ipeli11

Part One:

It is significant that Icarus isn’t sorry because it shows that he has no regrets for the choices he’s made and the risks he’s taken in life. He jeopardized his life by testing his own limits and abilities, but that boldness and fearlessness also gave him a purpose and an identity. Not being sorry also suggests that he feels invincible and has no remorse for the way his actions affected those around him, including his loved ones. He might be sorry for not listening to his father’s orders or for letting his ambitions and yearning to ‘live on the edge’ overshadow the significance of life. I don’t think he should be sorry for taking risks and pushing boundaries, but I do think he should be sorry for his excessive selfishness and arrogance. Ultimately, his actions led to consequences which not only affected him, but also those who he was closest to. The lines which, to me, best describe his character and illustrate his no-regret mentality are:

Over and over he rehearses flight
and fall, tuning his moves, entering
with fresh rush into the mingling of the air
with spirit. This is his practice
and his prayer: to be translated into air, as air
with each breath enters lungs,
then blood.


Part Two: Looking Ahead

According to Wiki, “A dystopia is the idea of a society in a repressive and controlled state, often under the guise of being utopian… Dystopian societies feature different kinds of repressive social control systems, various forms of active and passive coercion. Ideas and works about dystopian societies often explore the concept of humans abusing technology and humans individually and collectively coping, or not being able to properly cope with technology that has progressed far more rapidly than humanity's spiritual evolution. Dystopian societies are often imagined as police states, with unlimited power over the citizens.” Dystopian novels are products of their time and we learn to make distinctions between specific era’s and global events from reading dystopian novels. We can also pick up on fears , obsessions, and concerns impacting society during the periods in which certain dystopian novels were written. I have seen several movies listed in the article including Battle Royale, District 9, The Island, and The Secret. A book which I would associate with a dystopian novel is The Lottery.

Part One: Reflection

Both Crozier and Wilbur use extended metaphors in their poems to represent the process of growing up and to illustrate the triumphs and hardships which reflect life’s many journeys and experiences.

In The Writer, Wilbur compares his daughter’s typing to “a chain hauled over a gunwale”, exemplifying the passion and emotion put into her writing. He continues with the theme of this metaphor by comparing her life to a “great cargo”, while emphasising that “some of it [is] heavy. Here, Wilbur tries to demonstrate that while his daughter is still young and naive, she has already experienced and witnessed many wonders in her short existence. Wilbur concludes his thought by simply stating, “I wish her a lucky passage”. Those words are indicative of a father who is coming to terms with his daughter growing up, and although he wants to protect her from life’s countless struggles, he understands that she has to create her own identity in the world. Throughout the poem, Wilbur uses metaphors to describe his daughter’s writing at different stages—she transitions from enthusiastic, pause-free typing to a sudden and complete stillness “where the whole house seems to be thinking”. This on-again, off-again typing pattern demonstrates the time Wilbur’s daughter takes to reflect on her life’s experiences and voyages. Wilbur then goes on to mention a creature, possibly a bird, which just two years earlier flew into the window and dropped on his daughters work table—he explains how they watched helplessly until the small creature, after fighting for its life, got the strength to lift itself off the desk and fly away. He concludes the poem with the following:

It is always a matter, my darling,
Of life or death, as I had forgotten. I wish
What I wished you before, but harder.

Those words serve as a metaphor to illustrate his fear and understanding that nothing is promised tomorrow, and that although he wants nothing more than to see his daughter healthy and happy, she has to find her own strength and will to fight in life.

In Packing for the Future, Crozier uses a suitcase filled with symbolic and practical essentials to help explain what it takes to make it though life’s unexpected obstacles, speed bumps, and detours. She also uses metaphors to connect the challenges faced on the journey with lessons learned along the way. The first thing she suggests packing is “the thickest socks” which will bring hope and help the traveller overcome the most trying and difficult situations—essentially, there may be unforeseen hardships, but a thick pair of socks can walk through and survive almost anything. The next things on the list were a “leather satchel, a velvet bag, and an old tin box… with a salamander painted on the lid”. The leather satchel is symbolic of holding onto things that are close to the heart– things that will make the traveller feel at home even when they are far from home and lost on their journey. The velvet bag represents room—leaving room for new things and being open to new challenges, such as learning a new language or experiencing an unfamiliar culture. Finally, the old tin box embodies familiarity and dreams— the tin box will help the traveller get through the hardest situations and overcome any detours which may arise by reminding him/her of long-time childhood dreams. The tin box is familiar and has been in the travellers life forever, so even when tough times get tougher, the tin box will serve as a comfort blanket and constant reminder of the goals ahead.

Part Two: Looking Ahead

Find out something about Sylvia Plath's life and death. Identify areas where there is overlap with "Daddy." Are the details always accurate? Why would an author choose to write her life in this way? Jeanette Winterson wrote, "There is no autobiography; there is only art and lies." Do you think Plath would agree with her?

Plath was born in Massachusetts and was the daughter of a German immigrant who taught entomology at Boston College. Plath’s father died unexpectedly when she was 8 years old, and many believe that the traumatic passing was significant in her poetry and her brutal characterization of her father. In her junior year in college, Plath suffered a mental collapse that’s resulted in a suicide attempt and stint at the mental hospital. In 1956, Plath married Ted Hughes, an English poet. Plath often felt overshadowed by her husband’s work, and in the early 1960’s the marriage fell apart when she found out about her husband’s relationship with a younger woman. In 1963, her severe depression led to suicide—her long struggle with depression is also considered to be a crucial element to her most critically acclaimed poetry.
Plath’s poem, Daddy, overlaps much of her own life as she denounces her father’s dominance and even compares herself to a Jewish victim in the control of a Nazi during the Holocaust. In the poem she even makes references to her husband, calling him “the vampire who said he was you and drank my blood for a year, seven years, if you want to know”.
Perhaps Plath chose to write about her life in this way because it enabled her to clear her conscious and rid the resentment and hatred she was holding in her heart. Making comparisons between her life and traumatic global events, such as the Holocaust, served as an escape and liberation to a life where she felt like a prisoner in her own skin. Writing about her life through the use of imagery and in such graphic detail was likely her only way of feeling liberated and in control. I don’t believe that Plath would agree with Winterson because even though Plath may have exaggerated some of the events in her life and misrepresented the true image of her father and husband, to her the depictions were accurate. Whether her life is a reality which she created in her head or a reality which surfaced from actual events, the occurrences were real to her and it’s not up to anyone to accuse her of lying.

Part 1:
Personally speaking, the most useful and interesting aspect of studying literature this term has been the detail and depth of the short stories along with connecting the relationships between characters. I’ve taken English courses where I’ve learned practical skills which I can apply to everyday life and I’ve learned the fundamentals of writing essays, using correct grammar, and pointing out obvious writing mistakes, but I’ve never taken a literature course like this before. This course has taught me to concentrate on small details which often go unnoticed, but these seemingly irrelevant details, I’ve found, often change the perspective of an entire story. I still want to learn how to analyze stories better and gain a deeper knowledge of imagery, patterns, binaries, and symbols. I almost exclusively read non-fictional books which I can relate to myself or educational and biographical books where the use of imagination isn’t necessarily essential, but this course has shown me the importance of broadening my interests. I have a difficult time creating a vivid picture of detail-oriented short stories, but this course is pushing me to use my imagination and think ‘outside the box’.

Part 2:

Hamartia: inherent defect or shortcoming in the hero of a tragedy, who is in other respects a superior being favored by fortune (Encyclopedia Britannica).
Antigone’s hamarita is her pride and over-confidence. She alienates herself from those closest to her by refusing to believe that she is ever wrong. This self-righteousness and stubbornness not only pushes away her sister and fiance, but also leads to her own demise.

Hubris: extreme haughtiness, pride or arrogance. Hubris often indicates a loss of contact with reality and an overestimation of one's own competence or capabilities, especially when the person exhibiting it is in a position of power (Wiki).
Creon is guilty of hubris. He believes he is above the law and ignores all warnings from those around him. Ultimately, his defiance and arrogance leads to the death of his wife, son, and Antigone.

Catharsis: the purification or purgation of the emotions (especially pity and fear) primarily through art. In criticism, catharsis is a metaphor used by Aristotle to describe the effects of true tragedy on the spectator. The use is derived from the medical term katharsis. Aristotle states that the purpose of tragedy is to arouse “terror and pity” and thereby effect the catharsis of these emotions (Encyclopedia Britannica).
Catharsis is shown in the catastrophic consequences and tragic endings caused by the main characters actions.

Peripeteia: is a reversal of circumstances, or turning point. The term is primarily used with reference to works of literature. The English form of peripeteia is peripety. Peripety is a sudden reversal dependent on intellect and logic (Wiki).
Peripeteia occurs in Antigone when Creon changes his mind about Antigone’s imprisonment and decides to free her. Unfortunately, his decision came too late – on his way to the cave, a messenger reports that Antigone and Haemon (Creon’s son) have both committed suicide… later, a second messenger informs Creon that his wife has also taken her own life – Creon blames himself, knowing that his choices led to these tragic endings.

Anagnorisis: the point in the plot especially, of a tragedy, at which the main character(s) recognize his or true identity or discovers the true nature of his or her own situation (Webster Online Dictionary).
Anagnorisis is seen when Antigone realizes that she is imprisoned and sentenced to death for, ironically, obeying the divine law and moral codes. It is also seen when Creon realizes that his actions led to the suicides of his wife, son, and Antigone.