Ceremony

Author: Leslie Marmon Silko
Narration: Third person, but focuses on Tayo's thoughts.
Characters:
Tayo: He is the main character. His internal struggle over his mixed heritage and past is the main conflict of the novel. Tayo respects Laguna traditions, but he has been confused by white inventions and is hurt by people who look down on him because of his mother and father's ways. Eventually, he is able to cure himself with a new ceremony that changes to cure new ailments.

Josiah: Tayo's uncle, but he becomes more of a father figure. He is a joking, kind person who treats Tayo nicely. His dream was to breed Mexican cattle with regular heifers in order to make the best kind of cattle for times of drought. Tayo didn't help him with the cattle after he enlisted, and the cattle scattered and Josiah died while Tayo was at war. This fact is one of the things that tortures Tayo.

Rocky: Tayo's cousin, but he grow up with Rocky like a brother would. Rocky doesn't agree with Laguna culture most of the time. He wants to excel in science, sports, and join the army. He wants to assimilate. Tayo has high respect and love for Rocky. Rocky dies during the war because of injuires, causing Tayo to pray for the rain to stop so his wounds can dry out. Tayo feels shame over not bringing Rocky back safe and for causing the drought with his prayer.

Auntie: She is Rocky's mother. Auntie is a Christian who is always concerned over the family reputation. She separates Tayo from Rocky and never cares for him much because of the scandals he caused for their family. She makes sure he has a good home to stay, and helps him when he is sick, but never does she give him any indication she cares for him. Her grudge against Tayo's mom and her self pity over her situation never allows her to love Tayo like she treasures Rocky.

Harley: Tayo's childhood friend and another veteran. Harley turns to reliving days in the war when Indians were treated more like equals with whites as well as alcohol. Harley isn't mean to Tayo, like the other war veterans.

Emo/Pinkie/Leroy: Other veterans who drink. Emo is the leader of these Indians who rejects Laguna traditions because they brought a drought. He says the land has no more value, and the Indians will never get the good things that whites do. He is a witch, and is trying to draw people away from the ceremonies.

Night Swan: A Mexican woman who had an affair with Josiah. She is a dancer who is in touch with traditions. She supports the changing ceremonies.

Betonie: Introduces Tayo to how witchery is being spread by the white people and infecting Indians. He says not many people agree, but the ceremonies need to change in order to deal with the changing times. The oral stories have always been changing across time but it is hard for people to see this. He helps Tayo start his cure. First, he leads Tayo to find the cattle, and this later leads to the rest of his ceremony.

Ts'eh: She is a goddess who leads Tayo on the rest of his ceremony after he returns the cattle home. She has him plant some plants.

Grandma: Can tell when Tayo needs help, intervenes when he needs a medicine man. Old and wise.

Robert: Rocky's dad. Has a deep caring for Tayo unlike his wife. A quiet man.

Summary:
After Tayo returns home from the war, it is clear that he has some trauma. The doctors diagnose him with medications to numb his feelings, but when Tayo is in this state, he isn't really living like people were meant to live. Anyway, he goes home and his thoughts are tangled and aggrivated by the war and the deaths of Rocky and Josiah. He feels partially responsible for both of their deaths, which makes him feel shame for not taking care of them like he should have. His experiences with killing people using modern warfare and his ability to see connections in the world around him also confuse him. Tayo also feels shame because Auntie always reminds him that he is mixed race and that his mother left the reservation to sleep with white men. Tayo drowns his feelings with drink, but eventually is told to seek out a cure from Betonie, a medicine man who uses unconventional methods. Betonie introduces Tayo to the idea that the ceremonies need to change in order to cure new ailments like Tayo's caused by witchery, which is causing the Native Americans to reject the stories and let their culture die. The whites are agents of the witchery, who make Natives feel like a lesser race and destroy all of the things they fear and don't understand about the world. 
Tayo then goes on a journey to cure himself. This journey starts with going out to find the Mexican Cattle Josiah had lost. He told Tayo they were in the north based on the starts, but this seemed strange to Tayo because the cattle had an internal urge to go south towards Mexico. However, a white farmer had brought them up norrth. While Tayo herds them home, he looses sight of them because of some cops. However,  he meets a mountain lion/hunter who helps him find the cattle again. A woman named Ts'eh is his wife, but Tayo later meets her again while he is caring for the cattle. The land is restored again, but tayo must plant a plant that looks like the stars in order to complete his ceremony. Emo tries to make Tayo give into violence and witchery and not complete the ceremony, but Tayo resists.

Imagery: The landscape is described with strong images to emphasize the land's importance with ceremonies, the cycles of the seasons, and colors associated with ceremonies.

Motifs: Colors, witchery, mixed race, self hate, rain/weather
Symbols: cattle, alcohol, trucks, North, South, 
Theme: Traditions will always live on as long as people remember them and look for guidance.
Quotes:

Response to Course Material

So, the AP exam is in a month and I honestly feel kinda scared for this exam. For my other 2 APs I kinda know how I am going to study for them, but for this class I have no idea. However, since we are not annotating fifth business this should help give us more time both in class and outside of school for AP prep. Without help from other people, it is hard for me to grasp all of the hidden meanings in a text, which is what most of the exam is based on. If was able to understand the pieces better and faster, I wouldn't be too worried for the AP. Hopefully, with more practice, I will be ready in time.

Prompt 1970 revision

1970. Choose a character from a novel or play of recognized literary merit and write an essay in which you (a) briefly describe the standards of the fictional society in which the character exists and (b) show how the character is affected by and responds to those standards. In your essay do not merely summarize the plot.

In Death of a Salesman, Willy lives an a Post-World War II New York City, where he is a salesman who has to drive all over New England in order to sell anything. The economy is starting to pick up again, and the city is growing, so people are expected to start becoming successful businessmen again, but traces of the depression still linger. Willy believes that if a person is well liked, they won't  ever fail at the American Dream. However, the growth of capitalism in the city is not as kind as Willy believes and prevents him from succeeding. Willy has too much pride to accept this new reality and continues to live in the past as an escape. 

The growth of capitalism and it's affect on Willy's career is shown best through the characters Charley and his son Bernard, who are foils for Willy and his son Biff. On the outside, Willy and Biff appear to be much better looking and and full of "the old confidence." On the other hand, Charley is fat and not the most pleasant person to talk too. Bernard is the class geek who is small and scrawny. Since Willy and Biff appear to be more naturally gifted, Willy teaches Biff that people will naturally like him and give him opportunities. This is the way the economy used to work, when friends stayed your friends, in order to benefit both friend's careers. However, despite Charley and Bernard not having good looks and natural charisma, they are the ones who succeed. Charley teaches Bernard to work hard in order to obtain skills, which is the exact opposite of Willy. They realize that people can't be trusted, and depending on one's own skills is the only way to achieve anything. Not surprisingly, Willy and Biff fail to achieve The American Dream because Willy couldn't see that capitalism promoted a different strategy for success.

Biff and Willy both got the same fate because of misconceptions of society, but Willy's refusal to accept reality leads him to delusions and eventually his own demise. Since Willy invested everything he had into one goal, that Biff would become a great salesman, Willy couldn't mentally handle his whole life crashing down at once. Since Willy was so confident Biff would have a career, he can't accept this reality and doesn't take blame for his mistakes. By fleeing from the truth, Willy drives himself mad and shifts in between different realities. He drifts back to the times when life was going well for his boys, but these visions always end badly, just like in real life. His delusions become stronger when Willy is in a stressful situation, such as when his is fired for being too old and bothersome by Howard. Willy keeps thinking that he is back when Biff is about to win an important football game and Charley keeps warning Willy not to put so much stake in one thing. Even when Willy tries to escape his responsibilities, the people in his memories are trying to tell him he can't keep running away from his situation. These memories show the audience Willy's hopes and fears, even when he is too blind to admit them to himself. Finally, when Willy realizes these memories aren't an escape, he desperately chooses the ultimate escape instead of admitting his own mistakes. His pride prevents Willy from adjusting to the changing world he lives in.

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead

Author: Tom Stoppard

Characters:

Rosencrantz: He is a character who never questions anything, and just accepts what he sees. However, he has a deep fear of death and wants to find out what is wrong with Hamlet. He gets confused a lot of the time, but never tries very hard to sort anything out.

Guildenstern: He also wants to find out what is wrong with Hamlet, but he also seeks to discover his purpose in the world. He is sure he can figure it out, even though the audience sees he never will because he forgets everything almost instantly and is attempting logic in an illogical world.

Player King: He is the leader of the players, and is the only one of them who speaks. It becomes clear later that he is the person in charge of the play and knows everything that is going on during the time Ros and Guil are within the play of Hamlet. This is because the players are putting on the play with Ros and Guil participating in it unwillingly.

Summary:

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern wander through a place with no apparent setting, flipping coins that come up heads every time. Rosencrantz keeps winning the coins and seems untroubled by this strange occourance, while Guildenstern tries helplessly to explain how this could happen. He, however cannot use logic very well and he thinks of the most improbable explanations first. They both wonder why they are here and suddenly remember a messenger. They encounter a group of Tragedians. The Player King suggests a sexually intimate performance, which takes a long time for Rosencrantz to realize. Guildenstern, knowing the coin will always be heads, uses this against the Player King, who looses the bet and cannot pay. Guildenstern asks them to pay with a play, and Rosencrantz soon after announces the last coin he flipped was heads.

The scenery suddenly changes, and Rosencrantz find themmselves in the middle of some action in Hamlet. Hamlet and Ophelia are rushing about suspiciously before Claudius runs into the pair, mixes up their names, and tells them to find out what's up with Hamlet. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern talk about what they should ask Hamlet, but Rosencrantz doesn't understand when Guildenstern wants to pretend to be Hamlet in order to practice questioning. However, they realize that Hamlet is upset over his father. When they question Hamlet, he confuses them, so they unsure over his sanity. The players arrive for the play Hamlet wants to put on, and after Ros and Guil talk about death, they tell Claudius Gertrude Polonius and Ophelia about the play. They overhear Hamlet and Ophelia scene.

The Tragedians perform a play that paralells the recent events that happened before the opening of Hamlet. The Player King explains the tragedy, and Ros and Guil wonder if death can be represented in a play. Hamlet kills Polonius that night, so Claudius is wondering where Hamlet is the next day. Ros and Guil think of a stupid plan with their belts to catch Hamlet, but it fails miserably. Hamlet escapes and accuses them of being pawns for Claudius. Hamlet is caught by guards later and Ros and Guil are told they must take Hamlet to England. They reluctantly agree.

On the boat to England, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern wonder where they are and whether they might be dead. They notice Hamlet sleeping and remember why they are here. They read the letter to the king of England and find out that Hamlet will be executed. While they are sleeping, Hamlet switches the letter with a fake. The tragedians emerge out of some large barrels, and pirates come shortly after. They all jump into the barrels, but Hamlet is gone when they come out again. Ros and Guil tell the Player King about the letter and what they will say to the King. However, they discover the new letter tells the king to execute them. Guil is sorrowful about death, and angry at the Player King for attempting to fake it. He stabs the Player King, who appears to be dead, but he pops up alive to Ros and Guil's surprise. The knife was only a stage knife. The Tragedians then perform many deaths and the focus shifts to only Ros and Guil. Ros breaks down, realizing he will die, while Guil is upset that they couldn't avoid their fate. They both just exit, instead of having dramatic deaths. The scene changes to Hamlet, and the final lines of the play are delivered.

Imagery: Little figurative language or imagery. Not a play with lots of detail either. Only small tidbits for the audience to figure out the meaning below the surface of the play. Motifs: Coin flipping shows how world is illogical and how fate is already set.

Forgetfulness: absurdist quality, shows how helpless the characters are in their world.

Wind Direction: knowing about it means control. 

Death: shows how some fates are unavoidable.

Hamlet: represents Shakespeare's ideas and influence
Theme: Writers will never be able to escape Shakespeare's influence.
Quotes:

Response to Course Material

This past month, we finished up Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, and we also did some practice with writing a good closed prompt essay.
I found Ros and Guil easier to annotate than Hamlet because even though it was confusing to read the first time, once i figured out an overall idea of the work, every line of the play seemed to have some sort of significance. Hamlet had more difficult language than this play, which is why it was harder to annotate (reading Hamlet when only half awake isn't easy.) I'm not sure how much I really enjoyed the play though. I like how creative Stoppard was to think of this idea, but it was a bit depressing in the end.
I am glad we are doing practice with writing this essay. It is helping me out just to keep practicing on how to organize everything and explain evidence properly. Even though it is a pain, it will hopefully pay off on the AP Exam, since I will probably do poorly on the multiple choice section. Writing practice questions doesn't really help me at all.

Prompt #1975 Edit

      In the play The American Dream, Edward Albee uses foil characters and devices in the dialogue such as repetition and insulting language to show the relationship between Mommy and Daddy as well as compare and contrast Grandma to the Young man. Albee establishes these relationships in order to tell readers that the old American Dream has been replaced with a new Dream that embodies only physical appearances and consumerism.
      Mommy and Daddy have switched traditional gender roles to the point where Mommy is completely in charge while Daddy is reduced to feminine and almost a childlike state. From the start, Mommy is the only member who has anything to say, while Daddy only repeats or agrees with what Mommy said. When Daddy tries to stand up to Mommy by not answering the door, she convinces him to do so by saying "...you were masculine and decisive." another time he opened the door. Daddy and Mommy both show the audience that they think masculinity is a positive trait, which implies that femininity is negative. However, when Daddy finally refuses to open the door, Mommy insults him by telling him "...you're indecisive; you're a woman." This statement confirms that being womanly is a bad thing. Another thing this exchange shows about Daddy is that he thinks that she can take away his masculinity right on the spot, even though it was gone long ago from the time he started to become subordinate to Mommy. In fact, this idea becomes literal when it is revealed that Daddy had a surgery where "the doctors took out something that was there and put in something that wasn't there." suggesting that Daddy is physically a woman with a vagina instead of a penis. Mommy has literally become the man of the house. The two of them cannot have sex anymore not only because Daddy is a woman, but because Mommy is too manly. This is why Mommy is rude to Mrs. Barker after Daddy giggles over her with no clothes on. She cannot provide that kind of pleasure for him anymore. Mommy's manly role and abuse of Daddy show how Mommy is greedy and uses anyone to get what she wants, which include wealth, an aspect of the new American Dream, as well as the "bumble of joy," the baby that the couple dismembered in order to try and get satisfaction. This is less hard to believe once we learn what a cruel person Mommy is.
      Albee uses Grandma and the Young Man as foils to show the differences between the old American Dream and the New American Dream. For one thing, Albee made the character's appearances reflect which ideals they represent. Grandma describes herself as "...gnarled and sagged and twisted into the shape of a complaint." while the Young Man has a"Good profile, straight nose, honest eyes, wonderful smile..." to appeal to the common American. Grandma's ideals of hard work and equality are outdated like her body, while the Young Man looks fresh like his ideals of consumerism and competition in the workforce. However, on the inside, the Young Man can't feel anything. He himself simply states "I can feel nothing. I can feel nothing." since his heart was ripped out when his twin died. His outside looks like all the things a person could dream for, but these goals aren't full of emotion and don't give you the satisfaction that all of the characters strive for. Grandma, on the other hand, is the only character in the play who has any true emotion. Every time she speaks, she uses verbal irony to show just how twisted the other characters are. For example, when Grandma describes the incident with the "bumble" to Mrs. Barker, she uses a matter of fact tone to point out just how twisted the situation is. She says they "smiled and cried and bit their fingers, and said some more intimate things, which were totally irrelevant..." Of course normal people would be genuinely exited about the event, but Mommy and Daddy don't have real feelings and just went through the motions. In the end, since no one can feel like Grandma does, she leaves the scene all together while the Young Man, the new dream, takes her place. She then joins the same level as the audience and speaks directly to them, as if to warn us not to end up this way. This shows how these ideas aren't just in the play, and that the dream Grandma believes in isn't dead.
      The relationships between the characters in The American Dream show how the New American Dream has consumed the minds of Americans, while the old Dream is almost forgotten. All of the strange connections and reactions of the characters serve as a warning not to become consumed by consumerism and to remember what true dreams are.

Didn't do a ton of editing, but I mostly changed the 1st body paragraph from before http://juliawapenglish.blogspot.com/2012/10/prompt-1975.html#comment-form

Response to Course Material

So, after the final, which I was very glad was performing, we haven't been concentrating on a new book until this week, when we started Ros and Guil are Dead. But before I talk about what I have been thinking about that play, I want to mention the multiple choice practice. We never finished going over it, and I kind of want to know the other answers so I can improve, since I am bad at the multiple choice. I almost want to take a practice test in class so I get a feel for how the ap will go down. Anyways, R and G is very confusing right now, but the parts I do understand I like. The play seems really deep, but I haven't grasped it yet. Maybe things will become clearer after we read more of the play. I look forward to how the themes of R and G are Dead and Hamlet are related, even if they are written in very different ways. What if the two plays are trying to convey the same message? I also wonder if this play will share some similarites with The American Dream since they  both have unclear storylines and characters who forget everything. We will have to wait and see I suppose.

Hamlet Synopsis

Theme: Trying to take matters of life and death into one's own hands will only lead to self destruction.

Author:
Willam Shakespeare

Setting:
Denmark, no specific time is mentioned, so we should assume the 1500s since that's when Shakespeare was alive. The action takes place in the palace of Denmark and the grounds.

Plot Overview:
The old king of Denmark, Hamlet, has died recently, and his Queen, Gertrude, has married his brother, Claudius  the new King of Denmark. Young Hamlet, the protagonist, isn't very happy about this development, but becomes even more obsessed over their marriage when he is visited by his father's ghost, who says that he was murdered by Claudius. He the pretends to be mad while he figures out whether he should kill Claudius or not. While he is deciding this, he uses a play to decide if the ghost was honest about the death, makes Ophelia, his love, believe that he doesn't love her anymore, harasses his mother over her decision to marry Claudius  and messes with Polonius, Rosencranz, and Guildenstern, only because they are loyal to the king and will betray him in his mind. These things lead to Ophelia going insane and drowning herself, and Polonius, Rozencrantz and Guildenstern to die. Eventually, the king plots to get Hamlet out of the way with a duel between Hamlet and Laertes, Ophelia's brother. This duel ends in a bloodbath, where Gertrude, Laertes, Claudius, and Hamlet die.

Characters:
Hamlet: The protagonist of the play; the prince of Denmark. He is loved by the people, and smart too, but often too smart for his own good. Decision making is hard for him because he must work out all of the outcomes in his mind first and choose which one is best. Sometimes, he doesn't know which outcome will happen, and this puts him in a stalled state. This is what happens when he is confronted by his father's ghost. Hamlet idealized his parent's marriage, so at first he wants to act imediatly, but his senses kick in soon. Can he handle the responsibility of taking away someone's life, even if they are a horrible person? He acts insane to cover up his internal thoughts to the world as he mulls over this question, but as it continues to hang over him, his character changes a bit. He plots and manipulates everyone around him in order to convince himself killing Claudius is justified. But after Ophelia dies, and Horatio becomes sad that Hamlet is becoming just like Claudius, he realizes the error of his ways, and decides to just let fate unfold instead. He does kill Claudius in the end, but only in a rash act when he knows Claudius is responsible for his death and his mother's.
Claudius: The current king of Denmark and husband of Gertrude. He killed his own brother in order to become Gertrude's husband and have a chance at becoming king of Denmark. He is compared to a serpent by Old Hamlet's ghost, and he definitely lives up to this name. Since the people love Hamlet and not him, he acts kind and welcoming in order to gain their favor. Since he is also clever, he suspects Hamlet is up to something and has many people spy on him on order to figure out if Hamlet is a threat to his status. Even in the scene where he prays to god for forgiveness over the murder, he admits he didn't really mean them.
Polonius: He is the king's adviser, and shares many personality traits with him. He is also someone who must plot out everything, but he must plan things out even more than Claudius for security. Also, although he must plan things to the very last detail unlike Claudius, he isn't quite as smart as Claudius. When Polonius insists that Hamlet's insanity is because of his love for Ophelia, Claudius is more perceptive and sees that Hamlet could be a threat. Also, in Hamlets fake insanity, he is able to insult Polonius without him noticing. He does notice something is slightly different about Hamlet's craziness, he still can't tell Hamlet is dropping hints about Ophelia and downright insulting him. His downfall is ironically because of his plotting, which was meant to save his behind.
Gertrude: The wife of Claudius, and Hamlet's mother. She mainly serves as an object of affection for the men of the play. She can be compared to Eve, because she was "tempted" by the serpent (Claudius) and seems to repent after Hamlet yells at her in her closet. However, it is also possible to say that she never really loves anyone and is just there to tempt men, as the line "The lady protests too much, methinks" suggests. She could have just felt bad about upsetting Hamlet in the closet scene. I'm not sure which argument to believe yet. It is also possible Hamlet has some sort of Oedipal complex with her.
Ophelia: She is Hamlet's love, and goes insane when he rejects her. The most likely reasons why he doesn't want her anymore is because either he doesn't want to infect her with the corrupt royalty of Denmark, or he is dissolutioned with all women because of his mother. It is most likely they had sex, because she drowns herself and passes out symbolic flowers.
Horatio: Hamlet's only true friend and ally in the play. He cares for Hamlet greatly, but becomes increasingly concerned over him as Hamlet's character changes. The only honest and kind person in the play.
Laertes: Ophelia's brother, Polonius's son. He plots with Claudius out of grief to kill Hamlet, who killed Polonius and drove his sister to suicide. Later, he feels bad for plotting and his plan backfires on him anyway. May have had sexual feelings towards Ophelia.
Rozencrantz and Guildenstern: Pawns of the king, and Hamlet's old friends. Hamlet rejects them after they spy on him for the king, even if it was really for good intentions. He has them killed in order to stop them from meddling, which leads Horatio to doubt him.
Old Hamlet's Ghost: He tells Hamlet of a "most foul and unnatural murder"

Voice and Style:
There isn't really a specific voice, because it is a play. Each character has their own personality, which I have already explained above. However, Shakespeare frequently uses figurative language and abiguity in all of the character's lines. It takes several readings of a passage sometimes to figure out what exactly the figurative language is saying, and then which of the double meanings to believe.

Quotes:
"Something is rotten in the state of Denmark"

This is spoken by Marcellus, when he is with Horatio watching Hamlet follow the ghost. It foreshadows how most of the characters will act within the state of Denmark for the rest of this play.

 "What a piece of work is man! How noble in reason! how infinite in faculties! in form and moving, how express and admirable! in action how like an angel! in apprehension, how like a god! the beauty of the world! the paragon of animals! And yet, to me, what is this quintessence of dust?"

Hamlet is in despair, realizing that even though mankind is so advanced, to him it is nothing but dust, because all men will eventually die. This is his depressed state he feels at the beginning of the play, and later at the end when he sees the skull.

"The lady doth protest too much, methinks"

The queen says this after the play Hamlet puts on where the player queen is confessing her undying love to the player king, who is supposed to be old Hamlet. This is evidence for Hamlet's ideal marriage between his mother and father to not be true, and could support the idea that she is a temptress.

Prompt #1986 Edit

1986. Some works of literature use the element of time in a distinct way. The chronological sequence of events may be altered, or time may be suspended or accelerated. Choose a novel, an epic, or a play of recognized literary merit and show how the author's manipulation of time contributes to the effectiveness of the work as a whole. Do not merely summarize the plot.

The novel A Prayer for Owen Meany uses a nonlinear narrative to reveal the characteristics of Owen Meany in order to reveal his characteristics gradually instead of at the beginning of the book. The book is set in the present from the perspective of John, Owen's best friend, but most of the book flashes back to when John and Owen were boys, and within those flashbacks are flashbacks to when John's mom was alive, since she died at the beginning of the book. These flashbacks show both how Owen influences John currently, and how John's mom influenced both of the boys growing up.

In the present day, Owen Meany's past actions directly lead to John's current status. A flashback shows the reader that John wasn't very good in school as a boy, but Owen was the best student in his class. Once high school came around, Owen was invited to gravestone academy, a private school for better students. John, on the other hand, would only be invited if he spent his freshman year in public school and then entered the next year as a freshman again. Owen decided to do the same in order to keep helping John with schoolwork.  John felt like Owen threw his chances away, but Owen wanted to stick with his only friend and show him how to succeed in school. John did get better in school, as a result of Owen's tutoring, and went on to college. However, the Vietnam War was on the rise, so young men were getting drafted every day. In order for John to avoid the draft, Owen cut off his finger with the Meany's stone cutting tools. John, determined to take advantage of the studying he did with Own and the time given to him by avoiding the draft, becomes an English teacher. English was the hardest subject for him growing up, but with Owen's friendship, it became his strongest.

John's mom dies at the very beginning of the novel to emphasize that even after she is gone, her presence is still with the two boys as they grow up. After her sudden death at a baseball game, Owen shows his guilt by chopping off the hands of their favorite toy armadillo, symbolizing how John's mom left an empty space in their lives. The two boys also give up baseball because she died at a baseball game. Later on, flashbacks reveal tiny personality traits about his mom. For example, John remembers how she always sewed her own clothes in black and white, and he remembers how even when it rained on her wedding to his stepfather, Dan, she still was happy. When John thinks back on how cautious his mother was with Dan, he also is haunted by the mystery of his father, whom his mother had a one night stand with. With Owen's help, he pieces together the memories of the baseball game and hints they learn across the years, and they finally discover his identity. John proves it by using the mannequin she used to make clothes on and the baseball that killed her to make the minister, his father, believe he is seeing her ghost. Her mysterious past continues to haunt the minister as well as Owen and John for the whole novel.

The non-linear narrative of A Prayer for Owen Meany not only keeps the reader guessing about how events in the past will drive future events forward, it also emphasizes how much John, his mom, and Owen love each other, even after death. Although the structure is confusing while reading, by the end of the novel the reader can predict the overall outcome because of the foreshadowing the past events gave, while still being suspenseful. This structure made the story much more meaningful and memorable.

 

Response to Course Material

This past month has been all about Hamlet. When we were reading it in class, I hated it, because I only understood the basic plot, which was pretty boring. But now, after annotating, I actually like Hamlet. The characters are all very complex and I love how we can interpret their motives. Hamlet himself seems to be the hardest character to understand, because of the war going on inside of him over whether he should sink down to Claudius's level in order to seek revenge, or if he should be rational and be above that sort of behavior.
The first movie we watched was boring a lot of the time, but I'm not sure exactly what made it so different from the second one. Maybe it was because I still needed to read deeper into Hamlet more when we watched it. The only scene I liked better in the old version was the Ophelia scene. She physically hands flowers to each of the people in the room in that version, but in the new one, she stares at Laertes and doesn't even have real flowers. The whole symbolism is lost there; instead they just flash a picture of her and Hamlet in bed. Also, why do they have a completely cushioned room in the castle specifically for crazy people? Anyway, I hope we watch more Hamlet movies.