A Feature Length Film: How I Met My Husband

A romantic, suspensful comedy starring
Ryan Reynolds, James Marsden, and Miranda Cosgrove
How I Met My Husband


Plot "How I Met My Husband" (the Movie) would essentially follow the same plot as its short story. However, there would be more to Chris Watters after he leaves her the first time. So, the movie would use the story as its beginning and middle. Essentially, however, I'd like to make it so that Chris Watters returns to Edie after months of waiting to sort of, play with her heart, but of course, he leaves, unexpectedly again. This repetition of Watters appearing and leaving would happen periodically throughout the movie. In addition to the Edie and Chris Watters, part of the movie would be from Carmichael's point of view in watching this young girl wait by her mailbox, and he would also see she and Watters out in the town when he would return. He notices though that even when Watters is with her she is not happy, and ultimately takes his chances one day she is waiting by the mailbox. She eventually decides to date Carmichael, while Watters is away, which causes a conflict when he returns. Ultimately, she must choose the right man for her. In making the movie this way it builds suspense, and focuses on what type of man a woman needs to make herself happy. The movie shys away from making others happy, and instead focuses on the protagonist's needs and wishes.
Structure
The structure of the movie would be a flashback like the short story. However, instead of the closing scene being her husband talking to the children about how they met, the movie would open with this scene. I want it so that Edie is sitting down with her children, and as she tells her story the movie goes into its plot. The husband is not to be shown in this opening scene, for it would ruin the suspense. Although it is a flashback, there will be no narration by the older Edie during the actual plot. The action can speak for the words itself. When the plot has come to the conclusion, or when Edie chooses which man is right for her, it will go back to this opening scene, where Carmichael will appear as the father. He will sit down with the children, and say something along the lines of, "aw I missed it. Please tell of how I swept you off your feet again?" and the movie will close.
Characterization
So if I would have made a movie in which one guy has to pick between two girls, I would have chosen Brad Pitt, Jennifer Aniston, and Angelina Jolie. But, it's not that way. So, I'm thinking Ryan Reynolds as Chris Watters because Chris Watters needs a really comical, and relaxed personality. He needs to show no personal, lasting affection towards Edie. Carmichael would be played by James Marsden, a real sensitive and affectionate man who puts his feelings and heart on the line for Edie. Edie would be played by Miranda Cosgrove, it would be her first big time movie and give her acting career a boost. Ultimately, for Edie though Cosgrove possesses that younger aura and could incorporate the characteristics of a humble and modest upbringing which are relevant in the character of Edie. The other characters would be played by some unheard of small role actors, and actresses which would characterize their role as essentially advancing the plot.
Point of View
Since it is a flashback of Edie's story telling it would be from her point of view. However, parts of it would be from Carmichael's point of view in watching this young girl wait for the mail each day, and her unhappiness even when Watters comes back. By using two points of view, it not only focuses on Edie's feelings on the situation, but how Carmichael sort of came in as the hero, and why he felt the need to act. None of the movie would be from Watter's point of view to show that he truly had no feelings for Edie and just played with her heart. In not showing any of the movie from Watter's point of view it foreshadows that Watters will not be the husband at the end of the movie. Although the point of view may switch from time to time, the audience will still be able to create their own opinions of each character.
Theme
As mentioned earlier, the theme will focus around finding who is right for oneself, and a personal perspective of happiness. Unlike the book, the movie cannot focus its theme on it being more about the journey, than the destination because Watters appears back in the plot, and Carmichael would eventually find out why Edie was waiting by the mailbox. The movie cannot be played off as Edie was coming on to Carmichael. It could seem like this for part of the movie, but not through the events the characters will go through. In making the theme, sort of choosing the right man and happiness, it creates more of a romantic chick flick. Probably not a movie for the guys, unless it incorporates a few fights between Watters and Carmichael. Then again, some men like a good chick flick. ;)

A Christmas Story

Plot
In regards to "Red Ryder Nails the Hammond Kid", "A Christmas Story" follows the same premises for its plot. Both, are humorous and light-hearted, but the movie includes many classic scenes in which everyone knows, including Flick getting his tongue stuck to the flag pole, "Oh fudge..", and the leg lamp. These scenes are not included in the short story, but rather help to make the movie longer. They are really not significant to the plot, although I believe the leg lamp symbolizes the origins of "Red Ryder Nails the Hammond Kid". I did some research, and the original publication of the story first appeared in Play Boy magazine, thus, the risque leg incorporates where the story first became famous. The movie also includes the narration of Ralphie as an adult, thus the diction of the storyteller is more wise than the voice of a child, similar to the story. Finally, the plot does not center around "Disarming the Toy Industry" as in the short story, rather it focuses on a boy's Christmas, and the involvement of the family.
Theme
Unlike the story, "A Christmas Story" does not end the flashback (it's not a complete flashback in the movie)/plot with "It worked!" (The "it worked" means Ralphie's plan to blame the injury to his cheek and broken glasses on a fallen icicle, rather than admitting the BB from his gun hit him). The movie continues after those words in which the narrator says "Life is like that. Sometimes at the height of our revelries...when all is most right with the world, the most unthinkable disasters descend upon us". At this point, the neighbor's numerous hounds come into the house and devour the Turkey, leaving the family with no Christmas meal. So instead, the family has Christmas dinner at the local Chinese restaurant This quote above incapacitates the theme. With events like Christmas, it does not really matter what occurs. Regardless, it is typical for families to celebrate the holiday and spend it with family. This can ultimately be compared with the short story in that the setting is the Great Depression. It does not matter that the families are lacking some essential needs, they are still going to continue with their traditions like seeing Santa, and exchanging gifts. The ending to the movie really ends this with a strong point. On Christmas night, it shows Mom and Dad enjoying the Christmas tree and the falling snow in the dark, while the children are nestled in their beds with their new toys. Some things never change.
Setting
The setting of "A Christmas Story" is similar to the short story, except that there is no beginning setting in New York, because Ralphie as an adult is disregarded in the movie. Also, the movie does not take place in the height of the Great Depression, rather the back of the cover considers it the 1940s. The Great Depression, is normally associated with the 1930s. However, the setting is still northern Indiana during the Christmas Season. What is important to the setting is the fact that it is Christmas time. Without this, Ralphie's desire for a "Red Ryder with a compass in the stock and the thing that tells time" would be irrelevant. It would make no sense to make this in July, because it would not build the story and suspense of, will he really get this item for Christmas. It also creates struggle for the character, because he has to get his point across that he really wants this toy for Christmas. It is also important that Ralphie is a child, because if he were an adult, the story would also be irrelevant. Then the Christmas magic would be lost.
Point of View
Ultimately, the point of view of "A Christmas Story" is first person from Ralphie's point of view. In a way, it could also be somewhat objective in that the movie is not seen from Ralphie's eyes, but from the audience. Meaning that the audience can see each of the characters reactions to events, they are not how Ralphie would have had them react. The main difference between the short story and the movie is that the flashback is different. In the movie, there is no physical flashback of a man looking back on a childhood Christmas. Rather, there is just his narration to the Christmas. As a fun fact, the narrator who voices Ralphie as an adult is ultimately the author of "Red Ryder Nails the Hammond Kid", Jean Shepherd. Ultimately, many parts of the narration are exactly from the script of the short story. For example, Ralphie says he wants '"a Red Ryder BB gun!"' Yet, he quickly retracts by saying "'I was just kidding. Even though Flick is getting one.'" Another difference between the movie and the story is that the movie includes short anecdotes. These anecdotes are Ralphie's imagination of if he had the Red Ryder, and making his parents feel guilty. They show the attention he desires, because many of his anecdotes display him as a hero.
Characterization
As in "Red Ryder Nails the Hammond Kid", the characters of Ralphie's Mom, Dad, teacher and Santa Claus help to advance the plot by telling Ralphie he will shoot his eye out with a BB gun. However, because it is a movie, the audience is able to see more of a relationship between Ralphie and these people. Although they have relationships with Ralphie and help to advance the plot, they still are rather static characters that can be described in one sentence. For example, Ralphie's mom cares for her children, and seeks the best for them, but finds humor in many of her family's situations. "A Christmas Story" also includes a more detailed involvement of Ralphie's friends. Although they are mentioned in the short story, they are displayed more in the parts that were added into the movie from the short story. They tend to show up in humorous parts of the story like Flick getting his tongue stuck to the pole, and occurrences with the neighborhood bully. It is plausible that children appear in many of the comical parts of the movie because it centers around light-hearted, holiday humor.

You're Ugly, Too

I'm not sure where to really begin with this story. All I know is that not only is the plot humorous, but the main character herself. Something that really caught me was the point of view from which this story is written. I think this is because most of the literature we have read this semester has been first person point of view. This is however third person omniscient. Everything is written in third person, but much of it is from Zoe's point of view, and involves a more in depth description of how characters feel and act. I found that as I was reading this story, I would struggle between the first person conversation and the third person telling of the story, because I would think, wait did the point of view just change on me? In all, I think it is important that the story is taken from Zoe's perspective because she is really the one who seems to impede the gloom for herself through humor. Without taking this story from her point of view, the humor would be irrelevant in trying to describe how she feels about events and certain people.

The Drunkard

I found this whole story ironic and humorous. In general, there are many ironies. First, basically it did not really matter who had died. The father just looked forward to a funeral so he could drink. Second, the father and the son almost trade places in that the son comes home drunk and the father does not. This is also humorous because the son was sent to be the "brake" on the father to keep him from drinking. Third, everyone believes the father gave the son something to drink, when ultimately the son drank himself. Finally, the mother believes the son drank his father's beer to keep his father from getting drunk. So, in reality, the son really was the "brake" for his father, but I am not wholeheartedly sure the son drank the beer to spare his father. Rather, I think it was more of an experience thing for him.

Popular Mechanics

On this week's syllabus I noticed that with this story we were supposed to focus on structure. In the actual way the text is organized, I noticed that each line alternated between the man and woman speaking. In general, I found this to parallel essentially the tug-o-war over the baby. It is as if their words are also playing tug-o-war, going back and forth. Just like the goal is to win the baby, the point of the argument is to have the last word in the conversation.
Also when I read this, I thought of King Solomon, and the two women who both claimed a child, and both refused to admit who the real mother was. In order for the truth to be revealed, Solomon threatened to cut the baby in half, and give each "mom" a piece of the child. In the end, however, both women admitted the truth because they loved the baby. This story is quite the opposite however. In Popular Mechanics, both parents are out for their own selfish wants, instead of showing love towards their child.

The Lottery

2. What is a scapegoat? Who is the scapegoat in the story? What other examples of scapegoating can you recall?

A scapegoat is a person or a group of people that is often persecuted because they are blamed for something they did not do. Often times, they are a cover up for the bad actions of other people. In this story, Tessie, whose name is drawn from the box is ultimately the scapegoat. Throughout history, some examples of scapegoats include Nero blaming the Christians for the fire in Rome in the early 100s, and also the Jewish people which led to the holocaust during World War II. Like the Jews during the holocaust, Tessie is nothing but an innocent bystander who is tortured because she is marked by a slip of paper. One moment, she was a villager like the rest of them, and friends to many of them, but instantly those people turn on her. It truly shows the deadliness of blind traditions in which the villagers participated in.

Red Ryder Nails the Hammond Kid

Point of View
"Red Ryder Nails the Hammond Kid" is written in first person point of view. The main character Ralph, or "Ralphie" as mentioned in his kid form of the story takes a look back at a significant Christmas as a child. Ralph tells the main plot of the story as a flashback. This structure is rather interesting however because in describing his previous memories his narrating is not at all childish. For example he says, "It was not an easy choice. It was the age-old conflict between the Classic and the Sybaritic, and that is never easily resolved". No child of elementary school age would speak this way of choosing a Christmas gift for their mother. This overall technique over emphasis how he truly felt about certain issues in his childhood. If the narrator would have used childish words, he would have not gotten his true passion for this certain Christmas across to the reader. (And as a side note, I do not even know what the word Sybaritic means, let alone a grade school child, or maybe this is just a passing of the times.)
Plot
The plot of "Red Ryder Nails the Hammond Kid" centers around a sign the main character notices in the opening scene of the story stating to "Disarm the Toy Industry". This ultimately leads him to flashback to a childhood Christmas where he hopes to receive a Red Ryder BB gun. Much of the plot is written in a quick pace. Although the diction is of adult language, it still reflects the mind of a child through sections of short, simple sentences. For example, Ralphie says he wants '"a Red Ryder BB gun!"' Yet, he quickly retracts by saying "'I was just kidding. Even though Flick is getting one.'" In contrast, there are many parts of the plot that are told with a tone of wisdom and age. For example, we "kids plodded to school through forty-five-mile-an-hour gales, tilting forward like tine furred radiation ornaments, moving stiffly over the barren, clattering ground". This reflects those stories often told by grandparents, like the old 'ten miles to school, uphill both ways in rain, sleet or snow'. Overall, the plot incorporates several types of diction and structural aspects that add to the story as a whole.
Setting
There are two setting to "Red Ryder Nails the Hammond Kid". Before the flashback, the narrator is sitting in an H&H during Christmas time in Manhattan. However, he soon turns his story to atleast twenty years before, in the small town of Hammond, Indiana. In the flashback, it is also Christmas time, except during the Great Depression. It seems as if one thing reflected in the setting is that Christmas spirit never dies. Although many people were struggling at this time, people still journeyed to the shops so their children could visit Santa, and Ralphie and his family still had a Christmas tree, and exchanged gifts. Overall, the setting plays an important role because without it being Christmas in both settings, the story would be somewhat irrelevant, and the flashback would have never occurred.
Characterization
The narrator uses indirect characterization to describe the character's personality and actions. This allows for the flashback to be effective. Because the point of view of the story is first person, it is logical that the narrator is essentially telling his own story using indirect characterization. The story mainly focuses on Ralphie, but there are a few minor, unimportant characters such as his Mom, Dad, Teacher, and Santa, The only role these people have in the story is to help move the plot along buy consistently telling Ralphie that he will shoot his eye out with a BB gun. Besides the narrator, the only other important character is the old lady sitting next to him at H&H. it is because of his questioning about "disarming the toy industry" that sends her into an outrage. The overall effect of this outrage sends the narrator into his flashback which is ultimately where the core of the plot is located.
Theme
The theme of "Red Ryder Nails the Hammond Kid" focuses on the idea that some things never change, especially for children. The narrator opens up the plot by reading the sign "Disarm the Toy Industry". This is ironic to him because he was accustomed to the dangers of BB guns as toys when he was a child. It is also ironic that he is not against disarming the toy industry because he was a victim to the dangers of giving kids these toys. However, the ending to the story presents the idea that Red Ryder BB guns still exist, through the "number of kids [he] see[s] with broken glasses". The way he touches on this subject suggests that he is still a 'friend' or Red Ryder, and still accepts the forms of childhood toys. This ultimately reflects that some things will never change.

A Worn Path

6. In answer to a student who wrote to ask her "Is the grandson really dead?" Welty responded, "My best answer would be: Phoenix is alive." What might have led the student to ask that question? How can the author's remark be seen as an answer?

The student might have believed the grandson was dead from the conversation that occurred between Phoenix and the nurse. The nurse asks the grandmother how the boy is? Phoenix continues to be occupied with other things and hesitates to answer. The nurse then replies "He isn't dead is he?" Something flickers across Phoenix face but she sort of changes the topic to how she had forgotten why she had made the long trip. This short conversation could lead the reader to believe that the grandson is dead.
The author's answer, on the other hand, I think suggests that the boy is still alive. I think it is because the grandson is still living that the grandmother herself is still alive. He gives her a reason for her life, and for her journey into the town. It is as if the journey into town is symbolic to her life as a whole.

Once Upon a Time

I have a few thoughts on this story.
Did she mean this to be a child's story? Atleast the third part of the whole script where the author breaks into the story about the burglaries etc. I mean it does not have the magical effect of a fairy tale. It is definitely not a "and then they lived happily ever after..." If anything it is like a warning to children. Maybe against ignorance? I do find it humorous/ironic that the little boy read a fairy tale and "he pretended to be the Prince who braves the terrible thicker of thorns to enter the palace and kiss the Sleeping Beauty...". The action of the child actually doing this in real life, and then the result create the message that the real world is not a fairy tale, bad things happen.
My other thought, and I cannot think of the exact wording, but something along the lines of people create their own prison? I think it is actually people create their own happiness. But honestly, nothing had even happen to this family, yet they shut the outside world out, and so did the rest of the neighborhood. And by all these families kicking their workers to the curb, they sort of created their own worries. They also created their own ending for their son.

Eveline

The theme of Eveline focuses on escaping. Everything about Eveline's life makes her want to escape. She works as a sales clerk in "the stores" for the equivalent of less than ten dollars a week, her father makes her work and then keeps these wages, and she is trying to keep her deceased mother's promise to keep the family together. I think the sentence "Everything changes" really sums up the theme of the story. Some of my other thoughts, I do not believe she truly loves Frank, I think she uses him as her own personal escape, and the escape to her new life. Which explains the final lines of the story..."Her eyes gave him no sign of love or farewell or recognition". Which I took to understand that she did not go with him. If she truly did love him she would have went with him. Her eyes would have been quite the opposite, full of love, and if she really were letting him go, she would have said goodbye. Truly this was not Eveline's great escape.

Miss Brill

What is the purpose of the fur piece? What is the source of the crying in the final sentence of the story?

To Miss Brill, I believe the fur piece to be her companion. I picture her as an older, frail woman. She might possibly have medical problems..."she felt a tingling in her hands and arms..." By the title, and her name, Miss Brill it is obvious that she was never married, or is now widowed. For she is a miss; although miss, to me usually specifies a younger woman. To her, the fur piece is real, to the reader, Miss Brill applies personification to the piece. We know that this item cannot really talk or interact with Miss Brill. I think her identifying with the animal is a sign of her loneliness, possibly disillusionment. Especially, her whole idea that her trip to the park is a play and she is the star. However, the last line of the story talks about crying from the fur she has placed in the box, but really it is Miss Brill. Maybe, she has finally come to accept her loneliness, as she places the fur away.

Bartleby...

There are five characters to this story, the narrator-the lawyer, Turkey, Nippers, Ginger Nut, and Bartleby. From the beginning, the narrator goes into description of the workers in his office Turkey, Nippers, and Ginger Nut. Turkey and Nippers are displayed as foil characters. Turkey is nearly the narrator's age, about sixty, and is a good worker in the morning, but tends not concentrate so much in the afternoon. On the other hand, Nippers is young and ambitious, but hates to work in the morning. He often slumps behind his desk until the afternoon. Although the story eventually transitions to Bartleby, it is important to notice that the narrator's initial intentions are not to go straight into Bartleby's story. He takes time to describe each of his subordinates with much detail. This is a cue for the reader that although the story is titled "Bartleby the Scrivener" it is not ultimately about the events of Bartleby. Rather, it tells the story of how the narrator deals with this character and how he affects the lawyer.

Humor

"Hunters in the Snow" is very amusing, to say the least. The story begins with verbal irony, the portly character is actually named Tub. Then, the situational irony only adds to the humor when Kenny, with permission, shoots the dog. The permission Kenny received is not realized by Tub and Frank until later in the story. I also find it odd that Tub thought, that in shooting the dog, that Kenny was aiming for him. Also, it is quite funny that no one seems to really react to Kenny being shot. All they really say is well it's your left side, so it didn't hit your appendix. Hello? The guy just got shot. Were they using BB guns? Then, the people living in the house basically say no we don't have anything, do you want to use the phone? There is no typical reaction of a character being shot. The ride to the hospital only gets better. Frank and Tub stop twice to warm up, while their friend is sitting in the back of the truck freezing, and with a wound in his stomach! Then we find out that Frank likes a fifteen year old and Tub really does not have gland issues. And then in the reunification of friendship Frank buys Tub pancakes, and then watches him veg out. Then, ultimately, they were not even heading in the right direction to the hospital! Throughout the storyline, it is more important to focus on Tub and Frank, and their metamorphosis. The author took Kenny out of the picture physically so that the change between these two characters would be the vantage point of the reader.

Dynamic Characters

All of the characters in Hunters in the Snow take on a dynamic change. First, Kenny the more assertive, abusive one, who kills the dog is the one who ends up helpless in the back of the truck. Second, Frank the one constantly poking fun at Tub becomes sensitive by the end of the story when the two are able to share their "secrets". Tub, also in this point in the story becomes more accepting of himself, because Frank is able to actually treat him as a human. He also reveals how his diet and health issue is fake. I'm not really sure I would consider these changes permanent. For one, Kenny was only physically changed throughout the story and had no choice. I also believe that Frank's reaction to Tub was just because Tub actually got mad at him, and it might have frightened Frank. Overall, these sort of dynamic changes prove that sometimes the worse situations bring out the best in people, even if the effects do not linger.

Everyday Use

4. Does the mother's refusal to let Dee have the quilts indicate a permanent or temporary change of character?

The mother's refusal to let Dee have the quilts does indeed indicate a permanent change of character. Before, I feel as if the mother was willing to let Dee have or do anything because she was the one that had broken away from the society. Which in the beginning, I believe the mother sees as a good thing. However, Dee seems to put herself on a different level then her mother, and sister Maggie. Dee takes the way she acts as portraying her heritage, when really she has denied everything about her heritage. In the note on the bottom of page 173 we learn that some members of the black community reject names they inherited from a period of slavery and selecting others that keep with their African heritage. To the mother, I do not believe it is her African heritage she finds important, but rather her ancestors that do relate back to the civil war. She mentions her Great Grandpa Ezra's civil war uniform. Clearly, Dee has a conflicting few of heritage than her mother. She merely wants the pieces from the house and quilts for show, not for their real use, not for how they connect to the past. Ultimately, the mother is able to make a connection with Maggie who still lives with her and understands the true meaning of heritage.

A Rose for Emily

So I want to share my opinion of this story, just let it go, right now, it was weird, grotesque, I mean I'm not even sure of words that describe it. But anyway, for the basics, A Rose for Emily, like How I met my Husband, is another flashback. Yet, except this time, instead of being told by the main character, it's told in first person plural shortly after her death. Which, I believe the first person plural to represent those of the townspeople.
I feel much of the story builds suspense. I mean she buys arsenic, and then purchases things for the wedding, and then Homer Barron disappears, and she is never seen...and the smell. By the end, it all makes sense, but when reading it through, it just seems like a series of unrelated events. To me, it also seems very choppy--like so many parts of her life are missing, but then again, that is what happens when one disappears into a house for years and years.
My final comments/questions/random thoughts
1. She let people (art students) into her house?!? ew ew
2. The title suggests a rose for Emily. Where does the rose come into play in this story?

Interpreter of Maladies (Foreshadow)

I feel there are certain things that foreshadow the ending of the story. Because of the two things I noticed, I believe that there are more hints within the story that I have yet to pick up on. However, first, on page 151 Mr. Kapasi "noted that the boy was slightly paler than the other children..." This, obviously foreshadows the affair that will eventually be brought to the surface by Mrs. Das. However, there is no suggestions to how or when it will be brought up. As a side note, I find it fitting that Mr. Kapasi notices this flaw in the family since he is an "interpreter". However, I find it weird that Mr. Das never questioned his sons skin coloring, or that Mrs. Das fails to mention if he ever did, and what her reasoning was for it.
Another item I noticed, and maybe it could be more of a symbol than foreshadowing, but the occurrence of the monkeys. It seems appropriate that the ending scene of the story involves a chaotic "rendezvous" with the monkeys. I feel it once again somehow parallels the whole idea of Americans not being in touch with the outside world. I mean Mr. Kapasi did warn that the monkeys were only harmless if fed. Yet, it's Mrs. Das who continues up the trail eating her puffed rice and putting herself and children in danger.
Oh silly Americans.

Interpreter of Maladies

I find this story very interesting in regards to the American culture. I feel that the author really makes a point to show how this family with an Indian ethnicity has been absorbed into not traditional Indian ways. I'd like to go through several of these examples:
First, Mr. Das with his tour book and camera. This sounds like any typical American tourist. Yet, what makes it ironic, is that it is his own country. I feel he is more absorbed in his own tour book rather than just listening to Mr. Kapasi share the history, especially when they visit the sun temple.
Second, Mrs. Das is fascinated with looking her best. She paints her nails, shows her calfs, and wears big sunglasses. This I believe to be typical of most American women, yet most likely not something seen in India.
Next, I find the whole affair Mrs. Das had with her husband very American. This can be directly compared to Mr. Kapasi who is also miserable in his marriage, but stays true to his wife. Although, I think his thoughts toward Mrs. Das may have suggested more "American" actions.
Finally, I take the whole event of Mrs. Das misinterpreting Mr. Kapasi's job and spilling her deepest secret as stereotypical of Americans. It is almost as if the author is saying that Americans do not understand the issues pertaining to anything beyond their own little world.
Overall, I find the story satirizing American culture, and how it has the ability to take over families.

How I met my Husband

8. Discuss the effectiveness of the surprise ending. How does Carmichael differ from Chris Watters? Can it be argued that the surprise ending is also inevitable and appropriate?


In this flashback, in which an older wiser Edie tells her story, it seems only appropriate that another man take the place of Chris Watters. The structure of the flashback does create a story telling type atmosphere in which the story would not be complete without a surprise ending. If Watters would have written her back and the story would have ended it, to the reader, it would have just been pointless to read her story. Almost as if the reader would say, oh typical, another story where the woman gets the man and they run away together etc etc. Yet, in adding the surprise ending with Carmichael, the story becomes more characteristic of real life. It's characteristic of how things do not always work out as planned or even imagined. Plus, Carmichael was the more appropriate man for Edie. He did not take advantage of her, and did not make her wait. Instead, it was as if Carmichael waited on Edie. He waited until she gave up, realized that she could not wait there forever on Watters, and that is what makes him much more suitable for Edie than Watters. He was merely all for her, rather than himself.

Elegy for my Father, Who is not Dead

On the surface, it seems as if, the speaker juxtaposes his father's will to die and his will to live. It is fair to say that his father wants to die, but he wants his son to be ready to die with him. I believe that by "embarking" on this trip his father does not mean a literal death, but the willingness to let him go. In a deeper meaning, I feel this poem contrasts the differences in their beliefs of eternal life. This is proven through the excerpt " I see myself on deck, convinced/ I'll see him standing on the dock/ and waving, shouting, Welcome back." Which basically means the speaker means he'll just die and nothing will happen, while the father believes he'll be waiting for his son in heaven. Although the father's tone is optimistic-it is the speaker's pessimistic tone that sets the complete tone for the poem. The father had faith from the beginning "He's ready./ In the sureness of his faith" the speaker says. Ultimately, it's a matter of the speaker accepting or not accepting his father's word.

Lonely Hearts

The book describes these stanzas as 'Personals' in a classified section. It reminded me of a dating website. Yet, this poem makes it sound as if they are selling themselves. They are so desperate for a companion they make themselves sound appealing. Which does not really describe the real person someone is. I find the structure of this poem interesting. It begins with the question "Can someone make my simple wish come true?" Then, it ends that stanza with "Do you live in North London? Is it you?" After that, each stanza alternates ending between those two questions. Except, the last two stanza repeat "Do you live in North London? Is it you?" This repetition definitely creates a desperate tone.

Delight in Disorder

The poem begins with an oxymoron: sweet disorder. In reality, this is true, the world prefers disorder. It's a proven chemical/biological process called entropy. Entropy measures the amount of chaos in a system, and the world prefers disorder. However, beyond science, this is true of society. many people travel each year to visit the leaning tower of Pisa? Why? Because it has imperfection, there is a chance it might fall. A more prevalent example are today's style of jeans. We don't want them perfect, we want them ripped, teared and with holes. This explains the concept of Delight in Disorder. The author pulls off disorder in his poem by his structure. Many of the rhymes of his poem are imperfect. Only lines 1 and 2, 9 and 10, and 13 and 14 rhyme. The rest of the lines are inconsistent. Overall, this disorder is a natural part of life.

That Time of Year

In this poem the speaker is expressing how he is approaching death. This is not a literal death, but rather a death of his youth. To express death he uses am extended metaphor typical of the ending of fall. From the poem, the reader understands that it is about the death of youth from the line; " I am like a glowing ember/ Lying on the dying flame of my youth". Also, although the speaker to talking about his youth expiring, he is warning his friend about this event. This is presented in the repetition of "In me you can see". The speaker is not repeating I, and talking to himself. These phrases help to also create the tone. A tone, that I would consider foreboding. Basically, the end of the poem suggests loving no because it will soon be gone. Which leaves me wondering if the last two sentences deal with itself or still the death of youth?

To His Coy Mistress

I liked this poem in that it addresses a universal topic. This topic is something we all adhere, time. There are certain ways we have to spend our days and certain ways we wish we could spend it. The speaker wants to spend the afternoon with his lady walking and passing the long love's day away. Which in a way, is ironic, because part of the poem is not having the amount of time to spend with his love and how they need not let time pass. Time is also prevalent in the poem in that the speaker wishes he could go back to an earlier time so he could have loved her sooner. His love also continues into the future for the woman deserves this forever. The last two lines wrap up the poem in saying that they cannot make the sun stand still. Which ultimately means they cannot stop time at all. The seasons will continue to pass, and as the seasons pass they become older losing more and more time together. Overall, carpe diem, seize the day.

Crossing the Bar

I feel this poem is more than just a man who takes his boat out to sea at night. I think the poem is symbolic of death, and there is a tone to it which suggests a farewell. There are three lines which really struck me. "and may there be no moaning at the bar" "and may there be no sadness of farewell" "I hope to see my Pilot face to face". The sunset and evening star is calling him to not necessarily die, but to move on to heaven. While the bar, which on the sea would have to be a sand bar refers to the leaving of one life to the next. Like the land is familiar, but the sea he is beginning to float into is the unknown. When the speaker leaves on this journey, he wants no one to be sad. Finally, I think what truly proves the extended metaphor is the word Pilot. The speaker wants to meet his Pilot, Pilot, with a capital P, which ultimately means God. This person is ultimately ready for death.

My mistress' eyes

To me, this poem was really opposite of something one would write to try to tell a girl you love her and she means everything to you. The tone at the beginning of the poem is almost cynical. It is almost as if the speaker has nothing positive to say about his love. I mean it seems as if everything compares to her and is better. A A real love poem would be quite the opposite. For example, her "eyes are nothing like the sun" would be "the sun is nothing compared to her eyes". However, the last two lines of the poem create a shift in tone with the words "and yet". According to the book, the last line can be paraphrased as "as any woman who has been lied to with false comparisons..." The line before that says his love is rare. So putting these two ideas together, I think the speaker is trying to say that when men say things like "the sun is nothing compared to her eyes", it's a lie. Yet, since he is not lying to his love, his love is true? That almost seems paradoxical.

Getting Out

The tone at the beginning of the poem seems better because the speaker is discussing how they were confined. The word confined implies prisoners. I do not believe the couple was insane, but rather they were 'chained' to each other. Something kept them from separating long before. As the poem continues there is not only a shift in tone but a shift in the direction of the poem. The first stanza discusses the fight itself. The second stanza is reminiscent of the gradual process of leaving. The third stanza shifts the tone to reminiscent and loss. Instead of the speaker focusing on them together, she begins to express her own feelings. It is obvious the speaker is not over her love, and she believes that he is not over her, or that he is lying about being over her. Like the line, "you're sure to say you're happy now" means he is lying or stating that he was right. It sounds like a typical breakup, for it is hard to make a break up mutual. In the end, someone always gets hurt.

Much Madness is divinest Sense

Well, here we go with another Dicknson poem! This time, she has created quite a paradox in a few short lines. The speaker states that madness, insanity, or chaos is good sense. While also stating that good sense is madness. This brings me back to my AP biology class today in which we studied entropy. Entropy is the amount of chaos in a system and the world favors this chaos. If applying this to Dickinson's poem, the world is constantly insane, because there is no such idea as normality when all people are unique and different. SInce being normal does not ultimately exist, this is good sense, because it is madness. However, possessing good sense, which would be attempting to act normal, or as if nothing existed would be madness. Which I think madness in this sense is almost supposed to be used in an exclamatory sentence. Such as "Wow, that's insane! Crazy!" If anything, this poem is insane.

APO 96225

This poem also ranks as one of my favorites because it was comparable to "The Things They Carried". It considers the topic of what is appropriate to note from the war and what is not. Just like "The Things They Carried", the speaker does not focus on the day to day events of the war because that is what he lives in. By writing his parents a letter, he is able to escape this zone for atleast a short time. He also hides the violence of the war by referring to understatements or aversions--like that it rains a lot. When discerning between situational and dramatic irony, I think it is probable that both exist. For example, we as the reader know he is shielding his parents from the war. However, it is also situational in that when he actually writes his mother the truth she does not want to hear it again, even after she repeatedly asked for the truth. It basically sounds like a situation the speaker cannot win.

Ozymandias

This whole poem is ironic. There is verbal irony in the lines '"My name is Ozymandias, King of kings;/Look on my words, ye Mighty, and despair'". Basically, he wants the people who view his statue to look at all the great things standing around him. Yet, there is nothing present except sand. There is no great city, and no magnificent reason for him to be remembered. All that remains is a statue with a cold sneer on his face. This cold sneer relates to the why there is nothing remaining him or of his rule. He was a tyrant who oppressed his people. Yet, years later, oppressing his people means nothing because there are no remains of the mighty king he thought he was. Overall, the poem teaches the lesson that the truth will really be the idea that withstands time.

Barbie Doll

This was one of my favorite poems I read because it's such a prevalent issue in society. I found it interesting that the author was born in 1936 and the Barbie Doll was an unrealistic model probably around the 1950s-1960s too. At first, when I read the poem, I thought the girl had committed suicide. This would have also related to today's society with the many issues of not belonging and bullying. However, when one focuses on the diction, (it always comes back to diction) I noticed words like cut, cosmetics, and a turned-up putty nose. All of these point to another common situation in our society, plastic surgery. The last three lines of the poem are also satrical of society. This girl gave up everything that made her beautiful on the inside for perfection on the outside. She could not stand that soceity saw her imperfections and it wore on her on the inside. The sad truth about this poem is that it is a day to day occurence.

5. Pink Dog

The pink dog is symbolic of the homeless people of Rio De Janiero. Basically, the dog's rabies, madness, and scabies, are paralleled with flaws of homelessness like paralysis and parasites. The repetition of the word beg is also one associated with a dog and that of a poor person. Which is precise diction used by the author. Overall, it is fair to say that the treatment of the homeless people is not even fit for a dog.

Throughout the poem, there is a juxtaposition of the dog's nakedness and the masks of the carnival. It is almost as if the author is saying Fat Tuesday is the day for the homeless people to be different because they can be. They can hide behind mascara (with accent) and fantasia (also accent). Or, the author is threatening them to do such a task because the people at the festival do not want to see them. However, the last stanza is brightly positive basically saying it does not matter what happens, the show must go on!

4. Dream Deferred

"Dream deferred" contains five similes and one metaphor. Each simile refers to the dream having negative consequences because it is put off. However, the final metaphor questions that if the dream would it be positive or negative. At first, when I read I thought explode to mean blow up, or destruction or violence. However, explode can also mean to take hold or spread which could be inferred as the dream taking hold.


From the book, the reader learns that the author was a black American and from the time frame, I think it is fair to associate the dream with civil rights. Just reading the poem without this makes the dream unclear. If the topic is civil rights, this also coincides with the title, because by the 1900s the dream would have already been put off since the Civil War was in the 1860s. It would continue to be deferred as well and I think the author knew this fact. The goal of achieving civil rights had been negative for so long, as stated through the similes, and had burdened the people long enough. So the author questions the dream through the ending metaphor.

3. Toads

Throughout this poem there are toads juxtaposed. The first toad represents the man's work, while the second represents his pride. Toad one is his working life, but pride basically questions 'why should I have to work? I see all these other people surviving' Yet, the man's pride tells him that is why he works, because he is not lazy and he wants a good life for himself.


It is interesting to note how the pun and the allusion work together. First, the speaker says "ah, were I courageous enough to shout stuff your pension". In this sentence, stuff is used as a verb, like to get rid of. Then the allusion to Prospero ridding of his magic in 'The Tempest' says "but I know, all too well, that's the stuff that dreams are made on". Here stuff is used as a noun. There are two ways these can be associated together. First, the speaker could be saying that pensions are what dreams are made from, as in retirement. However, I think it is intended as more of a joke or dream that the speaker would dare give up his pension. Which, leads back to the prideful toad.

2. I taste a liquor never brewed

This poem is an extended metaphor for not how the speaker literally becomes intoxicated on alcohol, but rather life. Instead of referencing to different types of alcohol, the author lists aspects of nature like air, endless summer days, bee, butterflies, and sun. "From inns of Molten Blue", which I associate the sky as which is in the context of the poem, her bar. The word inn, reflects a tavern that people used to gather and drink at back in the day. And ultimately, the sky being nature/ the bar means she is drunk on life. Next, there are many allusions to places in this poem which are generally associated as social, celebratory atmospheres. Although I am not completely sure of all these places, I do understand that the vats along the Rhine refers to fermenting wine. Yet, the speaker says she has a better tasting liquor. Finally, it is fair to say that the title and first line reflect the extended metaphor. If a liquor is not brewed, I do not think it possesses much alcohol.

1. Bright Star

This poem focuses on the unchanging, unwavering stars. However, there is an underlying meaning to the stars. The speaker wishes to be steadfast like them, but never wants to be far a way from his love, or alone. The speaker not only does not want to be a way from his lady, but is happy with his place in life. The last line states "and so live ever or else swoon to death". So he basically wants to live forever in this moment with his love, or die at the height of passion.

Through the poem there is a mention of symbols of water. Such references like "moving water", "ablution", "shores" and "moors" create a river sort of image. In which a river is always moving unlike the stars. Overall, throughout literature, a river is a universal symbol of life. Which could ultimately lead back to the point that the speaker wants to live forever with his lover.

5. After Apple-Picking

I feel "After Apple-Picking" really creates an image of the labor done, and the oncoming winter season. Some images that reflect the work finished include, ladder, tree, barrel, scent of apples, stem end and blossom end, cellar bin, and harvest. Winter reflects the author's need for rest. A common theme of winter is hibernation in which the author is taking part in after finishing his work. His work was so laborious, that he still feels the ache in his feet and the swaying of the ladder. The shift from the past tense to the present tense illustrates how the author talks of his future sleep and his actual dream. His work is so long and demanding, that he not only thinks about how he will dream about it, but he actually does dream about it. Once again, the woodchuck refers to an animal of hibernation and if the author will partake in this type of sleep, or human sleep.

4. The Convergence of the Twain

This poem was actually one of my favorites. Without the epigraph, I am unsure I would have made the connection. Knowing the subject of the poem, Titanic, made it all the more beautiful. The first stanza criticizes human vanity for why the ship ultimately failed. The creators believed it was unsinkable. Continuing throughout the poem, I feel the theme of human vanity is continued as the failure of Titanic becomes more drastic. The author creates a soul mate for the ship, the mighty iceberg. Yet, their love is destructive and they go down together. Yet it was not really these two objects fault for their fall, but rather, human vanity.

Another fascinating idea from the poem is its like organization. two which are short, followed by a longer one. I feel the short lines parallel the Titanic's short life, while the longer line represents the forever it will spend under the sea.

3. I felt a Funeral, in my Brain

I feel the purpose of this poem really focuses on an extended metaphor of an actual funeral, but really describes the expression of someone with depression, or who has been forgotten. This person might be quite dismal and actually consider death as an option. So describing the metaphor to someone's real life: Stanza 1: The author is lying in a coffin, like at a showing. In real life, people walk past this person and do not know how to respond, or do not pay attention. Stanza 2: The funeral service begins, but the author really wants us to focus on the beating, not a drum, but a heart and that is all that is heard. Stanza 3: The author is taken a way to be buried. Outside of the metaphor, time keeps passing and space goes by. Stanza 4 and 5: focuses on the burial into the ground and then it all comes to an abrupt end like death.

2. The Widow's Lament in Springtime

The tone of this poem is sorrowful and reminiscent. There are two separate events occurring in the poem. One mentions the death of her husband, and the sorrow she feels, while the other tells the beginning of the spring season. Yet, they tie together in that the spring reminds her of the husband's death. Instead of the white blossoms being one of joy, they are one of sorrow. I feel that the boy in the poem has just visited his father's grave. However, he is returning to tell his mother to move on. The white trees are those near his resting spot, possibly representing heaven. The ultimate hopeless point of the poem are the last four lines. The author states that she would rather be dead and lie with her husband rather than live through another spring.

1. Spring

By the author's diction, I understand the poem "Spring" as having to do with Easter. The words eggs, heavens, lambs, Eden garden, Christ, lord, all are religious and can be associated with the event. The first line, "nothing is so beautiful as spring--" ties nicely with the last stanza. The book in question four is able to paraphrase the last stanza basically saying save us from sin. Which having a Catholic background, means that there is nothing more beautiful than being saved from sin. Thus, like Hopkins describes the "peartree and blooms" and mother nature starting over, people may also have the chance to renew themselves. This can also be illustrated through the line "a strain of the earth's sweet beginning/In Eden garden".

Intro to Poetry

I believe it is impossible to just make a poem mean whatever the reader pleases. However, it is difficult to come up with a meaning "which relies on the fewest assumptions not grounded in the poem itself". This idea is rather confusing and depends upon how a specific person's brain functions. Surely, I can read a poem and find ideas from it that would be completely wrong. Within a poem itself, there is figurative language which must be broken down and interpreted. If one of these sections is misunderstood, but still applies by Perrine's rule, what happens when the one section makes the entire poem wrong? This is what makes poetry complicated; the infantile meanings and the meaning as a whole. Overall, when reading poetry it is still possible to create a misinterpretation that is still in root with the poem itself.


When hearing Perrine's interpretations of the poems, I realized how far off I was. Yet, I feel some of these interpretations are almost impossible to reach a conclusion on. The only two poems I was even close on were "The Night-March" and the "Sick Rose". Yet, I had only began to realize the stars in the first by concluding that the setting was nighttime. The final poem, I was able to conclude love and sickness. It was not until Perrine put the words together that I then understood. So my strategy from now on is to look at the writer's diction, especially good verbs like "twinkle" and "glimmer" etc and to see if there is a connection. This will imply a much deeper and slower reading, but in the long run will probably allow for more efficiency in understanding poetry.

20. Final Thoughts

I am surprised of a few minimal loose ends that were not tied up. First, What happened to Martha and Cross? Did he ever get O’Brien to write his story, or was this book what he wanted? When and how did O’Brien finally leave Vietnam? Did he fix his friendship with Sanders? Finally, what happened to the rest of the men?
Enough questions, now my actual thoughts. I am so glad I read The Things They Carried after The Sun Also Rises. I would have been disappointed in Hemingway’s novel, after this book that I could not set down. I think this novel really caught my interest because it dealt with United States history and it really went into depth of being a soldier in Vietnam. It was not the aftermath of the war, but the event itself. The novel presents the lives of the forgotten soldiers, not just the dead. After finishing, I talked to my dad about the novel and Vietnam itself (we enjoy discussing US history). He said that the soldiers who returned home from Vietnam did no receive the credit they deserved because so many Americans were against the war. After hearing this, I want to extend O’Brien’s intentions for writing further. It was not just the dead he wanted to live on, but also the legacy of the men who served the United States in Vietnam. I think it can even be extended to all American veterans, because I believe Elroy, from the beginning of the novel, represented soldiers from before Vietnam. The Things They Carried is something that will stick with me, especially the image of the book waiting on the shelf for the stories to live on. It makes death seem comforting because one can believe that their life will live on even after death.

19. Linda

After I finished the novel, I took a night to ponder the reasons for Linda. It seemed a little out of place in a book all about Vietnam and its effects. Yet, as I look back to the beginning of the chapter, with the actual dead Vietnamese man, I found a connection between the two. The men of Alpha Company are one with death by encountering the man physically, which in O’Brien’s early days of the war he did not understand. O’Brien understood encountering the dead in a different way, through his dreams. Trough his dreams, he would make her come alive and not make death such a horrible occurrence. However, when O’Brien is literally in contact with death he cannot bear it. This time, death is not a figment of his imagination. He cannot make this man’s body live again like with Linda. He has no memory of this man alive.
Yet, this gives him another reason to write, besides to release the things he carries. In his stories, the lives of the dead are not forgotten, just like the metaphor of a checked out book from the shelf (pg 232, O’Brien). In O’Brien’ story, they are not forgotten.

18. The Living Dead

“They didn’t disturb the body, they just grabbed the old man’s hand” (pg 214, O’Brien). Kiowa claims these acts are not decent, but this situation reminds me of Dia de los Muertos, or Day of the Dead in Mexican culture (pg 215). On November 1, or the counterpart to Catholicism’s’ All Soul’s Day, the Mexican cities celebrate the deaths of their ancestors. They lay out altars with candles, and their relatives’ favorite food and items, ultimately inviting them back into the home. Also, they dress up, and dance to the cemeteries in the process of mocking death. By celebrating and finding humor in death they are accepting of their own fate. I am not arguing that Alpha Company’s actions were not humorous and disrespectful, but I feel that at that moment they were one with the dead. They were fighting a war. Almost every chapter of the book revolves around death. These men had watched three other men in their platoon die. They were not blind to the idea, they knew it was a possibility, and somehow, they could accept it.

17. It Really Happened

On page twenty-one of chapter one, O’Brien writes about how men, in order to get themselves out of the war, consider injuring themselves. I never really thought it would happen to one in his platoon. Then again, there is a reason for everything, even this small inclusion of chapter one. Foreshadow. However, the men of chapter one do not ponder this decision more because they do not want to receive the nagging of their peers. Yet, the situation with Rat was different. His mind was not in the right place. I am sure that as a medic he could diagnose his own illness. By the final days of his stay in Vietnam, I am not sure he was fit to serve anyone. So maybe he not only did himself a favor but everyone else. Even O’Brien accepted it, and later, as a result, had to deal with the novice Jorgenson.

16. Child's Play

I find the chapter ‘The Ghost Soldiers’ ironic in several ways. First, O’Brien always expressed how young his platoon was and how sometimes they played games and acted immaturely. For example, the game surrounding Curt Lemon’s death or the jokes after Ted Lavender’s death. O’Brien makes himself seem like he is not a part of this foolishness. However, he is quite the opposite in this chapter. He acts like a child who did not get his way and wants revenge. Yet, the prank itself was not childish, for he targeted Jorgenson right in the heart of fear. Second, O’Brien is no longer a part of his platoon, and the man who made his life miserable has taken his place. After the months they spent together, in the wilderness, it is a surprise that such a bond diminished. Lastly, O’Brien ponders the idea of retuning to the ‘bush’ even though he is much safer now. He makes the ultimate fear of death come alive. The fact of knowing your life is in danger, which makes you accept everything about it. That feeling. However, in O’Brien’s situation I would be thinking that third time’s a charm. =/

15. Pun

The chapter titled ‘Field Trip’ has two separate meaning to its title. To Kathleen, visiting Vietnam was like a school field trip. Her introductory to exploring the world began with Vietnam. However, to O’Brien the return literally was a trip to the field. Not just any field, but the place where he was a soldier, but where his friend lost his life. The title field trip is a cover up for the real reason O’Brien wanted to return to Vietnam. Just like he hides the fact that he killed a man from his daughter, he titles this chapter gently so she may not encounter the circumstances of Kiowa’s death. He might have called it a field trip so his daughter would not understand the seriousness of the matter. That way her father could return to reflect and fulfill unfinished business.

14. Analogy

“The war was as remote to her as cavemen and dinosaurs” (pg.., O’Brien). This analogy not only reflects Kathleen’s view of the war, but a much larger population that includes O’Brien before he was a part of the war. At the time, the Vietnam War was a very complex event to grasp, and would especially be for a ten year old girl. Even after U.S. history, some forty years later, I find it one of the most complicated events of our country; it is like trying to wrap your mind around the origins of the earth, or mankind. As I learned in U.S. history, citizens at that time did not understand the war, so they did not accept it. We were fighting a war against communism, miles and miles away in the small country of Vietnam, once a French territory. If Vietnam would have been left alone it would not have directly affected the US. Yet, the United States was involved in the Cold Warm and a devout follower of the domino theory. However, all people could understand was we were losing, and the blood and gore was oozing into the family room on the television set.

13. Kiowa

Kiowa meant something to O’Brien. He wrote nearly four chapters on him. He also collected different perspectives on his death. Including the guilt of Bowker, Cross’ letter, and the actual event, and O’Brien’s own reflection in Vietnam. Ted Lavender did not receive this attention. He merely got five pages and a whole lot of laughing. O’Brien called Kiowa a best friend. Lavender does not even receive the ranking of friend. Yet, maybe Lavender’s death occurred early in the war. So he and O’Brien never had the chance to meet of maybe Lavender was not all there. The men said he used a lot of tranquilizers. All that matter is that O’Brien held Kiowa special to him. By lying Kiowa’s moccasins in the mud he not only left any guilt he felt for his death, but possibly other memories that haunted him. He was able to return to Vietnam willingly, instead of being forced.

12. Comparison

Like The Sun Also Rises, Bowker finds himself lost after the war just like Jake and his friends. Jake and his group wander from bar to bar while Bowker aimlessly drives around the lake. Each set finds their life revolving in a circle, with no resting point to find their place. O’Brien states that he found relief through writing and is an evident character in this story. Hemingway was also a war veteran and presents some of himself through Jake in his novel. Yet, like Bowker, Hemingway eventually committed suicide (wikipedia). So what is the difference? O’Brien was able to accept change, adapt to his post war world, and find relief in his writing. Was alcohol the effect on Hemingway? His novel does not end with his characters finding a purpose, so maybe he never found his purpose either. It just simply amazes me how two situations, from two different time frames can be so similar, but one finds his catharsis, and the other, not so much. What is the adage? Something about time is surely to repeat itself…

11. Diction

The quote “The routine, daily stuff-just humping, just enduring” brought me back the thoughts I had at the beginning of the novel when the two words were first introduced to us. (pg 135, O’Brien). There is an extreme difference between carry and hump. Carry seems to refer to the actual non-tangible emotions, feelings, memories, and burdens these men kept with them. On the other hand, to hump is the actual process of being in motion and carrying tangible objects. Carry has a larger meaning in that the word itself has to be used to describe to hump. But one would not use hump to describe carry. The word carry fits itself into the theme, because it is the actual memories that haunt these men weeks, months, and years later after Vietnam. Carry, is the reason O’Brien writes. Hump, as Bowker says is the daily stuff, not the ideas that follow you for a lifetime. Because of the abandoned feeling Bowker carries, he must hump to endure his daily life.

10. Life Goes On

Norman Bowker struggles to accept the fact that life simply goes on. While he was busy protecting his own life in Vietnam, the people of his town continued to work, play, and grow older. This situation reminds me of the movie Cast Away with Tom Hanks. After being stranded on an island for four years he returns from the dead to find his long time girlfriend married. Just like Bowker’s situation, nothing ever stops the world from revolving. Like the war in Iraq today, since it has no direct effect on us here, we never stop to truly pay attention to it. It is a part of our every day life, only subconsciously, hidden in the background. When Hanks returned to the states in Cast Away, he lost his ability to interact with others. I see this same characteristic with Bowker. He wants to tell his story, but he thinks no one will understand. So he continues in circles, in isolation. He refuses to interrupt his dad’s baseball game, and he will not even share his story with the guy at A&W who even asks twice for Norman to talk to him. Circles. Never ending.

9. What Tim O'Brien Carries

Like the rest of the war stories O’Brien carries the chapter, ‘The Man I killed’. This chapter states a burden O’Brien still carries today. By the repetition of the flaws to the man’s body and especially the star shaped hole, the reader can infer that this is a subject he ponders frequently. The guilt seems to seep through the pages as he tells the story of all this man could have been. This chapter clearly states the theme again. The past cannot be changed- there are things and memories we will carry until the day we die. O’Brien may not have been fond of sharing his escape to Canada with anyone, and the man he killed to his daughter. However, his courage, that courage he has been investing, shines through the pages of the book because he shares his deepest, darkest memories with anyone willing to read his work. Which, overall, shows an acceptance, a comfort with his past.

8. Six

Six. I am not exactly sure if it could be a motif, but the number appears quite frequently. It is like the bible and the number forty. The number six occurs in Mitchell Sanders’ story of the six man listening patrol, then again with the six greenies in Rat Kiley’s story. It should also be noted that Mary Anne arrived six weeks after Fossie requested her. So do I really believe the number six is important? Not so much. But I think it goes back to O’Brien’s thoughts on a story’s validity. When O’Brien first hears Kiley’s story, Mitchell Sanders was also listening. So, there is a connection between the two chapters. Mitchell Sanders’ story could possibly be based off of Kiley’s. There are six greenies who are sometimes at Rat’s base and sometimes gone for days. Sanders tells of six men who go into the silence of the mountains and hear music. It would not be the first time Mary Anne had sang. As Kiley says “In the darkness there was that flipped-out tribal music, which seemed to come from the Earth itself, from the deep rain forest, and a woman’s voice rising up in a language beyond translation” (pg 107, O’Brien). Sounds like music that was creepy enough to scare a six-man patrol because Mary Anne “…was ready for the kill” (pg 110, O’Brien).

7. Theory

O’Brien questions the validity of a true war story. As he focuses on Mitchell Sanders’ story, which seems skeptical, and provides examples of how to identify a true war story, one must not forget the story of Curt Lemon’s death. It is possible that O’Brien is using Sander’s story to distract the reader of the truthfulness of his story. One of his theories, for example, says, “often the crazy stuff if true and the normal stuff isn't” (pg 68, O’Brien). So let’s apply O’Brien’s theory to his own story. The craziness of Lemon’s death is that they were playing with smoke grenades and although they were soldiers, they were being immature and calling each other yellow mother. So, that has to be normal because it is crazy. Now, the normal; a man died in the war. Well, the normal and the crazy are both true. Without the crazy, the actual death would have never occurred. Maybe, it is not really about theory. It is not supposed to be taken literally. It is about perspective. Someone else analyzing this story might have found the large canopy trees crazy. Also, maybe it is a matter of whose perspective one hears the story from. O’Brien might have been looking directly at the action while Sanders was looking a way. All in all, it is a matter of what the person listening wants to believe. It does however prove one of my points. The novel’s stories have a deeper underlying meaning, which I do not believe has been revealed to the reader just yet, but the stories definitely bridge the chapters together, one after the other.

6. Another (Small) Theme

“[H]e avoided situations that might put the two of them alone together. Eventually, after a week of this, the strain began to create problems” (pg 60, O’Brien). There was no time for Lee Strunk and Dave Jensen to argue over such a juvenile matter. If the argument would have lasted any longer, it could have had the ability to split the rest of t he platoon. This deems unnecessary in a war where they need to be united to not be defeated by a larger force. It is too bad Strunk was injured after they became friends, but good that their fight did not lead to the death of others. On the same topic of life and death, Jensen lucked out in not having to make the decision to Strunk’s life. In a war that abounds in death the decision of life over a promise seems to be the best choice a friend could make. Overall, unity and life seem to be the best decisions in carrying oneself out of the war alive.

Symbol/Mood/Suspense

O’Brien’s writing style is decadent like Dove chocolate (sorry, I’m hungry). Throughout chapter four I was curious as if he really would escape into Canada. At the ultimate climax of the chapter, O’Brien writes, “I can still feel that tightness. And I want you to feel it-“(pg 54, O’Brien). That line exemplifies how powerful his writing style is. When I finished the chapter I truly could feel the tightness in my chest as he described the hallucination of all the people watching, judging. The rhetorical questions asked not only make multiple statements, but also ask me if I could give up everything. It was a choice I could never imagine, leaving my home, family, and facing possible death. O’Brien asked for emotion and he achieved it. I could feel the chills as I finished the chapter. The mood and the suspense, all thrown together as one create a chapter capable of so many emotions. And to think, it was Elroy who saved him from disgrace. This wise, older figure, which through his few words acted as O’Brien’s epiphany is also a symbol of hope, change and represents all the past American soldiers and veterans. He reminds me of that insert of the hero cycle. The exact present idea O’Brien flees from.

4. Tone/Theme

I have created two early tones for the novel. First, nostalgic, which is really simple, because O’Brien is telling of his time in Vietnam, but bringing us to present day with his own narration. My second tone is restlessness. I feel O’Brien has all these stories in his mind that he is trying to jot on paper. I especially sense this when he mentions his daughter saying he is obsessed with his war stories. I can imagine O’Brien being the type of person who struggles to sleep at night because he constantly is getting up to write this novel. Also, this goes back to a first person narrator. O’Brien writes what he knows. Like he said, he cannot write about a little girl winning a million dollars and buying a horse. The thoughts he carries are of his time in Vietnam. This idea is reminiscent of the theme. O’Brien carries his memories, which he must write about. Cross still carries the burden of Lavender’s death. All of these create a theme. These thoughts and emotions are aspects carried through life. The past cannot be forgotten or changed; it can only be carried and lived through the present into the future.

3. Frame

The Things They Carried almost has a frame story structure to it. There is the story of O’Brien and his present life, where Cross visits him. Then, he begins telling a story of Vietnam. I mean literally in chapter two O’Brien is talking about his current life where Cross visits him, and then Cross starts his story about Martha. My current opinion? I am not sure stories could be a symbol, but I am sure noticing some repetition. Initially, after reading chapter two, I thought this story was going to center on Lieutenant Cross; his love life, and surviving Vietnam, a biography written in the perspective of one of his soldiers in first person. Yet, as chapter three continues, I learned that O’Brien is indeed our narrator and it is almost an autobiographical. However, it is not all about him. It is about he and each man he dedicated this book to. How these men live through Vietnam, after, into the present, and the things they carried along the way.

2. Point of View

Like The Sun Also Rises, The Things They Carried begins with an omniscient point of view, but then switches to a first person point of view. However, The Sun Also Rises quickly switches to its first person narrator while The Things They Carried continues as third person omniscient through twenty pages. The only hint of a first person narrator is the reference of "...the guy's dead. I mean really" (pg 12, O'Brien). After that, there is no other reference of first person point of view until the beginning of chapter two. The omniscient narrator allows the reader to be fully emerged into the Vietnam War and it's characters without worry of an opinionated narrator. Which if one looks at the time period of the Vietnam war, it was a very opinionated era in United States history. The omniscient narrator almost clearly expresses that 'this really is what happened to Ted Lavender. I am not making this up'. It also provides a good background of the journey the reader is soon to embark on. The question that remains is who is our first person narrator? My guess, the author himself, O'Brien.

1. Juxtaposition

There are many aspects juxtaposed throughout chapter one. Beginning with the death of Lavender, Lieutenant Cross now had "...something he would have to carry like a stone in his stomach for the rest of the war"(pg 16, O'Brien). This stone, in his stomach, is juxtaposed with Martha's stone. If it was not for Martha, this new burden would not be present. The two stones lead to more juxtaposition. Before Lavender's death, Cross loved Martha, but now he hates her, yet, loves her. Love versus hate. But wait, there's more! Also juxtaposed are what the men carried and their real situation in Vietnam. O'Brien does a marvelous job of breaking into the war's actions to explain indepth the characteristics of the men, their emotions, and wants and needs through the aspect of 'what they carried'. There is also a contrasting of life and death- as shown through Ted Lavender and the war itself. Finally, which I believe all the other juxtaposed items could fall under, there is the ultimate topic of life in Vietnam (their world) and the real world. Both worlds are one, but there is a difference between peace at home, and war in a foreign land. Without this large juxtaposition, none of the others would exist. Because without war there is no death, hate, burdens to bear, or another world to carry on in.

The Things They Carried

I was able to finish this book on my vacation (2 weeks ago), and write all my blogs in a notebook (ha..no computer). Now it's just taking the time to transfer them over...

20. Final Thoughts

The conclusion to The Sun Also Rises is summed up in these two sentences, "'Oh, Jake,' said Brett said, 'we could have had such a damned good time together.'...'Yes,' I said. 'Isn't it pretty to think so?'" (pg 251, Hemingway). When I first read the conclusion I thought well that is sort of ambiguous. Is she referring to their time together at the festival or their whole lives? But then, I decided to look beyond the words and a time frame and configure it into the theme. These characters lack their own purpose for their lives, yet they are trying to attain it. Which, is a natural want for all human to find a purpose and a place. Brett and Jake could have found it, but they did not and they accept that fact because life moves on, there is no changing the past.
I also believe there are no dynamic characters to this novel. Yet, it is another sign that their lives are not complete. They have not found their place yet, and there really is no "happy ever after" ending to this novel because like the reader's own life, that is how it works. The abrupt ending is just another sign that no one is in control of their own life. Sure, one can wander aimlessly looking for a purpose, but that does not mean there is a set date and time of death that we are aware of. So basically, just like Brett and Jake, we as the reader are on our own time to find a purpose and a place for our lives.

19. Plotline

The structure of the Sun Also Rises is written in three books. The three sort of reflect the literary terms of rising action, climax, and conclusion. However, book two is not just the climax, but rising action and falling action as well. Each book, except the third, typically ends when Brett leaves. At the end of the first book she leaves for San Sebastian and at the end of the second book she leaves with Romero. The ending of each book shows the importance of Brett to Jake, since he is the narrator. It also shows a symbol of the independence women were beginning to test at the time.

As a summary the rising action includes: anecdote of Robert Cohn at Princeton, night life in Paris, the introduction of Jake's relationships with Brett, Cohn, Harvey, and Frances, then, Cohn's affair with Brett and following her to Pamplona with Mike, Bill and Jake's trip to fish, and the beginning of the fiesta with Montoya and Romero.
The climax occurs when Cohn attacks Mike, Jake and massacres Romero and asks for forgiveness. The climax reflects the anecdote at the beginning of the novel which reflects on Cohn's inferiority and taking up boxing as a result.
The falling action/conclusion includes Romero's final bull fight, Brett going with Romero and her choice to leave him, and then Brett and Jake meeting in Madrid, Spain. The conclusion ends rather abruptly, the again, I feel it fits the entire novel. See next post.

18. Jake's Generalizations

"'Barmen and jockeys are the only people who are polite anymore'"(pg 248, Hemingway).

Haven't we heard something like this before? Like to the extent of "'Nobody ever lives their life all the way up except bull-fighters'"(pg 18, Hemingway). I would not exactly call it parallelism, but Jake has his way of putting the spotlight on different people. Maybe, he wishes to attain these qualities that others seem to possess. The bullfighter seems to possess all these attributes along with 'machismo'. According to dictionary.com machismo is defined as a strong or exaggerated sense of manliness; an assumptive attitude that virility, courage, strength, and entitlement to dominate are attributes or concomitants of masculinity.
Because of the war, Jake lacks the up most prominence of masculinity, and maybe in his aimless, wandering lifestyle, he feels he lacks the other qualities as well. Or maybe Jake wants his next adventure to lead him to the Kentucky Derby. =)

17. Oxymoron

Bill describes the fiesta as a "'wonderful nightmare'" (pg 226, Hemingway). As a whole, just those two words sum up a week of events. The fiesta for Bill and Jake was wonderful, but was tarnished by certain events. Such moments include the bitter attitudes of Mike and Cohn, Jake betraying Montoya, and ultimately the climax of Cohn attacking Mike, Jake, and Romero. Jake remains feeling terrible even after the fiesta is over. He could be upset for several reasons. First, there was the fight with Cohn. Also, the fiesta is finally over, and he must eventually return to reality in Paris. Lastly, once again, Brett has left the scene. Although it seems as if Brett is gone for good, I am not surprised that she returns for the conclusion. All the other characters left the plot for a reason, yet Brett just disappeared. Plus, the plot revolves around Jake's life and it is needless to say that the other main character in Jake's life is Brett.

16. Extended Metaphor

"'Here.' I put one hand on the small of my back and the other on my chest, where it looked as though the horn must have come through...'Badly cogido,' he said. 'All for sport. All for pleasure'" (pg 201, Hemingway). I find this extended metaphor rather ambiguous in that is it referring to Cohn and Brett, or Jake and Brett? Cohn believes that he and Brett are meant to be after their get together in San Sebastian, but Brett spends her time with her fiance, Mike, stabbing Cohn in the back. Yet, Jake has been through this with Brett all along. They're in love, but Brett even with Jake's knowledge has been involved with other men to satisfy her wants, and is supposed to be getting married. Both men have been hurt by Brett, both stabbed in the back, like a bull, and have felt the pain in their heart. Jake understands the pain Cohn has been through but refuses to emphasize with him. However, Cohn has no idea about Jake's feelings for Brett as shown through this excerpt:
"'I just couldn't stand it about Brett. I've been through hell, Jake. It's been simply hell. When I met her down here Brett treated me as though I were a perfect stranger. I just couldn't stand it. We lived together at San Sebastian. I suppose you know it. I can't stand it anymore'" (pg 198, Hemingway). Jake had to have wanted to angrily tell Cohn that he fully understood what he meant, yet that he had no idea what he had been through with Brett, perhaps years of this same treatment. Yet, once again, the 'Lost Generation' hardly ever expresses their true feelings.

15. Foreshadow? ...not so much

"Later in the day we learned that the man who was killed was named Vicente Girones, and came from near Tafalla...The bull who killed Vicente Girones was named Bocanegra, was number 118 of the bull-breeding establishment of Sanchez Taberno, and was killed by Pedro Romero as the third bull of that same afternoon. His ear was cut by popular acclamation and given to Pedro Romero, who, in turn, gave it to Brett, who wrapped it in a handkerchief belonging to myself, and left both ear and handkerchief, along with a number of Muratti cigarette-stubs, shoved far back in the drawer of the bed-table that stood beside her bed in the Hotel Montoya, in Pamplona" (pg 202-203, Hemingway).

I would not call the above foreshadow because it is more of a summary of the events to come beginning on page 223. The only idea really foreshadowed out of the paragraph is that the reader has an idea that Brett is going to leave. We are not really sure how except the fact that it sounds abrupt because she leaves items at the hotel. It is also possible that the items left behind are meant to stay in Pamplona because she wants to rid herself of those memories. Brett will eventually leave Romero, and maybe she already had the idea in mind and knew that possessing items with the essence of Romero would make the move harder for her.
The other use I found from this entry is that it sort of parallels Vicente Girones life to the life of the bull. For example it goes through where they were from, and other statistics about their lives. I feel as if Hemingway is trying to express respect to both the life of the human and the bull. Wikipedia states, While there is usually no doubt about the outcome, the bull is not viewed as a sacrificial victim — it is instead seen by the audience as a worthy adversary, deserving of respect in its own right. Overall, hidden behind the summary of the deaths of these two creatures is an insider to Spanish culture.

14. The English are Pigs

There are a few references to the English being pigs in The Sun Also Rises. "'Damned English swine come here and insult Mike and try and spoil the fiesta.' 'They're so bloody,' Mike said. 'I hate the English'" (pg 192, Hemingway). So at this point in the novel Mike and Bill are not even referring to Brett, but it seems kind of ironic that Mike says he hates the English when that is his fiance's nationality. Then again, Mike knows that Brett is off with another guy (Romero) once again. This is not the first time Brett and pigs have been referred to together. On page 148, "'He calls her Circe,' Mike said. 'He claims she turns men into swine.'" Circe alludes to Greek mythology. She is the goddess who turned Odysseus' men into swine (wikipedia). I would not really say that the men are the swines, rather she is the swine because she fulfills her desires through different men. Ultimately, I think the above conversation between Bill and Mike refers to Brett more than the English men who caused trouble in the bar. It is just another device used by Hemingway to show that these characters were not interested in showing their true feelings.

13. Bulls are friends?

"'No. Don't do that. The bulls are my best friends.'...'You kill your friends?' she asked. 'Always,' he said in English, and laughed. 'So they don't kill me'"(pg 189-190, Hemingway). So, Brett, Jake, and Romero are sitting around having this conversation with one another. To me, it seems to parallel some of the relationships between the characters. They are not literally killing each other (well not yet) but they do have desires they cannot attain because of one another. First, Mike is self destructing Cohn because he hangs around Brett, and is Jewish. Cohn is bothering everyone because he his a nuisance. Yet, while everyone seems to focus on Cohn, Brett is her own silent murderer. She is killing Mike, Cohn, and Jake. She is Mike's fiance, but still has relationships with other men. She had a relationship with Cohn once, so he thinks they are in love. She and Jake are supposedly in love but she refuses to settle down with him. Brett will soon be the reason for Cohn attacking Romero. Basically, this group does nothing but destruct one another, when they are supposed to be a civil group of friends. Although Cohn will soon physically try to hurt some of the group, he will ultimately be the one exiled.

12. Montoya's Warning; Jake's Destruction

So I have finished the book. =) Now to finish blogging. =/

Even though in Spanish culture, Romero is considered the ultimate form of 'machismo' or masculinity, Montoya still tries to protect him from outside influences like American culture. "'He's such a fine boy,' said Montoya [to Jake.] 'He ought to stay with his own people. He shouldn't mix in that stuff'" (pg 176, Hemingway). Yet, of all people, especially one Montoya considered 'aficionado', it's Jake who invites Romero over to drink with his group. It is merely a sequence of cause and effect, because Jake introduces Romero to Brett, he becomes attracted to her, which then leads to the climax of our story with Cohn fighting Mike and Jake and massacring Romero. And Jake thought it "...seemed as though nothing could have any consequences. It seemed out of place to think of consequences during a fiesta" (pg 158, Hemingway). So much for that Jake. It really surprises me that as the novel goes on Jake never apologizes to Montoya. Surely being our first person narrator meant he knew of the terrible glances and the avoidance he was receiving from Montoya.
One question remains for me; were there good consequences because of Jake's decision? Well, Cohn finally left. Also, Brett I feel as if she finally made a decent decision because of Jake's actions. She did something beneficial to someone else instead of being selfish. She left Romero towards the end of the novel, because she did not want to ruin this young man's career/life.

11. Tone

Several tones I have selected for the novel so far include cyncial, nostalgic, and negatively humorous. The novel is cynical in that there has yet to be a high point for the main character, Jake. He cannot have Brett, he has been injured by the war, he picks up prostitutes for something to pass the time, and he spends much of his free time drinking. Along with Jake, each character has been effected negatively by the war (including Hemingway), yet as the reader we are not completely sure of how or to what affect this has on them because the characters are very protective of their feelings. All the reader knows is that the lives of the characters are very routine and aimless. The tone is also nostalgic in that it is written in the past tense and is focused in the first person point of view through Jake. Lastly, the tone is humorous because of the affect of intoxication on each character, especially Mike, and because it is a way of not directly expressing feelings, like Bill. Overall, the tone(s) reflect the aimlessness of these people's lives and there failure in finding a purpose (atleast for now) in the post war world.

10. Cruel Humor

It is only day one, and the tension between Mike and Cohn could be cut by a knife. Example:

"'It's no life being a steer,' Robert Cohn said. 'Don't you think so?' Mike said. 'I would have thought you'd loved being a steer, Robert.' 'What do you mean, Mike?' 'They lead such a quiet life. They never say anything and they're always hanging about so'" (pg 145-146, Hemingway). Going back to the gradeschool days, does anyone notice the connection between the words bull, and bully? Mike is like the bull in that he is attacking the steer, Cohn. Mike's reasons for bullying Cohn come from the fact that ever since he stayed in San Sebastian with Brett, he's been following her like a little puppy. Which seems reasonable because Brett is Mike's fiance. However, he's not scolding Brett for her actions. No one seems able to tie down this woman, which shows an overall shift from the subservient housewife to a liberated woman.
Back to Cohn, the reason this joke seems so cruel is because throughout the novel already Cohn carries a stereotype because he is Jewish. What makes it even worse between Cohn and Jake's group is that he is a nonveteran. However, no one except Mike has verbally attacked Cohn. Jake will share that he 'hates' Robert, but expresses no negative action towards him. As a future prediction, I feel as if the anecdote about Cohn at Princeton at the beginning of the novel is going to come into the picture very soon.

9. Syntax

Hemingway was one for "his spare but powerful writing style" (see back of The Sun Also Rises). Most of his sentences are short and direct rather than long and complex. His most vivid and more compound and/or complex sentence variety is often found when describing the scences of Paris night life, or the French and Spanish countrysides. Some of these occur at the beginning of each chapter, but not all. A good example:

"After awhile we came out of the mountains, and there were trees along both sides of the road, and a stream and ripe fields of grain, and the road went on, very white and straight ahead, and then lifted to a little rise, and off on the left was a hill with an old castle, with buildings close around it and a field of grain going right up to the walls and shifting in the wind (pg 99, Hemingway).

Now when describing the actions, words, and thooughts of each character most sentences are typically short. For example. "'I wish I could go. We've been looking forward to this fishing all winter.' He was beeing sentimental about it. 'But I ought to stay. I really ought. As soon as they come I'll bring them right up.' 'Let's find Bill.' 'I want to go over to the barber shop.' 'See you at lunch.' I found Bill up in his room. He was shaving" (pg 106, Hemingway). Maybe, Hemingway uses short sentences for his characteers because that is how humans really function. Or, maybe, in describing the 'lost generation', there lives truly are simple or routine, in that they all avoid the complexity of the post war world.

8. Symbolism

I feel as if chapter ten is a a shifting point for our narrator Jake. On page 98 and 99 Hemingway describes the beautiful landscape and the trip through the mountains. I feel as if the crossing of the border of France into Spain and the journey is a symbol of a change in Jake. I think Jake becomes more open to the reader with his thoughts. It begins with the scene of him going into the church at Pamplona and letting his mind wander. Then, in chapter eleven, during the fishing trip, Jake is able to interact with Bill in a way that he has not shared with any other character. They mention Brett, and other touchy subjects in that time period, like homosexuality. Also, on the fishing trip, I noticed a shift in alcohol consumption. Although Jake and Bill take a bottle of wine on their trip, they were not nearly as intoxicated as they were each night in Paris. Overall, I think something about Spain has not changed the attitude of Jake, but rather his character.

Jeopardy!

So we should all know that The Sun Also Rises was an answer on Jeopardy! tonight. The clue was something along the lines of this book by Hemingway was originally titled Fiesta. Just a fun fact for everyone. =)

7. Routine

I am starting to notice quite a pattern to Jake and his friends. Each day is almost a repeat of the day before. They typically go to work, out to lunch..plus a drink, back to work for a few more hours, then dinner, then out to the clubs, and sleep falls somewhere in the routine. The only day that really seems different is Sunday, where the men might possibly play a game of tennis. I am curious to how Jake and his friends seem to afford such extravagant lifestyles. It seems as if drinking, gambling, and the occasional prostitute would eventually add up (not that I know the conversion of money in Europe to the American dollar). The time period to this novel makes it several years before the depression (which not only effected the United States). We do know that Jake only has to support himself, having no wife or children. Besides Jake and Cohn, the reader is uninformed about the other family lives' of the men. Overall, I feel this lifestyle of drinking partakes in a large part of this novel, as if these men are drinking to their sorrows. Before the novel even begins, it states something about the lost generation, well maybe Jake and his friends do not feel so lost when they are inebriated.

6. Irony Two

Count Mippipopolous asks, "'Why don't you get married, you two?' 'We want to lead our own lives,' I said. 'We have our careers,' Brett said" (Hemingway, 68). The irony in this situation is that the reader knows Jake and Brett's excuses are lies. If it was not for Jake's injury from WWI, Brett would have most likely accepted a marriage proposal.

As Jake and Brett are dancing once again, "[t]he drummer shouted: 'You can't two time---'"(Hemmingway, 70). Once again, the reader can realize the irony in this situation because we know Brett is engaged to Mike Campbell, but is dancing with Jake whom she has feelings for. These words could also be ironic to the characters, but neither of them comment on the singing of the drummer. It is possible that Hemingway included this small interruption as a view into Brett's mind. Maybe those words are the exact thoughts running through her mind. She might feel guilty for the life she is leading, especially considering that she mentions she is being payed back for all the hell she has put men through.

5. Irony

I found that the early chapters of The Sun Also Rises are full of irony.
Verbal Irony

At the end of chapter four Brett states, "'You make me ill'" (Hemingway,42). It is not that Jake makes Lady Ashley literally sick, but the idea that their so called 'love' puts stress on her. Almost as if she is love sick over someone she refuses to have.

Dramatic Irony

Frances in conversation with Cohn says "'I always keep my appointments. No one keeps theirs, nowadays'" (Hemingway, 53). What makes these words so ironic to the reader is that we know that Cohn was just stood up at a restaurant minutes ago by Ashley, because she was intoxicated when they made the appointment. Yet, Frances has no idea of Cohn's previous hour.

"...Brett said. 'You're terribly right. I always joke people and haven't a friend in the world. Except Jake here'"(Hemingway, 65). What's ironic about this situation is Brett really does joke with Jake. Not necessarily the word joke, but plays with his emotions. She sometimes wants to be with him and shows her affection, but other times she goes to other men, including her fiance. In a way, she sort of leads Jake on.