The More Loving One

            I want to take this time to touch on a poem Abby and I covered during our poetry project. The poem is The More Loving One by W.H Auden. I really liked this poem, actually no, I loved this poem, because of the theme it presents. The first lines, “Looking up at the stars, I know quite well / That, for all they care, I can go to hell,” sets the tone of the poem as dark, pessimistic, and uninviting. I agree that The More Loving One has a tinge of sadness, but I feel it is more a disappointed tone: disappointment in society, and disappointment in people.

W.H. Auden wrote this poem to express the indifference he felt people showed towards others. He observed people did not care about other humans. They cared, but only superficially. In The More Loving One, he compares people to stars because of how distant stars and people are. The line, “Of stars that do not give a damn,” strengthens Auden’s metaphor. Metaphorically, Auden thinks people are as distant from others as we are from the stars. I really connected to this theme because it is something I also believe.

I believe people do not give a damn about others. We smile, act friendly, and put on a show for those who we do not know too well. We have no empathy. We have no emotion towards them: we could care less if they died, unless they were our friend. Our true human connection has been lost, and replaced with technology. We have Snapchat, texting, Instagram, Twitter, Skype, etc. to communicate: we don’t really communicate with others. This technology has allowed us to skip what past generations have been forced to do: communicate with others face-to-face. They did not have the luxury of shooting a text to their best friend to ask them how they are doing. People back then could not “get to know someone” over text. No. They got to know someone by interacting with them in real time. Although technology is amazing, we, as humans, have lost the skill of bonding with people face-to-face.

Come to find out, W.H. Auden wrote this poem in 1957, reflecting on the path society had been taking after World War II. Auden felt the growing disconnect between people. Even though it was written in 1957, I feel The More Loving One is more relevant to the present day, especially with the plethora of technology. W.H. Auden had it right back in 1957.

Catharsis (Caught'ya #36)

Catharsis

Last week, we discussed the concept of catharsis in class, which is a very interesting subject because I believe everyone has felt it at some point in their lives. Mr. DeLaCruz (and Abby Ruch) described catharsis as the act of purging emotions, especially pity and fear, through a work of literature of art. On other words, we watch or read something tragic that, in turn, makes us feel better. It is a feeling I thought I had never experienced before. At first, it seemed somewhat sociopathic to find pleasure in horror. Upon closer investigation of the term, however, I found catharsis is something I do weekly, if not on a daily basis. The best example of my catharsis addiction is my obsession with The Walking Dead. This show consumes me when I watch it. I cannot take my eyes away from the screen. I love the intensity, the fight, and the grit of the show. Using my newfound knowledge of catharsis, I can recollect how content I feel after an especially sad episode of The Walking Dead. I always think how happy I am with the status of my life, and how grateful I am. This is catharsis at it’s finest.

This concept, originally put forth by Aristotle, states there is rejuvenation and renewal of the emotions after catharsis. I am now realizing why horror movies, tragedies, and other highly emotional works are so popular with the mainstream. It is a way for us to cleanse our feelings. Catharsis is a way for us to deal with our emotions without even knowing it. While watching horrors happen to someone else, our own feelings of pity and fear are expunged, thus leaving us feeling happier at the end. This process is very thought provoking about human nature. We really must have to watch something tragic happen to another human to make our lives better? Are we naturally driven towards fear? Tons of existential questions stem off of catharsis, which, speaking of, The Walking Dead is calling my name. Time to go purge some emotions by watching other people get eaten alive by zombies! Sounds awesome!
In this post, I focused on my sentence variety. This is evident in the first paragraph. I begin the paragraph with numerous long sentences. This allowed me to accurately, and in detail, introduce my topic: catharsis. From the longer sentences, I utilized short, simple sentences to emphasize how engrossed I am in The Walking Dead. The excerpt, "This show consumes me when I watch it. I cannot take my eyes from the screen," shows how The Walking Dead consumes me because there are succinct. The addition of these sentences also adds variety and makes it easier to read.

John Donne (Caught'ya #34 & #35)

John Donne

Essentially, John Donne is a playa. I respect a lot of his work due to the complexity, and amazingness of his poems, however, it seems like he needs to let out a bit of sexual frustration. Maybe his poems are a way for him to relieve some of those feelings. In the thee poems by John Donne that we have discussed, The Flea, The Broken Heart, and The Sun Rising, there is a parallel subject in all three: love and sex. Sex is more prevalent in Donne’s works, especially in The Flea and The Rising Sun.

In both poems, the true meaning is hidden behind a complex web of metaphors, and is not forthright with the theme. The Flea is a perfect example of the complexity of his poems. The line “And in this flea our two bloods mingled be; / Thou know’st that this cannot be said / A sin, nor shame, nor loss of maidenhead” shows Donne’s use of a metaphor to convince a woman to have sex with him. He is pointing out the fact that their blood is already mingled inside the flea, so they should be mingled in real life. Donne then argues that sex isn’t that big of a deal. If Mr. DeLaCruz had not pointed this out, I would not have come to that conclusion. There are so many ways the line, “And in this flea our two bloods mingled be; / Thou know’st that this cannot be said / A sin, nor shame, nor loss of maidenhead” can be interpreted, and I would not have made the jump to John Donne trying to prompt a girl to have intercourse with him. It seems as though Mr. Donne needs a steady lady in his life.

Donne’s extensive use of metaphors throughout his works is why he is considered the most famous metaphysical poet. A metaphysical poet is one who uses countless conceits. A conceit is a very interesting term, as I have come to find out. When you compare two things that don’t go well together, but the concept behind the connection bolsters the lack of comparability, that is called a conceit. It seems like an excuse. “Yeah well, it just makes sense, okay! It’s a conceit!” The term is a cop out. Someone who was called out for their terrible metaphor most likely called it a conceit to make themselves seem educated. Nevertheless, Donne uses them masterfully, and is why he is such a famous poet.

The Road Not Taken (Caught'ya #33)

The Road Not Taken

           Today in class, we looked at the classic poem, The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost. This is a poem I am familiar with, as I’m sure the large majority of the world is. It is a very famous poem with a seemingly obvious message. This was the exact thing that was called into question today in class: does The Road Not Taken really mean what we have learned it to mean? The theme that I, and almost everyone else has attached to The Road Not Taken is one of non-conformity, and going your own way. The quote, “Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—/ I took the one less traveled by,/ And that has made all the difference,” clearly shows how misleading the work is. As you can see, many believe that quote sums up The Road Not Taken by stating going against the grain will benefit you. However, when we looked closer in class, we called that theme into question.

            There are several quotes throughout The Road Not Taken that hint at a different message.  The lines, “Then took the other, as just as fair, /And perhaps having the better claim,” “Had worn them really about the same,” and “And both that morning equally lay,” shows that the two paths in the woods were really of equal measure. There was not one less traveled, and one more traveled, as previously thought. This changes the whole meaning of the poem. Now, as a class, we had to do some ‘poem soul searching’ to come up with a new theme after our revelation. We concluded that another meaning could be whenever you make a decision, you need to commit 100% of yourself to that outcome. You cannot dwell on whatever the other ‘path’ might’ve turned out to be; you must make a choice, and never look back. Instead of doing your own thing as a theme, The Road Not Taken could mean when you make a decision, you must stick with it. This was a very challenging activity presented by Mr. Delacruz because it forced us to reevaluate a classic. We were forced to go against our preconceptions and determine a new meaning. Very interesting. 
             In this post, I focused on several things: a clear thesis and incorporating quotes correctly. I come up with a clear and concise thesis in the fourth sentence of my opening paragraph. I state everything that needs to be stated in that one sentence. I outline what will be talked about: misconceptions of the meaning of The Road Not Taken. I do this simply, yet effectively so there is no confusion to the reader what I am trying to get across. The use of the colon helps strengthen this essential piece to my post.
             Additionally, I put effort into effectively using quotes to further my thoughts, and back up my argument. There is clear evidence of my efforts in the beginning of the second paragraph. I begin right away with multiple quotes that I felt embodied my argument that there is a different meaning in The Road Not Taken than previously thought. I don't stop with simply listing the quotes: I explain why they contribute to my thoughts, and how to help support my argument. If I had not inserted these quotes, my piece would not be very convincing to the reader. With the addition of the excerpts, and the explanation that incorporates them, my post is much stronger.

Is Oedipus Evil? (Caught'ya #32)

Is Oedipus Evil?

Oedipus Rex is a very interesting story, one riddled with endless amounts of dramatic irony, which is the basis for the whole story. One question was raised today in class: is Oedipus a bad person for the things he has done? Though he did not know he was killing his father and sleeping with his mother, is he still a bad person for these actions?

This is a compelling question, and one with multiple answers. I do not blame Oedipus for sleeping with his mother at all. He had no knowledge of it at all. If he had known Iocasta was his biological mother, he would have NEVER even thought about marrying and having sex with her. Oedipus even leaves Corinth once he learns his destiny to try and escape his fate of killing his father and marrying his mom. Oedipus cannot fathom living out this prediction, which results in his departure from Corinth to Thebes. For this reason, I do not believe Oedipus is a bad person for fooling around with his mother.

On the contrary, I believe Oedipus acted out of turn when he struck down and killed the man on the road, who turned out to be his father, Laios. The quote, “ I struck him in my rage. The old man saw me and brought his double goad down upon my head as I cam abreast. He was paid back, and more! Swinging my club in this right hand I knocked him out of his car, and he rolled on the ground. I killed him,” shows the aggression and malice in which Oedipus killed Laios. Oedipus would not have murdered him if he had known, however that is irrelevant in this situation. Oedipus killed a man in this scene because of his pride. He did not like being told what to do by a stranger. He is a prince, after all! Oedipus had to protect his dignity and pride, so he killed the man, who was his father. It was a cold-blooded murder, and shows the dark side of Oedipus.

Oedipus Rex Notes

·      Greek drama

Ø  Physical representation of a story, has been occurring for centuries

Ø  Took place in an amphitheater

Ø  Because the amphitheater was so big, the actors used masks to emphasize facial expressions and to amplify voice

Ø  Used contraptions in their staging

·      Deus ex machina

Ø  “God from the machine” which means it dealt with the gods (Zeus, Aphrodite, Hera), in a play a god would come down and solve everything

Ø   these days this term is used to refer to an unbelievable, neat resolution

·      Chorus

Ø  People in Greek drama who would come out and comment on the scene

·      Stichomythia

Ø  Rapid fire dialogue

Ø  Almost a heated argument

·      Oedipus Rex

Ø  Epitome of dramatic irony

Ø  Dramatic irony is where the reader knows things that the characters don’t