As you are reading this text, you may have the tendency to sometimes think, "Well, duh!" I mean, some of this is common sense and some symbolic elements like the seasons are so archetypal that they are almost ingrained in our intellects. However, for the purpose of AP literature, these are all ideas of which you need to be carefully aware as you read. For the first week of posts, I would like for you to choose at least two different chapters and apply the ideas presented in those chapters to works you have previously read. On the AP exam when you discuss works, they must be works of literary merit, typically the classics that you've been reading throughout high school in your English courses. For this discussion, however, you can extend your discussion to works of popular fiction; for instance, I imagine some of you will connect the chapter on vampires with ideas in the Twilight series, and that's ok. My focus here is to get you thinking about the ideas in Foster's book and to stretch your analytical skills without overloading your brain too much (it is summer, after all). Hopefully this book will live up to its subtitle and you will find it "lively" and "entertaining." I look forward to reading your responses. They should be posted by June 12th.
A couple of reminders:
1) I'm looking for careful thought in terms of the ideas I ask you to consider. Remember that although this blog is set up to encourage a dialogue, you are being graded, so the focus and language should remain academic.
2) In addition to addressing the ideas I've posted, you may also find it beneficial to read others' posts and comment on what your classmates have said, but I'm looking for extensions or rebuttals of others' comments, not a simple "agree" or "disagree."
3) The inevitable question..."How long does this have to be?" Well, I tend to be long-winded because I love to talk about literature, but let's just say that your post should take between 20-30 minutes to compose each week - kind of like an abbreviated essay, but not so tight in terms of form or structure. I want to see that you have been engaged in the reading and that you are making sense out of what you have read, and I obviously want to see evidence that you are making connections with things you've read before.
Please feel free to ask questions of me within the blog, or if you'd rather do so privately, email me at williamsholly@hotmail.com. I look forward to "talking" with you all this summer.
A couple of reminders:
1) I'm looking for careful thought in terms of the ideas I ask you to consider. Remember that although this blog is set up to encourage a dialogue, you are being graded, so the focus and language should remain academic.
2) In addition to addressing the ideas I've posted, you may also find it beneficial to read others' posts and comment on what your classmates have said, but I'm looking for extensions or rebuttals of others' comments, not a simple "agree" or "disagree."
3) The inevitable question..."How long does this have to be?" Well, I tend to be long-winded because I love to talk about literature, but let's just say that your post should take between 20-30 minutes to compose each week - kind of like an abbreviated essay, but not so tight in terms of form or structure. I want to see that you have been engaged in the reading and that you are making sense out of what you have read, and I obviously want to see evidence that you are making connections with things you've read before.
Please feel free to ask questions of me within the blog, or if you'd rather do so privately, email me at williamsholly@hotmail.com. I look forward to "talking" with you all this summer.
Alright, so let’s begin with me saying that I had every intention of absolutely despising this book. Summer reading has never exactly been my favorite thing to do and I didn’t see much light at the end of the tunnel when I heard I would have to spend part of my summer reading an instructional book on how to analyze literature. Surprisingly, this book isn’t quite as miserable as I had suspected. Its energy and liveliness have made it rather enjoyable to read! I love the way Foster writes and how he explains things! I may get a bit confused at times, but all together I’ve taken much delight in what I’ve read so far!
ReplyDeleteSo now let’s start with the assignment!
In Chapter 1, Foster talks all about “the quest,” which is present and very crucial in every good story! Every character, in every novel, regardless of genre, time period, etc. has a goal, something they are looking to accomplish. Foster addresses the many factors that come with “the quest” in Chapter 1, which consist of: the quester, a place to go, a stated reason to go there, challenges and trials, and a real reason to go there. The first novel to come to mind when considering this chapter was The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. In this novel, all of these elements can be clearly seen. Huck, a young and at times naïve boy, embarks on a journey with his loyal companion, Jim, down the Mississippi River with the goal being to reach the Free states. Along the way, Huck and Jim face a numerous amount of obstacles, not only physical, but emotional as well. The most evident theme in this novel is that of freedom. Jim desires freedom from his many years of bondage and oppression, while Huck desires freedom from civilization and from his ignorant Pap. Though the situations were entirely different, the goal remained the same. And along the great journey, both Huck and Jim learned many valuable lessons, all the while, forming a meaningful friendship. Huck Finn is all about a literal adventure, but not all novels have to consist of dire circumstances like let’s say… wrestling alligators or dodging bullets! Even sappy love stories follow this whole idea of “the quest”. Life itself is a quest with its own trials and tribulations that ultimately make us who we are.
In Chapter 5, Foster discusses how, “there’s no such thing as a wholly original work of literature.” Foster also tells us that, “there is only one story.” This story, in Foster’s eyes, endlessly repeats itself. This story contains everything there is to know about humanity. So pretty much, literature is equivalent to that of a puzzle! All of its many different parts connect to form one big picture. In Chapter 6, Foster discusses the impact of Shakespeare and how most works of literature can be associated with this work. So now, let’s connect Shakespeare’s famous Romeo and Juliet with both Chapter 5 and Chapter 6! Romeo and Juliet are most commonly described as “star-crossed lovers”. The story of Romeo and Juliet is indeed a tragedy. Romeo and Juliet are forbidden to be together and in the end are left in a state of relentless despair. This whole theme of forbidden love has been carried on in literature for centuries. The novel, Scribbler of Dreams, by Mary E. Pearson is almost identical to the situation present in Romeo and Juliet. Scribbler of Dreams just has a little more of a modern twist! In this story, a family feud between the Crutchfields and Malones keeps the two young lovers, Kait and Bram, apart and ultimately leaves them devastated. Now there is no suicide or anything drastic like that involved here, but this novel is synonymous to the classic Romeo and Juliet because of how it portrays love. It shows how love can drive us to do crazy things and ultimately, how it can be tragic.
Let's get started in chapter 1 Foster talks about how every story has a quest or journey, whatever you want to call it. He says that every quest has challenges, and a goal, but he also says that every quest has self discovery. He says along almost every quest a character takes he/she learns something about themselves and they change. So, sense you said that we can apply these points he makes to anything we've read I want to apply it to a book I just finished called Swan Song by Robert McCammon. It follows several people over many years, but in the end there are two groups like always the good guys and the bad guys. The good guys consist of a girl named Swan who is central to the story, a ex-wrestler called Joshua who protects swan for most of her childhood, and a homeless woman named Sister who helps bring people together after the nuclear fallout that occurs. An ex-colonel Macklin, is the main bad guy. Now at first none of these characters seem good or bad but simply want to survive. Swan starts off as a small 6 or 7 year old girl who doesn't truly understand what she is and what she can do, she is no ordinary girl, she can basically make plants grow, which is pretty useful in a postapocalyptic wasteland. She grows from that girl to a strong girl who leads people and brings them together against the main bad guy, Macklin. He starts of as a old washed up colonel who loses his hand at the beginning of the apocalypse. He over several years builds a empire similar to that of Nazi germany, and he even wheres an old Nazi uniform. But also in the book there is a very straight forward example of chamging through a quest. In the book there is a disease that grows a hard shell over the face that eventually cracks revealing as the book puts it "the face of the soul" swan is show as a beautiful girl, where Macklin is show with his face turned inside out and forced to look like the genocidal monster that he is. It's kind of like that masks that we wear in society to hide who we really are being taken off and revealing what we really are. Which is what a quest does to most characters. Now in chapter 8, Foster refers to all the old bed time stories and folk tales, like red riding hood. Stephen King wrote a set of short stories called Full Dark No Stars, in this is a story Big Driver which is almost a perfect example of little red riding hood. It follows a writer who is invited to a book signing for a book club by a woman from an unfamiliar town. Naturally she goes and the book signing goes well. The woman who invited her tells her about a short cut home and thinking why not she takes it. This is the first red riding hood aspect, afterall red riding hood takes a shortcut through the woods. And the road is similar to the woods, its a unknown place, and unknown scares most of us. In true stephen king fashion she runs over a piece of wood with nails in it and get a couple of blown tires so she stranded on the road. A few hours later comes a old beat up redneck truck, with a huge man in it who offers help naturally. But when she turns her back for more than 5 seconds he knocks her out and takes him to his home. He does what you might expect and rapes her. But like you might not expect she escapes and makes her way home. Over a few months she does some research and finds that he has a brother and that the woman who gave her the short cut was his mother and she had in fact led the woman into the trap. Now the two brothers and the mother who are all in this together obviously represent the wolf. There is only one difference between this book and red riding hood, the rescue, where is the woodsman bursting through the door and killing the wolf? Well the writer is her own woodsman. After a few months of isolated recovery she realizes that she can't allow these people to continue doing what they're doing, so she makes herself go and take care of business herself. She finds the trio and kills them all and gets away totally free.
ReplyDeleteKatelyn, I agree with you. I was dreading this book with every cell of my body, but it has turned out to be okay after all. Anyway let me start my blog.
ReplyDeleteSo, food is one of the most basic human necessities. As people, everyone needs to experience food in some way on a daily basis. In chapter two, Foster explains that almost every eating scene in literature has some significance beyond what is shown. Foster says that breaking bread is an act of peace and sharing. The first thing that comes to mind is the bible and the story where Jesus feeds 5000 people. In Matthew chapter 14, Jesus makes a meal big enough for five thousand out of 2 fish and five loaves of bread. Rich or poor, healthy or sick, big or small, Christian or non-Christian, all the people were brought together by their hunger and the eating of the fish and bread was an act of bonding; even though they probably didn’t realize it. The connection though is everyone has food as a common ground, no matter what. Another thing connection is The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain. Throughout the whole book food comes into play. At first it is how Jim, the former slave, and Huck, the little boy, make friends. They both learn to work as a team and help each other find their next meal. Because they are looking after one another's needs, they become friends.
In chapter 10, Foster talks about how rain can be a symbol of purification, restoration, and cleansing. It can also show truth in a person, or bring people together, like for shelter. In chapter nine of Huckleberry Finn, there is a huge storm going on around Jim and Huck. It is violent and terrifying to the reader, but ironically, Jim and Huck find peace and comfort in the storm and look at it as a blessing in disguise. Huck says to Jim, "Jim, this is nice; I wouldn’t want to be nowhere else but here..." Since they both were on a mission to run away, there are people out looking to capture them and return them. Because of this, at that moment the rain feels like a safety blanket to Huck and Jim. It will delay their hunters and wash away whatever scent they have left.
Katelyn, Christopher and Erica- Great job! Thanks for being the pioneers on the blog and tackling the first couple of posts. You are doing exactly what I want you to do ~ apply the ideas in Foster's text to things you have previously read. You are clearly showing an understanding of his ideas. You are also attempting to understand thematic elements and how these are developed through the ideas Foster relays ("Life itself is a quest with its own trials and tribulations that ultimately make us who we are." “It's kind of like that masks that we wear in society to hide who we really are being taken off and revealing what we really are. Which is what a quest does to most characters.”) Superb!
ReplyDeleteIn chapter one Foster talks about quests, how every trip is a quest, and how every great piece of literature has a quest. He also states that the real reason for a quest is always self knowledge. When I thought about how all of the books I have read would relate to this chapter I first thought of the book The Pearl by John Steinbeck. In this book Kino, his wife Juana, and their newborn son Coyotito live in a brush house by the sea. One day when Kino is out on his boat pearling he finds an extremely large pearl and takes it into town to sell, but does not except any of the dealer's offers. Trackers are sent after Kino to try and retrieve the Pearl and in the process they destroy Kino's boat and burn down his house. After this Kino makes the decision to take his family to the capitol in order to sell the pearl. Foster says that a quest consists of five things: a quester, a place to go, a stated reason to go there, challenges and trials en route, and the real reason for the quest. In The Pearl, Kino is the quester, the capitol is a place to go, and selling the pearl is a reason to go there. The family encounters many challenges and trials such as the boat being destroyed, their house being burnt down, the trackers constantly following them on their journey, and little Coyotito is shot and killed by these trackers. The real reason for the quest was to make Kino realize that he should be happy with his life because money and wealth isn't everything. At first the pearl represents hope and good fortune but as the story goes on it becomes a symbol of greed and selfish desires. In the end Kino realizes that wealth isn't enough to save his family from their oppression and low social status so he throws the pearl back out into the sea, ridding them of the bad luck and returning back to their spiritual life.
ReplyDeleteIn chapter 3 Foster talks about vampires, not only vampires in the literal way, but also in the figurative way because you don't need fangs and a cape to be a vampire. He says that the essentials of a vampire story are: an older figure representing corrupt, outworn values; a young virginal female; a stripping away of her youth, energy, and virtue; a continuance of the life force of the old male; and the death or destruction of the young woman. The book Dr. Franklin's Island by Ann Halam has all the essentials of a vampire story. In this book a twisted scientist (Dr. Franklin) takes to teenage girls, Semirah and Miranda, captive on his private island. He locks them in a room having no connection to the outside world and beings to run painful and inhuman tests on them. The girls are transformed into monsters by genetic engineering and transgenics, causing them to become like animals, stripping them of their youth, energy and virtue. Dr. Franklin needs these girls to be his guinea pigs in the experiment and without them he would not be able to move forward as a scientist. In the end the girls have grown almost completely into animals, their human minds destroyed. Dr. Franklin denies Semirah's and Miranda's right to live in the face of his overwhelming demands and places his desires, particularly his uglier ones, above their needs.
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ReplyDeleteWhen I read the introduction to this novel I honestly didn't think I could stay awake; but after I read the first chapter and I started to understand what Foster was saying, it changed my perspective of the novel. I hope the remainder of the chapters hold my attention as good as the first ten have.
ReplyDeleteI also decided to use quest in chapter one. Foster says that quest are any trip taken. In my opinion I think that quest are a long trip taken with a goal at the end waiting to be achieved, which is why I have chosen the Harry Potter Series by J.K Rowling. Harry is on a quest to kill the man who ruined his life and killed his family. (Lord Voldemort) In the end Harry completes his quest and achieves his goal by killing Voldemort. Harry will still have to live without parents and the friends Voldemort killed, but now that his quest is over and his goal is complete he can relax and know that he has made his parents proud.
In Chapter 2 Foster talks about Food and how that almost every eating scene in a novel has some important meaning not shown. I have chosen to compare the novel Dr. Franklin's Island, which I read for an assignment in Genetics class. three strangers end up together on an island after a plane crash on the way to a science camp. They were the only three people to surivive. They were scared to leave the short in fear that a rescue plane may fly above and not see them while they were looking for food. So they would take turns looking for things to eat in the jungle. Food in this case wouldn't just be for the pleasure of the taste but is needed for the three to survive. During hunting they were taken captive by Dr. Franklin. They were turned into different animals. ( Snake, Bird, and a Fish) They were all givin food that was necessary to survival. In the conclusion of the novel they change back into their human forms and take a boat for Dr. Franklin and return home. Without food they would have had no chance for survival. Different foods can have a different effect on our body. Food provides nutrients, vitamins, and other elements necessary for the body to be able to function.
I thought that this book was going to have everything explained way over my head but so far, this book has proved me wrong.
ReplyDeleteIn Chapter 6, I thought of how Romeo and Juliet were madly in love and how things were never going to work out for them. It reminded me of Jay Gatsby and Daisy when they first met because they were madly in love and when Jay went into service, Daisy ended up with someone else. But Jay stayed in love with Daisy and did everything in his power to try and win her back from her husband and Daisy knew she loved Jay back as much as the day that they met and fell in love. But ultimately, they were never meant to be together either. When Daisy killed Myrtle, it set everything in place for Jay’s death. When Jay was killed, it was a tragic loss because all he ever did was try to win Daisy back. Star crossed lovers never end up together and one or both of them always end up dead. I also thought about the House of Night series because Zoey Redbird, the main character, and Heath, her human boyfriend, can't be together even though they had been sweethearts since they were young. When Zoey is chosen by the House of Night to become a vamp, she has to leave Heath behind. He saves her from shattering her soul, and Zoey knows her life will never be the same without Heath, but there truly is no way for them to be together. Their lives are about as opposite as Romeo and Juliet's lives were from the beginning.
In Chapter 3, a normal person in another story comes to mind as a "vampire". I think of Kate from East of Eden because she took the lives of her parents and tried to convince one of her sons that he had her blood and he would turn out to be like her, when in fact, he turned out not to be. When Kate went to the prostitution house and took care of the owner, she slowly killed her by putting poison in her tea and kept her happy while Kate made sure everyone thought she was the sweetest person ever. Kate was deceiving to everyone she met. To me, a vampire draws you in and makes you think that they are perfect, like Kate did, and then when they have you wrapped around their finger, you're done for! Kate got everything she wanted from anyone she met and then she discarded them, like a vampire. How Kate doesn't have any remorse towards others makes me think of her as "vampires" even more, without the whole blood drinking. I read a book by Nikki Sixx, band member of Motley Crue, and I think in a way, he was consumed by "vampires" of a different sort. His friends wanted what was best for him, but he turned to drugs and those drugs made him die twice, before he was resuscitated. Nikki made terrible decisions and instead of getting clean, he kept turning to those drugs when the drugs made him feel terrible, grumpy, and was slowly killing him. I don't think with all of the fame and fortune he had/has, that he saw what it was really doing to him and I don't think that his friends or the rest of the band saw it either until it was too late and Nikki was virtually off the deep end, with hallucinations of garden gnomes and thinking people were spying around his house. I think that when Nikki turned his life around for his wife and kids, and turned to religion, he let go of all of those "vampires" and made his life healthy again. Whether drugs or humans are life threatening, I think they are both "vampires" and both can kill you in the end. It amazes me just how many people in this world could be considered a “vampire”.
Beginning with Chapter One - I have never really given much thought to the information presented in this chapter. However, it is entirely true! As I read the scenario given within the first few paragraphs, I couldn't help but to relate it to one of my favorite Nicholas Sparks novels, Safe Haven. In this novel a woman is presented with an opportunity to leave her abusive husband without him knowing, and escaping to a small North Carolinian town. She herself is the quester while her reason for the quest is obvious-to escape physical and mental abuse. Her place to go is uncertain, but she chooses a small place believing that she will be more safe and hidden. Her challenges come in small and large "sizes" including finances, traveling without a car, and keeping her real identity a secret. After many months of being in North Carolina, she comes across a man who is divorced with kids, yet charming and appealing. While falling for him, she finds many new characteristics within herself that she didn't know she had. Without a doubt, she realizes her "true purpose," (or in Foster's words, "the real reason to go,") which was to face her troubles, build herself back up, and find someone who was worth giving her heart up to.
ReplyDeleteBeing a Methodist Preacher's grandaughter, I found the second chapter, Nice to Eat with You: Acts of Communion, very interesting. As Foster decribed how most people think of communion as a holy and important act, I quickly knew that I was one of those people. However, even in holy communion, people are coming together for a common reason...like the described non-religious communions. Although I don't always know the person at the alter next to me, I do know that we are both there to recieve the body and blood of Christ to be forgiven. Therefore, I see the connection between the religious and non-religious types of communion.
In Ernest Hemmingway's novel, A Farewell to Arms, the soldier in this story shares many drinks between his girlfriend (who later becomes his wife) and his combat friends on many different occasions. Although they didn't consume a full course meal, after reading Foster's explanation, I feel that they shared many acts of communion. Each time drinks were being shared, they were not just sharing each other's company. Catherine and her strong combat man are sharing/expressing their love for one another...talking about their plans for the future and for their baby that is yet to come...building a verbal foundation.
& like Taylor, I too related Gastby and Daisy together. Their differences made them incompatable, despite their beliefs.
Although I sometimes have to get a "double take" and read some explanations twice in this book, I am enjoying it so far!
Katelyn and Erica, I agree with both your comments. When I was told I had to read a book about how to read literature, I certainly thought oh no! However, after reading the first couple of chapters, I actually found that I love the book and have a full understanding about the chapters we have read so far.
ReplyDeleteBeginning in Chapter 1, where Foster says every trip is a quest. In reality, everything we do is a trip and it eventually turns into a quest. According to Foster, Kip (the 16 year old boy) is on a trip, but on his way he gets caught in a couple of experiences that are disturbing and causes him to loose focus. He even gets caught up in seeing the girl of his dreams. The perfect novel that came to my mind, would have to be The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain, where Huck, a 13 year old boy sets off on an adventure to eventually learn how to survive on his on while helping his friends, Tom and Jim, along the way. While Huck is on his adventure he comes across some challenges and trials that he has to overcome to accomplish his quest and to help his friends. Although, Huck is on a journey, he still remembers the important things while he is on his trip, for example, surviving on his own, help his friends in need, and never quitting. Even today many people may take a journey not fully knowing or understanding where they want to end up, but remaining focused and committed with an understanding of where one should be, will determine where they are at the end of the day. Huck took a journey not knowing where he would end up and in some of those instances; he ended up exactly where he needed to be managing to help others in the process.
In Chapter 2, Foster talks about food, and all of the wonderful things that come with it. Yes, we all ENJOY food, even the calories that tag along, but we sometimes fail to recognize what it really means to "break bread" and have peace with one another. The story that came to my mind when I saw the word "Communion" was when Jesus and the 12 disciples shared and broke bread with each other. It showed that after all that they have been thru they still could eat and have peace towards each other. When Foster says "Whenever people eat or drink together, it is communion" that statement reminds me that when I sit down at the dinner table with my own family and we eat and "break bread," that is also considered communion, even if I was upset with my parents for whatever reason, when we sit down and eat together as a family, all of my past irritation or annoyance is set aside while we sit and commune together in peace as one family unit.
Well I’m definitely going to have to agree with Dalton about the introduction being insanely boring. Then I was only about half way through the first chapter and I was already beginning to like the book mainly because the way Foster writes so comfortably as if he is talking to you in person.
ReplyDeleteIn Chapter 1 Foster breaks things down very simple for us. That’s the main reason it was my favorite chapter. Anyways, Foster explains how so many trips fit the standards to be a “quest” and of course the first book I thought of was The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. In this novel, the “quester” is Huck Finn and his place to go ends up being Ohio. His reason for going to Ohio is to help his newly made friend, Jim, to get to a life of freedom and for himself to get away from his alcoholic father. Along their trip, these two run into a couple of challenges just like Foster said they would. First off they always have to make up stories and try their best to keep Jim’s runaway slave reputation under wraps. Then they run into the duke and the dauphin which create all kinds of troubles for them. Finally the real reason for the quest is what Foster said, self-knowledge. Throughout this “quest”, Huck makes many decisions that lead to him growing up fast and becoming who he wants to be. I think the best example there is when he decides to not turn Jim in and deal with that inner conflict of the right thing to do.
In Chapter 6 Foster talks about how so many pieces of literature allude to works of Shakespeare. I really think that this chapter and the sonnet one were the hardest to comprehend. To relate to this chapter, I chose to use The Adventures of Huck Finn again. In the novel, Mark Twain writes about Sophia Grangerford and Harney Shepherdson running off together. I believe this is a direct allusion to Shakespeare’s famous Romeo and Juliet. The two families in Huck Finn have a feud going on and in which people have been killed. The families don’t agree with the two being together so they have to be very careful when it comes to being seen together. Since the families don’t agree with the relationship, just like in Romeo and Juliet, the couple runs off. I’m thinking now that Foster really knows what he’s talking about because a lot of literature is making more sense to me.
You guys are doing a great job. Keep it up. I have to say I'm impressed that you read a book in your science class last year. I'm going to have to check that one out. I'm also pleased that you are all reading such a variety of texts and recognizing that Foster's ideas are applicable to more than just the classics.
ReplyDeleteI agree with C.J after reading the introduction I was sure that this book was going to be terrible to read. But after reading the first ten chapters I've started to like it because the way Foster writes seems as if your having a conversation with him. I can tell it's going to help in the future to understand literature better.
ReplyDeleteIn chapter 1 Foster breaks down the steps of going on a quest so that anyone can understand. When I first read the title of this chapter Every Trip Is a Quest first novel that came to my mind was Huckleberry Finn. In this novel a young boy named Huck runs aways from home with a runaway slave named Jim. They want to travel to Ohio so Jim can become a free man and so Huck can be far away from his alcoholic father. During their quest they encounter problems as Foster says any quest does. One was how to hide the fact that Jim is a runaway slave while they travel down the Mississippi River. One way was to paint Jim so he looked like a "sick arab". Foster says that "The real reason for a quest is always self- knowledge". This is true in Huckleberry Finn because Huck has to mature at a very young age and he also has to learn very quickly how to take care of himself and how to make good decisions for himself.
In chapter 2 Foster says that eating a meal isn't always just eating with someone it's usually a deeper meaning. This reminds me of the last supper in the Bible in Luke 22 1:23 where Jesus is eating the disciples. This is not just a meal, this is where Jesus tells the disciples that someone in the group will betray him tonight. And he tells Judas to go and do what he has to do.The disciples probably didn't understand because they thought that no one of the disciples could do that especially to their teacher. But they realized that Jesus was telling the truth when the Romans arrested Jesus in the garden. This is foreshadowing to Jesus's crucifixion and to Judus' betrayal of Jesus.
First, I would like to agree with my brilliant pupils in that this work of literature I have found myself becoming emerged by the Foster's warm style of writing. I have nearly begun to feel as if I am having a personal conversation with Foster.
ReplyDeleteI would also like to agree with CJ and Jason in that Huckleberry Finn is one of the first books of my mind when I thought of a great quest, but personally I would like to take a slightly different path and explore the quest of The Great Gatsby. To begin, Gatsby was separated from his love Daisy in the beginning of the story begging his Quest. When he arrives back from the war he finds himself in an endless quest to be reunited with his long lost love. When he couldn't find her he began to be involved with illegal alcohol transportation. During Gatsby's quest to once again find Daisy he encounters challenges such many people taking advantage of his parties and wealth just to get a cheap thrill. Sadly, these people dont really care for Gatsby as shown in his tragic death and following funeral. It is finally evident that Gatsby was searching for "self knowledge" by finding happiness and he believed that this could be achieved through Daisy's love. Finally, it is revealed that Daisy doesnt care for Gatsby, only money and living in the high class of her society.
In chapter 3 it refers to vampires as someone that uses someone or sucks all of the life out of them. I'm going to use the Great Gatsby again in the sense that all of the parties he threw he had people he had never met before who basically used him in order to have a good time. When Gatsby dies theres a man who calls Nick and says that he had left his tennis shoes at Gatsby's house. This shows that Gatsby's "friends" were just their to use him and his resources. They only called on him when they need something or when he was having another party. I'm glad that we are reading this novel because it has already helped me understand past novels in a new way, and it can help me in the future on how to break down novels in ord
My thoughts were the same as Katelyn and Erica when I first picked up the book. This book didn’t look the least bit interesting and I was worried that I was going to have to trudge through another year of summer reading. Much to my surprise, this book was much more appealing than it appeared at first glance.
ReplyDeleteIn chapter two, Foster talks about how eating in novels symbolizes an act of communion. When considering what he was saying, I thought of To Kill a Mockingbird. There is a scene where Walter, Atticus, Jim, and Scout are eating in the kitchen. Walter is poor and doesn’t get much to eat at home, so when he gets the opportunity to pour molasses on his pancakes, he drowns them in the syrup. Scout comments about how much molasses Walter pours on his pancakes. As a result, Calpurnia pulls Scout out of the kitchen and tells her that if she can’t accept that Walter doesn’t get molasses at home and is overwhelmed by the rare treat, she can eat her meal elsewhere. This scene is where Scout learns to accept others and the conditions they are raised in. She is able to accept the fact that not everyone is like herself. This would be considered a successful communion, showing Scout growing in maturity as an individual.
While reading chapter six, I began thinking of how so many other works have been taken from the original story of Romeo and Juliet. The novel Romiette and Julio by Sharon Draper is the story of Romiette “Romi” Cappelle and Julio Montague. They meet in a teen chat room and instantly find that they have a connection. They fall in love and believe that their racial difference isn’t a problem, but this difference becomes the biggest struggle these two have ever faced. West Side Story is a famous Broadway musical that is based off Romeo and Juliet. It is a story of two rival gangs. Tony, a member of the Sharks, falls in love with Maria, the sister of the leader of the Jets. They meet in secret and attempt to end the feud between the two gangs, but to no avail. The theme of forbidden love is also first shown in Romeo and Juliet. This theme is shown in many novels. In The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby is in love with Daisy Buchanan, but the two can never be together. Daisy must stay with Tom, who has more financial security. They have a short affair, but the book ends tragically with death, much like Romeo and Juliet.
Originally, I thought this book was going to be long and grueling, however, it wasn't that bad.
ReplyDeleteIn chapter one, Foster writes about a quest and the first thing that comes to my mind is The Old Man and The Sea by Ernest Hemingway. The old man's quest can be seen as simple as catching a really big fish or someone fighting for their place and their pride. The old man, Santiago, goes out into the sea in a small boat to fish, as he does for a living, unproductivly for some eighty odd days. Nonetheless, the old man perseveres to break is unlucky streak. Finally, he does, he hooks a marlin. He fights to overcome the marlin, otherwise known as defeat in the symbolic eye, for three days. Once the marlin is killed and captured, Santiago fights sharks from tearing away at his reward and his pride. Although, the sharks devour the marlin, the man completed his quest.He got his fish, overcame his defeat, and finished the journey.
In chapter three, our author speaks of vampires. Not only in a supernatural sense, but in a literary sense. For this chapter, I chose the book A Rasin in the sun by Lorraine Vivian Hansberry. Foster states "Using other people to get what we want." on page 21. I immediatly thought of Mr. Linder, who was hired or nominated by the white community of which the black family, the Youngers, were trying to move into, to convince the Youngers otherwise. Foster goes on to say, "Denying someone else's right to live in the face of our overwhelming demands. Placing our desires, particularly our uglier ones, above the needs of another." Which is exactly what the white community did to the Youngers. Even though they were cramped in a small apartment and needed more room, the white community decided they were not good enough to live within walking distance of themselves, much less the same community. They put their desires first. The desire to keep their community "pure." Foster goes on to say, "That's pretty much what the vampire does, after all."
I have to admit, I'm probably not the biggest fan of this book so far. I like Foster's laid back writing style, but I feel ignorant while reading because he cites tons of books that I've never heard of. It's like, I understand his point, but I don't know the novels he refers to, so it is just somewhat boring. But anyway, back to the main essay.
ReplyDeleteIn chapter 3, Foster talks about literal vampires that suck the life out of people, but he also discusses how a normal person can have the "vampire" attributes by how they interact with other throughout a novel. When I read this, I immediately thought of Kate from East Of Eden. Kate is the worst person I've ever met in a novel. She manipulates everyone, cares for no one, and practically sucks the life out of anyone she comes around. For starters, She burned her parents in a house fire as a child for no reason. (It can't get much worse than that). But later in the story, she uses Adam for as long as she can and makes him miserable. But once she has two boys and a little responsibility, she high tails it and moves to be a prostitute. I think Kate is the perfect depiction of pure evil, a monster.
For my second chapter, I decided to use chapter 7, where Foster describes how many writers gather arts of their stories from the most basic book of all time, the Bible. Once again, I connected this chapter to East Of Eden. Like Foster writes, the titles of the novel is the first thing in the Bible, the Garden of Eden. He says that if you're east of Eden, then you aren't perfect, that there will be copious problems. This got me thinking about other things I've noticed in East of Eden. The first thing is Charles' scar. He always said that it bothered him more than his other scars. This is like the "Mark of Cain", which brings up my next observation. The story of Cain and Abel is clearly evident throughout East of Eden. Charles represents Cain because he is the brother that receives less attention and is perceived as the bad brother, while Adam represents Abel, the warmhearted, kind, loving brother. I think East of Eden is a great example of Fosters chapter dealing with the Bible.
At first I thought that this book was going to be long and boring, but it turns out that it is actually an ok book. In chapter 1 Foster tells of how most characters are on a quest. I would relate it to the Old Man and the Sea. The old man was on a quest to catch a big fish that took him on a journey of a life time. This book makes me open my eyes and see things I would normally never see or even pay attention to.
ReplyDeleteIn chapter 2 Foster talks about creatings a friendship or hatred between characters. A book that comes to mind is The Great Gatsby. Gatsby has these parties with lots of food. Nick and Gatsby create a friendship through lunch and parties. The book also relates to chapter 6. Jay Gatsby is in love with Daisy and so is she, but she can't leave Tom because he is her financial back bone. The story ends like Romeo and Juliet because both experience death.
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ReplyDeleteThis is Preston's post:
ReplyDeleteWell I am probably the last blogger since I am trying to post this in the final hour before it is due and since everybody went with chapter one I guess ill do chapter 5 first. In chapter 5 Mr. Foster talks about how “there is no such thing as wholly original work of literature” I totally have the same opinion everybody at some point or another is going to refer to or right out use another persons work. When I think of a book that truly straight copies another one I have to think about The Eragon series. Some people might not know this but I am all the way into fantasy and dragons and knight and all that stuff and I really enjoyed the book Eragon but it is a total knock off to the epic Lord of the Rings. Eragon is a young man misunderstood a little strange because of his visits into the forbidden woods of the spine (just like Frodo was thought a little queer because of his adventurous happy uncle Bilbo). But Eragon finds in the spine a strange rock that is really a dragon egg with the power to change his whole world (Frodo finds the one ring of power). Eragon goes on this huge quest seeking to dethrone the tyranny of the evil king Galbatorix while using the dragon he found in the spine(Destroying the one ring to kill Sauron ) and the help of his friends that he meets along the way(His Fellowship).Sadly there is no conclusion to the Eragon series but I’m sure it would probably have to do with him having to make a hard decision whether to choose the righteous path or a more pleasurable immoral path to the dark side, and alas he choose to take the right road and the kingdom is saved and they all live happily ever after(Frodo puts the ring on almost dies but in the end grabs Sam’s hand and they are rescued by Gandalf and the king of the eagles)Don’t get me wrong Eragon is one of my favorite books and it has a lot of twist and turns that L.O.T.R. lacked it was one author utilizing the greatness of another authors great work and there is nothing wrong with that if that didn’t happen I doubt we would even have literature worth reading.Yep that’s how it all goes down and it seems to me that almost every recent fantasy stories I've read has been along the same plot lines as the Lord of the Ring and I can see why people might make fun of me but it’s the best four adventure books (The Hobbit also included)in my opinion ever written not counting of course Times in the Hood Volumes I, II, III, and IV. Mr. Foster describes literature in this chapter as a barrel full of eels where a writer creates a new eel and it wriggles around into the barrel as the new eel but it shares the same eelness as the other eels. I don’t know about English professors but not to many people have a barrel of eels laying around so what came to my mind is a wad of gum you can choose all different colors and shapes of gum that appear to be different and unique but after you get done chewing and digesting the pieces of gum with your mouth you see its all just one blob of the same brown sticky stuff and in the end gum will always boil down to the same exact thing no matter what way you chew it same with all literature not counting of course Times in the Hood Volumes I, II, III, and IV those are completely original.
And this is the remainder of Preston's post:
ReplyDeleteThat was really really long and I am running out of time so this might not be as insightful I know your probably weeping at this news. Chapter 7 was another chapter that I strongly could relate to because it dealt with another few of my favorite books the Bible minus the difficult names and the intensely intellectual words that are in there and the novel East of Eden. We had to read East of Eden last year and I really didn’t think I would like it but with its strange characters and even strangers story line and settings it began to appeal to me. As I started to get into the book though I started to see parallels to the bible of course the obvious one of Cain and Abel with both sets of brothers Adam and Charles along with Aaron and Caleb. Another one and this could just be me is the allusion to Samson and Delilah where Adam represents Samson a strong willed man who has a great strength and determination until he meets the deceiving Cathy or Delilah who woos him and uses him to do her bidding for her gain and ultimately it destroys the man that Samson was and leaves him without his great strength. I love it when books allude to the bible because the bible is not just some holy book that should be read by preachers and Christians only but to me is the field guide to the human being there are examples of every emotion every struggle every action good or bad in that one collection of books. To me every theme or plot ever written before or after can one way or another draw a line to the Bible because it contains ALL, well most, NO ALL things. Anyway East of Eden is one of my favorite books that I have read that has a very significant allusion to biblical tales.
This is Elizabeth's post:
ReplyDeleteLike everybody else I was dreading reading this book. However the more I read it the more interesting it became. Foster revealed many new and different viewpoints to books that I thought I understood completely.
In Chapter Two Foster talks about a communion, or the gathering of people to eat and drink, and its significance. I immidiately thought of The Great Gatsby. The main character of The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby, throws extravagant parties hoping that his one true love, Daisy, will attend. During the parties Gatsby puts on a brave face and pretends to be having a great time. Gatsby never gives up hope that Daisy will show up. Foster states that a failed communion leads to a negative connotation. When Daisy doesn't attend Gatsby's party Gatsby's communion has failed. The reader senses Gatsby's pain and loneliness caused by the fact that his true love has once again stood him up. In my opinion the book has an extremely gloomy tone after a party. However, the tone becomes more optimistic at the next party as Gatsby once again has hope that Daisy will come.
In Chapter Eight Foster discusses the idea of fairytales and prince charmings. Foster describes a prince charming has a man who protects and saves a woman from evil. For the first time I saw Gatsby as a prince charming. All throughout the book Gatsby's main objective was to protect and save Daisy. In the beginning of the book Gatsby strived to save Daisy from her shallow life and shallow husband. Daisy's husband was adulterous and in my opinion verbally abusive at times. All Gatsby wanted to do was make Daisy happy. Even after Daisy publically rejected Gatsby he still protected her by taking the blame for Myrtles death. Gatsby's main priority was to protect and save Daisy which eventually led to his death. I had never thought of Gatsby as a prince charming until I read this book.
Ok! Well, I have been reading through your comments and I am happy with the insight and careful attention to detail I am seeing in the majority of the comments. I understand that this "instructive" type of book may not be exactly what you want to be reading this summer, but I'm pleased that some of you have found it fairly tolerable. I understand your comment, Justin, about all the examples Foster uses. Honestly, there are texts he discusses that I've never read. Just remember that he is using these works as examples of his ideas. As long as you understand his point, it is not really necessary for you to connect with the texts he references. We will apply these concepts to all of the works we read in class, so the point of the assignment is to understand these archetypal symbols that are basic to our understanding of literature. A lot of you discussed the quest in literature, and that is one of the most basic formats for a novel. Think about almost every novel you have read inside a classroom and out. The character is on some type of quest, whether metaphorical or literal as well. I'm glad to see that you seem adept at discussing Biblical allusions. The Bible, classical Greek myths, and Shakespeare seem to be the most common works on which authors like to build their ideas. You all had a lot of good comments about the communion chapter also. Frankly, before I read this book, I had never thought about scenes of eating and drinking in books. Now I notice them all the time and I understand their significance. I hope the same happens to you. When you are watching a movie or reading, think about Foster's ideas and how they apply across the board. That's the nature of archetypes. They are so deeply ingrained in our subconscious that we use them and recognize them sometimes without even realizing it. I hope this books make you more aware of them. Thanks for your posts this week. I look forward to reading what you come up with in the next set of chapters.
ReplyDeleteOne more thing....if you do have trouble posting your comment, just copy and paste it in an email to me at williamsholly@hotmail.com and I will post it for you.
ReplyDeleteTanae said...
ReplyDeleteLet me start with Chapter One since this is really the only Chapter I remember out of the ten! Foster talks about every trip being a quest. Which I would have to agree with. When he listed the five things that a quest consist of, it made me think about The Adventures of Huck Finn. The Five things are: a quester, a place to go, stated reason to go there, challenges, and real reason to go there. In Huck Finn the quester(s) are Jim and Huck, place to go is North of the Mississippi River, reason to go is to free Jim, challenges were when they met the "Dauphin and the King". Meeting them faced the two questers with many, many obstacles, and I believe the real reason they went on the journey/quest was for Huck to find himself as a little boy. So I agree with Foster when he says every work of literature has a quest because Huck Finn is known as the best American Novel ever and is the book in which all novels are derived from since Huck Finn is known as the greatest work of American Literature.
Also in Chapter Five, Foster talks about seeing the same character in different novels. But what really stuck out to me was when he made a statement saying, "there's no such thing as a wholly original work of literature." There was another when he stated, "there's only one story." Once you think about it though it is very true. There are many stories out there about a "happily ever ending" or love story where "boy meets girl (vice versa) and/or when a girl takes on a man's job. But for instance everyone has read Romeo and Juliet. And I'm sure most have heard of the Notebook. But I consider the Last Song the modern day novel of love strory. It's about a girl that doesn't come from much that meets a guy who is pretty wealthy. So in some way, shape, or form one work of literature is similar to another.
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ReplyDeletefor chapter 8 the hansel and gretel could you perhaps help me with an example of a literature I could use to discuss the parallels with a fairy tale and if it creates irony or deepen appreciation
ReplyDeletefor chapter 8 the hansel and gretel could you erhaps help me with an example of a literature I could use to discuss the parallels with a fairy tale and if it creates irony or deepen appreciation
ReplyDelete