Jounal #21

Some Like It Hot and The Great Gatsby are similar in the fact that they both deal with the poeple of high society.  both of their themes have to do with wealth and greed. Both works describe people who like to live large and exquisitely with thier money and who et married and divorced nurmerous times. In both works, girls are attracted to weathy men, as sugar fell in love wih joe because she hought he was rich and Daisy fell in love with Tom because of his wealth. Also, the topic of illegal alcohol and the prohibition are mentioned in both books, as Gatsby was a bootlegger and the gangsters in Some like it Hot were selling liquor. They are both in the 1920's era, with flappers, smoking, and parties. Joe and Jerry play instruments for events, while atby holds elaborate parties that get out of hand most of the time. All of the characters in the stories appear to be very materialistic, as they only worry about the most unimportant things in life, money and material things. Tom is like asgood because of being born into wealth, while the gangsters in both stories, Gatsby and Spats, are killed. With these challenges, they still try to find love in both works. This leads to the main difference between the two works; In Some Like it Hot, both characters find love, but in Gatsby, they lose love is mostly all cases.

 

Journal #20

Using the imagery of the amazing parties Gatsby once had, Nick tgoes on to say how the fun and happiness will never fill the house again. Gatsby's party had come to an end and Nick heads into a new place with the shore and surroundings dissapearing and changing around him. The green light shown symbolises hope and happiness for Gatsby as it was for the Dutch sailors of long ago. Nick said that the happiness and hope was his love for Daisy and how he was blinded by her beauty as the sailers were blinded by the dramatic illusions of the new land.  Long island's discovery enthralled the pioneers and gave them hope and happiness, just as the green light gave hope and love into Gatsby's life. He connects Gatsby with the sailors because they both loved this light and were pioneers of this time. The things they hoped for and dreamed up ended up hurting them in the end, as Gatsby dies and the sailors endured many hardships. As always, the dreams of both Gatsby and the Dutch sailors remained as hopeful illusions that were always out of reach and reality caught up to them.

Journal #19

Nick Carraway Adjective __Non-Judgemental___

Nick Carraway is a young gentleman from the mid-west who decidedc to move to the west egg to work in the bond buisness. Although his physical appearance is not described, he is a tolerant man who is polite and quiet. He refrains from placing on judgement on others.

Tom Buchanan Adjective _____Self-Centered/Arrogant_____

Tom Buchanan is a very wealthy and athletic man who is rather agressive towards others. He is a bigot and racist and fully endorses this behavior. He is not a faithful man, as he has affairs with his wife, even having the nerve to go answer a phone call from his lover while they were having dinner. 

Daisy Buchanan Adjective __Charming__

Daisy, who is the beautiful cousin of Nick, lounges on a couch with her friend Jordan while both being dressed up. She apparently has a very nice laugh and is in love with wealth. She seems somewhat shallow.

Jordan Baker Adjective ___self-centered____

Jordan is a professional golfer who is very attractive, with an errect carriage.  She is overall nice, but is rather distant and distrusting. She is often very busy with golf tournaments.

Jay Gatsby Adjective ___fixated_____

Gatsby is mysterious character in the first chapter of the book, but is described as wealthy and flamboyant. He is seen staring at the light on the dock of Daisy's house. She is Gatsby ultimate goal, though most of his past is unknown.

Journal #18

1. What is the significance of the story’s title?

The significance of the title is that an American WWII survivor who is injured is literally in another country and is subsequently alienated due to him not being Italian. These officers are located in another country because they are alienated in the Communist quarter even though they are Italian. A bond was formed between the men because all of them were alienated in some way, causing isolation.

2. Which character do you think best represents the “Hemingway hero”? Why?

In the story, the major is obviously the Hemingway hero because he is suffering from the loss of his wife and also his hand injury. His physical injury will keep him from his professional fencing, and is the character that is suffering the most. The major feels as if the machines will not make a difference and understood that you cannot avoid defeat and you need to grasp the things that are permanent. The Hemingway hero is characterized with stoicism and is a person who suffers with grace and dignity.

3. What can you infer about the photographs the doctor hangs up? What is the significance of the major’s reaction?

I can infer that the photos are fake since the soldiers are the first people to use the machines and are for motivational purposes only to give the soldiers false hope. The major ultimately refused to look at the pictures and stared out of the window, later giving up and walking out.

Journal #17

What is the significance of the poem’s epigraph? How does it relate to Prufrock?

The significance of the epigraph is that it is from Dante’s Inferno. Dante says that he is not afraid to explain his story to others because no one has ever come back alive from hell. Because of this, he believes that nobody can say that he is wrong. This relates to Prufrock since his story also contains his own thoughts. Since he is so self conscious, it is obvious that his story is not meant for a large audience. They both have a similar privacy level, since they are not meant to be judged or read by the public, since no one else was involved or had insight into their work.

Make a list of questions that Prufrock asks. Do you see a pattern/theme to these questions or are they random?

Prufrock asks multiple times: Do I dare? What is it? Should I, after tea and cakes and ices, have the strength to force the moment to its crisis? So how should I presume? Shall I part my hair behind?

All of these questions show Prufrock’s hesitation and anxieties which are not random at all. The theme of anxiety, uncertainty and fear is constantly shown through his questioning. His self–consciousness shows up in all of his questions as well and is unsure of what he should do. Even trivial things eat away at him and destroy him on the inside. His questions also have a pattern of repetition , which expresses his fears about what will occur later in his life.

3. What do you think is Prufrock’s main flaw/problem?

PruFrock's character is his main flaw since he is worrying about everything, even the unimportant and minute things, and is always uncertain about his decisions and himself as well. He truly does not want to be judged by other, and is a minor character in his world and in his opinion, does nothing of great importance. He is so preoccupied with his worries that he does nothing with his life..

4. Why do you think this is called a love song? In what way is it a love song?

The story is called a love song because of it being ironic that there isn't love in it whatsoever. It is not a love song, but a song of sadness since he is alone and he is not the star or his own life. You empathize with him because of his loveless life.

Journal #16

In the movie “The Blue Hotel”, the Swede is the best example of someone who proves the idea that social and character conditions together in a certain combination will lead to a predetermined end. The Swede, who is too influenced by the dime western novels, believes he is in a Wild West story when he enters the hotel. Because of this belief that he is in a Western novel, his mental instability shows when he says he will die in this hotel like many men have, even though no one has ever died there. In order to try to calm him down, the inn keeper gives him some alcohol, but since he could not handle alcohol well, he started acting drunk and uncontrollable. This unknown character trait by the other hotel residents is the factor that ultimately leads to his death. Disoriented by the alcohol, he fights Johnny, believing that everyone is going against him. The social environment of Swede, and where he thinks he is continues to enlarge his hysteria, and even after beating Johnny, he becomes more agitated and verbally attacks the stranger that just entered the hotel. In the end, the Swede was stabbed to death just as he and fate had predicted, which is a clear and perfect example of a self-fulfilling prophesy. The Swede was stabbed and died just as fate had predicted and is a perfect example of a self-fulfilling prophesy.

In “To Build a Fire”, the man is obviously a victim of the environment and fate. His determination and self-confidence to meet up with the boys at the lodge cloud any sense of fear, causing him to ignore all of the warnings and advice from the old timer. The old man warned and cautioned him not to travel when it is more than 50 degrees below zero outside, but the character of the man shoved all worries aside , as he was determined to get to his friends no matter what. The man does not notice the extreme danger, but the dog's instincts tell him the cold is going to be deadly. The man's ignorance to his environment and surroundings lead to his death. The man is ignorant to this environment and that leads to his death. All in all, His free will was only an illusion and while entering into that environment confident, but unprepared, his death was unavoidable. The man was unable to control any part of his destiny, because fate already determined how he was going to end.

Journal #15

1. Write a sentence that summarizes the story’s overall message, and provide three direct quotes from the story that best illustrate this message.

The message of the passge is that living the life of Editha does, which is living in the ideal rather than in reality, can be a very dangerous and detrimental thing to your life.

“It isn’t this war alone; though this seems peculiarly wanton and needless; but it’s every war –so stupid; it makes me sick. Why shouldn’t this thing have been settled reasonably?”

"I shall always love you, and therefore I shall never
marry any one else. But the man I marry must love
his country first of all”

“He told me he had asked you to come if he got killed. You didn’t expect that, I suppose, when you sent him.”

“To take the part that her whole soul willed him to take, for the completion of her ideal of him

2. What tactics does Editha use to make George believe as she does about the war?

Edith makes it known that her opinion is correct as she attempts to argue with George, telling him that it is ordained by the providence and is a "holy war". George ultimately doubts himself when Edith sends him a letter with her engagement ring enclosed, and all the while was compelling and threatening him to go to war. She states that they must agree on everything to be together and that tere is no greater honor than serving in the army. George finally is persuaded to go to war and listens to her.

3. Is there ever a time in which Editha truly understands what she has done? Does she ever experience an epiphany?


I believe Editha does have an understanding of what a terrible thing she did when she found out that George had died. She truly mourns his loss and vistits the mother of George as he asked even though she was ultimately scorned and rebuked for sending him to war. At first she really does not understand her actions, but at the end she has an epiphany that brings her back to the ideal world. The person who Editha was talking too agreed that George's mother was wrong for saying those hurtful words to her. After that moment, Editha got out of self-pity and began her life again.