Closed Reading #4

http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/eugene-robinson-boehner-plays-a-weak-hand/2012/12/03/227b41da-3d70-11e2-ae43-cf491b837f7b_story.html
           In this editorial from the Washington Post the “left-leaning” columnist Eugene Robinson mocks John Boehner’s reaction to the Obama Administration’s proposals on taxes and spending.  In this article Eugene attempts to show that republicans in congress are being stubborn regarding fiscal policy as the “fiscal cliff” is approaching and they are not willing to increase the taxes on the wealthy.  Eugene also wants to show that the democrats in congress and Obama are willing to compromise and that their policies are very reasonable. Eugene uses imagery, syntax, and diction to effectively portray her opinion.

           Robinson uses imagery to express his opinions about the Republicans in congress.  Saying of Geithner that he "sounds like the doctor who says you might feel a 'pinch' or a bit of 'discomfort.' Meanwhile, he’s coming at you with a needle the size of an ice pick."  This simile relates to a lot of Americans.  Most Americans hate going to the doctor to get shots and so painting Geithner as the doctor giving the shot carries with it a negative connotation.  This simile also makes the Republicans seem like they are downplaying their ideas as just a “pinch” when in reality their ideas have much greater effects.

Robinson uses syntax to put emphasis on certain aspects of the editorial.   Robinson uses paragraphs to place emphasis on certain sentences or points that he thinks are important.  For example the last paragraph is a mere nine words.  He finished this editorial with “Hence Boehner’s urgency. Time is not on his side."  Finishing the paper with a a short paragraph that contrasts greatly from the previous 65 word paragraph makes it stand out more to the reader.  When a short sentence or two are stuck in a paragraph by themselves like Eugene often does it gives the reader a short pause in the flow of the editorial to take in what has just been said.  Therefore the short paragraphs are used to make the reader think a little harder about what has been said in them.  Another way that the author emphasizes what he considers to be the most important details in the story is his use of questions.  Eugene uses sarcastic questions to mock Boehner and the other republicans in congress.  Robinson started of the editorial with a series of questions.  He said, “How dare he? President Obama, I mean: How dare he do what he promised during the campaign? How dare he insist on a “balanced approach” to fiscal policy that includes a teensy-weensy tax increase for the rich? Oh, the humanity.  This melodramatic statement is clearly meant to mock the Republicans in congress and is an interesting way to start the paper.  Eugene uses the questions here to show how he thinks the republicans are thinking in response to the new proposals.  He begins by using a very vague question,”How dare he?”.  This grabs the reader attention right away as they want to find out what happened.  He then clarifies what he means with the following question.  This question-answer technique is utilized throughout the paper and really draws the reader’s interest to what the answer is. 

Eugene uses diction to mock the Republicans and to portray Obama in a positive light.  He uses words such as “teensy-weensy” when referring to the proposed tax hike on the wealthy by the Obama Administration to show how minuscule and reasonable it is.  “Teensy-weensy” makes the tax hikes seem almost negligible and makes the conservatives seem unreasonable for not agreeing to them.  Eugene also said, “Republicans are having conniptions” in response to seeing the Obama Administration’s proposals.  The word “conniptions” makes the republicans seem over-emotional about the proposals and after he described how “reasonable” Obama’s proposals were it shows that the republicans in congress are unwilling to budge.  Using the word “conniptions” makes the Republicans seem like they are hysterical because they don’t know what to do and lack control. 

Eugene Robinson created a very persuasive editorial using many literary techniques to show the stubbornness of John Boehner and the rest of the republicans in congress with respect to the fiscal crisis, while portraying the democrats as reasonable and compromising.  

Open Prompt #4

1970 Also. Choose a work of recognized literary merit in which a specific inanimate object (e.g., a seashell, a handkerchief, a painting) is important, and write an essay in which you show how two or three of the purposes the object serves are related to one another. 

In The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien there is a special ring and whoever puts it on will be all-powerful.  The ring has incredible power and just wearing it around one’s neck is enough to turn a normal person mad with  power.  That is where one of the main character’s, a Hobbit named Frodo, comes in.  He is the only person that can refuse the urge to wear the ring and stay somewhat sane.  Throughout the story Frodo attempts to destroy the ring as its power is too great for one person.  Along the way many people try to take the ring from him so that they can harness its  incredible power. 

The inscription on the ring reads: “One ring to rule them all, one ring to find them, one ring to bring them all, and in the darkness bind them”. This really shows the purposes of the ring as intended by the author.  The ring is meant to rule others and bring power to its beholder, and it is meant to bind people and bring them together.

One of the purposes of the ring is to empower its beholder.  It has been used by many evil people in the past to rule the kingdom but somehow it ended up in the hands of small Frodo due to destiny.  Throughout the books Frodo wrestles with his conscious.  He knows he should not wear the ring but the ring constantly tempts him to try it on.  Frodo’s internal struggle is best shown by the character Smeagol.  Smeagol is basically a bipolar character that goes by both the name Smeagol and Gollum.  He has a good side (Smeagol) and a dark side (Gollum) that years of wearing the ring brought out from within him.  He is willing to kill to get the ring back when he is Gollum but knows that the ring is evil when he is Smeagol.  The wearer of the ring has the ability to teleport and all sorts of other powers.

One of the purposes of rings is to bring people together.  Rings have a circular shape that is meant to symbolize eternity.  They are often used to symbolize eternity in marriage but they can also be used to  symbolize eternal friendships and promises.   In The Lord of the Rings the ring brings unlikely people together, such as Frodo and Sam.  Before the novel they were not friends and didn’t like each other all that much but their adventures through dark places and close encounters with death created a tight, eternal bond that not even the power of the ring could break.   

The ring brings people together (“one ring to bring them all, and in the darkness bind them”) and it is a symbol of power (“one ring to rule them all”).  How do these purposes relate?  Both of these purposes are eternal as a rings shape.  The power the ring brings when it is worn is eternal and the relationships it creates are everlasting as well.  The ring brings great power, but alone one person cannot be all powerful.  The ring has the power to control all the other powerful rings in the land and utilize it.  This is very similar to the friendships it creates.  For example Frodo would not be able to do anything of great relevance alone but with his friends Sam and Gandalf he is able to do great things. 

Death of a Salesman Summary and Analysis

Author: Arthur Miller, a playwright famous for works such as The Crucible.  He is well-known for being politically active.

Setting: The play takes place throughout the American Northeast in places such as Boston, New York, and the Loman's residence in Brooklyn.  The urban location of the Loman's house in Brooklyn plays a major role in the play.  When the Loman's built there home there was a lot of sunlight and a big backyard with a garden.  Over time there were many homes built surrounding the Loman's home that blocked the sun from shining on their yard, killed their garden, and constrained them.  This is very representative of the change in the mood and well-being of the characters.  When they had a big garden they were all fairly successful and had a lot of hope for a bright future.  As the house was surrounded on all sides the garden died and the soil became infertile.  This represents the infertility in the Loman's life as well during this time and their lack of hope.  The play takes place in the "present" when this book was published in 1949 or when it was written.  Thus it is fairly safe to say that it take place in the late 1940s, however Willy has many flashbacks to the past that would be around the late 1920s or early 1930s.  Although this book does have a time period, there is not much that could not be applied to modern society.  

Narrative: As Death of a Salesman is a play there is no narrator.

Plot: Willy is a business man who is confused about life, not knowing where he stands in society as a salesman as his son Biff is a high school graduate and a failure in life. Linda is an all knowing character who serves as a mother like figure to Willy and takes care of the family in times of need.  Happy is a character who is successful but neglected. Willy recognizes Biff’s failure as one of his own faults and considers it to be the biggest mistake in his own life. When Happy suggests to Biff that they could both work at a company together and that they should go achieve their “american dream”, the family suddenly becomes closer; the idea of achieving the American dream brings the family closer. However, Biff and Happy never get the job.  Willy’s past successes were attributed to his charming good looks. These looks allowed him to sleep with the receptionists of big businesses but as time passed, his charming features diminished. His depression then spurs, and his attempts of suicide with a rubber hose were later discovered by Linda. Although Linda became very concerned for Willy and cares for him, he does not seemingly feel the same way. He even cheated on Linda and when Biff found out, he was highly disappointed in his father. Betrayal is a common theme in this novel and is not only prevalent here, but also when Biff does not become successful it betrays Willy’s ambitions. Towards the end of the novel, Willy is driving subconsciously and gets in a car accident and dies. The family then morns the loss of Willy, who in the end was alleviated by all the stresses of life by dying. He achieved his American dream; to be free. 

Tone: The tone of this play is sincere and at times brutally honest.  The author does not include any sort of comic relief in the play as the author of The American Dream did.  He has a very serious message that he is trying to deliver through this play and he does so in a rather dark way.  As a result many would find this book rather depressing, yet it is very entertaining and very true.  Many of the character's emotions pour out in this play and the way the dialogue is written the reader will generally get fed up with the characters' actions.  This play is a great representation of capitalist society in America and the chase for the "American Dream".  

Themes: 

• The American Dream- The American Dream is unattainable yet extremely desirable to Willy. The chase of the American Dream leads to his unhappiness, and his Death.
• The Evil of Capitalism- 
• Betrayal: Willy betrays Linda by having an affair with another woman. Biff betrays Willy by not achieving the success that he once promised his father.

Symbols: 

• Seeds: The seeds that will was trying to plant represent hope.
• Rubber hose: The rubber hose that Willy kept trying to remove from his car to kill himself represents the fragility of life. 
• Stockings: Stockings during the time period the book was written in were viewed as a luxury.  They represent femininity.  

Quotes:  “Nothing’s planted. I don’t have a thing in the ground.”  The plant symbolizes a new beginning for Willy once he realizes that this is his last ditch substitute for all of his failures in his son and in his work.

“He’s a man way out there in the blue, riding on a smile and a shoeshine . . . A salesman is got to dream, boy.” This quote discusses the rough nature of the capitalistic market in which Willy is competing in.

Response to Course Materials #4

       It's been a month since the last response to course materials and ALOT of material has been covered.  Since I last wrote we finished up our discussion of The American Dream and moved on to the Death of a Salesman by Miller.  This time instead of doing a read-through as a class we watched the movie and then read and annotated the play at our home.  The movie was almost exactly the same as the play and but it was interesting to see how they interpreted the play.  The only issue was that since I saw the movie first I didn't form my own conclusions in my head about the characters before I saw the movie. 
       Looking back on The American Dream I noticed that the themes were very similar to those in Death of a Salesman.  Both stories had clear themes of the evil of consumerism.  The characters in both the Death of a Salesman and The American Dream chased after money and material things to find happiness. In The American Dream the author goes out of his way to point out material desires of the characters.  Mommy and Daddy even looked at their deceased son as a material possession and since Grandma is not bringing any money to the table think she is useless and want to kick her out of the house.  In Death of a Salesman Biff is looked down upon by his Dad because he doesn't have a great desire for money and material possessions.  Biff desires to work out West with his hands but Willy seems to think that he is still a child for having such thoughts.  Willy was being taken advantage of by the business he makes sales for and works very hard for little pay.  He is depressed because he works so hard but does not have the money to show for it and is always complaining about some material desire.  He even goes so far as to kill himself because he knows that his family will make more money from his life insurance than they would if he was alive.  Both stories revolve around the desire to make more money and material things. 
       What was really interesting to me about our study of Death of a Salesman was how deep it went.  I have begun to view plays as bananas... with multiple layers.   As we peeled back layer and layer of Death of a Salesman we found all sorts of hidden meanings.  When our class read one of the professional criticisms on Death of a Salesman I found it really interesting that the critic disagreed with Miller on the meaning of his own play.  This showed me that there is no correct or incorrect answer as to the interpretation of plays.    
       Another thing we did in class that was very helpful was the multiple choice practice for the AP exam.  We read through passages and tried to answer as many questions correctly as possible.  The questions were rather difficult for me but I managed to get a surprisingly high percentage of them correctly.  What challenged me was that they used very complex terminology.  I am also still not used to having to think so in-depth about passages. After this we tried to create our own multiple choice questions.  I found this really helpful because it allowed us to think from the point of view of an AP test writer.   
     We are starting to read Hamlet in class now and  I am really excited to tackle a Shakespeare play, however so far I am incredibly intimidated by the elevated diction because it is so different from what I am used to seeing.  To me Shakespeare is like a foreign language.  I think it is really helpful that Ms. Holmes stops us every so often to clarify certain things, clear up the confusion, and provide a little bit of background for us to help us understand the play better.