Character List

There's a character list and brief descriptions in the front of this book. I usually find these things really helpful, and I will probably refer back to it  on a regular basis (as in every time a person's name is mentioned...). I'm not quite sure if it's a bad omen though. Maybe the publisher is just being really helpful, which is my hope. My fear, however, is that the publisher thought a reader would need it to understand the book. I've seen the movie, so I know there are quite a few characters in it, but I'm hoping the book won't get too confusing in terms of who's who. Oh well, I guess I will just have to wait and see.

Currently

Wuthering Heights, Emily Brontë
Oliver Twist, Charles Dickens

Pages This Week: 100
Pages Last Week: 103
Semester Total: 625

Sentences of the Week:
1. I lingered round them, under that benign sky; watched the moths fluttering among the heath and hare-bells; listened to the soft wind breathing through the grass; and wondered how anyone could ever imagine unquiet slumbers for the sleepers in that quiet earth. ~Wuthering Heights

2. Its owner stood behind, her light shining ringlets blending, at intervals, with his brown licks, as she bent to superintend his studies; and her face---it was lucky he could not see her face, or he would never have been so steady---I could, and I bit my lip, in spite, at having thrown away the chance I might have had, of doing something besides staring at its smiting beauty. ~Wuthering Heights

3.  "Please, sir, I want some more." ~Oliver Twist

My number one sentence this week is the last sentence in Wuthering Heights. It is written so peacefully and beautifully and it is a pleasant ending to a book I did not particularly enjoy reading.

Life...

This week feels never-ending! I'm beginning to realize how much stress is involved in being a varsity athlete along with the million other things in my life. It's my junior year, so classes are demanding, and I'm also in show choir, which is my real passion. Being on the cross country team certainly teaches me what hard work means, but it's almost becoming too much to balance that with show choir, homework, and sleep (which always ends up at the bottom of my priority list). The rest of the team is already tapering (running less at practice because its almost the end of their season), but varsity's workouts are as hard as ever. I get so jealous watching my friends walk away, done with the workout, while we are still working our butts off! Not to mention, I don't seem to be as motivated as the other girls on varsity; all they want in the world is to make it to state, but I would almost rather the season be over so that I can focus on school and show choir (and SLEEP!) These girls think about state night and day, and they would do anything to make it to that point. I know we are capable of it, but we are definitely not shoo-ins. It's gonna take even more hard work and focus for the next month, and I just hope I have it in me to give what it takes. And I hope it doesn't affect my efforts that I am missing show choir and possibly even all-important choreography days for this.
All I can say is I'm lucky to have the friends that I have. I was very upset and stressed out after our hard workout today, and one of my best friends, Kylie, noticed right away. She talked to me and motivated me and made me feel so much better almost instantly. She always knows the right things to say and she is just such a blessing and I appreciate every day how good of a friend she is to me, even when I'm not acting like my usually carefree, happy self.
C'est la vie, Carpe diem, blah blah blah other foreign words.

Currently

Wuthering Heights, Emily Brontë

Pages This Week: 103
Pages Last Week: 102
Total: 525

Sentences of the Month:
1. At about ten o'clock in the morning the sun threw a bright dust-laden bar through one of the side windows, and in and out of the beam flies shot like rushing stars. ~Of Mice and Men


2. As happens sometimes, a moment settled and hovered and remained for much more than a moment. And sound stopped and movement stopped for much, much more than a moment. ~Of Mice and Men

3. Next, we stepped into a massive atrium, bursting with jungle leaves, vines tumbling down, brances climbing toward the sky. ~Heaven is For Real

I am a very visual person, so Imagery impacts me strongly when I read. This number one sentence incorporates strong verb phrases like "threw a dust-laden bar" which give the image an action. Steinbeck also uses a simile to make flies sound more pleasant, because people would rather picture rushing stars than a bunch of flies in the window.

Time Turning

This story is really hard to follow in terms of when certain events happened. Because most of it is told through Nelly's point of view and her diary entries and other diary entries and Lockwood's point of view, and sometimes Nelly is looking back on the past and sometimes she's not, the book's chronology soon becomes hard to follow. I am liking this book less and less as I read it, and I'm not sure I have the motivation to finish it. Most of it is not making sense or it just takes too much thought and I have too many other books to read. (Heart of Darkness? Impossible.)
The latest event that has happened so far in the book I think is the very first chapter, since it starts in 1801. From there, I get pretty lost in it all. Nelly is telling Lockwood a story from her past, but only a few dates of major events are named. The rest I just kind of infer that the order of them isn't vital to the story line. I looked it up, and Sparknotes helped me to understand it much better, but now I f ind myself trying to place each new event on the timeline Sparknotes gave me. Maybe I should have just stayed in the dark about it. Oh well, I'm just going to assume that as long as it makes sense, I can put this book's events in whatever order I choose.

Retaliation

One of the main themes in Wuthering Heights appears to be the motivations and consequences of revenge. Heathcliff, when he is young, is not treated as he would have preferred. He is made by Hindley into a person of much lower status than he could have been when he is put to work on Hindley's manor. He is also the person Catherine doesn't choose to marry, despite her unending love for him. He leaves when he overhears Catherine speaking of her engagement  because he thinks that he does not love her. When he returns, Heathcliff is out for revenge. His main goal is to get even with all those who have ever wronged him.
Fore example, Heathcliff gives money to Hindley in a seemingly eleemosynary manner. Hindley, however, is an alcoholic and Heathcliff knows that Hindley will spend all the money on alcohol and fall deeper into debt and the miserable life he has been leading after the death of his wife Frances. Eventually Hindley dies and Heathcliff inherits his manor, which Heathcliff sees as vindication. Because he feels so hurt by Catherine, he treats the young Catherine (her daughter) poorly, seemingly to seek revenge on the late Catherine by proxy of  her daughter.
In the long run, Heathcliff ends up inheriting two large manors in which he employs Catherine, her daughter, and others whom he treats quite cruelly. While Heathcliff lives a monetarily prosperous life in the end due to his shady schemes of manipulating love and people's emotions, he never really seems to live an emotionally fulfilled life. He ends up with no true love because he sought so much revenge on the woman whom he truly loved and who loved him. He dies with no real achievements to his name and no sign of true happiness to speak of.
The story of Heathcliff underscores that, while it may seem like the justified thing to do at the time, retaliation against those who you think have done something to upset you (which may not even be the case-i.e. Catherine) is always the wrong option. Revenge, and the hunger for vindication, fills a person with nothing but emptiness and cruelty, and no one can love someone who is cruel at heart.

Claims of the Day

In the song "Your Love Is A Song" by the band Switchfoot, the pensive, tenacious air of the lyrics, along with the mellow drum and guitar accompaniment and the powerful, husky, and dreamlike quality of the singer's vocals combine to evoke an overwhelming sense of breathlessness and euphoria surrounding the song's subject, a love so solemn and earnest it becomes the singer's reason for living.

The aggressive raw movement and the natural connection of the two dancers from two worlds portrays passionate, seductive, and energetic love by not giving up on their one dream.

 

In this shocking yet comically amusing video we observe an unusually grotesque reaction to some news that set a strange wild boy into a mystifying tangent of caterwauling violently.

 

In this scene from Vincent van Gogh's Cafe Terrace at Night , his colorful and exciting use of setting, busy but pleasant mood, and inviting cozy buildings]
portrays [a sense of playful benevolence and lighthearted liveliness.

 

The music group Ok GO and dance group Pilobolus' smooth and elegant costumes along with the modern aspects of movement portray the lyrically pleasant mood of the collaboration in the music video.

 

Here's a link to The Ozone Lair, which wins best "artifact" of the week...

 

The number one claim for me this week is from On Paper Wings. The writer seems to have a complete mastery of the words she is using and the sentence flows nicely and stands out because of how smart it sounds!

Poet of the Month

1. "Surprised By Evening"- Robert Bly
2. "Poem to be Read at 3 a.m."- Donald Justice
3. "I Said it to You"- Paul Eluard
These poems are my favorites so far because they are unique.
"Surprised By Evening" is my personal favorite, especially because I love nature and poems about it. This poem just describes so beautifully but leaves enigma in the words and the message the author is trying to convey. I enjoy reading passages with vivid imagery, as reflected in many of my sentences of the week, and this poem is full of bright images.
"Poem to be Read at 3 a.m." is another poem that catches my attention. Donald Justice incorporates deliberate line breaks in the work which contribute to the relaxed flow and emphasize specific words, phrases, or ideas. Also the last few lines, "this is for whoever had the light on," seem very personal, and give a meaning to the poem beyond describing his late-night drive.
"I Said it to You" is a sweet love poem. Well, I think it's about saying "I Love You," but I guess that's up to interpretation. Again, it uses nature imagery which is enticing for me to read. It is also just a cute poem though, which everyone likes to read.

Close Reading

I chose to do my close reading on a Willy Wonka poster, as this is one of my all-time favorite movies.

What I Observe:

-Depth: varied, hierarchical, differentiating

-Color: vivid, contrasting, vibrant

-Expression: half-smiling, smiling, posed

-Use of Space: balanced, full

What I can Infer:

-Depth: superior, dignified, ancillary

-Color: whimsical, euphoric, effervescent

-Expression: benevolent, concealing, exuberant, wry

-Use of Space: crowded, surprising, unique

Claim:

The use of hierarchical depth, vibrant colors, varied expressions, and complete use of space in this movie poster for Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory augments the contrasts between the dignified, concealing Willy and the ancillary, exuberant attendees while presenting the whimsical story in a unique way.

Currently

Wuthering Heights, Emily Brontë

Pages This week: 102
Pages Last week: 105
Total: 422

Sentences of the Week:

1. He was, and is yet, most likely, the wearisomest sef-righteous pharisee that ever ransacked a Bible to rake the promises to himself and fling the curses on his neighbours. page 40

2. "Why, how very black and cross you look! an how---funny and grim!" page 52

3. He entered, vociferating oaths dreadful to hear, and caught me in the act of stowing his son away in the kitchen cupboard.

My number one sentence this week made me laugh, but I don't think it was supposed to be funny. It is such a strongly worded insult using biblical references that it seems hyperbolic to me.

Sisters

Wuthering Heights, by Emily Brontë, shares striking similarities with her sister Charlotte's novel, Jane Eyre.
The main drama in Wuthering Heights so far is the romance between Heathcliff and Catherine, which is realized by both who partake in it, but Catherine's pride is getting in the way of it. Hindley forces Heathcliff into being a vassal and a servant to him, which consequently pushes Heathcliff into a lower social class. Heathcliff is madly in love with Catherine, so when he finds out that a man named Edgar has asked to marry Catherine, Heathcliff is outraged with jealousy and storms out conveniently right before Catherine professes her love for Heathcliff. Catherine agrees to marry Edgar only because he is rich and would make her powerful. A similar storyline appears in Jane Eyre, when the orphaned Jane, who is of a low social class and is working as a governess at his residence, meets Rochester and they fall in love. Rochester is quite wealthy and owns a mansion called Thornfield Hall. Jane continually reminds herself that Rochester will not condescend to admit to loving her, but in the end, they are both equally in love with each other. They both decide, however, to get married despite the class differences.
Going along with the idea of love and marriage, both books introduce the idea of marrying for the wrong reasons. In Emily's book, Catherine is faced with the opportunity to marry a man who will make her powerful, and she accepts. In Charlotte's book, Jane considers marrying St. John, a man of similar social class whom she knows she should be with, but refuses because she is not in love. Jane and Catherine (or Charlotte and Emily), obviously hold opposing viewpoints concerning the issue of marrying for love or for money.

Wuthering Heights...

This book is a slow read, and it's taking me a while to get into. These first chapters are tedious and confusing, which I think Emily Brontë must have done on purpose. There are three major Catherines in the book, and the relationships between the characters are complex, coincidental, and just plain confusing. So far, it seems that a man named Lockwood is writing this whole story in a diary. The first two chapters are mostly his experiences in visiting his landlord, Mr. Heathcliff, at his residence, Wuthering Heights. The events that ensue next, however, are mostly those that he has heard from others. He includes a passage from one of the Catherines' diary, as well as stories from Mrs. Dean, Lockwood's housekeeper. It turns out, that after he read Catherine's diary at Wuthering Heights, he returned home to Mrs. Dean's stories and found that the two lives are connected; Nellie Dean used to work for Catherine's father (or something like that). This collision of stories causes even deeper confusion for me, but it at least makes me want to keep reading it.

Because this novel is mostly written through 2nd or even 3rd-hand information, it seems to become biased and maybe even a little twisted. There is obviously a great deal that I don't know about all of these people's interwoven lives, and it will be interesting to find out, and to see how I find out. Thus far, Brontë has succeeded in obfuscating all information on background stories, character relations, and anything else important in Wuthering Heights. What I do end up finding out, however, will most likely be somewhat inaccurate, as Lockwood has already made blunders in inferring and communicating information to others (so just imagine what chimerical things he may begin to write in his diary!) 

At least Nellie Dean is the one telling Lockwood many of the things he writes. She seems intelligent and well-intentioned, though maybe a little biased. Nellie appears to be driven by her emotions, which could also lend some complication to the story. I guess we will just have to see how it all plays out.

Currently

Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck
Wuthering Heights, Emily Bronte

Pages This Week: 105
Pages Last Week: 107
Total: 320

Sentences of the Week:
1. As happens sometimes, a moment settled and hovered and remained for much more than a moment. And sound stopped and movement stopped for much, much more than a moment.-pg. 93

2. He can't think of nothing to do himself, but he sure can take orders.-pg. 39

3. "The one that his old lady used to make hot cakes for the kids?" Lennie asked.
    "Yeah. That's the one. You can remember anything if there's anything to eat in it."

My number one sentence is one that I had to read a few times before I could follow it correctly. It's not that complicated, but in the context of the passage, it has profound meaning.

The other two sentences are about Lennie. They are pretty self-explanatory, considering Lennie's condition.

Old Dog, No Tricks

One of Lennie and George's friends, Candy, owns a very old dog. Candy's friends tell him that his dog is suffering and the best thing to do is to shoot it, putting the dog out of it's misery. They all say that it is for the best, and one man even suggests that he would want to be shot if he became crippled. This statement immediately made me think of Lennie and his mental handicap. Candy also reveals that he is worried about becoming useless because he only has one hand; he lost the other one working. These men make being crippled in any way a criteria for someone who would want to be shot.
This situation with Candy's dog lends even more foreshadowing to the book. After Lennie accidentally kills Curley's wife, he runs away. The other men decide that Lennie should just be killed because his mental handicap causes too much trouble. They don't see killing Lennie as a punishment for killing, they see it as a relief from a life that, in their eyes, must be miserable.

Lennie

Lennie, the protagonist's trusty sidekick in Of Mice and Men, is arguably more significant to the book than George.
At the beginning of the book, one of the first major points made is that Lennie does not fathom his own strength. This oblivion springs much of the plot of the book into action. At first, Lennie only harms mice when he pets them. George tells Lennie he can get a dog, thinking that a larger animal will allow for less of a chance of harm to the creature. Lennie gets a dog to call his own, and loves it and pets it. Eventually, the little puppy bites Lennie though, and he smacks it. Needless to say, the puppy died. He is distraught over killing the puppy, and begins to blame the puppy in a way, asking it why it died, yelling "you ain't so little as mice!"
Lennie begins to hurt humans as well. George tells Lennie not to fight with Curley, but Curley starts a fight and Lennie unwillingly defends himself, breaking Curley's hand in the process. George had also told Lennie to stay away from Curley's wife, but sure enough, she cajoles him into talking with her. Lennie tells her he just likes to pet soft things, and she lets him feel her hair. When she tells him to let go, he panics, holds on tighter, she screams, he shakes her, her neck breaks, and she dies. Lennie never means to hurt anyone or anything and he has some of the best intentions of any character, but he often inadvertently harms those he loves, along with those he doesn't care for.
Although Lennie may not be very bright, he has a heck of an intuition. This book is filled with foreshadowing, and one of the first examples of foreshadowing comes from Lennie. He tells George almost immediately after they arrive at their destination that he doesn't like it there, and thinks they should get out as soon as possible. George, of course, disregards Lennie's pleas and tells him they must stay to make some money. Little does he know this place will be the death of Lennie.
Lastly, even though George is clearly in place as Lennie's caregiver, Lennie also feels quite the responsibility of looking after George. George is always advising Lennie and looking out for him, and doing his best to keep Lennie out of trouble. When George leaves to go to a whore-house with some other guys, it brings out a turning point in this relationship. Crooks begins talking to Lennie, telling him that there is a possibility that George isn't coming back and that he might have gotten hurt. Crooks is just randomly saying this, of course, but Lennie is nervously hanging on to his every word. He believes Crooks and wants to find out who hurt George. Lennie becomes very threatening toward Crooks and Crooks realizes he should back down and reassure Lennie that George is okay. Lennie obviously feels a sense of protection for George. Maybe it's just because he knows he needs George, but I think Lennie genuinely worries about George with little regard for himself.

Week 2 Blog Tour

Blogs Visited:
On Paper Wings
Inside Out
Etyafter
Apples to Apples
The Ozone Lair
The Blanket Fort
Feist-Fan
That One Guy's Blog
The Back of the Napkin Blog

Friday (but not this friday) ---Personality Test

These tests are so hard to take! You would think I know myself well enough to answer some questions about me, but I vacillated between a lot of the answers. Oh well. This is what I ended up with...
ENFP
Extraverted, Intuitive, Feeling, Perceiving
It says I am a distinct extravert which is true most of the time, but especially when I'm spending a lot of time with my mom's side of the family, I like to have some quiet time for myself. Also, I'm a runner and while I love running with my team, late-night runs in the dark chilly air full of solitude often help me clear my head, however cliche that may be.
It is also telling me I'm moderately intuitive-which makes sense. I'm spontaneous and let my feelings lead me, and hate talking about planning. So I agree with that.
I'm apparently also moderately "feeling," whatever that means. I guess that I am sympathetic and empathetic towards others. I like to comfort people, but I don't think I'm very good at it; I never know what to say!
And I'm slightly perceiving, which is a lie. I'm totally oblivious to most things. I'm not a dumb person, but I feel like I come off that way, which I hate. I don't pick up on things easily, whether it be someone's feelings towards me, or a joke which I happen to be the butt of :)
So thanks, computerized personality test, I feel so much more in touch with myself now.

Currently

Of Mice and Men, John Steinbeck
Heaven is for Real, Todd Burpo (just finished)

Pages this week: 107
Pages last week: 107
Total: 214

Sentences of the week:

1. The water is warm too, for it has slipped twinkling over the yellow sands in the sunlight before reaching the narrow pool. On one side of the river the golden foothill slopes curve up to the strong and rocky Gabilan mountains, but on the valley sid the water is lined with trees---willows fresh and green with every spring, carrying in their lower leaf junctures the debris of the winter's flooding; and sycamores with mottled, white, recumbent libs and branches that arch over the pool.
~Of Mice and Men

2.  I believed, but how could I be sure?
~Heaven is for Real

3. At about ten o'clock in the morning the sun threw a bright dust-laden bar through one of the side windows, and in and out of the beam flies shot like rushing stars.
~Of Mice and Men

I picked this passage as my number one this week because I love imagery, and this imagery is exceptionally beautiful. These are the 2nd and 3rd sentences of the book, and Steinbeck successfully captured me already.

The second sentence doesn't read like anything special, but it is coming from the mind of a pastor, and to me it is important to know that even the leaders of the church or the teachers have questions of faith at times. It is only natural for a person to want proof of something they are told.

Of Mice and Men

I started this book during the summer, but never got a chance to finish it because I had to read Jane Eyre for summer reading and do not enjoy having more than one book to read at a time. It seems like a quick read like my last book (it only has 107 pages), but the styles of writing are in drastic contrast to each other. Todd Burpo, the narrator of Heaven is for Real, is a pastor/ garage door salesman and repairman who happened to write a book on an incredible experience of his; John Steinbeck, however, is a renowned author of the 1900s whose books are still relevant today. Steinbeck's passion was writing; Burpo's is his faith in God. Of Mice and Men is a well-written, descriptive and entertaining book. Although I have just gotten over the hill of the exposition, I can tell it will be plot-driven, to which I am not opposed.
This novel is set in the depression era of America, and is based around two main characters: George and Lennie. These characters show sharp contrast to each other both physically and personality-wise. George is a small, dark, chiseled man, and Lennie is quite the opposite. I would say Steinbeck made good choices with the names. The name choices seem to reflect characteristics which allow the reader to make judgments even before getting to know the characters. It is apparent in this story that Lennie may be slightly mentally ill, and George assumes the role of caretaker for Lennie. Lennie is somewhat of a coward and lacks much common sense, and George feels a need to protect his companion in any way possible.
In the first section of this book, Lennie finds a mouse which he accidentally "broke" when trying to express his affection for it. George gets frustrated and throws the mouse far away, but Lennie later goes back to find it. The mouse must be significant to the story because it is in the title, but the symbol has yet to uncover itself for me. All I see in it so far is that Lennie does not understand his own strength, especially towards other living things. He obviously had good in his heart when petting the mouse, but he says he has a history of breaking the little creatures when all he is doing is trying to express his love for them.
I have heard that Of Mice and Men was concocted by Steinbeck to make a statement about the depression and the working class in America, much like his other books (namely, The Grapes of Wrath). I am assuming that this motif will begin to surface itself as I delve deeper into this story.
I am excited to start this new book as I have heard only good things about it, even from people who were forced to read it in English class.