Journal #15

1. Write a sentence that summarizes the story’s overall message, and provide three direct quotes from the story that best illustrate this message.

The overall message throughtout the story was that war is a good thing. Soildes fight for their country and for their freedom, and they should be glorified bcause of this.

“If he could do something worthy to have won her--be a hero, her hero--it would be even better than if he had done it before asking her; it would be grander.”

“They selected me for captain, and I'm going to the war, the big war, the glorious war, the holy war ordained by the pocket.”

“No, girls don’t; women don’t, when they give their men up for their country. They think they’ll come marching back somehow, just as gay as they went”

2. What tactics does Editha use to make George believe as she does about the war?

She does many things to make him think the same way about war she does. A few things that she does is say that he must believe the same way she does or else she will not marry him. Also she would try to convice him that being a soilder would make him look like a hero, and he would be loved for this. And then she plays with his emotions and says that she agrees with his beielf, which make him want to follow what his wife says and become a soilder.

3. Is there ever a time in which Editha truly understands what she has done? Does she ever experience an epiphany?

There is only one moment when she disocovers what she had done. She has lost the love of her life, and she would never be able to get him back. Though, even after realizing this, she still beeilves that she made the right choise sending him to war. After being yelled at by her late husband’s mother, she finds herself intears, but soon, at the end of the story, with a talk with a women in the park, she is back to the idealistic views about war.

Journal #16

“Determinisim governs everything … The writer must study the inherited traits of individual characterand the social condition of the time. Together, these elements determine the course of any action, the outcome of any life. Free will or self-determination is mostly an illusion, although chance is granteed a role in human affairs. Still, even the effects of chance are obliterated in the inevitable course determined by the interaction of inherited character traits and the social environment.“

This quote is pretty much saying that the events that occur in someone’s life all come down to their previous actions and chance/ free will. This applies to both the story that we read in class and the movie that we watched in very similar ways. It applied to the movie, because in the movie the Swede dies because of a combination of free will, bad judjment, and the enviorment it is it. His enviorment caused him to die because the blizzard was what lead him to the hotel. If it had not been snowing, chances are that he would of not entered the hotel, and he would still be alive. Also, if he would of left when he wanted to near the beginning, instead of drinking with the hotel owner, chances are he would of also lived. The bad judjemtn killed him because he should of left when he had the bad feeling about the place. Also because he should not of had so much to drink, therefore not getting drunk and assaulting the man. And Lastly, he died because of chance. This is because it was just unlucky that he chose that hotel, and that the man that killed him also chose that hotel to stay in. Also it was very unlucky that he just had conflicting personalities than the people who were there. Overall, the Swede’s death was just of comination of the enviorment and being at the wrong place at the wrong time.

This quote also applies to the story that we read in class because, just like the movie, the man died because of chance, poor judjment, and the enviorment he was in. He died of poor judgment because he should not of have been out in the cold alone in such freezing temperatures. Also he should not of have wondered so far from camp, so far in fact, that he would not be able to make it back in time before the sun went down. He died becase of chance because it was just unlucky that he fell through the ice and got wet and numb because of the water, and if he would had not of fallen through, he might have made if back in time. And lastly he died because of the enviorment he was in. If he had fallen into water in Florida, it would not of been a problem, but since he was in the harsh conditions of Alaska and it was seventy below, the water ended up killing him. Both men in both of the stoires died because of bad combination of chance, bad choices, and the enviorment they were put in.

Journal #14

Journal #14 - E. A. Robinson Poems

“Richard Cory“ (497)

Richard Corys life seems perfect to everyone else in thw world, but it comes with a twist because actually he is very unhappy. At the very end of the poem he kills himself and finally people understand that there were more things going on under the surface then anyone could of guessed. His name is also a way to describe him such as Richard means that he was rich, and Cory means that there was more things going on in the core. This is an example of real vs. ideal because people thought he was an idea person but in reality, he was sad like everyone else.

“Miniver Cheevy” (497)

Miniver Cheevy is a guy who lives in the present, but he does not want to. He wants to live in the past, such as time of knights and dragons. He does not want to wear a suit and go to work like normal people, all he wants is to suit up in a armoured suit like old. His name is a play on words that means “minimum achiever” because he hasn’t done anything with his life. This poem is also an example of real vs. ideal because in the real life, he is borning, has empty meaning, and drinks away his pain. In the Idea world, or fantasy world, he would be happy.

“Mr. Flood’s Party” (498)

Mr. Flood is a very lonely guy. He is having a party that is not really a party at all because it is a party of one. He drinks all by himself, and while he drinks he takes a look at the past. His name Mr. Flood could mean that he floods his body with alcohol. This poem is the last example of real versus ideal because in real life he is very lonely and drunk. In the ideal world he could go back in his past life, just like Miniver Cheevy.