Tell-tale Heart

The analyzers of Tell-tale Heart on SparkNotes state that Edgar Allan Poe has written this story with vague descriptions and a indecisive point of view. However, that was the type of narration Poe wanted to portray. Also, this story "provides a study of paranoia and mental deterioration". I totally agree that the story exemplifies the paranoia and mental deterioration of the main character. In the story, the man who killed the old man let his paranoia take over himself. The man thought that the old man was still alive because he "heard" the thumping of the old man's heart even though he, himself, confirmed that the old man was dead before he buried him under the floor boards. After reading the story, I thought it was his own heart beat that he heard because was so nervous. Also, when the character stated "I paced the floor to and fro with heavy strides", I think he imagined himself pacing back and forth, but in reality he was just sitting in the chair thinking and imagining it all. Nonetheless, the main character thought that the policemen were mocking him by sitting there calmly while he was going crazy and pacing back and forth. This was merely the main characters perception. Often times people imagine situation in there head and they also imagine the outcome of those situations. However, it seems like he took his made-up situation as if it really happened and the policemens' reaction towards his imagined situation was not what he expected. Thus causing the main character to tell the officers where the body is because he was too paranoid.

34th Block

It's a late summer night and all you hear is the sound of someone smacking a ball. They were playing volleyball in the streets where the bright yellow streetlights shine. The girls count how many times they have hit the same car, and if it appears to be too many, they'll move to the next street light post. But they will never stray too far from the tiny white bungalow with a medium size pine tree and black steel fencing that separates the sidewalk and their front doorsteps because Amy doesn't live in the best neighborhood as Victoria always says. Neighbors that live around her are both young and old. An old lady who's obese to the point that it's hard for her to walk, wears a white cotton crew neck tee shirt with a pair of faded light blue jeans, a gold cross necklace and worn out white athletic shoes sits with a little girl that wears plaid Bermuda shorts with a pink cotton swoop neck tee shirt, tiny floral flip flops and a head full of disheveled light brown hair are sitting on a bench that's on their porch watching the girls bump the white beat up ball back and forth. Across the street, are three guys with bald faded haircuts, mint white air force ones, big saggy black jeans with huge back pockets and bright red crew neck shirt that sit on the little steps of their porch watching the girls bump the white beat up ball back and forth. Occasionally, they would say things like "ay shawty! come closer so I could getta betta look at chu" because their "type" are those who wear short shorts, flip flops with a V-neck tee shirt and hair tied up in a messy pony tail. The girls, Amy and Victoria play till 11:30 and a Chinese lady that speaks mandarin, has curly black and gray hair, wearing ugly red and green pajamas with house slippers comes out and yells at them for bouncing the volleyball late at night. They both have no idea what she said, but she seemed sort of mad so they stop playing and move back to the front doorsteps to have long deep talks about their future and desires while sipping on bottled Ice Mountain water until she they both feel like playing again. It's almost 1 o'clock in the morning and they're still not tired, so they move to the Cermak store that's down the block to play in the wide open parking lot.

That was how our summer nights were spent until the beginning of high school. This was when we both thought that nothing could ever be as perfect because we were both young and beautiful with big dreams. Little did we know, our plans and desires changed to the point where we don't even see one another in our futures. So this summer, I'll still be playing volleyball but with someone else, or maybe just by myself because I love this sport to much to miss out on any chances of playing it. She'll be out with her new friends and doing different things because she loves to be around different people and trying new things. As she moves on the from the past and into the future, I'll still be dwelling on our past.

Lyrics

One Last Song by Josiah Leming

The ship was sinking; we were drinking, singing one last song,
The literal meaning in the first line is that the speaker and others were singing and drinking on a sinking ship. When I heard this line, I imagined sailors on a ship knowing that they won't make it out alive, so they take their last drinkings and enjoy what time they have left.

Casting our gold into the ocean.
Ships were once a way of transportation for goods and people. Many times, gold could've been the cargo. So as the ship sinkings, the cargo would eventually fall out. Therefore, the gold is casted in the ocean.

You grabbed a bucket, started screaming, "Come on, come on",

Greed is one of the human instincts. Since gold is so precious, one our reaction is to grab it. However, gold in this song could've symbolized something else that was precious. Prehaps, life? time?

Trying to slow the downward motion.
When something sinks, it's going down. But I take it as trying to embrace what's left of time.

Back in the kingdom, we were kings and queens and Oh, so strong
That God himself could not contain us.
Before this tragedy, they felt superior. Prior to the sinking ship, they felt like it wasn't going to happen.

We never thought we'd be the shorter half of sword and gun.
Now god himself could never save us.

Ever heard of the saying the short end of the stick? I take it as being the unlucky one of two. So unlucky that there's nothing one can do to prevent what was going to happen.

Waves of silver, waves of gold
Are coming now to take me,
To separate my body from my soul
And Jesus either leaves or takes me.
Hopes of heaven, fears of hell
Tell me, what's the chance I'll make it.
All my other plans have failed,
And all this time I've faked it.

The speaker is showing a sign of fear for the first time in the poem. In the previos stanza, he/she seems to be reminiscing on what he/she used to have and what had happened. But this stanza shows fear of what will happen. Also, the last 2 lines of the stanza implies that the speaker never really worked for what he/she has. The speaker also implies that he/she has been getting by "life"(maybe) by coming up with deeds to use others. However, he still hopes to make it out alive.

We started sinking, drinking water from the open sea
Losing our bodies to the ocean.
You grabbed my hand and started screaming, "rescue me"
Together fight the downward motion.
Back in the kingdom we were kings and queens and Oh, so strong
That god himself just had to show us.
We never thought we'd see the colder side of land and sea
But he's the only one who knows us.

In this last stanza, the speaker seems to be giving up on hope. He/She is facing reality. Even though it says that they're fight the downward motion, the second to last line shows that they are facing reality because if he wasn't he/she wouldn't know that they aren't in their fantasy world anymore. God himself just had to show us implies that a higher power is causing him to fail.

Overall, the moral of this peom is don't think you're better than anyone else or don't be overly confident in yourself because things can go wrong. I really like this song because it shows 3 stages. 1st stage: The speaker still thinks he's superior. 2nd stage: The speaker is beginning to doubt himself, however still hopes to make it. 3rd stage: reality check. The speaker realizes what he got himself into and also realize that he/she is not so superior afterall.

Reservations

When I younger, I was taught that Reservations were for Indians that still existed. The myth was that all Indians died when the Europeans came to what we call, the United States of America. So those that still live are given a huge piece of land called Reservations where they can do whatever they want, have their own rules and don't have to pay government taxes. But now, I learned that was not at all the case. They are FORCED to live on reservations. The land was too poor to plant. Most of the people that did live on  reservations were poor. Also, reservations are not for Indians. They're for Native Americans.

Life on Reservations was nothing like how I thought it would be. I thought reservations were like big neighbor hoods where kids place all day. And whenever they did do something, it would be with each other. Like go to the same school, eat over at one another house. After watching that movie in class. It sounds like they have a lot to worry about and living is not very luxurious.

I wonder how the Native Americans feel. It's not like the living conditions are very good either. How does it feel like to be striped from the place that was yours and then put into a place where nothing was desirable?

Propaganda of 2011

Prior to this post, I had no idea what propaganda is. But after a few visits to Dictionary.com and a few google searches, I have some what of an idea of what it is. So a propaganda is when information is intentionally spread to promote or demote someone, something, or belief (in a nutshell). One of the propagandas' of 2011 was the installation of Tvs around the US for the military to enjoy the Super Bowl game. Some were saying "The military is there to "protect" us, but how can they protect us if they too busy watching the Super Bowl?" Also, some people were saying that the military did certain unnecessary thing to make it seem like they were doing all they can to protect our country. I'm not really sure if this is true but, after watching Nikita for sometime now, I won't be surprised if the Government had a secret agent department that kept certain things to themselves and not let it leak out to the public.

Free Response to Black Boy

Black Boy was the most interesting book we've read in American Lit. so far. Unlike all the other books we've read, this one is very hard to put down. The others were just very hard to pick up... Richard had dealt with/ experienced a lot of things when he was at an age that we consider now as a young age. Just in 9 years of this life he has became an alcholic and then quit, moved several times, lived in an orphanage and was abandon by his father. How can someone so young accept all these changes and not go insane? Maybe he was too young to understand why any these things happen. I've realized later in the story that even thought he might not understand why his father left, he understood that his family needs to him to provide food or he'll starve. One thing I don't understand is why does his mother beat him whenever he asks a question? He's young and he's suppose to be curious and nosey about all the things around him. Beating him like telling him he's not allowed to learn. If I could ever interview him, I would ask him if his mother's beating affected him at all. Because in the story, he was unhappy and in pain when his mother beat him, but he never seemed to resent her for it. It could be because he's so used to being beat that he just don't feel like it's anything different. Also, I thought it was really weird how he didn't know how to count at age 6. I can't remember when I wasn't able to count. Counting felt like something I was born able to do. It was weird when he couldn't stop counting or when he said he didn't know how to. I've never seen a child who couldn't count.... Overall, I can't wait to finish this book. His life is so interesting. Reading his biography is like walking in his shoes except I wouldn't feel the pain of the rocks that he steps on.  

Hungry for Attention

Hmmm is everyone hungry for attention or is it just Richard? No. I can honestly say there are times when I just really need someone's attention or care. However, Richard isn't just hungry for attention, he's greedy when it comes to attention. Not only does he set the house on fire for his parents paying more attention to his sickly grandmother, he also becomes and alcholic. He said that the reason why he was/ is an Alcholic was because the lack of attention from his parents. There are different types of "hungry for attention", one might need the attention or just want the attention. Richard wanted everyone's undivided attention to himself. I would understand why he would be that way if he was an only child, because those who are the only child in the family tend to receive more attention from their parents than those who have other siblings. One concept I don't understand is that why he would need so much attention even though he grew up with another brother. He always had to share the attention with his brother. It could've contribute to his attention "needs" now that he has grown up. Being one of four siblings in my family, I've never got all the attention. It seems sort of impossible to have my parents undivided attention, when one lives with 3 other siblings that want their attention just as much as I do. Also, my parents never really gave attention to me unless it was totally necessary. So while growing up, I received most of my attention from my siblings. We all gave one another attention, it compensated for the attention that are parents never gave us.