Rosalin and Guiligan

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are not dead... YET. Give us this day an answer to what in the world this book is talking about! I'm just kidding... But not really. So let's say this novel is super satirical. It is discussing human life like we are all on a stage. And we cannot escape that stage unless we are dead. The entire novel has no discussion of religion or God so we can go ahead and take that whole aspect out of the picture. What is the importance of living a stage life? Why is living life like it is a stage such a negative thing? I believe it is a discussion of how people control us rather than how we control ourselves. Why are Ros and Guil on the stage? Because someone put them there. Why can't they get off the stage? Because they have lines that someone has given them. They are controlled by the people around them but it seems like a force. The only problem with assuming that it is a force is that there is no "force." In this play, God is clearly not a main player as they discuss the dismal ending after death to be nothingness. What does it mean when they insist that death leads to nothing better? So life is one big play, we are on a stage, miserable, frightened of messing up, and all to just die in the end, the curtain falls, its over. Why even bother going to see a play when you know the end will come and you will no longer have connections with the people in the play and the images you saw will fade away into nothingness when that curtain falls? Because we are human. And these dismal facts make us human. Those who cannot act, die. They take their own lives, they take the lives of others, they try to survive on the happiness of others, they try to be someone else and by being someone else, do not act as themselves on that stage and they also die only in a different way: they are offstage. The only reason Ros and Guil have a play in because they were not frightened of being onstage. That is something that no all people have. Guil's philosophical nature and natural boldness keeps him on the stage and Ros's empathy and innocence keep him on stage. There are only some people who can survive the grueling thing that is living. Stoppard would like us to believe that we live for nothing but some of us have the will to do it anyway. We are much like soldiers. Soldiers fight to win one war knowing that they will fight in infinitely more wars as that is human nature. Those who are less than human cannot survive. This novel dicusses human nature in its simplest form: survival of the fittest. By using Ros and Guil, we are given the keys to living which are that their are none! You gotta do your best and understand that it may never be good enough.. really.

why dontcha DO somethin!

Music controls so much of the things around us. There is even a rhythm in literary works. For instance, when reading a novel such as Memoirs of a Geisha, it is flowing, it is like contemporary orchestral music, with an ebb and flow that is almost predictable, but calming. We then move on to a novel like Frankenstein, it is a dark opera. It is deep, moving and extremely dark. Perhaps a romantic opera, but including the gore and blood, so maybe a little bit italian! Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead definitely has a rhythm. In every little banter-sesh, there is a musical quality that makes it quick witted and SMART. That is what rhythm gives to a literary work, intelligence. The human language is a beautiful one (well, not everything but you get the idea). French is one of the most beautiful languages and can enrapture the most harsh of Americans. So obviously when put into novelistic or screen play ideas, there is a way to turn simple language into ART. What makes novels and plays art? The ability to enrapture an audience and be more than they could ever be. Tonight I had my last orchestra concert. I play in the Chamber orchestra because I ride horses and I don't have time for the constraints of Symphony orchestra (although I would LOVE to play with them). The symphony orchestra played a concerto that literally changed my life. Wes Gillis (maybe you have him as a student) played a solo part and was brilliant. I'm pretty sure my Dad was tearing up and I felt totally enraptured by his talent. The only other thing that can capture me so totally and completely is reading. When reading, I can be someone else. I can experience things that I'd never plan to experience. When listening and playing music, I AM that piece. If im playing something classic rock, I'm Peter Mercury, if I'm playing classical, I'm Tchaikovsky. When reading Harry Potter, I'm Harry. When reading Grendel, I am that horrible beast. An art is something that is more than you and can take you to that level. And I believe that as much as a literary work has a rhythm, a piece of music tells a story. As does a piece of physical art. All in all, the connections in our culture are undeniable; the things that make us special are also the things that are the most special. I am happy to live in a world where I can go anywhere and do anything using the things that God gave me.

Goodbye Memoirs

Memoirs of a Geisha is a novel the personfies how all women feel at some point in there lives. Being a woman is not easy, it requires a lot give and take. I admire the life of a geisha. When I first read this novel I thought that geisha were Japanese prostitutes but now I know that they are artists. The diction of the novel is so rich and flowing just like a piece of art. The wording of the novel is like the body of Sayuri. It flows and it is beautiful. The novel is called Memoirs of a Geisha, and every aspect of it captures the lifestyle and technique of geisha. I really enjoyed this novel although the relationships between men and women are a bit confusing at times. It has a Cinderella feel to it. Hatsumomo is an evil step sister and the Chairman is the prince. In some ways the novel seems simple, but in its themes it is not. The novel encompasses the difficulty of being a woman in society. In a way, all women are geisha. Women have to work extremely hard to look beautiful and be quick-witted at the same time. The character of Sayuri captures the reader by being relatable. Her difficulties are felt by all women and the relationships that are developed are demonstrated in real life. Sayuri is special because she is uncommonly kind and the water in her soul flows from her gray eyes. Her gray eyes give her a "marked for greatness" aspect that shows not only in the success she has as a geisha but also in the way she thinks. I will agree that sometimes her decision-making skills are POOR. But everyone has weaknesses. I would prefer to be a beautiful woman on the inside and out and maybe do something dumb behind a theater every once in a while... But lets remember, that decision led to her being united with the chairman. This novel SO screams Cinderella, it's practically AWKWARD. But lets be real here. Generally when you have a female lead, a cinderalla story is about to being. Unless you are reading Anne Frank or watching the movie "Monster". Which may I add, is AWFUL and totally not worth the money I spent at blockbuster. Taa daa! We love all this crazy love crap. I just proved it! We're all searching for our princes and I'd say that most people get them. Or they get an allusion of a prince... either way, women are all the same. I don't care who you are. Example: The Last Song. Miley Cyrus is supposed to be all hardass but then turns into a big fat softy and finds her "true love" (how irritating). So basically what I'm trying to say is that I love Sayuri. She is a womans woman! I'm holding out for my prince charming too... I'll have to run off a few Nobu's first...

Shameeelesss

Well, as you can imagine, I did not do a lot of school reading while on my spring break. Most of my time was spent on the beach, reading casually and being perfectly safe/making good decisions :) Over the break, I found myself lost in thought about college and the journey ahead. AP Lit has been a class that has tested me more than any other class. I took AP Physics and AP Chem, and although those were difficult classes, AP Lit has really pushed my boundaries. Not only is the work hard, the subject matter is hard to grasp. I will never forget one of the first things I ever learned in AP Lit: The novels that makes you feel the most uncomfortable are the ones that are the most important and the most remembered. I feel that in AP Lit we have read a lot of uncomfortable stories. When we read "A Doll's House" I have never been so disconcerted about women. I read her story and I though, how could you be so self-centered? I then I thought, what if I never found myself? Not only was the uneasiness of the book overwhelming but I felt it in my core. The story of Frankenstein is also one that moved me deeply. A novel that had to do with monsters seemed more to do with human nature than the monsters. Everyday there are scientists fighting to find the next cure, make the next robot or understand where we have come from. It is frightening to think that a man in a novel could create. It turns my whole world around being a Christian believer. It is hard to immerse yourself in a novel that fights everything you believe in but when you read such a novel that tests you and is so well written, you are completely immersed. I would say that the novel that touched me the most was Grendel. Although I cannot say that I understand Grendel, the last line will stay with me forever. "Grendel's had an accident, so may you all." The line is sinister and foreboding. The entire novel was confusing, I'll admit, and when I got done with it I scratched my head like a monkey with nothing to say but those words were powerful. They made me feel uneasy. What will my fall be? What is a monster in our world? I cannot say that I understood Invisible Man in the least but I've never really stopped thinking about it. On my way to Florida we drove past Tuskegee and I thought about Invisible Man. These novels make me question more than, what did that mean? These novels are meant to test us as humans just as math is meant to test us. The subject that tests your integrity and beliefs is truly a special one. I am looking forward to being "tested" on the AP test.

It a hard enough life...

The pain that the story's we read explicate create situations for our own learning. At some point in all of our lives we will experience pain, suffering and the like. Perhaps not every day, or every month or even every year, but inevitably we will ALL experience pain. In Invisible Man, the main character experiences pain of a lack of identity. Although he experiences many painful situations in his life they all stem from his initial blindness which coincides with his invisibility. You could also say that the pain that Grendel feels comes from a sort of personal identification problem. In his situation he is a monster (physically) in a purely human accepted societal area. This lack of control and comfort in his own body (lack of acceptance from others) leads to his demise and ultimately his suicide. In Memoirs of a Geisha the pain she feels comes from the losses she experiences as a child and the losses she begets in her own skin as an apprentice geisha. She loses her parents and her only sister. She loses the men she loves and she seems to be constantly taken from. It reminds me of the foo fighters song "best of me." In the song it says "has someone taken the best of you, the hope, the not, the broken hearts, the pain you feel, the pain it's real." Sayuri is plagued by those around her. The baron, Hatsumomo, the chairman, her father, mameha and everyone else pushes her and pushes her but she proves that she WILL NOT be broken. I find that most of the characters in the other novels we have read and beaten by their weaknesses but Sayuri is not. Why is this? Memoirs of a Geisha is a slightly true story. Although molded by Arthur Golden it is an actual human life. In real life, although we are plagued often, our "downfall" is not always accomplished so easily. Always looked for, novels are always trying to push our mental limits. Otherwise, why would we read them? There would be no point. Generally the most memorable novels are the most magical ones or the ones that hit life on the head. The ones that show people out there, raw, exposed. Both of these are ideas that cannot be grasped "generally" in modern life. People are just not that open. Imagine how ahead everyone would be if we were that open? We could really help eachother.

Geisha life. the BOMB DIGGITY.

I am officially in love with the geisha lifestyle. I mean other than the never marry thing... Or maybe thats a plus? what? did i say that? It is very much an early renaissance type of thing. It reminds me of an asian pride and prejudice in the way that the women have to know many trades and be very intelligent but at the same time these women are different. They genuinely require street smarts because essentially, they are women of a business world. They are 1920s asian business women who work hard enough to take care of themselves. They are truly artists of lifestyle. They are not only beautiful but dress in kimono and are forced to act like perfect ladies, telling jokes, telling stories, pouring tea in perfect form. They are pushed to be "perfect" women. The great part about it is that this novella shows the imperfections of geisha. While most people who have ever experienced geisha in real life would find them to be perfection, the reader understands that they are not. Geisha go through many trials and tribulations to achieve this "perfection" which they barely get by the tips of their fingers. The diction of the novel is intoxicating along with the geisha themselves. I believe that is part of the overall motif and theme of the novel. The entire novel is about the non-stop working and determination that achieves perfection but also the fact that it will never be achieved. Perfection in writing will never be achieved but when you read the novel you believe that the wording is endless and diction is extremely touching. The imagery and imagination that is put into the novel pushes you towards a whole other world and realm of thinking. It is a novel that touches you deeply and pushes your feeling without you even being aware of it. I feel caressed as well as mentally exercised by the novel. No part of it is overwhelming although I believe that on a whole note, the novel will be touching and memorable. The motif of water is repeated a lot not only in their personalities but in general. It is usually associated with death. Such as Chiyo believing Hatsumomo would push her into a river. The water is what makes her special but she also believes it is what could cause her demise. She is not the cleverest of girls although this sentiment is heavily repeated. Perhaps this lack of cleverness is caused by the deep presence of water in her personality. Chiyo is a very special character and I am excited to see how she grows in the novel. Hopefully she truly will attain cleverness eventually.

Its a funny world we live in.

I have no idea what to blog about so I am going to ramble on about random literary topics. It is going to be AWESOME. Let's begin with invisible man. I am extremely confused as to why this guy is invisible! What does it all MEAN. I personally enjoyed the book. It was a quick read, it was interesting, but I felt that it was too deep for me to understand. The funny thing about AP literature is that you feel like you don't get it, and your the only kid in the class who feels retarded and then you talk to everyone else and they didn't get it either. And we all just collaborate and after a seminar or two, we actually do understand the novel. So hopefully within the next couple weeks I will actually understand this "invisible man." I just feel like he shouldn't be invisible. In the novel he affects SO MANY people. So what, he gets kicked out of college. Thats cool! I would say he was a quiet kid in college who blossomed into a great civil rights activist. He's a young Booker T. Washington, and yet, hes invisible? I feel like Ralph Ellison tried to sneakily tell his own story, but it wasn't his story and the guy wasn't actually invisible. Ralph Ellison was. And when Ralph Ellison realized that his story made no sense, he let the little invisible man drop into a manhole and ta da! story. This is going to sound really bad, but the only reason we read it and its popular and famous is because it is about a young black man being a civil rights activist and feeling put down by the white man. It's borderline simplistic. I feel like I'm heading in unchartered waters but this is my blog! This man really only wrote one "good" novel and the rest were pointless short stories that no one has heard of. But I suppose a lot of peoples careers are like that... I reckon I'm purely frustrated because of my lack of understanding. What is the purpose of the manhole? Manhole: hell, dark, secrets. Unlocking hidden inner secrets maybe? I'm lost. But i do love sonnets. I wish i had the talent to write really inctricate love sonnets. But unfortunately I think you have to be a really sentimental man to achieve those types of talents. I wish guys still wrote them but with women, you never know what there actually going to like. Like the guy who wrote like a billion and she just totally turned them down. Can we go back to gender roles? I really enjoyed those. I play the weirdest one. I like man trucks and romantic comedies... what? I should write a book about my awkward ad extraordinary life. maybe not.