The Birthmark

"The Birthmark"

Nathaniel Hawthorne 

I was very confused with this story by Hawthorne. This piece of literature is all about science. Aylmer is a character who was presented to be evil. He seems to be a character to think nothing is too complicated to figure out. Aylmer viewed everything as wrong no matter what it was. For example, he thought Georgiana's face was messed up on her left cheek with a deep interwoven mark. In my opinion, Aylmer is trying to be like God and go above God's creations. I think Aylmer is simply a stock version of a mad scientist. In one way he might be regarded as an idealist because he is influenced by ideals that often conflict with practical considerations. 

Aylmer thought he could remove the birthmark. To Aylmer, the birthmark resembles a mark of earthly imperfection. Is he playing God? It seems that he is going to try with all his might to. It amazes me that she gave into him about removing this mark from her. Especially when she said, "no matter the cost." I knew he was playing God when he said, "doubt not my power."

I think Georgiana loved Aylmer more than he did her. This is because she tells Aylmer to find a way to rid the birthmark from her face. Aylmer is characterized as guilty of the sin of pride. Georgiana took pride in her appearance until Aylmer stared at the mark after they got married. He then thought of a special formula to get rid of it. If he loved her, he should not have judged her of the mark that he said was an imperfection.

Despite the risks to Georgiana, Aylmer conducts his experiments in the hope and expectation of achieving a higher goal. He devotes his life to science, and yet he is an egotist. Aylmer places his self at the center of the world and not being concerned with the one he loves. It is like he loves himself and his powers. He is concerned that his powers are mightier than God's. I see him as being the devil and seeing everything as an imperfection. It is like he can do everything right with no mistakes.

The Bride Comes to Yellow Sky

"The Bride Comes to Yellow Sky"

Stephen Crane

Stephen Cranes piece of literature entitled The Bride Comes to Yellow Sky is a representation of crime that happens in the town of Yellow Sky. Crane's setting, theme, characters, and action is a picture of rivalry between the east and west. This piece of literature was quite confusing for me at first while reading. The nature of the conflict that Marshal Potter feels on the train in Part 1 of the story is the fact that he married his bride and had uneasy feeling about taking her back to Yellow Sky where none of the townspeople know he is a husband now. He feels he has committed a "crime" in bringing home a bride to Yellow Sky. I think he may feel uneasy because he is unsure of how the townspeople are going to react.

The Drummer is a traveling salesman who loves to talk. The Drummer was telling some tales and not sure what was going on in Yellow Sky. He is a new-comer to the town and seemed swayed between the interest of a foreigner and perception of personal danger. The drummer kept asking questions and paying no attention to what the bartender was telling him. The bartender was telling the drummer to get behind the bar because that was probably the safest place for him to be. The drummer kept refusing until he realized it might be much safer. 

There are many details to support the story's theme of being Western. For example, the bride wore a dress of blue cashmere. It had small reservations of velvet in different places with steel buttons. The dress also consisted of puffy sleeves that were stiff, straight, and high. Scratchy Wilson wore a maroon colored flannel shirt. The revolving guns that some people carried also go along with the Western theme.

"Killings"

"Killings"

Andre Dubus

Killings by Andre Dubus was a very interesting piece of literature. It is all about revenge and retaliation which is an action taken in return for an injury or offense. At the beginning, Matt Fowler had to take part in a terrible event that no parent could ever imagine; burying his son Frank. This raises questions of whether or not committing murder is fair or unfair. If someone killed my son, I would take revenge by murdering that person. I understand there were some mixed emotions and point of views while reading this story. My feelings about Matt's act of revenge is lawful. The emotions that Dubus produces from this character are very emotional. As I was reading, I got emotional because Matt had to bury his youngest son and knowing the suspect was out and about made me very angry. Of course some of us would want revenge, but I would take matters in my own hands. The saying, "an eye for an eye" could possibly be the right course depending on the situation. For a situation like this, it would be the right course in my opinion.

The title is very interesting. Dubus chose the title "Killings" instead of "Killers" because there was only one killer but two killings. Matt was trying to protect his family. I would have probably done the same actions that Matt did. Being a parent of a boy or any children, I feel that it is a parents right to harm someone if their child was involved. I love my son more than anything in the world and do not want to see him being hurt or mistreated.

The family of Matt will never be able to live life like they once did. This left an impression on the hearts of the family. Now they will have to live life with having flashbacks of this horrible event. I would have no compassion on the person who was to kill or even harm my child. Therefore, I have no compassion on Strout. It really bothered Ruth because there was swelling beneath her eyes that gave the readers an image of how she suffered.

The point of view that Dubus presents is that he is "in" the family. Matt is very protective of his family. Dubus makes this picture seem like reality. My imagination was like I was there throughout the whole story and seen all the events. The effects of Dubus's ordering of events in the story made me very suspenseful. I was on the edge of my seat wondering what would happen next. If these events were told in chronological order, the story would not have been as suspenseful or inviting to read.

Before Frank's murder, the Fowler family seemed like they were happy and loving. Matt Fowler seems like a kind hearted man to go to any extreme for his family. Matt and Ruth seem to have a loving relationship. The murder of Frank happens and it rips the family apart with hatred. It affects the family because Matt feels justice should be served, but he takes matters into his own hands.

At the end of the story, Matt tells his wife about the killing. Matt seems at ease for causing Strout's killing in consequence for killing his son Frank. Ruth was petting and hugging Matt. It was really shocking to know that Ruth was all for the killing of Richard Strout since he killed her son. As she was lying there in bed, she wanted Matt to tell her the details. She was very eager to know what happened while he was gone.

"A Rose for Emily"

William Faulkner

While reading this passage I was really confused. I was confused because there were no explanations and many unanswered questions. This is a Southern tale of a young lady who has been sheltered most of her life. Emily’s father would not allow her to find a suitor and marry him. She lived a disclosed life. I am assuming that Emily had no suitable suitors because of her background and father. Emily appeared to be very respected in the small town in which she lived. The town’s people felt sorry for Emily because they would always say, “Poor Emily.” After her father passed away, she found her a suitor named Homer Barron. When she had gone to get the poison arsenic, I think she had intentions of keeping Homer as her suitor forever. My first thoughts were she was buying the poison to kill herself, but it turns out she murdered him. It raises the question that, “If you loved someone, why would you kill them?” My attention was directed to the passage that she had slept with his dead body for so long. There is no way I could have done that. I also could not imagine living somewhere that I could smell a rotting corpse. At the end, I was left in suspense about the gray hair left on Miss Emily’s pillow. This story left me hanging with some missing details.

The Story of an Hour

"The Story of and Hour"

Kate Chopin

As I was reading this piece of literature, the first thing I noticed was Mrs. Mallard was affected by “heart trouble”. It was ironic to me that the condition was noted in the beginning. Mrs. Mallard does not grieve as we would if we lost our husband. Once her sister Josephine told her the news of her husband’s death, she would repeat over and over: “free, free, free!” This led me to believe that the relationship between her and her husband may have been too controlling like a prisoner in jail. She was not very vocal on the relationship. This piece of literature makes me believe that Louise was unkind and over protective of Mrs. Mallard. When she hears of his death, her feelings are over excitement because she can go on about her life without someone telling her what to do. I got the reaction that Mrs. Mallard was rejoicing over her husband’s death. In today’s society, people who lose their husbands show sadness and sympathy. There are many sensory images expressed in this passage. The sensory images in this passage made my imagination seem realistic. I could taste and smell the delicious breath of the rain, hear the sparrows twittering, and see the patches of blue sky as I just let my imagination wonder. For Mrs. Mallard, the vision through the open windows means freedom and no instructions from a man. In the story, Josephine represents the sympathetic person. Josephine shows sympathy and caring for Mrs. Mallards feelings. Mrs. Mallard is described as descending the stairs “like a goddess of Victory.” She feels herself victorious because she has freedom and has a new beginning of life by adapting to being a widow. The view of this marriage represents attitudes toward marriages in the nineteenth century. Marriages these days do not compare to those in the nineteenth century. I think Mrs. Mallard would feel better off dead than to have to deal with this was of living for years to come.

Introduction

Hello my name is Ashley Krapish. I am 26 years old. I am married to a wonderful guy. We dated 9 years and recently got married. I have a son which is 9 and will be turning 10 in November. I love my family and would do anything for anyone. The picture that you see is of my Grandmother and I. We recently had to place her in a Nursing home. She raised me since I was 2, so she is like my Mom. She has the severe stage of Dementia. The severe stage is the last stage that a person can have when dealing with this disease. I graduated from CCC&TI in May 2009 with my A.A.S. in Medical Office Administration. Unfortunately, there were no jobs. So, I am currently coming back for the Radiography program. I am taking English 113, Psychology 241, and my CNA class. I am staying busy all the time as you can see. I love to read many different books. I loved the Twilight series. I also like Nicholas Sparks, and V.C. Andrews. I read to my son and he reads to me. Well this is a little bit about me. I am looking forward to this semester. Good luck to you all!  :)