Style: Popular Mechanics

"She would have it, this baby. She grabbed for the baby's other arm. She caught the baby around the wrist and leaned back."

I feel like the author of this story has a very unique writing style. His lines are all written short and simply, and they are usually dialogue. The story seems to be written in third person objective point of view. It is written as though the narrator is watching the fight take place but knows nothing else of the characters. I also thought it was interesting how the baby started out being viewed as a person and turned into more of an object by the end of the story. I think it kind of shows how rage can make people forget the dignity of others. The two people are completely malicious toward each other and they are unknowingly treating this baby maliciously. I also think that the baby symbolizes something as well. I think they see the baby as a sign of who came out better in the relationship. Whoever gets the baby is better off. It is also a sign that they are not willing to let go. Both of them fight over the child. If they were really over each other completely, they would not want anything, like a baby, that would remind them of the other person.

Humor: You're Ugly Too

"She thought of the joke about the guy who visits his doctor and the doctor says, 'Well, I'm sorry to say you've got six weeks to live.'
'I want a second opinion,' says the guy. You act like your opinion is worth more than everyone else's in the class. 
'You want a second opinion? OK,' says the doctor. 'You're ugly, too.'"

This story also made me somewhat sad. I think its supposed to have somewhat of a dry humor. It's really easy for people to hate Zoe, but I mostly just feel bad for her. Her life just kind of sucks. She is somewhat arrogant, but it seems like her students don't really respect her either. She has a sister who has someone to love her, but her sister is unhappy with that relationship, and I think it just makes her lose hope. She tries and tries to find a mate, but to her it seems pointless because the men are always terrible people and she probably won't be happy with them anyways. Not to mention, she has facial hair, which makes me question if she is a male or a female. By the way the story is written, I'm guessing it was written sometime during the later part of the 20th century when transgender and gay people were finding acceptance. That's just what it seems like to me. But, I think that even if this is true, even if she is a man who acts as a woman but she is accepted, she probably still feels inadequate and she has probably been often criticized. It has made her cynical and bitter. That's why I think the joke about the doctor is her favorite joke. It takes criticism like that which she has probably faced and makes it something to laugh about. It is more of a cover-up of emotions than something genuinely humorous.

Irony: The Drunkard

"'Never again, never again, not if I live to be a thousand!'
To this day I don't know whether he was forswearing me or the drink."

I thought that this story was much more ironic than humorous. I actually thought this story was somewhat sad. Either way, the main point was that it took the son getting fall-over drunk before the father could realize that he had a problem. That in itself is ironic. It reminds me of how in Health we learned that one is more likely to be an alcoholic if their parent is an alcoholic. People see the awful effects that alcohol have on their parents, but it is also the only example they have ever seen. Maybe that had something to do with why the father changed. He saw that he was making his son turn out the same way he did. He knew that his life when he was a "drunkard" was wrong but he didn't want anyone to worry about him or tell him what to do so he always acted like he was fine. However, once he saw the way that his son was getting drunk, it changed something in him. It is ironic that he had to see the same problem in someone else to recognize it in himself. It was also ironic how the father was acting superior at his friends funeral. He was almost joyous, and he acted arrogant. I think it was his own insecurities though. He knew that people were criticizing him, but he could be proud for at least that moment knowing that he was greater than the man who was dead.

Point of View: The Lottery

"The lottery was conducted--as were the square dances, the teenage club, the Halloween program--by Mr. Summers, who had time and energy to devote to civic activities."

This story is written in third person objective point of view. The author's choice to write in this perspective has a direct relation to the story told. The narrator speaks about the lottery very nonchalantly. It is treated as though it is a normal event, something familiar and traditional. It is something that no one questions. However, when one finds out that the person drawn in the lottery is sacrificed (the surprise ending), it seems completely ridiculous inhumane. But, the objective point of view reflects the views of the members of the town. They don't view it as something emotional or wrong. It is simply seen as unavoidable. By adding details about how the day was "clear and sunny" and talking about how the young children were playing around makes it seem like a normal day. For the people of the town, the lottery is nothing out of the ordinary. I think this work is somewhat satirizing how we follow traditions without questioning why we do them.

Symbolism: Miss Brill

"But today she passed the baker's by, climbed the stairs , went into the little dark room--her room like  cupboard--and sat down on the red eiderdown. She sat there for a long time. The box that the fur came out of was on the bed. She unclasped the necklet quickly; quickly, without looking, laid it inside. but when she put the lid on she thought she heard something crying."

I think that the fur that Miss Brill wears symbolizes herself and her confidence. In the beginning, she realizes that it was unnecessary weather for her to wear the fur, but she is happy that she chose to anyway. It gives her comfort and a feeling of self-assurance. She is wearing her fur when she gains this feeling of belonging and creates a world where she is part of something, a production. She thinks she's like an actress. Now, this frequent event of people-watching that she once derived joy from is a source of even more happiness for her. However, when she returns to the park, confident and happy, and the couple destroys this world that she's built in her head by basically treating her like a stalker, she is quiet. Her confidence is gone, she speaks to no one, and she returns home without even taking her usual trip to the baker. As she closes herself up in her room, she also closes her fur up in the box. Her room, "like a cupboard", is like her version of the box. When she hears the fur crying, it is actually her crying. She is sees her own saddness in the fur, but the fur represents her. It represents the theme of loneliness that is prevalent in this story.

Situational Irony: Once Upon a Time

"Next day he pretended to be the Prince who braves the terrible thicket of thorns to enter the palace and kiss the Sleeping Beauty back to t life: he dragged a ladder to the wall, the shining coiled tunnel was just wide enough for his little body to creep in, and with the first fixing of its razor-teeth in his knees and hands and head he screamed and struggled deeper into its tangle."

The end of this story is pretty surprising. Even though its presented in somewhat of a nonchalant manner, the terrible event is so unexpected, and there's really no follow-up information about it. But, that presents the question of "why does the author do this?". Personally, I think the ending is presented so calmly to symbolize how someone can feel safe and calm, but they can't protect themselves from everything. Every time a new risk presented itself, the parents just developed a new security system to protect themselves from it. They felt as if there was nothing that could harm them. But no one can ever really escape danger. It was completely ironic that the family's attempt to protect themselves actually harmed their son more than anything else. I think it sends the message that trying to avoid risk can also create risk.

Indirect Characterization: A Worn Path

"'Out of my way, all you foxes, owls, beetles, jack rabbits, coons, and wild animals!... Keep out from under these feet, little bobwhites... Keep the big wild hogs out of my path. Don't let not of those come running my direction. I got a long way.'"

A lot of this story is spent describing Phoenix, whether it be through physical appearance, dialogue, etc. However, not much of the story describes what she is actually like as a person. The author spends plenty of time saying "she carried a thin. small cane" and " she stood free, and after a moment dared to stoop for her cane". But what does that say about her? That is the important part of this story. In the questions at the end, a writer asked the author "Is the grandson really dead?". Though the question seems somewhat random, the author's response was very important: "Phoenix is alive". By this, the author means that its not the life of her grandson that motivates Phoenix, but the love of her grandson. No matter whether he is dead or not, no matter whether all her efforts may be wasted, it is the love that keeps her going on her quest even when it may all be in vain. That is what the descriptive parts of this story say about Phoenix. They make it evident that her motivator is love, and it must be strong for all she is willing to do.

Theme: Eveline

"He rushed beyond the barrier and called to her to follow. he was shouted at to go on but he still called to her. She set her white face to him, passive, like a helpless animal. her eyes gave him no sign of love or farewell or recognition."

I think both fear of the unknown and dreams of the unknown are both themes of this story. Eveline has always known a life of service to others. Her life is hard and cruel and she has to act more like an adult than she should at her age. She even suffers under her abusive father. With a life like that, it is easy to feel helpless and wish for something different. When the opportunity presents itself for her to go to Buenos Aires, it seems like a break. It is a new place that promises so much more than her life in Ireland. However, it also promises many scary changes. It would be very different from Dublin. Even though her life in Dublin couldn't be much worse, it is all she has ever known. She is comfortable there despite the awful life she has. Even though Buenos Aires represents a good future, it also represents a change, and someone who is used to their lifestyle can find more discomfort in change than they do in not changing a bad situation.

What an odd man...

"At first Bartleby did an extraordinary quantity of writing. As if long famishing for somthing to copy, he seemed to gorge himself on my documents. There was no pause for digestion. He ran a day and night line, copying by sunlight and by candlelight. I should have been quite delighted witht his application had he been cheerfully industrious. but he wrote on silently, palely, mechanically."

The biggest thing that stuck out to me in this story was how odd Bartleby the scrivener was. He was simply just not a normal man. From the way he worked, to the way he acted, to the mysterious way he responded to the narrator's requests, he was certainly a bizarre individual. He almost reminded me of a robot. It was as if the things that he declined to do for the narrator were things he were not "programmed" to do. It also does not help that he shows relatively no emotion and acts like a ghost of a man throughout the story. In the above quote, he is even described as "mechanically" working. That sounds suspicious to me. Maybe Bartleby was not a person at all. Maybe he was a robot. But that would not fit the time period for this story very well. Maybe he was just somewhat insane. That would be more likely. He almost reminds me of a serial killer. He shares a lot of qualities with my neighbor across the street who my entire family is scared of. Either way, lets just say I wouldn't feel comfortable being in a room with him by myself.

Stock Character: Hunters in the Snow

"Tub stood for a moment, still holding up his hand, then jumped back. His rifle slipped off his shoulder and clattered on the ice, a sandwich fell out of his pocket. He ran for the steps of the building. Another sandwich and a package of cookies tumbled onto the new snow. He made the steps and looked back."

Tub from "Hunters in the Snow" is a good example of a stock character. He is the typical overweight redneck hunter that one usually imagines when presented with a character of this sort. He is clumsy, he always has food, and he is picked on by the others. He is ashamed of his eating habits and tries to hide them, and he does not often stand up for himself. Even when he and Frank are bonding inside the truck, he does not show any sign that he is very different from someone of his persona. Like most obese people, he is uncomfortable with the way he looks and he is scared that people don't like him so he is reasonably quiet. It takes a long in-depth conversation with Frank for him to even admit that he has an eating problem at all. It also shows that he will cling to any companionship he can get when he never mentions anthing about saving Kenny who is injured in the truck bed. He completely ignores his dying friend because if he did not, it would mean that he would have to give up his new friend for now. That is pretty typical of an outcast like an overweight person. They will do anything for friendship because it is offered so little.

Foil Characters: Everyday Use

"'Well,' I said, stumped. 'What would you do with them?'
'Hang them,' she said. As if that was the only thing you could do with quilts."

This is the turning point  in the story. Up until this moment, Mama and Maggie both had somewhat let Dee step all over them. For the longest time, they had put up with her ungrateful and arrogant attitude. However, it only takes her daughter's outburst about some hand-me-down quilts to change everything in Mama's mind. When she sees her bratty daughter screaming about how her sister could never appreciate these quilts in the same way that she could and then sees her other daughter Maggie, being generous and offering her the quilts, she knows that she has stood by long enough. She cannot let her unappreciative hypocritical and uppity daughter treat her or Maggie like they are lesser anymore. The question comes to mind: How does one correctly appreciate quilts? The answer to Mama is obviously not hanging them on a rack and using them as decoration, but to actually use them for warmth and the purpose they were created for. If Dee actually appreciated the quilts, she wouldn't just want them as a decoration for her house, but she would care for what they represented and would want to use them further so that she could add to their meaning. That is what makes Dee a foil of Mama and Maggie. This city girl who wants to use these items from her heritage simply to make life prettier but not to retain her heritage is the exact opposite of her simple but rooted mother and sister.

Characterization: An Overview

"'How do I look, Mama?' Maggie Says, showing just enough of her thin body enveloped in pink skirt and red blouse for me to know she's there, almost hidden by the door."

The quote above represents a perfect example of the indirect characterization that is prevalent throughout this chapter. Although direct characterization was used sometimes, it is the actions, appearances, and dialogue of the characters that helps the reader to develop an interpretation of their personality. In "Everyday Use, Maggie's character is one in particular that stands out as an example of this. Though Mama does not often directly say what Maggie is like, the reader develops an understanding of her naivity, innocence, ignorance, and amicability through her actions in the story. She is ashamed of her appearance with her burns, so she does not speak up often, and she is kind to everyone. Her character reminded me of a character from the book/movie Girl Interrupted named Polly who was also burned. The girl became somewhat timid and childlike, which is similar to Maggie. But, "Hunter's in the Snow" and "Bartleby the Scrivener" also provide examples of indirect characterization. Kenny's attempt to run down Tub shows his carelessness, while Bartleby's secretive and introverted appearance show that he is somewhat of a ghost of a man. Needless to say, indirect characterization was more prevalent in these stories than direct characterization.


Polly from Girl Interrupted

Climax: A Rose for Emily

"What was left of him, rotted beneath what was left of the nightshirt, had become inextricable from the bed in which he lay; and upon him and upon the pillow beside him lay that even coating of the patient and biding dust. Then we noticed that in the second pillow was the indentation of a head. One of us lifted something from it, and leaning forward, that faint and invisible dust dry and acrid in the nostrils, we saw a long strand of iron-gray hair."

This story was certainly fitting for the end of October. It was kind of creepy, but that just happens to be the type of thing I enjoy! Not the whole sleeping next to a dead body for 50 years, but hearing about things that are creepy. Anyway, the thing that really makes this story work is the lack of a denouement. The suspense and information leading up to the final sentence are all presented in a very dull and indifferent manner. There is not much going on, and the reader may even lose interest. BUT WAIT! In the last two paragraphs, we find out Miss Emily Rose's grave secret: she killed her lover and has been hiding him in her house ever since! If that isn't enough to draw a reader back in, I don't know what is. And to add even more to the intrigue, she had been sleeping in bed with the decaying body all that time. There you have it. A story that seemed dull and anticlimactic just exploded into a story of a deranged murderer. How can the author do this and maintain his style throughout? By explaining the climactic ending in the same dull manner. There are no exciting or active verbs used in the last two paragraphs that change the tone of the story at all; however, the action itself changes the story completely.

Third Person Narrator Limited: Interpreter of Maladies

"Mr. Kapasi found it strange that Mr. Das should refer to his wife by her first name when speaking to the little girl. Tina pointed to where Mrs. Das was purchasing something from one of the shirtless men who worked at the tea stall. Mr. Kapasi heard one of the shirtless men sing a phrase from a popular Hindi love song as Mrs. Das walked back to the car, but she did not appear to understand the words of the song, for she did not express irritation, or embarrassment, or react in any other way to the man's declarations."

The use of third person limited narration in this story provides a unique effect. The speaker can only read the emotions of Mr. Kapasi; however, much of the story centers on Mr. Kapasi trying to read the emotions of the other characters, mainly Mrs. Das. As the story progresses, Mr. Kapasi's thoughts become more and more centralized on Mrs. Das. Were the story being told in first person from Mr. Kapasi's point of view, it may seem normal for this to be true. But, the fact that this is the action that was chosen to be detailed in the story  shows that it is the most important or serious. That helps to stress Mr. Kapasi's developing infatuations with Mrs. Das.The narrator helps you to be able to infer the connections that Mr. Kapasi's mind makes as he talks to Mrs. Das. From the things she says, he comes to the conclusion that she is interested in him as well, but in reality, she is just having an average conversation. Much of Mr. Kapasi's desire for Mrs. Das to want him stems from his own troubled marriage. He can see himself with someone else. But in the end, when Mrs. Das asks him what her problem is, he realizes that she couldn't like him because her problem is that she feels guilty about the affair she had.

Irony: How I Met My Husband

" So I said yes, and I went out with him for two years and he asked me to marry him, and we were engaged a year more while I got my things together, and then we did marry. He always tells the children the story of how I went after him by sitting by the mailbox every day, and naturally I laugh and let him, because I like for people to think what pleases them and makes them happy."

This story provides a good example of both situational and dramatic irony. The situational irony lies in the fact that the reader does not expect the mailman to be Edie's husband at all. Throughout most of the story, the narrator speaks about Chris Watters a war hero and commendable man. The way that she refers to him with such an affectionate description and tone makes the reader believe that they will end up together. That however, would make it like every other love story. She would marry her prince charming, her longtime love and they would ride off into the sunset on a white unicorn. However, this is not the average love story. This is a realistic love story, and though it is unexpected, she does not end up with Chris, but the mailman who she had always waited on to deliver his letters. This is when the dramatic irony takes place. The mailman developed the idea that she had been waiting on himself because she liked him, and rather than deny this thought, Edie gave up on her love for Chris and settled for the Carmichael. She never told him her true feelings. It may not have been the romantic fairytale that most love stories present, but it was more realistic and empathetic.

Plot: An Overview of the Stories

"I was surprised when the mailman phoned the Peebleses' place in the evening and asked for me. He said he missed me. He asked if I would like to go to Goderich, where some well-known movie was on, I forget now what. So I said yes, and I went out with him for two years and he asked me to marry him..."

The same general pattern is visible in the three pieces of literature we are discussing this week. In these stories, the main action and majority of the storyline does not allude to the ending.  While much of "How I Met My Husband" discusses the narrator's relationship with Chris Watters, he is not her husband. Surprisingly she ends up with the mailman. In "Interpreter of Maladies" most of the story focuses on the narrator's affection and infatuation with a girl who is telling him her problems, but the ultimate message of the story is the woman's guilt about her affair. In "A Rose for Emily", the story does relate Emily's descent into depression, but the reader would never expect that she had mummified her one-time boyfriend. Though much of the information given in the story seems unimportant to the ultimate plot or ending, it is this unexpected twist that makes the stories so interesting and unique. Each story begins as though it were a typical love and heartbreak story, but each one ends in a different and unexpected way. That is what makes the stories so enjoyable.

Rhyme Sceme: Delight in Disorder

"A careless shoestring, in whose tie
I see a wild civility'
Do more bewitch me than when art
is too precise in every part."

This poem is broken into every two lines with the ending syllables rhyming. This creates a better flow and development throughout the poem. The connection between the two lines is symbolic of the connection between the beginning and end of the poem. The speaker initially begins talking about the beauty in the disorder and wrinkles of clothes. In themselves, they present an enigma and a sort of rhythm that makes the observer's eye roam around the object. Being in Studio Art has helped me to understand the importance of this concept. In order for something to be intriguing to the human mind, the observer has to be able to follow it. However, another important concept is the not so straight path that the wrinkles and placement of clothes take. Though the human mind craves sense, it also craves thought, meaning that intriguing things must follow a general pattern, but that they also must incorporate some disorder into this pattern. The speaker in the poem is no exception. He or she states that clothes are more of an art form than real art sometimes is because people focus too much on being straightforward and clear while clothes don't make that effort. To see the beauty and message in clothes is more difficult than to see the beauty and message in some works of art. Therefore, clothes are a work of art in themselves.

Dialogue: Edward

"The curse of hell from me shall ye bear,
Mother, Mother,
The curse of hell from me shall ye bear,
Such counsels you gave to me, O."

The entire poem is spoken in dialogue which makes it somewhat more difficult to uncover the emotions behind the actions that take place in the poem. However, it also makes the poem more personal. It is a discussion between Edward and his mother, beginning with her realization that he must have killed something, for he is holding a bloody sword. He tells her that he has killed his hawk, but she knows that he is lying because it's blood is not the same color as that upon the sword. Next he tells her he killed his steed, but she knows he is lying because he would not be this sad about one horse dying since he has so many others. Then he finally comes clean and tells her he has killed his father. She asks him what penance he will serve for this. But, the irony in her question is the fact that she was the one who commanded him to do the killing. By ordering him to kill his own father she gave him "the curse from hell" for he has sinned severely, but she still expects him to do penance. For this, he is resentful. How can the woman who ordered him to commit the act feel no remorse but question his own form of penance? In the beginning of the poem, the boys loyalty rested with the mother. But once she becomes accusatory, he is sorry for killing his father, and turns against her instead. He originally tried to hide his sin from her, but she knew the truth and when she found out that he had obeyed her, she acted as though he were completely insane. Because the mother gave Edward the "curse of hell" and feels no remorse or sympathy, he only wishes to return that curse to her.

Form: Lonely Hearts

"Executive in search of something new--
Perhaps bisexual woman, arty, young.
Do you live in North London? Is it you?"

This poem has a distinct form of a stanza beginning with the desired qualities in a mate of the speaker followed by a refrain of questions. However, the irony in this poem is that the speaker asks "Can someone make my simple wish come true?" but his wish is really not simple at all. The entire poem is dedicated to the specific qualities that his potential mate must possess. Most of them are really not very common at all, either. The fact that the only place he is searching is North London is inhibiting as well. He doesn't even have a wide range of women that could meet this long list of criteria. Instead though, maybe each stanza represents a different kind of person who might be searching for love. In the first stanza, the person seeks a mate who is adventurous. In the second, he seeks a very soulful and compassionate woman. The third seeks a young and wild woman. The fourth on the other hand seeks the opposite, a Jewish successful woman with a son, implying that she is older and rich. The person referred to in the fifth stanza is searching for someone to complement their astrological sign and who is not a big risk-taker. The sixth stanza is just a general end to any of these ads. Maybe rather than satirizing those who don't find love because they are so demanding, it is pitying those who can't find love and don't know why.

Refrain: Do Not Go Gentle into That Good Night

"Do not go gentle into that good night"
"Rage, rage against the dying of the light."

The central theme of the poem is the resistance of death.This is reflected through the two the two refrains that appear throughout the poems which I quoted above. The speaker is urging the reader to strive to hold of death. He is not implying that death is a bad thing. He refers to it as the "good night". However, he says that without a fight and without trying to make all the difference that one can before he or she must die makes death a "dying of the light". Wise men, good men, and adventurous men all know this to be true. Therefore, they strive to hold off death for as long as they can. They know that they have not reached enough, served enough, or done enough to die yet, and they want to hold off death as long as they can so that they can accomplish these things. Specifically, the poem is addressed to the speaker's father, and he is urging him to do the same thing. The father is going blind, but the son says this doesn't make him useless, for "blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay". His father could be happy regardless rather than downtrodden. And though death is approaching his father, he says that he must rage against it like the wise, good, and adventurous men because there is still much left for him to do. However, this poem also subtly hints at the speakers sadness about the passing of his father. Maybe it's more the speaker who would miss his father after he had died than him actually believing that there is still a mission in life for him.

Unity: That time of year

"That time of year thou mayst in me behold
When yellow leaves, or none, or few, do hang
Upon those boughs which shake against the cold,
Bare ruined choirs where late the sweet birds sang."

Throughout the poem there is a common theme of fall and winter images. These are used to symbolize death, and this is appropriate because during fall and winter, death of nature is very prevalent. The birds' songs are gone. The leaves are dead and the trees are barren. In this same way, the speaker of the poem has lost his youthfulness. He is a glowing ember that is about to burn out. All these images in the poem in some way connect to the seasons of fall and winter. During these seasons, it is popular for homes to have fires in the fireplace in order to keep warm, but the fires die out quickly in the same way that the speaker is dying. The trees lose their leaves and become barren and withered, while the speaker loses his colorfulness and lively spirit to adopt an aged look and temperament as well. However, his lover does not let her affection for him wither. In fact, he states that she lets it grow. Because she knows that their time is limited, she loves him all the more for the time that they are given.

Allusion: To His Coy Mistress

"...I would
Love you ten years before the Flood,
And you should, if you please, refuse
Till the conversion of the Jews."

The speaker in this poem is an older man and he has set his sights on a much younger woman. He is trying to express to her his great love for her by saying that if death did not exist and they had all the time in the world, he would spend it all praising her beauty and greatness. He would have loved her for all of eternity, even before the Flood, and she could refuse him for a long time. His love would not fade, though. He would spend years upon years telling her the beauty of each aspect of her appearance. And, he would spend ages upon those qualities which make up her personality, her heart being last because it is the greatest and most important. He says that she deserves all this praise and glorification before anyone he would even try to physically be with her. However, they don't have all the time in the world. He says that they must use the time they have been given and not waste it on coyness. The speakers tone is mostly lustful and desiring. He is praising this woman that he greatly craves so that she will give in to him.

Symbolism: Hazel Tells LaVerne

"an i hitsm with my mop
an has ta flush
the toilet down three times
me
a princess"

On the surface of the poem, the reader recognizes a somewhat humorous tone. The story told of a hotel maid beating down and flushing a talking frog who has promised her that he can make her a princess is funny to consider. However, the real symbolism in the poem is that of the frog as the maids aspirations. It seems as ridiculous to her that she could be anything more than a hotel maid as it is to consider the fact that kissing a frog that hopped out of a toilet might make one into a princess. She has no confidence in becoming anything more than a hotel maid. She really has no confidence in herself at all. In fact, she considers it completely ridiculous to even believe that she could ever be a princess. She has become so comfortable in this hard-working and defensive lifestyle that she doesn't even dare to imagine anything else. She's almost become scared of change. But, the ending line of the poem that says "me a princess" almost gives the feeling that she imagines it for a moment after her speech has concluded. She lets herself dream for a bit. But, she doesn't really feel that she is good enough to be a princess or anything of the sort that is better than the lifestyle she already leads.

Allegory: Dover Beach

"The Sea of Faith
Was once, too, at the full, and round earth's shore
Lay like the folds of a bright girdle furled.
But now I only hear
It's melancholy, long, withdrawing roar..."

The author of this poem expresses his feelings on science and religion through the speaker's view of the ocean and nature. The sea symbolizes the world. As it washes upon the shore when the writer is listening, he hears the repetitive sound of the misery of humankind. This is caused by science and its destruction of faith in God and believing in his power. The speaker says that there was once goodness in the world when the Sea of Faith washed upon the earth's shore, and it was beautiful. This was before science and when people trusted in God. But now, men don't believe in love or feelings; they believe in science. the the world lacks the joy, love, and light that it once possessed. The author doesn't understand how people could so easily abandon God. He himself only has to look at the ocean, the stars, and the wonderful land forms around him to feel God's presence. He asks the question how can Darwin support evolution when "the cliffs of England stand glimmering and vast" and how can Lamarck have supposed this theory when "on the French coast the light gleams". To the author, these are proof that God must exist, and he is sad that humanity has gone so far astray.

Mood: The Apparition

"And then, poor aspen wretch, neglected, thou,
Bathed in a cold quicksilver sweat, wilt lie
A verier ghost than I."

The atmosphere conveyed by the author's diction in this poem is somewhat frightening and threatening. The speaker in the poem is a man who is in love with a woman who constantly rejects him, and he is bitter for that reason. He even resents her for it and believes it will be the death of him. But he says that even in death he will not leave her alone. When she is lying in another man's arms believing she is safe, he will come back and haunt her. This new man will not respond to her cries, and she will be left alone to face the words of this rejected lover.  She will be terrified by his mere presence, and his words will only make it worse. However, he does not want to reveal what he will say to her in that moment for fear that it may not scare her anymore. And, he doesn't even want to threaten her anymore because it makes her less at fault for his situation. It is safe to say that the speaker both loves and hates this woman that he so desperately seeks. He loves her enough to keep going after her day after day knowing that she will never love him, but he also must hate her enough to want to haunt her after death and make her feel absolute guilt and fear.

Syntax: My mistress' eyes

"I grant I never saw a goddess go, --
My mistress, when she walks, treads on the ground.
And yet, by heaven, I think my love as rare
As any she belied with false compare."

The author's use of inverted sentences really adds to the artistic value of this poem. The speaker compares his lover to a variety of different common objects, but he states that his lover does not even possess the beautiful qualities that these objects have. Her eyes are not bright like the sun, nor are her lips red like coral, and she doesn't have good smelling breath either. It seems at first that the speaker must be completely repulsed by his lover. He is describing her in such a negative way. But, the truth is the opposite. He admires her dearly and believes she is at least as beautiful and fair smelling and lively as any woman. She is equally good. The real point that the speaker is trying to prove is that when people describe their lovers as having the most beautiful white skin, the reddest lips, the voice of an angel, and rosy cheeks, there is at least some hint of exaggeration. These types of people don't exist. The author puts forth the point that his lover does not need all these traits and he doesn't need to lie and say that she has them. He knows her real value, and he doesn't have to exaggerate it.

Satire: Mr. Z

"Not one false note was struck-- until he died:
His subtly grieving widow could have flayed
The obit writers, ringing crude changes on a clumsy phrase:
'One of the most distinguished members of his race.'"

This poem was both somewhat sad and somewhat angering to me. While I feel bad for Mr. Z who lives in a society where he is looked down upon for what he is, another part of me wants to scold him for not even trying to make a difference. He completely relinquished his entire background and person for social acceptance, which is something that many people do which angers me. However, the poet uses the story of Mr. Z in order to satirize society for its lack of vision beyond skin color. Mr. Z played the perfect part of a white man. He gave up all cultural associations that he had with the African American community and rather adopted white culture. He clung to the "Anglo-Saxonized" ground rather than that of his own race. He strove to be as "white" as he possible could and even considered the status of the woman he married so that he may not even be judged by that. But, even through all his efforts, through all his accomplishments and every assimilation to white society that was possible for him, in his death, he was only seen as an accomplished black man. He was not just a distinguished member of society but rather "one of the most distinguished of his race".

Dramatic Irony: APO96225

"So the next time he wrote, the young man said,
'Today I killed a man. Yesterday, I helped drop napalm
on women and children.'"

This one particular statement in the poem is the central idea that is communicated. The entire poem consists of a mother trying to relate to her boy at war, but he knows she can't handle it. In  order to prove it to her, he writes her one letter that tells her the truth of what is actually going on, and consequently she becomes very upset. The poem communicates both a negative and positive aspect of the world. While it states that war is horrible, unjust, and cruel, it also effects the idea that we as Americans are lucky to live in a country where war doesn't occur on the home front, and we are not subject to the awful sights that accompany it. We all like to believe that we are more emotional sturdy than we actually are. Before the mother is presented with the actual occurrences of war, her mind and perception of the concept tell her that she can handle whatever her son needs to relate to her. She wants to be there for him, and she believes she is strong enough. But in reality, the truth is that no one is ready for the reality of war. Some people are just forced into it because it is necessary, but no one is actually ever ready for it.

Understatement: Sorting Laundy

"pillowcases, despite so many
washings, seams still
holding our dreams."

The speaker in this poem uses household chores and items to describe her relationship with her lover. Her phrases mean something deeper than what she literally says; therefore, it is an example of understatement. The speaker says that as she folds clothes, she relates it to how she has "folded" her lover into her life.
She says their sheets are "like the tablecloths for the banquets of giants" implying that their sheets are special and luxurious, but I don't believe she means because of quality. Rather, I think she is implying that because they are subject to their love, the sheets are special. The surprises that the speaker finds as she goes through the clothing symbolize the surprises in their relationship. Some are good, while others are bad, and even others are unimportant, but they are all a part of who she and her lover are as a couple. Though the memories like the items in the washer somewhat decay, they will always be there to remind the speaker of the good moments in their love. She states that if her love were to leave her, her clothes alone would not be enough to "fill the empty side of the bed". His absence would be evident in laundry and sleep. She would feel alone in life.

Situational Irony: Ozymandias

"And on the pedestal these words appear:
'My name is Ozymandias, king of kings;
Look on my works, ye Mighty, and despair!'
Nothing beside remains..."

This poem incorporates irony into the loss of power. So many people strive to be rich, powerful, and controlling. Like Ozymandias, they build up representations of their influence whether in reputation, wealth, materials, or position. They show these tangible signs of power to the entire world in order to communicate that power and feed themselves with pride. Ozymandias in the poem did something similar with the great architectural works that he had instructed the people to build. He was harsh and unrelenting which intimidated his people and gave him confidence. However, many years later, his power was no longer present. His own statue had been broken into pieces like his power, and the many works he had created were long gone. He strove for power all his life because he thought it would make him eternally powerful, but now he barely has influence on a passerby like the speaker in the poem. The only message that his statue and diminished works communicate is that power isn't worth attaining like so many people strive to do because it doesn't last forever.

Paradox: Much Madness is divinest Sense

"Assent-- and you are sane--
Demur-- you're straightaway dangerous--
And handled with a Chain--"

Dickinson uses a paradox as the central focus of her poem: madness is sense. At first, it seems that this in itself is madness. How can madness be sense? But, the message that Dickinson tries to communicate is that it is insane for people to act as if the madness in the world is no big deal and to let it go in order to keep oneself from being criticized. Often people agree with social policy, despite whether they actually believe the fundamentals of it or not. It keeps them out of trouble. Dickinson is bringing to light the insanity of this idea, that people can just let illogical and unreasonable actions take place before their eyes without questioning them in order to save themselves. She says that this sort of "madness", developing one's own opinion and expressing it, is really true sense. Though it is treated as madness to question society, it is this questioning that makes us humans, that makes us logical and reasonable. Without it, society becomes lacking in justice and meaning.

Odd Characterization: The Joy of Cooking

"I will have my brother's heart,
which is firm and rather dry,
slow cooked. It resembles muscle
more than organ meat
and needs and apple-onion stuffing
to make it interesting at all."

Elaine Margarrell uses the tongue of the sister and the heart of the brother to stand for the speaker's brother and sister. In describing each of their body parts, using aspects that would be describe that particular body part, she also reveals something about the personalities of the people who own them. When the speaker says that she has "trimmed the roots, small bones, and gristle" of her sister's tongue, these words imply that her sister is sharp and tough like bones and gristle. The hump "slices thin and neat", meaning that she is defined, strong, and directed. By stating that her tongue is "best served with horseradish", the speaker also suggests that she is sarcastic and biting. Her brother's heart, on the other hand, "is firm and rather dry", which shows that he lacks depth of emotion, especially caring. Because she says "it resembles muscle more than organ meat", that his heart does not function in the normal compassionate way that a heart should function. It is more like a strong and resistant muscle. Her brother's heart "barely feeds two", meaning that he is boring and can not entertain. He is bitter and irascible because his heart is served "in sour sauce".

Simile: Dream Deferred

"Maybe it just sags
like a heavy load.

Or does it explode?"

This entire poem is a series of similes. Thought the speaker suggests many fates for dreams, they all are bad ends in which the dream has died, decayed or disappeared. The speaker's point is that dreams can not be put off if one wants it to become reality. In the same way a raisin dries up if it is subject to sunlight, dreams dry up if they are subject to time. Or, it can be compared to a festering sore, becoming harder and harder to heal as time goes on. Dreams become harder to attain the more time goes on and the more one puts them off. Like the smell of rotten meat reminds one of its presence, a deferred dream will always be in one's mind as a constant reminder of what could have been. Maybe this same concept can make it seem like "a heavy load" bearing down on the dreamer. It is even possible that a deferred dream can be compared to something that has exploded. If a dream is put off too long, it is no longer possible. It is dead and gone without hope of return.

Verbal Irony: A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning

"So let us melt, and make no noise,
No tear-floods, nor sigh-tempests move;
'Twere profanation of our joys
To tell the laity our love."

Donne uses a lot of verbal irony in his poems in that he often says more or less than what is meant. The very first line of the poem says "as virtuous men pass mildly away", implying that these men are content with dying. However, it is merely to get the point across. No one is actually okay with dying, but these men are more accepting of it. In the same way, the speaker and his lover, though not happy to part, must know that this is not the end for them because their love is strong. He states that they should skip all of the emotional expressions of goodbyes like "tear-floods" and "sigh-tempests" because they know that it is not the end of their love. These phrases exaggerate the crying and moaning that often occurs during parting in order to make them seem  more negative. Tears do not literally come in floods, nor do sighs in tempests. He says that he and his love are not two but one soul. This is of course not literally true, but it is how he feels. And, if they are two,  it is in the way that compasses are two (they will always point the same direction) or that feet are two (they always return to being side by side).

Extended Metaphor: I taste a liquor never brewed

"Inebriate of Air--am I--
And Debauchee of Dew--
Reeling-- thro endless summer days--
From inns of Molten Blue--"

Throughout the entire poem, the speaker sounds like he or she is talking about becoming drunk. However, in reality, the poem  is about a type of spiritual intoxication, rather than the literal type. This is made obvious by the first line of the poem because it is impossible to have "a liquor never brewed". It is the summer days that intoxicate the reader instead and give him or her a drunken feeling, and "Not all the Vats upon the Rhine Yield such an Alcohol!". The speaker compares the dew and air to the drink and the sky to the tavern. This is the setting in which she develops this feeling of intoxication. The bees and butterflies are his or her drinking partners, but because they gain their satisfaction from something physical, the flowers, their joy will end eventually. But the speaker states that his or her joy will never end and uses impossible events that will cause the end in order to emphasize this. A seraph does not wear a hat, and a saint would not run to a see a tippler.

Personification: Bright Star

"No--yet still steadfast, still unchangeable,
Pillowed upon my fair love's ripening breast,
To feel forever its soft fall and swell,
Awake forever in sweet unrest..."

Keats uses a lot of comparative figurative language in this poem. The speaker talks about the star as if it has human qualities because he wants to be like it: always constant and undying, watching the world move "like nature's patient, sleepless Eremite." At first the speaker admires the star's consistency because it gets to observe the beauty of the world. However, in line nine, he switches focus and says "Now--yet still steadfast, still unchangeable, pillowed upon my fair love's ripening breast..." The speaker still desires to be constant like the star, but for a different reason now. He attributes the stars' form of observation to a more human-like desire. He wants to be always with his love. He wants to hear her breathe constantly and forever in the same way that a star observes the sort of breathing and movement of the world constantly and forever. He wants to be the "sleepless Eremite" that lies against his love's chest just to hear her breathe instead of hanging aloft in the sky. His love is more beautiful to him than the nature that the star watches over.

Mood: London

"I wander through each  chartered street
Near where the chartered Thames does flow,
And mark in every face I meet
Marks of weakness, marks of woe."

The diction and syntax of this poem creates an obvious atmosphere of distress and hopelessness. Whether through anastrophe like that found in the line "The mind-forged manacles I hear", or in words like "cry of fear", " mind-forged manacles", "black'ning Church", and "hapless Soldier's sigh", Blake successfully achieves a mood of serious chaos and danger inside the reader's mind. The reader wants to help but can't. It seems that these people whom are burdened with terrible fates are just poor innocent souls undeserving of this punishment. Even the Harlot is portrayed as "youthful" and along with that quality comes assumptions of innocence and feelings of sorrow for the woman. And because she is confined to such a path in life, she too leads to the destruction of the values of marriage and the good ways to raise children, whether they're her own or those of her partners. The Church and hierarchy are made out to be the villains here. The line "Every black'ning Church apalls" shows the Church's lack of compassion for those who express their anguish. They rather expect the suffering people to bear it in silence. The hierarchy in the same apathetic way send the soldiers off to die without considering twice the value of their lives. Readers feel sympathy for the suffering who exist in this world of corruption.

Relevance!:To Autumn

"Then in a wailful choir the smal gnats mourn
Among the river sallows, bourne aloft
Or sinking as the light wind lives or dies;"

I am ecstatic that this was one of the poems assigned to us because lately I've been thinking about how much I love Autumn and how unappreciated it is. It seems that in the poem, the season has just arrived as it has in the real world as well. By the end of summer, everything seems dried up and dusty, almost dead. But when fall comes around, things gain new life. The rain comes back around. The leaves, although in the process of dying, transform into an array of colors. Fruits and vegetables like apples and gourds become plump and ready to consume. Autumn fills these life-forms with "ripeness to the core." Even the air of Autumn lets one know that the world is alive through its "winnowing wind". Like Keats points out, spring is often the celebrated season of life. He asks "Where are the songs of spring?". However, this is followed by "Think not of them, thou has thy music too..". People don't appreciate the new life of fall because they are so focused on the coming winter that they fail to recognize it. The main purpose of Keats's poem is to emphasize the beauty and life of Autumn that is never really recognized. It is praise to the Autumn which is so frequently overlooked.

Tone: The Convergence of the Twain

"In a solitude of the sea
Deep from human vanity,
And the Pride of Life that planned her, stilly couches she."

The diction and details used in this poem set an obvious tone for its reading. It creates a feeling of sadness and sympathy. This ship that was so innocent and unknowing, standing for the people of the time, became to proud and boastful. It was too big and splendid, planned by the "Pride of Life". This was her downfall. People at the time of the Titanic (which this poem is written about) had begun moving quickly in the ways of technological advancement. They no longer stopped to consider the consequences. It was innocent pride, but pride nonetheless. As people's pride grew, so did the danger that accompanies pride, symbolized by the iceberg. "No mortal eye could see" the damage that the iceberg would do to the Titanic or the way the ship's sinking would affect civilization. Everyone was rooting for this new piece of technology, even the reader, regardless of whether it was overflowing with pride. And when the reader realizes that this beautiful ship so full of life now lies with "sea-worms" and "dim moon-eyed fishes" he or she is overcome with sadness and a feeling of discouragement, inspired by the beginning but only resounded by the rest of the poem.

Personification: I felt a Funeral, in my Brain

"And then a Plank in Reason, broke,
And I dropped down, and down--
And hit a World, at every plunge,
And Finished knowing--then--"

From what I've read of Dickinson's work, it seems that one style tool frequently used by her is personification. The funeral in her brain does not center on the death of a person, but rather her mind and sense. Though they are portrayed as a person, they are not actually. Dickinson's use of personification enables her to compare the event of losing her mind to a funeral, which in turn allows the reader to comprehend the seriousness and eventfulness of it. The rest of her brain stood by and watched it go. It appeared that "Sense was breaking through", but it was really just her lack of realism and admittance of the actual circumstances. Like we want to deny the death of loved ones, Dickinson tries to deny the death of her own sanity. The beating of the drum tells her that their is no going back. The death of her sanity becomes more and more assured with every thought and the drum assures the death of the personified mind. Dickinson frantically tries to save her mind before it is buried. But once the deed is done, she stands silent and solitary, knowing it is finally over. Her mind is dead. Her sanity is gone. With the breaking of the last straw of sanity or rather "a Plank in Reason", she plunges into insanity.

Symbolism: The Widow's Lament in Springtime

"I feel that I would like
to go there
and fall into those flowers
and sink into the marsh near them."

This poem inspires a feeling of sympathy in the reader. A woman who spent a long happy life with her husband has just lost him. He died, and now everything is receiving new life. It's a reminder of what she has lost and how her husband receives new life in the beyond. Like the cherry blossoms that the woman sees weigh down on the branches of the trees, so does her grief weigh on her heart and in an even stronger way. The beauty of these flowers that "color some bushes yellow and some red" that used to bring her joy is now trivial and unimportant. The yellow symbolized the friendship with her husband while the red symbolized love, and now that he is gone, she does not have either. They too have become trivial and unimportant. In the end, the woman talks of falling into the white flowers and sinking into them. White is the color of purity, and purity comes with death and Heaven. She wants only to sink into these beautiful flowers that make her happy, to be taken from the earth and made pure, and to be taken to Heaven, where she can join her husband once again.

The Nature of Proof in the Interpretation of Poetry...How I See It

The first sentence of the poem made me think that I would agree with a majority of the information that Perrine supplies: "That a poem may have varying interpretations is a critical commonplace."

However, the sentence immediately following that changed my mind: "That all interpretations of a poem are equally valid is a critical heresy."

There were some things in the essay that I disagreed with, but once I got through the entirety of it, I ended up understanding Perrine's perspective and actually thinking the same way. I was initially surprised when he suggested that an author is the worst interpreter of his own work. Though it seems paradoxical at first, when Perrine explains his backing, it comes to make more sense. Though it is true that an author knows best what he means, what he reveals publicly is not the extent of his true feeling. Therefore, a reader may stop midway in his descent into what the poem truly means and specifically what it means for the reader himself. If the author says that his poems mean one thing, the reader won't look for anything else. Like Yeats once said, "If an author interprets a poem of his own, he limits its suggestibility."

But, it is also true that, like Perrine states, not all interpretations, even if it is how the reader sees it, are correct. The connections made between the interpretation and the actual words have to be logical and without flaw. Perrine's first example of his claim using the Dickinson poem were somewhat weak, I felt. He based it on just very basic and general happenings that contradicted the interpretation of the poem, but the world isn't always as general as he makes it out to be. In his second example, he provides much more reasonable and effective proof for this theory. He points out the words like "beaming", "bright", "gleam", "twinkling", and "shining" that make it much more clear and visible that Melville's poem addresses the stars, not an army corps, and he also uses the contradictory elements of the poem such as the fact that the soldiers marched without a chief in order to make the original idea about the poem (that it was literally about an army corps) seem illogical. Even in his paragraphs about symbolism, he shows that interpretations have boundaries. Certain details set the limits for how our minds can perceive a certain image. In one example, he says a horse without the word "roan" can be interpreted as many different types of horses (i.e. a "workhorse", a "clotheshorse", etc.), but with that one word added it can only be viewed as a real horse. Even just the word "horse" limits the reader's interpretation because a horse cannot be a cow. 

Like the details in a poem limit the poem's meaning, so do details surrounding a symbol limit the things it can symbolize. I guess this essay just proves the point that readers must go deeper than just the surface or hovering right underneath it when interpreting literature.

Never Let Me Go 20: Facing the End

"I was talking to one of my donors a few days ago who was complaining about how memories, even your most precious ones, fade surprisingly quickly. But I don't go along with that. The memories I value most, I don't see them ever fading. I lost Ruth, then I lost Tommy, but I won't lose my memories of them." pg. 286

Much of this book is about facing the end of something, whether its a school year, a friendship, one's childhood, or even one's life. Like most people, Kathy has a hard time accepting the end of things. She wants to hold onto them forever. She needs physical reminders that they still exist for her. She needs to know that their is a possibility that she can return to what she loves at any time.

However, its a sad fact that we must all come to terms with that things end. We have to grow up and move on. We have to accept our own end. Kathy, after facing so many things ending in her life, the end to a dream, the end of her best friends, has taught her to better cope with the end. She is beginning to accept her own destiny.

Maybe that's the message of this book. We are going to face hardships in life. We may face discrimination and mistreatment, but we can fight against it. We can hope for something better. However, if we fail in the end, we must accept out own destiny. We must accept the end. Not only the end of ourselves, but the end of many things.

Never Let Me Go 19: Denouement

"'I was thinking,' I said, 'about back then, at Hailsham, when you used to go bonkers like that, and we couldn't understand it. We couldn't understand how you could ever get like that. And I  was just having this idea, just a thought really. I was thinking the reason you used to get like that was because at some level you always knew.'" pg. 275

After their long talk with Miss Emily, Kathy and Tommy are now left to cope with their destiny. They have to settle for the fact that there will never be another option. There had never been another option. They had been lied to their whole life in some ways. They had never been properly informed about the path they were to take.

In knowing that their future is limited, they realize that their love is limited. They may have only a few more years together. Or, they may even have only a few more days.

It's difficult for them to accept that. It's hard for them to understand that many people don't even view them as human. They have pushed away the possibility that they have a soul for their own selfish benefit. They are victims of society's cruelty.

The discrimination made against them is similar to racism and slavery. Like in the colonial era, when African slaves were put to strenuous and exhausting work as if they were an animal, these clones were used for their bodies as if they were animals. Madame and Miss Emily were like Stephen Douglass or Harriet Tubman who worked to end this sort of discrimination. However, where African Americans were triumphant in their battle, these clones were not. Perhaps since they were part of science, they would always be seen as an experiment, disposable and unimportant.

Never Let Me Go 18: The Climax

"'Is it the case, then, that deferrals don't exist? There's nothing you can do?'
She shook her head slowly from side to side. 'There's no truth in the rumour. I'm sorry. I truly am.'" pg. 258

This is the major tipping point in the story. Tommy and Kathy had waited all this time, almost sure that their theory was correct, only to find that their was no possible way to extend their love. There were no such things as deferrals. There was no other option.

After finding this out, their is not much else they can hope for. They will probably go on living the lives they had before they got this idea into their minds. Tommy will go back to being a donor and Kathy will be his carer. The only thing they can get real satisfaction from is knowing that they tried. They know that they at least attempted to follow their dream, to strengthen their love. They can be happy knowing that they honored Ruth's wish.

However, they must also live with the fact that it was all in vain. They can no longer dream because they are now sure that it is not true. It's not possible.

Never Let Me Go 17: Hubris

"'Anyway, that's not the half of it, not even a small bit of it, actually. The main thing is, I kept you and Tommy apart.' Her voice had dropped again, almost to a whisper. 'That was the worst thing I did.'" pg. 332

Toward the end of her life, when she is reunited with Kathy and Tommy, Ruth has had time to realize what she did wrong and she wants to fix it. She should have never lied to Kathy about her feelings. She should have been a better friend. She should have never cheated on Tommy. She should have never kept Tommy and Kathy apart in the first place.

In the end, Ruth realizes that her own selfishness and greed are what led her to where she was. Had she not craved to be better than Kathy, she might have ended up with a life that suited herself. Instead, she tried to make Kathy jealous. She tried to seem perfect, and she wanted everything for herself. That was her downfall.

Had Ruth not been so selfish, she may have gone far in life. Her friendships with Kathy and Tommy may not have dissolved like they did. Instead, she was now going to die young and feeling terrible about her life.

However, Ruth tries to change it in the end. She wants to make amends with her friends, so she tries to get them together one last time. She apologizes to them for all the wrong she's done and encourages them to develop the love that they have for each other which she has held off for so long.

Even though her selfishness led to her downfall, the fact that she tried to fix what she'd done wrong allowed her to die with dignity.

Never Let Me Go 16: What Could Have Been

"'Don't you sometimes think,' I said to Ruth, 'you should have looked into it more? All right, you'd have been the first. The first one any of us would have heard of getting to do something like that. But you might have done it. Don't you wonder sometimes what might have happened if you'd tried?'" pg. 230

It's almost unfair the way that Tommy and Kathy sort of gang up on Ruth. Not only did they agree that she should quit talking about unimportant things, but they also keep bringing up how Ruth could have realized her dream if only she would have tried. Although it most likely wasn't even possible, they are giving her false hope and making her regret. They're almost trying to convince her that she made the wrong decisions in life.

Kathy is only bringing up these controversial topics about Ruth because she knows it will draw she and Tommy closer. Now that she has already been a carer for Ruth, she only cares about being close to Tommy. As a reader, I also suspect that she is romantically interested in him as well. Because she's never had a serious romantic relationship, she still longs for Tommy's approval and fondness that she craved when she was young as well.

Consequently, she makes Ruth feel bad about herself. She emphasizes the great opportunity she may have missed rather than making her situation now seem bearable. It's not fair how they criticize her so harshly when they are following the same path.

Never Let Me Go 15: Symbolism

"So we just kept walking, the clown and me, on and on along the deserted pavement still wet from the morning, and all the time the balloons were bumping and grinning down at me. Every so often, I could see the man's fist, where all the balloon strings converged, and I could see he has them securely twisted together and in a tight grip." pg. 213

Kathy is coping with the news that her old home, Hailsham is closing for good. It served as her comfort for so long that she wonders how she'll live without it. How will she stay the same person.

Hailsham had meant so much to her. It was where she had made her best memories. It was where she had made her collection and found the Judy Bridgewater tape. It was where she had learned her fate. Most importantly, it was where she had met Ruth and Tommy, the people who had made the most impact on her life. To her, Hailsham's pure existence was her stability. It kept even people who were far away intertwined with one another.

Like the clown's fist had on the balloons, Hailsham had a tight grip on its old students. No matter where they went or how far apart they were, they could always trace their beginnings back to the same place. Closing Hailsham was like cutting the strings of the balloons. The students would no longer have this place to go look at that kept them together. Like the balloons they would go far away and never return to that same place.

Never Let Me Go 14: Dynamic Character

"It wasn't long after that I made my decision, and once I'd made it, I never wavered. I just got up one morning and told Keffers I wanted to start my training to become a carer." pg. 202

This is a major turning point for Kathy in the story. Where she had once been a nostalgic girl, hoping for romance, trying to maintain her long-time friendships, she was now looking toward the future.

All it took to change Kathy was Ruth's speech about how Tommy had never looked at her like that. Tommy was the closest thing Kathy would ever have to love, and he was dating Ruth. Though there was some hope that they might break-up, Ruth had just reassured Kathy that even if they did, she and Tommy would not be together.

I think this knowledge caused a real epiphany in Kathy. She realized that it was time to stop living in the past. It was time to start getting childish ideas out of her head. If it wasn't part of her destiny, then she would have to accept it and move forward.

Instead of trying to maintain her old life, Kathy wants to start her training to become a carer. She is growing up and taking on her adult role.

Never Let Me Go 13: Simile

"In fact, it took a moment to see they were animals at all. The first impression was like one you''d get if you took the back off a radio set: tiny canals, weaving tendons, miniature screws and wheels were all drawn with obsessive precision, and only when you held the page away could you see it was some kind of armadillo, say, or a bird." pg. 187

Tommy's drawings have become very important. Now he has realized why Miss Lucy was so regretful of telling him it didn't matter if he was creative. In reality, it did matter. His artwork would be the determining factor of a longer life.

Once, Tommy realized that his artwork would have such a great influence on his life, he had to start getting better. He had to be really good if he wanted Madame to accept him into the deferral program.

As he practiced, he found that he was much better at drawing as long as the subject was small. He became better and better at drawing these small animals, and when he shows them to Kathy, she is amazed. She tries to give an accurate description of their complexity by describing them like the inside of a radio. They consist of many dimensions and lines. Each one is very precise.

Tommy hopes that this will be enough. Although he pretends not to care that he missed his chance, he is hiding his feelings that he does care. Like every other clone, Tommy wants to hope that there is a possible extension to his short life.

Never Let Me Go 12: Situational Irony

"I didn't exclaim, the way I'd been doing when I'd come across other items that had mildly excited me. I stood there quite still, looking at the plastic case, unsure whether or not I was delighted. For a second, it even felt like a mistake. The tape had been the perfect excuse for all this fun, and now it had turned up, we'd have to stop."
pg. 172

While Chrissie, Rodney, and Ruth go off to see Martin, Tommy and Kathy have over an hour to do something. Tommy finds that this is the opportune time to tell Kathy that he knew about her missing tape and had been looking for it all this time. Kathy is surprised and touched, so when Tommy asks if she would like to look for it, she is completely sold.

As they wander through the different stores, looking for the old tape, Kathy and Tommy have lots of fun. they explore antiques, war medals, and, many other vintage items as they make their way through the stores to look at the old tapes. Before Kathy and Tommy have even realized, it has become less about finding the tape and more about having fun together.

Unexpectedly, Kathy is even upset to find the tape. She had been looking for this for years. Why would she have wished that she didn't find it? To her, it was something nostalgic. It brought back happy memories, but it also meant that this happy time with Tommy had to come to an end. That was why Kathy resented finding the tape. Although it was important to her, Tommy had become more important.

Never Let Me Go 11: External Conflict

"'What you've got to realise,' she said to Chrissie, 'is that even though Tommy was at Hailsham, he isn't like a real Hailsham student. He was left out of everything and people were always laughing at him. So there's no point in asking him about anything like this. Now, I want to go and fine this person Rodney saw.'
A look had appeared in Tommy's eyes that made me catch my breath. It was one I hadn't seen for a long time and that belonged to the Tommy who'd  had to be barricaded inside a classroom while he kicked over desks." pg. 155

Ruth has become obsessed with the idea of fitting in, and she even drags her friends into her lies. When she makes up stories about getting a deferral, she expects Kathy and Tommy to play along. She needs their support if she wants Chrissie and Rodney to believe her and continue paying attention.

Kathy knows how much Ruth wants to fit in. She knows that Ruth feels like she is doing this as a gift for everyone, and she doesn't want to ruin it for her. So, Kathy plays along.

On the other hand, Tommy is confused when he hears Ruth talking about things he doesn't remember as if he should. Kathy tries to hint at him, but Ruth is just angry. When Tommy realizes what is going on, he doesn't want to play along. He completely denies knowing anything about the deferrals Ruth is speaking of.

Ruth becomes outraged and she makes a blow at Tommy. She disregards his feelings completely and tells Chrissie and Rodney that Tommy wouldn't know what she was talking about because he was an outcast at Hailsham. In response, Tommy's temper flares, but he controls it before he acts out.

Although Chrissie and Rodney are unaware, Ruth, Tommy, and Kathy know what's going on. They know how hurtful and disrespectful Ruth's comment about Tommy was. The reader knows as well how tense this moment is, even if some of the characters don't.

Never Let Me Go 10: The Possibility Of a Possible

"When they'd met up again, Rodney was all excited and had told Chrissie how he'd been wandering the side-streets off the High Street, and had gone past an office with a large glass front. Inside had been a lot of people, some of them at their desks, some walking about and chatting. And that's where he'd spotted Ruth's possible." pg. 140

When Chrissie and Rodney return from Norfolk, they tell Ruth that they might have seen her possible. Her possible is the woman whom she was cloned from. Although Kathy assumes they are lying, Ruth begins to get ideas in her head.

When Kathy and Ruth are walking on the sidewalk, Ruth stops and stares at an office magazine. She's entranced and very impressed. She even comments on how it would be a wonderful way to work. Her love of an office work space obviously connects to her possible. 

It's sad because Ruth wishes she could live that life. She is an actual person, but her role has already been set out for her because she is viewed as only a clone. To society, she doesn't deserve to pick her own career. She has been put her for one purpose and one purpose only. Her desires don't matter.

After seeing the magazine, Ruth wants to go to Norfolk to see her possible. However, this could prove to be a devastating idea. If Ruth begins to believe there are other options for her life, she will only be disappointed in the future.

Never Let Me Go 9: A Recurring Theme

"'Remember the guardians, before we left, how they kept reminding us we could take our collections with us. So I'd taken everything out of my box and put it into this holdall bag. My plan was I'd find a really good wooden box for it all once I got to the Cottages. But when we got there, I could see none of the veterans had collections. It was only us, it wasn't normal.'" pg. 130

I think a very prevalent theme of this book is wanting to fit in. Many of the characters go through journeys in this book trying to find their place and make friends with the "normal" people.

In the beginning, Tommy struggled to find acceptance. His temper, arrogance, and lack of artistic skill made him an outcast. He often burst out in fits of anger if he was excluded from an activity or if someone made fun of him. He just wanted to be accepted so he changed himself to be more like other people.

All of the teenagers at Hailsham tried to fit in when they became older and started having sex. They would even lie to one another to make themselves sound more experienced and similar to what they thought was the majority.

Now in this section of the book, Ruth is struggling to make herself fit-in. She is working hard to help all of her Hailsham friends appear "normal" so that no one is left behind. She and Tommy copy all of the older couples. They go out with these veterans a lot. She even copies moves from television because another couple did.

It's interesting how much people will change in order to fit it, but it's even more curious how so many people are worried about fitting in. If everyone could realize that they go through the same train of thought, would fitting in seem important at all?

Never Let Me Go 8: Suspense

"But Miss Emily had been there instead and she'd told them Miss Lucy couldn't come just at that moment, so she would take the class. For the next twenty minutes  or so everything had gone quite normally. Then suddenly--right in mid-sentence apparently--Miss Emily had broken off from talking about Beethoven and announced that Miss Lucy had left Hailsham and wouldn't be returning." pg. 111

It's shocking to hear that such an influential character in the novel has left the school. This guardian who gave so much advice and extra wisdom to the children has now vanished, and they didn't get a chance to ask her more about her messages.

Having miss Lucy leave so abruptly gave the book even more of a sense of mystery and secretiveness. I feel like the children who are simply curious as to where she could have gone after she provided them with such confusing information. Who would explain to them what she meant now? I wonder what is in store for these kids now. They have all of this information but have no way to apply it. Are they going to figure it out? Will they ever see Miss Lucy again? Where did this mysterious woman go? Her departure simply leaves me wanting to know more.

This turning point in the story successfully re-engages the reader. If at any point he or she was becoming bored with the novel or if he or she was confused and wanted to give up, this little twist in the plot draws the reader back in.

Never Let Me Go 7: The Concept of Sex

"The theory I think came closest was the one put forward by Ruth. 'They're telling us about sex for after we leave Hailsham,' she said. 'They want us to do it properly, with someone we like and without getting diseases. But they really mean it for after we leave. They don't want us doing it here, because it's too much hassle for them.'" pg. 97

I actually found this chapter pretty interesting because it reminded me so much of how American teenagers now view sex. It's almost seen as a fad. Both at Hailsham and in many American high schools, if you're not having sex, you're part of the minority. And, if you're part of the minority, you're viewed as "uncool".

The desire to fit in and be part of the "cool crowd" leads people to lie about things like sex at Hailsham, and American teenagers will lie not only about sex but about drugs and alcohol as well. Whether its curiosity or a desire to push limits, people are dying to try it. And if they haven't tried it, their dying to tell people they have. When something  like this becomes the "popular" thing to do, consequences and danger are pushed aside. The importance of waiting for the right time or until one is emotionally capable of handling sex is disregarded.

That is a statement that is true both in our society and in this fictional one. It is funny how no matter the circumstances, a person, like the author of the book, still sees teenagers as falsely invincible.

Never Let Me Go 6: Characterization

"Tommy thought it possible the guardians had, throughout all our years at Hailsham, timed very carefully and deliberately everything they told us, so that we were always just too young to understand properly the latest piece of information." pg. 82

Once I learned the real situation that these students at Hailsham were in, I understood better the outlook and perspective that Kathy has on her life. Although to someone like me, it seems tragic to not be able to have children if you want them, she has been taught from a young age that it is not in her destiny. She developed an opinion on this fact when she was young and she hasn't thought enough about it to change it. Like Miss Lucy told the students, they had been "told and not told."

Even though the students were informed of their destiny to become donors, their futures of a short life without children, they were told about it too early for them to properly understand the concept. At the early age which they were told, they couldn't fathom the seriousness of the idea. But, by the time they were older, it had just become something they were used to, and they didn't thing twice about it.

So, even though to someone like me, discovering that I was infertile or incapable of having children would be devastating, Kathy has already come to terms with the idea, or at least developed a perspective on it. Knowing the Kathy has been somewhat misled as to the realness of her future as a donor, it is easier for me, the reader, to see why she takes it so lightly.

Never Let Me Go 5: A Tone Of Sympathy

"'Madame's probably not a bad person, even though she's creepy. So when she saw you dancing like that, holding your baby, she thought it was really tragic, how you couldn't have babies. That's why she started crying.'" pg. 73

Even though the narrator does not seem hurt by it, the fact that she can not have children evokes a sort of pity and sympathy in the reader. It is a feeling similar to that which is displayed by Madame.

Before even Kathy was fully aware that she was infertile, she had grasped the idea in her mind and, according to Tommy's theory, developed a meaning for the Judy Bridgewater song that inspired a hope for children in the future. When Madame saw her longing face as she danced around pretending to hold her baby, she was moved to tears.

Even the reader feels for Kathy. Knowing that even as a child she wanted nothing more than to hold her baby in her arms, the reader is devastated that she will never in her life get this satisfaction. The reader tries to understand what it would feel like knowing this about oneself at such a young age.

Though even Kathy doesn't completely understand why her situation is so tragic, Madame's reaction shows that an outsider knows what kind of struggle people must go through when they can't have their dreams. Kathy has learned to live with it, but like Madame, readers know the pain she keeps from surfacing.

Never Let Me Go 4: Kathy's Internal Conflict

""Still, I hated it when Ruth hinted in this way. I was never sure, of course, if she was telling the truth, but since she wasn't actually 'telling' it, only hinting, it was never possible to challenger her. So each time it happened, I'd have to let it go, biting my lip and hoping the moment would pass quickly." pg. 57

Kathy's friendship with Ruth began when they were young, and Ruth asked Kathy to be part of Miss Geraldine's secret guard. However, when Ruth expels Kathy from the group, Kathy becomes somewhat bitter about it. Truthfully, she longs for the group. She wants to find out the solutions to mysteries, and she is jealous of those who still get the chance.

In passing members of the secret guard on the school grounds, Kathy is attracted to their conversations. She watches them and eavesdrops because she longs to participate. She is even bitter to Moira B. who was once part of the group but was also kicked out.

She is also somewhat jealous but also skeptical of Ruth though. When Ruth hints that she is getting special treatment and gifts of reward from Miss Geraldine, Kathy becomes angry. She thinks Ruth is lying but she has no way of knowing or finding out. It is a conflict that takes place in her mind as to whether she despises the secret guard or not and also whether Ruth is being truthful or not, and it was serving as a source of her frustration and anger that was showed outwardly.

Never Let Me Go 3: A Bit Confused

"Madame was afraid of us. But she was afraid of us in the same way someone might be afraid of spiders. We hadn't been ready for that." pg. 35

So far, this book has confused me a lot. I can't determine whether it is supposed to be realistic to our world or it takes place in an imaginary society.

I don't understand the concepts of Hailsham, the Exchanges and Sale, Madame's fear of the children, or why it's so important that the children don't question the processes. Right now, I just feel very out of the loop with this book. It's difficult for me to understand the things that are happening next when I don't really understand what happened previously.

I'm sure that my reading will all come together soon. I would just like it to clear up so that I can enjoy reading the rest of the novel rather than becoming frustrated and overwhelmed. However, it is a bit intriguing to read a book that is such a mystery to me. It makes me want to know more. I'm sure that as I uncover the answers to all my questions, I'll begin to enjoy reading the book more. Although I feel as though the author should have been more clear, maybe it's secretly a good thing that the book is confusing and odd.

Never Let Me Go 2: Foreshadowing

"'There's something else,' he went on. 'Something else she said I can't quite figure out. I was going to ask you about it. She said we weren't being taught enough, something like that.'" pg. 29

In this section of the novel, Kathy speaks to Tommy about the changes that have taken place in him lately. As he explains the advice and truths that Miss Lucy told him, he also slips in the fact that she thinks they aren't being "taught enough".

Though Tommy is oblivious to what she meant now, I have a strong feeling that the meaning will be addressed some time throughout the rest of the book. It may even become an important or central issue. For now, it is simply an idea which is not understood by the two children, but they will learn the meaning in the chapters to come.

By using this technique of foreshadowing, Ishiguro gives readers clues as to what might be in store for the rest of the novel. He creates a mystery which succeeds in intriguing people so that they will read on fervently. Curiosity trumps any boredom a reader might face, and instead he wants to know more.

Never Let Me Go 1: Anecdotes About Hailsham

"This was all a long time ago so I might have some of it wrong; but my memory of it is that my approaching Tommy that afternoon was part of a phase I was going through around that time--something to do with compulsively setting myself challenges.." pg. 13

I can already tell after the first chapter that this novel will probably have a lot of anecdotes. It seems to be an effective method of characterization for this author.

Through just the personal experiences that the narrator, Kathy, relates in the beginning of the story, the reader has already developed an idea of what her personality might be like.

Rather than being shallow and falling into sync with those around her, Kathy is not afraid to be different. When all of her friends are making fun of Tommy, she is the one who views the situation differently. She's more concerned with the fact that Tommy is going to ruin his new shirt than the fact that he is causing a scene in front of everyone. Rather than viewing him as a misfit and an outcast, she tries to see things from his point of view. She even steps out of the crowd and tries to reason with him.

By knowing that this was how Kathy handled the situation, readers can develop their perspective on her. She seems understanding and compassionate. She wants to cross boundaries and make a difference.

Just by hearing stories from her past, one can see how she came to her present occupation as a carer and can predict where she might end up in the future.

Brave New World 20: Self-Torture and Suicide

"Just under the crown of the arch dangled a pair of feet.
'Mr. Savage!'
Slowly, very slowly, like two unhurried compass needles, the feet turned towards the right; north, north-east, east, south-east, south, south-south-west; then paused, and, after a few seconds, turned as unhurriedly back towards the left. South-south-west, south, south-east, east...." pg. 259

I found the end of this book to be somewhat disturbing. It was unnerving to imagine a human so disgusted with his own desires that he would whip himself to the point of vomiting. John was convinced that he had been contaminated by this advanced society and had to suffer until he was clean. He didn't even really think he had a chance of being purified.

The differences and selfishness of this other society drove the savage man insane. So different from his own lifestyle, he thought theirs must surely be wrong. It was so wrong that he had to rid himself of any trace of it. He brutally abused himself and attacked anyone from the society who came near and threatened his progress. He took his own mistake of forgetting his mother's death for a moment as a sign that he was still contaminated and repeatedly scolded himself. Being in this different environment hadn't contaminated him, it had made him insane.

He became so obsessed with the idea of punishing himself that when the large crowd came to watch him, it drove him off the edge. His own death was the only way he could make sure he was not afflicted with their customs again, so he committed suicide.

John can in some ways be compared to Jesus. Although Jesus was not completely overcome with psychopathic rage, he did stand for an ideal that was becoming obsolete. He stood for God just as John stood for beauty. Both men found the only way they could save themselves and the people was through death because death is the sole cause that always brings about change.

Brave New World 19: Understatement

"'But I don't want comfort. I want God, I want poetry, I want real danger, I want freedom, I want goodness. I want sin.'
'In fact,' said Mustapha Mond, 'you're claiming the right to be unhappy.'
'All right then,' said the Savage defiantly, 'I'm claiming the right to be unhappy.'" pg. 240

It would sound ridiculous to a reader who wasn't familiar with the previous chapters of this book if they were introduced by this particular scene. Someone claiming the right to be unhappy? It seems absurd.

But, to someone who has read what the sort of happiness in this society entails, unhappiness may seem more agreeable. With happiness, beauty, science, and religion are not possible. They cause conflict and distraction. They upset the stability of the world, and in this society, stability reigns supreme. So by claiming a right to unhappiness, John in fact claims a right to feeling. He claims a right to beauty and the natural course of life. He claims a right to making his own decisions before they are made for him. However, in accepting all of these beautiful aspects of culture and lifestyle, he now realizes he must settle with not being eternally happy.

Though they were programmed to make the choice they did, the people in the advanced society are content with where they are. They can't want anything more because they are programmed to not want more than what they have.

However, to John who was not programmed like this and to others who were programmed wrong, this world of eternal happiness without beauty is not pleasing. They would rather claim a right to unhappiness and be able to have beauty consequently. It's worth the sacrifice.

Brave New World 18: The Truth in Paradox

"'Actual happiness always looks pretty squalid in comparison with the overcompensations for misery. And, of course, stability isn't nearly so spectacular as instability. And being contented has none of the glamour of a good fight against misfortune, none of the picturesqueness of a struggle with temptation, or a fatal overthrow by passion or doubt. Happiness is never grand.'" pg. 221

Whenever people imagine themselves happy, they imagine that they are full of excitement and wonder. However, it is true that things can only excite someone for so long. The excitement of good things wears off in time, especially when those things are constantly accessible. It is a universal truth that happiness is never grand once it has set in. It creates a dull and lifeless world if it is always present. If one desires to be happy, they have to relinquish excitement and surprise.

People always imagine happiness wrong. They imagine that it's full of excitement and fail to realize the truth. Happiness means a lack of fluctuation in feelings. It means boredom, because some sadness is needed in life in order to appreciate the good.

In a world like the progressive world where people are always happy, it seems to someone who is not, like John, that they are unhappy. He can't comprehend that a world without feeling is happiness for them.

Brave New World 17: Conceiving and Idea Through Balance

"'And it's what you never will write,' said the Controller. 'Because, if it were really like Othello nobody could understand it, however new it might be. And if it were new, it couldn't possibly be like Othello.'" pg. 220

The people of this enhanced world are contrarily not mentally adept enough to conceive a play like Othello. John continues to revive his own spirits and make attempts at teaching the people how to feel, but they are not able. They are not programmed to do that.

John and his friends want the people to know love and anger. They want these people to be able to feel passion and rage. Because the one thing they have found to be true about feeling is that it is better to suffer having it than it is to be without both feeling and suffering.

In the real world, there is a debate similar to this one over depression medication. I have never had to choose a side, but I know that there is both support and opposition of its use. While we can never know which side is right or wrong, both obviously feel strongly about their stance, and this is similar to the opposing sides in the novel.

While the advanced humans believe that they don't deserve to feel pain, the savages don't believe its right to force people into a constant state of false pleasure. This is a lot like the conflict between western and holistic medicine.

Brave New World 16: Linda's Death

"'Quick, quick!' he caught her by the sleeve, dragged her after him. 'Quick! Something's happened. I've killed her.'" pg. 206

This is another turning point in the story. This is when John's emotional state has become so fragile that it breaks. He can no longer loudly protest the customs of these people. He can't try to discourage them from their polygamist lifestyle or their passiveness. This one moment when his mother is in such dire need of care, no one will help him. No one is even concerned. They all just see it as a part of life.

John is the only one who is sad to see his mother go. He is sad that she is no longer a part of the world because she was special to him. But, to everyone else, all are equal. Everyone is the same, so losing one person is no worse than losing another. To this progressive society, death and reproduction cancel each other out. Never mind who is lost and who is created, as long as they balance each other out.

On the other hand, John who has created a special relationship and bond with his mother is emotionally destroyed. The fact that no one even attempted to help her leaves him speechless and virtually lifeless. He doesn't care about anyone anymore.

Brave New World 15: Analogy

"But instead of also saying 'Darling!' and holding out his arms, the Savage retreated in terror, flapping his hands at her as though he were trying to scare away some intruding and dangerous animal. Four backwards steps, and he was brought to bay against the wall." pg. 193

In this excerpt, the author compares Lenina to an animal, and perhaps this is how John views her in this moment as well. Maybe this is what she actually has been programmed to be, not really but figuratively.

All of these progressive humans do whatever they want all the time. They believe they should never feel pain or be discomforted. Even the thought is horrifying to them. They act on generalities and instinct alone. They are completely selfish beings. In many ways, they are similar to animals.

These people who claim to be so advanced can't even listen, feel, or respect. They just act, and when things become challenging, they run away to a different world created by hallucinatory medicine. Without love, without respect, without customs, humans really are just animals. Lenina refuses to feel anything but physical attraction for John, so she is like an animal. She is really no different from any other woman or even man in her society.

This concept is very similar to a concept expressed in the movie Surrogates. Those people don't want to experience pain or suffering so they live out their lives in surrogate bodies. They don't have to feel anything, and neither do the humans in this novel.

Brave New World 14: John's External Conflict

"He laughed and laughed till the tears streamed down his face--quenchlessly laughed while, pale with a sense of outrage, the Savage looked at him over the top of his book and then, as the laughter still continued, closed it indignantly, got up and, with the gesture of one who removes his pearl from before swine, locked it away in its drawer." pg. 185

John suffers even more than Bernard did in this progressive society. Born and completely accustomed to a savage world, he doesn't understand the rules and concepts of these people. He doesn't understand their faked happiness and their desire to escape any type of feeling.

John thinks he finds someone who understands his ideas when he meets Helmholtz Watson. This new friend even has an appreciation for Shakespeare as he does. Watson doesn't scoff at the different ideas, customs, and morals presented in the plays. He sympathizes with John and they share a connection.

But to a human genetically programmed to believe that monogamy and marriage are evil and wrong, the scenes in Romeo and Juliet can not be ignored or understood. He can't seem to wrap his mind around these concepts and why they are in order. When Watson begins to laugh at and criticize one particular scene, John loses hope. He loses his battle with this society. He can't teach them to feel. And even though he understands what feeling is, he can't make anyone else understand it. He is destined to be the only one. This is where we see the theme of loneliness present itself again.