Journal #8

1) I believe the title, Their Eyes Were Watching God  portrays this novel well. Multiple times throughout the book a reference is made to God, typically indirectly. Also, in the climax of the book, the title is stated when Tea Cake and Janie are in the hurricane. They looked up to God, possibly provide protection and safety. Thus, the title Their Eyes Were Watching God  helps develop a theme in the story of the protection that God can provide.

2) Another title that would work well is Opportunities on the Horizon . This would work because it also helps to convey a theme of Hurston's novel. Janie has more freedom as she moves from one husband to the next. By the end of the novel, Janie achieves her independence. The reader's focus would be put onto Janie more. The theme that women should not be submissive to men, but should fight for their independence is better developed.

3) I used "Flow of the Waves" as the title of my short story. I used this because the ocean waves are the most prominent motif in my story to represent the power that they possess. The women also represent going against the current in their fight to combat the barrier that men set against them. The ocean is a huge part of my short story; therefore, that's the reason why I included it in my title.

Journal #7

Analysis of Literary Techniques:

1) Alliteration: “‘He’s a whirlwind among breezes,’ Jeff Bruce threw in. ‘Speakin’ of winds, he’s de wind and we’se de grass’” (49).

Hurston uses alliterations on many occasions throughout the novel. By using the repetition of the letter "w" it reiterates the power that the wind has, which mirrors Jody. "W" has a hard sound which provides another example of the strength that Jody has over the town of Eatonville. Alliteration helps to develop Jody's character as a leader and as someone that others see as powerful.

2) Imagery:“Joe’s funeral was the finest thing Orange County had ever seen with negro eyes. The motor hearse, the Cadillac and Buick carriages; Dr. Henderson there in his Lincoln; the hosts from far and wide” (88).

The use of imagery helps to bring the scene or passage to life and create a mental picture. In this instance, Joe's death is an intense and somewhat dramatic moment and by creating a picture in our head we can envision what is really happening. Death is a harsh reality, and Hurston helps to portray that by using imagery.   

3) Metaphor: “She was a rut in the road” (76).

Hurston uses a metaphor in the case to show that Janie is aging. Hurston does not blatantly tell us that Janie is getting old, but decides to use a metaphor. By doing this, the reader is more engaged because the passage is unique and different. The objective was not only to keep the reader from being bored, but to be visually appealing to the reader.  

Journal #6

Revisions to Pastiche:

After reading over the comments from the peer review, and re-reading my rough drafts I found certain things that needed to be fixed and improved. First off, I need to make my pastiche substantially longer. Additionally, I noticed that I could make my theme much more in depth and clear. Essentially, the purpose of my paper needs to be more focused on developing the theme. Also, to further mimic Hurston's writing style, I will incorporate more literary techniques, such as alliterations and better imagery. The flow of my pastiche was choppy and was not very smooth so I focused on changing the sentence structure of my pastiche to improve the flow.

Journal #5

Pastiche using page 84:

Then Will started to consider Hope. Hope, that warm creature that looms over when necessary.  She stays in the clouds, but is capable of being with everyone. What enables hope to be with us? She straightens and stabilizes the ones wanting strength. Being provided, only when it's needed, this creature is prepared with an arm to put around us. Been prepared to account and help but hardly anyone accepts. He is likely to find it from a passing raindrop. He feels excited and enthusiastic. Oh Katie! She shouldn't have to find this wonderful formation of happiness alone. He wanted her to find it, but knew it wasn't possible.  Almost everyone wuz having a tough time finding hope. They'd be able to find it soon as a cloud brought in some gloom. Rather, that's what Katie thought. Others knew this would not be the case, though. So the next rainy day Will waited outside to find this glimpse of strength from the clouds. People that never believed this would help, went outside to discover it. Deciding to wait didn't work, the rain brought something else. Concern, the rain didn't bring anything, but seeded the people with doubt and concern.

By basing this on the passage off of page 84, I altered the ending tone from the beginning tone. I created a sense of happiness by using words, such as, warm, hope and clouds. As the story progressed, the tone shifts to a dull setting. The rain is supposed to provide hope, but brings concern and doubt because it doesn't help, and only hurts the people. Words used in the later part of the passage, like gloom, concern, and doubt help to develop the dull tone. I used anthropomorphism, like Hurston, to bring hope to life. Also, by capitalizing the "h" it gives it a God-like quality and a sense of protection and that it is above us. By making hope a character, it allows the reader to more easily relate it to life.  

Journal #4

Page 84 displays Hurston's use of syntax, word choice, tone and sound devices.

Syntax: Hurston has a unique style to her writing. In the long paragraph at the beginning of the page, Hurston uses straight forward and simplistic sentence structure. The word death is mentioned many times, and the short sentences are abrupt. The flow of this passage is choppy and the passage follows the same pattern throughout. This type of sentence structure is used to show death's suddenness and abruptness.

Word Choice: Hurston starts off the passage with the word, "so", which is an informal word. Also, Hurston says that death, "Stands watchful and motionless all day with his sword drawn back" (Hurston 84), she could have said death is waiting to striking at any moment, but decides to provide an image of how death can occur anytime. In the passage, Janie refers to Joe as Jody. Hurston does this because Joe prefers to be called Jody. Also, being calling him Jody is more affectionate.

Tone: The tone of this passage starts off being saddening because of the repetition of the word, death. Also, Janie attempts to resolve the problems with Jody despite the circumstances, but Jody gives her a cold look, showing he doesn't want to talk. This creates an upsetting tone because Janie's relationship with Jody is deteriorating and he is sick.

Sound Device: One of the sound devices used in this passage is alliteration, "He stands in his high house" ( Hurston, 84). This signifies deaths power and the repetition of "h" is somewhat abrupt like death itself. In a way, death is watching over us all like God, which is likely why it is capitalized.                                               

Journal #3

Examples of stylistic attributes from Their Eyes were Watching God:

1) Hurston's use of consonance: "'He's uh whirlwind among breezes' Jeff Bruce threw in. 'Speakin' of winds, he's de wind and we'se de grass. We bend which ever way he blows'" (Hurston, 49).

2) Hurston's use of symbol: "Tain't no use in scufflin' over all dese stumps and roots in de dark (Hurston, 44).

3) Hurston's use of personification: "The porch laughed" (Hurston, 53).

4) Hurston's use of imagery: "They's jus' some puny humans playin' round de toes uh Time"( Hurston, 54).

5) Hurston's use of a simile: " By that time Matt was wringing and twisting like a hen on a hot brick (Hurston, 58).

Analysis:

1) Zora Neale Hurston uses consonance in this passage to reinforce the influence that Joe Starks has on the people of Eatonville. Hurston emphasizes that the people of the town bend, or follow, what Joe does and says. Wind is used because it is powerful and represents Joe's strength and leadership. Also, wind could be an allusion to God because of it's invisibility and powerfulness.

4) Hurston uses imagery not only in this passage, but throughout the book to help illuminate that the people sitting on the porch are lesser people. Hurston uses the word puny to describe them as lower people. Interestingly enough, time is capitalized. Hurston wants time to be a reference to God, and how the porch sitters are messing with God, as well. Joe likes having the image of power and to be looked up to by others, so when he sees Janie talking to porch sitters he doesn't like it at all because it hurts his image as the mayor.  

Journal #2

Dialect Rules (of two African-American men having a conversation):
1) "Ayy"= Hey
2) Using "bro", "dawg", or "man" at least once in every conversation
3) Any words that have "th" will be changed to "d", such as "dem" and "dat"
4) No exclamation marks are to be used
5) Every time the word do is used, it will be said as "does"
6) Words ending in "ing" will change to "in'"
7) "Ya"= You
8) "Tuh"= To
Dialogue (Reference to page 22 in Their Eyes were Watching God):

Jamal hasn't been able to workout in days. He is starting to feel like he is fat and out of shape. He has been so busy that going to the gym hasn't  been able to fit into his schedule. You could call Jamal a person that is addicted to working out, especially lifting weights. Jamal is experiencing withdrawal and needs someone to talk with.

"Ayy dawg. What ya been up tuh Rasheed?"

Rasheed has no job and typically stays around his house watching T.V. every day. He is envious of Jamal's muscular body, but does not have the drive to get to the gym.

"Uhh ya know man, not too much, just hangin' around the house."

"I sure haven't been able to go the gym like I typically does bro. I feel like I've already gained some weight".

Rasheed was astonished. He isn't fat and he never exercises so he can't comprehend why Jamal is saying the things he is, "Jamal, dawg, ya doesn't have tuh worry. I would die to be in the shape that ya are in and to have dem muscles ya got".  

"Rasheed, man, ya are right. I doesn't need to workout as much as I does. I doesn't need to go to the gym everyday".

"Glad I coud help ya, dawg".

"See ya, bro".

Journal #1

Janie is perceived as an attractive woman and a confident person. Even before Janie speaks a word, the people sitting on the porch comment on her looks, "the great rope of black hair swinging to her waist and unraveling in the wind like a plume"(Hurston 2). Janie's hair is a symbol of her beauty. Janie is not afraid to be different from the norm, which is exemplified when people sitting on the porch say, "what she doin coming back here in dem overalls? Can't she find no dress to put on?"(Hurston 2). A woman wearing overalls in out of the ordinary, but Janie does not seem to care because she is comfortable with who she is. Despite being critical of Janie, she is envied by others because she is attractive. Janie is perceived as someone that is higher up than the passive porch sitters, "still it was a hope that she might fall to their level some day" (Hurston 2).

The narrator uses characters to explain her points and values, mainly from a women's perspective. The main character, Janie, is used along with the narrator's voice to highlight themes such as the empowerment of women. We can see that the author is favored and slightly biased to women through her choice of a character who is a colored woman perceived by other characters as not as intelligent, but through the narrator's clever use of imagery and similes it is revealed that she is anything but that, especially through the beginning passage which hints at Janie's journey throughout the novel and her return. The narrator uses foreshadowing when saying, "She had come back from the sodden and the bloated; the sudden dead, their eyes flung wide open in judgement" (pg 1). Not only does the narrator hint at what is going to happen, but also that Janie is a character that takes action.

Post #4- Mini Test

Questions:
1.) "It was a rustling sound that woke me up. Because I'd had my eyes closed, the whiteness of the room seemed even brighter than before" (Camus, 9). This is an example of ______________
2.) "What dat ole forty year ole 'oman doin' wid her hair swingin' down her back lak some young gal?"(Hurston, 2). This sentence shows the __________ of this book.
3.)"The great rope of black hair swinging to her waist and unraveling in the wind like a plume" This is an example of a _____________.
4.) In Their Eyes were Watching God, the porch is a _____________.
5.)In The Stranger, Meursault is the ___________ of the book.

Post #3- Ambiguity

Ambiguity gives the possibility of more than one interpretation of what you are reading. An ambiguous  phrase is unclear. Typically, there is one basic meaning and then a more complex meaning. Authors will usually use ambiguity intentionally to add depth or for comedic purposes to make the story more interesting. An example of ambiguity is in The Stranger, Meursault says, "I said it didn't make any difference to me and that we could if she wanted to" (41). Meursault is vague in what "it" is because he doesn't specify what he is referring to whether it is about marriage or love.  Even after the reading the passage it is unclear what Meursault means so we are left feeling uncertain.

Post #2- Climax

Climax: Is the peak, or the major event that takes place in the story.
It is thought of as the most action packed part. Climax is one of the components of the plot, it comes after the rising action, but before the falling action and conclusion. In The Stranger, the climax is when Meursault shoots the Arab. For someone that has taken chemistry, a good way to remember that the climax is the peak is to think of an activated complex, see picture below:

Post #1

1. Which of the three books did you enjoy the most and why?
I liked Their Eyes were Watching God the most because the African-American dialect in the novel was unique and I found it extremely interesting. Also, the culture of the blacks kept me interested because it is much different from my culture. Janie has a tough time deciding whether to follow what her Grandma, or Nanny, wants for her or to do what she wants in her choice of husband. An example of this is that Nanny wanted to Janie to marry a rich man;whereas, Janie originally wanted to be with someone that makes her feel better, but does not have a whole lot of money. Nanny's desire for the security from wealth is a result of her time as a slave who was envious of the slave owner's wife who had the privilege of sitting and watching instead of the physical labor required of Nanny. In addition, I particularly liked Hurston's writing style. I liked the use of figurative language throughout the book. The climax of the hurricane kept me reading and I thought overall Hurston did a great job of keeping my attention throughout the entire story. The pace or rhythm at the beginning of the novel was slow and elongated by the use of imagery and metaphors however, Hurston speeds up the pace near the end with rising tension.

2. Which of the three books did you enjoy least and why?

The book We was extremely hard for me to get interested in. I enjoy math and science, but this book was not my style or something that I like to read. The author, Yevgemy Zamyatin, creates narration that is plain and boring. I found it strange how people were dressed identically and had to walk the same way. It was frustrating that throughout the book little is mentioned about the people that live outside of the wall. The setting was dull and I was not amazed by the futuristicness of the setting either that Zamyatin created in the novel. For this reason, dystopian novels are hard for me to get into and to comprehend because I am not into that type of novel.

3. If you were to write an essay on the third novel (the book not addressed in the previous two questions) what element or elements would you focus on in that essay and why do think they are important?
The Stranger, by Albert Camus was a decent book in my mind. Camus portrayed the main character, Meursault, as a person with no emotion. When he learns of his mother's death he displays no sadness as if he has no attachment to his mother. Society expects us to act a certain way when we experience these types of difficulties and when Meursault lacks any emotion typical while grieving he becomes thought of as a stranger to the reader and other characters. Additionally, Meursault is not afraid to say what he is thinking, he does not care what society and others think of him. This brings up the question, does doing something against the norm of society a bad thing?