Resistance to Civil Government, Henry David Thoreau

Sanne Bergh
Eng48A
Journal for Thoreau
Oct. 27, 2011

Author Quote
"How does it become a man to behave toward this American government today? I answer that he cannot without disgrace be associated with it. I cannot for an instant recognize that political organization as my government which is the slave's government too (1859)".

Henry David Thoreau

Internet Quote
"Civil disobedience is the active, professed refusal to obey certain laws, demands, and commands of a government, or of an occupying international power."

Brief Summary of what the Author is Saying
 Thoreau is protesting slavery and discusses his disgust in humanity because they are allowing the government to participate in the inhumane act of slavery. He believes the government is corrupt and the people must do something to change it.

Your Idea/Reactions/Responses to the Author's Ideas
As a liberal living in the San Francisco Bay Area, I strongly agree with Thoreau's ideas about the government. We still live in a system that caters to the white, male and rich man who owns unnecessarily large amounts of property. Only in 2008 America was able to swallow its racial digressions and elect a black president. Only in the 1960's America passed the Civil Rights' Movement. This country has prejudices that I personally believe are due to the government's lack of action. The south was obsessed with keeping their customs exactly the same and thus rebelled against the North's more progressive desires to abolish slavery. This also has to do with the fact that they were profiting from slavery, and paid labor was significantly more expensive. Then we went into this long, tedious battle that was initiated partly due to ignorance and a disregard for acceptance of change. Humanity was not a concern when the labor was just so cheap and the economically stable thing to do. America's government has always had the tendency to lean towards the decision that will make them more money. The statement that "the best government that governs least" could come across as borderline anarchist. It is the corruption of the politicians who do nothing that cause the problems. For example, Virginia didn't pass an act that made human sterilization illegal until 1976. This is nearly 35 years ago! When it comes to the question of humanity, America is insensitive. The government chooses the profitable answer, always. There is no morality.

Self-Reliance, Emerson

Sanne Bergh
Eng48A
Journal for Emerson
Oct. 24, 2011

Author Quote
"I appeal from your customs. I must be myself. I cannot break myself any longer for you, or you. If you can love me for what I am, we shall be happier. If you cannot, I will still seek to deserve that you should. I must be myself (1174)".

Internet Quote
"Be yourself; no base imitator of another, but your best self. There is something which you can do better than another. Listen to the inward voice and bravely obey that. Do the things at which you are great, not what you were never made for." --Ralph Waldo Emerson

Brief Summary
To be a conformist is to adapt to a lifestyle and a belief system that does not fit the ideals of the individual. Emerson believes that to be untrue to oneself is the greatest crime, meaning that the particular individual lives by a philosophy that may not be conducive to their feelings or freewill.

Your Idea/Reactions/Responses to the Author's Ideas
Everyone single person in the world knows their beliefs and ideals, the ones that they were raised and born on, which they may or may not live by. These ideals may include religion, prejudices or a lifestyle choice. To be completely independent of the any belief system or a way of thinking, one must completely isolate oneself and separate themselves from society. It would take a soul, body and mind in isolation to brew up a true opinion of oneself and what ideals and style of truth that they find or desire in the world surrounding them. Not everybody in the world is brave enough to break away from conformity. Religion can be consoling to those who seek answers to the universe's difficult and hard-to-face questions. It is when an individual accepts the fact there may be no answers and only a long series of questions and problems that simply take a certain way of thinking. I believe Emerson argues that these questions are never answered, they are addressed in a manner that reflect an attitude to the situation. For example, he states that he "must be himself" and that he cannot adapt to the ways of other belief systems because he simply doesn't believe them. It is almost a form of alienation, but if it brings essential happiness it is an inarguable ideal of life. However, what is happiness? Is it a radiance that reflects intense joy as a result of "positive thoughts"? It's ambiguous, but so is the idea conformity.

Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Harriet Jacobs

Sanne Bergh
Eng48A
Journal for Jacobs
Oct. 20, 2011

Author Quote
"With me the lamp of hope had gone out. The dream of my girlhood was over. I felt lonely and desolate" (1815).

Internet Quote
"Death is better than slavery." -- Harriet Jacobs

Brief Summary
A slave struggles and agonizes with the concept of being considered a piece of property as opposed to a human being. Humanity is one of the ideas that are associated with being a free individual. Slavery chains both the spirit and the body. The author's girlhood is connoted with innocence, with the idea and hope that anything is possible-- with slavery, everything that is associated with happiness has vanished.

Your Idea/Reactions/Responses to the Author's Ideas
Jacobs depicts a life that cannot be fictionalized. Even thought the main character's name is Linda, it appears to be a pseudonym. The protagonist is forced to be desensitized to the pleasures of love, affection and any human emotion. It seems she is not allowed to feel these things. When she was a child, her parents exposed her to the possibilities of life beyond the chains of slavery. They had her understand the pleasures of humanity, literacy and love in her early childhood. Everything was then snatched from her when she was sold and purchased as a piece of merchandise. Despite this, she was not broken and continued to pursue freedom. To be a slave, in my opinion, takes a great deal of psychological power. To go on with a broken spirit is the same as being emotionally dead. I believe that with Linda's rebellious spirit, it took tremendous amounts strength to endure the amount of physical and emotional abuse that she had received. Additionally, the fact that she is a woman and has opinions that are completely disregarded and ignored makes the story that much more traumatic. She is forced into situations that no one could dream of. The black woman of the 19th century were some of the most tortured beings in American history. Women had no rights, blacks had no rights, Jacobs had no rights. With no rights, there is no humanity, there is no say, there is nothing. Jacobs had been degenerated into a mere physical object that was used as a material tool. In her case, sensitivity was a luxury.

The Philosophy of Composition, Edgar Allan Poe

Sanne Bergh
Eng48A
Journal for Poe
Oct. 14, 2011

Author Quote
 "Most writers [would].. positively shudder at letting the public take a peep behind the scenes... at the fully matured fancies discarded in despair... at the cautious selections and rejections" (1618).

Internet Quote

"If a writer knows enough about what he is writing about, he may omit things that he knows. The dignity of movement of an iceberg is due to only one ninth of it being above water."  
--Ernest Hemingway

Brief Summary
A writer has his or her own way of composing their own piece of work, and to dissect the process would be similar to retracing your steps back to ten years ago. In Poe's essay he dismisses the idea that to write well, one must write intuitively. It has method and analytical technique, and that is what creates a successful piece.

 

Your Idea/Reactions/Responses to the Author's Ideas
Poe describes his ideas on ways to write well, yet he does not really explain how to write well. He states that a good piece must have an "under-current" of meaning, yet I don't believe this word aligns very well with the ideas of length, method and "unity of effect". Under-current, from what I understand, is a hidden meaning, or a way a reader can understand the story for themselves. However, Poe himself spent much of his life as a "hoax writer" making money writing magazine articles or as a critic. I believe the essay is a step-by-step process for which Poe, himself, wants to write. There are the methods in which he says he puts into his poem, The Raven. Yet, I believe that these devices do, indeed, use intuition as a supplement. How does one come up with "originality" or "suggestiveness" without using the core of one's own intuition? However, Poe's writing does seem to be influenced by his life events and what he does know. For instance, his life has been traumatic and he has have events in his life that have marred his ability to comprehend things similarly to "normal people". These issues have obviously influenced his writing in ways both good and bad, but it contradicts his essay. Poe's own writing, has indeed, been changed by his intuition and instinct. 

The Minister's Black Veil, Nathaniel Hawthrone

Sanne Bergh

Eng48A

Journal for Hawthrone

Oct. 11, 2011

Author Quote
"But, even amid his grief, Mr. Hopper smiled to thinking that only a material emblem had separated him from happiness, though the horrors which it shadowed forth, must be drawn darkly between the fondest of lovers" (1317).

Internet Quote
"While the veil is the main symbol in the story, it is also ironic. Hooper in his stubborn use of the veil parable of one sin makes him unconsciously guilty of a greater one; that of egotistically warping the total meaning of life".

Brief Summary of What the Author is Saying
Mr. Hopper uses the black veil as a symbol for his sin, however, he is affecting others negatively with his disconcerting appearance. He believes that the veil is merely a way to punish himself, but it affecting others more than he believes or originally intended. His fiancee leaves him because of the veil, and he doesn't really appear to understand the drastic action because he is wallowing in his own self-pity, so to speak.

Your Idea/Reactions/Responses to the Author's Ideas
A black veil as a tool for self-punishment is an interesting choice because it shows that he is trying to punish himself, but it isn't just a punishment to Mr. Hopper alone. The face isn't to be seen, because Mr. Hopper believes it doesn't deserve to be seen. When a person is looking at someone and they can't see their face, in some cultures, it could be considered fairly rude. For instance, in America, it is polite to take off one's hat so the face can be seen. Of course, in the Middle East women are to wear burquas over their face to hide their beauty, an Afghan woman says she wears it to "save men from themselves.. thoughts are sin in themselves." Likewise, perhaps Mr. Hopper believes that the mere image of his face could perpetuate sin. Others would see the guilt on his face and speak no more of him. It is interesting and ironic that he is a clergyman, because he is supposedly a symbol for everything that is not sin. It is understandable that he would want to acknowledge his wrong-doings whole-heartedly, but it does seem to be in a bit of excess. There is also the act of living a life in penance, and the daily flagellantism as they did in the Catholic Church. However, it just seems very contradictory towards both Christianity and Catholicism, because it is about forgiveness, and Mr. Hopper just can't seem to do that. 

Lies: The Land of Opportunity (Ch.7)

Sanne Bergh
Eng48A
Journal for "Lies my Teacher Told Me"
Oct. 7, 2011


Author Quote
"Since history textbooks present the American past as four hundred years of progress and portray our society as a land of opportunity in which folks get what they deserve and deserve what they get, the failures of working-class Americans to transcend their class origin inevitably get laid at their own doorsteps".

Internet Quote
"For a variety of reasons to be here explored, inequality in the United States has increased to the extent that the gap between the rich and poor is larger now than at time since 1928--greater than that of any industrialized nation"(http://www.trinity.edu/mkearl/strat.html). 

Brief Summary of What the Author is Saying
There is a quote at the beginning of the chapter that states "Ten men in our country could buy the whole world and ten million can't buy enough to eat". The socioeconomic gap between the people of the American population is bigger than our current textbooks make it out to be. In the 1950s, America was the land of opportunity and possibility but this idea has quickly transformed into anything but a dream. There are people who are living paycheck to paycheck, who cannot afford to advance their lives and who are stuck in a cycle.

Your Idea/Reactions/Responses to the Author's Ideas
The textbooks may not provide sufficient evidence as to the current social structure of our country, but I believe that is has to be some teachers duties to inform students of the current conditions while they are getting their educations. Students are apart of vicious cycle in which they cannot escape their socioeconomic status, and if so, this happens rarely. Kindergartners everywhere are being duped when they are told that they can one day become president. In the last month, there was a protest in New York that was protesting the economical inequality in this country. Students are obtaining Bachelor degrees only to find themselves unemployed and up to their shoulders in debt. People are unable to retire because they cannot afford to. Opportunities for improvement have shrank to a small size. Poverty is more real than ever in today's time, and our government is blaming the people for not pushing themselves harder. How hard is the population supposed to work to retain their sanity and financial well-being? The American dream is an illusion. On the other side of the spectrum, we see people who work in the entertainment business, i.e. Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt, making millions. We read in People Magazine that these people just bought another villa in the South of France, or their sixteenth Porche. There is an obvious disproportion in wealth throughout the United States, as the poor pay more taxes than the rich. Not only are they rubbing their wealth in everybody's faces, but it is simply unfair. Why do some people work seventy hour weeks with no vacation and Jennifer Aniston goes on eight vacations a year? We need equality. 

Life in the Iron Mills, Rebecca Harding Davis

Sanne Bergh
English 48A
Journal for Davis
Oct. 6, 2011

Author Quote
"I dare not put this secret into words. I told you it was dumb. These men, going by with drunken faces and brains full of unawakened power, do not ask it of Society or of God. Their lives ask it; their deaths ask it. There is no reply." 

Internet Quote
"Throughout her lifetime, Harding Davis sought to effect social change for blacks, women, Native Americans, immigrants, and the working class, by intentionally writing about the plight of these marginalised groups in the 19th century."

Brief Summary of What the Author is Saying
It seems that Harding Davis wants change the way that the middle or lower class of America is regarded. A great part of America is lacking a voice and Harding Davis wants to give the rest of the world a perspective of how other people live.

Your Idea/Reactions/Responses to the Author's Ideas
When comparing these workers to today's middle and lower classes, I speculate parallels. For instance, I believe that the average blue-collar workers are written off as either ignorant or stupid from the perspective of people of higher socioeconomic status. In Life in the Iron-Mills, Davis demonstrates this idea clearly when Hugh is given false hope in regards to his sculptures, and later, nothing is to come of them. It is because most blue-collar workers have mundane lives and lack variability in their lives that even a slight glimmer of something new triggers excitement. Today, it seems as though people aren't given a voice because they are believed to have no meaningful thoughts. This dehumanization in itself is very disgusting; human beings are demeaned into insignificant machines that perform basic labor and little else. The only thing to bring them an ounce of something familiar to happiness is alcohol, which is merely an illusion for what can never be.