Technology

Although this wasn't my first online class that I have taken, I soon came to realize that it is going to be one of the tougher ones if not the toughest that I have ever taken. Online learning is much different from person learning because you have to pretty much teach yourself if it is online. Yes, you have a teacher that will always do their best to help you but some students can't find time to meet with the instructor all the time. Person learning is much easier in classes like English, math and science because those are the core classes that every student has to take sooner or later. A benefit for learning in an in-class environment is always having a teacher there helping the student one on one two days a week. We did many things in this class that I've never done in an online class before. We could skype Professor Laura Cline if needed, we could make videos for some assignments, and we were required to create our own blogs throughout the course. I enjoyed the blog the most because it is something that I've never done before. I also liked it because we were able to share our work with our classmates and vice versa. In an in-class course it is likely to keep your work to yourself and the teacher and I didn't mind that either. I liked mixing things up for a change and getting my classmates feedback for my essays before my instructors. I also learned from my classmates papers to incorporate into mine to maybe improve my paper. I know that this is not my last online class because I like online classes more than in-person courses and I registered for more next semester. I hope that some of the classes include something like the blogging because I like to try new things in my school career. I have to say that I enjoyed this class even though it was a bit of challenge. I tried my hardest throughout the whole entire course and found myself improving more and more as time went on.

Link: http://technologyrockz.blogspot.com/

Reflection on the Course

         I can easily say that English 102 was a good experience for me to take this semester. Although this class was difficult for me, I enjoyed learning as much as I can to help me in future college courses. With that said, I have learned many new things. I learned how to cite very well because I think in every essay we did in this semester I had to cite something. I feel extremely comfortable citing my work now, but I'm sure there will always be more to learn on citing. I sure there will be some citing in future courses that I take so I'm glad I got more comfortable with it throughout the semester. What I have struggled with the most this semester is the structure in my essays. I always tend to go off topic then on again, and the whole essay seems to be so scattered and hard for readers to understand. In the last essay, I think I improved in that area and I hope I keep improving.        I have to say the readings that were assigned in this class helped me tremendously.  I have always had horrible comprehension ever since I can remember and I believe "Frankenstein" and the book I had to read for my final essay helped me focus on comprehending them because I was pretty much forced to. I am taking a course called Criitical Thinking next semester which has plenty of reading so I hope to keep improving on my comprehension in that class as well.
      I believe I have met some, but not all of the learning outcomes for this class. I feel the most comfortable writing focus statements, interpreting and analyzing texts, and evaluating and analyzing professional and student writing. Other than those three, I definitely have to improve on them. I think I have met those three learning outcomes because I feel like we have used them the most throughout the semester. This class has had its up and downs but I believe that I overcame some obstacles by reading and learning from some of my classmates work. I'm happy that we got to share every assignment with eachother to get feedback whether good or bad. I thought that was a huge plus in this class because I have never had the opportunity to do that in any other class previous. All in all, English 102 has been a great experience and I'm glad I have had the opportunity to take it.

Forgot a Link and Visual

Photo cred: http://www.cracked.com/funny-38-zombies/
Link: http://laughingsquid.com/zombies-invade-san-francisco/

Critiquing a Critique

     Zombie movies are a creation from war and terroist attacks throughout history. The short story demonstrates specific details from 9/11, Pearl harbor, and other such wars that lead to the movies of death. Graphic novels such as, "Walking Dead" was a mainstream of American history. Zombies are a great creation throughout time. America has led the movie charts with unstoppable Zombie movies like, "Death Valley", "White Zombie", "The Living Dead", "The Last Man on Earth", and much more. The frequency of zombie movies increased tremendously througout the years. In the Reneassiance times was the peak of the zombie movies. Dawn of Dead was one of the biggest hits, grossing $55 million worldwide. After those films came out, viewers demanded more comical zombie movies such as, "I Was a Teenage Zombie", "Zombie Brigade", "Redneck Zombies", and "The Return of the Living Dead." Then they started coming out with video games that involved zombies and they immediately became popular by players that wanted to be included in the action.  The game that became popular right away was called "Land of the Dead." This game became so popular because the player would be able to control the zombies to whatever they wanted to do with them. Zombies seem to be a worldwide topic that many are interested in. There are many books about zombies such as "The Living Dead", The Walking Dead", "Zombie Survival Guide", and many more. I believe the the novels came out before the movies and because they were such a hit, they decided to make films on them to see if they got the same attention as the books did.
     In conclusion, zombies are the hit topic of the century. They attract viewers from all around America. Historical events have led the impact of zombie movies to its finest. "The Walking Dead" was the biggest hit of all zombie movies. After all it led the charts still to this day. Zombie movies will keep being produced as more historical events happen and are discovered. As long as viewers keep enjoying comical death movies about monsters, more directors will produce them.

Final Essay

Amelia Willadsen

Laura Cline

Final Project

2 November 2011

Witches

            In history, witches were considered to be a “gift” of “good fortune” (Witches: Monsters or Not?).  Over time they have been misunderstood and have led society to think they represent evil.  Many books, movies, and shows nowadays have concluded that witches are a sign of the devil’s act.  In “The Crucible”, witchcraft led innocent people to their death. Women practiced witchcraft for fun not realizing it could lead to bad fortune among the town.  Evil is among many towns with or without the practice of witchcraft. Abigail Williams and Tituba are women leading misfortune throughout the people, making up lies, and putting innocent people to shame; witches.

            Abigail and Tituba are the cause of such terror around the town.  Practicing witchcraft in the woods has led their innocence to shame. John Proctor represents good morality and fortune among the people.  Good versus evil shines through when the truth is revealed.  John Proctor and Abigail Williams have many secrets, but their business is brought public after the frustration of Proctor’s wife, Elizabeth. “This predilection for minding other people’s business was time-honored among the people of Salem, and it undoubtedly created many of the suspicions which were to feed the coming madness” (Miller 226).  Abigail makes up many lies to cover her own tracks.

            Abigail has many feelings towards John Proctor. In need to get his attention, she starts making up lies about her dancing in the woods to sound innocent, while her fellow friends know different. Secrets disperse about the affair after the court cases started to pile up on women being accused of being witches. In historian times, if you were thought to be a witch, you were put to the death sentence. Abigail’s lies put many said to be witches, to their death. Taking someone’s life that is innocent should be held accountable for the actions. Abigail has many witch-like features by portraying evil, and causing a wedge between a family with an affair.  “Let either of you breathe a word, or the edge of a word, about the other things, and I will come to you in the black of some terrible night and I will bring a pointy reckoning that will shudder you” (Miller 238).

             “When Tituba confessed to witchcraft, accused Good and Osborne, and claimed the existence of other witches, panic engulfed the Puritan community” (Salem Witch Trials).  The community of Salem has become worried about the evil slipping through the spirits of many fellow neighbors. After more lies of witchcraft Abigail starts to threaten her friends. Her mind is being over taken by mischievous acts of evil. The town is now scared of her because they know she can send anyone into the courts for trial at anytime. This is because she has lead many innocent women in Salem to their death because they didn’t confess to the court.

            Abigail has love for John Proctor and wants to pursue a relationship with him but he doesn’t feel the same way. “I know how you clutched my back behind your house and sweated like a stallion whenever I come near! Or did I dream that? It’s she put me out, you cannot pretend it were you. I saw your face when she put me out, and you loved me then and you do now” (Miller 240)! Although Proctor admitted to having feelings for Abigail, he still ends their affair quickly.  Abigail becomes furious when John Proctor went back to his wife, Elizabeth and starts creating more lies to the town of Salem. The people of Salem have learned to ignore everything that comes out of Abigail’s mouth. Abigail is an individual who knows what she wants and will do whatever she has to, to get it. She’s a strong girl and knows how to get what she wants which is John Proctor. Witches have the tendency to go after what they need to survive.  “It combined what might now be called natural healing elements from plants and animals with the beliefs and incantations one encounters in folktales and legends to cure illness, invoke an end to drought and other afflictions among loved ones, or to curse and scourge one's enemies, such as one reads in fairy tales and legends” (Witches).

            Witches have more power than most evil. They are believed to cast spells to change something negative or to put someone else’s life in danger.  In “The Crucible”, Abigail and Tituba have been accused of dancing around a fire and talking to evil spirits that lead Reverend Parris’s daughter, Betty into a coma. She had no signs of waking up anytime soon. Reverend Parris had Abigail come over and have her explain to him what exactly happened around the fire that night. Of course, Abigail lied about what really happened to look out for herself.  Parris knows that she is lying the whole time and keeps trying to get the story of what really happened out of her out of her.  “Abigail, I have fought here three long years to bend these stiff-necked people to me, and now, just now when some good respect is rising for me in the parish, you compromise my very character. I have given you a home, child, I have put clothes upon your back-now give me upright answer. Your name in the town- it is entirely white is it not” (Miller 232)? After being fired, Abigail was talking to Reverend Parris about it and he asked her why she got fired.  Once again Abigail lies and says, “She hates me, uncle, she must, for I would not be her slave. It’s a bitter woman, a lying, cold, sniveling woman, and I will not work for such woman” (Miller 232)! But in reality she knew that she was having an affair with Elizabeth Proctor’s husband. Abigail is so manipulating towards everyone just so she can get what she wants.

            Evil can overtake a human being’s mind. When one thinks of evil, they will most likely think negatively. In most movies, shows, or books there will be something or someone that is portraying evil to make it more interesting to watch or read.  Everyone naturally wants to be on the good side and try to conquer evil.  The Bible has a lot to say about evil and what it portrays on human beings.  “The general human experience of evil is a consequence of the fall when God punished human beings for their disobedience (Genesis 3), and the Bible regularly affirms that God remains sovereign over all evil practices while maintaining that he himself is incapable of moral evil” (Evil).  Abigail is a great example of someone who is evil and cold-hearted.  Bad things will happen to bad people and she will get what she deserves when God puts her to shame. She soon has to go in front of the court and be forced to tell the truth. John Proctor admits in front of the whole court that he had an affair with Abigail it is when Elizabeth found out when she fired Abigail. Elizabeth didn’t want someone coming into her home trying to steal her husband from her. After that day in court, Abigail decided to rob Reverend Hale and it was that day when she ended up vanishing from the town of Salem. Abigail had it coming to her because of all the negative things that she had done and all the mayhem that was not needed at all. She caused many things to go wrong such as Betty’s unconsciousness and all of the many deaths of women that took place in the town of Salem.

            Witches are said to have many evil qualities. Abigail can represent evil with every lie, and person accused for her lies. Having an affair with John Proctor concludes her evil deeds and her trying to persuade her friends to cover her wrong doings.  “The Crucible” has many witchcraft details that can persuade evil doings and Abigail represents witch qualities in every aspect.  Her vindictive, manipulating ways got her in a lot of trouble. The sad part about it is that she led so many women to their death that were completely innocent and had nothing to do with anything going on.  “The Crucible” shows how powerful a human being can be. Not only that, but how powerful evil can be once someone knows how to use it.

Works Cited

1) Miller, Arthur. The Crucible. New York, N.Y: Penguin Books, 1996. Print.

2) Schwartz, Marci. "Witches." Washington State University - Pullman, Washington.         

            Web. 02 Nov. 2011. <http://public.wsu.edu/~delahoyd/witch.comment2.html>.

3) Wilson, Katharina M., and Nadia Margolis. "Yavapai College Library." Credo

            Reference Home. Web. 02 Nov. 2011.

            <http://www.credoreference.com/entry/abcwma/witches>.

4) Knight, Peter. "Yavapai College Library." Credo Reference Home. Web. 02 Nov.         

            2011. <http://www.credoreference.com/entry/abcconspir/salem_witch_trials>.

5) "Evil." Macmillan Dictionary of the Bible. London: Collins, 2002. Credo Reference.  

            Web. 02 November 2011.

           

Annotated Bibliography

1) Miller, Arthur. The Crucible. New York, N.Y: Penguin Books, 1996. Print.

I chose the book, “The Crucible” as my primary source because it is the only novel that I could think of with witchcraft in it. I think I will use a lot of in-text citations in this book to help me with this essay because it has many interesting points throughout the novel. I have read this book in the past and that is part of the reason why I chose it to by my primary source.

2) Schwartz, Marci. "Witches." Washington State University - Pullman, Washington. Web. 02 Nov. 2011. <http://public.wsu.edu/~delahoyd/witch.comment2.html>.

I think this piece will help me a little bit throughout my paper because it has some history about witches. It explains what witches represented back then and what people think of them now. This piece isn’t very long but it includes lots of information that will help tremendously with my essay.

3)Wilson, Katharina M., and Nadia Margolis. "Yavapai College Library." Credo Reference Home. Web. 02 Nov. 2011. <http://www.credoreference.com/entry/abcwma/witches>.

I liked this library database because it included tons and tons of information on different kinds of witchcraft. I doubt that I will read through the whole thing because it has so much in the article. I can tell you that I will use a lot of information that is in this article to help me support my thesis.

4)Knight, Peter. "Yavapai College Library." Credo Reference Home. Web. 02 Nov. 2011. <http://www.credoreference.com/entry/abcconspir/salem_witch_trials>.

This library database will have much to do with my essay just because it talks about the Salem Witch Trials. My primary source, “The Crucible”, takes place in the town of Salem so it works out really well. This source also has a lot of information that is very important to get research from.

5) "Evil." Macmillan Dictionary of the Bible. London: Collins, 2002. Credo Reference. Web. 02 November 2011.

This library database was a little interesting because it had to do with the Bible. It is a very short source to use but I will get what I need out of this piece. It talks about God’s punishments upon human beings. It also talks about how evil is related to the freedom to choose between right and wrong.

Final Project Proposal

After reading both Option #1 and Option #2, I have chosen to do Option #2.  I chose this option because I think I would enjoy and be more interested in this choice because I like reading and watching films on different kinds of monsters and such. As of right now, I don't know what text I will be reading for this project but I will assure you that it will be a good one! I will have to take a close look at what the library has in store for me to choose from. I hope to accomplish a good grade on this final project because I haven't really gotten the grades I have wanted on the previous essays.  I also want to explore and challenge my creativity with this project because by reading the Option #2, it seems like it will be fun. I think it will be fun because it's different than the last three essays we have done for this class. It's also close to Halloween so it will get me in the Halloween spirit :) I plan on using the internet as a strong source for my essay. I also think I will use a video as well as a good book. I am going to search lots of different things so I have a lot of options to choose from. Who doesn't like a lot of options, right?  Well, this project should be fun and I can't wait to see everyone else's choices and ideas.

Link: http://www.squidoo.com/evil-squidoo-monsters?utm_source=google&utm_medium=imgres&utm_campaign=framebuster

Photo Cred: http://www.illustrationsof.com/20601-royalty-free-monsters-clipart-illustration

Mid-Term Check in

To whoever it may concern:
       English 102 has been interesting as well as helpful. I have learned many new things that has helped me improve my writing ability. I have learned other skills concerning plagiarism. Although I know what plagiarism is, I learned new things that I had no idea was considered plagiarism. It was brought to my attention that you can't even use one or two words from something without correctly citing it.  My biggest challenge in this class so far is keeping up with the work. This class is one of four of my online classes and I am learning how to keep up with the work and keep track of the dates that the work is due. I have missed some assignments because of that and it has affected my grade in a negative way. I also have been struggling to understand the novel, "Frankenstein" that was assigned to us. This is because I need to improve my comprehension for this level of English by simply reading more often. I think my biggest success has been the blog posts. I enjoy doing these because it's something that is different, something that I have never done for a class before. I also enjoy interacting with my peers through the blogs and have the chance to read their work. This helps me learn and create new ideas to improve my work by reading so many of my peers' blog posts.  Getting feedback on my assignments also helps me because someone else might realize something that can be improved and point it out to me so I can take it into consideration to help me on future assignments and essays. The readings that have been assigned in this class have affected me because it is allowing me to work on my comprehension and possibly view a story in more than one way. It has forced me to give the readings a closer look and interpret it the best I can. I have to admit, it has been frustrating at times but I know that it is teaching me something to help me in the future. I want to improve on completing everything that is being assigned in the second half of this class. I think it is very important for me to do this because I don't want my grade to suffer just because I have skipped over something that was previously due. My goal is to get an A in this class because in my previous English class I earned a C and I wasn't very thrilled with that grade. I also want to accomplish better grades on my essays because on the two that I have already done received average grades. All in all, I have absolutely enjoyed this class. I am going to focus more on the second half of the semester so I can improve my grade and accomplish the goal I have.

Sincerely,

Amelia Willadsen

Essay 3 Rough Draft

                                                                                                                            Willadsen 1

Amelia Willadsen

Cline

English 102

12 October 2011

Taking a Closer Look into Frankenstein

           

            The novel, “Frankenstein” by Mary Shelley was a dark twisted story about the creation of a monster.  I thought the novel was interesting and it also includes quite a few themes and motifs.  One theme that continues throughout the whole book is monstrosity. The monster in this book is not accepted into society, right off the bat because of the way he looked.  Victor is the one who created the monster out of stolen body parts and uncommon chemicals.  Victor’s secrecy and amount of selfishness secludes him from human society.  This leads me into the second theme which it secrecy.  Victor uses secrecy with his obsession in creating life.  He finds pleasure in bringing down the monster also is a complete secret until Walton finds out about what Victor is doing. Walton ends up being the person who successfully solves the monster and Victor’s severe relationship. He starts writing letters to help resolve their relationship because he confesses everything in them. The monster is happy that Walton is involved because he

                                                                                                                                                
Willadsen 2

feels like someone will finally understand him. I believe her purpose in writing “Frankenstein” was her reflecting on her life but gave it a little twist. She added more details and characters to make it more appealing to read. 

            I chose to read, “Possessing Nature: The Female in Frankenstein” by Anne K. Mellor in the back of the book.  The reason I think she wrote this about her life is because this article explains how Mary Shelley and all women were expected to do. This article talks all about how it was way harder for women to get recognized and given a chance at something. “…portrays the consequences of a social construction of gender that values the male above the female” (Mellor 274).  I can see what she’s talking about because it’s even like that nowadays and I can only imagine how much worse it was back then. She also states, “Inside the home, women are either kept as a kind of pet; or they work as house wives, childcare providers, and nurses, or as servants” (Mellor 275).  I, being a woman, reading this is very saddening to me because it isn’t fair to us. This world is dominated by the male species just because they’re naturally stronger and faster than women. An example of this is that men sports get way more attention than women sports and I think that is absolutely ridiculous because women work just as hard as them if not harder. Women should be respected and noticed for how hard-working and great of species they are.

                                                                                                                                                 Willadsen 3         I started reading the article, “Frankenstein and Radical Science” by Marilyn Butler to learn about the history of the book.  As I started, I learned that the novel had its ups and downs.  When “Frankenstein” was released and the characters and plot first became public property, the people were shocked about what the actual meaning signifies. “Readers, filmgoers, people who are neither, take the very word Frankenstein to convey an awful warning: Don’t usurp God’s prerogative in the Creation-game, or don’t get too clever with technology” (Butler 302).  When people heard the word “Frankenstein”, they automatically had negative thoughts about it.  They way I interpreted the second half of the quote was that if God didn’t create what was put on this Earth, then we shouldn’t be using technology to try to create something more clever.  “Frankenstein” seems to be disobeying God’s Creation-game.  This article also talks about how this novel had trouble with the media.  “ The 1818 “Frankenstein”, which had drawn nourishment, energy, importance from lectures and journals, had lived by the media, and after 1819 might well have died by the media” (Butler 303).  At the beginning of “Frankenstein” in 1818, it was popular among the literature world.  When 1819 rolled around, that’s when people started looking closer into what “Frankenstein”

                                                                                                                                                 Willadsen 4

truly meant. This novel started off strong in the media but eventually by the end, critics stated how it’s basically dead.

            There have been many positive things coming from this novel.  “Frankenstein, the True Story; or, Rousseau Judges Jean- Jacques”, by Lawrence Lipking talks all about all the success coming out of this novel.  “In the past few decades, a period in which Mary Shelley’s “Frankenstein” has been received into the canon of English literature-to judge from the number of editions, books, essays, and course adoptions- a remarkable critical consensus has grown up around it” (Lipking 313).  This tells me how much this novel has been used as a resource and how much it has impacted English literature.  Even I have heard many great things about “Frankenstein” before I was required to purchase it. Readers have many different interpretations of this novel and most don’t know the real meaning.  Lipking states, “To begin with, everybody misunderstands it; or more accurately, hundreds of millions of people who have never read the book think that they know what it is about, from seeing or hearing about a movie, and most people do not have a clue” (Lipking 314). I agree with him just because people comprehend what they read differently and sometimes it is hard for the reader to figure out what the author is trying to get across within their book.  In conclusion, “Frankenstein” was an excellent

                                                                                                                                                 Willadsen 5

choice to use because there are so many different opinions about this novel. In my opinion, this book was interesting and I wouldn’t choose to read this if I was the one that got to choose it. On the other hand, I enjoyed reading the articles in the back of the book and learning about the history of “Frankenstein”.

Summary of a Critical Response

I chose to read the article that Percy Bysshe Shelley wrote. Throughout the article the writer pretty much gives their interpretation of "Frankenstein". I thought it was a great interpretation. It was nice to read someone else's point of view on the book. I enjoyed reading it because it seemed like the writer is very intelligent.  I believe it was written on November 10, 1832. Although it wasn't the longest article, the writer did a very good job  including a lot. It was extremely detailed and had educated words throughout the whole article. The author explains that "Frankenstein" includes very powerful emotions and explains that this book is a strange drama.
I do agree with the author about "Frankenstein" being a strange drama definitely. As I read through the book it was hard for me to interpret what it was saying. But reading this other article made it a whole lot clearer for me. I didn't feel like my article criticises "Frankenstein" at all but I definitely learned a bunch from reading the article. Although I enjoyed the article and it explained everything to me, I think it is too short of an article to use for Essay #3.

Link:http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/PRshelley.htm

Photo Cred: http://www.google.com/imgres?q=Percy+bysshe+shelley&hl=en&gbv=2&biw=1366&bih=463&tbm=isch&tbnid=cvybKOVuMXM8yM:&imgrefurl=http://famouspoetsandpoems.com/poets/percy_bysshe_shelley/biography&docid=NY0N05LlaD_DhM&w=140&h=170&ei=FtuPTvjxDOKGsgKy1eSPAQ&zoom=1&iact=rc&dur=344&page=1&tbnh=113&tbnw=96&start=0&ndsp=20&ved=1t:429,r:6,s:0&tx=59&ty=71

Reflections On Revision

        I try not to make my writing process very difficult. In previous English classes we

would have to brainstorm on a sheet of paper and also do prewriting and I didn't enjoy

doing that. I usually just flip open my lap top and start typing right then and there. This

way is easier for me because whatever comes to my head at that moment, I type it. I know

people that do different things to create their particular essay.

        I do like writing a rough draft then fixing my mistakes and maybe adding important

points that should be included. I think it is very important to write a rough draft because

you can then improve your essay tremendously.  I, personally like to get feed back from my

peers and instructor to make my essay better and more enjoyable to read. I tend to go off

topic occasionally and that's probably the number one thing I can improve on. I start off

strong with a topic in my thesis sentence and by the end of my essay I could support my

thesis a little better.  I think I could also use a larger vocabulary in my writing. I could

always improve on my vocabulary. English has always been my best subject, but as I have

been getting older it's become harder for me.

Photo Cred: http://www.paperwritingservice.info/paper-writing-service-advice-on-essay-writing/

Link: http://www.csu.edu.au/division/studserv/my-studies/learning/guides/essay/process

Close Reading of a Passage

"My affection for my guest increases every day.  He excites at once my admiration and my pity to an astonishing degree.  How can I see so noble a creature destroyed by misery without feeling the most poignant grief?  He is so gentle, yet so wise; his mind is so cultivated; and when he speaks, although his words are culled with the choicest art, yet they flow with rapidity and unparalleled eloquence" (Shelley 15).

I picked this paragraph out of "Frankenstein" for many reasons. It caught my attention by the passionate words she used. My first reaction to this passage was that she was really falling in love with this guy who she considers him as, "the stranger". After reading up to this point, I can't help but think the stranger will continue to be involved throughout the whole book. Right now, she is already writing in her journal about him. I think this paragraph contributes to the novel because I think as the story continues on, it will turn into a love story. Well, at least I hope it does; I love those kind of novels. On the other hand, it could have a totally different impression. "The stranger" ends up getting sick and is unable to talk. The crew on the ship takes care of him for a couple days and then he tells Walton, the captain, his story and they become good friends. Walton considers him to be a friend that he has always wanted. I'm excited to continue to read this novel because I've heard many good things about it! So far, it seems interesting and something that I could get into.

Photo Cred: http://horrorcrush.com/articles/2010/12/02/contemporary-frankenstein-in-the-works/

Link: http://www.blackgate.com/2010/10/08/mary-shelley%E2%80%99s-frankenstein-and-the-power-of-myth-making/

Essay 2

                                                                                                                                       Willadsen 1

Amelia Willadsen

Cline

ENG102

15 September 2011

The Art of Poetry

            Poetry is an imaginative awareness of experience expressed through meaning, sound, and rhythmic language choices so as to evoke an emotional response. I think poetry could have many different meanings to the reader but only the writer knows exactly what their poem is about. Poetry is nearly impossible to understand because most authors use such a distinct language throughout their work. I am not a big poetry fan; however, I think it can be very beautiful to read. The tone, imagery, and rhyme in poems are what make the actual poem exciting to read.

            I chose to examine the poem, “Lady Lazarus” by Sylvia Plath because out of all the poems available, this is the one that caught my attention the most. I have read this poem over and over again to try and figure out what Plath was really talking about throughout her poem. When I first started reading it, I didn’t know what to think exactly; I was a little confused. When I read,

    “I do it so it feels like hell.   

I do it so it feels real.

I guess you could say I’ve a call”,

 

I thought maybe she has cancer and she is describing exactly how it feels to have such an

                                                                                                                            Willadsen 2

awful disease.

            I noticed Sylvia Plath’s use of intense language. She uses language that I consider eerie or frightening but that kind of language is what caught my attention so quickly. She puts hair-raising words together to make the imagery that much more effective like, “And pick the worms off me like sticky pearls”, and “That melts to a shriek”.  I was stunned on how great the imagery was in “Lady Lazarus”. I could picture the things she was saying perfectly in my head with nothing blurry at all.  In my opinion, this poem had the best imagery out of any other poem.

            Sylvia Plath included some rhyme in her poem but it wasn’t consistent throughout the whole thing. This is one out of few stanzas where she rhymes,

“Out of the ash

I rise with my red hair   

And I eat men like air”.

    I didn’t understand this stanza at all and it keeps me wondering after the many times I have read it. This is an example of when I said the author is the only one that knows exactly what it means. This is a stanza that didn’t rhyme at all,

   “A sort of walking miracle, my skin   

    Bright as a Nazi lampshade,   

   My right foot.”

   She has many stanzas that don’t rhyme, however not all poems have to rhyme to be considered good. I like poems that rhyme better because I think it becomes easier to read. Rhyming creates a rhythm and it makes the poem flow nicely throughout.

                                                                                                                                Willadsen 3

                After reading “Lady Lazarus” for the second time I began to think of more ideas about what Plath might be talking about. I came to the conclusion that she is talking about committing suicide attempts more than once. I got this idea because she states,

“And I a smiling woman.   

I am only thirty.

And like the cat I have nine times to die.”

When I read this stanza I was confused because I was asking myself, why does she have nine times to die? Another reason I thought she has committed suicide is because she includes,

“Nevertheless, I am the same, identical woman.   

The first time it happened I was ten.   

It was an accident.

The second time I meant

To last it out and not come back at all.   

I rocked shut.”

I asked myself, what else could she mean by this? After reading these two stanzas, I made up my mind. There’s no doubt in my head that she’s not talking about committing suicide.

            In conclusion, I thought this poem came straight from the author’s heart. I liked how Plath’s poem was so realistic because suicide is still such a serious issue today.

                                                                                                                            Willadsen 4

 I thought the poem had great word choice to make the poem that much more interesting to read. Although I’m not a huge poetry fan, this poem made me think a lot about what she was talking about. For that reason, I enjoyed “Lady Lazarus”.