week 15

Act I

Troy and Bono sound just like a couple of drunks sitting around the house telling stories and the more they drink the bigger the stories. Lyons is a thirty-four years old and acting like he is 16. He does not have a job and is borrowing money from his dad. Troy gives it to Rose so she can hand it to Lyons like he is not the one giving the money. I do not see much difference in Lyons and my children except my children are teenagers and he is thirty-four.

Act II

Troy’s brother Gabriel comes to visit. Gabriel got shot in the head during the war. He has a medal plate in his head. This left him mental retarded. Troy feels guilty because he took the money the army gave his brother and bought a house for his family to live in, including Gabriel. He has taken care of Gabriel every day until Gabriel decided he wanted his own place to live. However, Troy still feels guilty about taken his money.

Act III

Cory, Troy’s son, tries to talk his father into letting him play football. Like most fathers he wants his son to have a better life than he did. Troy wanted to play ball and was too old even though he believes it is because he is black. Rose tries to talk Troy into letting Cory play but he refuses. Troy tries to teach Cory he has to depend on himself and nobody else. Cory thinks his father does not like him but what Troy is trying to teach him is it does not matter who likes you, all you need to worry about is if you are getting treated fairly in life.

Act IV

Troy tells his son what kind of father he had and how much better his son’s life is than his.

Act II

Scene 1, 2, 3, 4, &5

I was shocked at this scene. I thought Troy would get caught cheating. I never dreamed he would tell his wife that not only was the woman he was cheating on her with, was pregnant but that he also still wants to keep seeing her while he is still married to his wife. I am glad Cory came out of the house and stepped in between his mother and father. I think his father would have hurt his mother if he had not.

It is six months later Troy’s lover, Alberta, just died while giving birth to a baby girl. Rose is still living with Troy even though he was still seeing Alberta. Now, Troy has asked Rose to raise his baby and she agrees. Seven years later Troy dies and the family finally has some peace in their hearts.

week 14

My comments on

“A Raisin in the Sun”

I put this movie in thinking when will it be over. I must say I enjoyed the movie. I watched the newer version with P. Diddy. The movie tells of all their dreams not just that of Walter. The focus was on him but they all had dreams and I think all of them came true or will. The mother just dreamed of her children becoming adults. The daughter dreamed of becoming a doctor. The wife dreamed of a house of her own. The grandson dreamed of his own bedroom. The son dreamed of a better life. Although Walter was the one who lost the money that could have made their dreams come true, he is also the one because he lost the money that made their dreams come true. Walter learned that money was not the answers to his dreams. He was already living his dream if he would only open his eyes and see what he had or as his mother said,” Today he became a man.” I even cried a little during the movie. Ruth made a tough choice as to keep her unborn child or have an abortion. She was getting an abortion for the wrong reason having another child would make her life a little tougher but it would not stop her dreams from coming true. Lena only dreamed that her children would grow up and be someone she could be proud of. Her children did just that. The not only had to have dreams but have some of the crushed to see what their dream really was. Although Benita did not become a doctor yet and will still have a tough road to travel to become one, she did learn not to give up a dream just because there is a rock in the road. You may stumble a little trying to achieve your dreams but that does not mean you have to give up on them. A person just has to work a little harder or change their dream a little. To me the story tells me no matter what happens in life never give up on your dreams no matter how far away they seem to be. If your life is not going in the way of your dream change your life so your dreams comes a little closer to you and above all else stay true to the person you are love your family more during the hard times and you may just find you are already living your dream.

week 13

My thoughts on

Trifles by Susan Glaspell

This is a story about Jon Wrights death. He was killed in his sleep by being strangled to death by a rope around his neck. At first it all seems to lead to that the wife did it. She did not show any emotion, that she was sad or scared or well really anything. She just played around with her apron, staring off into space and rocking back and forth in her little rocking chair. And then, while talking with everyone they figured out that she had killed him, Mrs. Hale put the box with the dead bird into her coat pocket. She did not tell the men about the dead bird she had just uncovered. They had discovered how Mrs. Wright killed her husband. She "knots it" instead of "quilts it". They did not tell the men about the bird in the box because it was an act of loyalty for girls to stick up for girls. Mrs. Wright before she got married was Minnie Foster. She was a very cheerful person and full of colors in everything she did. She loved to sing. Then when she got married to Mr. Wright her life became dark and lonely therefore, it drove her insane and she killed Mr. Wright.


Naked Lunch by Michael Hollinger

Lucy and Vernon use to be lovers and they broke up. Vernon had Lucy over for dinner. He made her steak and corn. He got her flowers and pretty napkins. He also bought some wine. She would not eat the steak and only ate the corn. Vernon noticed that she was not eating her steak and asked her why she wasn't eating her steak. Lucy replied by saying she has decided to become a vegetarian and Vernon had no clue what she was talking about because she had always been eating meat while they were together. She told him that she had always been thinking about it for a while. He told her that she had never brought it up to him. And he wanted to know why she had never told him that she was thinking about becoming a vegetarian. They argued back and forth for a while before Lucy decided to give in to Vernon and eat her steak. He even cut it off for her. Then, they went on with their dinner. Vernon did this all to make up with Lucy and get her back, to make her the happiest girl in the world to be with him. During this story you could feel the tension between one another. I do not think the conflict between them ever got solved. I think they just ignored the issue and that is not good for their relationship. Communication is the key to good start and finish. I think that if Lucy would have explained herself and why she felt the way she felt about meat in the first place, when she started thinking about it. They may not have ever broken up in the first place or things would have gone more smoothly during the dinner.

week 12

my comments on

Bradstreet "To My Dear and Loving Husband"

Bradstreet talks about how she loves her husband. "Prize thy love more than whole mines of gold, or all the riches that the East doth hold." No money could compare to the way she feels about her husband. No gold is worth the life she shares with her husband. You could not pay her all the money in the world to leave him. She may be able to buy anything and everything she wants but she will still feel lonely. She will not have any love. She will not have anyone to share the things that make her the happiest. Money and things cannot buy you love. These things come and go but love stays forever. "Then while we live, in love let's so persevere, that when we live no more, we may live ever." Here she states that while they live their lives in love, she wants to keep it close to her heart and let the world know how she feels. And when they die and all is gone nothing will be forgotten. Their love will always remain here on earth and ever strong in the afterlife.

Housman "To an Athlete Dying Young"

Housman talks about how you are the star of the show one day and then next no one remembers your name. You may be the talk of the day, maybe even the week but nothing last forever. Everyone starts out with everyone cheering them on. They grow up thinking they are the best, they may even be the best in their hometown and then when they meet that one person who can do things a little better than them they cannot handle things. You may even be doing something you love and really do not care if you are good at it and everyone does not let it go and when you start to believe it, it could all be forgotten in a flash. You may not be ready for all the fame to go away but either you mess up and can never do it again or someone better and newer comes along and takes your spot light. And some people take things too far and think they have to be all that anyone talks about. One day they lose it all and no one cares anymore. You are just a name in the history book; well at least you made it that far, right?

Williams "Thinking about Bill, Dead of AIDS"

Williams talks about a period in time where they did not know how to feel about such diseases. They did not know how to treat people so they just shun them. They pushed them away and left them to deal with this by themselves. When it says "Thinking of friends afraid to shake your hand", it is like saying "Ewe, you have cooties, don't touch me." How would you feel if you had a disease and no one would come around you, even if they knew it would not harm them? William says " Stopping, though, to set our smiles at the door....We didn't know what look would hurt you least." How about showing what you truly feel. Even if you do not understand what people are going through? Even if you think that it could hurt you, it is hurting them and you are just setting them aside like a used rag, does not make them feel any better about dying. It just makes them feel worse, way worse than they ever could. We stereotype way too much and we need to learn to accept people for the way they are and deal with their mistakes. They do, so why can't we?

Williams "This is Just to Say"

Sometimes we do things that we did not mean to do, it just happens. You should not regret anything but sometimes we feel the need to. People take without asking, and thinking "Hey, maybe they need this" but never think twice about it. All anyone can ever say is I'm sorry and you can forgive them or just let it eat you alive. It is like when a small child does something they are not suppose to be doing, you cannot get mad and yell at them. They did not know any better. They did not know that it was uncalled for. They did not know that it would make you upset. They just wanted to have "fun". They just wanted to make you happy and proud of them. They were being thoughtless. Everyone is thoughtless at times, you just got to work through it and make the best of it. You want people to be honest and truthful no matter what they did to you. All you have to do is forgive them for their mistake, and let it go, and go on with your life. Life is too short to hold onto the past. Just work on the present and hope for a future.

week 11

My comments on

Danse Africanine by Langston Hughes

This poem gives me the image of a girl dancing and singing around a camp fire. The way she moves makes your heart pound and skips a beat. You can hear the beating of the drums but by the way she swirls around the fire you do not pay much attention. You get lost in the way the music lifts up the smoke from the fire. Everything begins to slow down but your blood flow begins to rise rapidly and it leaves you with shivers all down your spine.

Dream Variations by Langston Hughes

Hughes is defining every dream everyone makes. Everyone wants to accomplish their dreams and once they have what, what do they got left to live for. Dreams can go as far as the stars can reach and no one stops until they have reached them. I also, thought this poem as they live too lives. They show people one person but when no one is around they are a different person. Some people live to please other and when they are gone they show their true colors.

The Passionate Shepherd to His Love by Christopher Marlowe

Christopher Marlowe talks about everything he would do for love. He would “Prove that valleys, groves, hills, and fields, woods, or steeply mountains yields.” Things would not stand in his way to make her happy. They would go for walks on the beach and watch the water hit the rocks and listen to the birds sing. He would make a bed of roses with every scent you could ever imagine. Clothes only made from the finest, shoes only for the best from the best, flowers of every kind. He would sing to her swirl her around. She could have all of this but only if she would be his lover.

The Hymph’s Reply to the Shepherd by Sir Walter Raleigh

This poem explains that everyone leaves the nest. Everyone finds love and let their emotions run free. Just like birds cannot help but to migrate. Flowers begin to fade as people fall out of love. Every bud that freezes during winter blooms again and forgets, just as if it never happened, just like we do with our memories that were not too good.

week 10

My comments on

The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost

Frost talks about coming to a path and having to choose between which ways to go. One was more grasser and pleasant. The other path was rough looking and more difficult to travel on. Most people would not even give the second path a second glance. Everyone likes to take the easy way out. But, sometimes that’s not the best choice. Because, what do you get to learn by doing that? Taking the most difficult path when making life decisions, it makes a huge difference. You can most likely predict what the easy path or the one most traveled will bring you. It just sugar coats the issue and brings up another one. Not everything in life is going to be easy and bring you happiness but those moments are what make and break you. Those are the ones you always remember and learn from.

Storm Fear by Robert Frost

I think Frost is describing a winter storm. During this storm he is looking out the window and sees snowflakes falling fast as fast as snowflakes can fall. He hears dogs barking to come out and play with them in the snow storm. He does not even attempt to move. As he is looking out the window the fire starts to die out and the winter chills start to settle in. He watches as the yard and roads start to be covered by snow. He fears that everything will be gone and nothing will be left.

Fire and Ice by Robert Frost

Some people are very passionate about the way the world will end, others just want it to end but be preserved. If the world ends with fire, then, everything is destroyed and the only thing remaining is its aches. Everyone has to begin again. We have to start over from the ashes and rebuild everything brand new. But, if the world ends in ice things get preserved and wait to be used again. Something’s might get ruined but most stay intact and is available to be reused and restored. Either way, you are going to have to start over, maybe not from the ground but pretty close. Something’s you are going to have to throw away. Something’s you can freeze and go back later to solve or use it again.

If I Can Stop One Heart from Breaking by Robert Frost

Everyone likes to help others. His is just a way of nature. Everyone gets a broken heart at some point in their life. They need someone who cares and tries to understand how they feel. Maybe, they need someone to talk to. Maybe, they just need to know that someone is there for them. Sometimes you cannot help. Maybe, you do not know what to say or do. Maybe, you do not know how to take on the action that has been done. You feel like you have failed at something and you just cannot deal with that. You cannot hold it against yourself if it does not work and you cannot heal that person who is hurting. But, you will cherish every moment spent, that you have restored a beating heart. Your comfort is all that is needed. Words cannot solve everything because not everything needs words.

Water Is Taught By Thirst by Emily Dickinson

Everything is made by something else. If you did not have one thing the other could not exist. Everything is a repeating cycle that never ends. You have to have scars to show how things have been proved. You have to fall off your bike to learn how to ride. You have to move to experience new things.

week 9

My comments on

“The Chimney Sweeper” by William Blake

This poem is about a little girl whose mother died when she was very young and her father sold her. All she does is work from the break of dawn to dusk. She did not let anything get to her. She knew she was better than that. She liked to help people and make them feel better. When she helped one little boy, he told some of his friends what she said to him and that it made him feel better. Therefore, they would have hope too. Then later on, an angel came to Tom and talked to him. The angle told Tom that he was a good boy and that he had God and did not need anything else in his life. This made Tom super happy and he did not have a single fear in the world.

“My Papa’s Waltz” by Theodore Roethke

This is a poem about someone that is used to being abused by someone that drank all the time. It says there was whiskey on your breath that could make a small boy dizzy. It says no matter what my mother frown would or really could not go away. Not only was she unhappy but the boy was too and even the father was unhappy. Maybe that is why he was drinking. But, this still does not give him a reason to hit his son! He is not going to solve anything. I wonder what happened to make things this way. Was it something between the wife and husband? Was it something that happened in his family? Was it something to do with his job? Maybe, it was something between him and his son. So, he drank to make himself feel better but drinking made him violent and made him beat his child.

“My Mistress Eyes are Nothing Like the Sun” by Shakespeare

This poem is about a girl, a girl that he has falling head over heels in love with. He compares her beauty to the beauty of the world. He said her voice is like music to his ears. Nothing can compare to his feelings for her. Nothing could be or get any better than her. Her body is like nothing he has ever seen in his entire life. He said her walk is like what you could imagine a goddess’s walk would be like. He is in heaven and nothing can compare to her, not a thing. Nothing is more pleasant than her.