Age of Innocence

I remember I told a friend, "I hate Age of Innocence" I suppose there is a reason as to why people say that hate is a strong word because I regret saying it. I didn't realize that there is so much more to Age of Innocence than I thought there was. Now, I can see why this book is one of Mrs. Clinch's favorite book. For this blog, I just want to point out a few of really interesting ideas I found.

To start, my opinion changed as I read the book's final third section, chapter 25 to the end. The first difference was the pacing of the book; it was much faster. The events started to escalate and the process of resolution kept me absorbed throughout the whole book. The incidence with M. Riviere and the conversation started off slow but quickened as we learned that he was the mysterious secretary Countess Olenska ran away with. An interesting point here is that May, when Archer asked her to if he could invite Riviere to dinner, she completely dismissed the idea. Therefore, the fact that Ellen trusted Riviere and trusted him even though he was from a lower class. The contrast again reiterates May's ignorance and Ellen's acceptance. The scene with M. Riviere also brings up how he is similar to the characters in Doll's House because he says,  "I returned to him, a few months ago, for reasons of private necessity such as may happen to any one who has persons ill and older persons, dependent on him" (Wharton 165). He did what he did (going back to Count Olenski's employment) because he had to. The circumstances of other people depending on him for survival caused him to take on a mission that he strongly wished to avoid. As I read this passage, I couldn't help thinking about Nora, Christine, and Krogstad. They, similar to M. Riviere, committed actions they preferably wouldn't have wanted to in order to survive. This comparison shows that people's sense of loyalty and love for others causes them to take a certain path that would be condemned by society.

Also, I thought this particular section mentioned the aspects of society more frequently than before. The most protruding line was, "After all, a young woman's place was under her husband's roof..." (169) This idea repeated itself several times and again, another similarity to Doll's House. As the family in Age of Innocence discussed Ellen's affairs, the idea of separate spheres was stressed, along with the importance of keeping to traditions and staying away from trends.

Nora = Archer; however, only in their pride and temper. Archer's scene in the library with Mr. Jackson so similarly connected with Nora's confrontation with Krogstad. Both of their ego won over and led them to dig their holes. Wharton's line perfectly lays out the situation, "... as if this were exactly the fact he had been laying a trap for" and "he had once more the feeling that it was exactly what Mr. Jackson had been waiting for" (171). Although Archer is consciously aware of Mr. Jackson's intention, his pride and temper gets the best of him, causing him to show a side of him that would have been better off not revealing. For both Nora and Archer, the things they say makes them suffer.

What I really loved about Age of Innocence was the last chapter. The epilogue was not only fascinating because of its 26 years fast forwarded plot but also because of Archer's changed view of society and life. New York's old family no longer stayed in the old fashioned world and advanced with the changing culture. Archer puts away Ellen as something that's just unobtainable and lives his life to the fullest, "starting the first school for crippled children, reorganizing the Museum of Art, founding the Grolier Club, inaugurating the new Library, or getting up a new society of chamber music" (225) Rather than keeping his view (gentlemen didn't work), he allowed himself to be occupied by meaningful work and did things for his society. This development shows how much Archer changed in the span of time. He is no longer a love-sick man who wished to get away from principles, rather, he changed to someone who found value in principles and of change.

William Blake's "Holy Thursday"

William Blake's "Holy Thursday"

There is no denying that William Black is an idiosyncratic figure in history and also, a man who's state of mind can be questionable. However, with all the queer characteristics aside, his poems are definitely a work of a genius. Specifically looking at Songs of Innocence and Experience and further into "Holy Thursday", his depth of perception and style of deliverance of his message leaves so much room for analysis and questions.

The innocence part of "Holy Thursday" at a glance is longer horizontally than typical poems, making it look like a book. The ending words demonstrate a AABB rhyme scheme, a very easy and paired-like. Reading the poem, we are exposed to children who are in pairs walking in sync behind their beadles. Once again showing Blake's like for pairs because it gives a sense of companionship like married couples. The different colors, red, blue, green, grey, and white are the protruding details of the first stanza. As innocence is oblivious to the 'black and white' version of the world, it can afford to cloth itself with bright colors and grey that dims the awful nature of black. As the children enter as "a multitude", the congregation perceives them as "flowers", "lambs", and radiant creatures. They "raise their innocent hands". This picture reminds me of priests offering their sacrifices; however, the irony is that the children who are referred to as lambs are raising their hands. That signifies that children are unaware of what they are: sacrifices for the adults. The adults view them and can forget for just a moment about the calamities that occur in their lives. Maybe the children are offering themselves to save the befallen adults from hell. Which means that the last stanza shows the sincerity of the children's songs as they are like "a mighty wind" and "harmonious thunderings". But I think the bigger idea is that Blake is showing the hypocrisy of the "aged men, wise guardians of  the poor" because the men are only trying to make themselves feel better about their atrocious behaviors. As I remember, there was few orphanage during the 18th century that had good living conditions because the head of the orphanages took the donations and used  the money for themselves, which makes the "Grey-headed beadles" hypocrites as well. Blake cloaks this irony behind the children and try to portray what society believes it is doing 'for' the children.

"Holy Thursday (Songs of Experience)" reveals the irony with comparing the actual situation with that in heaven. The first line starts off by asking "Is this a holy thing to see...?" In other terms, "Is making children sing for us really a holy thing in the beautiful cathedral even though in reality the very children are suffering from sickness, disease, and maltreatment in the orphanages?" That's how I perceived the first stanza. Blake is pointing out the sickening hypocrisy of the wealthy upper class for trying to cover up their real intention of 'donating' to the orphanages, to lessen their guilt and sins. Therefore, the songs that the children are singing are far from "song of joy" because they toil under the very hypocrisy that the wealthy are feeding off of. The children as they grow older realize what they have suffered and their sun can never shine because the light has been smudged by the upper class. Their world will be ""eternal winter" because they will fail to find warmth or hope in the sinful world. When I was reading the last stanza, I immediately thought of heaven, but that means that the place where "Babe can never hunger" is not existent anywhere on earth. The grim view that only death can release the children into an eternal salvation of hope and dream shows how Blake perceives the world.

I don't know how well I analyzed Blake's poem, but I know that as I reread the poem over and over again, I was realizing various elements and relations that tied together. .

“Mr. Z” by M. Carl Holman

“Mr. Z” by M. Carl Holman

1              Taught early that his mother’s skin was the sign of error,

            He dressed and spoke the perfect part of honor;

            Won scholarships, attended the best schools,

            Disclaimed kinship with jazz and spirituals;

5          Chose prudent, raceless views of each situation,

            Or when he could not cleanly skirt dissension,

            Faced up to the dilemma, firmly seized

            Whatever ground was Anglo-Saxonized.

            In diet, too, his practice was exemplary:

10         Of pork in its profane forms he was wary;

            Expert in vintage wines, sauces and salads,

            His palate shrank from cornbread, yams and collards.

            He was as careful whom he chose to kiss:

            His bride had somewhere lost her Jewishness,

15         But kept her blue eyes; an Episcopalian

            Prelate proclaimed them matched chameleon.

            Choosing the right addresses, here, abroad,

            They shunned those places where they might be barred;

            Even less anxious to be asked to dine

20         Where hosts catered to kosher accent or exotic skin.

            And so he climbed, unclogged by ethnic weights,

            An airborne plant, flourishing without roots.

            Not one false note was struck—until he died:

            His subtly grieving widow could have flayed

25         The obit writers, ringing crude changes on a clumsy phrase:

            “One of the most distinguished members of his race.”

If Mr. Z is the subject of this poem, then Mr. Z tried to live the perfect life by trying to cover up his heritage. The first line of this poem suggests that he is from a non-white family and probably that his mother was black, therefore, "his mother's skin was the sign of error." Also, it can be inferred that Mr. Z is from a mixed heritage, since it is only his mother that has African American roots. By trying to set himself above the stereotypical African American descendants, Mr. Z accepted everything of the upper white class norms and dejected the African American culture of food, style, and people. 

The irony is that the poet of this poem M. Carl Holman dedicated his life to end segregation but he wrote a poem about a half black man who disdains his culture. Although I am not definitely sure about what the poet's message is, I feel like the essence of this poem is to reveal that one shouldn't try to avert his or her background. The tone of the poem emphasizes the meticulous action of Mr. Z and the great attention he gives in trying to avoid anything that was not "exemplary". The picture perfectness of the poem also places a rigidness of the conformed life Mr. Z leads. It (life) seems like a duty and a presentation rather than one that is filled with spontaneity and surprises. He follows a formula in order to cover up any criticism or prejudice from society. By "choosing the right addresses, here, abroad", Mr. Z makes sure that he is in control of his own life. His formulaic approach allows him to die with "not one false note" being struck. However, the irony comes in on the last line, "One of the most distinguished members of his race" Um... "race" <-- the way I viewed this word is that all his way of life was futile at the end. Society still cast him as a different race than the normal, let's say, white population. Am I alright to assume this? What I am trying to say is that I think the poet, in writing the last line, tried to convey the message of "embrace your heritage and don't try to live by society's standards" After all, Mr. Z failed even though he was so perfect in all he did. Tying this back to the irony I mentioned in the beginning of the paragraph, I think Holman wrote this poem as a Civil Rights activist to share the message with the fellow African Americans who were trying to assimilate with the white population. (This is all my assumption) For Civil Rights movement, it was important for the African Americans to accept their identity as proud blacks in America. Their culture, heritage, and traditions shouldn't be distasteful, no matter what the white people tried to say. Their way of life was/is beautiful, and no one should try to take it away. Therefore, Holman illustrates the message that no matter how hard you try to cover up your heritage, it is a pointless act because white people are never going to accept an African American descendant as one of their own, so it's better to live by embracing the African American culture. 

Grendel's Mind = Craziness

Grendel's mental state of mind

After reading chapters 11 and 12 over the weekend, I have an urge to write about Grendel's mentality. Grendel's description of Beowulf was definitely a shocker and an eye opener because of the very high possibility of 'Grendel = CRAZY'.

Grendel's mentality has indicated that it has been deteriorating in subtle and obvious ways. The most prominent example is on page 92 where the poem that Grendel writes explicitly says, ""Grendel is crazy" (92). I mean, he's talking to himself, dances like a ballerina, and completely shifts his chain of thought. There are many different explanations as to why Grendel is digressing.
First, Grendel finds out from the glorious Shaper that he is a descendant of a hatred lineage, making him a total reject in Hrothgar's world. Then, the fact that even with the awareness, he cannot totally ignore Shaper's influence of beauty, unity, and patterness causes, essentially, his soul to become harrowed with conflicting thoughts. His mind wants him to embrace the beautiful elements, but his subconscious (dragon) steers him away from becoming assimilated into the men's society. Therefore, the Shaper has a profound impact on Grendel's conflicted view, causing him to 'overuse', for the lack of a better word, his brain.
As if the Shaper's influence was not enough, Wealtheow comes into the novel as "innocent as dawn on winter hills" (100). Her presence is enough to tear Grendel "apart". The image that Wealtheow symbolizes is so pure and absolutely stunning that Grendel becomes enchanted and enamored by Wealtheow. She acts as a protective force around the mead hall from both Grendel and the men's animal like behavior. Grendel, in his idleness, again suffers and becomes frustrated with his own inadequacies and lacking. I think at the end when Grendel decides to basically rape Wealtheow, he shocks himself again as he stares into "the ugliness between her legs" (110). This action wakes him up to go back to the dragon's side. Therefore, the shift again taxes his brain and mentality.
Also, another interesting point is that Grendel gradually starts laughing and laughs more and more, especially in not even funny situations. That can be seen as a sign of a mentally ill person, or in this case, a monster.
The sadness of the Shaper's death also contributes to the digression of Grendel's mentality. The man who embodied beauty and intellect is no longer present to give Grendel things to think about. Therefore, the Shaper and Wealtheow unknowingly succeeds in tearing Grendel's mind apart by the things that they embody, such as beauty, unity, pattern, etc.
I don't know if this is going on a tangent line, but I also wanted to mention how Grendel seems to believe that he is the center of the universe. Therefore, after Grendel attacks the meadhall and sees that the people build pyres to give offerings to the gods, he gets mad because he feels as if he should be worshiped. Does this make sense? For example, in chapter 1, it says, "The song swells, pushes through woods and sky, and they're singing now as if by some lunatic theory they had won" (14). Then, the most important quote comes up, "I shake with rage" (14). I think in some way, Grendel wants the humans to start worshiping him, he craves for his godliness to be accepted, causing him to become infuriated when he sees the humans worshiping other gods. Because he believes his periodic raids are beneficial to the humans, I think he is expecting some kind of reverence. However, because he doesn't get it, he "shakes with rage", which causes his mental state to deteriorate even further. 

Confession

Confession

On Friday Mrs. Clinch allowed us to work with our groups. My group (Chapter 10) decided what we were going to be in charge of but... (This is the confession part) none of us read the book :( I was still trying to make sense of what had happened in chapter seven and why & how the previous chapters connected with each other, I did not have time to read 8, 9 and 10. I mean let's be honest; Grendel is probably ten times harder than Winesburg, Ohio due to the whole existentialism and the nihilist ideas. So, back to the point, before Mrs. Clinch came over to talk to us about the things she wanted us to focus and what the major elements were, I skimmed the book and realized that the Shaper dies, the woman (I assumed Wealtheow) feels sad, etc. So, when Mrs. Clinch did come and said, "You know I have always wondered who the woman in the Shaper's room is?", I immediately said, "Isn't it Wealtheow? Because of..." Now that I have actually read the chapter, I can't help but feel so embarrassed by the answer I gave her. 

The above paragraph marks the end of the confession, and I wish to write about what I thought about the mysterious woman, Wealtheow, Grendel's mother, and the old monster woman. I have marked in the novel the strangeness about how whenever Wealtheow appears, Grendel will talk about his mother (not in relation to Wealtheow). Therefore, I thought that this must be an intentional juxtaposition by John Gardner to contrast the markedly different nature of these two creatures. Wealtheow represents the beauty, compassion, truth, and harmony, while Grendel's mother is the epitome of gruesomeness, lies, disconnectedness, etc. So when I read about the mysterious woman in the Shaper's room, I immediately though of Wealtheow, then Grendel's mother appear as Grendel "slink back home" (145). Grendel's mother is now described as one that "no longer shows any sign of sanity" (145). There is so much contrast! It seems as if as Wealtheow grows in prominence and is accepted by the men, Grendel’s mother is deteriorating in her state of mentality and physical appearance. Like the Shaper and Wealtheow were the only figures in Grendel who symbolized knowledge, happiness, and joy, but when Shaper dies, Wealtheow inherits the position all to herself. She is left alone to be in charge of unifying the men and bringing harmony in the mead hall. Then what’s the whole deal with the “I am not the only monster on these moors. I met an old woman as wild as the wind” (149); I mean, why a woman in particular? Monster vs. woman….? Oh, and the layout of the passage where the quote comes from is different than the previous ones. WHY?!! And why does Grendel say, “I know there is nothing to expect” (149) even though the old monster is out there?

I just reread the passage and maybe the old woman is actually Wealtheow. On page 100, it says, “Her smooth long hair was as red as fire and soft as the ruddy sheen on dragon’s gold” (100). The fire is like the wildness of the old woman, and the dragon appears in here and with the old woman. This is an idea I will have to come back to.

Warning by Jenny Joseph

When I am an old woman I shall wear purple
With a red hat which doesn't go, and doesn't suit me.
And I shall spend my pension on brandy and summer gloves
And satin sandals, and say we've no money for butter.
I shall sit down on the pavement when I'm tired
And gobble up samples in shops and press alarm bells
And run my stick along the public railings
And make up for the sobriety of my youth.
I shall go out in my slippers in the rain
And pick flowers in other people's gardens
And learn to spit.

You can wear terrible shirts and grow more fat
And eat three pounds of sausages at a go
Or only bread and pickle for a week
And hoard pens and pencils and beermats and things in boxes.

But now we must have clothes that keep us dry
And pay our rent and not swear in the street
And set a good example for the children.
We must have friends to dinner and read the papers.

But maybe I ought to practice a little now?
So people who know me are not too shocked and surprised
When suddenly I am old, and start to wear purple.

When I search for a poem to write a blog about, I like to read the first line and if it sounds interesting, I read on. "Warning" written by Jenny Joseph caught my eye with its first line. I couldn't help but smile as I read the poem, and when I started imagining my own grand mother wearing purple and learning to spit, a little chuckle escaped out of me. The obvious meaning of the poem can be that people are so entrapped and bound by the ways of society and  restrict their thoughts and behaviors to society's ideologies; therefore, losing the ability to express themselves. By using the words "purple" and "red", Joseph is able to allow the speaker to create a bit obscene picture of an elderly grandmother doing things that are viewed as unacceptable in society. The light tone of the speaker keeps the humor going through the first few stanzas. However, the poem starts to become gloomier and more dense towards the last stanza. The humor disappears and becomes bogged down by the responsibilities of the present. The speaker has to set an example for the children and be an informed citizen who is socially accepted. 

A question that can be asked is, 'why wait until we are old, and when do we become old?' The second question just sparked some interesting thoughts within me. If the speaker decides to do all those eccentric things when she becomes older, when exactly will that be? Does it mean that old age is when no body cares for you because they themselves are so invested in whatever society imposes upon them? When you have no one to be with, it liberates you to become free from people's judgments, ideas, and expectations. However, isn't during the time of youth when you can find your identity and live as you wish? Isn't that what other writers are writing or have written about? For example, Winesburg, Ohio implies that youth is what everyone craves for because hope is associated with it. I guess the speaker of "Warning" has the opposite view of youth, which is that youth is a hindrance to freewill. 

Actually, I really agree with the author's view because as a teenager, I am so engrossed in what other people have to say about me. Basically, I don't have my OWN view or stance, not really. I mean I like to think that I do but in actuality, I don't because the ideas are of others, and I am just adapting it to my way. The clothes I wear, how girls have to act in front of others are things I never even questioned because it seemed so natural. However, when you actually think about it, aren't I being conformed? therefore, losing my identity? Perhaps I will be like the speaker of the poem and start wearing purple and eat whatever I want when I grow really old. Until then, I don't think I will have the courage to go against the society's ways. I mean who can really say that they aren't conformed? Can you?

“The Love song of J. Alfred Prufrock” vs. Winesburg, Ohio

            As I pervade deeper into these two works, keeping in mind the possibilities of similarities and parallelism, I am beginning to see the comparison. When we were discussing the poem in class discussions, I kept thinking, ‘I still don’t understand this poem or how it relates to the work by Sherwood Anderson.’ The frustration and lack of connection slowly unveiled when I started to prepare for the rough draft. As I reread and re-annotated “The Book of the Grotesque”, I had a moment of epiphany, which really made me happy.

S’io credesse che mia risposta fosse
A persona che mai tornasse al mondo,
Questa fiamma staria senza piu scosse.
Ma perciocche giammai di questo fondo
Non torno vivo alcun, s’i’odo il vero,
Senza tema d’infamia ti rispondo.

Translation:

"If I but thought that my response were made

to one perhaps returning to the world,

this tongue of flame would cease to flicker.

But since, up from these depths, no one has yet

returned alive, if what I hear is true,

I answer without fear of being shamed.

The beginning of the poem by T.S. Elliot and eight to the last paragraph on the first chapter of Winesburg, Ohio has irrefutable parallelism. On page two of my book, the narrator, speaker, experiences something almost spiritual, “For an hour the procession of grotesques passed before the eyes of the old man, and then, although it was a painful thing to do, he crept out of bed and began to write, Some one of the grotesques had made a deep impression on his mind and he wanted to describe it” (2). Although this quotation is lengthy, I believe it is necessary in order for me to explain what I saw. At 2 AM in the morning, you either tend to imagine things or have moments of realization. The latter happened to me.  The speaker of the poem says that no one will hear his story, which is why he is narrating it to the listener. I believe that this symbolizes Anderson’s message about truth. Just as if the writer were to publish his book, he would become grotesque; the speaker realizes that he will also become a grotesque if his story were to be known to the world. Also, the writer is awoken by ghosts of grotesques who, in a way, persuade him to get up and write about their stories. “Some one of the grotesques”, the one who makes an impression on the old man, can be seen as the narrator of the poem. The narrator had once been a grotesque but the release from Earth allows him to realize the futility of truth and cause him to lament about his experience. Therefore, in my view, Elliot decided to write a personal perspective of a grotesque character by using Alfred Prufrock to parallel one of the stories in Winesburg, Ohio.

However, I am not going to think about which story the poem best fits because I think the poem has many similarities with a handful of the stories in Winesburg, Ohio. The ghostly images, windows, hands, and feeling of frustration are all ubiquitous in both literary works. Just as the characters in Winesburg, Ohio wish to retrieve their youthfulness, Prufrock also desires to keep his youth, not fully realizing that he has already lost it. In the end, he has to wake himself from a dream state of mind in order to face his fears and ultimately, await his death.