Portrait Theme

Entrapment

           Throughout the novel, Steven is consistently tortured by entrapment.  It is one of the novel’s on-going themes.  He is trapped by his need to be accepted.  He is trapped by his sexual urges, sexual behaviors, and the guilt caused by such.  He is trapped by his parents, society, and religion.  

          Steven is an extremist, and each portion of his life is dictated by his most recent obsession.  He becomes trapped within his obsessions.  For example, when he was trapped by his sexual desires, sex and the idea of sex overtook every aspect of his life.  He couldn’t even look at the word “Feotus” without being driven into masturbating.  When his guiltiness overtook his life, he wasn’t able to look at overcoats without seeing dying and decaying bodies hanging in cages. 

          This entrapment that Steven had to face throughout the novel, in multiple forms, was symbolically represented by his physical entrapment in Ireland.  Because of the time period and the culture, he wasn’t allowed to leave the island. 

Portrait Quote

“I will not serve." page 260

          Though this quote was short, it was too the point.  It was one of the strongest quotes in the novel.  An ongoing conflict that Stephen faces is his conformity and his inability to stand up and even fully believe his honest beliefs.  One simple line is able to exemplify Stephen’s transformation at the point at which it became complete. 

          In saying that he would not serve, this meant (indirectly) that Stephen was refusing to serve society. He was refusing to serve his own sexual desires.  He was refusing to serve his parents by ignoring what he wanted, and he was refusing to serve his religion in ways that he was not destined to serve it in. 

          This quote shows Stephen’s growth.  Along with showing the ideal mindset.  Through this quote, the novel is satisfactorily completed. 

"I will not serve"!!!

Portrait Reflection

                A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man was an enjoyable book with literary merit and subject matter that I felt helped to expand mind.  Though it wasn’t easy to read, the religious allusions, descriptions of Hell, and sexual scenes (that, when analyzed, have a much deeper and significant meaning) were enjoyable, thought provoking, and brought up intellectual conversations that I found be enjoyable.

                Another aspect of the work that drew my attention and provided for a great read was the accurate description of Ireland and the portrayal of the struggle that many young boys had to go through when society and family pressured them into religion and priesthood.  Though most young men did not go through experiences or mental torture so severe, the general struggles and ideas were similar. 

                One of my favorite details of the novel is Joyce’s new take on religion.  Joyce took religion and placed it into a new light.  Instead of ridiculing or praising religion, he was able to provide the social commentary that the affects of religion depend on how each person interprets religion.  The contrasting ideas from when all Stephen was able to see was Hell and when Stephen felt safe because he had confessed his sins show two contrasting aspects of the religion.  Religion can be something that scares people and makes them act like people they are not.  However, religion can also be something that makes people feel safe and causes people to behave in a more positively looked upon way. 

The Abortion

The Abortion – Anne Sexton - Pg 401

Somebody who should have been born
is gone.

Just as the earth puckered its mouth,
each bud puffing out from its knot,
I changed my shoes, and then drove south.

Up past the Blue Mountains, where
Pennsylvania humps on endlessly,
wearing, like a crayoned cat, its green hair,

its roads sunken in like a gray washboard;
where, in truth, the ground cracks evilly,
a dark socket from which the coal has poured,

Somebody who should have been born
is gone.

the grass as bristly and stout as chives,
and me wondering when the ground would break,
and me wondering how anything fragile survives;

up in Pennsylvania, I met a little man,
not Rumpelstiltskin, at all, at all...
he took the fullness that love began.

Returning north, even the sky grew thin
like a high window looking nowhere.
The road was as flat as a sheet of tin.

Somebody who should have been born
is gone.

Yes, woman, such logic will lead
to loss without death. Or say what you meant,
you coward... this baby that I bleed.

                This poem is obviously about abortion.  The poet is expressing her pro-life stance.  She states, almost directly, that aborted child was supposed to live; the aborted child was meant to be alive.  The last line (“this baby that I bleed”) expresses the idea that the abortion of each child is a loss to society, not only a loss to the mother.  That baby could have touched multiple people’s lives, but because that baby is no longer alive, the baby can no longer touch anyone’s life.

                Though the narrator’s opinions and my opinions are similar, the topic is still a very touchy and sensitive.   I have trouble reading about this topic.  The deep, sensitive topic was simplified into emotionless speech.  I understand why this was done, and I do view it as effective understatement. Regardless, it is difficult to read. 

                Repetition, particularly of “Somebody who should have been born/is gone”, adds to the meaning of the poem as a whole.  The repetition causes that sentence to stand out and make become memorable.  The understatement of the needless murders adds to the affect of the poem.  The use of italics makes obvious the importance of the statement and draws attention to the phrase. 

                Another literary technique used in this poem is allusion.  The poet alludes to Rumpelstiltskin.  The fairytale of “Rumpelstiltskin” objectifies children.  Children are offered as payment, used as bets, and thus seen as possessions or objects. In any abortion, the child isn’t viewed at as a human being.  Their deaths aren’t viewed as murders, but they are abortions, a crime that’s not even seen as a crime and had no criminal charge. 

Delta

Delta – Adrienne Rich – Page 391

If you have taken this rubble for my past
raking through it for fragments you could sell
know that I long ago moved on
deeper into the heard of the matter

If you think you can grasp me, think again:
my story flows in more than one direction
a delta springing from the riverbed
with its five fingers spread

Personal Interpretation:

                The poem “Delta” by Adrienne Rich is about moving on, moving forward, and how no person should have to face on-going judgments or ridicule for past mistakes.  The narrator also explains that she has depth.  There is more to her than what another person would be able to understand simply be observing her past.  The narrator uses herself as an example of a person who has made some petty mistakes in her past.  However, they do not define her and should not be looked upon as defining moments.  This is expressed through the connotation of particular words and the structure, particularly the symbolism in the rhyme scheme.

Literary Devices and Techniques: (Connotation and end rhyme)

                Rich’s choice of words such as “rubble”, “fragments”, and “flow” were not accidental, nor coincidental. 

The word “rubble” was used because it gives off a feeling of pettiness.  Had the narrator chosen to describe the moments from the past as garbage or disgusting moments, the past events would sound more drastic, severe, and negative than simple, petty rubbish.  With this word choice, the narrator was able to convey the idea that the past mistakes aren’t important; they’re petty.  They’re unimportant details.

The word “fragments” was used because they were only pieces in her life; they were not her life in its entirety.  That being one of the main reasons she did not want to be judged by her past. 

The word “flow” was used because her story continues on, not stopping.  A river flows, and a river will not stop because it is misunderstood and judged.  The narrator’s story flows, but being misunderstood and judged will not stop her.

               

Another literary technique that adds to both the meaning and experience of the poem is the end rhyme in this poem.  Additionally, the structure of this poem is symbolic of the narrator.  The first 6 lines don’t rhyme.  However, the last two do rhyme.  Her past did not flow without complications.  She did make mistakes.  Nonetheless, now her life (as she states, her story) flows.  The end rhyme also adds to the closure of the poem. 

Experience:

                This poem was short, simple, and abrupt, yet undeniably memorable and affective.  Moreover, it was relatable.  Every human being has made mistakes.  Everyone has regrets.  Sometimes, it seems easier to forget about the “rubble from my past”, but no one should.  The events are unavoidably there, but not defining.  My mind and spirit aren’t something that an outsider can grasp, even if they’ve seen my past, even if they’ve lived it with me.   Life keeps flowing in its many directions. 

 

The Handmaid's Tale

One of the topics and underhanded intentions that I felt Atwood had when writing The Handmaid’s Tale was making her opinion that politics and religion are destined to be intertwined at least slightly.  The current United States government tries desperately to separate religion and state.  Separating the two to the degree that we do often takes away individuality and takes away the freedom that we so desperately strive to achieve.  For example, our desperate attempts to keep religion out of the school systems have taken away our teachers’ rights to express their own religious views and opinions.  We’ve robbed them of their freedom to express their religious views and opinions in the work setting.  The Handmaid’s Tale shows the exact opposite in their society.  Gilead’s religion and politics are so closely intertwined that they are the same system.  Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale shows the dramatic effects that taking any extremist stance can have, in this particular case, the dangers of the extremist stance combining religion and politics. 

Atwood’s language and the details intrigued me, and I enjoyed reading her work entirely.  I had a lot of trouble picking just one quote, so I chose two.  Both of these quotes, I enjoy because of their analyses, language, and use of literary devises (particularly imagery). 

Pg. 140:  “… drive the sharp end into him, between his ribs.  I think about the blood coming out of him, hot as soup, sexual over my hands.”

I am going to walk you through my thought process for the purpose of your time and understanding of where I’m coming from.  First, I noted the phrase “coming out.”  I saw this as the freedom society and the people in society would reach if the Commander died.  Through his death, everyone would begin to come out of their entrapment.  His blood was described as “hot”.  I saw this as two things.  First, it represented the heat, fire, destruction and hellishness that the Commander was and represented.  Second, the heat could be seen as warmth.  And as we stated multiple times, sex is and represents power.  Her hands symbolize control.  This quote was used to show the freedom everyone would have if she killed him, the power and control she would have, and the desire she resisted in order to not murder the Commander. 

Pg. 211:  “… the round circle of plaster flowers.  Draw a circle, step into it, it will protect you.  From the center was the chandelier, and from the chandelier a twisted strip of sheet was hanging down.  There’s where she was swinging, just lightly, like a pendulum; the way you could swing a child hanging off a tree branch.  She was safe then, protected altogether.”

                Again, I am going to walk you through my thought process for the purpose of your time and understanding of where I’m coming from.  The wording is straightforward and emotionless.  “Circle” shows endlessness.  “Plaster” is fake.  “Plaster flowers” represent fake growth or a fake progression.  The protection the circle provided was a false sense of security.  A child is innocent, so a death that looks like a dead child would be the death of an innocent person.  Again, hands control, so the binding of hands would be the restriction of control.  The tree at the end of the quote is true growth which contrasts with the fake growth earlier in the quote.  Similarly, the last sentence contrasts with the false sense of security that the circle offers.  Death is true safety and security.  This quote points out the flaws of the society: the falsity, the lack of safety, and the allure of death because, as we were made aware multiple times, death is the only way to achieve true safety.  Additionally, this quote touches on the lack of control the people of Gilead had. 

                The Handmaid’s Tale was, by far, my absolute favorite piece that I have studied throughout my academic career.  I primarily enjoyed her usage of details and the messages the work was meant to convey.  I enjoyed the usage and utilization of human sexuality and the psychological aspects of the novel, including the human attraction of violence and suicide in points of desperation. 

Opinion on We

As a general, I enjoy dystopian works.  However, since we have already focused on a few other dystopian works, I’m ready to move on to a new topic.  Though the diction was, at times, enjoyable, other times if felt over done and somewhat forced.  The plotline was generally enjoyable, though predictable.  I also wish that the author didn’t try to force reoccurring ideas as much.  For example, the reoccurring use of scientific details were not always accurate and I often felt that another metaphor would better fit the example and purpose of the text.