Week Five & Six /Analysis Two- Formalism & Structuralism and Semiotics / Analysis Two

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Soliloquy of a Story
Who am I? WHO AM I? I live inside of your words, bleeding through your sentences. I seep into your skull and leave my brains inside of you.  You look at me, you inhale me, and I consume you.  And who do you call yourself? Who are you? WHO ARE YOU? You are a captain you say, a reader. A reader of words, a voyager of stories.  You think you can come into my home, my ocean and peacefully get by? You think that I won’t see you and grasp you and never allow you to forget? I would not allow that. I will squeeze your throat and breathe life into you as I see fit.  I will captivate you to the point where you lose yourself.  You have no power against me, you only have me. You belong to me but I belong to the world. You are now mine but not mine alone. I will capsize you, I will own you, I will hold you tight and never let you go.

Word Count: 177

Formalism Analysis

The story is the inner dialogue of a book. Not the story or the content of the book, but the emotions of the book. The story personifies the book, a symbol of knowledge, creativity, and art.  By giving this symbol a voice and life it gives a personality and opinions to the book.  The use of questions creates an intimacy with the reader and creates a participatory element to the story.  In regards to the picture, it gives the subject a voice.  The image of the octopus capsizing a ship implies a fantastical element to the book’s story.  With the visual of the scene appearing out of the book, it pursues the idea that the book is more than just a book and is a living, breathing entity.  The structure of the story addresses the idea that the book is alive and the voice is a defined speaker.  Within the idea of formalism, we may assume that the context is not the most important aspect of the story.  With this in mind, we do not need to worry about what the book has seen, how the book knows its’ place or how the book has developed its’ idea of the relationship between a reader and a piece of work.  We here are more concerned with how it is told.  The voice is commanding, challenging, and aggressive.  The power shown in the giant octopus is reflected with the tone in the piece.  The dominance is also reflected and is very defining of both the piece and the octopus. The reader is challenged, even belittled by the piece and this technique is effective in expressing the central theme.  

Word Count: 276

Total Word Count: 453

Week Four- Enlightenment Theory and Criticism

This week in class we discussed Enlightenment Theory.  The enlightenment covers a lot of ground with many different theories.  The big ones go as follows: rationalism, empiricism, and then skepticism.
Rationalism is the essential idea that knowledge is gained and understood through reason.  Empiricism is the idea that knowledge is gained and understood through the senses and the experience felt through the senses. Skepticism is the idea that there is no such thing as true knowledge because being truly knowledgeable is impossible.
It was noted in our lecture that Descartes is a rationalist.  Descartes is famous for saying “I think therefore I am.”  This implies that there is a self who thinks, a dualism, a dualistic existence.  Because you, as a person and as a being, think, you can be sure that you exist and are real.
Also in our lecture, it was said (on empiricism) that “you need your senses; your senses will give you truth.”  Another movement that played into empiricism was romance and idealism, where many stories played up archetypes such as knights and chivalry.  This emphasis on senses naturally lent itself to more romantic, emotion driven ideas.  I think that since archetypes of chivalry and what represented good and evil were popularized, thought processes that cultivated the human emotions and senses would naturally popularize along with it.
Eventually, Aristocratic ideology leads into Progressive ideology to Conservative ideology, then to Aristocratic ideology.  This implies a cycle of ideology of emphasizing aristocratic ideas, then progression, then conservative classical notions, and eventually back to aristocratic ideas.
Overall, enlightenment offered an incredibly wide array of thought processes and there was a lot of growth within this time period.

Word Count: 278

Analysis One- Classical Literary Criticism

Dead Poets and Philosopher's Society

Longinus’s piece on the subject of sublimity defines the parameters of what is sublime. He identifies sublimity as something that “at the right moment, tears everything up like a whirlwind, and exhibit’s the orator’s whole power at a single blow” (137).  Sublimity is a stunning and an empowering attribute.
Sublimity must be based on certain sources.  By setting up guidelines for what is sublime, it becomes easier to define.  Longinus considers the most important definition of something being sublime is “the power to conceive great thoughts” (138).  This implies that sublimity lends itself to being incredibly inspiring to others, and lends itself to the next point being that sublimity should include “strong and inspired emotion” (138).  This all being said, sublimity is profound and creates an impact.
However, within that impact, there should not be a trace of grandeur.  The ego that is attached with grandeur does not mesh with the delicacy of sublimity.  Longinus says that showings of grandeur “when dissected, prove vain and hollow, the kind of thing which it does a man more honor to despise than to admire” (138).  This is in the same vein that created the counterculture.  The idea to go against what is considered awesome and great typically and to escape to a place of peace that may not necessarily be recognized for what it truly is.  Sublimity is, in this essence, an escape from the dreaded standards of awe and is a serene place of inspiration.

This reminded me of Ethan Hawke’s impromptu speech in Dead Poet’s Society.  Robin Williams’ character is a whimsically inspirational English teacher trying to empower a shy teenage boy.  To begin with, the school is none too pleased with Williams’ teaching methods.  He does not live up to the standards of what is considered being a great teacher.  With this in mind, Williams’ character escapes the academic idea of grandeur within this world.  He defies the awe of traditional academia, contributing to the teaching counterculture.  With that said, he is meant to be innately inspiring.
The clip that I chose is what I consider to be his breakthrough moment within the film.  He recognizes Hawke’s fear of not only poetry, but also his fear of public vulnerability.  As Williams circles Hawke, he slowly peps up Hawke and brings him to the point of inspiration, and an impromptu poem is produced in front of the class.  Hawke’s poem begins slowly and forced, and flourishes into something beautiful. It becomes a rousing piece that brings the rest of the class to applause, and inevitably respect.  Hawke begins to stutter as he is forced into poetry, fumbling over his description of a man in a picture, and ending with delivering the line “Truth is like, like a blanket that always leaves your feet cold” (Schulman).  Despite some giggles from his classmates, Williams’ sublimity allows Hawke to conclude (on truth) “It'll never be enough. You kick at it, beat it. It'll never cover any of us. From the moment we enter crying to the moment we leave dying, it will just cover your face as you wail and cry and scream” (Schulman).  Because of the sublimity Williams provides, Hawke reaches inspiration and clarity which is the essential sublime experience.

Word Count: 530


Works Cited
Dead Poets Society. Dir. Peter Weir. By Tom Schulman. Perf. Robin Williams. Touchstone Pictures, 1989. DVD.
Hammond, Pete. "Dead Poets Society (1989) - IMDb." The Internet Movie Database (IMDb). Web. 14 Feb. 2011. <http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0097165/>.
Leitch, Vincent B. The Norton Anthology of Theory and Criticism. 2nd ed. New York: W. W. Norton &, 2010. Print.
"YouTube." YouTube - Broadcast Yourself. 1 Mar. 2006. Web. 14 Feb. 2011. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aLFQYbjYsso>.

Week Three- Classical Literary Criticism

The lecture from Dr. Kevin O’Neill was very interesting.  I found him to be an entertaining speaker.  Clearly he knows his strengths and is an intriguing speaker.  I like that he gave context before he really dove into the Greeks and their ideals on discourse and persuasion and rhetoric.  I noticed that he did throw in some references that the college crowd would clearly understand and relate to (“Is Mark Zuckerberg or Steve Jobs the new Aristotle? Do they control the art of persuasion?”).  Those kind of references seem to be a necessity in reaching out to the crackberry generation.

I feel that this class period also clarified a lot of the terms that were touched on or will probably be used for the rest of the course.  In community college, I took a beginning philosophy course, but all the terminology that I learned went out the window.  

The use of ‘Wall Street’ to analyze rhetoric was a very intriguing exercise.  Within the realm of scenes that are used to persuade to prove a point, Gordon Gecko is a good way to go.   

On that note, I am also impressed that no clip from this movie were used for the rhetoric analysis:

I think that today’s class lecture also gave me some insight into what I want to write my analysis on.  At first I wasn’t sure as to what direction I wanted to go with it, or even how I was supposed to write it.  I think that the discussion of what is sublime and art and catharsis was very clarifying and it definitely gave me more direction for my analysis. Speaking of Sublime, this is EXACTLY how I felt before coming to class today:

Word Count: 286

Works Cited

Moskowitz, Clara. "How to Tell If You Are Addicted to Technology | LiveScience." LiveScience | Science, Technology, Health & Environmental News. TechMediaNetwork, 25 Jan. 2008. Web. 08 Feb. 2011. <http://www.livescience.com/technology/080125-tech-addicts.html>.

O'Neill, Dr. Kevin. "The Origins and Uses of Rhetoric in Classical Athens: Plato, Aristotle,and the Craft of Persuasion." Manzanita 130, CSUN, Northridge. 8 Feb. 2011. Lecture.

"YouTube - ...And Justice for All (1979) Movie Trailer." YouTube. StreamMovieTrailers, 5 Jan. 2010. Web. 08 Feb. 2011. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yUH_iu4SLBw>.

"YouTube - Sublime - Burritos." YouTube. Sublimechick571, 10 Oct. 2007. Web. 08 Feb. 2011. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4h2q3OKjRu0>. 

Week Two- Classical Literary Criticism Reflection

This week’s class focused on essentially the origins of western tradition and its’ roots in Greek criticism.  I thought that the part of the discussion that focused on Helen was interesting, because Helen really was a two timing hussy. She may be thought of to be more of a victim of male conquering, but I feel that she knew what she was doing. She was just a silly girl who would get caught up in the attention that hunky men in metal breastplates were giving her.  Having not seen ‘Troy’, I only had a vague memory of the story, but I found that this helped in refreshing my memory.

I also enjoyed the conversation on Plato.  I found it fascinating that Plato and Socrates were seemingly so against poetry.  It is cited that the thing that the find most offensive is mimesis (imitation or representation) in poetry, because “poetry cannot depict truth and teach morality and that it is irrational-based on inspiration, not knowledge” (7).  Socrates even recommends “that it be banished from the ideal society, except perhaps for poetry that praises the gods and avoids representing them in an unseemly fashion” (7).  What I got from it is that Plato was more concerned with substance and ethics over aesthetics.   Personally, I am fascinated by the beauty in eloquence, even if it is not necessarily substantial (or praising of any gods).  I do think that Plato is a wise man. He has made some great points, such as:

On the subject of Greek philosophers, I am constantly amazed at the impact they have had on the world and the way people think. The wisdom of so few people have trickled down and reached the masses.  Their way of thinking became the basis for so many modern ways of thinking.  The cave inspired one of the most insane movie franchises ever.  Plato and crew definitely had one of the greatest impacts on our society.  They have also inspired a really well done web comic.  

Word Count: 335

Works Cited

"Horrible Histories: Helen of Troy." YouTube. BBC, 6 June 2009. Web. 04 Feb. 2011. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2VgEpl3qd8o>.

Leitch, Vincent B. The Norton Anthology of Theory and Criticism. 2nd ed. New York: W. W. Norton &, 2010. Print.

Russell, Matt, and Nick Gibb. Dead Philosophers in Heaven -. Web. 04 Feb. 2011. <http://www.dead-philosophers.com/>. 

Week One- Introduction

Hello all, my name is Andrea Carter. I’m the girl with all the tattoos, if that helps your memory.  I am a transplant from Berkeley.  Last May when I was 19 I graduated from Laney College (a community college) in Oakland with my AA.  I’m a 20 year old junior here at CSUN and I am an English major, with my focus on creative writing.  I’ve been in Northridge for about four months (give or take) and have experienced quite a lot of culture shock to say the least. I am used to the beautiful Bay Area, where public transportation is not a joke and restaurants are good.  I come from a magical place that has street fairs, community gardens, and pillow fights in the middle of downtown.  I now live in a strip mall with no culture.

I have been serving and cocktailing my way through college thus far and waiting on people, old and young, rich and poor, sober and drunk, has fueled much of my outlook on life, as well as my writing.  Learning how different people act in public is eye opening.  My theory on waiting tables is to never assume you have earned anything. Sure, business men who pay on the company AMEX almost always leave 18% or more. But, if you take a stereotype for granted, you may be surprised as to how quickly that assumption will prove itself wrong.

My theory that I have developed from waiting tables has leaked into my theory when it comes to literature.  Make no assumptions, wait until the end to see what is there.  I often find myself having to push through works to get to the end just so that I can confirm my assumptions or figure out the message of what I just read.  I try to absorb what’s going on in a text as much as I can and reserve judgment until the end.  I also found that when I’m doing required reading, I sometimes have to take notes on what I just read so I actually can reiterate to myself what’s going on.  That typically only happens when reading is particularly dense, but I find that it helps.

Anyway, that is my theory on how to absorb and grasp literature.  I had to take some time to decide what my theory is.  On the first day of class, I wasn’t sure what to make of the question ‘what is your theory?’.  In fact, when writing out my introduction page, I wrote that my theory was to “live every week like it’s shark week.” To some extent, I suppose that is my life theory.  Life should be about excitement, looking forward to excellent events, and avoiding danger.  My theory, now that I think about it, is also based on not relying on a theory.  My theory is typically to go into things with an open mind and to not judge until the situation has played itself out. That being said, I have heard a strong rumor that English 436 is notoriously the most difficult English class.  I am trying not to take that too much to heart, and remain positive throughout the course.  And by that, I mean I will be desperately burning the midnight oil to keep up and work incredibly hard.

Word Count: 549