The Little Mermaid

The setting of the story is the kingdom of the mer-people deep under the sea and the palace where the Prince lives which is apparently right next to the ocean.

The point of view is third person.

I chose this story because I thought it would be easy to follow and pick up on symbols and it would have a happy ending.  I was wrong.  Disney lied to me when I watched The Little Mermaid as a child.  Why must every story have a tragic ending?

Discussion on The Birthmark and Bartleby

I liked the way we broke up into groups and presented what we came up with to the class.  It was definitely easier to take notes and follow along with the discussion.  As far as the content goes, I was able to follow along and pick up on more symbols and themes.  I don't really like a lot of the stories we've read because they're all depressing.  They are  still good stories and they're a lot better than other things I've had to read but I like a happy ending every now and then.

Discussion on Racism

The talk was different form any that I've had in college so far.  It was slightly uncomfortable because we don't have to deal with race issues everyday.  Most of us have a white majority around us in our daily lives so we never notice anything that is related to race.  I think that because most of us are so sheltered, we are ignorant of any racial things that we might say or do.  I openly admit that I laugh at racist jokes of all kinds and I used to really follow stereotypes.  I've made an effort to not believe in stereotypes anymore.  Since I have never gone through any sort of struggle because of my race, I tend to not have an opinion on racial issues and I just stay quiet.

Fake Twitter

This article isn't all that surprising.  When people get extremely bored they are are likely to do something stupid that can hurt someone else's reputation.  I have never been bored enough to set up a fake twitter for someone I dont like because my life is interesting enough that the thought has never crossed my mind.

Final Thoughts on the paper

Writing about We was a little bit harder than I thought it was going to be.  I really appreciated the in class discussions and the individual conference.  Both of those helped me get my thought somewhat organized.  There was nothing that didn't really work.  Everything we did in class was ment to help and everything did help a little bit.  For me, listening to the discussions and the conference just happend to help the most.

The Metamorphosis

While reading the story, I noticed that people treat Gregor negatively because he looks different.  He hasn't really done anything to offend anyone.  Other than the fact that he is a bug, he is the same person he was before the change.  The people in his life, with the exception of his sister, treat him terribly.  Nobody sees whats on the inside.  This makes me think that the story could be about racism or prejudice.  If so, than Kafka has done a pretty good job at representing an anti racism story.

Works Cited

Dennis, Bretton J., and Rafeeq O. McGiveron. "Zamyatin's WE." Explicator 58.4 (2000): 211-213. Academic Search Premier. Web. 30 Jan. 2011.

Barratt, Andrew. “The X-Factor in Zamyatin’s “We.” Modern Language Review 80.3 (1985): 659-672. Academic Search Premier. Web. 30 Jan. 2011.

Zamyatin, Yevgeny. We, 1884-1937. New York: Modern Library, 2006. Print.

Paper topic

I'm going to write about conformity in the book and how it supports ignorance.  The people in the book who conform to the One State usually have simpler, easier lives and are happier than those who rebel and don't conform.  The saying "Ignorance is Bliss" is very true and relates alot to what I plan on writing about.  When D-503 just went to work and did what was asked of him, he was happy.  It can be said that he was much happier when he was in love with I-330.  But that love and happiness ended up coming at too high a cost. 

If D-503 could be given the choice between pure joy with I-330 at the cost of being a rebel for a cause that would end up failing, and living out his days with average happiness doing math problems that he loves so much at the cost of never knowing what love feels like, which one would he choose?  Which one would you choose?

The end of WE

I have to admit that I was very let down by the ending.  I expected the revolution to succeed.  Instead, the rebellion is crushed to the point that it is impossible for them to come back.  The part of D-503 that told us the story was killed when he went through the operation.  Now that everyone in One State has no imagination, the Benefactor has complete control over them.

There were parts of this book that were inspiring to read.  Some parts of it made me believe that the rebellion was going to win because it was meant to be, or something like fate.  I also didn't like how it ends so anti-climacticltly.  I expected that those who were involved in the revolution would go down with a fight.  In a "Give me liberty or give me death," sort of way.

All in all it was still a pretty good book to read.  I just don't quite understand how this book is not considered to be a part of the canon of literature.

The Worst part of One State

I am a very laid back, easygoing person so I would not be able to deal with all the structure in One State.  Every cypher has 2 personal hours a day to spend however they want and every other hour is accounted for with working and sleeping.  I could never deal with that.  D-503 even said at one point he wished the personal hours would be replaced with something more productive.  Im fine with working on a schedule to an extent, like with class or work, but if Im not doing those two things every other hour is personal hour for me.  It shouldn't be anyone else's business what I do with my life.

Criticism in WE

The easiest and most obvious criticism for "WE" is biographical.  All writers, especially writers of fiction, put parts of themselves into their work.  Parts of D-503's personality are likely taken from the author.  Both were born and lived in a time when it was dangerous to be out the ordinary, to use their freedom.  Things that exist in the story, for example the feelings D-503 has for I-330, most likely come from a relationship that Zamyatin had.  The experiences that an author goes through will affect the way they tell a story and I think that Zamyatin's background in Communist Russia is a huge factor in his writing.

Elements of Fiction in WE

Style - WE uses a first person point of view in the form of diary entries to make it feel like we are sharing in the experiences that D-505 goes through

Tone - D-503's tone changes slightly depending on what he is talking about but no matter what he is talking about he sounds intelligent.

Irony - I found it ironic that D-503, a male, was registered to I-330, a female.  In 1921 this would have really gone against the social norm that men have more control than women.

Plot - The plot so far has been D-503 writing down a record of his experiences in a journal so that he can send it into outer space on the Integral.

Characterization - Most of the characters attributes are related to their names.  For example, O-90 has round features

Setting - The story takes place in the One State

Point of View - 1st person from the perspective of D-503

Symbol - For D-503, I-330 symbolizes love and freedom.  She symbolizes what life could be like without the control of the One State.

Theme - The theme is that just because a certain way of life is productive and some people enjoy it, doesn't mean that it is right for an entire society

An Introduction of Me

My name is Markell Boysen.  Im from Sioux Falls where I went to O'gorman High School.  In high school I was on the wrestling team at the 160 weight class.  Other than that I wasn't very involved in high school.  Since I'm from Sioux Falls, I consider myself a city-person.  Vermillion is about the only small town I can handle.  I'm plan on majoring in business management and possibly getting a minor in communication studies.  Other than that, I enjoy watching movies, being around my friends, or reading a book in my spare time.

Im kind of looking forward to this class.  It should be interesting to say the least.