A Raisin in the Sun: Post #4

After reading this play, I say that it represents so much about society. Like the Youngers, people endure similar hardships every day, especially during this economic crisis. As the stock market slowly declines, families struggles to scrounge up enough money for food for the week, yet alone electricity and heating. Then, when the world is about to collapse on you, a miracle occurs; you find hope with what little you have and try to make something better of it with the opportunity. But, then, you can fall back into the same slump as you were in before, gaining a sense of understanding. To me, A Raisin in the Sun depicts the various cycles of a family in a plethora of ways: socially, emotionally, and economically.

The play also sends a message about racism, representing the struggles African Americans had to deal with in the past, even when it involves the simplest of needs like shelter. But, A Raisin in the Sun leaves the family more knowledgeable, prepared to face the future. It represented hope and progress for future generations so they wouldn’t have to deal with such injustice, what the Younger family went through.

As a reader, I honestly don’t see the future of the Youngers being particularly bright. Despite the fact that they will be living in a big, new home, they will still be quite poor. However, perhaps the cycle they have endured will continue on, and they will find a new sense of prosperity.

A Raisin in the Sun: Post #3

Okay, Walter’s risk fell through the roof; Beneatha has no money for medical school, and Walter has nothing to start any kind of business on his own. When a family is in a desperate situation, I believe that they need to think more strategically, which is why I oppose the Youngers’ decision to turn down Mr. Linder’s offer. It seems ludicrous to me.

Because of the risky decision Walter made of investing all of money Mama gave him, Walter now has to pay for new living accommodations for a family of six with the income he receives as a measly chauffeur. In a city, where everything is generally more expensive, I can see the Younger family barely living paycheck to paycheck with such a low income. So, with that idea in mind, I think it’s a great idea to bargain with Mr. Linder to get a nice sum of money for that house; the family isn’t happy with the idea of selling their pride. The all-white community better show their prejudice through their deep pockets.

Now, I do admire the ethics that the Younger family possesses, but to pass up such a business opportunity where they have the advantage is silly; they might be able to get double the amount of much cash as what they originally paid for the house. That money could’ve been used for school, a new home, and a business. The family just threw that away.

A Raisin in the Sun: Post #2

Considering the fact that the play takes place in the 1950s, Walter is having an extremely difficult time with his life. During this time period, he is supposed to be the one who brings food to the table and provides for the family, but look at the state he’s in now. His family doesn’t acknowledge his opinion on what they should do with the money; nobody is taking him seriously. In frustration, Walter vents by getting drunk, where, for once, he is at peace and forgets about his problems, about the new baby, and about the excuse of a job where he “opens and closes car doors all day long” ( 73). Something has to change in the Younger family, something that’ll make everyone happy.

Within the play, that something does happen. Mama splits the money into three shares, allowing the family to buy a house and redeem Walter’s masculinity. I feel that the decision Mama made was a excellent one; she made everyone in the family happy. Not only can they move into a bigger house, but Beneatha will have some money for school, and Walter will have some cash for the proposed business. It gives each individual family member to better themselves.

However, if I was Mama, I would’ve invested it all into the liquor store business; if it succeeded, it would create a reasonably large amount of income for the Youngers. And, considering the situation that they’re in, I’d take a risk and at least try to make my family’s life substantially better for them so one day, I could buy my wife “a Cadlillac convertible” and have a gardener (109). If the outcomes outweigh the consequences, I would risk my family’s finances in hopes of economic success. Many people do that here in Delaware, so why shouldn’t I?

Either way, it is starting to look as if the family is reunifying in the play and are attempting to establish a better living for themselves. I can only hope for the best.

A Raisin in the Sun: Post #1

Since the sixth grade, I’ve always dreamed about living in a city, where I would be surrounded by skyscrapers and bump elbows with pedestrians on a daily basis. The “Big Apple” offers more to me than the steep hills of Connecticut, with its fancy restaurants and attractions. But, as I’ve grown older, I am realizing that city housing isn’t anything compared to where I currently live; a person pays a lot for a little. This might be manageable when one is single, but what if he/she has a family? The play, A Raisin in the Sun, by Loraine Hansberry, depicts this type of living.

The Younger family consists of five members: Ruth, Walter, Travis, Beneatha, and Mama. They all live in a “rat trap” of an apartment, where the furniture have “had to accommodate the living of too many people for too many years” (23, 44). They barely have any space for themselves; some of them even share rooms together due to the size accommodations. It explains the saying, “If you can live in New York, you can live anywhere” because if one can endure living as a family in a run-down home, then one can endure any kind of living arrangement. This aspect of the story almost makes me reconsider living in a city.

On top of the poor living arrangements, the Youngers are also dealing with financial difficulties. Walter, being the man in the house, wants to start a liquor store in the neighborhood with the insurance check Mama received for Papa’s death, but the family is disputing over its use. In addition, Walter and Ruth have no respect towards each other, arguing over the dollar Travis received for school and “some fruit today” while they don’t listen to each other (31). When Walter asks for his eggs to not be scrambled, Ruth scrambles them anyway. The family, the apartment, and the finances are causing havoc on the Youngers.

The Glass Menagerie: Post #2

I’m sorry, my fellow bloggers, but you’ll have to excuse me. It’s about three in the morning, and I’m almost becoming slightly hysterical, but I’m going through déjà vu; The Glass Menagerie is not as different from A Raisin in the Sun as I had previously thought.

For example, take Tom; like Walter, he is also the main provider for his family, but he struggles financially as well, frustrated with the crummy job which he endures on a daily basis. He vents by constantly going to the movies, kind of like how Walter would go and drink his problems away. For Tom, a few hours at the theater calms his nerves and makes his life a little easier.

Then, the reader also notices the single woman in the play, Laura. Like Beneatha, she is trying to find a suitable man for herself, although it doesn’t seem to be as much of an importance to Laura as it is to Beneatha. She is supposed to be seeing a gentlemen caller soon, only who makes more money than Tom does, a trait slightly reminiscent of George. But, the catch is that the caller, James, has no idea he’s being deceived by a mother and his son.

I’m barely awake, and I still can tell that this play is terrific and filled with suspense. I wonder if this book is a clone of A Raisin in the Sun for a reason or not; the variety of similarities between the two works is quite unusual.

The Glass Menagerie: Post #1

This play is relatively similar to the Raisin in the Sun; both of them take place in cities, involve a daughter in need of an education, and a family struggling for money. However, in this situation, Laura, has decided to give up her education at the business school because she became easily nervous, even vomiting. Now, her mother, Amanda, is pushing her to find herself a husband to rely upon. Oh, the words Beneatha would say to the family.

I also noticed the differences in the environments. The housing arrangements seem to be more elegant, while their food is more divine. Unlike the Youngers, who barely have anything to eat, this family has food which “has lots of delicate flavors that have to be held in the mouth for appreciation” (146). Amanda even brings out a tray of dessert for the dining table.

The two plays a vaguely similar, but are vastly different. I wonder if they’re more similar that to what meets the eye.

Twilight Post #4

To be blunt and clear, Stephenie Meyer has written a good book, and although while some might not care for it, many do, including myself. As a matter of fact, I’m already reading the third book in the series. Originally, I thought that the negative hype was justified for the story, but the characters seem to grow on you; the reader can relate to them. It reminds of J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series because of this attribute; they’re both focused of magic and adolescence. Both authors’ works have different plots, but as a reader, I’ve been able to connect to both authors’ novels.

However, with Twilight, the plot is too predictable. Unless the reader is sheltered from the media, so much about the book is being leaked out through the Internet and by other readers, talking about it to many. Unlike the Harry Potter series, Stephenie Meyer’s novels seem to have hit the public eye in a more prompt fashion, leading to merchandising, etc. Perhaps along with the romantic emphasis in the series, is why some people detest Twilight; they’re tired of hearing about it, and they’d rather read a book with a plot they know less about.

Either way, Twilight is an addictive read, and I do suggest that people pick it up and read it. It’s not as bad as it seems, and it’s quite good for you too.

Twilight Post #3

Music is a form of expression; it allows society to show their true identities, feelings, and opinions about life. My favorite lyric is from the song "Addiction" by the band D.O.P.E; “she’s like cocaine, heroin, alcohol, and vicodin; she’s my addiction”. I wonder if this would be Edward’s favorite quote as well.

The theme of danger is quite evident, starting from the beginning of the book. When Bella and Edward first meet, Edward warns her, explaining that the two shouldn’t associate with each other in her best interest. Of course, Bella goes against Edward’s threats, eventually falling in love with him and becoming an unofficial member of the Cullen. Bella “is unconditionally in love with him”, complicating the situation even more because to Edward, she is “exactly his brand of heroin” (195, 268). Any second, he could lose control and attack, putting her life in danger. She is his addiction, making the temptation almost irresistible. In other words, Bella is flirting with death.

Due to Bella’s constant involvement in the Cullen family, I’m curious to see how everything will play out in the rest of the series. Will she still be alive by the end of it? I suppose time will tell.

Twilight Post #2

As I continue read the novel Twilight, I’m starting to understand the perspective of the audience against the series. It makes complete sense that the main characters, Bella and Edward, are the center of attention because the two’s relationship is what keeps the plot in tact. Other readers seem to complain about how Edward is annoyingly described, ranging from his “soft, enchanting laugh” to how his eyes were “a deep, golden honey color” (46, 81). Or, could these haters resent the book because of the consistently witty, mysterious dialogue, which is used to add suspense to the novel? I’m not sure. But, I feel that it is imperative of me to point out that Edward and Bella aren’t the only characters in the story, that there’s more to Twilight than the hyped romantic, mythical relationship portrayed in the media!

What about Bella’s father, for instance? Personally, I think that the father-daughter relationship between them is quite peculiar. They rarely talk to each other, less than the stereotypical family would. I almost think that they’re still living two separate lives; Bella goes to school while her dad works, they have dinner together, and then go to sleep, only to repeat the process. Speaking of dinner, I also notice how Bella is developing the role of a wife, cooking dinner and doing chores. Considering the fact that Bella’s family is divorced, the fact that she’s taking these roles makes sense; Chief Swan has enough stress with investigations in Forks, yet alone with washing the dishes or preparing dinner.

Also, what about Bella’s friends and classmates? As she becomes more involved with Edward, she seems to be isolating herself from her friends. When she goes shopping along with Jesse and Angela, she leaves them to go to a bookstore to research on vampires, promising to meet them at a restaurant, only to leave them unaware of what the hell happened to her. Bella is starting to center her life on Edward, and it isn’t for the better.

Twilight: Post #1

Remember how you’re parents hated how you were such a picky eater, that no matter how much they pleaded, you wouldn’t clean you plate? Remember how they’d resent you for it because you hated that one kind of food, even though you never tried it? Well, my fellow bloggers, I believe that Twilight is equivalence to broccoli, cauliflower, or brussel spouts, or any yucky food to those haters of Stephenie Meyer’s series. No matter how many times people rave about it, there are some who cannot stand to even consider reading any book from the series after hearing a myriad of criticism. Well, despite the various comments about the series, I decided to pinch my nose and delve into the mythical world of vampires to determine if the positive and negative hype were fact or fiction. I refuse to push my plate aside until I’ve at least had a bite of it.

So far, the book is enjoyable. The introduction doesn’t immediately jump to romance, but instead, it involves a more subtle chain of events. Isabella Swan moves from Phoenix, Arizona to the rural, isolated town of Forks, where she decides to move in with her father. She attends a new high school, meets new friends, and lives a normal, peaceful life. Too normal.

One day at lunch, Bella notices a peculiar group of kids sitting together; “they didn’t look anything alike” and “they all had very dark eyes” (18). She continues to stare until one of them notices, only later to realize that one of the Cullens in her Biology partner. The two meet, and their destinies become intertwined.

Perhaps my initial prejudices against the book were wrong, at least for so far. The book isn’t being rushed, the author fluidly transitions from one idea to another, bringing in the characters at the perfect time. Maybe it wasn’t such a bad idea to read this book, but I don’t think I should jump the gun just yet. I think I should read a bit more to conclude towards such a statement.

Post Entry #2: In Suits and Ties with Pens onto Their Papers

As I’m reading through the memoir, I can’t help to notice that this is similar to one of those movies always promoted for the Lifetime channel; it’s focused around women, involves violence caused by a man, and is a depressing, yet serious topic. Now, this doesn’t make the memoir bad, just relatable towards readers, female readers in particular. Coincidentally, my mother had to endure a legal process similar to what Alice dealt within the book after she broke her wrist.

On the day before my tenth birthday, I went ice skating with my mother, only for her to fall on the ice because of a rambunctious child recklessly speeding around the rink. She was sent to the hospital, and now has limited function of her right wrist. What makes the situation worse is that no employee tried to help my mother after her fall. She wanted compensation for it, causing a legal battle. She had to endure the physical suffering of a broken wrist, but also internalize the idea that she could never play the piano again like she used to before the accident. Like Alice, she felt helpless when she was lying on the ground, vulnerable to harm.

As Alice is trying the rapist, a fellow classmate of hers, for rape, she undergoes questioning from the defense attorney representing him. The attorney asks many questions with a slightly snobby and belligerent attitude. Alice, angered by the man, is upset at the fact she has to endure this when she greatly suffered from the ramifications of his actions. She’s being asked about how poor her vision is in the night and other vaguely relevant questions in order to prove the rapist’s innocence. This specific passage reminded me of when the defense lawyer questioned my family; he tried to use every bit of reasoning to justify why the ice skating company shouldn’t settle for my mothers injury. It wasn’t fair to me, nor the rest of my family that my mother had to undergo a gratuitous amount of pain because of the employees’ negligence. I still remember the awkwardness of sitting in the court room, discussing the whole procedure as a woman typed everything down on a laptop.

Because I can relate to certain aspects of the book, like the legal process, along with the general idea rape, I feel that the reader could easily connect to Lucky more easily than initially perceived. Either way, I bet my mom would enjoy Alice Sebolds work as well.

Blog Entry #1: The Cruel Push into Reality

Innocence. Waking up at the brink of dawn to watch cartoons, completely unaware that two planes crashed into New York City. Writing a Christmas list, hoping that Santa will consider you to be a good child and deliver the present you’ve been dying to have for weeks. Hiding away from the cooties your female friend has while at the arts and crafts table. To me, being innocent is about being a naïve, imaginative child, not necessarily losing one’s self-purity.

However, Alice Sebold’s take of the idea of innocence is different compared to mine in her book, Lucky. After reading a few pages, I was taken aback at the description of Alice’s rape, putting particular emphasis on how she was a virgin and how the rapist doesn’t believe her, forcing her to take off her clothes and to perform oral sex “like sucking a straw” (19). The results are terrifying, leaving her scared, isolated, and vulnerable in ways many haven’t experience. The idea of innocence, here, is represented.

Today, many people consider ones virginity a symbol of purity or cleanliness, and although some people don’t consider losing it to be an issue, imagine what it’s like to be forced to give that sense of purity and cleanliness away. Being pinned to the ground, Alice had to endure giving up her virginity against her will, being pushed face first into the dark, cruel part of the world, that rape, murder, and war exist. So, in a way, Alice not only looses her innocence in the way that a child is exposed to the harsher elements of the world, but in the sense that a symbolic representation of it was stolen from her.

If only children didn’t wish that they’d grow up sooner; they should cherish every possible moment of naivety as possible. They don’t know what they’re going to miss