Vocab Story #8

Now, we've all heard the story. Hey diddle diddle, the cat and the fiddle, the cow jumped over the moon... But how in the world did a cow manage to jump over the moon? Cows stand in fields of grass and make weird noises, which is not the proper criterion for moon-jumping. Humans took their entire route of evolution to come close, and didn't even reach the moon until 1969, a mere 45 years ago.
        I think we can all rationalize that cows do not come equipped with rockets. We are all cognizant of the fact that the human brain is much more advanced than that of a cow. Humans are notorious for being the most advanced species, whereas all we impute cows for is their ability to chew abnormally loudly.
        Maybe this story is supposed to be a presage, warning us of the future, when cows take over the human race. Perhaps one day a brave cow will venture to jump over the moon. Hopefully, if this time comes, cows will also become conscientious of the fact that they can't breathe in space. It seems reasonable to make a prognosis that this is how the cow population will be wiped out. One day they'll be grazing peacefully, the next a rebel among them will doom the entire species.
        Maybe, though, the cows are already the dominant species, and are simply too smart to reveal their hypocrisy. They could be planning to overtake the human race in time, and we would never know. Perhaps every night after the human farmers go to bed, they have frenetic meetings about the date of this event.
        It is most likely that cows are the same animals we see in fields next to roads, lazing in the sun and grazing near streams. They probably don't run secret cow covens or rebel armies. But the story is always told a certain way, with the cow jumping over the moon. Perhaps only the author knows the cows' secret. There's something to think about.

The Right Stuff

So this story is incredibly realistic. I know that these are real people and such, but the author just brings the story to life. I can't imagine living in a state of constant fear of my husband dying. Especially not in the fifties and sixties where technology was. to very advanced, but the author can. This is only chapter one and I'm already attached to the characters. I don't want Jane to be alone. I want the wives to stop calling, and I want Pete to continue his lucky streak. I'm scared that on each page Pete will come plummeting down to his death. And again this is only chapter one.

Beat the Devil Review

Beat the Devil is a witty depiction of a classic story, an attempt at eternal life. A life full of fortune and fame, everything thing you could ever ask for. But this famous life is on a timer and everyone wants more. Everyone is greedy. This includes the character James Brown, played by himself. He is unable to give up his star life even though the contract is running out and approaches the Devil (Gary Oldman) to renegotiate. The director, Tony Scott, uses editing techniques to make this film all the more dramatic. With the use of color editing and still frames the drama is more intensified. The Driver (Clive Owens) stays remarkably calm even when his life is put on the line for Brown's fortune and fame. Driver against driver, lives are gambled in a drag race. Throughout the race Brown and his driver stay calm and determined. They Devil starts off mocking the race with a joking manner, but when he realizes he may lose, his attitude quickly changes to rage and fear. The Devil ends up losing in a firery car crash, but you can't kill the devil. A theme throughout this film is one of greed. Greed controls humans. brown put his driver on the line, as did the Devil just to keep what they wanted. The song Crossroads really explains Brown out there in the desert. It talks of the sun coming down and begging for mercy from the Lord. And then the hotel is also called Crossroads. You must make a choice, left or right. And thats exactly what Brown and the Devil must do. The cameo at the end featuring Marilyn Manson is brilliant and adds another humorous element to the film.

Harlem Renaissance Response

So I weirdly like the Harlem poem by Langston Hughes. I think it was because it was short and had rhyme scheme. I love poems that rhyme for some reason, I don't know why but I do. If a poem rhymes then I like it way more. Same reason that I liked the Cullen piece. It rhymes to a point and makes it more enjoyable to read for me. But my favorite piece was the Storm Ending by Jean Toomer.   It's short and to the point with beautiful imagery. It doesn't rhyme but it weirdly doesn't matter. I love this poem. It just draws me in with the personified imagery, which is why this poem is my favorite :)

Factoid Friday #8

The Bell Jar was first published in 1963 by Sylvia Plath under the pseudonym Victoria Lucas. 

Sylvia Plath-The Bell Jar. (2013). Retrieved from http://www.sylviaplath.de/plath/belljar.html

Factoid Friday #7

Schizophrenia has 5 sub categories.
Paranoid Type
Disorganized Type
Catatonic Type
Undifferentiated Type
Residual Type

Association, A. P. (1994). Quick Reference to the Diagnostic Criteria from DSM-IV. Washington D. C. : American Psychiatric Association.

Infomercial #2

Infomercial :)

Blood Moon Reflection

So the biggest  motif in this story was the moon. It was always there, always looming and there. Also the  song  that opened and closed the story was a motif. As for the story itself it was hard to read. I know it was probably common talk back when it was written but the grammar just drove me up a wall. And then the story itself  was Romeo and Juliet to a point. Two people fall in love who aren't supposed to and ends in death. I didn't really like the story but can understand why it's significant.

FTA: Quotes 120-200

"Life isn't hard to manage when you've nothing to lose." Page 137
There is no reason to not do something, be adventurous, this falls under love and war.

"I never think. No, by God, I don't think; I operate." Page 167 This also falls under the theme of war. War can turn you into a robot, mindlessly just trying to survive "[Many of the soldiers] were beaten to start with. They were beaten when they took them from their farms and put them in the army. That is why the peasant has wisdom, because he is defeated from the start. Put him in power and see how wise he is." Page 179This under the theme of war. War destroys people. Put someone who isn't destroyed into power and see what good can come.

"The killing came suddenly and unreasonably."

 Page 218

Shockingly this fall under the war theme again. War waits for no one.