Miss Brill

"The old people sat on the bench, still as statues.  Never mind, there was always the crowd to watch." - Katherine Mansfield.

Miss Brill herself is an elderly woman.  She is not, though, a typical stock character of an old woman.  She is more complex than that.  As the quote above helps to show, she judges other elderly people.  In this way, she is acting like a younger, sort of immature teenager.  She separates herself from the other elderly people or those who act elderly.  Another example is when Miss Brill noticed other people who just sat on benches.  She said the were "nearly all old, and from the way they stared they looked as though they'd just come from dark little rooms or even - even cupboards!"  By describing the other elderly people in a more negative tone, she is separating herself from them and showing that she herself is much more than one of those typical older people.

Once Upon A Time

"And then last night I woke up - or rather was awakened without knowing what had roused me.  A voice in the echo-chamber of the subconscious?  A sound.  A creaking of the kind made by the wight carried by one foot after another along a wooden floor." - Nadine Gordimer.


For this blog, I am going to formally answer a question included in the text.  The question is this:

The opening section of the story is told by a writer awakened by a frightening sound in the night.  What two causes for the sound does she consider?  Ultimately, which is the more significant cause for fear?  How do these together create an emotional background for the "children's story" she tells?

As the quote I have used above illustrates, one explanation for the frightening sounds that awoke the writer is the creaking of the house.  The other explanation the writer comes up with which one could find by reading more deeply into the story is that it could be an intruder or burgler.  This explanation is ultimately the more significant cause for fear.  I, personally, would find this explanation the most significant cause for fear as well.  Everyone can relate to that fear that someone has broken into his or her house and could be a threat.  Also, one can figure that this is the most significant cause for fear because it is from this fear that the writer goes into detail telling a story of a family's paranoia of intruders in an attempt to calm her own nerves.  Ultimately, these two fears together create an emotional background for the children's story because everyone can relate to this paranoia.  Again, everyone knows the feeling of being nervous that an unknown person is in one's house.

A Worn Path

"Her skin had a pattern all its own of numberless branching wrinkles and as though a whole little tree stood in the middle of her forehead...still black, and with an odor like copper." - Eudora Welty.

For this blog, I am going to formally answer a question included in the text.  The question is this:

Discuss the way the characterization of Phoenix contributes to the theme.

First of all, to answer this question, one must identify the theme.  I believe the theme of this short story is perseverance.  The fact that Phoenix was able to walk all the way to town even though she obviously had some issues mentally shows that she has great perseverance.  The way Phoenix is characterized in this story is by firey, red, and strong characteristics.  It says that a "golden color ran underneath" her forehead.  Also the "two knobs of her cheeks were illuminated by a yellow burning under the dark."  In addition to that, she covers her hair with a "red rag."  All of these characteristics put a firey and strong image in my mind.  Also, just think of her name: Phoenix.  A phoenix bird is a strong bird who has a rebirth from its own ashes.  This gives the image that Phoenix Jackson is a strong woman.

Eveline

"She sat at the window watching evening invade the avenue.  Her head was leaned against the window curtains and in her nostrils was the odor of dusty cretonne.  She was tired." - James Joyce.


For this blog, I am going to formally answer a question included in the text.  The question is this:


What in Eveline's present circumstances makes it desirable for her to escape her home?  Characterize her father and Miss Gavin, her supervisor.  What does the memory of her mother contribute to her decision to leave?

One good answer to the first question in this series of questions in given in the quote I have used above.  Eveline is tired of the life she is currently living.  In addition to this, another circumstance that makes it desirable for her to escape is the fact that her father, who was abusive to her brothers as she was growing up, has begun threatening her and telling her what he is going to do to her only for her dead mother's sake.  This also helps to characterize the father.  Her father is cold, abusive mentally and soon, maybe, physically, and unloving.  Miss Gavin on the other hand clearly would be happy if Eveline was gone.  Personally, I would not want to stay in a home where I felt unwanted or threatened.  The only reason, though, Eveline stays at the home is because of the memory of her dead mother.  Her mother made her promise to keep the home together for as long as she could.  This is probably the main reason why she decided not to leave with Frank.

Hunters In The Snow - #2

"His skin was bone white.  'Tub, I've been thinking.  What you said about me not paying attention, that's true.'" - Tobias Wolff.

For this blog, I am going to formally answer a question included in the text book.  The question is this:

Do any of the characters undergo a dynamic change in the course of the story?  Are these changes permanent or temporary?  Locate the passages that suggest a change is taking place.

The one character I feel that undergoes the biggest dynamic change is Frank.  At the beginning of the story, Frank goes along with Kenny.  He makes fun of Tub and calls him names.  Then, there is a scene on page 195 where Tub finally sticks up for himself.  He says, "No more talking to me like that.  No more watching.  No more laughing."  I believe this is not the part of the passage that suggests a change is taking place, though.  It did, however, create the basis for that change to take place.  I realized a change was taking place on page 197.  The quote that I used above is what I am talking about.  I realized here that Frank was starting to feel bad about how he was treating Tub.  Honestly, I do not believe this change is permanent.  If Frank is so easily turned away from Kenny and onto Tub's side, then what is stopping him from turning away from Tub and back to Kenny's side?  I would like to think that Frank could completely change his ways but it truly does not seem possible.  His personality is just not strong enough.

Bartleby the Scrivener

"I would prefer not to." - Herman Melville.

This short story was so annoying! Sorry Mr. Costello, but you got my hopes up when you showed us the video of Bartleby.  I thought this short story was going to be really funny but it just turned out to be super irritating.  No hard feelings, though.  Anyway, the quote above is the quote Bartleby said everytime he was asked to do something he really didn't feel like doing.  The one coincidence I found in the story was that Bartleby seemed just fine doing all these basic tasks until he was asked to do them by someone (For instance, he stops eating while in prison.).  As soon as he was asked to do those tasks, he refused.  Maybe he felt he was going to become subordinate to that person or something.  In the end, Bartleby died.  Perhaps he was asked to do all the necessary activites of life and after refusing to do those, he was unable to live. 

Hunters In The Snow

"'You fat moron,' Frank said.  'You aren't good for diddly.'" - Tobias Wolff.

For this blog, I am going to formally answer a question included in the text book.  The question is this:

Which of the three principal characters do you find most sympathetic?  The least sympathetic?  Discuss your answers.  do the characters' names help us to form our impression of them?

The character I find most sympathetic is without a doubt, Tub.  He is always being picked on as the quote I used above shows.  Kenny and Frank always seem to be ganging up on him and making fun of him.  For example, they almost ran over him with the truck at the very beginning of the story.  When Tub tells them they could have killed him they sort of just laughted and said they were kidding around, not taking the situation very seriously.  They also just leave him by himself in the snow as they are walking back to the truck.  No wonder he is eating himself to death.  His feelings are always low because his friends treat him porely and the only way to make himself feel better is by eating.  The character I find the least sympathetic is Kenny.  He is the one who was mostly instigating the teasing.  He even went as far as saying he hated Tub and pretending he was going to shoot him.  I hate to say it, but it's almost like he got what he deserved when Tub reacted by shooting him in the gut.  Obviously he doesn't deserve to die but he was just asking for Tub to shoot him.  As for the names of the characters, I believe Tub's name is the most obvious for creating an impression in my mind.  The name Tub just makes me think of a short, fat man.  This description is very similar to the one given in the book.  As for the other two, my impression from their names are probably a bit of a long shot.  The name Frank seems like an older, wiser name.  Frank can therefore be identified as the one who is more grown up and who has a dramatic change of heart in this short story.  The name Kenny makes me think of a playful person.  I also think of a jokester.  This also is similar to the description given in the book.