Blog Post 15

Dear Ms. Silko,
In your essay titled "Boarder Patrol State" there were many things that struck me.  I definitely agreed with this essay.  The boarder patrol in the South Western states are ridiculous.  I am from Southern California and I do often see the Boarder Patrol in action.  I have seen on various accounts someone being pulled over by Boarder Patrol and they have had to have their cars searched while the owner was sitting on the curb.  I do not necessarily agree with all of the illegal immigration into the United States though.  Because I am from a bordering state, I do often see lots of illegal immigrants.  I don't agree with how the Boarder Patrol is going about handling this situation but I do believe that something needs to be done about the mass amounts of illegal immigrants in general though.  I don't think that the way the Boarder Patrol are operating now is respectful at all and it is quite racist and judgmental.  It is not okay in my opinion to stereotype and assume someones race or citizenship and it certainly isn't okay for any type of abuse to be occurring.  Overall, I think action needs to be taken by the United States government to make sure that this unfair abuse is forbidden and stopped.  This is not like American Citizens to be racist and abusive.  I am so sorry to hear that you were personally victimized by these unfair acts.
Sincerely,
Paige

Blog Post 14

If I were a solider the possession I would carry would be most similar to the notes that were carried.  I would be carrying something that was representative of my family and loved ones at home.  I would carry a picture of my family and maybe some letters from my loved ones back home.  I feel like in a war type situation, almost everything is taken from you.  I could not do this without knowing I had the support of my family back home.  To have the access to look at a picture of them and see their happiness would be the closest thing to home I could obtain during the war.  I would know that I am fighting for them and I was in the war in their honor.  Seeing their faces would be the only motivation I could think of.  It would also be nice to have some words that have been written from them to me.  It would be reassuring to look at the notes and see how much they loved me and how cared for I was.  It would be nice to know I was being missed as much as I was missing them.  I don’t think I could personally make it that long without my family especially knowing I could ultimately never see them again.  These few items would be the closest I could get to them and therefore that is why I would be carrying them.

Blog Post 13

The quote that stands out to me is near the beginning of the story.  It reads "large men, with heavy bundles in their hands, halted near by and riveted their glassy blue eyes upon us.  I sank deep into the corner of my seat, for I resented being watched."  Right off the bat this is already showing the lack of American Dream. "Their blue eyes upon us." This portion of the quote lets the reader know what kind of man is watching over her.  It is depicted that they are white males and American.  This comment about the blue eyes subtly demonstrates that point.  She is talking about being watched right at the beginning which is clearly not part of the American dream.  This paragraph goes on to describe the mockery made of her Native American appearance and explains their new infatuation with her clothing and belongings.  As Americans, we are free.  Freedom denotes not being judged and being judged was exactly what was happening.  Her surroundings were clearly uncomfortable and foreign and I felt the awkward tension for her when reading this.  Her story is no where near the American dream and this is obvious from the beginning of the piece.

Bonus Blog!

I guess when I think about our readings on Imperialism, the first and most bizarre thing that comes to my mind is the character Editha.  She as a person distresses me.  I felt I related to George's mother because of the fact that my Grandfather was in the army.  Editha's push for George to join a war he did not want to join absolutely puzzled me.  I guess the fact that she was so symbolic of America made sense though.  Her lack of right mind all made it clear though.  I feel like in most war families, the man or the one at war is the one often not in the right state of mind due to his or her war experiences and here I feel as though it was a flip flop.  The note she writes to George is another thing that puzzled me.  "There is no honor above America with me."  This was very normal for the time though, I believe.  America was, and still is, peoples number one priority.  Just like in The War Prayer by Mark Twain, even though it was very sarcastic, it is shown the overwhelming love and devotion for the country.  Although The War Prayer was written ironically, it is still quite true.  The overwhelming appreciation people had for war heroes was amazing, and I definitely do feel as though war heroes should be strongly saluted and thanked, but I feel like today there are many more people who are against war. I just find it very interesting to see these different representations of the type of Americans and their support.

Blog Post 12

"That while four-fifths of the population of our Islands was swept out of existence by the vices introduced by foreigners, the ruling class clung to Christian morality, and gave its unvarying support and service to the work of saving and civilizing the masses?"
This quote is very strong.  There is so much passion within this line and a hint of anger.  The feeling of being deceived reins through this quote.  It is concise, but still so powerfully strikes the message of resentment that she has for the United States and their reforms placed upon her home.  These cutting lines throughout her story are what give the story so much feeling.

Blog Post 11

Response to Samantha Wood :)

Blog Post 10

My Aha! moment was definitely prevalent when reading the poem by Frances EW Harper titled "Learning to Read".  As I sat down to read my Religion book the other night I can remember complaining to myself and mourning the fact that I had to read.  This poem really gave me a reality check about my views on reading.  In stanzas three and four it is shown how hard they tried to scrape up whatever they could to read.    I take for granted everyday the availability of books and my ability to read.  In stanza eight the Bible is mentioned.  This reaffirms everything we have been learning in class about suppression and religious hypocrisy.  Slaves were taken of their rights to read and practice religion because owners were fearful that they would become too intelligent.  This is obvious in stanza two:
"Our masters always tried to hide
Book learning from our eyes;
Knowledge did'nt agree with slavery--
'Twould make us all too wise."
Personally this stanza sums up not only the poem but a majority of our class discussions.  I now see how different things are today.  Today that is the exact opposite.  People are encouraged to read and gain knowledge.  I guess sometimes it takes things like this poem to remind you of your good fortunes.  This poem has reminded me how great of an honor it is that I am able and educated enough to read.  Even though sometimes there might be more entertaining things to do than read, I will always feel fortunate to have the ability and option to.

Blog Post 9

While reading about the introduction about the time after the Civil War, I noticed many connections to modern day.  It really does show how history repeats itself.  A few things that really stood out to me were the shift from books to technology and the term muckrackers.  The intoduction showed how as more technologies and inventions appeared the need for books and want for them diminished.  Along with this the appreciation for poetry has gone as well.  Many people of our generation do not know much about poetry or how to interpret and analyze this.  I think this stems from the new technologies as well.  This is very similar of times today.  I do not own a hard copy of a book other than the ones I am required for class.  People don’t even need to go to the library now a days to get information because the internet has much more information and it is much easier obtain being that it is right at your finger tips.  My prediction for the future is that technology will make it so that manual labor will no longer be nessicary.  The other main thing that stood out to me was the muckrackers.  I feel like they are similar to the people now who write for gossip magazines.  They are relentless!  Just as they were back then, these people will do whatever it takes to make a great story whether that be following people around or spinning words to make their story more intriquing.  I feel like this form of journalism will be around for ever and we owe it all to the muckrackers!  People will never get tired of this kind of gossip and that is why it has sustained all the way from muckrackers to journalism today.  Some good examples of gossip journalism inspired by muckrackers today is Us Weekly, Enquire, and Star magazine. 

Blog Post 8

Response to Leah Iris!

Blog Post 7

The speaker of the poem The Slave Mother by Frances E. W. Harper is actually the author.  The author is speaking in third person of a slave mother who is losing a child.  This poem is symbolic of the slave mother’s loss of her child.  The mother uses words that describe her emotional feelings about the loss showing her grieving and pain.  I feel like this poem is focusing more on her emotional feelings rather than the actual physicality of her son being taken from her.  She states specifically, “As if a storm of Agony were sweeping through the brain.”  By stating this line, she is showing how this is taking over her mind and crippling her emotionally.  This poem is very relatable for the time period, which I think, makes it very strong and endearing.  It is very common for a child of a slave to feel like, “he is not hers, although she bore him”(17).  It is with quotes like these that you really feel a strong pathos for the poor woman and are drawn in.  The speaker (Harper) is making a testimony for the slave mother.  It is hard to grasp the thought of losing a child and the only ones who truly can feel this sense of sorrow are slaves who have had the experience which is why this is a testimony.  Harper ends with the lines “she is a mother and her heart is breaking in despair.”  This line concludes the poem well by informing us that she will not be getting her child back and her heart will be left broken for all eternity.  

Blog Post 6

In the story Incidents in the life of a slave girl by Harriet Jacobs, it becomes very obvious that there is definitely a cultural and racial divide and struggle throughout the whole story that is portrayed by slavery.  I feel like Jacobs makes it very clear throughout the story that there is really no “good” slave owners per say.  She gives two examples of two different types of slave owners.  One, Dr. Flint, is an absolute monster and shows a terrible extreme of a slave owner.  The next is Mr. Sands, who is even the more “kindly” slave owner but is still very unjust and without much care for Linda and their two mixed children.   Mr. Sands and Linda’s two children are great, literal examples of being caught between two cultures.  I feel like Mr. Sands doesn’t care much about his two mixed children but he is somewhat conflicted on what to do with them and this is exemplified by him buying them back for Linda, and then his continuous breaking of his promises that he makes to Linda with regards to the children.  All that Linda desires is a home for herself and her children but Jacobs makes it clear that because of her race and social standing, she will continue to fail.  There is no sense of a strong, black family within the novel.

Blog Post 4

            The short story "The Tenth of January" by Elizabeth Stuart Phelps, starts off very emotionally by explaining and describing the struggles of a main character named Asenath.  Asenath is a very insecure character who is described as not being physically attractive at all.  What stands out the most about her appearance to me is the scar across her mouth.  "It would have been a womanly, pleasant mouth, had it not been crossed by a white scar, which attracted more of one’s attentionthan either the womanliness or pleasantness.”  Asenath is very self conscious about the way she looks and seems to be in Del Ivory’s shadow.  This is very common of society today.  I see Asenath’s character and insecurities relating a lot to those of girls today.  By the end of the story the Phelps is showing Asenath’s personality and who she really is.  She is gracious and giving and was willing to give it all in order to make others happy.  I think that Phelps was trying to show the common assumptions that people make about others when they judge people based on their appearance.  It is wrong to judge someone based on their physical self rather than appreciating them for what they are worth and who they really are. 

Blog Post 3

In the Irving’s “The Wife”, the  conflict seems to be the struggles he is having internally about weather or not to tell his wife about his financial misfortunes.  He is afraid that because he is no longer wealthy, she will abandon him.  When he finally came around to confessing to his wife about his poor luck, she embraced him and made it clear that his money was not an important matter to her and she would love him reguarless.  This acceptance of her husbands struggle demonstrates how for most American relationships, money is not everything even though there is a strong belief that the man is supposed to financially support his wife.  This feeling is still seen today but I think the financial reliance upon a husband has reduced because now women hold their own job positions and in many cases can support themselves financially.  This story also shows how the wife is loving and caring and the backbone of a household or relationship.  The way Irving portrayed the wife made it seem like she was the one helping him deal with his emotional issues about not being able to financially support her when traditionally it is the man who is supporting the wife.  I feel like overall this story shows how financials aren’t going to hold a relationship together like true love will.  

Blog Post 2

I have been learning about American history since I was in 6^th grade and for the most part I feel like I have been just going through the motions; taking tests, doing homework and memorizing time lines.  This class though, has really opened my eyes to all of the efforts and work that have really gone into making America the America that it is today.  Seeing just how things have changed and have been expanded upon is amazing to me.  From the colonies that existed in America before Columbus came over and took ownership of this country, to seeing how printed press has grown just because of the Printing press, is just a really interesting concept.  I feel like this class is going to give me a huge appreciation for the technology and resources we have today.  I honestly don’t know how people survived back in the day. 

            I feel like this course is also really giving me a better perspective and helping me personally define what I believe a true American to be.  Everyday I have left class adding things to, and taking things away from my self proclaimed list of what defines a true American.  Before this class I had never really pondered this and through the readings and class discussions I feel like I am developing true knowledge about America and its history.  

Blog Post 1

My belief is that an American citizen is someone who isn’t temporarily “in love” with our country, but will forever put our country above his or her own nation of birth or any other country for that matter.  I think that Gevevoeur was right on with his definition of what it means to be an American.  To me, Americans are proud, loyal and strong.  I also don’t necessarily believe that only humans can represent America. Like in the videos we watched during class, landmarks are very symbolic of what our country means and what it means to be an actual American.  The Statue of Liberty, for example, to me represents freedom.  In one of the poems that we read, the Statue of Liberty was depicted as the welcoming entrance to freedom for all of the immigrants.  It is symbols like this that help to make up what it really means to be an American.  America is the country it is because of all of the immigrants.  An American is proud to be one and I believe that if someone is going to proudly stand by our country and love it as their own, regardless of their heritage, they too can be identified as Americans as well.