Poor Linda. On the upside, John has a revelation that is sure to bring an abrupt plot shift and possibly (finally) the climax. It's interesting that Huxley chooses the word slave to describe Linda's place in society. All of her life, Linda thought the inhabitants of the Centre were more superior than the savages, but in all reality they were at the bottom of the totem pole of science. They had no say in anything, and, in all actuality, were superior to nothing, not even Epsilon semi morons. Alpha or Epsilon, they were all equally controlled, equally hindered throughout life.

My only question is, why did it take death for the Savage to realize he needed to change things? It's not like the world at the Centre was hidden until this point in the book.

After thought-  This reminds me of the American Revolution. Our Founding Fathers saw that the people were suffering and realized that we deserved independence and freedom. It became their duty to make a safe and beautiful environment for anyone to move to with no preference to any social class.

procrastination time!

Morgan Farnworth and I found microwaving marshmallows to be more entertaining than book projects. No offense.

Brave New World 14

"A doctor a day keeps the jim-jams away."

pg 186

Stop changing all of our sayings! I strongly dislike their unoriginal adages. Doctors are welcomed  and encouraged to be regular parts in the the greek lettered creatures' lives just as apples are in my life. In other words, medicine can sure anything. Words truly honored by the drug addict. On a lighter note, what on earth is a jim-jam? I always knew them to be pajamas. I guess it's science language for lack of estrogen or illness. In my world, going to the doctor will never trump eating right. I'd rather eat ten rotten apples than go see my doctor. Such a sad world with such an odd vocabulary.

Out of curiosity, I googled jim jam (because google knows all) What was the result?

I wish my doctor kept Barney away.

Brave New World 13

"Why was that old fellow such a marvelous propaganda technician? Because he had so many insane, excruciating things to get excited about. You've got to be hurt and upset; otherwise you can't think of the really good, penetrating X-rayish phrases... who's going to get excited about a boy having a girl or not having her?" pg 185

      Apparently Helmholtz has never seen a soap opera or teenage sitcom. As absurd as it is, I agree. Too much of entertainment is based on sex. Especially at my age, we lose all sight of everything besides getting the guy/girl. It's really predictable and not exciting at all, but everyone still indulges in it. In that sense, we're boring, lack luster beings. If our greatest endeavors are teenage love affairs, we couldn't think of hard hitting works that Helmholtz longs for.
      Hold up, Shakespeare is not propoganda. I take back agreeing with that man. So much of our passionate fantasies are molded around the plots of Shakespeare's tales. Just like that, I'm back to hating all aspects of this book.

Brave New World 12

"(for 'father' was not so much obscene as- with its connotation of something at one remove from the loathsomeness and moral obliquity of child- bearing -- merely gross, a scatological rather than a pornographic impropriety)" pg 151

This syntax and diction combination is so over my head. I think I know half of those words. I find it to be humorous at this point. The quote might be the most intellectual and hurtful bash on a group of people that I have ever seen. If I were to tell my dad this he probably wouldn't get it either, but he'd understand enough to be furious with me. Yes, the mother is more visibly involved in child bearing, but fathers are by no means pornographic. Being a father entails a lot of complex emotion, but I guess these sorry excuses for people wouldn't understand that either. I'm a proud daddy's girl. My dad is a huge factor in my life, and not in a humorous aspect. I feel a strong needto find this Centre and slap every one of these people. This book cannot possibly get me any more frustrated as I am right now.

Brave New World 11

"The greater a man's talents, the greater his power to lead astray. It is better that one should suffer than that many should be corrupted. Consider the matter dispassionately... and you will see that no offence is so heinous as unorthodoxy of behaviour. Murder kills only the individual- and, after all, what is an individual?....We can make a new one with the greatest ease- as many as we like." pg 148

I smell foreshadowing. Bernard is destined to be my hero. Bernard has the ability to lead people out of darkness of this scientific communism and into the light of the truth. Sound familiar? Authors often make the protagonist christlike. I would not be surprised if Bernard either has a magnificent victory or horrendous downfall from his efforts to enlighten others. Because the Director has surpassed Religion in his work, I unfortunately believe Bernard will fail. It disgusts me, the amount of disrespect the Director shows for life. Apparently, Social Justice left with Religion and individuality. These people have no essence of what it is to be unique. They might as well be robots. I cannot make my self understand this faithless, unrespectful style. I've been "conditioned" to think the exact opposite: that man uses power for good, and that making the innocent suffer is injust under any circumstance because life is always to be respected and cherished. Huxley repulses me.

Brave New World 10

"'On the white wonder of dear Juliet's hand, may seize

And steal immortal blessing from her lips,

Who, even in pure and vestal modesty,

Still blush, as thinking their own kisses sin."'

pg144

Barf. There's one thing I disliked more than science at school, and that was Romeo and Juliet. So, as you can imagine, I am thrilled that Huxley is setting up this analogy between the Savage and Lenina and Romeo and Juliet. The timeless tale of forbidden love. Someone please gag me. Atleast it's humorous. Lenina is deffinitely not a pure or modest at all. The Savage is dellusional. I'm dellusional. I'm chuckling at the fact that Lenina probably doesn't even know what sin is. But in all reality, does anyone truly know (or care) about sinning? Has modesty and purity become a joke?





Brave New World 9

"It's supposed to have been there for hundreds of years. I expect it's true, because I looked at it, and it seemed to be full of nonsense. Uncivilized. Still, it'll be good enough for you to practise your reading on." pg 131

         Linda doesn't aprreciate Shakespeare. That's my kind of lady. But beyond that, Linda isn't even familiar with the great impact Shakespeare made. Assuming that the setting is indeed England and not England on another planet, one would think their culture was filled with Shakespeare. Entire classes are based upon the styles of William Shakespeare, who is considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time, is made synonymous to Dr. Seuss. That's a bit of a slap in the face.
       I can relate to Linda a lot. When I suffered through Romeo and Juliet freshman year, I thought it was all outdated garbage. I wouldn't define Shakespeare as practice reading material, but their beautiful ignorance doesn't know any better. Maybe everyone should learn to spell first, because the word is practice not practise.

....unless you procrastinate on your blogs and have to do them on

your last week of summer. Then it'll fade real fast.

Brave New World 8

"The place was queer, so was the music, so were the clothes and the goitres and the skin diseases and the old people."

Did I really just type that word for a school project? I feel like I'm going to get in trouble still even the I refuse to type it again. I almost just wanna look away or find a new topic. The word just makes me feel awkward. Because this book was written in a completely different era, I'm sure the word usage wasn't meant to evoke awkwardness in the reader, but now it does for sure. Authors wouldn't dare use that adjective in todays world. Similarly, most of the people at the Centre wouldn't dare look into the eyes of a savage because that's a whole different world for them. A world unlike anything they'd ever care to know. Funny how, through the ages, a certain degree of ignorance is bliss.

Brave New World 7

"You can't teach a rhinoceros tricks.... Some men are almost rhinoceroses; they don't respond properly to conditioning. Poor devils!" pg 88

I've heard men being compared to animals many of times, but never to a rhino. I wasn't aware that rhinoceroses couldn't be tamed. The commonly used "you can't teach an old dog new tricks" has been distorted just as the Brave New World is distorted. Oddly enough, Bernard cannot be taught to be less gentlemanly, and that is why he's frowned upon. In both worlds, however, some men just are not gonna be the popular hero. It's a rough life for Bernard, but he just isn't seen as something special and it's impossible to change him. It's convenient though, because Bernard's emotional state is just as foreign to me as the rhinoceros analogy. Poor Bernard, with emotions and (dare I say) a soul, will never know what it's like to take Lenina unless he changes from a rhinoceros to a pig.

Love is as Good as Soma

Never Let Me Go 6

"Orgy-porgy, Ford and fun,

Kiss the girls and make them One.

Boys at one with girls at peace;

Orgy-porgy gives release."

pg 84

...Really? I get that Huxley is juxtaposing this world with our World as much as he can, but must it be so sick? All of this drug and orgy talk got me to thinking, when was this book written? 1932. I was expecting the Woodstock days. However, I suppose that the agonizing days of the Vietnam War were just as depressing as The Great Depression of the thirties. Huxley, in his sick and twisted way, escapes the economic disaster by writing about the juxtaposition of disaster, which, in his mind, is apparently drugs and sex.... without emotion. I understand Huxley's fantasy to eliminate all emotion because the only emotions of the Depression were negative. Digging a little deeper, I now love the author. Huxley was born into a prominent family, but advocated  the use of psychodelics, a hallucinogen. Mix that with his pacifism (anti-war and violence) and his love for parapsycholgy (human interaction that cannot be explained by science) and right there is the premise of this book. Brave New World is a trippy book trying to eliminate all negative interactions by doing something that the real world has never thought of doing. Thank you wikipedia!



Brave New World 5

"P2O5 used to go right out of circulation every time they cremated some one. Now they recover over ninety-eight per cent of it. More than a kilo and a half per adult corpse. Which makes the best part of four hundred tons of phosporous every year from England alone." pg 78

Are you kidding me? This book is driving me crazy. The vernacular is just so scientific (which I hate) and leaves an abyss where emotion should be. For example, these people are dead, but they are not mourned. No, these people are productively cremated to create Phosphorous. I'll fuss for you because this is absurd. So not only do I not understand most of their dialogue, what I do understand sickens me. Science is not the whole world. I hope the bok changes tones soon.

Brave New World 4

"'What you need is a gramme of soma." pg 60

At this point, my best guess is that soma is a very illegal drug in our world. The motif of soma so far mentions that it takes away your pain from emotion. They also send you on trips that apparently last for days. Trips! Soma is acid. Case Closed. Anyway, the most peculiar aspect of this soma is that it's not just a few bad kids using it. This stuff is actually encouraged. My head cannot wrap around that because drugs are extremely frowned up in reality (where science does not rule the world. I would sincerely like to thank God for that, by the way). These people really believe that deleting wicked emotions from life will make pure happiness for everyone. So I'm wondering, what devastating event happened that caused the creation of soma?

Brave New World 3

'"Our Ford- or Our Freud, as, for some inscrutable reason, he chose to call himself whenever he spoke of psychological matters- Our Freud had been the first to reveal the appalling dangers of family life. The world was full of fathers- was therefore full of misery; full of mothers- therefore of every kind of perversion from sadism to chastity; full of brothers, sisters, uncles, aunts- full of madness and suicide."' pg 39

It's interesting that Huxley chooses Freud for this allusion. On the surface, everyone knows Freud to be a groud breaking psychologist, but what only a  educated (child development, perhaps) student would know that Freud, in his brand new analysis of psychopaths, often used as a defense mechanism in his patients.  Repression is most commonly known as "bottling up" ones darkest secrets or most troublesome feelings.This is often done when a negative emotion is linked to the repressed desire which can lead to the elimination of what is right and wrong or explosion due to excess of repressed desires. However, the really unique aspect of repression is that this is done subconsciously. Now, with that information, Mr. Dr. Freud is severely repressed. He has linked only negative things to all members of the family, and thus elminated the family aspect from the world he is creating. I also find it odd that the Huxley takes the time to capitalize "Our". Come to think of it, the only other time I see that is in the Our Father, a world wide prayer spoken to God. It is almost as if the speaker believes that Ford is more than human.

Brave New World 2

"Not so much like drops of water, though water, it is true can wear holes in the hardest granite; rather, drops of liquid sealing- wax, drops that adhere, incrust, incorporate themselves with what they fall on, till finally the rock is all one scarlet blob." pg 28

This simile confirms it. This book is way too sick and twisted for me. Water is being compared to merely stating a suggestion of what color to wear or a statement such as loving being beta whereas liquid sealing-wax is being compared to not only the suggestion, but also the constant repition until the statements and suggestions are not only facts, but the listeners entire life. Just as the liquid sealing-wax molds to the surface it is poured on, the words spoken to these children become a part of who they are. I also found it to be odd that this quote is only a narration. I am not used to seeing such detailoed narration. I would expect it to come from this Ford, Director character, but this leads me to believe that the narrator has taken a side in all of this. It almost feels like he's writing to set the Director to look like the antagonist. I have just had a revolution. This is scientific communism.

Brave New World 1

"The light was frozen, dead, a ghost." pg 3

Either the Central London Hatchery and Conditioning Centre is extremely haunted, or the author is using anthropomorphism to inadvertantly provide imagery not only for the lights, but also what goes on inside the building. The name of the building leads me to believe it's purpose is something intelligent and scientific.The quote, when broken up bit by bit, unveils so mch. The light was frozen, either suggesteing that the room had an unwelcoming presence or that it was frozen in time, even cut off from reality. The light was dead, lifeless not very energetic. A dead specimen tends to create a somber atmosphere. The light was a ghost. Ghosts are thought of as either the scary unseen figure that haunts the living  or complete and barbaric fiction, but, in either option, ghosts are often the obsessions of psychopaths and lunatics, but rarely ever do sane people believe in their power. I have a very bad feeling that this book will either terrify me or creep me out.

Never Let Me Go 20

"I just watched a bit, then turned back to the car, to drive off to wherever it was I was supposed to be." pg 288

Yes, I'm going to reflect on the last sentence. I'm shaking with glee because this is the last blog I'll write for a few weeks. I'm glad that the book ended, in my opinion, with a little humor. But really, her two best friends die and nothing particularly joyful has happened in her life, so she goes and watches trash? Really? Maybe I'm just not emotional enough for these books, but I don't see it as a proper ending. If Ishiguro wouldn't a cheesy ending he should've gone the whole ten yards and made Kathy see Tommy's face while she was doing her first donation, or even better, through some series of events, have donations be cancelled and have Kathy go on to have an office job and think of Ruth. Also, where is she supposed to be? Maybe Ishiguro wrote the way he did to show that Kathy's life amounts to nothing more than looking at trash because her beloved Tommy is gone.

The End.

Never Let Me Go 19

"How can I ask a world that has come to regard Cancer as curable, how can you ask such a world to put away that cure, to go to the dark days?"

Touché. The rhetorical question makes a very good point. What the children are doing is changing the bigger picture for the better. Because of recent experiences for my class in particular, I think I would do anything to have a cancer free world. The question is rhetorical because it really takes no thought. From an outsiders perspective, if I was asked if it'd be okay to cure cancer, I would say yes on the spot and wouldn't even worry about the details. However, now that I know the details, I don't know how I would answer. It's unfair to rob these children of a proper life, but on the other hand cancer kills people of all ages, all races, and all ways of life. This is a hard one. For a second there I forgot the book is fiction.

Never Let Me Go 18

"For students like you, I do feel regret. It gives me no pleasure to disappoint you. But there it is." pg 258

BOO! I don't like the way Miss Emily beats around the bush. Her speech was almost, anticlimactic. But there it is: the climax. Tommy and Kathy are not going to have extra time to fall madly in love and live happily ever after for a few years. I almost should've seen it coming because nothing good ever happens in this book. Never Let Me Go has gone from unfortunate, to sad, to down right depressing. Also, what kind of deamon would just let such a vicious rumor carry on? Not cool in my book.Better Question: How could a person run a school that is basically just a holdingground before these children are used for their organs? This book makes me so upset.

Never Let Me Go 17

"You speak to them. It's you they've come to talk to." pg 255

I can hear that dramatic piano playing in my head with that maniacal laugh over it. Finally, the moment we've all been waiting for (for a few chapters) is here! I've never read a chapter so quickly in my life. The suspense throughout the writing through Kathy's fear and Tommy's anxiousness lets me know that this is definitely the climaxcoming along. Moreover, The suspense added by changing the speaker makes me nervous, because if I were Madame I would love to tell Kathy and Tommy all about deferrals. It's even better that Miss Emily is in a wheel chair now. It's so much creepier than a chipper young women. However, all these almost scary details lead me to believe that this conversation won't end well. Tommy and Kathy are shaking in their shoes, and Madame has chickened out. I smell a climax coming along, but of course, it'll be next chapter.

Never Let Me Go 16

"Because nothing. I'd like you to forgive me, but I don't expect you to. Anyway, that's not the half of it, not even a small bit of it, actually. The main thing is, I kept you and Tommy apart...That was the worst thing I did." pg 232

The unthinkable happened. Ruth has a soul. I was fearing that Ruth's negativity would continue to the end of the book but she finally became dynamic. I always felt that Ruth saw herself as superior to Kathy, but, knowing that she was nearing completion, Kathy finally became her equal. I'm still not sure I believe the apology though because it completely juxtaposes the Ruth that was also the best frenemy to Kathy. It kind of reminds me of prisoners finding jesus during their last days, or reconciliation on the death bed. Ruth wants to die at peace, without any guilt inside. Maybe her sour attitude toward Kathy was the product of her guilt and her jealousy of Kathy and Tommy's bond. I can't help but think it's too little too late because Tommy is entering his third donation so Kathy will never have a proper chance at loving him.

Never Let Me Go 15

"I'd meant us, all the students who'd grown up with me and were now spread across the country, carers and donors, all separated now but still somehow linked by the place we'd come from." pg 212

From the beginning, Kazuo Ishiguro has made a point to link every event to Hailsham. Every room, every field, everything teacher, every aspect of Hailsham is vividly described.  Finally, an explanation for the discriptions is given. The local color was placed on Hailsham because Kathy saw it as the one and only thing that brought everyone together. It's fitting that Hailsham is closing as the last bit of Kathy's Hailsham life is coming to an end. Kathy and her  classmates are no longer linked because her life as a carer, is entirely different than their life as donors. Just as her friends are beginning to donate and complete, Hailsham too is completing and Kathy can't do anything but watch and reminisce. It's disheartening to see everything Kathy treasured come to an end.

Never Let Me Go 14

"'God, Tommy, these must take so much concentration. I'm surprised you can see well enough in here to do all this tiny stuff." pg 187

Tommy unveils his much awaited artwork and Kathy's first reaction is to complement his eyesight. For some reason, Kahty held back her opinion of how fantastic the animals were. The understatement made a nervous Tommy even more vulnerable. Of course she eventually tells him the works are really good, but she was reluctant to because of all the ruckus his art caused in the past. She remembered that moment all too well, and she also remembered how horrendous Tommy's art was back then, so she was probably blind sided to see something magnificent come from Tommy's pencil. Kathy's repeated understatement regarding Tommy's art gave Ruth support on bashing Tommy's work. Kathy obviously kept her feelings in as to not give Ruth the wrong opinion about her and Tommy, but because Kathy wasn't true to her feelings her words were the apex of the Hailsham kids' last fight.

Never Let Me Go 13

"Even then, it was mainly a nostalgia thing, and today, if I happen to get the tape out and look at it, it brings back memoriesof that afternoon in Norfolk every bit as much as it does our Hailsham days." pg 173

The tape, Judy Bridgewater's Songs After Dark, is more than just a memory. The simple casette is a symbol of Kathy's life before being a carer, her innocent life. Although Kathy's life was organized for her for the most part, the tape was unique to her. The songs on the tape were not typical Hailsham tunes, so Kathy had to sneak around to listen and throughout the book the characters' fondest memories always involve bending rules or breaking trends. Moreover, because Tommy remembered how much that tape meant to Kathy and he made an efort to find it in Norfolk, it is symbolic of his love for her, in her head atleast. The tape meant Tommy had always thought of her even though he was in a couple with Ruth. The tape brought Kathy and Tommy back to their Hailsham days when they were the best of friends and genuinely happy. All in all, the tape is symbolic of Kathy's life before caring and donating were so near, and she longed to go back to that life instead of moving forward into the unknown.

Never Let Me Go 12

"'It's daft to assume you'll have the same sort of life as your model. I agree with Tommy. It's just a bit of fun. We shouldn't get serious about it."' Kathy, pg 165

Kathy has just given her closest friend a huge amount of insight. Ruth was dissapointed after realizing that she had not found her possible and Kathy stuck a theme onto her best friend in an attempt to lighten her spirits. However, Kathy's thoughts don't only apply to this alternate universe of England, but they also work for modern day society. No one should feel obliged to become clones of their parents. I strongly believe that the apple can fall far from the tree, and their's nothing wrong with that. Kathy is pleading with her companion to relax and live life the way she wants to, not how her possible is living. Ruth needs to chill out and enjoy her time on alternate universe Earth. Kathy goes on to explain that life isn't a very serious matter, not only because they won't live much longer, but also because young adults are supposed to be carefree. There's no point in stressing out over some trivial aspect of  life that has zero relevance to the future. Shake it off, Ruth. Kathy knows you'll have a beautiful life without the burden of a possible hunt.

Never Let Me Go 11

"'What they were saying was that some Hailsham students in the past, in special circumstances, had managed to get a deferral. That this was something you could do if you were a Hailsham student. You could ask for your donations to be put back by three, even four years."' Chrissy, pg 153

Throughout their stay at the Cottages, all the veterans have been particularly interested in the Hailsham kids; moreover, their alma mater. My best guess is that Hailsham was a unique school, just as Roncalli is set apart from the public schools in the district. Chrissy, in particular, implies that Ruth, Tommy, and Kathy are priveleged because they had attended Hailsham, but the author never revealed why until this point. Word got out that Hailsham students could be given a defferal before donations to extend their life by three or four years as long as they could prove they were in love. I completely understand the Hailsham students' perspective because public school students always assume that as a parochial student I am entitled to many great rewards and unfair advantages that I have never heard of. Chrissy sees Hailsham as immaculate almost, but I can garuntee that actual Hailsham students don't agree. Even if the deferrals did exist, I would not be surprised if Kathy and Ruth turned a blind eye to them because Hailsham was the only environment they'd known, and thus it was not anything special to them.

Never Let Me Go 10

"That's why, when you were out there yourself- in the towns, shopping centres, transport cafes, you kept an eye out for 'possibles'- the people who might have been the models for you and your friends." pg 139

Just when I thought this book couldn't get any more twisted, the author introduces possibles. Possibles, a colloquialism in the lives of all future donors, are what I would call parents. Because these children all know their fate, well at least that they won't live long, many, like Tommy, feel no need to find their possible or model. The subject of possibles was kind of like politics, no one brought it up because it might rub someone the wrong way. Upon seeing a possible possible for Ruth, Chrissy, Rodney, Tommy, and Kathy joined Ruth to go look at the women and see how legitimate Rodney's theory was. It was interesting to see how little these young adults new about reproduction. Unless cloning machines exist in this alternate universe, I don't think any of these characters would have just one model, but I also think none of them realize that. Never, in the whole Norfolk trip, did anyone mention a father.

Never Let Me Go 9

"She was struggling to become someone else, and maybe felt the pressure more than the rest of us because, as I say, she'd somehow taken on the responsibility for all of us. In that case, then, the way I'd talked about her slap on the elbow thing could be seen as betrayal, and she might well then have felt justified retaliating as she had." Never Let Me Go pg 130

Kathy is obviously an analyzer. A large chunk if this book is dedicated to sorting out Kathy's thoughts, otherwise known as her stream of consciousness. Kathy thinks and thinks until not only can she seem to justify what Ruth does, but also to put the blame on herself. I understand that teenager girls do take small matters very seriously; however, it's just a tap on the shoulder.I also don't understand how Kathy thinks Ruth is  embodying all of Hailsham at the Cottages when Ruth seems to be trying to forget all about Hailsham. The conclusions just seem like a gross exaggeration. Kathy's conscience is filled with mistreatment of Ruth, that probably were overexaggerated, so all this locked guilt could be coming out thus causing Kathy to make herself the antagonist to make it up to Ruth.

Never Let Me Go 8

"It was like when you make a move in chess and just as you take your finger off the piece, you see the mistake you've madeand there's this panic because you don't know yet the scale of disaster you've left yourself open to" Never Let Me Go pg 124

Ruth and Kathy yet again begin bickering. This is my shocked face. Because Ruth has once again began to pretend that she read Daniel Deronda, Kathy gets upset and snaps back on Ruth's television influenced mannerisms. Obviously, these are both very low blows. Kathy knew she shouldn't bring up Ruth's trying to fit in, but she was not about to let Ruth walk around like she knew everything. However, as soon as she brought up the controversial shoulder tap farewell, she knew she'd gone too far. The insult is compared to both a chess game, and a disaster, I assume disaster refers to natural disasters such as tornadoes. The mixed metaphor confused me because I was not really sure when the metaphor was over, but the two situations are so closely related that they almost blend into one. Just as Kathy sat back hoping Ruth hadn not really noticed her rude remark, a chess player hopes his opponent doesn't see his mistakes because in either situation, if the flaw is caught, mass chaos can and will break out. On a lighter note, I find it ironic that Ruth actually taught Kathy to play chess (incorrectly) at Hailsham.