blog 15

While reading “Border Patrol state”, I found myself agreeing and disagreeing with a few things that Silko talked about.  I found myself becoming angry while reading her descriptions of how the Border Patrol was treating her and just assuming that she was participating in illegal actives or how they pulled over an elderly man who had just gotten confused and search him.  I completely agree with her that is a power trip among those who are searching for evil in order to protect the U.S.  People who gain a little bit of power completely abuse in ways that make them seem inhumane.  We need these people to help protect us and keep our country safe, but they should be properly trained and be held accountable for their behavior and not be allowed to do as they please. I began to disagree with Silko as she starts to talk about racism and says that “’Immigration,’ like ‘street crime’ and ‘welfare fraud,’ is a political euphemism that refers to people of color”. I understand that she is frustrated, but colored people are not the only people who experience racism for immigration. Many people who speak with an accent or different language, but are white, are discriminated against. Many times that my brothers and I have been given ugly looks by strangers who overheard us speaking Spanish with a little Hispanic lady, who was our family nanny.  She is from Mexico and speaks some English now, but still struggles with learning the language.  She started working for my family when my older brother was 10 months old and through her we learned to speak Spanish fluently.  When we go out to restaurants at home or out in public many people give us a look of disapproval or do not help us immediately because we are speaking a different language that they are familiar with and are different from their stereotypes.

Blog 14

If I were a soldier in Lieutenant Jimmy Cross’s unit I would carry a variety of different items.  I would carry what was provided to me by the military, like a weapon, helmet, boots, and other battle gear because that is what would give me protection and help me better defend myself against the enemy.   I would also carry everyday necessities like a can opener, lighter, canteens, soap, and toothbrush and toothpaste, and ointments, bandages, and antibacterial medicines because I feel like I would really need these little thing to get by in the jungle, especially with all of the diseases and infections they contracted in the jungle.  I think most importantly though, I would want to carry letter, pictures, and the Bible.  While reading this, I thought of my dad who served in Vietnam and what he would have carried during his time in the war. I also thought of my brothers, who are both enlisted in the military, and what they would carry in the event that they were sent off to war.  And while thinking of them and the rest of my family, I realized that having part of them with me would be more important than an extra lighter or an extra can of peaches.  Their pictures would always be a reminder of what was at home waiting for me and how close we all are as a family.  My mother’s letters would remind me of how she always told us to be strong and never give up.  They would remind me of all the times she told me that saying “I can’t” or “I don’t know” were never acceptable and that you always strive to do your best.  The Bible would remind me that through the good and the bad, the Lord is always with me.  O’Brien said that all of the soldiers “carried themselves with poise, a kind of dignity” (O’Brien 1468) and I think that with the three reminders of my family, the lessons in life that I was taught growing up, and my faith I would be able to do the same.

blog 13

After reading Zitkala-Sa’s writings about her life on the Indian Reservation in South Dakota and her life in the white man’s world, I do not think that this exemplifies a story of the American Dream coming true.  The American Dream is defined as “the ideals of freedom, equality, and opportunity traditionally held to be available to every American and as a life of personal happiness and material comfort as traditionally sought by individuals in the U.S.” on dictionary.reference.com. Zitkala-Sa did not originally have to freedom to do what she wanted.  She was forced to cut her hair and lean the white man’s way in the Whites Manual Institute, but she was eventually able to choose if she wanted to go to college in the white man’s world.  Although she was not originally accepted in this world, she eventually gained the support of her peers and became successful in this world.  Some may see this as fulfilling the American Dream but towards the end of her story she writes “the little taste of victory did not satisfy a hunger in my heart (438)”.  With this statement, Zitkala-Sa is letting readers know that even though she overcame a lot of obstacles in her life and was successful in college career, she did not have personal happiness which is one of the aspects of the American Dream.  She did not have the support of her mother and could not be happy knowing that her mother did not approve of her continuing her education.  I think this statement at the end of her story allows readers to understand that the America n Dream is not only about success and equality, but also about personal accomplishments and happiness, and without satisfying all aspects of the American Dream, there is no success in making this dream come true.

Blog #12

My favorite sentence from “Hawaii`i’s Story by Hawaii`i’s Queen” is the sentence in which she describes the house that her husband took her to after they were married. “It is a large square, white house, with pillars and porticos on all sides, really a palatial dwelling, as comfortable in its appointments as it is inviting in its aspects; its front is distant from the street far enough to avoid the dust and noise.”  This sentence is my favorite because she describes the house in way that allowed me to picture it as if I were actually there. I love plantation homes and as I was reading this I was able to vividly imagine this house and its location.  This is the style of home that I would love to live in with rocking chairs in the front by the pillars and set back on the property so that there is a real sense of privacy.  I did find the way that she described it to be a palatial dwelling a little confusing because I did not know the exact meaning of palatial and thought that most people who read this would find it a bit confusing if they did not know the meaning of this word either. This sentence stuck out the most to me because of the details and the image I was able to make from it.

blog #11

After the civil war, many whites blamed the African Americans for their hardships and many whites sought out lynching to deal with that.  Although many African Americans were innocently killed, many whites felt that it was appropriate to use the newly freed people as a scapegoat for their problems.  As I was reading, I kept thinking about what it would be like to be a slave for so long and finally have my freedom, but not fully be free.  African Americans were tortured for so long as slaves, but even as freed men and women, they still had to suffer through all the prejudice towards them.  I also thought about how frightening it much have been to walk through the streets of what is suppose to be your home, but still have to look over your shoulder because people were out looking for a reason to kill you.  In Claude McKay’s poem “If We Must Die’” he says “Haunted and penned in an inglorious spot, While round us bark the mad and hungry dogs (McKay, stanza 2, 3).”  With these stanzas, McKay allows readers to imagine what it would be like to be cornered by a mad mob of people that are accusing you of a crime and in turn are going to hang you without a fair trial. But McKay also writes, “Though far outnumbered let us show us brave, And for their thousand blows deal one deathblow!” to encourage the African Americans to not fall victims to the mobs of white people.  But instead to be brave and let the whites know that they are not going to be easily defeated. I never really knew the definition of lynching, but after learning its definition and reading the poems of Claude McKay, I can only imagine how the African Americans felt to see their family members innocently killed due to the extreme prejudice and hatred that the white Americans had towards them.

Blog 10

After reading Frances EW Harper’s poem, “Learning to Read” I realized how important learning to read and write was to slaves and to the newly freed African Americans. Throughout the poem, Harper talks about how the southerners hated the thought of African Americans learning to read because it was against their “rule” (Harper, 1) and how unhappy they were with northerners for coming down to the south to teach the newly freed people to read and write.  The poem also tells readers that slave masters tried to keep slaves from learning to read and write, but some slaves, like “Mr. Turner’s Bell, Who heard the children spell, and picked the words right up by heart, and learned to read ‘em well. (Harper, stanza 6), were fortunate enough to find creative ways around the system and acquire the skills needed to read.  This poem really helped me see the importance of reading and writing from a different perspective.  For most slaves and freed African Americans, reading and writing was a luxury and it was a privilege to have to opportunity to be taught these skills.    Today students feel burdened when teachers and professors assign reading assignments from a text book or ask us to write a paper on something we have recently read.  We tend to forget that not everyone has the ability to read and write and not everyone is fortunate enough to attend a school that has the resources to teach students the proper way to read and write.  What seems like a simple, daily task is a struggle for many people around the world today, even in the United States.  This poem really helped me see that my peers and I are truly privileged and that we should not take the ability to read and write for granted.  Instead we should encourage others to continue to read novels and write their own novels or poems, to ensure that the art will not die.

blog #9

After reading the introduction of American Literature from 1865-1914 I noticed a lot of connections from the entertainment people had during this time period to the entertainment people enjoy in today’s culture.  Besides having novels, poetry, and newspapers to read, people were introduced to magazines which “exploded, from 700 during the Civil War to 2400 in 1880 to roughly 3,500 at the turn of the century… (p.26). Today, people still read magazines religiously.  At every grocery store you can find a multitude of magazines ranging from politics to health guides to gossip magazines.  Magazines are even in the hair or beauty salons we go to or in the lobby of the car repair shop.  I found it interesting that some magazines have survived for over 125 years, specifically the magazine Good Housekeeping. The text also describes how people were “attracted by the colorful covers, lavish illustrations, and modest cost of magazines… (p.26)” when they first became popular in the late nineteen hundreds.  Today people are still drawn to purchase magazines due to the catchy titles of the articles on the cover or because of what celebrity is on the cover.  The illustrations in magazines are still a big influence on people buying magazines, but now the photos we see are professionally done by photographers and have most likely been altered to make the person being photographed look their best and their body shape has been “touched up” to make them look a little more tone or thin.  Illustrations in magazines also consist of a wide variety of advertisement and coupons for what is hot and trendy in our current culture, but the original influence is still present.  Although not all magazines are “modestly priced” today, I think the magazine is one of the biggest connections from the reading to our day and time.