Things Fall Apart Ch. 17

In this chapter we saw two instances of the missionaries overcoming cultural and social expectations. First the missionaries did not die three days after they had set up camp in the evil forest. Second the missionaries lived passed the seventh week deadline. They lived through two expectations of certain death set forth by society and its religious beliefs. Even the elders and the titleholder’s thought that they would die. Why do people join the missionaries after these two events? Why does Achebe highlight the joining of Nneka? 

Towards the end of the chapter we observe a defining moment for Okonkwo. He is distressed over the un-manliness of Nwoye and blames his personal chi. Okonkwo even suggests that unless he and his forefathers are given worship and sacrifice he will wipe his children off the earth. What does the last paragraph of the chapter tell us about his inner thoughts? Is this the same Okonkwo from moments before when he beat Nwyoe? from part one?

Things Fall Apart Chapter 3

"It was slow and painful. But he threw himself into it like one possessed. And indeed he was possessed y the fear of his father's contemptible life and shameful death." (page 18) How does the description of the father in the first section of the chapter portray the father in a different light than that of the last two paragraphs? Does the description of Okonkwo's "start in life" shift the reader's view of Okonkwo dramatically from the ending of chapter two (3 wives, 8 children, "prosperity visible in household")?

One Day in the Life of John Doesavich

John Doesavich was confused a loud disturbing noise resonated from somewhere near his bed. It took him out of deep peaceful state and rattled against the inside of his head. He considered hitting the big glowing button and sleeping for five more minutes. But experience told him five would soon turn into twenty. So with great hesitation and regret he stumbled out of bed and into the shower. The hot water and the inhalation of the steamy air quickly woke him up and gave him the breath of life he needed to start his day. With great care he picked out shorts, a t-shirt and his normal pair of shoes and for the first time opened his door to see what the world offered for him this day. The family’s three dogs quickly heard this distinctive noise and as always came sprinting down the hall and into the kitchen for their breakfast. After obliging the hounds Jack scrounged up a small but hearty breakfast for himself and turned on the morning newscast. One by one the other three members of the family wandered into the kitchen but little to none was said or discussed. No one liked the mornings. Seeing that his brother was impatiently waiting to begin their journey to school John quickly found and re-packed his backpack. He then started the same car ride he had made since the ninth grade. It was unbearable.

Once at school John made the trek to the picnic table that his friends and he always favored as an early morning meeting spot. They discussed and argued about last nights TV shows and football games. As soon as everyone was there and congregated at the table, the bell knowing that they where beginning to have a good time rang. First block had begun.

The next four blocks ran into one continual motion for John. Math transformed into English which then changed to History, which finally gave way to Biology. He could not remember when exactly he had stopped doing calculus but definitely knew that before long he was trying to apply Darwin’s principles of evolution to the ground finches of Irsa Minor. Staying awake was not the problem, staying focused was on the on the other hand an uphill battle requiring most not if all of his energy.

When the lunch bell rang he realized that he had a break and quickly went off to find some food. He procured his normal meal and upon sitting down next to his friends remembered that in truth he had to spend the lunch period writing a Spanish essay that he had put off the night before. Cursing his lack of drive to do things when they should be done he begrudgingly went to the library to complete the essay. After serial disastrous attempts at starting his essay he finally found an idea that flowed and son completed the assignment. Lunch though had ended. Off to Jazz Band.

The rest of the day followed the characteristics of the morning. Class to class, lecture to lecture. Finally the day ended with one of the few classes that involved discussion. His ideas where free to roam and for a while he was no longer a passive listener. As the day came to a close students became anxious to get out of the last class. Finally at exactly 3:00 the final bell rang. John briskly made his way to the spot he habitually meat his brother. Once reunited they made the arduous journey back to the car. And from there home. Where his day could only improve.

My Spidey Sense about Burning your Suit

Jim Hall creates a near perfect metaphor concerning most people’s fears regarding the lack of power they have to change their lives, to become someone different, something new. Spiderman believes that once he recreates and changes himself all the boredom of the life he has now will simply disappear. This is false he will soon grow tired of racing in circles all day and he will then need to once again recreate himself.

It is nearly impossible for a person in modern society to wake up one morning and just reinvent themselves. Society stresses normativity, outsiders and people who are drastically different or who burn their suits a lot are seen to be less productive, less successful than those who stay in the same suit their whole lives. Spiderman forgets that who we are is not determined by the inability to burn our suit but the scratches and stains on said suit. These scratches and stains define our personal experience; to burn these scratches to recreate our lives we would simply erase part of ourselves that would forever be forgotten. The boredom of life is something that can be easily over come. Although he can never stop being a crime fighting super hero he can in fact change how, when, and where he responds to the commissioner’s calls.

Although I would say the act of burning your suit is bad in all cases is it necessary in some. After a great disaster, or a uncontrollable change in someone’s life you are able in my mind to change yourself for the better. You can change your suit only if the matching suit that your partner wears is also burned. The act of burning our own suit is only advisable when your current suit is torn and you must fill the void. A person’s suit is part of themselves and it is unadvisable to quickly change their suits based purely on boredom with their lives.

Creon and W. Bush Stepping Over the Line

In Antigone, Creon states that the safety and security of the state trumps the rights and liberties guaranteed to the individual. Creon’s position is identical to that of our previous President George W Bush. Creon and Bush agree that when it comes to safety and well being of the state as a whole the rights of the individual are not as important. Creon uses this logic to justify his laws regarding the movement of the deceased. Bush used this logic to justify two wars, warrantless wire taps, the passing and extension of the Patriot Act, the use of torture, and countless other offenses.

I agree that in times of great distress and danger certain measures must be taken to counterbalance any opposing force. Yes it was necessary to eliminate a terror network that had attacked our sovereign land. But was an extended occupation and forcing of western culture and morals into the void necessary? Bush twice invaded a country on the sole basis that they where a threat to the state. Granted the first was more warranted than the second but threat to the state alone does not justify full scale military operations that are nine years later still in full force. Bush and Creon both take these justifiable measures to the extreme, where the measures become a harm to the individuals they try to protect. Bush has undoubtedly crossed the lines of constitutionality with his War on Terror. Republicans and other war hawks are quick to jump to the defense that anything possible to protect the state is required during a struggle.

The extent to which one can take away individual rights by using this justification is unlimited. Sure it was important to gather intelligence about the inner workings of Al Qaeda but water boarding a human for two and a half minutes is too much. Creon does the same as Bush; he suspends and violates a practice and action that even the Gods find important and meaningful. Bush and Creon both face repercussions based on their use of this vacuous justification. Bush witnessed among other things a decrease in foreign approval of the actions of the United States. Creon faced the outrage of Antigone who invoked the power of the gods and Haemon who appealed to his fathers logical side.

Top 14 Books

1. Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, Robert Pirsig

   A great book that allowed me to examine the way I think about the world around me.

2. Prey, Michael Crichton

   My favorite Crichton novel I have reread it many times because of the action packed story.

3. The Utility of Force: the Art if War in the Modern World, General Rupert Smith

   A great book about how the modern age of warfare is seen by the likes of the pentagon.

4. The Commission The Uncensored History of the 9/11 Investigation, Philip Shenon

   If taken to be 100% true it is a eye-opening book about the investigation process that may or may not have covered up huge mistakes by Clinton and W Bush.

5. Atlas Shrugged, Aryn Rand

   a truly amazing book although it might be too large for me to read again it is probaly only second to Zen and the Art in the amount it has effected how I like about the world and therefore life.

6. Selected readings of Nietzsche, Heidegger, Ziezk, Badiou, Foucault, Lacan, Agamben, among others in debate

   After reading so many different philosophers and seeing how some are interdependent, I can see the idea systems and clashes in the everyday world.

7. Flowers for Algernon

   The first book (out of two) that has made me cry at the end. It is classic for me.

8. Jean M Auel's Clan of the Cave Bear and subsequent squeals

   A great story of a struggling community and proved if not taught me to believe in being open and empathetic to people that might seem different.

9. Dale Brown's Dreamland and Flight of the Old Dog series

   My guilty pleasure when it comes to books, these are fictional books about futuristic but striking plausible wars.

10. The Blind Watchmaker Richard Dawkins

    An interesting book that that first made be affirm a disbelief in the watchmaker analogy and secondly made be disagree with Dawkins alternative to the watchmaker.

11. Marley and Me

    The second book to make me cry at the end it an amazing story that struck home for me.

12. The Hobbit Tolkien

    A book that was challenging when I read it in 4^th grade (with the help of dad) but I find it to be better than the Lord of the rings books and remains in my top 5.

13. The Reluctant Fundamentalist Mohsin Hamid

    A great read that truly makes the reader examine the world around him and any and all preconceptions that he brings to the table.

14. The Deep Jon E Lewis

    The book that first sparked my interest in the underwater world and gave me my passion into scuba diving and marine biology.

    15. The White Tiger by Arvanid Adiga

    A great book about classism and hardship that behalf people who try to climb the ladder.

The Unfamiliar Road

The Road By Cormac McCarthy is a deeply intriguing novel that follows the post-apocalyptic journey of a father and son to the “south” in order to survive the upcoming winter. McCarthy's greatest feat is creating such a invigorating novel without explaining so many usually important aspects of a story. He gives little to no explanation about the apocalyptic event and allows the reader to fill in the gaps as the reader pleases; he only describes the aftermath of the event. McCarthy does not provide names to any characters instead he uses simple pronouns and adjectives to describe most characters. The only distinct character description is seen when son calls his father Papa, this highlights the undying love and compassion that the boy carries for his father. And also shows the deep and personal sacrifice that the father has given his son so that he may survive. The most unusual part of the book is its unfamiliar structure. There are no chapters, no punctuation of dialogue and he uses simple sentence structure and words to convey short simplistic ideas. McCarthy breaks up the book by using paragraphs that end when a complete idea, sequence of events, or dialogue is finished. But when mashed together these short simple sentences and paragraphs transport the reader into the world of the boy and his father and convey a stream of conscienceness from the characters. The relationship between “Papa” and “the boy” and the mother is also a interesting part of the novel. The mother has lost the will to live and regrets bringing her child into the world. She tells “Papa” that “death is my new lover”... “he can give me want I need.” The short but detailed explanation that McCarthy gives for the mothers “disappearance” and the boy's lack of emotional response reveals the deterioration of the human condition. Papa is shocking more upset and taken aback by the mothers disappearance than the boy. The way in which Papa describes the ghastly terraformed world to the boy is also interesting. At times Papa describes the world as it once was and how is should be but these descriptions only further confuse the boy since he was born after the event and has no memories of what the world should be. When scavenging in a grocery store Papa finds a can of Coke and tells the boy to drink it all and to savor it. The boy refuses and forces Papa to try some as well and then immediately comes to the conclusion that he might not have one ever again. Papa further simplifies the boys questions when he describes the world as the “good people” that “carry the fire” and the fact that he tells the boy to find these people once he dies shows how the father might have also simplifed his own world by make a binary distinction between good and bad people. This uncanny form and story develop into a intriguing and fascinating novel that leave the reader with more unanswered questions about life than when he started.(517)