Wednesday, October 31, 2007
Outside Reading Blog Nummer Vier (I'm trying to incorporate as many languages into my titles as possible. I went for Dutch this time.)
A character that has been newly discovered in this section of the novel The Color Purple is the character of Nettie, Celie's sister. Celie has discovered that her husband Albert has been hiding letters that Nettie has been writing to Celie over the course of years and years. Now that Celie has realized that he is doing this she knows where to look for the letters, finds them, and begins to read them. Her sister tells what happened to her when she tried to leave years and years ago when she writes, "When I left you all's house, walking, he followed me on his horse. When we was well out of sight of the house he caught up with me and started trying to talk. You know how he do, You sure is looking fine, Miss Nettie, and stuff like that. I tried to ignore him and walk faster, but my bundles was heavy and the sun was hot" (126). She continues to write that Albert tried to kiss her and started to harass her sexually when she hurt him badly enough so that she could get away and that because of this Albert swore to Nettie that she would never get to communicate with Celie ever again. This letter explained why Celie was never allowed to read Nettie's letter, or even know that they existed, but she is still horribly upset that Albert hid them from her. Obviously Nettie is motivated by her sister Celie. Even though Albert told her that Celie would never see her letters she continues to write them in hopes that Celie is receiving them and is getting comfort from knowing that her sister is alive.
In later letters Nettie explains what is going on in her life. She moves to Africa with a nice black family. They're missionaries and are going there to help the people of Africa. Nettie is going along mostly to help look after the children, but she also helps with teaching the children of the village. The mother of the family, Corrine, becomes concerned with Nettie, thinking that she is trying to replace her as the mother of her children. While this is not the case, the reader can see that Corrine makes her thinking clear when Nettie writes, "Corrine said to me this morning, Nettie, to stop any kind of confusion in the minds of these people, I think we should call one another brother and sister, all the time. Some of them can't seem to get it through their thick skulls that you are not Samuel's other wife. I don't like it, she said" (157). Obviously Corrine is becoming concerned that people are thinking that Nettie is equal or better than her, and this bothers her very much. Nettie goes on to write, "And don't let the children call you Mama Nettie, she said, even in play" (158). This bothers Nettie. Even though she doesn't believe that she is the mother of Corrine's adopted children, she still sort of thinks as herself as a second mother considering that she cares for them so much. All of these issues that she is having with Corrine are bothering Nettie.
This section of the book reminds me of the book Black Boy. When Richard goes to Memphis and goes into the building that he believes to be a whorehouse he is greeted by very interesting people. In the beginning of their meeting Richard wonders why the woman is so nice to him, but later he sees that it is because she desperately wants to get her daughter married, and that she's not afraid to ask Richard to do so. This fits along with The Color Purple because in the letters that Nettie writes we can see that people's actions change once their environment and the people around them change.
In later letters Nettie explains what is going on in her life. She moves to Africa with a nice black family. They're missionaries and are going there to help the people of Africa. Nettie is going along mostly to help look after the children, but she also helps with teaching the children of the village. The mother of the family, Corrine, becomes concerned with Nettie, thinking that she is trying to replace her as the mother of her children. While this is not the case, the reader can see that Corrine makes her thinking clear when Nettie writes, "Corrine said to me this morning, Nettie, to stop any kind of confusion in the minds of these people, I think we should call one another brother and sister, all the time. Some of them can't seem to get it through their thick skulls that you are not Samuel's other wife. I don't like it, she said" (157). Obviously Corrine is becoming concerned that people are thinking that Nettie is equal or better than her, and this bothers her very much. Nettie goes on to write, "And don't let the children call you Mama Nettie, she said, even in play" (158). This bothers Nettie. Even though she doesn't believe that she is the mother of Corrine's adopted children, she still sort of thinks as herself as a second mother considering that she cares for them so much. All of these issues that she is having with Corrine are bothering Nettie.
This section of the book reminds me of the book Black Boy. When Richard goes to Memphis and goes into the building that he believes to be a whorehouse he is greeted by very interesting people. In the beginning of their meeting Richard wonders why the woman is so nice to him, but later he sees that it is because she desperately wants to get her daughter married, and that she's not afraid to ask Richard to do so. This fits along with The Color Purple because in the letters that Nettie writes we can see that people's actions change once their environment and the people around them change.
Sunday, October 28, 2007
Outside Reading Blog numbero 3 (can you say "procrastinator"?)
In this section of the book Shug has left and then returned with a husband named Grady. Grady is described as a large, tall man who seems to be very much in love with Shug. The fact that Shug has gotten married disturbs Albert, and he doesn’t like it at all. They've come to visit Celie and Albert for the holidays. Celie is very happy that Shug has come back because now she has someone to talk to, "Mr. drink all through Christmas. Him and Grady. Me and Shug cook, talk, clean the house, talk, fix up the tree, talk, wake up in the morning, talk" (109). Now that Shug is back Celie can let out all of the feelings that she has been hiding from her husband and from everyone else and just let things flow.
Later Celie is talking to Shug about her sister, Nettie. Celie is convinced that Nettie is dead because Nettie said that the only thing that would stop her from writing to Celie while she was away was death, and Celie hasn't gotten a letter from Nettie. When Celie tells this to Shug, Shug gets a little confused and also an idea: "And no word from her yet? she ast. Naw, I say. Every day when Mr. come from the mailbox I hope for news. But nothing come. She dead, I say. Shug say, She wouldn't be someplace with funny stamps, you don't recon? She look like she studying. Say, there be a letter with a lot of funny looking stamps. He never say nothing bout it, just put it in his inside pocket. One time I ast him could I look at the stamps but he said he'd take it out later. But he never did" (118). The idea that her own husband is keeping letters away from her that her own sister has written shocks Celie. She doesn't believe that it's possible.
Later Shug decides to take matters into her own hands: "Saturday morning Shug put Nettie letter in my lap. Little fat queen of England stamps on it, plus stamps that got peanuts, coconuts, rubber trees and say Africa. I don't know where England at. Don't know where Africa at either. So I still don't know where Nettie at. He been keeping you letters, say Shug. Naw, I say. Mr. mean sometimes, but he not that mean. She say, Humpf, he that mean" (119). Celie becomes very upset about how her husband is keeping her things away from him and becomes so furious that she considers killing him for it. After she gains her composer she goes into his room and finds the letters.
This part of the book reminds me of the novel Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close because of the way that the family members seem to be hiding things from each other.
Later Celie is talking to Shug about her sister, Nettie. Celie is convinced that Nettie is dead because Nettie said that the only thing that would stop her from writing to Celie while she was away was death, and Celie hasn't gotten a letter from Nettie. When Celie tells this to Shug, Shug gets a little confused and also an idea: "And no word from her yet? she ast. Naw, I say. Every day when Mr. come from the mailbox I hope for news. But nothing come. She dead, I say. Shug say, She wouldn't be someplace with funny stamps, you don't recon? She look like she studying. Say, there be a letter with a lot of funny looking stamps. He never say nothing bout it, just put it in his inside pocket. One time I ast him could I look at the stamps but he said he'd take it out later. But he never did" (118). The idea that her own husband is keeping letters away from her that her own sister has written shocks Celie. She doesn't believe that it's possible.
Later Shug decides to take matters into her own hands: "Saturday morning Shug put Nettie letter in my lap. Little fat queen of England stamps on it, plus stamps that got peanuts, coconuts, rubber trees and say Africa. I don't know where England at. Don't know where Africa at either. So I still don't know where Nettie at. He been keeping you letters, say Shug. Naw, I say. Mr. mean sometimes, but he not that mean. She say, Humpf, he that mean" (119). Celie becomes very upset about how her husband is keeping her things away from him and becomes so furious that she considers killing him for it. After she gains her composer she goes into his room and finds the letters.
This part of the book reminds me of the novel Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close because of the way that the family members seem to be hiding things from each other.
Blog numbero 2 (outside reading) wow, this took way longer than it should have...
More characters have now been introduced and explained. Celie's husband, who's last name isn't mentioned, is named Albert. Albert, as described by Celie, isn't a very nice man. He beats her and also doesn't talk to her very often. He also gives up working as well. Albert does not seem to be motivated by much until he hears news of a woman named Shug Avery. Shug Avery is a famous singer that travels around the country performing for people. Once Albert hears news that she's ill he makes it his responsibility to care for her and bring her back to health. At first Shug isn't very nice to Celie. She bosses her around and tells her what to do, but later they form a special bond. When it's time for Avery to leave after she's been nursed back to health, Celie becomes very upset and doesn't want her to go: "Well Miss Celie, I believe it time for me to go. When? I ast. Early next month, she say. June. June a good dime to go off into the world. I don't say nothing. Fell like I felt when Nettie left. She come over and put her and on my shoulder. He beat me when you not here, I say. Who do, she say, Albert? Mr. , I say. … What he beat you for? She ast. For being me and not you… I won't leave, she say, until I know Albert won't even think about beating you" (74-75). It is clear that Celie and Shug have feelings for each other, and when Shug hears that Albert beats his wife because of her, she decides that she's going to put an end to it. This experience allows Celie to learn that it is possible to love someone, even if they're not you're family, and she now knows what it feels like to be in love.
Another character that becomes more enhanced in this section is Harpo, Albert's son. Harpo is married to a woman named Sofia who he loves very much, but Sofia has a mind of her own. He claims that she won't do anything that he asks of her and that she isn't loyal to him like everyone else's wife is to them. Soon Sofia gets into trouble with the mayor and his wife, winding her up in jail. While is wife is in jail, Harpo gets a girlfriend named Mary Agnes, but everyone calls her Squeak because of her high voice. Even though Harpo has someone to be with, he is unhappy, "Harpo mope, Wipe the counter, light a cigarette, look outdoors, walk up and down. Little Squeak run long all up under him trying to git his tension. Baby this, she say, Baby that. Harpo look through her head, blow smoke" (84). Harpo is ignoring his wife and his responsibilities because he misses Sofia even though she wasn't the perfect wife.
This section of the book reminds me of Black Boy in the way that all of the family members aren't getting along with each other. Some family members get along, but collectively as a group they're struggling.
Another character that becomes more enhanced in this section is Harpo, Albert's son. Harpo is married to a woman named Sofia who he loves very much, but Sofia has a mind of her own. He claims that she won't do anything that he asks of her and that she isn't loyal to him like everyone else's wife is to them. Soon Sofia gets into trouble with the mayor and his wife, winding her up in jail. While is wife is in jail, Harpo gets a girlfriend named Mary Agnes, but everyone calls her Squeak because of her high voice. Even though Harpo has someone to be with, he is unhappy, "Harpo mope, Wipe the counter, light a cigarette, look outdoors, walk up and down. Little Squeak run long all up under him trying to git his tension. Baby this, she say, Baby that. Harpo look through her head, blow smoke" (84). Harpo is ignoring his wife and his responsibilities because he misses Sofia even though she wasn't the perfect wife.
This section of the book reminds me of Black Boy in the way that all of the family members aren't getting along with each other. Some family members get along, but collectively as a group they're struggling.
Sunday, October 21, 2007
Outside Reading Blog Numbero Uno (this only took me forever)
I am currently reading the book The Color Purple written by Alice Walker. This book, so far, has been about the main character named Celie. At the beginning of this book Celie is 14 years old. Celie is seems to be a nice girl, but she isn't very smart. Her speech isn't very good and she can't write very intelligently. She's motivated by her sister Nettie. Nettie is very smart and reads all of the time. She tries to help Celie become more educated and is trying to help her learn how to teach herself how to do things. This is shown when Celie explains, "She be sitting there with me shelling peas or helping the children with they spelling. Helping me with spelling and everything else she think I need to know. No matter what happen, Nettie steady try to teach me what go on in the world. And she a good teacher too," (16). Celie loves Nettie very much and is trying to be a better person for her little sister.
Struggles that Celie experiences early on in this book are that she is raped by her mother's boyfriend and becomes pregnant with his child twice. She struggles with coming to terms with being violated in such a way, and also with having to give away her children. Even though she does not want children she finds it difficult to give them up. Celie also struggles with marriage, her own as well as her sister's. She doesn't feel ready to get married and she doesn't want her sister to marry someone that isn't smart enough for her. She knows that her sister is very intelligent and she feels like she should be married to someone equally as smart. Once Celie does get married she struggles with not being in love with her husband and also not loving his children. She shows this to the reading when she says, "Everybody say how good I is to Mr. children. I be good to them. But I don't feel nothing for them. Patting Harpo back not even like patting a dog. It more like patting another piece of wood. Not a living tree, but a table, a chifferobe. Anyhow, they don't love me neither, no matter how good I is," (29). She clearly feels unloved and unwanted by his family. All of these things help Celie realize that in order to be happy in life she needs to find true love and compassion from others.
I feel that this book is similar to Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close in the way that the narrator is struggling so much with themselves as well as with their environment and the people in it.
Struggles that Celie experiences early on in this book are that she is raped by her mother's boyfriend and becomes pregnant with his child twice. She struggles with coming to terms with being violated in such a way, and also with having to give away her children. Even though she does not want children she finds it difficult to give them up. Celie also struggles with marriage, her own as well as her sister's. She doesn't feel ready to get married and she doesn't want her sister to marry someone that isn't smart enough for her. She knows that her sister is very intelligent and she feels like she should be married to someone equally as smart. Once Celie does get married she struggles with not being in love with her husband and also not loving his children. She shows this to the reading when she says, "Everybody say how good I is to Mr. children. I be good to them. But I don't feel nothing for them. Patting Harpo back not even like patting a dog. It more like patting another piece of wood. Not a living tree, but a table, a chifferobe. Anyhow, they don't love me neither, no matter how good I is," (29). She clearly feels unloved and unwanted by his family. All of these things help Celie realize that in order to be happy in life she needs to find true love and compassion from others.
I feel that this book is similar to Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close in the way that the narrator is struggling so much with themselves as well as with their environment and the people in it.
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Memoirs of a Geisha. Hahaha, but seriously, memoirs.
There are many reasons why people write memoirs about their life. To start, writing down your story helps you really get out all of your emotions about the event. There's nothing to hide when you're writing, there's no point. When writing about your life you're able to let your mind run wild and let it immerse you in your memories, good and bad.
Writing a memoir is very beneficial for others as well. They tells people how to approach a situation if they find themselves in the same spot as the writer was at one time. Reading into someone's personal thoughts about an event helps us to understand what was running through their mind, and what SHOULD have been running through their mind. When we read about an event that occurred to someone it allows us to go back into our memories later and think about how the writer handled that situation.
Reading memoirs also lets us see and feel what the author was seeing and feeling. Sometimes we don't understand why someone did or said something, but when it's all right there in front of you in a memoir, it helps us understand the writer a little more. Memoirs help us take a few steps in someone else's shoes. Whether it was written during a different time period or written by a good friend, reading about other people's lives gives us a greater understanding of the world and the people in it.
Writing a memoir is very beneficial for others as well. They tells people how to approach a situation if they find themselves in the same spot as the writer was at one time. Reading into someone's personal thoughts about an event helps us to understand what was running through their mind, and what SHOULD have been running through their mind. When we read about an event that occurred to someone it allows us to go back into our memories later and think about how the writer handled that situation.
Reading memoirs also lets us see and feel what the author was seeing and feeling. Sometimes we don't understand why someone did or said something, but when it's all right there in front of you in a memoir, it helps us understand the writer a little more. Memoirs help us take a few steps in someone else's shoes. Whether it was written during a different time period or written by a good friend, reading about other people's lives gives us a greater understanding of the world and the people in it.
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
HUNGER!!! (Leah Kuck is my idol.)
Richard suffers quite a bit in this book. He talks of how he never feels full after each meal and how he wishes that he could eat as much meat and other things as he wanted. This physical hunger drives him to get a job working for white people in their home to help support himself and his family. This hunger has a positive effect on him because it pushes him to better himself and to help his family in their time of need.
Richard also suffers from hunger of wanting to break away from his family and from religion. He hungers to be independent and to not have to deal with his family that is anything but understanding. His family continues to push him in the direction of God; a direction that he does not want to take. They continue to urge him to go to God, go with them to church, become a real Christian. The more that they push him to do these things the more he hungers to break away. He also is beaten by his family, which he hates because he views himself to be somewhat of an adult, and that other adults don't have a right to beat him if he's unable to fight back. He hungers to grow up and move away. All of these things hungers are negative. They teach Richard to be on the defensive and to not love his family unconditionally like families should. It also is causing him to rebel against adults, authority figures as well as religion as a whole. He probably wouldn't have these feelings about religion if his family wasn't trying so hard to get him to come into the arms of God.
Finally Richard hungers for social interaction. Whenever he is with people that he enjoys he commits himself to being somewhat reserved so that people don't ask him about his home life or to come over to visit him. He feels ashamed of his home life, which causes him to be socially deprived. He talks about how he does things not because he wants to or because he thinks it's the right thing to do, but because he likes the people that are asking him to do it. This hunger could be viewed as positive or negative. It's positive in the way that Richard wants to make friends and to talk to people, but it is also negative because he's doing things for the wrong reasons in order to please his friends.
Richard also suffers from hunger of wanting to break away from his family and from religion. He hungers to be independent and to not have to deal with his family that is anything but understanding. His family continues to push him in the direction of God; a direction that he does not want to take. They continue to urge him to go to God, go with them to church, become a real Christian. The more that they push him to do these things the more he hungers to break away. He also is beaten by his family, which he hates because he views himself to be somewhat of an adult, and that other adults don't have a right to beat him if he's unable to fight back. He hungers to grow up and move away. All of these things hungers are negative. They teach Richard to be on the defensive and to not love his family unconditionally like families should. It also is causing him to rebel against adults, authority figures as well as religion as a whole. He probably wouldn't have these feelings about religion if his family wasn't trying so hard to get him to come into the arms of God.
Finally Richard hungers for social interaction. Whenever he is with people that he enjoys he commits himself to being somewhat reserved so that people don't ask him about his home life or to come over to visit him. He feels ashamed of his home life, which causes him to be socially deprived. He talks about how he does things not because he wants to or because he thinks it's the right thing to do, but because he likes the people that are asking him to do it. This hunger could be viewed as positive or negative. It's positive in the way that Richard wants to make friends and to talk to people, but it is also negative because he's doing things for the wrong reasons in order to please his friends.
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