Where Are You Going, Where Have you Been?: Mindblowing?

      The story we most recently read was Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been? Okay, perhaps the story wasn't toally mindblowing. In fact, I found it one of the stranger ones I've ever read. And I've read a lot of strange stories. We all read the story, all had the discussion. We all know what the story was about. I just find it frankly odd that we were able to pick out the religious allusions. I had to google the story the night before to even suggest to my own group that perhaps the character Arnold Friend was the Devil. I was aware that the name sounded like Arch Fiend, but I had no idea that meant Satan. I also didn't know that the title may have meant something religious. Actually the title came almost verbatum from the Bible. I didn't even pick up on the three 24's until Mr. Mullins pointed it out. Quick math told me this was also a reference to the Devil's number (which I will not say, nor type because of religious superstition). I need to work on picking out important details like that if I'm going to survive this class. Dang. Despite this downfall of mine, I found that last in-class discussing more or less riveting, so that's a plus.  

Hills Like White Elephants Analysis

     This was one of the stranger stoires I've had to read. I understand what the author was trying to tell us and all that, but I find the actual story somewhat....forgettable. I couldn't tell you what the characters said to each other, other than the quote: "the hills looks like white elephants, don't they," or something like that. Not to be rude, I just find this specific point of view less powerful than others. It's too abstract in my opinion.

       This story just didn't capture my attention. Usually, I save the reading until the very end of the day until I'm in bed. This wasn't an exception, of course-- I have a routine. Anyway, these stories that are assigned to us are (to me) easy to read and they do a good job at being at least a little interesting. This story, however, wasn't. I can imagine, though, that the author thought that this perspective was more creative and overall a bit more mysterious than others. Which it was. I just didn't find it entertaining.

        I hate to criticize any literary fiction because I don't want to seem like one of those people who have to be spoonfed all the details. Why else would I take AP Senior English? Regardless, I learned a lot from this work even though I didn't like it as much.

Thoughts on The Lesson

Even though we covered the theme of this short story in class a little, I wanted to give my opinion on it. I believe that there were many things the author wanted us to take from her story. For example, there may have been many themes. I think there were two.

The first one is, obviously, that people who spend their riches on trivial items such as material goods, are undeserving of their wealth. Like in the story, the children gawk over the price of a paperweight- $400- when they themselves don't even have a desk or paper to put a weight on. The children also obsess over a $1,000 sailboat, that may or may not have been equipped with a motor. They muse over their own homemade sailboats, resolving with the statement "white people crazy."

Before they enter the store, however, one girl stops the teacher and asks, "can we steal?" I find this to be another underlying theme, one that people aren't supposed to notice as much as the main one. Of course, Miss Moore, the teacher, blanches in horror and immediately says no. However, the fact that this child would have the nerve to ask such a thing to an authority figure tells something about the environment she grew up in. An environment where it was okay to commit criminal acts, just so long as they weren't caught. Perhaps the author is trying to say that the environment children grow up around hinders there responses to moral situations. Or that the ghetto is no place to live. Either one, really (I like the first one).  

Thoughts on Senior Year

 Ah, procrastiantion at its finest. Most seniors this year have yet to even fill out college applications, me being one of them. Props to you, if you already have. These past seventeen years have flown by, and I fear the worst for my furture self, because as of late, I haven't been able to find one single thing that interests me for a future job. My parents always ask, "Well, what do you like doing in school?" And I always answer with an honest "nothing." Because it's true. Everything feels like a requirement, and nothing is fun anymore like it was way back when. It's all quite challenging, and "here's an F if you don't understand what I'm trying to teach you."

Regardeless, the pressure is on to make something out of my life, and I have to decide what to do-- now. There are many colleges out there, and I'm sure I'll find one. But what I'm not sure about is if I'm ready to leave the security of my own home and venture out into the Big Unknown, ready to strike down any obstacles that head my way with the "knowledge" I have obtained over the years.

Ah, well. "Everything works out in the end. If it hasn't worked out, it's not the end." --Unknown

This is new...

        So, I've never blogged before. And with the little restrictions we've been given for these assignments, I suppose I'm free to type up pretty much anything that relates to what we do in class. I know for a fact that we have a lot of homework, but it all seems doable. The problem is finding the time to do it between the extracarricular activities and all the other homework from other classes. Oh well.
    
       Recently, we read some short stories that, to me at least, seem to have been more commercial fiction than literary. Both The Most Dangerous Game and The Tiger Child (or whatever the title is) kept mhy interest throughout the book. I'm not saying I'm one for violence, but I think this type of action story is better than any poem I'll ever read.