"The Bluest Eye" close reading

I decided to look at both the context and the language used in a certain passage. On pages 48 and 49 Morrison is talking about when Pecola is going to the store to buy some candy. Morrison talks about the reaction the man in the store has to her, and how he feels. One thing I noticed was that when Pecola was trying to tell him which candy she wanted he responded by saying "Christ. Kantcha talk?". Even if you consider the time period for this piece it is quite interesting to note, that even he, can't talk all that well. He seems to stumble in front of a young girl, its as though he is scared of her. Another part I found interesting was when she went to pay him for the candies. He was reluctant to touch her hand to take the pennies, and why? All because she is black. I also think there is some idea of superior/inferior throughout this text. The stereotypes also come back into play...
Its also sad to read that she knows his distaste for her is her "blackness". Even at such a young age she knows, or at least seems to know, that she is considered to be the lesser between the two. Is

Working Thesis...

Ok, so i don't know exactly what I am going to have my thesis be...I'm bouncing back and forth between "American born Chinese" and "The Bluest Eye"....
If I were to go with Yang's text I would use the thesis such as: Yang uses his characters to display the raw emotion that a person feels when ostracized, and does so by showing how they feel, contradictory to how people actually react in real life situations.
As for Morrison's text i would go along with the idea of the use of language that is prevalent in the text: The diction that Morrison uses to describe various characters plays on the stereotypes that we as a society have all come to assume and apply to all people.
I think I like my idea for Morrison's text better because I can pick several passages where she goes into detail about something or someone and I can examine what she wants/intends for the words to mean, and how this affects the reader/audience.
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Would considering repetition and/or similarities be too much?

Emerson and Yang response...

The section that I found the most compelling of Emerson's was the last one that began "A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds...". I thought that Emerson was trying to state that even if people may think it is wrong, or people won't approve of it we need to say and show what is on our minds. Being consistent in one's beliefs is important to being yourself. If I am not true to my convictions and beliefs then I am doing myself no good. According to Emerson, in order to be myself, I must run the risk that I am 'misunderstood', for if I am misunderstood then I have been true to myself. That alone speaks volumes. I think that in order to be great we must not think about what others think of us, or let their opinions reflect what they want us to be, or what we "should" be.
I believe Yang plays on this aspect of thinking a little bit too. On page 20 for example: after being thrown out the monkey king enters his chamber and smells monkey fur. He had never noticed it before, yet he does after having been ostracized from all the others. He then sits and thinks of how to get rid of the smell. Had he taken this slight against him in a positive way, he wouldn't think the smell of the fur was a bad thing, just a part of who he is. By pondering how he is going to get rid of it, he is fueling the fire that the others have started. By not speaking up and standing for what he felt he, in a sense, gave in and let the others' views get the best of him. Although Yang and Emerson were not saying the exact thing in that example, it does show how Emerson's idea works, if taken in a positive direction.

American Born Chinese Part 1

I was initially very surprised when I read the first part of this book. I did not really realize that this text would be so forward with regard to race. As for the text itself, I found it much easier to read after having read McCloud. I thought that it was easy to follow and it helped having the images there because I could see the emotion that Yang wanted to get across. The page that I chose to focus on was page 30. In these panels Jin is at his new school for the first time. The teacher, Mrs. Greeder, is introducing him to his classmates, and this is where the trouble starts. His teacher, all the while smiling, tells the class that their new classmate's name is Jing Jang. The sad part is, that isn't his name at all. And when Jin corrects her, she moves on still smiling as though nothing happened. And as if to make the moment even more dramatic she tells the class that he and his family have moved all the way from China. Again, Jin corrects her and she restates that he is from San Francisco. Although these three panels seem insignificant, I believe they are really important. I think that Yang is trying to show that we, as Americans, are not used to diversity and when we are confronted with it we don't always know how to handle it. I think the teacher is the prime example of a white American that takes for granted the wonderful things that other races bring to our great country. These panels show that we do not take the time to appreciate or get to know other types of people all the time. If we all did, then we would not be incorrectly pronouncing names, or making such generalized assumptions, like that he just moved from China. Her expression doesn't change throughout either of the panels, which makes me confused. How can someone mess up so much information about someone and feel nothing? The word China is bolded in the text.I think this was done intentionally to give dramatic effect, to show that the teacher was trying to make him seem more interesting. Had Yang not bolded the word, I don't think it would have been as effective. The last panel that shows all the students speaks volumes as well. The expressionless faces show little to no sign of acceptance or acknowledgement that Jin is even there. To me, all three panels show the lack of effort and acceptance on our parts.

bell hooks

Wow, after watching those video clips I don't know what to think about some of the images that I've seen before in plenty of films. These images have never quite hit me like this before. When hook's was talking about the roles of women during the war and how they were put in the spotlight for a time, I tried to think back and recall images I had seen before. What I didn't take into condsideration I guess was when she showed the image of the man returning home from war/work and the women was waiting in an apron with food in hand. This picture bothered me. Why is it that popular culture has to push away a good thing? Women were very helpful during the war, helping to maintain things at home. So when the war was over this was all forgotten? I find it irritating that society and our culture chooses to ignore and set aside important things in our past and present. Race, gender and culture are all important to discuss because somehow or another they seem to affect and reach into our daily lives. We all know everyone is different in their own way (good ways) but why does our society only highlight the negative?

Visual Images...What do they mean?

I chose to look at the image "La Guernica". As far as color goes, the use of dark pigments says something to me as the reader/interpreter. The dark colors at the top do not align with the thought of Bang, that states that freedom, happiness and triumph are placed at the top of the images. I think that the only peaceful image at the top is the object that looks like a light...maybe this was supposed top be representative of nearing the end of a bad time. On the other hand, some of the images, like the bull, and the people are distorted and abstract looking. The overall piece seems to be broken, and sad. Maybe this was to show the feelings of the people living during this period?? I also think that the jagged edge of the sword is countered by all of the rounded images, which leave me feeling a little less on edge about it all. I think that the size of the image also plays an important role because it shows that this was a meaningful event in time. I think that Bang was right in some sense, the larger the image is the more powerful it can be. I think that this painting is full of ways in which it can be interpreted. I know I only scratched the surface...

What are real books?

A real book is anything that would inspire or evoke thought. You can read a piece of fiction, nonfiction, magazine, etc. and as long as there is some thought about it's content, I think it could be deemed as 'real'. I don't necessarily think that there is such a form of text that isn't real. Although fiction isn't 'real' in content, what is real is that it is there and it can spark some emotion.
I do not read comics that often, nor do I tend to read graphic novels on a regular basis. At first I was hesitant. I did not think that i would enjoy McCloud's text. As I began reading however, i found that I had been missing out on a way of viewing text and a way of understanding it. I was a bit overwhelmed while reading the first few chapters however; there is just so much to take in all at once. Maybe it'll get easier as I continue reading...

Article Response

After reading the article, i believe that multimodality is the various forms that the text comes as. Each of these forms evokes different emotions from us, as readers. I understood multisemiotics to mean that each form, or mode, of text brings about different reactions from us depending on what form we view it in, whether it stimulates our eyes, our smell, or taste, etc. So I'm assuming that they use the word mutisemiotics because each form evokes multiple reactions. Multiliteracy then, would mean that an individual would know how to look at and interpret all forms of multimedia. In everyday life you would encounter multimodality or multiliteracy by reading a newspaper, or watching the news. When watching the news on tv you perceive the information through visual text and audio (you see it and you hear it). While reading textbook, you would encounter the linguistic aspect and the visual aspect because you see the text and you have to be able to process the text. Multimodality is all around us and we encounter it everyday. After reading McCloud's text I was a bit scatter-brained. I am not one to read comics, so trying to read this text was almost distracting for me. I was more concentrated at first on the visual aspect of it, rather than the language/words. Although, I have never read this type of text before, this multimedia takes this particualr text to a whole new level.

What is an American?

After reading through the poems assigned, the way I read the poems changed. I believe that an American is someone who has seen, or even gone through challenges in life. An American is a person that is able to overcome adversity and manage to make the best out of the situation. In Hughes' poem, "I, too, Sing America", I feel a strong sense of will and determination. I think that when he says "Besides, they'll see how beautiful I am And be ashamed--" I think he is trying to say that no matter what background or culture you come from all Americans are beautiful. All Americans have the right to be here and consider themselves Americans. In "I Hear America Singing" I feel as though Whitman is saying that no matter what social class you belong to, or what title you hold, it does not matter- you are still an American. These poems made me think that Americans are strong, not only in what they do, but what they think and believe as well. As far as what their songs were, I'm not sure, maybe it was just meant to represent the story of their lives. Everyones song is different, that's what makes being an American so great.

Picture :)

This is a picture of the marine corps depot in San Diego, CA. My boyfriend is a U.S. marine and recently graduated from here this summer. I got to travel out to CA for his graduation and had a blast. It is absolutely beautiful out there and the depot truly is a beautiful sight. I have never felt more pride in my country and boyfriend then I did when I witnessed those 327 men in the graduating class earn the title of "U.S. Marine".
US Marines

Two Theories...

One of the first theories that stuck me as intriguing was the socialist theory. In today's world I believe that it is important to not only be able to see class struggles and inequality, but also to understand it. While social change seems to be all around us, trying to occur, I think it is extremely important that we be able to lead that social change. By looking through the socialist lens while reading literature, I believe we will gain the knowledge to help lead such changes.
One of the other theories that caught my eye was Reader response. I think that one of the main purposes of literature is to make the reader dig for deeper meaning. If the purpose of this theory is bring about personal reflection on the material, then it is crucial. Not only does the dissection of the text show that there is deeper meaning, but also allows for growth as a student and teacher. I think that reader response is important because it brings about new ideas and issues.
As far as deconstruction of text goes, I think it's interesting. But it seems to me that deconstruction could get confusing depending on what each individual thinks, and what basic assumptions they make. But this topic definitely made me think. Shines a new light on how I could read a text.