Describe the setting?
The setting of the story takes place is a small town in possibly a Hispanic area or Hispanic country; the entire scene of the short story is set in a cafe and a street in a town that could serve as any town in the world. The story is set late at night, and the café is quiet and only the two waiters and a single customer, the old men sit there waiting for the old man to leave.
Why is the idea of a well lighted place so significant to this short story?
The idea of a well lighted place is so significant to this short story because the well lighted place signified somewhere that the old man the old man can go to relieve himself of all the stresses of life and the darkness that he feels surrounds him a constant basis. The well lighted area of the café allows the old man to capture humility that he cannot get at a regular bar in town.
Why are the characters’s nameless?
The characters in the story are nameless because Ernest Hemmingway wanted the story to be minimalistic and simple. Hemmingway believe that minimal is so very dramatic and he was able to write a very exceptional story without the character’s being known. Although the characters did not have names they were very individualistic and had their own qualities.
What is the connection between the old man and the older waiter?
The connection between the old man and the older waiter was that although the older waiter did not try to kill himself, he understood why the old man felt the way he did about the clean well lighted place because he himself goes to bar and have drinks before he goes home to relieve all the stresses he has on him. The old understood the significance of the clean well light place; the clean well lighted place allowed for both the old man and the older waiter to clear their mind. The older waiter knew that there was a very big difference between the café and going to a regular bar.
What is the purpose of the younger waiter in the story?
The purpose of the younger waiter in the story is to be the antagonist. In the story the younger waiter was always in a rush to go home and down talked the old man to his face because he knew that he was deaf and could not hear him. The younger waiter provided the conflict of the story and allowed for there to be a greater understanding a clean well lighted space. In the story the younger waiter did not understand or even took the time to understand why the old man acted the way he did and why he came to the café every night and drink himself away.
What is the plot?
The plot of the story is the fact that the old man is stressed out by life and he feeling that the darkness is surrounding him and he is trying to get away.
The rising action is when the old man was the last person in the café still drinking
The conflict and complications of the story was when the waiter wanted to close up the café and the old man did not want to leave and kept ordering more drinks.
The climax of the story was when the older waiter told the younger one about the old man trying to kill himself and he went to the old man saying he should have killed himself.
The falling action was when the older waiter was saying a prayer and they finally got the old man to leave and they were able to close up.
What is the theme?
The theme of the story is solidarity and the unknowable nothingness. One of the most touching aspects of this short story is the older waiter’s expressed solidarity with the old man. While the young waiter is all “youth” and “confidence,” the old waiter and the old man seem overwhelmingly lonely and tired-out by life. Especially with the older waiter he would he would lie in the bed and finally, with daylight, he would go to sleep. And as for the unknowable nothingness refers to how much the word nothing and “nada” was used in the story. It is the reason why the old man try’s to kill himself and also it is the word which obsesses the old waiter as well. After work, he leans against a bar and recites two prayers to himself substituting “nada” for most of the prayer’s major verbs and nouns
Short Bio of Ernest Hemmingway
Ernest Hemingway was born inn Oak Park, Illinois. His mother Grace Hall, whom he never forgave for dressing him as a little girl in his youth, had an operatic career before marrying Dr. Clarence Edmonds Hemingway; he taught his son to love out-door life. Hemingway's father took his own life in 1928 after losing his healt to diabetes and his money in the Florida real-estate bubble. Hemingway's drinking had started already when he was a reporter, and could tolerate large amounts of alcohol. For a long time, drinking did not affect the quality of his writing. In the late 1940s he started to hear voices in his head, he was overweight, the blood pressure was high, and he had clear signs of cirrhosis of the liver. His ignorance of the dangers of liquor Hemingway revealed when he taught his 12-year-old son Patrick to drink. The same happened with his brothers. Patrick had later in life problems with alcohol. Gregory, who was a transvestite, used drugs he died at the age of 69 in a women's prison in Florida. These occurance led to the reason why Hemmingway wrote the way he did.
work cited
http://www.kirjasto.sci.fi/hemingwa.htm
Monday, September 28, 2009
Monday, September 21, 2009
Everyday Use
1) What does the term “everyday use” mean in this story? Why did Walker choose this as the title?
The term “everyday use” in the story means that the significant things talked about in the story such as the quilt, bench and other old time utilities played a part in the lifestyles of the stories characters and it allowed them to always remember where they came from and how their heritage has come down the line through the years. Walker chose this as the title because she wanted to stress the importance of keeping the family heir-looms and heritage alive and by using these things in everyday life, it allowed them to keep there focus and strive for something greater than what they already have in there time period.
2) How do Dee, Maggie, and Mama define heritage? Which view does Walker want us to agree with?
Dee defines heritage as put family heir looms on display, while Maggie defines heritage and keeping it in the family and preserving them to last through the generations, and mama define heritage as giving a better understanding of the past generations and put them to good use. Walker wants us to agree with Maggie’s view of heritage because that what keeps going in society and to never forget where we came from and what they had to do to get here today.
3) Describe the setting – how does it affect the characters and story?
The setting of the short story takes place back in the days when black pride was at its highest peak. This affected the characters in the story by making them more aware of there heritage and especially affected Dee by making her change her name to Wangero to epic the sense that her name was the one of a person that was oppressed many years ago.
4) What is ironic about Dee’s name change to Wangero?
It was ironic that Dee changed her named to get back to her African roots because of her boyfriend Asalamalakim and his beliefs that then became her beliefs. Dee believed that by changing her name to Wangero she no longer associated herself with the people that oppressed African Americans and that made her a better person. She has reinvented her identity to clearly define her separation from her origins, distancing herself from her heritage.
5) What is the significance of certain items in the story – the butter churn, dasher, bench and quilt?
The significance of the butter churn and dasher represents all the hard work put into making butter and the generations of people that help make the churn which left groove impressions, the bench presents the seat upon which many ancestors sat and ate dinner and the imprint are forever place in there spot, and quilt is that it resembled their family heritage and took parts of different clothing from different people such as the army uniform used to piece the quilt together
6) How would the story have changed if Mama was not the narrator?
The story would have changed if mama was not the narrator by not having the close family knowledge about there heritage. By having mama as the narrator it allowed us to fully understand the values and lessons learned by telling this story. It made the story better by understanding from her point of view looking in.
7) Explore the final scenes in the story and discuss how the narrator changes at the end
The mother which is the narrator of the story has identified the loss of her daughter Dee to the glutton Miss Wangero and made a choice, and chose Maggie who asks for nothing more than to have a mother, to feel the breezes in the dirt swept front yard and to be visible to the consumer trying to eat her. She examines the spiritual betrayal of a young woman who turns on her own impoverished family in order to add 'quaint' decoration to her home. Dee didn’t want to keep the family heritage prosperous she just basically felt that it would be a good additional to make her household beautiful, in the end the mother realized that and gave the quilts to Maggie.
The term “everyday use” in the story means that the significant things talked about in the story such as the quilt, bench and other old time utilities played a part in the lifestyles of the stories characters and it allowed them to always remember where they came from and how their heritage has come down the line through the years. Walker chose this as the title because she wanted to stress the importance of keeping the family heir-looms and heritage alive and by using these things in everyday life, it allowed them to keep there focus and strive for something greater than what they already have in there time period.
2) How do Dee, Maggie, and Mama define heritage? Which view does Walker want us to agree with?
Dee defines heritage as put family heir looms on display, while Maggie defines heritage and keeping it in the family and preserving them to last through the generations, and mama define heritage as giving a better understanding of the past generations and put them to good use. Walker wants us to agree with Maggie’s view of heritage because that what keeps going in society and to never forget where we came from and what they had to do to get here today.
3) Describe the setting – how does it affect the characters and story?
The setting of the short story takes place back in the days when black pride was at its highest peak. This affected the characters in the story by making them more aware of there heritage and especially affected Dee by making her change her name to Wangero to epic the sense that her name was the one of a person that was oppressed many years ago.
4) What is ironic about Dee’s name change to Wangero?
It was ironic that Dee changed her named to get back to her African roots because of her boyfriend Asalamalakim and his beliefs that then became her beliefs. Dee believed that by changing her name to Wangero she no longer associated herself with the people that oppressed African Americans and that made her a better person. She has reinvented her identity to clearly define her separation from her origins, distancing herself from her heritage.
5) What is the significance of certain items in the story – the butter churn, dasher, bench and quilt?
The significance of the butter churn and dasher represents all the hard work put into making butter and the generations of people that help make the churn which left groove impressions, the bench presents the seat upon which many ancestors sat and ate dinner and the imprint are forever place in there spot, and quilt is that it resembled their family heritage and took parts of different clothing from different people such as the army uniform used to piece the quilt together
6) How would the story have changed if Mama was not the narrator?
The story would have changed if mama was not the narrator by not having the close family knowledge about there heritage. By having mama as the narrator it allowed us to fully understand the values and lessons learned by telling this story. It made the story better by understanding from her point of view looking in.
7) Explore the final scenes in the story and discuss how the narrator changes at the end
The mother which is the narrator of the story has identified the loss of her daughter Dee to the glutton Miss Wangero and made a choice, and chose Maggie who asks for nothing more than to have a mother, to feel the breezes in the dirt swept front yard and to be visible to the consumer trying to eat her. She examines the spiritual betrayal of a young woman who turns on her own impoverished family in order to add 'quaint' decoration to her home. Dee didn’t want to keep the family heritage prosperous she just basically felt that it would be a good additional to make her household beautiful, in the end the mother realized that and gave the quilts to Maggie.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Sony's Blues with my views
#1 1 - Research the setting of “Sonny’s Blues” – Harlem, NYC.
The setting of Sonny’s Blues takes place in 1957. Early Harlem’s economy centered on agriculture until the railroad and Manhattan street system brought industry to the area. A housing boom ensued and over-zealous builders found their buildings empty and opened their doors to tenants of all colors. Before the Great Depression, Harlem’s reputation as an economic and political powerhouse for the African American community was unrivaled in the US (welcometoharlem). After the stock market crash, Harlem went through hard times but in no way faded from public consciousness. In the 1950s and the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, influential leaders like Malcolm X and Reverend Adam Clayton Powell Jr. who helped move the Civil Rights Bill through Washington motivated residents to take action.
2 – How does the setting affect/shape Sonny’s character and create conflict/complications in the story?
The setting affects and shapes Sonny’s character due to the easy access to drugs and the violence in that era. Sonny was full of potential but was threatened by the drugs and violence of the urban ghetto. At that point of time in Harlem all you saw was a bunch of lost boys doing nothing with themselves and falling into the epidemic and just so happens Sonny’s falls into the trap because he could not get away.
#2 1 – Research the history of African-American men in the military – Pre-Civil Rights movement.
Before the civil rights movement African American men in the military had a long and distinguished record of volunteering for the military combat from the Revolutionary War through the Korean War but their patriotic efforts were often spurned by white officers (archives). In 1953, lynching of blacks in uniform spurred President Truman to desegregate the military. After their liberation from slavery, black men tried to prove their patriotism and to improve their standard of living by serving in the U. S. military, hoping that serving their country would prove them worthy of the same respect and opportunities given to whites.
2 – Why is it ironic that Sonny wants to enlist?
It’s so ironic that that Sonny wants to enlist in the military because he wanted to get away from the drugs and the violent streets of Harlem as well as it would give him an opportunity to get a college education on the GI Bill. This is a part of the family’s urban experience. The army was safer than being at home.
#3 1 – Research song lyrics by Billie Holiday. Find a song or verse that you feel best represents the suffering of Sonny – his blues. Include song title and lyrics here.
The song I think represents Sonny’s suffering is called “Foolin Myelf”. The lyrics in the song states, “And ev'ry time i pass........And see my face in a looking glass......I tip my hat and say"how do you do, you fool.......You're trowing your life away....."I'm acting gay......I'm acting proud.....And every time i see you in a crowd.......I may pretend......But in the end.....I'm just foolin myself”
2 - Explain why.
I feel that these lyrics represent Sonny’s suffering because I felt deep down inside that was what he felt about himself. I think this best represents Sonny and his suffering because he was following the wrong path, doing drugs. After being arrested for a while he had time to think about what he done and when he was released he seemed determine to keep clean from drugs and do what he really wanted to do with his life. Ultimately he did not want to feel like a fool anymore for that he had done and tried his best to stay clean and keep on track and hoped he was not fooling himself in the process.
#4 1 – Research Bebop.
Bebop is a musical style of jazz characterized by its complex and unpredictable melodies. This genre of music came about in the 1049’s and 1950’s as a separation of restricted sounds of big band music and other styles of jazz. Bebop takes certain elements from both blues and swing and blend them to make it own unique sound. Bebop is meant to be listened to rather than danced. It emphasizes on player’s solos and makes them more personal and intimate to the player. Socially, bebop signified a rebellion by the people who played the music and had a passion for it. A rebellion rising out of the masses themselves, since the people themselves is the source of the social movement. Bebop is said to have started in Monroe’s Uptown house and Minton’s in New York City.
2 – Bebop is the music that Sonny favors. What does the music represent politically and socially to Sonny? What does the music represent to Sonny’s brother?
Bebop was more than just a political and social thing for Sonny’s it was more of an escape from all of the problems in society and within himself as a person. Politically music for Sonny was his voice beyond the apparent disposition of his stature. Music gave him a voice to stand out politically against and for what he believed in. In the days of Sonny’s downfall he felt the world outside of home was rebelling against him and did not allow for him to grow as a person but rather held him back from becoming someone great in society. Socially music allowed Sonny to be involved and bond more with people that have gone through similar things he have gone through especially his downfall with his drug addiction. Socially with music he had people that had something in common with in and would not have to judge him because they understood where he has been. To Sonny’s brother music represented everything that had gotten Sonny to where he was. For him music had no real importance other than entertainment until the day he heard Sonny play in the club. It was then that he realized it meant more, he realized that it had a special significance and helped people express themselves when they lose their voice, in order to help them heal and become better people and correct the wrong in their lives.
Works Cited
http://welcometoharlem.com/page/harlem_history/
http://www.archives.gov/genealogy/heritage/african-american/
The setting of Sonny’s Blues takes place in 1957. Early Harlem’s economy centered on agriculture until the railroad and Manhattan street system brought industry to the area. A housing boom ensued and over-zealous builders found their buildings empty and opened their doors to tenants of all colors. Before the Great Depression, Harlem’s reputation as an economic and political powerhouse for the African American community was unrivaled in the US (welcometoharlem). After the stock market crash, Harlem went through hard times but in no way faded from public consciousness. In the 1950s and the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, influential leaders like Malcolm X and Reverend Adam Clayton Powell Jr. who helped move the Civil Rights Bill through Washington motivated residents to take action.
2 – How does the setting affect/shape Sonny’s character and create conflict/complications in the story?
The setting affects and shapes Sonny’s character due to the easy access to drugs and the violence in that era. Sonny was full of potential but was threatened by the drugs and violence of the urban ghetto. At that point of time in Harlem all you saw was a bunch of lost boys doing nothing with themselves and falling into the epidemic and just so happens Sonny’s falls into the trap because he could not get away.
#2 1 – Research the history of African-American men in the military – Pre-Civil Rights movement.
Before the civil rights movement African American men in the military had a long and distinguished record of volunteering for the military combat from the Revolutionary War through the Korean War but their patriotic efforts were often spurned by white officers (archives). In 1953, lynching of blacks in uniform spurred President Truman to desegregate the military. After their liberation from slavery, black men tried to prove their patriotism and to improve their standard of living by serving in the U. S. military, hoping that serving their country would prove them worthy of the same respect and opportunities given to whites.
2 – Why is it ironic that Sonny wants to enlist?
It’s so ironic that that Sonny wants to enlist in the military because he wanted to get away from the drugs and the violent streets of Harlem as well as it would give him an opportunity to get a college education on the GI Bill. This is a part of the family’s urban experience. The army was safer than being at home.
#3 1 – Research song lyrics by Billie Holiday. Find a song or verse that you feel best represents the suffering of Sonny – his blues. Include song title and lyrics here.
The song I think represents Sonny’s suffering is called “Foolin Myelf”. The lyrics in the song states, “And ev'ry time i pass........And see my face in a looking glass......I tip my hat and say"how do you do, you fool.......You're trowing your life away....."I'm acting gay......I'm acting proud.....And every time i see you in a crowd.......I may pretend......But in the end.....I'm just foolin myself”
2 - Explain why.
I feel that these lyrics represent Sonny’s suffering because I felt deep down inside that was what he felt about himself. I think this best represents Sonny and his suffering because he was following the wrong path, doing drugs. After being arrested for a while he had time to think about what he done and when he was released he seemed determine to keep clean from drugs and do what he really wanted to do with his life. Ultimately he did not want to feel like a fool anymore for that he had done and tried his best to stay clean and keep on track and hoped he was not fooling himself in the process.
#4 1 – Research Bebop.
Bebop is a musical style of jazz characterized by its complex and unpredictable melodies. This genre of music came about in the 1049’s and 1950’s as a separation of restricted sounds of big band music and other styles of jazz. Bebop takes certain elements from both blues and swing and blend them to make it own unique sound. Bebop is meant to be listened to rather than danced. It emphasizes on player’s solos and makes them more personal and intimate to the player. Socially, bebop signified a rebellion by the people who played the music and had a passion for it. A rebellion rising out of the masses themselves, since the people themselves is the source of the social movement. Bebop is said to have started in Monroe’s Uptown house and Minton’s in New York City.
2 – Bebop is the music that Sonny favors. What does the music represent politically and socially to Sonny? What does the music represent to Sonny’s brother?
Bebop was more than just a political and social thing for Sonny’s it was more of an escape from all of the problems in society and within himself as a person. Politically music for Sonny was his voice beyond the apparent disposition of his stature. Music gave him a voice to stand out politically against and for what he believed in. In the days of Sonny’s downfall he felt the world outside of home was rebelling against him and did not allow for him to grow as a person but rather held him back from becoming someone great in society. Socially music allowed Sonny to be involved and bond more with people that have gone through similar things he have gone through especially his downfall with his drug addiction. Socially with music he had people that had something in common with in and would not have to judge him because they understood where he has been. To Sonny’s brother music represented everything that had gotten Sonny to where he was. For him music had no real importance other than entertainment until the day he heard Sonny play in the club. It was then that he realized it meant more, he realized that it had a special significance and helped people express themselves when they lose their voice, in order to help them heal and become better people and correct the wrong in their lives.
Works Cited
http://welcometoharlem.com/page/harlem_history/
http://www.archives.gov/genealogy/heritage/african-american/
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