Close Reading Assignment 4

Death in Connecticut
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/12/15/opinion/death-in-connecticut.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss&_r=0


In the editorial, Death in Connecticut, the author discusses the Newton, Connecticut elementary school shooting and the push for gun control that accompanies it.  The article appeals to pathos from the reader to emphasizes the importance of gun control through its use of emotional details, rhetorical questions, and dramatic word choice.

The topic of the article, an elementary school shooting, lends itself to a method to draw emotion out of the reader, and the author capitalizes on the fact by emphasizing specific details.  The children killed are described as "little more than babies".  The parents too who "agonized for hours before taking their traumatized children home."  These details provide information that allows the reader to step into the shoes of the parents, waiting to hear about their young child.  In this way, the author appeals to the sympathies of the readers and perhaps try to turn them towards increasing gun control.

Rhetorical questions are also used throughout the editorial as a method of obtaining the reader's agreement in increasing gun control and the tragedy of the shooting.  The beginning of the article asks questions about the children.  "What are their names? What did they dream of becoming? Did they enjoy finger painting? Or tee ball?"  These give life to the children, making them less statistics and more living, breathing humans, whose lives were tragically cut short.  It makes the reader think of them even more as individuals and not simply names or numbers.  In this way, the author appeals still more towards the compassion of the readers and makes his points more understandable.

Finally, the word choice used by the author create a sense of the horrors of shootings and the lack of gun control.  Words like "torn away" and "traumatized" emphasize the horror and tragedy in the shooting and may plant the seed in the reader's mind that something must be done to prevent more of such horrors from occurring.  The stance on continuing the current freedom of gun ownership is debased, describing the Republicans who support that belief as "mired" in their ideology, a word implying stubbornness and entrenched in something distasteful.  Equally condemning is the description of an argument that the teachers would be better off if they had guns as "grotesque".  The automatic connotation of such a word is disgusting and unpalatable.  Such word choice deeply conveys a disgust of the current system and provides support for the author's argument towards gun control.

Through these techniques, the author discusses the tragedy that took place in Newtown, Connecticut and points out society's need for increased gun control in an effort to prevent future shootings.  The editorial argues to push readers to support those who want to make the nation a safer place.

I Do (Not): The First Marriage of Jane Eyre

1997. Novels and plays often include scenes of weddings, funerals, parties, and other social occasions. Such scenes may reveal the values of the characters and the society in which they live. Select a novel or play that includes such a scene and, in a focused essay, discuss the contribution the scene makes to the meaning of the work as a whole. You may choose a work from the list below or another novel or play of literary merit.


Weddings are commonly seen as joyous occasions that celebrate love and an interrupted wedding never bodes well for the characters.  This can especially be seen in the classic novel, Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte.  Through the use of the incomplete wedding, the author divulges information about the plot, about the characters themselves, and about the society in which they live.

The interrupted wedding between Mr. Rochester and Jane first serves to provide the conclusion and solution to a mystery that had been plaguing Jane - and the reader - throughout her time at Thornfield.  There had been hints that something was not right scattered within the text, of the laughter Jane hears in the halls of the manor on occasion, and the mysterious figure who lights Mr. Rochester's curtains afire.  More ominous omens rested in the attack upon Mr. Mason and the woman who sneaks into her room and rips her wedding veil in two.  They are all explained during the wedding: Mr. Rochester is already married to a madwoman and therefore cannot marry Jane.  This also furthers the plot, as Jane feels required to leave Thornfield for good after her disastrous attempted wedding.  At its most basic level, Bronte uses the wedding to create a plot twist that pushes the plot forward.

The scene also provides more characterization to Mr. Rochester and Jane, however.  Jane had already been proven to be a woman who is very morally straight.  During the wedding scene, she refuses to go through or even stay with Mr. Rochester as Adele's governess after his deception is revealed.  Her morality would not allow it and she runs away.  This dedication  to her beliefs in the face of such adversary helps indicate Jane's internal strength.  On the other hand, Mr. Rochester shows his ability to be swayed by his feelings, passions, and desires in his determination to marry Jane without any thought for the consequences.  He hopes to live his life with her, even though she is not aware of much of his life.  Combined with his eventual fate of being injured and blinded in the fire that kills his wife, this scene illustrates the weakness of his character and moral compass.  Thus, the wedding scene reveals much to the reader about the characters themselves.

Aspects of Bronte's society can also be found in the scene.  For instance, the shock and dismay of the characters as Rochester's attempt at infidelity reveal a very different society from the one in which the modern reader lives.  Now, though it is still looked down upon, it is not unbelievable for characters to be unfaithful to their spouses.  Mr. Rochester's attempts of ridding himself of his wife would also be a much easier path; American society is much more accepting of divorce than England during the 1800s.  The modern reader can learn a lot about marriage customs and beliefs during 19th century England from this scene.  Furthermore, the story told about Mr. Rochester's marriage to Bertha Rochester reveals the nature of many marriages during the time in that the wife and husband do not have enough time to become intimate with each other's secrets.  The events in Jane's incomplete marriage therefore reveal much to the modern reader about the society in which Bronte lived.

Through the fiasco that became of what was meant to be a happy occasion for Mr. Rochester and Jane, Bronte shares a lot of information about the plot and characters of Jane Eyre, as well as of the society in which she and her characters live.

Death of a Salesman Summary

Arthur Miller

• author of Death of a Salesman
• wrote dramas and essays
• also wrote The Crucible

Setting

• centered around the house and yard - scenes not in the house achieved by ignoring the house walls
• house surrounded by tall buildings - possibly implying a city?
• takes place around the time of the publication of the play
• other settings include Howard's office, Charley's office, the restaurant, and a hotel room in Boston

Plot

Act 1

• Willy Loman returns home after being unable to drive to Boston
• He and Linda discuss their lives and their children - Biff's relationship with Willy comes up
• Happy and Biff talk - Biff reveals his discontent with Willy's dream for him
• Willy begins to talk in the past, setting stage for his later mental lapses
• First Flashback: Willy returns home for Biff's big game; Biff needs to score well in math to graduate, conversation with Linda and interaction with The Woman
• Conversation between Willy and Charley sets up Willy's jealousy and competitiveness in his friend, and Willy's cheating nature with the card game.
• Second Flashback: Ben arrives from past to tempt Willy and offer more history and advice - fighting with Biff, using dirty tricks to get ahead, Biff stealing from the builders
• Linda talks to Biff about loving Willy, how Biff has to either love them both or stop visiting, and Willy's attempts at suicide
• Argument between Willy and Biff; Happy proposes an idea about sports business.  Biff and Willy agree to call truce over it.  Willy reminisces over the past.

Act 2

• Much more optimistic beginning: breakfast and overall cheerfulness.
• Willy argues slightly over his old electronics and mending stockings, told he has been asked to dinner with the boys, wants to plant a garden, reminded to ask for a raise (work in the city)
• Conversation between Linda and Biff over the phone - emphasizes Linda's treatment of Willy as another child instead of as a husband
• Willy talks to Howard, demonstrates his incompetence (acts like the daughter, son, maid, and wife), and is fired - Willy's rantings show his reason for being a salesman
• Third Flashback: Linda and Ben argue over traveling out to Alaska (the woman makes the "wrong" move), Ben leaves and everyone is preparing to leave for Biff's big game, rivalry between Charley and Willy
• Willy goes to Charley's office, meets modern Bernard and sees success, asks where Biff went wrong - reveals some secret occurring in Boston when Biff went to ask Willy for help
• Charley and Willy talk about having a reputation and stating a reputation, Willy's being fired, Willy's jealousy of Charley, and Willy's incorrect belief in the importance of being liked - Willy provides another foreshadowing of suicide.
• Biff and Happy show up at the restaurant.  Happy focuses on getting the girls.  Biff tries to explain his meeting (or lack thereof) with Bill Oliver and his ensuing revelation, but constantly interrupted by Happy.  Happy advocates lying to Willy to keep him happy.
• Willy shows up and argues with Biff about Biff's past "successes", reveals he'd been fired, and makes assumptions about Biff's reception.
• Fourth Flashback: Bernard pounds on the door and tells Linda that Biff failed math and is going to visit Willy.
• Continued argument between Willy and Biff.  Biff promises to make things right, lies to Willy to snap him out of the past, and reverts back to arguing.  Biff tries to get them to stop but ignores them once the girls show up.
• Biff and Happy argue about caring about Willy.  Biff leaves and Happy and the girls follow him.
• Fifth Flashback: The scene in the Boston hotel room is revealed.  The Woman is how Willy gets special treatment and Biff, going to ask Willy to help him get his grade up, recognizes that Willy was lying and cheating.  Biff gives up on life here.
• Stanley interrupts Willy, is a decent sort, shows him to the hardware store and refuses to take money.
• Linda argues with Biff (and Happy) about leaving Willy behind.  Biff reveals self-hatred.
• Sixth Flashback: Not really a flashback, Ben steers Willy's thinking on insurance.
• Biff and Willy talk and argue.  Willy refuses to let Biff do anything other than his dream for him, continues to maintain belief in their abilities.  Biff cries to Willy and leaves.
• Willy sends everyone to bed, listens to his mental Ben, and drives away.  Car crash.

Requiem

• Only ones at the funeral were the Lomans and Bernard and Charley.
• Biff speaks of Willy not knowing himself.  Happy destined to follow Willy's footsteps.  Charley's opinion of Willy changes.
• The house is paid for.  Linda tells Willy that they are free.

Characters

Willy Loman

• Salesman, works under Howard, fired
• Believes in the importance of appearance above actual intelligence and training - "He's liked, but he's not well-liked."  "Because the man who makes an appearance in the business world, the man who creates personal interest, is the man who gets again.  Be liked and you will never want."
• Did not have a father figure growing up, never managed to find himself
• Refuses to accept any responsibility for the chaos around him
• Violent and mentally unstable towards the end, easily angered, sensitive - "Why do you always insult me?"
• Arrogant and self-important approach to life - "I am not a dime a dozen!  I am Willy Loman!"
• Beaten down by society - "He's a man way out there in the blue, riding on a smile and a shoeshine.  And when they start not smiling back -- that's an earthquake."
• Goal to be well-liked - "'Cause what could be more satisfying than to be... remembered and loved and helped by so many different people?"

Biff Loman

• Raised by his father on the importance of appearance
• Aspects of Oedipus Complex on his father instead of his mother
• Had the realities of Willy's life shoved at him to change his mind about following Willy's dreams - "You fake!  You phony little fake!  You fake!"
• Wants to use his muscles and just listen to himself instead of following others
• Fighting against society to properly earn his name - "What am I doing in an office, making a contemptuous, begging fool of myself, when all I want is out there, waiting for me the minute I say I know who I am!"

Happy Loman

• Generally ignored by most of his family.
• Determined to do the best he can with what he has.
• Believes in keeping up appearances but secretly hates working for others (subversion through other means). - "...Maybe I just have an overdeveloped sense of competition or something...  I don't want the girl, and, still, I take it and -- I love it!"
• Doesn't learn and will follow his father's footsteps - "I'm gonna show you and everybody else that Willy Loman did not die in vain...  It's the only dream you can have -- to come out number-one man."
• Hides his head under the grass and doesn't acknowledge what would make life complicated

Linda Loman

• Extremely forgiving to her husband - "He's the dearest man in the world to me, and I won't have anyone making him feel unwanted and low and blue...  I know he's not easy to get along with -- nobody knows that better than me -- but..."
• Is a sort of Madonna - treats her husband more like a son - "Just rest.  Should I sing to you?"  "Did you have some cheese?"
• Quiet strength and very firm in her beliefs - "Biff, dear, if you don't have any feeling for him, then you can't have any feeling for me."
• Illustrates the homely strength of women?
• Her dislike of Ben pushed her husband away from being "successful"?

Others

• Charley and Bernard: Foils to Willy and Biff -- Charley pushed his son to be strong academically and doesn't blow him full of hot air. - "And you never told him what to do, did you  You never took any interest in him."  "The Supreme Court!  And he didn't even mention it!"
• Stanley: Legitimately one of the few good characters in the play.  Had good intentions throughout.
• Ben: Represented success, but also the uncertain and unscrupulous life necessary to achieve it. - "Never fight fair with a stranger, boy.  You'll never get out of the jungle that way."  "The jungle is dark but full of diamonds."
• Howard: Illustrated the changing nature of human enterprise and the role of technology on it

Style and Voice

Point of View

• written as a play so no clear thoughts on characters' inner thoughts
• role as outside viewer attempting to understand the mystery and history of a dysfunctional family
• Willy's flashbacks provide a glimpse into himself and his memories
• The ranting by the characters provide source for understanding motive and inspiration.
• commentary on women through objectification and Linda - "I'd like to find a girl -- steady, somebody with substance."  "Somebody with character, with resistance!  Like Mom, y'know?"

Tone

• Changing tone but mainly pessimistic - cast negative light upon the American Dream
• all exaggerated emotions and tones - provide more archetypal responses and clearer understanding
• Brief moments of optimism punctured by dramatic irony and looming feeling of foreboding

Imagery

• Over-emphasis on objects (the various cars, the refrigerator, etc.) illustrate the materialistic society and its focuses
• Relatively vivid descriptions of characters and actions provide a deeper meaning to particular details that Miller wants to make evident
• Description of setting provide a constrained, jailed, and confined feeling - mirrors society's binds on the family
• Flute music (not always a flute in the movie, but close enough) described to provide a calming, pastoral feel, contrasting past with present

Symbolism

• Flute - past, less competitive and less materialistic times
• Garden/Jungle - place where things can be made to grow, the location where lives can be changed and names made, seeds are proper skills and tools necessary to be successful in the future
• Stockings - specifically serve as an overall reminder of Willy's infidelity, described as "expensive" by Linda who mends her own, given to The Woman as a gift, perhaps showing the cheating nature of the entire situation
• The Mortgage/The House - Willy's life, all of his money and efforts were in order to pay everything off and be in the clear, he dies when the final payments can be made, his mental and physical health deteriorate as the amount becomes closer to being paid off. - "There's more of him in that front stoop than in all the sales he ever made."
• Silver Trophy - Likely Biff's trophy from his state championship game.  Silver generally denotes second place, like Biff's dreams of passing math and getting a good career.  Willy still keeps it, like Biff's position as second-best, having never gone to college.  Also a symbol of Biff's "second-best" career goal?

Themes

• "The materialistic American Dream is a daily struggle that cannot be overcome through friendship alone and warps all who try."
• Willy focuses on being liked and friendship and dies struggling to be recognized.
• Bernard's success story focuses on education and dedication, allowing him to become successful through his own means.
• Those like Willy, Ben, and Biff who try to "cheat" the system end up cheating, lying, and stealing, and sometimes are still unsuccessful.
• Willy's dream for Biff is essentially the economic American Dream, which Biff, having learned from his father's mistake, refuses for his own dream, which focuses on hard-work and traditional farming.

Response to Course Material 4

So...  What have we done recently...?

Well, we finished up our discussion on Death of a Salesman.  In fact, I think the last time I wrote this, we hadn't even started discussing it yet.  At any rate, I liked seeing why we had to learn so much about Oedipus; while the whole story doesn't apply to Salesman, one of the articles we read (something about A Commodity Roosts or something like that) really brought out some points that made other aspects of it seem quite parts of the Oedipus story.  Biff's love for his father, the way it's manifested, and his reaction to Willy's betrayal all really brought out the fact that their relationship was definitely more than simply that of a father and son.  I also like the link it provides to Hamlet, which is also about father/son relationships, only in a much more complicated manner (Claudius is his step-father and his uncle).  Then there was the talk about The American Dream which links back to the play of the same title.  Both are about the focus of money in society and both seem to illustrate the problems, though one was a dramatic tragedy and the other a comedy (that was kind of really creepy).  It sort of reminded me of The Great Gatsby as well, because that book is also about how a focus on money can kill people, though it was more on the differences between old money and new money than obtaining money.  Still, it was about struggling against society (and the protagonist dies in both novels).

Then we moved on to Hamlet.  I enjoy reading plays in class; for me, it's more entertaining and easier to remember than watching a movie.  Granted, that could also be because I had missed part of the movie because of the Stratford trip.  But anyway, I both like and dislike the need to have to stop in the middle of reading.  While I understand that it is to go over certain aspects of the text that may be difficult to understand because of a lack of understanding in the society or language of the time, it also takes away from the overall picture of the text.  On the other hand, I came to enjoy Macbeth a lot when we went through analyzing it, so maybe I'll enjoy this as well.  I love seeing how clever Shakespeare is though, with his usage of parallels between Claudius' marriage to Gertrude and Henry's marriage to Catherine.  He's brilliant.

And... that's all I really have to say.  I look forward to reading more of Hamlet.