TPCASTT Themes

1.) "Sonnet 130" by William Shakespeare
Though a person may not hold an immense amount of beauty, with a closer look one can see that this is not all that matters in a relationship.

2.) "The Passionate Shepard to His Love" by Christopher Marlowe
Love often drives a person to strive to provide the one they love with all that they can.

3.) "Death Be Not Proud" by John Donne
Death is not something to be feared, but rather, something to be combated.

4.) "To the Virgins, to Make Much of Time" by Robert Herrick
An individual's youth not only allows them to enjoy the present, but also gives them an opportunity to secure a happy future.

5.) "The Author to Her Book" by Anne Bradstreet
Sometimes, trying to change what does not need to be tampered with only results in no success whatsoever.

6.) "To His Coy Mistress" by Andrew Marvell
Living in the moment and for the moment is what will help a person to find happiness in the future.

7.) "Sound and Sense" by Alexander Pope
A writer's true talent is the ability to turn what they see in the world around them into works of art that speak to human nature.

8.) "The World Is Too Much With Us" by William Wordsworth
If people took the time to recognize the beauty and complexity that nature holds, the world would be a much different place.

9.) "She Walks in Beauty" by George Gordon, Lord Byron
When a person is truly content and at peace with themself, it is seen through their demeanor.

10.) "Ozymandias" by Percy Bysshe Shelley
A person's legacy can be very important to them.

11.) "When I Have Fears That I May Cease To Be" by John Keats
It gives people a sense of security to know what to expect, so not knowing what the future holds can be a very difficult thing to deal with.

12.) "The Children's Hour" by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Children help to evoke a sense of youthfulness and adventure in people.

14.) "Annabel Lee" by Edgar Allen Poe
When love is strong, not even death can destroy a person's connection to another.

15.) "O Captain, My Captain" by Walt Whitman
The success one has achieved should not be muddled by unfortunate events.

16.) "I Heard a Fly Buzz When I Died" by Emily Dickinson
There is symbolic nature in everything in the world that can be seen when one takes a closer look.

17.) "Dover Beach" by Matthew Arnold
In a world full of ignorance and struggle, it is only natural that people seek out the serenity and happiness that surrounds them because it provides an escape from reality.

18.) "Dulce et Decorum Est" by Wilfred Owen
It is easy for people on the outside who are merely sympathetic to a person's hardships to say that they are respectable for doing what they did, but only those who are empathetic to a person's hardships can truly understand  the difficult nature of these actions.

19.) "Mending Wall" by Robert Frost
Things that seperate people are unecessary, and do nothing more than invite conflict.

20.) "Mirro"r by Sylvia Plath
The things in this world that force us to see the truth are responsible for keeping us in touch with reality.

Grapes of Wrath Action Project

For this project, I chose to contact the American Cancer Society.  I was interested in this because my mom was diagnosed with lung cancer a few years ago.  She has never smoked a day in her life, and does not have previous family history to support the diagnosis.  The cause of her cancer is said to be unknown.  Luckily, she is doing well.  I wanted to contact the American Cancer Society to learn more about lung cancer and hear what they had to say on the subject.

In particular, I wanted to know why more was not being done to make people aware of the less obvious causes of lung cancer.  Up until my mom was diagnosed, I assumed that lung cancer really only developed if one smoked.  I could not believe that even as a teenager, I was oblivious to the fact that lung cancer could be caused by things other than smoking.  I also sometimes encounter this when I tell people that my mom has lung cancer.  I tell them she has never smoked, and they can’t quite believe it; they say “Are you sure?”  I am sure, and the fact that there is such a misunderstanding leads me to believe that not enough is being done to ensure that people are aware of the causes of lung cancer aside from smoking.  I attribute this lack of understanding in part to the media, who does a very good job of encouraging people not to smoke because it will lead to cancer, but offers no other information as to how to prevent the disease.  This misunderstanding has really affected me, so I was, of course, curious to contact a group who knew a lot about the topic. 

I emailed the American Cancer Society on Tuesday.  It was quite simple; I simply went to the website, and found the 'Contact Us' section.  I filled out the form, and selected my purpose as 'Student Homework'.  In it, I described the project that we are doing and my personal reasons for wanting to contact the ACS.  I asked them why more is not being done to make people aware of the causes of lung cancer.  I also asked them why, if lung cancer can be caused by things other than smoking, this is not made clear to people.  I knew that the ACS was not the group responsible for this misguidance, but I knew that they would be able to provide me with the most worthwhile information, so I chose to contact them.  I received an email the next day thanking me for contacting the ACS and telling me that my question would be answered in 2-3 business days.  I was impressed at this because I wasn’t sure I’d get a response!  Sure enough, two days later, I received an email.  In it, a woman named Mary explained some things to me:

"Thank you for your interest in the fight against cancer. Your point that lung cancer is found in those who have never smoked is well taken; however, the American Cancer Society focuses on, and places such a great importance on educating people on the hazards of tobacco use in relation to cancer because tobacco use causes nearly one in five deaths in the United States...Because smoking is the most preventable cause of death in our society, the American Cancer Society feels a strong obligation to provide the public, particularly children and adolescents, with the facts about tobacco use.  Tobacco control is a priority for the American Cancer Society, and we are committed to doing everything possible to reduce the terrible toll smoking exacts on the American public...You may wish to review our publication "Second Hand Smoke” which states that second hand smoke has been linked to lung cancer in non-smokers, in fact about 3,400 nonsmoking adults die of lung cancer as a result of breathing second hand smoke..."

After reading this information, I felt almost as if this part of the email was copied and pasted from a document about what lung cancer is, rather than written.  For example, I said in my email that secondhand smoke was not the cause, and Mary proceeded to tell me that I should read the article "Secondhand Smoke".  I was pleased, however, that towards the end of the email Mary answered my request of giving me the names of other people I could contact if she couldn't provide me with information.  She did both, providing me with information and the names of other groups to contact.  I feel that this shows that this part of my email was read and taken into consideration.  Most importantly, she answered my question.  I understand now that the reason why ACS focuses so strongly on tobacco prevention is because it is of utmost importance to them. 

It was not until I real who Mary was that I felt that I hadn't been very successful.  All the while, I had assumed that Mary was some official from the American Cancer Society.  This was not the case.  Under her name read "Online Cancer Information Specialist".  I had contacted the ACS in hopes of reaching a high ranking official in power.  Instead, I was given an overview of lung cancer and some helpful links on the subject from an online specialist. 

Though I wish I had been able to dig deeper into the subject, I think I learned more about why we were assigned this project by not being as successful, if that makes sense.  I understand why Mr. Currin assigned this action project now that I have completed it.  Trying to contact the head of an important group proved to be very difficult.  It reminds me of the situation that the Joads and their fellow Okies find themselves in.  The jobs and therefore the lives of these people are being consumed by the East.  They travel all over California, and encounter so many people along the way, from people just like them to individuals who hold power above them.  None of these people can explain why things are turning out how they are.  Like the people in the novel, the individuals in our class are simply trying to find out why certain situations are how they are.  Perhaps part of the reason why some of these questions cannot be answered is because the people being asked don’t quite know how to answer them.  This project is, therefore, the perfect example of the plight one endures in trying to discover why things are the way they are.  It also shows that things really haven’t changed over the years.  We are very similar to the Joads in that we want reasons for the circumstances that we experience.  Though we may not always find the answers that we search for, we must remember that we are still gaining something out of the situation by asking.

Reflections of Joseph Conrad's "Heart of Darkness" In Relation to Chinua Achebe's "Things Fall Apart"

In this article, Chinua Achebe criticizes Joseph Conrad’s acclaimed novel Heart of Darkness.  What I found particularly interesting about this article is how Achebe presents his argument, and how he supports it.  In particular, he says that Conrad likes things being in their place.  To Achebe, this means that Conrad prefers to acknowledge the stereotypical viewpoint of the culture, rather than something less traditional.  For example, at one point Achebe says that the reason why the African woman is characterized as being “…savage and superb, wild-eyed and magnificent…” is because in this description she is “in her place”.  However, can Conrad really be condemned for this?  No, calling someone savage is not something that can be justified, but I think it is also important to consider that when Heart of Darkness was written, and even Things Fall Apart, for that matter, people held much more traditional views over certain issues than they do today.  This is supported by the content of both novels.  It is also displayed in the ever-changing demographic of our nation.  Taking this just a step further, as the years progress and as times change, what was once considered deviant and “taboo”, in a sense, is no longer so.   This being said, my thoughts after reading this are that Achebe cannot necessarily criticize Conrad’s Heart of Darkness as racist, because when Conrad wrote it, times were much different.  However, in contrast, I think we must also consider the audience for which the novel was written.  In this aspect, I myself do criticize Conrad.  When Conrad wrote the novel, I understand that he was probably trying to appeal to a certain crowd; most likely, the white population.  Perhaps Conrad simply believed that “white” culture was superior to the Africans’ way of living, or perhaps he wholeheartedly believed that things would never change and that other cultures much different than his would never become a part of civilized society.  Whatever the case, I don’t think he considered how things might change in the future, and I think if he had his novel would’ve been drastically different.  Whatever the case, whether Conrad’s novel is or is not racist is completely subjective.  I, personally, do not believe either work to be racist, because each novel provides a glimpse into a different culture, and I really think that the fact that they are successfully able to do this is enough.  And, if we are still talking about these novels years and years later, their authors must have done something right.  After all, isn’t one important aim of literature to spark discussion amongst all peoples, regardless of their culture or beliefs?

Reflection on "The Second Coming of Aphrodite: Kate Chopin's Fantasy of Desire" by Sandra M. Gilbert

In this article, Sandra M. Gilbert explores the novel The Awakening by Kate Chopin by viewing it in a feministic and fantastical light.  Gilbert’s purpose for writing this essay is to shed a new light on the novel by viewing it through a literary lens that we might not have considered before, in hopes that it will help to explain parts of the novel that have often been questioned and misunderstood.  To support her argument, Gilbert claims that the story’s writing, though intended to be realistic, is in actuality more fantastical and mythical than anything else.   She mentions mythical figures, like Aphrodite, and uses this to support her belief that The Awakening is a feminist novel.  A Greek myth states that Aphrodite herself emerged from the sea.  Therefore, the sea embodies femininity and helps to awaken Edna to the world around her.  In addition, Gilbert coins maternal longing as the reason for why Edna acts as she does.  It has been said that the absence of a strong female figure in Edna’s life causes her to end up in the relationship she does.  Daughters look up to their fathers their entire lives, so it only makes sense that often women end up marrying men that emulate their paternal figures.  Edna’s father is very controlling and powerful, so it should come as no surprise that Edna marries a man who possesses the same qualities.  Did, perhaps, the absence of a strong maternal figure seal Edna’s fate from the beginning?  Her search for femininity and independence could be the result of the unhappy relationship she found herself in.  Gilbert presents her argument well.  She is persuasive in how she states and supports her argument.  I do agree with what Gilbert says about the novel being fantastical.  Though Edna searches through the entire novel for freedom, she never truly experiences the complete liberation she strives for.  Therefore, the things she wants she cannot even grasp, because they don’t exist.  The novel, in this sense, is very fantastical and theoretical.  So, because I agree that the novel’s tone is abstract, I do not think that all the characters’ motives and actions can be fully described, as Gilbert strives to do throughout the essay.  I disagree with some of that points she makes, because I feel that they are a bit far-fetched.  Some of the characters’ actions simply cannot be understood, and I think it just needs to be left at that.    

The Yellow Wallpaper: Reflection

I found this short story to be very intriguing.  At first, I was not very engrossed in the story.  As I kept reading, however, it commanded my attention and I began to become very interested in what the woman had to say.  I found the dynamic between the woman and her husband to be very important to the overall meaning to the story.  Earlier in the story, it is stressed how powerful and in “command” of his wife the man in.  He tells her that she needs to rest; she does it.   He tells her she mustn’t leave the house; she does it.  To the naked eye, she is very submissive.  But, this makes me wonder: is there something more behind why she obeys as she does?  Is it simply the constraints of the time period that cause her to comply?  Is it love for her husband?  Is it fear?   What strikes me as interesting is that this woman’s husband is so concerned with making sure his wife obeys him that he becomes completely blind to the fact that being alone is making her go crazy.  I think what she needs is attention, but that is obviously not something that her husband can give her.  One of my favorite parts of the story is how the wallpaper is described.  The woman sits in this room by herself every day all day long, and searches for things to keep her mind busy.  She sits and observes the wallpaper; her eye follows the twirling and whimsical path of the pattern, then suddenly reaches a dead end and stops.  When the woman describes this, I’ve noticed that her thoughts come rushing back and she becomes yet again preoccupied with thinking about her illness.  Also, the way she describes the wallpaper and how the things behind it creep add a sense of eeriness to the story.  At the end, it is particularly interesting how the woman suddenly asserts that it is she who has escaped from the wallpaper, as if the reader knew all along that the figure creeping about was her:  “I wonder if they all come out of that wallpaper as I did?”  Her mental state is finally understood when she says this.  We understand that when she looked at the wall and said she saw a dark figure, she saw nothing more than her own shadow moving about.  When she looked out the window and claimed to have seen women creeping about, she saw nothing more than her own reflection.  It is amazing how the way we view her changes in an instant, just by reading one sentence.  In the earlier part of the book she sounds so level headed and rational; wise, really.  When she says that line, however, the way we view her changes dramatically.  Just like that, we reconsider every previous word we read, because we realize that we had interpreted and absorbed it completely incorrectly.  I can honestly say that after reading this story and reflecting on its meaning, it has become one of my favorite pieces of literature, simply because it is so incredibly intriguing.    

Literary Criticism: "Cold Ethan and 'Hot Ethan'"

In this particular essay, entitled “Cold Ethan and ‘Hot Ethan’”, Cynthia Wolff explores how two of Edith Wharton’s novels parallel the author’s own life.  Cold Ethan represents the novel Ethan Frome, which is set in winter, and Hot Ethan represents the novel Summer, set in the season of the same name.  Wolff’s purpose for writing this essay is to make the reader aware of Wharton’s own personal experiences, with hopes that they can use these examples to better understand her works.  In this article, Wolff poses one very important question: what role does love play in a marriage and in relationships in general?

The anguish Wharton felt at the time she wrote Ethan Frome bleeds out through the character of Ethan, who struggles with his obligations to his wife, Zeena, and feelings for his wife’s cousin, Mattie.  Wolff uses much information to support her arguments and does it well.  There is an equal balance of information presented about Wharton’s personal life and about the novella. Wolff draws many similarities by citing several instances from Wharton’s past and connecting them to various points in the novella.  Like Ethan, Wharton married for reasons other than love, and as a result found herself trapped in a loveless marriage.  In addition, both Wharton and Ethan longed for an escape from their own discontent, so they searched for fulfillment elsewhere.   Social standards and moral obligations prevented both Wharton and the protagonist in her novel from ever reaching true happiness; divorce was out of the question, as was a life with their lovers.  Wharton’s lover, Morton Fullerton, provided her with happiness that she never found with her husband Teddy, just as Mattie provided Ethan with an escape from his marriage.  It is in this respect that Wharton and Ethan made their most perilous mistakes.  Searching for love outside of their marriages is what sealed their tragic fates.  

I both agree and disagree with the arguments that Wolff presents in this article.  I strongly agree with Wolff that a person’s past is imperative in determining their future. Wharton’s personal experiences and Ethan Frome support this notion.  However, I disagree with Wolff’s belief that one’s surroundings do not play a crucial role in one’s life.  I believe that the setting of the novel is crucial in determining Ethan’s fate.  Ethan chose to marry Zeena because she offered an escape from the solidarity and bleakness that had characterized Ethan’s life until her met her.  Had the novella taken place somewhere else, someplace far less bleak and barren, the outcome might have been drastically different.  Wolff asserts that Ethan was never a victim of his fate, but I disagree.  I do not think Ethan had the option to choose his own fate; rather, fate chose him.  Ethan and Wharton are strikingly similar in that they both settle, and thus surrender themselves to a life of unhappiness and, oddly enough solitude- which was precisely what they had hoped to end when they married.  However, their oppressive and loveless marriages lead them to feeling even lonelier than they had when they were single.  Considering this, I feel that I can now answer the question that Wolff proposes at the beginning of the article.  I believe that love is the utmost concern in any relationship.  It is better to be alone and happy than to be in a relationship that makes you absolutely miserable. 

Sonnet Reflection: 130

This is another Dark Lady sonnet.  In this sonnet, Shakespeare describes a mistress of his.  He begins by describing the way she looks.  The first two lines are self explanatory; the woman isn’t as bright and beautiful as certain things, like the sun and coral.  In line three, Shakespeare writes “If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun”.  Dun means dark, like a brown or blackish hue.  In other words, her skin is not white like snow.  This is important because women at this time prized themselves on being pale and white.  Shakespeare’s mistress does not look like the pretty women of the time.  He goes on to say how he doesn’t see a flush in her cheeks like that of roses, and that he doesn’t smell the goodness that perfume has.  He says how listening to music is better than listening to her speak.  Lastly, he says he knows very well how goddess’ never touch the ground, and rather than walking they float.  He admits that when she moves her feet hit the ground, so she is no such goddess.  This sonnet is very much different than most other poems, because they are usually used to compliment a person, and this does just the opposite. Between the last line of the third quatrain and the beginning of the couplet there is a shift.  “And yet by heaven I think my love as rare As any she belied with false compare”.  Shakespeare is indicating that other poets make false comparisons between mistresses and their beauty.  His point of view is refreshing because he says he loves the woman even though she isn’t perfect, and rather than trying to build her up to be perfect, he loves her for who she is.