Poetry Timed Writing: Sirens

                Within the excerpts from the Odyssey and Siren Song, the authors describe the Sirens from two different points of view. While each text acknowledges the enticing nature of the Sirens’ song, the differing perspectives show that although the song may be irresistible to the listener, the song can also become boring to the singer.

                The excerpt from the Odyssey depicts the Sirens as completely irresistible. Odysseus is aware that he is about to encounter the island where the Sirens live, so he prepares for the encounter: “I stopped the ears of my comrades one by one” (7). The extensive preparation Odysseus goes through shows that he is aware of the danger of the Sirens’ song. However, Odysseus still finds the song irresistible: “the heart inside me throbbed to listen longer” (20). Even though Odysseus knows what will come of him if he goes to the Sirens’ island, he still wants to venture to the island upon hearing the song. The text shows that the Sirens are very dangerous and extremely enticing at the same time. The listener is powerless to the hold the song has over to the people who hear the music.

                 Unlike the excerpt from the Odyssey, Sirens Song portrays the Sirens are bored and disinterested. The reader learns that the poem is told from the point of view of a Siren when the speaker of the poem asks, “if I do, will you get me/ out of this bird suit?” (11-12). The speaker is aware of the danger of the song because the music “forces men / to leap over squadrons / even though they see the beached skull” (5-6). The image of men racing to hear the songs even though there is physical proof that people have died on the island shows the dangerous power of the song. The strong hold the song has over most men directly contrasts the speaker’s last sentence: “Alas / it is a boring song / but it works every time” (25-27). The speaker displays a very disinterested tone; the outcome of the song is so obvious that the whole situation has become boring. Although the boredom in the speaker’s tone contrasts the power of the Sirens’ song, the poem shows that the song is not enticing to the singer. Rather, the song is a boring ritual that has become routine.

                All in all, the two texts show that the Sirens’ songs are not only dangerous to the listener because men are unable to resist the music, but the songs are also a boring routine to the ones who sing the song. Thus, the Sirens are portrayed as dangerous, irresistible, and altogether disinterested in the mayhem caused by the music.

P&P #9: 3.1-3.3

                During Book III of Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen, Elizabeth meets Miss Darcy for the first time. Elizabeth expresses her first impression of Miss Darcy: “she had heard that Miss Darcy was exceedingly proud; but the observation of a few minutes convinced her that she was only exceedingly shy” (217). Throughout the novel, society is quick to judge others based on prior knowledge or a first encounter with a person. With such quick judgment, shyness could easily be mistaken for pride. Elizabeth recognizes Miss Darcy’s true personality, and Lizzy is able to look past the false rumors about Georgiana. Although Miss Bennett is able to discern shyness and pride within Miss Darcy, Elizabeth was unable to distinguish the two characteristics when she first met Mr. Darcy. Although Lizzy has a right to be angry with Mr. Darcy due to his insult toward Elizabeth, she has held a negative propensity against him for a long time. Through Miss Bennett’s interpretation of Miss Darcy, the audience can see that Elizabeth can look past the seemingly haughty surface of a person and determine the person’s personality. However, Lizzy still bases her opinion of Mr. Darcy on their first encounter. Thus, Elizabeth’s perception of Mr. Darcy must solely be surmised from the one insult he directs toward Lizzy at the ball. 

P&P #7: 2.16-end of book 2

                Toward the end of book two, Elizabeth shows concern for her sister, Lydia. When Lydia is invited to go visit with Mrs. Forester, Elizabeth opposes the idea and tells her father, “Our importance, our respectability in the world, must be affected by the wild volatility, the assurance and disdain of all restraint which mark Lydia’s character” (Austen 195). On the surface, Elizabeth’s concern for Lydia’s disposition appears to stem from the negative reputation Lydia gives the Bennett family. However, Elizabeth’s concern for reputation cannot precipitate from such reservations. Although Elizabeth does partake in balls and courting which dominate society, she participates in a very unconventional manner. Lizzy Bennett does not desperately search for a husband, for she turns down proposals from more than one man. Moreover, Elizabeth cannot be too troubled by her family’s reputation because she is aware of her family’s lower societal class. Even though Lizzy feels affronted when Mr. Darcy talks down about her family, she later confesses that she knows there is truth in his accusations. Thus, Elizabeth’s concern for Lydia cannot originate from the affect Lydia has on the family’s reputation. Elizabeth is simply acting as a concerned older sister who does not want her little sister going out and flirting with all the men in the town. As a sister, Elizabeth’s fears are reasonable even if her father cannot see the true meaning behind Lizzy’s words.

Pride and Prejudice: ch 1-2.4

                The title of the novel Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen explains the social interactions between the characters. The novel features a judgmental society where a person’s pride is one of the first characteristics to be judged. Mary, one of the Bennett sisters, says that “Pride relates more to our opinion of ourselves” (Austen 19). When Elizabeth Bennett first meets Mr. Darcy she believes him to be a very proud man. Mr. Darcy’s initial excessive pride and indifference toward Elizabeth causes him to be viewed as unpropitious in the Bennett household. First impressions are very important within the novel’s society, and pride can make or break the perception of a character. Along with judgment of pride, there is also a great deal of prejudice within the society. Mr. Collins tells Elizabeth, “I consider myself more fitted by education and habitual study to decide what is right than a young lady like yourself” (Austen 85). Elizabeth is not an obsequious character; rather, she likes to express her opinion freely. However, Elizabeth’s opinion is not highly regarded within society because she is a woman, and she is especially a woman of lower social class. Gender and class division are extremely apparent within the novel, for the Bennett girls must marry in order to be guaranteed a place to live after their father passes away. All in all, pride and prejudice refer to the interactions among characters within the novel.

                A major section of the novel is when Mr. Collins proposes marriage to Elizabeth. Mr. Collins starts of the proposal with “My reasons for marrying me are” (Austen 92) and goes off to list a laundry list of reasons why Elizabeth should marry him. From start to finish, the proposal appears to be very businesslike. Mr. Collins came to the Bennett’s residence in order to marry one of the girls because Mr. Collins will inherit the residence after Mr. Bennett dies. Mr. Collins then selects one of the girls and proposes only a few days later. Although Mr. Collins says there is a “violence of my affection” (Austen 93) for Elizabeth, a few days are not long enough for him to develop any true feelings for her. Elizabeth gracefully, but profusely, denies the proposal, but Mr. Collins believes the refusal is simply a sign of her affection. Mr. Collins appears to be an awkward character, so his inability to take obvious social cues may be due to his lack of social interaction. However, Mr. Collins inability to take the rejection may also be at the fault of a society where most people appear to be in a hurry to get married. He may believe a marriage proposal, especially one with a guaranteed settlement, is virtually impossible to refuse. Hence, Mr. Collins proposal is extremely businesslike as many other marriages appear to be within the novel.

AP Practice 1995

                In Othello by William Shakespeare, Othello is a black man living in a white society. The contrasting reactions of Brabantio and the officials show that the society generally looks down upon the black race, but Othello manages to be in good standing with the officials due to his military status.

                Brabantio reacts negatively to Othello because Othello wants to marry Desdemona. Brabantio repeatedly refers to Othello as a ‘Moor’, which is a derogatory racial slur. Brabantio is angry that his daughter is going to marry a black man; Brabantio believes that he only way Desdemona would have ever agreed to marry Othello is by being manipulated by some type of black magic. Brabantio’s assumptions that Othello manipulated Desdemona show that Brabantio sees Othello as lesser because he is black; Othello could never be good enough for his pure, virtuous daughter. Brabantio’s horror to the idea of Desdemona marrying a moor shows that interracial marriages generally did not occur in that time period. The white race was portrayed as the superior race. Brabantio also believes that the officials will be opposed to Othello and Desdemona’s wedding. Brabantio’s strong belief that the officials will support him shows the audience that the officials usually did not support the intermarriage between a black and a white. All in all, Brabantio’s vehemently negative reaction toward the marriage shows that, during that time period, society assumed the black race was a lesser race.

                Even though Brabantio believes he has the support of the officials, when Brabantio goes to talk to the officials about the wedding, he finds that the officials support the wedding rather than oppose it. The officials even give Othello their blessing and believe that the two would make a great pair. Brabantio is shocked, but the officials’ blessings show that the black race, on very rare occasions, could be considered an equal or even superior, to the white race. Othello is a man of high military status, and he has a powerful and commanding presence. All in all, Othello is highly respected by the officials. However, the fact that Othello is the only highly respected black man within the play shows that Othello’s status is a very special case; the black race can attain courtesy from the officials, but the courtesy is very uncommon. Othello’s special treatment by the officials further supports the assertion that, during that time period, the black race assumed to be inferior; the white race could not see the black race as equal.

                All in all, Brabantio’s reaction toward Othello and the officials’ acceptance of solely Othello shows that society assumed the black race to be inferior. Society did not see the unequal view as immoral, for the officials and other characters within the play just accepted the race division as the way life was supposed to be.  Hence, Othello’s good standing with the officials is rare and unusual.

Poetry Slam Poem #3 (Tamar, Amanda, Brad, Sam Ng)

3. Sight

Sometimes I wonder, do we all see the same

When the light goes through the eye and gets flipped by the brain?

When we look at a tree, the image we see

Enters through a hole in our eye- then it’s flipped upside down, and right side up in the brain-

Sometimes I wonder, do we all see the same?

What if my world is upside down and yours right side up?

What if the colors we see do not really match up?

What if my blue is your red, and your red is my green?

These things we call colors, what do they really mean?

Are they just names that we have assigned,

To fit a society in which we all must be aligned?

If we set up a television through a wire in our mind,

Would the image from each of us be of the same kind?

I know the sky is blue, as we all do

But what if my night is your day and your sunrise my sunset? What if my grass is blue and your sky is green and in this world of colors-

Is it really all just black and white?

A canvas for our mind to paint.

A coloring book to use as a guide.

Because sometimes I wonder, do we all see the same?

Poetry Slam Poem #2 (Tamar, Amanda, Brad, Sam Ng)

2. “Nobody’s Perfect”

Growing up is easy when you have great role models.

From Drake and Josh on Nick to Kim Possible on Disney,

How could you go wrong with an idol like Hannah Montana?

But as she has taught us “Everybody makes mistakes, everybody has those days”*

As Lindsay Lohan has demonstrated to us in many ways!

Public intoxication, terrible situations, public humiliation, testing drugs’ limitations,

She keeps rehab running with all her drug use,

How could such a cute little girl turn to such abuse?

When she lost her parent trap twin, she lost all her luck

So Lindsay Lohan’s future didn't quite go as planned,

But we can always rely on Amanda Bynes for some sound advice.

Like her tweet from last night!

Teaching the young women of the world how to woo a man:

“I want @Drake to murder my…” Never mind.

By the way she’s single

And obviously ready to mingle.

From the Amanda Show to DUI’s

Who knew what else to expect?

Now she does what she wants, regardless of any respect

Clearly “It’s a party in the USA”*

All our Disney divas have let us down.

Our role models aren't who the seemed to be

So if anything goes wrong, blame Walt Disney.

(*credit to Miley Cyrus and where credit is due for the "Nobody's Perfect" and "Party in the USA" lyrics.)