Journal #13: Zitkala-Sa

Although Zitkala-Sa ends her story with her conforming and “fitting in” to society, her story does not illustrate the American Dream coming true for her. Throughout the story she demonstrates her distrust and hatred towards the “palefaces”. This attitude towards the palefaces begins her first day arriving to the boarding school. The Native American children at the boarding school were given a very strict routine, an “Iron Routine”. Zitkala-Sa hated this, she even tells a story about one her friends dying from not getting rest or medical treatment. Although Zitkala-Sa learns English and learns to behave like an American child, she still sees herself as a Native American. This is strongly shown when she rejects the Bible. Throughout the entire story we see an internal conflict – she felt as though she had to choose between being American or being Native American, she did not think she could be both. At the very end of her story Zitkala-Sa was still not accepted into society. She shows the reader this when she is describing the audience at a contest she was in at college, “Here again was strong prejudice against my people”(p.438). She ends her story with a sense of defeat, “I laughed no more in triumph when thus alone. The little victory did not satisfy the hunger in my heart. In my mind I saw my mother far away on the Western Plaines, and she was holding a charge against me”(p.438). All in all, Zitkala-Sa was westernized, but she did not see this as a positive thing.

Journal #15: Border Patrol State

Ms. Silko,

After reading your essay “Border Patrol State”, I have come across some points that I do agree with and some that I do not. Overall, US Border Patrol along the New Mexico-Arizona-Texas borders has dramatically changed and become more aggressive. However, it is hard to say that it is a negative thing. Yes, some of the Border Patrol officers are very narrow-minded, angry, and aggressive people. But, those few officers should not be used to describe the entire Border Patrol force. In your essay one statement really stuck out to me when you said, “‘Immigration,’ like ‘street crime’ and ‘welfare fraud,’ is a political euphemism that refers to people of color. Politicians and media people talk about ‘illegal aliens’ to dehumanize and demonize undocumented immigrants, who are for the most part people of color.” First off, I do not believe that the Border Patrol is accusing only colored people of being these things. It just happens to be that in these Southern states colored people are the majority of people that do contribute to these matters. It would be no different than pointing fingers at the minority groups in the North – who are not all colored people. Immigration is not the problem in the US; it is illegal immigration. I do agree that calling illegal immigrants “illegal aliens” is offensive. Since I am Catholic I was brought up to believe that everyone is equal and deserves equal opportunities. However, we do not live in an ideal world. I do believe that immigrant should be treated the same and given the same rights to apply for US citizenship – which I am almost positive they do. My father himself is an immigrant, yet he is not a man of color. He is also not a US citizen to this day and people do not frown upon him for that. It is more so the actions of immigrants that define who they are, not the word itself. Overall, there are many things that are not right in this world and that do need to be brought to attention. Immigration is a huge issue globally. Sadly though, this is a world based on capital, politics, and power.

Journal #14: The Things They Carried

After reading The Things They Carried it really gave me insight to what war was like for soldiers in the Vietnam War. The Vietnam War has always intrigued me so I have seen many documentaries and mini series on this subject. Obviously, being a soldier would not be enjoyable, but it was not always up to the individual to decide whether or not they wanted to go to war, like Tom O’brien. In the beginning of this sequence of stories about Vietnam O’brien described the basic necessities that the soldiers carried, “…P-38 can openers, pocket knives, heat tabs, wristwatches, dog tags, mosquito repellent, gum, candy, cigarettes, salt tablets, packets of Kool-Aid, ligthers, matches, sewing kits, Military Payment Certificates, C rations, and two or three canteens of water”(p.1459). He then went into detail describing what other soldiers brought along with them – things they considered important. I would have carried photos and letters just like Lieutenant Cross did. I would carry photos mainly of my family and very close friends because it would give you something to look back on and encourage you that you are in war for more people than just yourself. Along with this I would carry a diary so that I could keep track of time and later on read about events of the past. Having a diary would also be helpful to write down express thoughts and emotions – it is a way of venting so that you do not have to keep everything you have endured on your mind 24/7. It would also serve a purpose after the war and could be passed down for generations, history is very important in society. One thing that I own today that I would have taken with me is a Saint Michael the Archangel pendant I have blessed by the Pope - for Catholics he is considered a guardian angel. I am not extremely religious but I take it with me places that I feel I will need help with matters that are beyond my control. It would give me a sense of hope and peace of mind. 

Journal #12

My favorite one sentence from Hawai'i's Story by Hawai'i's Queen is from Chapter One: A Sketch of my Childhood. The sentence reads: "Rent, eviction of tenants, as understood in other lands, were unknown; but each retainer of any chief contributed in the productions of his holding to the support of the chief's table". This quote is my favorite because it really stuck out to me and grabbed my attention and made me think of what it would be like to live a life like that. In the United States most people know what rent and eviction is by a very early age. The fact that these did not exist is pretty exciting. The fact that these Hawaiians worked together, for each other and trusted each other enough to not have to install these duties is quite sensational. The value of life in Hawaii was, and still is, something alien and estranged to our society today. 

Journal #10: The Aha! Moment

The moment of enlightenment I came to happened in two very different points in the “Learning to read” and “The Wife of his Youth” texts. In Frances E.W. Harper’s “Learning to Read”, I was able to identify that she was a black woman and probably a slave within the first stanza. Throughout the poem, Harper describes the lengths at which slaves went to in order to learn how to read. Once the narrator of this poem had finally learned how to read, she then bought a cabin, “And I felt independent / As the queen upon her throne”. Literacy brought her liberation and gratitude – she was able to control her own life.

In Charles W Chesnutt’s “The Wife of his Youth”, it was not until after ‘Liza Jane had come and talked to him that I realized who Mr. Ryder really was – Sam Taylor. At first I suspected that Mr. Ryder was Sam Taylor when he began questioning why ‘Liza Jane had been looking for this estranged husband for 25 years and asking her what if this man was already married, or dead. However, My Aha! Moment occurred when Chesnutt writes, “When she had turned the corner, he went upstairs to his bedroom, and stood for a long time before the mirror of his dressing-case, gazing thoughtfully at the reflection of his own face” (Chesnutt). Picturing this in my mind helped me to identify where the rest of the story was going to go. On another note, I did not realize that Mr. Ryder was a mulatto, or mixed blood, until Chesnutt had actually stated it. At first I thought he was white, then I thought he was a light skinned black, and then I thought he was white again – the idea was going back and forth through my head the entire time until it was actually in writing. The most significant thing about Mr. Ryder being mixed is that he believed, “… we people of mixed blood are ground between the upper and the nether millstone. Our fate lies between absorption by white race extinction in the black. The one doesn’t want us yet, but may take us in time. The other would welcome us, but it would be for us a backward step…” (Chesnutt). This shows the readers that Mr. Ryder believed in the social structure of that time: (1) whites, (2) mulattos (3) African Americans.

Finally, the one thing that I observed that these two texts have in common is the “American Dream”. Both Mr. Ryder and the woman in “Learning to Read” were able to come from a very low-point in society to a higher, more dignified one. In “Learning to Read” her ambitions were not as grand as Mr. Ryder’s. However, buying her own house made her feel like a queen. Mr. Ryder came from working on a plantation, although free, was still going to be sold. He had escaped that and become the head of the Blue Veins Society, had a nice house in a nice neighborhood, and finally was reunited with the love of his life. Both texts show and can inspire readers that however big or small your dream may be, it is possible to obtain.

Journal #9

There are many contemporary connections seen between today and the years 1865-1914. I could write on politics, entertainment, sports, and education if I had the time to. However, I have chosen to focus on the contemporary connections of entertainment and technology between the post-civil war era and modern day. In the years 1865-1914 fiction was the primary source of entertainment. Fiction was popular in American literature because of the Industrial Revolution. Fiction is a form of narrative or piece of work that deals with information and/or events that are NOT factual. An example of modern day literary fiction would be the Twilight book series and TV shows such as The Vampire Diaries and True Blood. These are very popular in today’s culture. In the post-civil war era, fiction was a major change from pre-civil war American literature. People now had more accessibility to books because they were cheaper to manufacture. Print was now not only cheaper it was also faster. This is very similar to the modern day Internet. The Internet has allowed America to advance in the world. The Internet has not only had a global affect, but it has had a personal one as well. It has allowed the access of nearly anything someone would want to know. The Internet has not only brought about the ability to communicate with people faster; but it has also allowed for a more widespread access to books, magazines, and newspapers. Similar to 1865-1914, the price of producing books is becoming cheaper. Now that people can buy and read books on their computer, iPhone, iPad, Kindle, etc., there is less demand for paper books. Even schools are beginning to use online books and sources. The ability to access books on the Internet not only makes the manufacturing of them cheaper, but is also faster!

Journal #7 - Abolitionist Poetry

Speaker:

Both Frances Harper and John Whittier wrote their poems placing themselves as the speaker. John Whittier was an abolitionist who opposed slavery and the idea of mandatory colonization in Africa. He also favored emancipation and the education of slaves. (p.1221) In his poem, “The Hunters of Men”, Whittier characterizes slaveholders as the “hunters of men”. The process by which these slaveholders obtain their slaves is comparable to a man who is hunting a fox. One quote that clearly demonstrates the speaker’s point of view is when Whittier writes, “All mounting the saddle, all grasping the reign; / Right merrily hunting the black man, whose sin / Is the curl of his hair and the hue of his skin!” (lines 23-26). By exhibiting that the only difference between slaves and white people is their appearance, nothing else, Whittier stimulates the reader’s emotions to the injustice of slavery.  In the poem, “The Farewell of a Virginia Slave Mother to her Daughters Sold into Southern Bondage”, Whittier praises the hardships that slaves have gone through and have survived. He epitomizes how horrible it would be to have the life of a slave; slaves have no mothers, siblings, families, or children to comfort them after being worked to the bone and beaten all day. However, slaves have found their only love and comfort in God, “Oh, may He, to whom alone / All their cruel wrongs are known, / Still their hope and refuge prove, / With more than a mother’s love” (lines 65-68). By showing that slaves believe in God just as the whites do, Whittier appeals to the majority of the population – mainly Christians at this time. Frances Harper is another poet who helped persuade the audience of this time to take action against slavery. In her poem, “The Slave Mother”, Harper tells the story of a son being taken from his mother, in-depth. She describes the hopelessness, pain, agony, depression, and overall emotion of a slave mother losing her son. By doing this Harper is allowing the audience to empathize with slaves, especially if the audience happens to be a mother or father. She describes the mothers feelings toward her son when she states, “His lightest word has been a tone / Of music round her heart, / Their lives a streamlet blent in one - / Oh, Father! Must they part?” (lines 29-32). In this stanza, Harper captivates the reader both emotionally and religiously. The thought of losing a child is terrifying to most people. Also, she uses the word “Father” which is also a term used to refer to God. Both these poets call attention to the inhumane treatment of slaves and how much pain and suffering they actually have to bear. By doing so, they are reaching out in hopes for their audience to stand up and oppose slavery.

Journal #5 - The Theme

One thing that William Apess and Lydia Sigourney had in common was that they both wrote about the plight and mistreatment of Indians, especially by the white man. Since Apess was, in fact, a Native American of the Pequot tribe, he had a very in-depth perspective about the abuse and injustice the Native Americans were experiencing at this time. Sigourney, on the other hand, was not a Native American. However, she advocated for Native American and women rights. Both Apess and Sigourney were devout Christians, which is probably what lead them to believing this treatment of Indians was inhumane. Both Apess’s, “An Indian’s Looking Glass for White Man” and Sigourney’s poem, “Indian Names” expose how cruel and monstrous the white man was to the Native Americans. Furthermore, these two writings exemplify how ignorant the white man was during this time period. One example from Apess’s writing that demonstrates this belief is when he writes, “ If black or red skins or any other skin color is disgraceful to God, it appears that he has disgraced himself a great deal – for he has made fifteen colored people to one white and placed them here upon this earth”. Here Apess expresses, through religion as he often does, that there is, in fact, no superior race in this world. On this note, Apess also addresses the white population by affirming; “…you know as well as I that you are not indebt to a principle beneath a white skin for your religious services but to a colored one”.  During the time period in which Apess wrote, most whites that lived in the United States were Christians. So, by asserting this fact, he is implying that whites are ignorant to the religious beliefs and principles in which they practice. Lydia Sigourney also demonstrates how naïve and ignorant these settlers were towards the Native Americans. In her poem, “Indian Names”, Sigourney basically gives a list of places in the New England colonies that are named after Indian tribes; yet, the Indians are no longer allowed to live there due to the Removal Act of 1830 and the killings of many Native Americans. One quote from her poem that exhibits this fact is when she presents to her readers, “Your Mountains build their monument/Though ye destroy their dust”. Overall, the main theme characterized in these two writings is the white mans ignorance to the Native Americans influence in their lives and surroundings. 

Journal #4 - The Explication

In the story, “The Tenth of January” by Elizabeth Stuart Phelps, the main characters play a huge role in setting the plot, themes, symbols, and conflicts of the story. In literature we can evaluate a character three ways: what the individual says, what the individual does, and what others say about the individual. The protagonist, Asenath Martyn, is described as being a cripple her entire life, having a scarred face, and very unattractive physically. When Sene was a kid she recalls a time when she went to get coffee and the children on the street yelled, “‘Humpback! Humpback!’ cried the children, —the very children who could leap and laugh”. It is described throughout the story how embarrassed Scene is about her appearance. All the other girls, especially Del Ivory, are beautiful young ladies who have no trouble finding a potential husband. A short flashback comes into Sene’s mind when she remembers a time when she was younger, playing with Del, and they were talking about their future husbands. Del responded to Sene’s thoughts of having a husband with, “‘yours!’ Del shook back her curls; ‘who do you suppose would ever marry you?’” Sadly, Asenath still agreed with Del on that matter – who would want to marry a cripple over someone like Del Ivory? This causes the main conflict throughout the story when Asenath discovers that her future husband, Richard Cross, is actually in love with Del. Scene cannot decide whether she should set Dick free so that he can marry his true love Del, or if Sene should stay with him so she does not have to be alone with her father her entire life – she turns to God for help. It is frequently said throughout the story that Asenath is religious, she feels like she has to be in order to find some good in her life. On the tenth of January, God answers Asenath’s internal conflict. After the mill had crashed and Sene awoke, her ring finger was missing. Scene began to reminisce on her life, “Life—even her life—grew sweet, now that it was slipping from her”. Sene ends up dying after her father’s hard attempt to save her. Asenath Martyn is a depiction of life itself. Even though she had every hardship thrown at her (i.e. being crippled, humpback, ugly, having no friends, no family beside Old Martyn) she still found happiness throughout her life. When Sene is in the mill about to be burned to death, she simple comforts a child and keeps her calm. Sene is a prime example of showing how good can be found in everyone’s life, even the most unfortunate. 

Journal #3

Washington Irving’s short story, “The Wife”, demonstrates that Americans value marriage in the highest form. Marriage is portrayed as the ultimate happiness for a man, rich or poor. In the short story Irving speaks about a friend of his that said, “I can wish you no better lot than to have a wife and children”. Marriage is seen as being more gratifying than being single because of the unconditional love, support, and they are “monarchs”.  Women should support their husbands and be there for them when they are in need. The story describes a rich man who has lost his wealth – yet his wife is more beautiful, happy, and optimistic than ever. Therefore, the woman plays the backbone of the marriage. She can provide everything her husband needs to get back on his feet, or vice versa. This short story shows that economics in America at this time fluctuates very quickly. One minute a man can be rich and powerful, the next he can be poor living in a cottage. Money is a very powerful aspect of what a man uses to define himself. If it were not for marriage, or women, money could cause a man to “fall to ruin like some deserted mansion, for want of inhabitant”.

Journal #2

The print culture played, and still does play, a huge role in developing our society. In the reading, print culture played a huge role in unifying the colonies. It brought people of all different backgrounds and diversities together. It also encouraged literacy, which greatly benefited the American society. People in each part of America, rural or urban, had access to the same information. Although the most common book found in peoples house during this time was the Bible, it was still a good source to teach people to read so that when more popular books were written most of the society would be literate. Thomas Paine’s Common Sense proved that the print culture did, in fact, unify this country. In the book, it says that Benjamin Franklin said that he had never heard “from any person sober or drunk” the idea of supporting independence until Common Sense was written. Having said this, print culture is also huge in our society today. Sure, people have different and opposing opinions, but overall we agree on the more important issues. Print enables citizens to be active, up-to-date, and involved in their societal issues. The modern day version of print culture is mainly found online through various websites. However, each website, television channel, magazine, etc. has a way of unifying the people who read or watch it. For example, depending on what News station you watch can indicate what political party/ideas you affiliate with. Print will always be a unifying source.

Journal #1

My definition and idea of what an American is has not changed. I consider an American to be a free, equal, and patriotic person. Americans are given many opportunities; it is how they go about utilizing these opportunities that define what kind of American they are. American history is filled with powerful people that have changed social inequalities. Sure America is not a perfect country. Every country has their flaws like South Africans apartheid. However, as a country of free people we have been able to become more educated and learn from our mistakes. For example, even though America used to be a land of racism, people like Martin Luther King, Abraham Lincoln, and Harriett Beecher Stowe helped change that. The present day American has shown to be very patriotic after September 11^th. Of course, not every single person living in America shows every aspect of what an American is. But, when Americans are put to the test, they show their true patriotism. A recent example of this is all the soldiers that have gone to war in the Middle East to help people that do not have the same opportunities we have been given. If you were to ask any American what they would use to symbolize America they would most likely say freedom, equality, the American flag, the president, etc. It is in this mindset that Americans are defined.