Technology

I have taken internet classes before, but none of the classes were anything like this class. This class used more outside sites which made the assignments more interesting while also letting me also expand my knowledge about other websites and how they can help teach. In all the other online classes I have taken, I was given assignments that didn’t require using other sources than the text books or the information from the blackboard, this class, because we used other sites, I feel I better understood the material.
What I liked the most about the technology we used in this class was the use of the blog. I had never used one before and I didn’t really understand how to use them. After using the blog this semester, I feel that it is a good way to learn and that it is a good way to get feedback on ideas and work. I also like the way that you get feedback so quickly and how it is set up. I was also happily surprised to be able to use glogster this semester. I had used the site in high school and I liked being able to use it again.
I will definitely keep using the blog in the future or create a new one. It is a way for me to express myself and to share what I’ve learned. I also hope that any other online class that I may take will also use sites like glogster and blogspot. The sites, I feel helped me better understand the work and see how others interpreted it as well.

Final Presentation

Reflection on the Course

Taking the class English 102 this semester has been very beneficial to me and my writing skills. When I write, I typically spend my time on writing fiction. I have never really been a fan of non-fiction or essay writing, but this semester has shown me that all kinds of writing are important and that they can be fun to write if you understand what aspects are needed to write them properly. I learned, this semester, many things that will help me with future papers, classes, and even my personal writing. 
The most important skill that I learned in this class was how to analyze different types of writing. By learning how to analyze writing, I have been able to grasp different meanings in poems, short stories, and novels. I usually am very good at comprehension when I read a book or a short story, but the readings and the assignments in this class have helped me understand that there is more than just the skill of comprehension when you read something. I learned how to dig deeper into story and to find hidden meanings, ideas, and beliefs in them. With Frankenstein, I had always thought the story was just about a dangerous monster, but after reading the story and learning how to analyze work, I began to see that the story was also about loneliness and how people interpret the importance of family. 
My greatest challenge accrued at the beginning of the semester, when we began to read the poems and when we started Frankenstein. When I read, I usually take it literally, and when I was expected to look deeper into the readings I had problems seeing different meanings and ideas that could be seen in the writing. I overcame that problem by re-reading the poems and many passages of Frankenstein. Each time that I re-read one of the writing, I gained more insight into the poem or story and I could see other meanings within the text.
This class has been very helpful and I have enjoyed reading texts that aren’t, typically, associated with an English class. Because the stories and poems that we read were dark and somewhat depressing, they had more aspects to them, which also helps to see other meanings in them.

Zombies

Final Project

Perspective: Vampires and Werewolves

           

Stories of monsters and the paranormal have become very popular lately. A great majorityof the books seen in the teen or young adult sections of book stores are books about vampires, werewolves, witches, angels, etc. It wasn’t that long ago that most of the books were about regular people with regular problems. Vampire and werewolves, in particular, are seen in more stories as heroes and creatures that people may want to emulate. Werewolves and vampires are now becoming multi-faceted characters expressing many feelings and these “human” characteristics are helping people relate to them. The dramatic increase in books written about these monsters clearly shows that people don’t only think of them as threatening beasts.

            When people typically think of vampires, often they conjure up images of nocturnal creatures preying on others. People are expected to be frightened or terrified by the thought of vampires. Vampire stories have been traced back to ancient cultures (Clements 2). Vampires, throughout history, have meant different things to different cultures, but they have always been feared. In Rosemary Ellen Guiley’s book she sates: They embody fears of death and the consequences of improper burial, sudden death, and the lives of sin and crimes (Guiley 287).  They are frightening creatures or demons, which literally suck the life out of a person.

            Older stories about vampires portrayed them as animated corpses that required human blood for their survival. Since vampires were technically dead, the only way others could relate to a vampire was through his/her resemblance to humans. People could not relate to vampires in the context of a common humanity. They were thought to be evil creatures with supernatural powers, and therefore, separate from others. They were, and still are, often associated with demons. Many books and television programs such as, Dracula and Buffy the Vampire Slayer, incorporate religious objects into the script as a means of protecting others against vampires. Crosses and holy water are meant to harm the vampire. Susannah Clements, the author of The Vampire Defanged, says this about the story Dracula, “…Christian iconography has become such a standard part of vampire lore that its significance is often overlooked in Dracula” (Clements 26). The use of religious objects against vampires represents how they are perceived as soulless and evil creatures that many people would say are in league with the devil.

 In many ways, the series Buffy the Vampire Slayer, proved to be a turning point in vampire fiction. The show illustrates that what we may interpret as evil may not be completely accurate.  In the course of the series there were two vampires, Angel and Spike, that the audience comes to understand as complex characters who are not the epitome of an absolute evil. An intervention takes place that denies the characters the ability to have free choice. Angel is placed under a spell that gives him a conscience, and Spike has a chip implanted in him that prevents him from hurting others. Even though they remain vampires, they’re actions are not those of blood thirsty monsters. Spike and Angel both try to help others and, by the end of the series, Spike actually sacrifices himself to save his friends. Spike’s actions show that even though his disposition and thoughts are evil, he still has the ability to change. The writers of this series, it should be noted, do use spells and microchips in an attempt to manipulate Angel and Spike away from evil. In this sense, the two vampires are dehumanized because they are denied the credit of their good deeds.

In the 2002 adaptation of Anne Rice’s Queen of the Damned, Lestat is a vampire that exemplifies how a vampire can be more human than we dare to accept or understand. Lestat’s deep sense of loneliness and guilt are driving forces in this vampire’s life. These extreme feelings are similar to how many people feel and we empathize with this character. His emotions, so aptly described by Anne Rice, offer us a different perspective on vampires. Lestat says at one point: “The faces of my victims haunted me, reminding me of my fate” (Queen of the Damned 2002). This shows that he does have a conscience and that he wants to change who he is because his perspective on life has been altered by a self-awareness of his behaviors.

More recently, within the last six years or so, the perspective of vampires has changed even more dramatically within the public eye. Many of the vampire series, both in television and in books, depict vampires that have caring feelings for others.  This is a persistent detour away from the stereotypical vampire portrayed in literature of the past. In Twilight and The Vampire Diaries, many of the vampires do not feed on humans. These vampires are presented as struggling with their appetites for blood as they also recognize another’s feelings.  Edward Cullen, the vampire in Twilight, says the following when Bella asks why he refrains from harming humans: “I don’t want to be a monster” (Meyer 187). There are other vampires in the series that do want to be monsters and who desire to be perceived as evil, but Edward’s confession to Bella depicts another side to vampires that is similar to humans. Here a vampire is framed as a unique and complex personality. Edward has thoughts and feelings and he represents a more multi-layered character. Ambiguity is introduced and the vampire is no longer confined to a prescribed place of evil. Older stories and movies portrayed vampires as only being driven by their blood lust. They were selfish and had no regard for others. The changes over the last decade in vampires also can be seen as our own struggles to define what is evil and what is good. This is a significant shift because it represents a desire to understand differences. The line between good and evil becomes blurred and requires thoughtfulness.

Werewolves, like vampires, started out as pure monsters. The first impression was of evil and werewolves were misunderstood. Werewolf stories started out with folklore, according to the author of Werewolves, the Occult Truth.  Here the description is: “Werewolves of folklore were rarely described as looking anything like men or women with fur popping out of the neckline” (Konstantinos 6). Folklore versions of werewolves were people who turned into real wolves. As stories about werewolves were written down, and as movies about them were made, the depictions of werewolves drastically began to change. In most films about werewolves, they are seen as beasts that look human, but are covered with matted fur. Also, most films that portray werewolves stick with ideas of the transformation being dependent on the full moon. Silver is also a tool that is used in many films and novels as a means of inflicting harm to werewolves. These perceptions of werewolves have changed.

Recently, the bad name that werewolves have had in the past has started to dissipate. Characters like Jacob Black from The Twilight Saga, and the werewolves in Kelley Armstrong’s Otherworld series, along with characters in many other series, have been effective in changing how people perceive werewolves. In recent adaptations of werewolves, their characters are good; they do what they can to protect others. In the Otherworld series, the werewolves don’t typically deal with humans, but they still try to help people by keeping other werewolves from harming people. These actions show that werewolves aren’t monsters that kill or harm others and that they are capable of changing for the better. Another example of werewolves trying to protect people occurs in New Moon. Jacob and the Quileute’s pack protect the community from vampires. In one scene, Jacob says: “Bella, honey, we only protect people from one thing--- our one enemy. It’s the reason we exist- because they do” (Meyer 309).   

Another way that werewolves have changed from the horror movie versions is that werewolves no longer only resemble a terrifying wolf-monster. In the first book of the Otherworld series, Bitten, the reader is given this description, “I am a wolf, a 130-pound wolf with pale blond fur. The only part of me that remains are my eyes, sparkling with a cold ferocity that could never be mistaken for anything but human” (Armstrong 3). There are similar descriptions in New Moon. “In his place was an enormous, red-brown wolf with intelligent eyes” (Meyer 292). The descriptions that show werewolves looking more like regular wolves depicts that the change represents a change in society and people. The fact that werewolves are no longer identified as monsters could mean that people are tired of vilifying wolves and that a shift is taking place. Werewolves now have similar characteristics to regular wolves and this shows  respect for different species of animals.

            People change. It is part of what makes us human. Looks, personality, and behavior, are three qualities that are always changing, but the biggest change that can occur is our perspective on life.  People can change their minds, their viewpoints, and their beliefs. In the past decade, stories, particularly ones about vampires and werewolves, have begun to change. Yes, they are still considered monsters, but people perceive them differently now.  Vampires and werewolves in books, movies, and on television, aren’t always bad any more. They, like anybody, can be misunderstood and mistreated. They are being shown with their own unique personalities and belief systems. Perhaps, we should attempt to consciously change and not only give fictional creatures a second chance to redeem themselves, but try to give other people second chances as well.

Works Cited

·    Armstrong, Kelley. Bitten. New York: Viking, 2001. 3. Print.

·    Clements, Susannah. The Vampire Defanged: How the Embodiment

of Evil Became a Romantic Hero. Grand Rapids, MI: Brazos, 2011. 2, 6. Print.

·    Konstantinos. Werewolves: the Occult Truth. Woodbury, MN:

Llewellyn Publications, 2010. 6. Print.

·    Guiley, Rosemary. The Encyclopedia of Vampires, Werewolves, and

Other Monsters. New York, NY: Facts on File, 2005. 287. Print.

·    Meyer, Stephenie. New Moon. Little, Brown and Company, 2009.

292,309. Print.

·    Meyer, Stephenie. Twilight. Little, Brown and Company, 2008. 187.

Print.

·    Queen of the Damned. Dir. Michael Rymer. 2002. DVD.

·    Whedon, Joss. Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Television.

Sources

·    Armstrong, Kelley. Bitten. New York: Viking, 2001. 3. Print.

Bitten is a novel written by Kelley Armstrong. It follows the story of Elena Michael. She is a werewolf who lives in Canada. She left her pack that resides in New York because of a problem between her and another pack member. I plan on using this book to provide evidence in how werewolves have changed from horror movie versions and how they aren’t considered “bad” anymore.

·    Clements, Susannah. The Vampire Defanged: How the Embodiment

of Evil Became a Romantic Hero. Grand Rapids, MI: Brazos, 2011. 2, 6. Print.

        In this book Susannah Clements discusses how vampires and Christianity and vampires have been connected. She also discusses how vampires have changed from books like Dracula to series like True Blood. I plan on using book to back up my claims on how vampires have evolved in time.

·    Konstantinos. Werewolves: the Occult Truth. Woodbury, MN:

Llewellyn Publications, 2010. 6. Print.

    In Konstantinos book, he starts off discussing how stories of werewolves began and how movies distorted their image. He continues to discuss the different types of werewolves. In my essay I plan to use his book for information in how werewolves have changed and how they have been misunderstood.

·    Guiley, Rosemary. The Encyclopedia of Vampires, Werewolves, and

Other Monsters. New York, NY: Facts on File, 2005. 287. Print.

        In this book, she covers all different types of monster, movies about them, television shows, characters, and actors. There is information and many different things and I plan to use her book to gain background information on both vampires and werewolves. The information isn’t as detailed as it is in other books, but it is still helpful. 

Final Project Proposal

     For my final project I have chosen option two. At this point, I am still debating whether to chose vampires or werewolves, but I do know what the main topic of my paper is going to be. I chose option two because there are many different stories, authors, and sources to find information about different monsters at present. People seem to be obsessed with the supernatural and paranormal, which has influenced the increase of books about different types of monster. I also chose option two because I am interested in vampires and werewolves and I would like to know more about them.
     For this assignment I hope to accomplish a well thought out and well researched paper. I would like my ideas and arguments to be backed up my the texts that I choose to use.I have already put holds on many books through the public library on both werewolves and vampires. And depending on which monster I chose to write about, I have many ideas lined up for my primary texts, and some of them could be used for either vampires or werewolves. I am really looking forward to starting this assignment and finding out more information about the monster that I choose.

Link: http://www.answers.com/topic/werewolves-and-vampires

Mid-Term Check In

Dear Professor Cline,

     This class has been different from every other English class that I have taken. Most other English classes I have taken focused mostly on understanding the author's purpose. I have never really been expected to analyze a text. I tend to comprehend stories, poems, and most writing easily, but analyzing and coming up with my own interpretation of writing isn't something I have done a lot. Analyzing the poem and Frankenstein gave me a new way to view and look at anything I am reading.
     I think the most challenging thing, so far, this semester was actually reading Frankenstein. Frankenstein, isn't the type of story that I usually pick up and read. I have always found it hard to read certain classics because of the dated language and the way that the characters speak. Even though I found the story confusing at times, because of the language, I am glad that I read the story. Most stories, anymore, aren't very complex and they typically only have one main theme. While reading Frankenstein, I picked up on many different themes, which I found refreshing from how stories are now written.
     For the second half of the semester, I would like to learn to better understand literary analysis. I also hope to learn how to incorporate more outside resources into my essays. I feel that if I can learn how to use more resources, I will be able to analyze different types of writing while also being able to pick up on the themes that are harder to perceive or understand.

Sincerely,
         Adriana Steele
     

Essay 3

Adriana Steele

Cline

English 102

October, 2011

Guided by Life

Our past, our choices, and our situation in life, ultimately affects what we do with our life and contributes to determining our future. Feelings and emotions also play an important role in how we perceive life and how we react. People may say that they are neutral or indifferent, but personal beliefs and feelings will always be prominent and influential in our lives. I believe this is particularly true in the case of the story of Frankenstein. Frankenstein is a story about loneliness and finding the place and the people that you belong with.

Mary Shelley, the author of Frankenstein, never knew her mother, and her father wasn’t happy with her marriage to Percy Shelley (Gilbert and Gubar, 227). Mary’s relationship with her family was distant, but over the course of five years she was pregnant many times and all of her children died during the pregnancies or shortly after they were born (Moers, 216-217). She did have her husband, but prior to their marriage, she was his mistress. I believe that her feelings of loss, especially the loss of her children, contributed to the plot and themes of Frankenstein.  

In the story, Victor begins the creation of the monster when he is away at school and while he is separated from his family and friends. At first it seems as though he is in the pursuit of creating life only to fill a scientific curiosity. Subconsciously, his purpose of creating life is more personal and it also parallels Shelley’s feelings. “Surely no outside influence need be sought to explain Mary Shelley’s fantasy of the newborn as at once monstrous agent of destruction and piteous victim of parental abandonment” (Moers, 222). Clearly, Moers is discussing not only Victor’s relationship with the creature, but she is also is expressing how Mary most likely felt after losing so many children.   We can’t know precisely how Shelly felt, but the loss of her children would suggest she was heartbroken and that she expressed her feelings in her writing.

 “One can never be sure how far Shelley’s accounts of persecution were founded on fact” (Small, 207).  These words perfectly convey that Shelley’s life had an influence on her work. The monster and Victor represent and symbolize Mary’s personal life and parallel her own tragic experiences. Victor represents Shelley because he is the creator of the monster, like Shelly is the mother of several failed pregnancies and children whom all died. Also, Victor, like Shelly, is a character who is not intimately tied to his own family. These feelings are evident as Shelley depicts the monster’s feelings, especially when he is telling Victor his story.

The monster’s loneliness is the underlying current that determines his decisions; it’s his companion as he proceeds through the story. All he wants is somewhere to belong and to have a family of his own. One of the things Mary Shelley was lacking in her life was a strong, close knit family:

But where were my friends and relations? No father had watched my infant days, no      mother had blessed me with smiles and caresses; or if they had, all my past life was now a blot, a blind vacancy in which I distinguished nothing…I had never yet seen a being resembling or who claimed any intercourse with me. What was I (Shelley, 81)

 These words were spoken by the monster, but Shelly’s voice resonates here as if she were speaking them for herself. These words clearly depict what Shelly’s life was like for her and the suffering she had to endure.

Shelley also resembled Victor because of the loneliness and despair that he feels. Ultimately, it is his loneliness that compels him to create the monster. When Victor succeeds and finds that he has successfully created a monster, he falls into a state of fear and depression. After the loss of some of her children, Shelley began writing and also began the creation of her own ‘monster’, that being the story of Frankenstein.  The story was Shelly’s distraction from her loneliness.  The story of Frankenstein, I believe, was Shelley’s way of expressing her acute pain and loss.

In the story, Victor expresses his pain by seeking revenge on the monster, and he hopes to eventually kill it for killing the people he cared about the most. All Victor really wanted was to start a family, but this is the hope of the monster as well. If the reader pays close attention though, we can interpret that Shelley put aspects of herself in to both the monster and Victor. The reader cannot help but to have deep empathy for Shelly’s characters. The ability to sense Shelly’s emotional state and connect the author to the story makes it a powerful read; “…the more than mortal enthusiasm and grandeur of the Being’s speech over the dead body of his victim- is an exhibition of intellectual and imaginative power…” (Percy Shelley, 186).

 Frankenstein was meant to be a scary story, but subconsciously, I believe that it was meant to be a story about family and love, not horror. Throughout the story, it is obvious that Victor and his creation both long for a sense of family and they have a driving need to belong. Because Shelley’s life was disjointed and riddled with deep tragedy, one can make the argument that the author’s feelings and emotions influenced the outcome of her characters and the story of Frankenstein. Would Frankenstein even have been written if Mary Shelly’s past has been different? If it was written, would it have been as overwhelming and as significant as it is today?

Works Cited

 Gilbert, Sandra, and Susan Gubar. "Mary Shelley's Monstrous Eve." Print. Rpt. In Frankenstein. Norton Critical ed. 225-240. Print.

Moers, Ellen. "Female Gothic: The Monster's Mother." Print. Rpt. in Frankenstein. Norton Critical ed. 214-224. Print.

Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein. Norton Critical ed. Print.

Shelley, Percy B. "On Frankenstein." Print. Rpt. in Frankenstein. Norton Critical ed. 185-186. Prin Small, Christopher. "[Percy] Shelly and Frankenstein." Print. Rpt. in Frankenstein. Norton Critical ed. 205-208. Print.

            

Female Gothic: The Monster's Mother

I chose to write about Ellen Moers article Female Gothic: The Monster’s Mother. The article was written in 1976, and it covers a vast amount of information. The article starts out by giving a brief history of gothic writing. The article also discussed different female authors that contributed to stories with gothic themes, and how most of the stories had young heroines and villains that typically were the father-like figure. After this, Moers began giving the history of Mary Shelley’s family, life, her writing. Near the end of the article, Moers begins to link how Frankenstein was written based off of Shelly’s life and emotions, especially her feelings of losing the children she carried and never actually being a mother.

When reading Frankenstein, I didn’t know that much about Mary Shelley, or what her life was like. This article though, not only gave me a better understanding of gothic writing, but it also helped me better understand Shelley. I can’t imagine how horrible it would feel to carry child after child and to lose each one. I can understand Moers thought that Shelley’s life could influence her writing of Frankenstein.  Her pain could have easily turned to anger, which would explain how the creature in her story starts out innocent and how it slowly learns to hate, to feel pain, and wish for revenge.

This website also has more background information on gothic writing that, I think, helps make it easier to understand what constitutes gothic writing.

 Image source: http://blurredhistory.blogspot.com/2009/10/location-location-location.html

Revising

When I write school papers I take my time and work hard to make sure that I do well on the assignment. I typically like writing papers, except when it is on a topic that really doesn’t appeal to me, but that doesn’t happen often. I like being able to express my views on a topic, and I like researching and finding out more information about a certain topic.

When I revise papers I usually print them out and underline sections that need work. I also, depending on the kind of paper, do more research to get a better grasp of the topic that I have written about. When I revise papers, I spend at least 1 to 2 hours trying to strengthen and make the papers even better. Because I spend so much time on papers and other non-fiction writing, I typically don’t revise them much. I do, though, reread them many times while also editing them and reworking them a little. The papers that I do spend a lot of time revising do tend to be my stronger papers and because of that I know that I should revise all the papers I write.  

I do, however, revise my fiction writing. When I am writing a story, I tend to just write, I don’t really pay attention to grammar or the structure of the story. Once I have all my thoughts out down on paper, I reread the story multiple times and I fix spelling and small grammatical errors. After that I usually reread it again and I begin to revise or rework the story. I can spend one to two hours reworking a page in a story and then go back to that page again a week later and do the same thing again.  

When I begin to revise my poetry analysis paper, I hope to make stronger connections to the poem to validate my points and arguments. There are also sections of my paper that need more elaboration and explanation. By adding the explanations it will convey how my analysis and argument relate to the poem. Once I finish revising my paper I hope to see that the paper is more concise and easier to understand.  

image source: http://www.squidoo.com/DIY-writing-curriculum

web link: http://www.angelfire.com/wi/writingprocess/revising.html

Frankenstein Passage

                “They were not entirely happy. The young man and his companion often went apart, and appeared to weep. I saw no cause for their unhappiness; but I was deeply affected by it. If such lovely creatures were miserable, it was less strange that I, an imperfect and solitary being, should be so wretched. Yet why were those gentle beings unhappy? They possessed a delightful house (for such it was in my eyes), and every luxury; they had a fire to warm them when chill, and delicious viands when hungry;  they were dressed in excellent clothes; and, still more, they enjoyed one another’s company and speech, interchanging each day looks of affection and kindness. What did their tears imply? Did they really express pain?” (Shelly 74)

                The above passage, I believe, is very important to the story. It not only shows Victor that his creation is intelligent, but it also shows that it is also observant. The passage indirectly provides vital information about the creature’s personality, thoughts, feelings, and life. The information that is presented in the passage about the creature is information that no one would know unless they were told directly. Having the information presented in an indirect manner lets individuals make their own interpretation of who the creature is.

                I feel that this passage begins to open Victor’s eyes and that he begins to see the creature for who or what it is other than it just being a dæmon. He begins to tell that it has feelings, that it isn’t just a cold hearted murderer. Victor knows that the creature is still dangerous and that he needs to be cautious, be he begins to see that the creature has aspects that make him human like.  Through phrases like, “I saw no cause for their unhappiness; but I was deeply affected by it.”(Shelly 74), show that the creature knows how it feels to be unhappy and that he empathizes with the family. Phrases like that are partly why Victor agrees to help the creature.

                Without this passage, and other similar passages, the creature’s side of the story would never be told and the readers wouldn’t be able to see or understand the complexity of its character. This passage begins to show the reader that the creature, like most people, is multifaceted. The reader knows that he is miserable and dangerous, but this passage shows that he cares. It shows that he has a heart. This passage shows the reader that the creature wants friends, and companions, and that he wants to belong somewhere. He watches that family and he wants what they have. He knows that they are sad, but he doesn’t understand why. He sees them and he thinks that they have everything. He sees a family that has no reason to be sad. This passage begins to show that his wish, his dream is to have something like what they have. He is lonely and he no longer wants to be. 

This passage shows that, yes he is a monster, that he is unlike humans, but it also depicts that he has hopes. It shows that he has compassion and understanding of the world around him, a world that he wants to be a part of.  

Image source: http://www.cultmovieforums.com/forum/showthread.php?15995-Frankenstein-(James-Whale-1931)
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/222094/mary_shelleys_frankenstein_the_downward.html?cat=38

Essay Draft

Adriana Steele

Cline

English 102

September 2011

Christina Rosetti’s Goblin Market

            Goblin Market has many aspects that make it an intriguing poem. Through the use of different literary tools, the poem takes on a life of its own. Imagery and metaphor are two of the main literary tools used in the poems. These tools help to enhance the overall effect of the poem and how the poem can be interpreted differently by different readers. The poem also contains a story which follows two characters who are sisters over a long period of time. The amount of time passing within the poem is significant because it allows the reader to see if, or how, the sisters change. The imagery, the passage of time, and metaphoric tone all serve to emphasize that life is complicated and multi-faceted. Rosetti shows that with a family that offers unconditional love, or when we have an understanding and forgiving bond with a significant other, we can overcome significant trials and gross injustices.

            The imagery Rosetti uses in the poem creates a realistic and fanciful image of Laura and Lizzie’s (the two sisters) life. Through the use of strong imagery, the setting is clearly depicted and paints a vivid image of the goblin men who are outsiders who  have come to the community offering that which is forbidden within the community.

They stood stock still upon the moss,

Leering at each other,

Brother with queer brother;

Signaling each other,

Brother with sly brother.

One set his basket down,

One rear'd his plate;

One began to weave a crown

Of tendrils, leaves, and rough nuts brown

(Men sell not such in any town);

One heav'd the golden weight

Of dish and fruit to offer her:

"Come buy, come buy," was still their cry. (Rosetti 92-104)

The goblins are clearly outsiders and might also represent people today such as salesmen, politicians, religious leaders, the media, or any person or persons, who set out in a calculated fashion to exploit another individual or group of individuals. The goblin men offer a bogus kindness to Laura, but there hidden agenda is to entice her. The goblin men don’t sincerely care about Laura; they just want her to buy and taste of their fruit. Laura is conflicted because she wants more of what has been denied her by social norms. Her pain may come from the exploitation of her naiveté, but it also could be interpreted as a woman’s struggles within a patriarchal community. Lizzie, Laura’s sister, is aware of the goblin’s plan and warns her sister about their intentions. Laura is too enthralled by the goblin men and she does not heed her sister’s warning.

As the poem progresses, the sister’s bond becomes stronger. The reader sees how everything that the girls do is shared with an intimacy bathed in understanding. The passing of time in the poem isn’t meant to only show the sequences of event, but it also expresses life and how people grow, mature, and overcome misfortune through hope and love.

Those pleasant days long gone

Of not-returning time:

Would talk about the haunted glen,

The wicked, quaint fruit-merchant men,

Their fruits like honey to the throat

But poison in the blood;

(Men sell not such in any town):

Would tell them how her sister stood

In deadly peril to do her good, (Rosetti 550-558)

           

            These lines depict Laura as an older woman speaking about her past and also show how Laura has changed. At one point, Laura had abandoned hope; she was ready to give up. Laura’s situation was similar to that of an addict going through withdrawal. Lizzie’s actions did save Laura’s life physically, which is evident in the poem, but the above lines also show that Lizzie’s actions also saved Laura in other ways.

            The moment in time when the goblin men reached Laura and she succumbed to their offer, was the moment when she would be forever changed. Here Laura was her weakest, or most willful, depending on how the poem is interpreted. Laura’s bond with her sister, Lizzie, ultimately heals her. It wasn’t what Lizzie came back with that saved Laura. It was that Lizzie risked her own life to save her sister.

                        The goblin men, their fruit, and Laura’s “illness”, can all be an analogy or a metaphor for life. There will always be people in life that are like the goblins in that they are different. These people may try to prey or take advantage of people who are weak or alone. They may push their planned agendas on others to implement positive change, or they may harm others to benefit themselves.  Laura could have become a victim, but she had someone who cared about her to lead her home.

 Whether the goblins are bad or different, whether the poem is about women trying to assert their individual rights in a world run by men, or whether the poem is just a wild fairy tale with vivid imagery, it is a poem about acceptance. Lizzie loves her sister unconditionally.  Rosetti offers us a poem that reminds us that if people have a support system rooted in love for others, we have a better chance of surviving the hardships that happen to most of us. Laura and Lizzie have a bond that makes it possible for them to be triumphant. Through love for another, we can strengthen our love of self.

Works Cited

"Goblin Market by Christina Rossetti : The Poetry Foundation." Poetry Foundation. Web. 16        Sept. 2011. <http://www.poetryfoundation.org/poem/174262>.

Poem

The poem Goblin Market by Christina Rossetti is very intriguing. The poem has so many great literary tools that enhance the overall effect of the poem.  The imagery and description of the setting, the fruits, and the goblins make it seem like you are actually there within the poem hearing, smelling, and seeing everything firsthand.  The descriptions and the lists of all the different types and varieties of fruit add to the temptation that the goblin men offer. If the goblins only offered a few select varieties of fruit there would be little to no temptation and the goblins wouldn’t be able to lure their victims.

Also, the fact that the poem contains a story makes the poem even more intriguing. And because a large amount of time passes within the poem, the effect of what happens is intensified because the readers get to follow the goblins and the two sisters closely. The readers get to see in detail what the goblins can accomplish when they lure a victim. Being able to see how Laura suffers and almost dies because of the goblins temptations give the reader a sense of how cruel and evil the goblins are.

The description used to show how Laura’s sister watches her deteriorate before her is vivid and heartbreaking. Lizzie’s determination to help Laura is also major factor of the poem that makes the poem so well written. What Lizzie endures just for a chance to save her sister pulls at the reader making them empathize and see how much family can mean to a person. 

web link: http://www.victorianweb.org/authors/crossetti/marketov.html

Image source: http://joannagorham.blogspot.com/2010/11/goblin-market.html

Summary and Analysis

Good Readers and Good Writers

     Nabokov believes that to be a good reader, a person must re-read. In doing this the reader gains a better understanding of what is happening in the story. Also, each time a reader re-reads something, the reader begins to see details and information that they missed when they first read the book. Nabokov also believes that to be a good reader, you must have an impersonal imagination when you are reading. He believes that the worst thing a reader can do is relate to the characters in a story and thats why he says to have an impersonal imagination.
     I agree that to be a good reader you need to re-read often. I've found that the more I re-read books, my  understanding and my comprehension become stronger. I do, however, disagree that a reader should have an impersonal imagination. A reader who connects to the characters or a character, has greater empathy and understanding of the characters. When a reader understands a character, the story also comes to life faster in the reader's mind.
     I like to think of myself as a good reader, but I know that I still have to work hard if I want to become an even better reader.

website:  http://avko.org/Essays/good_readers.htm

Image source : http://afondnessforreading.wordpress.com/2009/08/09/1717/

Introduction