comment

I have read your journal and I like thae insight and depth in your relfedtion. I also though the connection to Emily's poem was quiet brilliant. How true. Well done in your lit circles adn your analysis of the novel. I wish I would have had more time to work with each group. Your group seemed to work very well.

Summative journal #2

Pain and conflict continue to be dominant in Wuthering Heights and the Grange. Catherine has died after giving birth to Young Catherine and all who loved her are in terrible grief. Heathcliff and Edgar blame each other for their loss; however, Edgar becomes more conservative of his emotions. "He dashed his head against the knotted trunk, and, lifting up his eyes, howled, not like a man, but like a savage beast getting goaded to death with knives and snears." pg.164. After Catherine's death, Heathcliff revealed his inner rage and madness. Emily Bronte used this literary device beautifully in describing Heathcliff's grief. She connected Heathcliff to a wild creature. One is offered an image of fear, evil, and darkness. This empowers a reader's previous opinions of how evil Heathcliff was from the beginning of the story. For example, he pleasingly left Catherine yearning for him constantly and takes advantage of innocent people who find humanity in him. "He's a lying fiend! A monster, and not a human being," pg 149. Isabel, who once loved Heathcliff, regrets leaving her loving house and eloping Heathcliff in secret. Isabel continues to tell Nelly how horrid and evil Heathcliff is to her, Hareton and Hindley. Reading between the lines, it seems as if Heathcliff seeks revenge from all those who've done wrong to him in the past. Isabel's brother, Edgar, married Catherine and forbade Heathcliff to be with her. In their childhood, Hindley use to beat up Heathcliff. Therefore both he and his son, Hareton, are to pay the price of Heathcliff's pain. 

There was one passage that I came across recently. It was when Nelly reflects the differences and similarities of Hindley and Edgar. "I used to draw a comparison between him [Edgar Linton] and Hindley Earnshaw, and perplex myself to explain satisfactorily why their conduct is so opposite in similar circumstances." pg 179. It has come to an agreement that both Hindley and Edgar were formidable husbands, and that their wives had a child before their quick deaths. They remain widowed and grieving; however Edgar's character and nature are much different than Hindley's. Hindley is and always has been hard headed, stubborn, and uses  violence to disguise his weakness. He inflicts pain to others around him in act of fear, power, and conflict. Hindley drinks to drown the pain away. Nelly, the speaker, infers that all these traits and epiphanies came from the fact that Hindley did not accept death. " When his ship struck, the captain abandonned his post, and the crew, instead of trying to save her, rushed into riot and confussion, leaving no hope for their luckless vessel." pg179. This is a metaphor for the event of when Hindley's wife dies and the doctors had no clue how to save her. His wife's death offers him inevitable pain and sorrow. On the other hand, Edgar has always been a calm, collected, and courteous chap. He refuses to participate in violence and forgives Catherine of all her sins. In time, Edgar accepted  his wife's death, for he found strength and trust in God." He trusted God; and God comforted him." pg179.  In a way, Nelly sees Edgar as the stronger one, the one with courage and faith. This reminds me of the poems, Because I could not stop for death by Emily Dickinson and A Bird in a Cage  by Juan Antonio Rodriguez. Like Hindley, Juan could not accept death. He was only offered pain, anger and unsettlement for he did not agree that life will never be complete. Fortunately, Edgar and Emily accept death. This offers them serenity, hope, and peace. As a result, Hareton, Hindley's only son grew up in an inhabitable home where Hindley was abusive and left Hareton to live by himself. Hareton is now illiterate, slow, and unloved.  Soon his experiences will offer only hindrance and possibly inflictions of violence of his own. Catherine, Edgar's daughter, is proper, eloquent, and loved by all. In return, she offers love to others and happiness in the future. This proves that if we don't over come our pain, we can never grow stronger. Our reactions to life determines the future of ourselves and others. I liked this passage because it gave the reader a moral to extract from it. And I feel that this moral can be applied to our modern lives.

At the end of this book, I found many passages and events of light. From all the accumulations of darkness since the beginning, Emily Bronte has offered the reader a happy and hopeful ending. After mourning her misfortune, Young Catherine became sour and mean. Towards the end of the book, Young Cathy seeks the friendship of Hareton. Initially, Hareton and Catherine hated each other. "I shall have naught wi' you, and your mucky pride, and your damned, mocking tricks!" pg297. However, Catherine asks for forgiveness. Hareton was hesitant at first, but experiences a character epiphany in which he finds hope, love, and acceptance. "I perceived two such radiant countenances bent over the page of the accepted book, that I did not doubt the treaty had been ratified, on both sides, and the enemies were, thenceforth, sworn allies." pg299. Nelly notices the newly found bond between Catherine and Hareton and receives radiating warmth from them. It is as if Emily Bronte infers that Heathcliff's dark, cold wrath was defeated by love. Furthermore, it is not just Catherine and Hareton who  witness the light, but Heathcliff himself learns to forgive. Heathcliff use to live off of hatred, resent, and revenge. But now, he accepts the death of Catherine, the pain from others, and the pain he inflicts on himself. " An absurd termination to [Heathcliff's] violent exertions[.] [He gets] levers and mattocks to demolish the two houses, and [trains himself] to be capable of working like Hercules, and when everything is ready, and in [his] power, [he finds] the will to lift a slate off either roof had vanished! [His] old enemies have not beaten [him]; now would be the precise time to revenge [himself] on their representatives-[he] could do it, and none could hinder [him]. But where is the use? [He doesn't] care for striking...exhibit a fine trait of magnanimity…[Heathcliff has] lost the faculty of enjoying their destruction...there is a strange change approaching." pg306. Heathcliff discovers that forgiveness and love over came his desire to take vengeance. He calls this epiphany a strange change because he has never experienced what it's like to exculpate and move on. Much like many others who have been victims of violence and pain, one resolve and be magnanimous. Without forgiveness, you will hinder yourself from growing. Fortunately for Heathcliff, this offered him peace and serenity with Catherine. With this, Heathcliff's lack of darkness also enabled Hareton and Young Cathy to expirience true love.         

This week, our group successfully discussed about our previous readings. We talked about metaphors, imagery, and connections. I feel that we did well in expressing our opinions and ideas. Each member actively participated in the in class activities in which each of us offered answers to the questions. My goal for next week is to continue to read and hopefully finish Wuthering Heights. 

For this journal, I didn't add much for I thought that I presented enough connections (T-T)(T-W) and symbolism. However, I did give more examples from the book like quotes to back up my ideas more. And I also just added another paragraph that analyzed the last parts of the book.

picture of summative piece #2

journal 4

Pain and conflict continue to be dominant in Wuthering Heights and the Grange. Catherine has died after giving birth to Young Catherine and all who loved her are in terrible grief. Heathcliff and Edgar blame each other for their loss; however, Edgar becomes more conservative of his emotions. "He dashed his head against the knotted trunk, and, lifting up his eyes, howled, not like a man, but like a savage beast getting goaded to death with knives and snears." pg.164. After Catherine's death, Heathcliff revealed his inner rage and madness. Emily Bronte used this literary device beautifully in describing Heathcliff's grief. She connected Heathcliff to a wild creature. One is offered an image of fear, evil, and darkness. This empowers a reader's previous opinions of how evil Heathcliff was from the beginning of the story. For example, he pleasingly left Catherine yearning for him constantly and takes advantage of innocent people who find humanity in him. "He's a lying fiend! A monster, and not a human being," pg 149. Isabel, who once loved Heathcliff, regrets leaving her loving house and marrying Heathcliff in secret. Isabel continues to tell Nelly how horrid and evil Heathcliff is to her, Hareton and Hindley. Reading between the lines, it seems as if Heathcliff seeks revenge from all those who've done wrong to him in the past. Isabel's brother, Edgar, married Catherine and forbade Heathcliff to be with her. In their childhood, Hindley use to beat up Heathcliff. Therefore both he and his son, Hareton, are to pay the price of Heathcliff's pain. 

There was one passage that I came across recently. It was when Nelly reflects the differences and similarities of Hindley and Edgar. "I used to draw a comparison between him [Edgar Linton] and Hindley Earnshaw, and perplex myself to explain satisfactorily why their conduct is so opposite in similar circumstances." pg 179. It has come to an agreement that both Hindley and Edgar were formidable husbands, and that their wives had a child before their quick deaths. They remain widowed and grieving; however Edgar's character and nature are much different than Hindley's. Hindley is and always has been hard headed, stubborn, and uses  violence to disguise his weakness. He inflicts pain to others around him in act of fear, power, and conflict. Hindley drinks to drown the pain away. Nelly, the speaker, infers that all these traits and epiphanies came from the fact that Hindley did not accept death. His wife's death offers him inevitable pain and sorrow. On the other hand, Edgar has always been a calm, collected, and courteous chap. He refuses to participate in violence and forgives Catherine of all her sins. In time, Edgar accepted  his wife's death, for he found strength and trust in God. In a way, Nelly sees Edgar as the stronger one, the one with courage. This reminds me of the poems, Because I could not stop for death by Emily Dickinson and A Bird in a Cage  by Juan Antonio Rodriguez. Like Hindley, Juan could not accept death. He was only offered pain, anger and unsettlement for he did not agree that life will never be complete. Fortunately, Edgar and Emily accept death. This offers them serenity, hope, and peace. As a result, Hareton, Hindley's only son grew up in an inhabitable home where Hindley was abusive and left Hareton to live by himself. Hareton is now illiterate, slow, and unloved.  Soon his experiences will offer only hindrance and possibly inflictions of violence of his own. Catherine, Edgar's daughter, is proper, eloquent, and loved by all. In return, she offers love to others and happiness in the future. This proves that if we don't over come our pain, we can never grow stronger. Our reactions to life determines the future of ourselves and others. I liked this passage because it gave the reader a moral to extract from it. And I feel that this moral can be applied to our modern lives.

This week, our group successfully discussed about our previous readings. We talked about metaphors, imagery, and connections. I feel that we did well in expressing our opinions and ideas. Each member actively participated in the in class activities in which each of us offered answers to the questions. My goal for next week is to continue to read and hopefully finish Wuthering Heights. 

Wuthering Heights journal 3

Modification of: Wuthering Heights journal 2

From this week's readings, many events and epiphanies have happened. Hindley, a proud, greedy individual, has endured emotional pain in that his wife died just after giving birth to their son, Hareton. Darkness has grown within Hindley for he inflicts pain to deal with his own. "He held the knife in his hand and pushed it's point between my teeth;..." pg 76. Hindley uses violence to create fear for others. As a result, Heathcliff feels no empathy for Hindley. From all the violence Hindley has inflicted upon Heathcliff, "he might have the privilege of...painting the house-front with Hinldey's blood." pg 52. In connection to Hindley and his family affairs, many widowed parents of the present blame their children and people they love. It is human nature to put someone to blame for an inevitable event. As Hindley fails to accept death of his wife and Heathcliff's presense, he offers no love and compassion to others.  

Unfortunately, it is not only Hindley who shows epiphany. "I'll try to break their hearts by breaking my own." pg 116. Catherine is in conflict with herself in which she loves Edgar Linton but Heathcliff as well. Edgar is a kind man who has lots of money to his name; Heathcliff is everything Catherine enjoys in life. Catherine has become wild, short-tempered and very irrational. After having an argument with Heathcliff, she uses violence towards Nelly, Hareton and Edgar Lintonto release her pain. "It's a kindness to let you have a glimpse of her genuine disposition." pg 74. With violence, Catherine has just destroyed her reputation within the house hold and destroyed her friendship with Nelly, Hareton and Heathcliff. However Edgar is too much in love with Catherine to cancel their marriage. When Catherine fell ill after Heathcliff's visit, Mr.Linton stayed to care for her day and night. He put Catherine's life before his own. "No mother could have nursed an only child more devotedly than Edgar tended her."pg 132. No matter how much Catherine wanted to be free and live with Heathcliff, Edgar still cared for her. With his efforts, Edgar was able to "preserve a mere ruin of humanity" pg 132, in other words, Catherine. 

Little Hareton has been in the middle of conflict all his childhood life. Conflict has been a negative influence for Hareton's case since Hindley abuses him constantly. This is where Heathcliff comes in to create even more conflict. "he curses Daddy for cursing me...Heathcliff has promised that." pg110. Heathcliff is planting more conflict between Hareton and Hindley in act of nurture. With that Heathcliff gives affection and love to Hareton; Hareton sees Heathcliff more as a father than Hindley.

In our group discussions, we are doing quite well. We each have something to offer every day and try to explain to each other what is happening in the book. If one does not understand something, she asks the group. We are very accepting for we don't put each other's opinions down, we elaborate ideas. I think that I have contributed to the group discussions with my ideas, questions, answers and that I completed my reading goals. What I will try to do next week is to continue to complete our reading goals and try to finish all the in-class assignments to have more time to discuss.

In connection to Marcus' journal #2, he said that "pain does bring growth, but in the way a muscle is strengthened. Pain destroys the weaker portions of us and allows our strengths to fill the gaps, however if the pain exceeds the capacity of the person, it takes away our strength as well. If we can find redirection or intervention it is possible to make a recovery over a period of time, if not the pain often consumes us." Hindley's loss (his wife) offered pain that was never healed. His pain hindered not only Hindley's growth but Hareton's as well. With the infliction of pain and violence brought on to him, Hareton turns to others to seek direction and strengthen himself. Unfortunately, Heathcliff seeks violence towards Hindley and finds that Hareton is his path to success. Heathcliff teaches Hareton to swear and hate his own father. Furthermore, Joseph influences Hareton to speak and act improperly. In a way, Hareton has found peace and love with the presence of Heathcliff and Joseph. It has made him feel wanted and part of a family. This offers a positive attribute to Hareton's character and future well-being; however, compared to other children at the time, Hareton is exposed to a negative environment and adult atmospheres that have potential to hinder Hareton's growth in character. All in all, I personally feel sympathy and pity for Hareton. He didn't ask to be in this chaotic lifestyle; pain and darkness just fails to give mercy for the innocent.    

wuthering heights assign 1

http://236lamchops.glogster.com/false/

Response

You are on the right track... good support this time. Remember to bring in the connection piece. I like that you spoke about your group dynamics.

Wuthering Heights journal 2

From this week's readings, many events and epiphanies have happened. Hindley, a proud, greedy individual, has endured emotional pain in that his wife died just after giving birth to their son, Hareton. Darkness has grown within Hindley for he inflicts pain to deal with his own. "He held the knife in his hand and pushed it's point between my teeth;..." pg 76. Hindley uses violence to create fear for others. As a result, Heathcliff feels no empathy for Hindley. From all the violence Hindley has inflicted upon Heathcliff, "he might have the privilege of...painting the house-front with Hinldey's blood." pg 52.

Unfortunately, it is not only Hindley who shows epiphany. Catherine is in conflict with herself in which she loves Edgar Linton but Heathcliff as well. Edgar is a kind man who has lots of money to his name; Heathcliff is everything Catherine enjoys in life. Catherine had become wild, short-tempered and very irrational. After having an argument with Heathcliff, she used violence towards Nelly, Hareton and Edgar Lintonto release her pain. "It's a kindness to let you have a glimpse of her genuine disposition." pg 74. With violence, Catherine has just destroyed her reputation within the house hold and destroyed her friendship with Nelly, Hareton and Heathcliff. Edgar is too much in love with Catherine to cancel their marriage.

Little Hareton has been in the middle of conflict all his childhood life. Conflict has been a negative influence for Hareton's case since Hindley abuses him constantly. This is where Heathcliff comes in to create even more conflict. "he curses Daddy for cursing me...Heathcliff has promised that." pg110. Heathcliff is planting more conflict between Hareton and Hindley in act of nurture. With that Heathcliff gives affection and love to Hareton; Hareton sees Heathcliff more as a father than Hindley.

In our group discussions, we are doing quite well. We each have something to offer every day and try to explain to each other what is happening in the book. If one does not understand something, she asks the group. We are very accepting for we don't put each other's opinions down, we elaborate ideas. I think that I have contributed to the group discussions with my ideas, questions, answers and that I completed my reading goals. What I will try to do next week is to continue to complete our reading goals and try to finish all the in-class assignments to have more time to discuss.

response

Good insight int othe characters and how others react to them. I also like how you have supported wht you are saying. Why do you think Heatcliff was not accepted and how do think this will impact him on the choices he will make later? You have aptly noticed the darkness all around already. An interesting mood created for a "romantic" story. You have very good observations about what is happening.
In your next journal entry please include your own learnings as well. How you see yourself contributing to the discussions- is the discussion helping you understand the novel any more, are you asking others to wrok your way through the text etc.
Overall, you are on the right path.

Wuthering Heights: Journal 1

This week we have discussed about character symbolism and the differences between connotation and denotation. With connection to Wuthering Heights, Heathcliff is perceived by his peers as a "dark-skinned gypsy"- pg 11.The connotation of a dark male is mischievous, evil, weird, and the Satan's child. However, Mr. Lockwood's perception of Heathcliff contradicts society's opinion. "In dress and manners a gentleman..."- pg 11, Mr. Lockwood looks through Heathcliff's physical differences and finds that he is as proud as any other fair-skinned man.
When Heathcliff was a child, he was adopted by a Samaritan, Mr.Earnshaw. At first, no one agreed with Mr.Earnshaw's compassion, especially his children. Catherine and Hindley detested Heathcliff for Heathcliff was seen as Satan's serpent that tempted Eve and Adam to do evil. Really, it was Hindley who revealed the most darkness and violence towards others. Hindley abused Heathcliff both physically and mentally, he would beat Heathcliff and make him afraid to be in the same room as Hindley.
From a reader's point of view, Heathcliff is a misguided young man who was raised up mistreated and hated by all. The only kindness he was ever given was by Nelly Dean, Catherine and Mr. Earnshaw who died just after he took in Heathcliff.
It is winter time at Wuthering Heights; it is cold and grim. Not only is it frosty weather, but also a frosty atmosphere. At Mr. Heathcliff's house, he and his daughter-in-law are on awkward terms for they clearly hate each other. ""My amiable lady!"....diabolical sneer on his face..." pg18. For some reason Mrs. and Mr. Heathcliff don't like each other.

Rwandan Genocide: Media Critique

Spiderman 3 Movie Project

Spiderman 3

Synopsis: Peter Parker, the friendly neighborhood Spiderman, finds himself once again in a series of good against evil. Peter’s best, Harry Osborn, seeks vengeance for his father’s death in which he believes Peter caused it. Peter’s revenge of his own lies on his Uncle’s murderer. However, this time a dark alien symbiote enhances Peter’s powers. With the influence of the symbiote, Peter becomes corrupt, brutal, irrational, and arrogant. Peter and his colleague, Eddie Brock, find each other on dangerous terms. To set it off, Peter publically humiliates Eddie in which it resulted in Eddie being fired. In return, Eddie asks God to kill Peter.

The layers of context/setting:

§         Spiderman is good and innocent but gets easily corrupted by power, revenge, and the symbiote.

o       Darkness and evil can corrupt all people, even the super heroes.

§         The setting of the Church (from my youtube clip) is juxtaposition in which Eddie Brock asks God to kill Peter Parker.

§         The symbiote itself is black and creepy looking for it portrays evil and corruption.

§         When Spiderman is taken over by the symbiote, his suit changes from red and blue to black. Spiderman’s change in suit shows his change in personality.

§         The vengeance in all the characters offers evil and dark morals throughout the plot.

o       Ex/Harry Osborn claims that Peter killed his father; therefore, he went out for revenge starting by forcing Mary Jane to break Peter’s heart.

§         Spiderman realizes that the symbiote is corrupting him. He uses all his strength to over come the symbiote’s bond to his body. With the help of the Church bell’s vibrations, Spiderman is successful to be released from the symbiote’s grasp.

o       Good always conquers evil. We can over come corruption and evil if we believe that there is goodness in us.

§         Super heroes never kill people, they only stop villains from doing bad and send them to prison.

o       Spiderman tries to kill the Sandman, this shows a contradiction to a super heroes’ ethics.

§         In the end, Harry finds forgiveness for his father’s death. And so he helps Peter fight Venom and Sandman.

§         Peter also finds forgiveness for his Uncle’s death, as the Sandman apologizes and explains that it was an accident.

o       To forgive is to end hatred; it is the hopeful solution to end all evil.

The Filmmaker conveys evil/darkness:

• The symbiote: gives the temptation of endless power and corrupts even the heroes.
• Plots of revenge:
• Harry wants to destroy Peter Parker by breaking his heart first and then kill him brutally.
• Peter harms his best friend, Harry, for being Mary Jane’s “lover”.
• Peter also tries to kill the Sandman for he killed Peter’s Uncle.
• Sandman revives and seeks a deadly revenge on Peter.
• Eddie Brock wants to kill Peter for humiliating him.

What impacted me the most:

• Peter’s morality changed when he first sought revenge. The man who killed Peter’s Uncle was viciously killed by Spiderman.
• Seeking the worst of all people Peter finds himself against the world, and winning.
• Peter’s enhanced powers from the symbiote make him feel unstoppable.

Character represents darkness:

• Peter was a good person; however, he felt weak and helpless as everything wasn’t going Peter’s way.
• Instead of forgiving, Peter blames others of his misfortune and tragedies.
• He used the symbiote to gain power and revenge.
• With this, he became merciless and heartless.
• Peter pushes Mary Jane away, not knowing that this causes Mary Jane to question their relationship.
• Spiderman utilizes his powers in brutal violence to solve his problems. Unfortunately, this just results in more savage.

T-T: In the Old Testament and Quran, Eve was tempted by the sly serpent to eat from the tree of knowledge. The serpent told Eve that it would make her more like God and that it would not kill her. Both Adam and Eve eat the fruit of the tree. Unfortunately, they find themselves banished for the Garden of Eden for disobeying God. The temptation of the fruit and being godly from the serpent is similar to the enhancement of power from the symbiote. In both cases, temptations lead to consequences. 

T-S: In this movie, one of the main morals taught is that vengeance is an act of evil and that revenge only leads to consequences that one cannot ignore. So the message that we must apply is to forgive. To me, forgiving is much harder than taking revenge for vengeance is a temporary satisfaction.

T-W: In the world, everyone feels weak without n object of power (money, violence, strength) and so individuals do things contradicting to their morals in order to be more powerful. For example, on the everyday streets, gang wars overwhelm people and suck in innocent individuals into violence. Each gang will use violence to gain reputation and power. Spiderman was beguiled into the symbiote’s corruption potential powers.

EQ: Are we implicated in injustice and what can we do about it?

• In life individuals blame each other for their loss and tragedies.
• This results in an endless cycle of revenge and how one seeks justice by taking injustice actions.
• Everyone believes that they are just and fair; hence, they perceive others as unjust and immoral.
• Some, like Eddie Brock, will take injustice in their own hands and deal with it themselves. This causes even more damage than initially done.
• Others, like Harry and Peter in the end, will forgive unjust people and let higher authorities deal with injustices. Forgiving is the moral way in society, for it offers serenity and no remorse over all.

Connection to another movie: The Lord of the Rings

An evil subject can corrupt the goodness out of all people. For example, in the Lord of the Rings, the ring corrupted the characters that were initially good in the story. Smeagol was originally a Stoor Hobbit of the River-folk who found a defensive attraction to the evil ring. Smeagol killed his own brother in order to possess the ring and attempted to kill Frodo as the Hobbit was going to destroy it in the volcano. Similar to this, the symbiote offered Spiderman more power. This gave Spiderman a desire to continue to benefit from the symbiote. However in return, it corrupted Spiderman’s well-being.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtube_gdata_player&v=sBaOEfWw1F4

response

WOW! I love the originality in your post! Excellent support and examples! Can I get a print out of it. I tried off the blog but it wouldn't work. Great insight too by the way.

Darkness in Humanity