Sunday, March 25, 2012

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest Blog #2

 I would say that McMurphy is definitely getting the best of his rivalry at this point because he is gaining the trust and the support of all the acutes in the ward. He has them following him and taking after the things he does. They're all against the Big Nurse and she's starting to slip at her job. During one of the meetings Nurse Ratched holds, she brings up the relationship Harding and his wife have and after the discussion where all the patients were criticizing Harding, McMurphy explains to Harding that the Big Nurse is a cruel, viscious woman. While Harding disagrees at first, he finally sees that she is evil and mean and goes on to say that they are all bunnies being ruled by a wolf. She is able to manipulate the patients and turn them against each other and this is seen in the meetings. McMurphy steps in and says that they should turn against her. They start to believe him more and more.
My perception of Chief at this point is still that he's very confused. He still sees fog, but it seems that he's starting to come around. We can see that McMurphy has influenced him, as well as many of the other patients, but it's still hard to tell what Chief thinks of all of this. When McMurphy came, he began to start understanding more things and realizing things he had been to afraid to face. His narration changes because things become a little more clear and he picks up on a lot of details. He is starting to think more for himself when McMurphy has arrived and this changes his character in the whole.
I'm not only rooting for McMurphy to overthrow Nurse Ratched, but I'm also rooting for Chief to get out of the fog he's in and come around to his senses. I think it would be neat to see Chief finally confront people about who he really is and I think that with McMurphy's help he can do that. I'm rooting for McMurphy to overthrow Nurse Ratched because I can tell the patients in this ward need something to look forward to, to aspire to, and to get out of the hell they think they're living in. As for Chief, I'm rooting for him to become the old self he used to be before he came to the ward and before everyone ignored him.

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest Blog #1

In One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Nurse Ratched, or Big Nurse, seems to be immediately portrayed as the villain. She wants everything her way, and she does that at everyone else's expense. When McMurphy, the "new guy" comes to the ward, he seems to be the hero. He immediately makes friends with everyone, making sure to shake everyone's hands, including the people who can't even move. We see him as the hero because he is trying to make things right and he rebels against the twisted environment Big Nurse has created. We even hear Bromden say that McMurphy's laugh is the first true laugh they've heard in years. That almost creates a response that everyone trusts him. However, since McMurphy rebels, we have to categorize him as an antihero because while he doesn't do things that are necessarily right or moral, what he does is in the best interest of everyone and he's standing up against an abusive and powerful dictator. This makes him an antihero because we are still for him, even though he breaks rules.
Any other characters at this point don't have a category because we don't see them as really a hero or villain; therefore, they remain characters that just fill in the space for the moment.

Friday, March 2, 2012

Final Gatsby Reading Blog (Chapters 7-9)

1. What is the main theme Fitzgerald displays throughout this book?
Though there were many themes in The Great Gatsby, the theme I saw displayed throughout the book most prominently was the idea of unfulfilled goals and ambitions. This is first seen through Tom when we see how he is always trying to live out his college days, but obviously can not. He fails in the end because not only does he Daisy, but he loses Myrtle too. He went from having a wife and a back-up woman as his mistress to having no one at all. Gatsby also tries to reenact what used to be of his and Daisy's relationship while they were younger. He goes to extremes to make this happen, but in the end he fails. While he does end up with Daisy's love, she still loves Tom too, and he ends up getting killed; all for nothing, one could say.

2. What can we infer from Gatsby's unconditional love for Daisy?
While Gatsby may have unwanted feelings for Daisy, he loves her nonetheless. He would go to the ends of the earth and back a million times if that's what it took to get her to love him. His unconditional love for Daisy shows that he is a character of time, management, and tenderness. He will do what it takes for however long it takes. He is willing to do anything, and this shows that he has passion. This also shows that he is a caring person. While he displays some shady characteristics, he is a deep, heart-filled loving person and his main goal is to achieve the love of Daisy's heart. While most people's dreams are with expensive things and special needs, he wants a girl. He does consume very materialistic properties, but it is not for his own desire; it is all for Daisy, which makes him a generous and caring person.

3. They eyes of T.J. Eckleberg are referred to in Chapter 8 as God by George Wilson. For what purpose does Fitzgerald use symbolism throughout the story to emphasis a possibly higher power?
Throughout the entire book, the reoccurring eys of T.J. Eckleberg are mentioned. In Chapter 8, Wilson refers to the eyes as God and this then allows us to reach back into the beginning of the book to see how it could have symbolized a higher power earlier on. The eyes overlook the industrialized area of the city, which means that there is a higher power always watching. People are trying to do things that are good, because they are being judged. At the end, Wilson says he wants to get away, which means that he wants to go away with Myrtle, out of the eyes' reach. People in the industrialized area of town are all being watched and try to keep a good reputation so the higher power will see what "good" they have done. This shows that the people are only trying to live a good life so that they won't be judged, and not that they are just wired that way, thus showing the people living there are only worried about their outward appearance, whether than living a good life of humbleness and simplicity.