Rushing Our Lives

Ode: Intimations of Immortality from Recollections of Early Childhood

In Ode: Intimations of Immortality, we are able to see how Wordsworth has a strong feeling about childhood. He says that children try to grow up so fast and he does not understand why would they want to grow up so quickly and begin the struggles that adults have to eventually face. In stanza 7, he says that children play pretend funeral and wedding. As we discussed this in class, I realized I used to do the same thing. As a child, I was always playing pretend cooking. Where I would get mud and rocks and pretended I was making mashed potatoes with meat. Others days, I would pretend I was a doctor and I would prescribe my patients (teddy bears) with pills (sweet tarts) for their terrible cough. I remember I wanted to grow up so bad and do all the "cool" things adults were able to do. Now, however, I realized growing up will not be as fun as I thought it would be when I was 5 years old. As children we are not able to see and appreciate how precious life is before we are faced with all of life's struggles. Therefore, I believe we should enjoy life instead of rushing everything we do, rather just sit back and enjoy an episode of Spongebob Squarepants.

Shatter Me Book Review

This week in English class,  shared our independent reading books.  I read Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi.  It is about Juliette who inadvertently killed a little boy with her deadly touch.  Ever since that moment, Juliette was locked away for 264days and deemed a danger to the public.  That is, until the Reestablishment decided she was useful in their quest for control.  The actual idea of the book is amazing but I was not impressed with the result of that idea. One problem I had with the book was the writing.  I felt as though the  author was trying be fancy with her description of things but it came off as  much.  For example, "He shifts  and my eyes shatter into thousands if pieces that ricochet around the room, capturing a million snapshots, a  million moments in time.  Flickering images faded with age, frozen thoughts hovering precariously in dead space, a whirlwind of memories that slice through my soul."  This is how things are constantly described throughout the book and sometimes it feels as though it's too much.  My next problem is with the main character Juliette.  Juliette is so insecure it becomes annoying.  Most of the book seems to be about her complaining, asking why she's alive; she wishes she could die and she doesn't deserve love, etc.  It seems as though every one has to keep reassuring her that they love her and she doesn't deserve to die including one  her love interest, Adam.  He has to continually tell her that he loves her but she  can't seem to grasp what he is saying.  She acts so weak throughout the book and when you finally thinks she grows a backbone she goes back to being insecure.  Juliette actually reminds me of Bella from twilight.  Just like Bella, Adam has to continually be by her side to protect her and just like Bella, she needs someone to continue to reassure her about  everything.  I was expecting that once she gained  courage and had a backbone we were going to see this strong character like Katniss from the hunger games but the total opposite happens. Overall, I did not enjoy this book. There were so many times where I just wanted to throw this book away and I honestly don't recommend it. 

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Eve Gone Bad

This week in class we finished up with "Paradise Lost," by John Milton by talking about the change in Eve. As seen in the reading, the serpent manipulates Eve into eating the forbidden fruit. Eve obviously made a poor choice but she believed she developed knowledge and free will. Now at the end of "Paradise Lost," Eve is debating whether she tell Adam about the powers of the forbidden fruit or should keep it to herself. Eve is starting to have the same concept of freedom as Satan when she says, "And render me more equal, and perhaps, a thing not undesirable, sometime Superior: for, inferior, who is free?" (822 line 445)Eve has gone bad! Now she feels that she should keep the secret of the forbidden away from her partner so she can become Superior. However, Eve realizes something. "This may be well: but what if God have seen and death ensue? Then I shall be no more, and Adam, wedded to another Eve, shall live with her enjoying..." (822 line 448). In other words, she's saying what if God had seen her eat the fruit and punishes her? Then Adam will be wed "to another Eve" and she does not want that. She realizes she has worked against God's wishes and knows she will be punished for that. But then, she realizes she can't leave her baby Adam behind. So she finally comes to the conclusion that she's just going to bring Adam down with her.
 

This brings me to my connection. Have you ever done something you know you were not suppose to do? Then you try to blame someone else for it? Or even bring them down with you because you refuse to be punished alone? If you have done this then you can easily understand Eve's thought process. For instance, I babysit my cousins all the time. I have noticed that when one of them does something wrong they blame on their siblings. I know they mean no harm to each other (let's hope not) but they just do not want to be on "time out" by themselves. This can be seen through Eve's decision. She does not want to be on "time out" alone.

 

Hamlet Characters and their Psychological Issues !!

As we began to wrap up Hamlet, I made a connection between the characters and Psychological and Personality Disorders that I learned about in Psychology of Personality with Ms.Kenney. For one , I think its quite obvious that Hamlet suffers from depression. He is in a serious state of depression at the beginning of the play when we first see him . That depression then turns to anger which causes him to be violent and that violence caused him to kill Polonius. It seems to me like our friend Hamlet might also be a bit bipolar too. In Act III, we read his long soliloquy of him contemplating suicide. Then, he turns around in Act IV saying his thoughts will "be bloody" !! The image below features a man with half his face painted red and the other half painted black. This symbolizes Hamlet's two sides. The black is his depression and state of melancholy and the red is his violent and vengeful side. 

Another character who suffers from a disorder is Claudius. Claudius clearly has Narcissistic Personality Disorder. We are all familiar with the Greek Myth of Narcissus and how he was forced to stare at his reflection in the lake forever until he died. Narcissistic Personality Disorder is a personality disorder in which the individuals who have it are all about themselves, lack empathy for others , and obsess over power.If this isn't Claudius then I don't know what is !!!!! Claudius definitely cares only for himself. He lacks empathy for Hamlet when Hamlet is grieving the death of his father. He also obsesses over power . This is evident because he kills his own brother !!! HIS OWN FLESH AND BLOOD! Lastly, in the final death scene when he gets stabbed with the sword he tries to brush it off like he's invisible. Ugh!!!!! The nerve of this guy !!! 

What do you ladies think? Do you agree with me? Do you disagree? Why or Why not? Do you think any other characters have disorders? 

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