"She had escaped in the car just as we expected. But she had unbuckled us, it turns out only to stall us, so that she and her sisters could die in peace."
This passage is extremely powerful due to its many multiple meanings. Lux did escape her life in the car however, the initial plan was to drive away and be free in another place not to commit suicide and the boys had not expected Lux's actions so by saying they did adds to the irony and tragedy to the situation. It also exemplifies how miserable it is that when the girls had a chance to live a better life they chose to die instead. The next part of the phrases use multiple meanings of words that could refer to a car but also the emotions and actions in the scene. "Unbuckled," can refer to the literal action of unbuckling the boys pant. You can also unbuckle a seatbelt in a car and unbuckled could refer to throwing someone of track and distracting themselves from their goal. Furthering the idea that unbuckled in this phrase is used as a way to confuse the boys and distract them is using the pronoun "us," Lux only literally unbuckled the pants of one boy leaving the reader to believe that "unbuckling," is meant to be taken figuratively in this sense. Stall also could refer to a car or to the literal meaning of preventing the boys from finding the dead Libson girls before they had successfully ended their lives.
Friday, April 3, 2009
Sunday, March 29, 2009
The Virgin suicides 3
"At night the cries of cats making love or fighting, their caterwauling in the dark, told us that the world was pure emotion, flung back and forth among its creatures, the agony of the one-eyed Siamese no different from that of the Libson girls, and even the trees plunged in feeling."
The cats act as a metaphor for the Libson girls. Like the cats the Libson girls make love and fight and cry in attempt to deal with the world filled with emotion. For anyone who truly understands the emotions of the world to the full extent it can be too overwhelming to handle. The range of different emotions that the girls must attempt to understand is shown through the violent imagery of being "flung back and forth" The images of the cats suffering and joy takes place in the dark demonstrating how the world can appear so looming and unbearable. The trees are personified as being able to feel to represent the way all earths creatures play off of each other the people feel the pain of the animals and the Libson girls cary the wait of there pain and emotions around with them giving some of this feeling off to their surroundings. This emotion being passed can also describe the closeness of the girls to each other and explain why they internally suffered so much from the loss of their sister. Even before cecilia was gone she had the ability to give off her emotion to the closest people to her which were her sisters so with Cecilia they endured the weight of the world.
The cats act as a metaphor for the Libson girls. Like the cats the Libson girls make love and fight and cry in attempt to deal with the world filled with emotion. For anyone who truly understands the emotions of the world to the full extent it can be too overwhelming to handle. The range of different emotions that the girls must attempt to understand is shown through the violent imagery of being "flung back and forth" The images of the cats suffering and joy takes place in the dark demonstrating how the world can appear so looming and unbearable. The trees are personified as being able to feel to represent the way all earths creatures play off of each other the people feel the pain of the animals and the Libson girls cary the wait of there pain and emotions around with them giving some of this feeling off to their surroundings. This emotion being passed can also describe the closeness of the girls to each other and explain why they internally suffered so much from the loss of their sister. Even before cecilia was gone she had the ability to give off her emotion to the closest people to her which were her sisters so with Cecilia they endured the weight of the world.
Friday, March 6, 2009
Virgin Suicides part 2
He came back to us with stories of bedrooms filled with crumpled panties, of stuffed animals hugged to death by the passion of the girls, of a crucifix draped with a brassiere, of gauzy chambers of canopied beds, and of the effluvia of so many young girls becoming women together in the same cramped space.
On the surface this passage seams to be a normal carefree story of growing up. And all of the items described found in the Libson house seem to fulfill all of the fantasies a young boy could have about the rooms of young women. However violent hyperboles, "hugged to death," and anti religious imagery create dark undertones. The image of a bra which symbolizes the growth from girl to woman lying on top of the crucifix which is a symbol of the girls religion shows that the desire of all of these girls to achieve womanhood is outranking there religious beliefs and priorities. Describing where the girls live as a "cramped space" is foreshadowing and implies that they will outgrow their surroundings.
On the surface this passage seams to be a normal carefree story of growing up. And all of the items described found in the Libson house seem to fulfill all of the fantasies a young boy could have about the rooms of young women. However violent hyperboles, "hugged to death," and anti religious imagery create dark undertones. The image of a bra which symbolizes the growth from girl to woman lying on top of the crucifix which is a symbol of the girls religion shows that the desire of all of these girls to achieve womanhood is outranking there religious beliefs and priorities. Describing where the girls live as a "cramped space" is foreshadowing and implies that they will outgrow their surroundings.
Friday, February 27, 2009
The Virgin Suicides 1
"They only live twenty-four hours. They hatch, they reproduce, and then they croak. They don't even get to eat." And with that she stuck her hand into the foamy layer of bugs and cleared her initials: C.L."
The life of the insects is a metaphor for the simplicity and mundane nature of human life. To sum up a life is simple which is what makes it feel unimportant. Cecilia describes the life cycle of the insects using simple diction and short words to reflect the bugs life cycle which in turn shows how short a human life cycle can be. The significance of Cecilia writing her name in the dead insects is that she shares a kinship with them. She feels her life is meaningless and empty and feels as if she matters little to the outside world as little as a dead insect. Describing the layer of insects as foamy portrays the questions of life which contrasted with the "clearing" Cecelia does shows by accepting her small place in the universe therefore identifying the answers to all the questions she has about life and death.
The life of the insects is a metaphor for the simplicity and mundane nature of human life. To sum up a life is simple which is what makes it feel unimportant. Cecilia describes the life cycle of the insects using simple diction and short words to reflect the bugs life cycle which in turn shows how short a human life cycle can be. The significance of Cecilia writing her name in the dead insects is that she shares a kinship with them. She feels her life is meaningless and empty and feels as if she matters little to the outside world as little as a dead insect. Describing the layer of insects as foamy portrays the questions of life which contrasted with the "clearing" Cecelia does shows by accepting her small place in the universe therefore identifying the answers to all the questions she has about life and death.
Friday, January 16, 2009
leaves of grass part 7
Divine am I inside and out, and I make holy whatever I touch or am touched from;
The scent of these arm pits is aroma finer then prayer,
This head is more than churches and bibles
The speaker believes in the beauty of human beings. This passage argues the validity of religion challenging its powers to that of the human body. The use of religious diction such as divine and holy give the powers of a religion to the human body thereby giving humans the power not a religious figure created by humans. The speakers position of the human body is made clear through the comparison of arm pit aroma to prayer the speaker implies that even something as unpleasant and seemingly unbeautifully thing such as body oder is a miracle finer then prayer. The speaker's point of view is to believe that in the end religion is just things like buildings (churches) and books (bibles) but the human mind is real.
The scent of these arm pits is aroma finer then prayer,
This head is more than churches and bibles
The speaker believes in the beauty of human beings. This passage argues the validity of religion challenging its powers to that of the human body. The use of religious diction such as divine and holy give the powers of a religion to the human body thereby giving humans the power not a religious figure created by humans. The speakers position of the human body is made clear through the comparison of arm pit aroma to prayer the speaker implies that even something as unpleasant and seemingly unbeautifully thing such as body oder is a miracle finer then prayer. The speaker's point of view is to believe that in the end religion is just things like buildings (churches) and books (bibles) but the human mind is real.
Sunday, January 11, 2009
leaves of grass part 6
Far-swooping elbowed earth! Rich apple-blossomed earth!
Smile, for your lover comes!
Prodigal! you have given me love!....therefore I to you give love!
O unspeakable passionate love!
Thruster holding me tight ad that I hold tight!
We hurt each other as the bridegroom and the bride hurt each other.
A major theme in Leaves Of Grass is man's connection to nature. This section contributes to that theme by describing man's relationship with the earth in a sexual way. The sexuality of the passage gives the imagery of intimacy which is associated with a sexual relationship. " Rich apple-blossomed earth" is symbolic of a female body after puberty and how it becomes round and full and beautiful. However the words have a literal meaning of the blossoming earth which ties the relationships together. This passage also deals with balance. The balance of power in a relationship with a partner and the relationship of man and nature. "you have given me love!...therefore I to you give love! In the relationship between a man and woman love is shared just as humans have a give and take relationship with our environment. Each sentence in the passage is ended with an exclamation point except for the last sentence. This shows the change in mood that the piece takes at this point. The previous sentences are the passionate exciting experiences of love and sex and the last sentence shows the dark side of relationships where there is passion there is also pain. This is the balance in the relationship between man and women or man and earth.
Smile, for your lover comes!
Prodigal! you have given me love!....therefore I to you give love!
O unspeakable passionate love!
Thruster holding me tight ad that I hold tight!
We hurt each other as the bridegroom and the bride hurt each other.
A major theme in Leaves Of Grass is man's connection to nature. This section contributes to that theme by describing man's relationship with the earth in a sexual way. The sexuality of the passage gives the imagery of intimacy which is associated with a sexual relationship. " Rich apple-blossomed earth" is symbolic of a female body after puberty and how it becomes round and full and beautiful. However the words have a literal meaning of the blossoming earth which ties the relationships together. This passage also deals with balance. The balance of power in a relationship with a partner and the relationship of man and nature. "you have given me love!...therefore I to you give love! In the relationship between a man and woman love is shared just as humans have a give and take relationship with our environment. Each sentence in the passage is ended with an exclamation point except for the last sentence. This shows the change in mood that the piece takes at this point. The previous sentences are the passionate exciting experiences of love and sex and the last sentence shows the dark side of relationships where there is passion there is also pain. This is the balance in the relationship between man and women or man and earth.
Sunday, December 21, 2008
leaves of grass part 5
The moth and the fisheggs are in their place,
The suns I see and the suns I cannot see are in their place,
The palpable is in its place and the impalpable is in its
place.
A major theme in Leaves of Grass is the everything in the universe is connected and exists for a reason. This phrase contributes to that theme through its use of parallelism. By beginning each sentence with "The" the author connects all of the ideas in those sentences to one another. The author also ends each phrase with "place" this repetition helps to support the theme. Syntactically choosing to arrange the word place so that it is the only word on the line and the last word of the stanza makes the word "place" stand out and it is the last word the reader reads so it leaves the idea in the head of the reader. This passage also touches on the idea that even the things humans cannot control "the suns I cannot see" are there for a reason. The passage is smooth flowing and has a zen like quality to its sound which also supports its theme.
The suns I see and the suns I cannot see are in their place,
The palpable is in its place and the impalpable is in its
place.
A major theme in Leaves of Grass is the everything in the universe is connected and exists for a reason. This phrase contributes to that theme through its use of parallelism. By beginning each sentence with "The" the author connects all of the ideas in those sentences to one another. The author also ends each phrase with "place" this repetition helps to support the theme. Syntactically choosing to arrange the word place so that it is the only word on the line and the last word of the stanza makes the word "place" stand out and it is the last word the reader reads so it leaves the idea in the head of the reader. This passage also touches on the idea that even the things humans cannot control "the suns I cannot see" are there for a reason. The passage is smooth flowing and has a zen like quality to its sound which also supports its theme.
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