Kill-a-man-jaro

The Snows of Kilimanjaro by Ernest Hemingway is a story about a married couple in the African Savanna who are stranded because there truck broke-down and to add insult to injury the husband is suffering from gangrene in the leg. Two weeks prior to the beginning of the story we find out that the husband got scratched from a thorn on the leg and he neglects putting iodine on the scratch because he didn't think that it would be a big deal since it was such a minor injury. Aside from the life he once led, which involved marrying women just for money and lying to his current wife about whether he loves her or not, he is obviously influenced by the way he lived his life and his carelessness for taking better care of a wound in a survival situation. I think the fact that he was living a lie shows why he failed to give proper attention to something that seemed so trivial. Near the end of the story he basically gives up and starts to drink whiskey to dull the pain. I don't blame him to be honest, but I think it was easier to give-up since he didn't have much to live for in his opinion.

The likes and dislikes or American Literature

I like Booker T Washington's story "Up From Slavery" because it showed how a person who didn't start with much find ways to make himself step outside of traditional norms during the time and use his self taught education to prevail during rough times for former slaves. He was truly a smart and brave man to accomplish what he did during his time. Booker was a leader and a role model during his expedition into bringing his people out of slavery and into a more equal world and culture.

I enjoyed "Mending Wall" which was written by Robert Frost. He explains two different views from two different people over an object such as a fence. These two different people, who are neighbors, have different views about this fence that they share. He showed perfectly how people might have different views but they are sill bound together by a fence that they must share.

The Awakening was a good story that showed the main characters struggle to cope with views that were not shared by others during that time. I actually wasn't that thrilled with the story though because I felt like it drug-on and on which made it a very boring story to me. Collectively the thoughts she struggled with was the begining of when women started to think more independently and this was probably vital for the time period.

All Guts and Glory

Booker T. Washington was a very smart man. He took what little he had and applied it to the direction he was wanting to head. His mother gave him an alphabet book and he used this to his full advantage in order to learn how to read. Booker T. Washington came up from slavery and utilized his skills to become the person that he is known for today. I would imagine if you started out in slavery, and then began to educate yourself and become a linchpin for black education and critical thinking, that it would be a very hard task. Booker broke the norm and became a legend that is still very much alive today.

Booker showed many people that with dedication and determination you could achieve much more then you might have thought. You must believe in yourself though in order to break through ideas and beliefs that go against what your goals are at a given time in society. It also takes a very courageous person to have the guts to fight for what you believe in when you very well know it could be your demise...and I commend him for that.

Mending wall

Mending wall is a poem by Mr Robert Frost that was written in a way that leads the reader to believe one thing when he actually means something different. This stone wall is a barrier between two properties that annually gets fixed by the two neighbors. One neighbor keeps saying "Good fences make good neighbors", while the other neighbor doesn't quite see the purpose in the fence since there is no livestock or other roaming animal to be contained. There are pine trees on one property and apple trees in the adjacent land...but last time I checked they weren't mobile. After reading the poem one might conclude that the wall is a way to feel safe, as to keep the neighbors close but separated. If you actually think critically about the wall you start to realize that a good fence actually does make good neighbors. This fence gives the two neighbors the opportunity to interact together. This keeps the neighbors relationship fresh and current. If there wasn't this object that brought them together, perhaps they would never visit each other. It's a great way for them to be together and reassure the good stance of their relationship. So I agree that a good fence makes good neighbors.

Suicide? Really?

This is in reference to Chopin's story "The Awakening". Mrs Pontellier in the story ends up killing herself because of thinks she obviously couldn't deal with in a mature manner. Suicide is one hell of a sad way to go out. I understand that Mrs Pontellier had many different thoughts and emotions going through her head all at once. I also understand that she felt lost inside because she was experiencing thoughts that would have been frowned upon during her time. She had never gone swimming until this time in her life. I think the fact that she taught herself, and forced herself to go swimming to try experiencing something new. It was her way of coping with new ideas. Unfortunately she chose that as a way to commit suicide. I'm willing to bet that once she was out to far, she began to regret what she had done. The three to four minutes that it would have taken her to drown must have felt like an eternity. I'm sure during that time she had wished she wouldn't have made such a dumb choice, but it was too late. She wouldn't have been able to avoid a rip-current being inexperienced in swimming. What a sorry way to go out!

Forbidden Fruit

When I say "forbidden fruit" I'm using it as an analogy to describe the relationship between Robert and Mrs Pontellier in Chopin's story "The Awakening". Robert is a young man who enjoys befriending and flirting with the married women around his mothers resort. Everybody besides Mrs Pontellier believes he is joking around when he is flirting. I think that he actually was being truthful but played it off in a joking manner when brought up in conversation. I also believe that once he realized Mrs Pontellier was falling for him he got scared and realized how awkward it might be for him to give into his lust for Mrs Pontellier. I do think it is best though that they didn't give into their lustful thoughts because if they had would it have caused a great disturbance in the resort community. On top of that since they hadn’t they could always look back on those memories and think of them as a joyful period during their lives. It would be depressing only remembering people being mad at you and feeling like you were shunned from a community because of actions you knowingly took. All the people you would hurt, the relationships you would break, and the reputation you would set for the resort…all for just one stupid move. So I say leave the fruit alone.

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The Adventures of Huckleberry Fin is a book that was written by Mark Twain back in the 1800's. This book is a very funny book that still hold true today. Mark wrote the book to mimic the characters he chose to add into his story. At times it's often hard to read because of his gross use of the word nigger. I understand that he was just writing it as the way people were during his time. I also understand that they didn't have any other word for African-Americans, but having grown up in a world where that word is demeaning towards a race makes it often hard to read.
That being said, I still feel we should hold on to our past as to not forget what things where like, and to not repeat our past. Currently we have people trying to take evolution out of the curriculum and I think that is very dangerous. I think it's wrong to banish things from our curriculum unless most people accept it as being destructive to society. This takes me back to what I was trying to say about Walt Whitman's poem when he was trying to convey that you must take information in and decipher what you think is the truth. You can't rely on what one or a few people say. We all should have the access to all information, so we can access what we want and ignore what we don't want.

Grey Matter

In one of Emily Dickinson's poems, #598 , she starts talking about the human brain. This poem is a bit different in some of the others I have read from her. I believe she is trying to point out to people that the power of the brain is much larger than people believe. Science tells us that we use only about ten percent of our brain potential. Maybe this is because most people don’t regularly exercise their brains enough on a daily basis. "The Brain - is wider than the sky...", she explains, and "The Brain is deeper than the sea...", she laments. ".Emily Dickinson was a very smart woman, as you can see in her writing. Perhaps Emily knew how to tap in to her full brain potential. She certainly seemed to be able to imagine how certain things played out around the world, without actually experiencing any of the situations. Maybe the fact that she wrote many poems, which definitely takes imagination and the ability to control those, helped her to use more of her brain potential.

Think for Yourself, Question the Majority.

"You shall no longer take things at second or third hand, nor look through the eyes of the dead, nor feed on the spectres in books, you shall not look through my eyes, nor take things from me, you shall listen to all sides and filter them from your self." - Walt Whitman's "Song of Myself".

Though this poem touches many different topics, I found this particular verse important. Walt Whitman put this vital information perfectly in his poem "Song of Myself". There are so many people in this world that have a tendency to believe anything they hear or read as fact. What would have happened if everyone had listened to the south by not abolishing slavery? How destructive would have Hitler been if the world just took his words as legitimate when describing Jews?

Thinking for yourself isn't often as easy as one might think. It's often hard to go against the norm when the masses accept it as factual information. Take a look at what happened to Galileo back in his day. He went against the church's idea that there was a Geocentric Universe. He stopped listening to what the masses believed, took another look for himself, and found out that everybody was wrong. When he started to teach his theories he was shunned from the church and was put in confinement. The church made it apparent as well that anyone teaching this theory of a Heliocentric Universe would serve jail time and be shunned from the church.

My point is that you shouldn't always take the information you get from books, friends, government, and even teachers as the end-all fact. Take everything with a grain of salt. If everyone listened to the south, slavery could have lasted much longer in the US. If people believed Hitler there might not be anymore Jews. If Galileo hadn't of thought for himself we might still think we are the center of the universe. I believe this is what Whitman was trying to get across to his readers.

You must think for yourself, and question the majority.

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