'A Rose for Emily' by William Faulkner

In many respects, life is what we make it; people have the responsibility to mold and create their paths in life. By having a good understanding of yourself, helps you apprehend those around you better and it also amplifies efficacious relationships.

In the story “A Rose for Emily", it provides an unalterable, retrospective combat and illustrates how class-ism can bring upon separation. According to Karl Marx, classism is defined as beliefs that our value as human beings is directly related to the social class which we belong to. Classist attitudes can segregate people from one another and keep individuals from personal fulfillment or the means to survive.

Being in a particular high social class can cause people to invade your privacy if there is a failure to measure up to some standards. This is the reason why Emily kept the lid on her personal life and was ostracized in the small town she was born and raised in. Marxist viewpoint centered on the hierarchy between rich and poor and capitalism. From the perspective of the Marxist Theory, we see how Emily’s class later falls from the economic ladder.

 Emily used to be a part of one of the town's affluent and most prominent families. There is evidence to support in the second paragraph that she was up the social ladder. This story gives a very truculent mind frame of Emily being in the privileged class and considered an elitist. As the story progresses, there a bit of irony that reveals itself. Emily feared falling backward but yet showed an interest in Homer Barron, a laborer from the north and not someone who is aristocratic. The townspeople frowned upon Emily and her beau as a result of the barriers set up by social class. This gave them the impression that he is beneath her.

While Emily used her economic status to her advantage, she still tried desperately to retain her social rank. Could it be her unfulfilled expectations, struggles, regrets or was she preserving her public image to be still a part of her born socioeconomic class? William Faulkner shows how she overcomes some factors that gave her problems throughout her life and how she chooses to end things dramatically and surreptitiously.

“The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber” by Earnest Hemingway.

Many people encounter a scenario where their path will be intermingled with someone that they may not know, thus causing a major paradigm shift in the lives of both individuals forever. Others can encounter a situation or a circumstance that will cause a traumatization or a positive benefit that will reassess their life. Ernest Hemingway's short story, "The Short Happy Life of Francis Macomber", the way a person assesses their life can change completely in one satisfying moment, if only for an instant. An author named Jon Tolkien said it best in a quote ‘a man that flies from his fear may find that he has only taken a short cut to meet it.” According to Lois Tyson, “we all experience some sort of psychological problems over the course of our lives”. Psychoanalytic theory aids people interpret problems we go through by the dysfunctional behavior they portray.

Francis a thirty five year old man is being described as a very tall, well-built man known as a weakling whereas his wife is portrayed as the epitome of beauty. Francis and Margot’s marriage completely deteriorates after Francis fled from a lion instead of killing it on the safari. Margaret, his wife, despised the fact that he was not lion-hearted or not manly enough thus the reason why she mocks him. Like some norms suggest men should be brave, fearless and invulnerable when meeting danger or difficulty. This story captivates and supports common human behavior and it is something that people can relate to. Francis is an affluent married man who suffers with the fear of abandonment. According to Louis Tyson, “fear of abandonment is defined as the nagging belief that our friends and loved ones are going to desert us (physical abandonment)." Francis is caught in a predicament with fear of his wife walking out on him thus convinces himself that she would not leave him because of his wealth.  “He was very wealthy, and would be much wealthier.” (Hemingway). 

            There is evidence that infidelity was going on “Macomber’s wife had not looked at him….While they sat there his wife had reached forward and put her hand on Wilson’s shoulder’s. He turned and she had leaned forward over the low seat and kissed him on the mouth.” also the moment she sneaked into the tent in the wee hours of the morning and made up an excuse saying that she went out to get a breath of air. These are clues supporting the idea of Margot and Wilson having an affair she seems to be licentious. She takes vengeance of the poor guy’s cowardice by flirting with the hunting guide, Wilson. This reinforces reasons that led to Macomber’s fear of abandonment; he refused to question his wife about her affair with the other guy. Throughout the story he remained nonchalant about her “modus operandi.” He also seems really vulnerable and exhibits lack of self esteem.

The narrator also conveys the impression of her as a woman who adores a man who possesses qualities of intrepidity and fearlessness I believed he made an effort to hunt for a buffalo the next day in an effort to recoup his wife’s respect and viewed it as an opportunity to prove his masculinity. By hunting the buffalo he demonstrates his bravery and does not hold back any fear from acting on his mission. Initially, I thought of him as someone who is weak and disheartened by his marital relationship with his significant other. His cheerfulness and excitement after the buffalo hunt unnerves her therefore she feels like she is no longer dominant.

Wilson, their hunting guide, demonstrates a fear of intimacy. The clienteles “did not feel they were getting their money’s worth unless they had shared that cot” with Wilson, a sexual implication (Hemingway). He goes for a sort of clientele because he knows they are looking for his affection and consideration they are most likely not getting from their husbands. Wilson does not establish an intimate relationship between them because he understands that it won’t last and that’s how he makes his money.　

Macomber shows bravery when hunting the buffalo. He loses his fear and thus gains authority in the situation: he is now an equal to Wilson, as they are both "true" men, while Margaret is no longer dominant over Macomber. She states: "'You've gotten awfully brave, awfully suddenly,' his wife said contemptuously, but her contempt was not secure. She was very afraid of something'". After this incident it rasises my suspicion, there are many clues that supports that she had the right target and wanted her husband dead. My observations and analysis have led me to believe that she indeed shoot her husband intentionally. She was disappointed for not being the man he should have been.

Joanne Joseph
　
　
          Alice Walker's Everyday Use helps me to understand the definitive role of culture, discovering personal values, family traditions and heritage. This story also made me recall situations in my life and others, where people have to find an apical balance between embracing their own identity and/or becoming consumed by someone else's artistic, musical, culinary and other social elements that they would so imitate. In other words, everyone is raised within a culture; a set of customs and morals handed down by generations before them.
In today's society, many are unaware of their heritage because of what is portrayed by the media that may forcefully define themselves. Society also loses sight of their roots and favors an alternate identity from another class or socioeconomic group.
This story is narrated by a mother with two daughters. The narrator describes herself as a “large, big boned woman with rough man-working hands.” She goes into further detail of her strong character by describing some of her routine attributes. “In the winter I wear flannel nightgowns to bed and overalls during the day… I can kill and clean a hog as mercilessly as a man.” The description of her character shows a hard-working woman who is enraptured with her lifestyle and a wealth of cultural traditions and tough roots.
     Walker describes the differences in her daughters, for there is a clear distinction as the story unravels. The sisters Dee “Wangero” and Maggie, share the same background and were raised in the same household, however they think and act distinctly different. Furthermore, their clashing characteristics serve as symbols to convey the overall theme of the story. Dee's name change to “Wangero Leewankia Kemajo” was the first thing that struck me. Dee explained to her mother that she couldn't bear it any longer being named after people that oppressed her. I believe that Dee has alienated herself and wasn't too fond of the idea of her name being traced back to the times of slavery, or even being named after her aunt and grandmother.
The narrator of the story thought that perhaps she would have a profound appreciation and acknowledge the legacy of her name. Dee is ashamed of where she came from and feels like her family's manner of living is not up to par or substandard to hers. That is evidently shown in the passage; “burned us with a lot of knowledge we didn't necessarily need to know and she will never bring in her friends to see where her mom lives'. These negative connotations in this story show that Dee is ashamed of where she came from. Maggie, on the other hand, is the stay-at-home daughter who tends to be timid, naïve and insecure. She feels inferior and “thinks her sister has held life always in the palm of one hand, that 'no' is a word the world never learned to say to her”. Higher education has hindered the relationship between Dee and her family.
     The narrator is sort of in the middle of this awkward and conflicting relationship with her beloved two daughters. Dee wants an old quilt her ancestors made because she was impressed by the generational art work but the narrator promised to give it to Maggie when she gets married. She believes that her so called less fortunate daughter doesn’t deserve it and won’t show any appreciation for having it in her possession. She had to decide between one or the other; One who would display the quilts and household items as pieces to be viewed and admired as a way of the old life, or to the other daughter who would use them in the way they were meant to be used, to continue the family tradition by quilting and using them every day . This story centers on Maggie even if she had a low self esteem and was insecure, she surely grasped her heritage.

Joanne Joseph

English 201-102

 

When you wake up in the morning, what is the first thing that you said to your parents? When you pick up the phone and talk to someone, have you thought about what you said? When you speak before a class, do you stop to think, do they understand what I am saying? The greatest form of communication in human history is language; the question is, how has the English language stood the test of time as one, if not, the dominant language in human history?

            Learning how to adapt to a new environment can be very overwhelming, yet an exhilarating experience. Even fear can be intertwined at some point of time and we are sometimes fearful of the unknown. I have had my fair share of adventures traveling around the world exploring while new countries. Over the years I've made comparisons in people's native languages, dialects and verbal expressions. Based on my observations there were a variance in vocabulary, grammatical structure and the way they pronounced their words and over the years I have noticed a vast progression of my use of the English language. Languages can be a barrier but throughout history it has more often connected people. English is the official language spoken in my country; to give a brief history there was a truculent power struggle between the French and British Governments. They fought for the island fourteen times; seven times ruled by the British and seven times ruled by the French. In the end, the British Government gained control but today many French cultural influences and customs still exists. Today, many saint Lucians speak French creole, it is a language with its own orthography and grammar and slightly different from its main origin French.

            Speaking both French creole and English creole has had a profound effect on my speech pattern but I have acknowledged a bilingual environment. I believe that Standard English has to be acquired because of its international and professionalism importance and there should be some sort of uniformity in our speech in order to communicate effectively. I have encountered moments were I had to pronounce and spell my words differently words such as “cheque, labour, analyse, aluminum and dreamed” just to name a few, due to the fact that I was taught under the British education system. While reading the article “Nine Ideas of Language” by Harvey A. Daniels, I came across a very interesting point that interchanging of dialect is normal. Its evolution is continuous and inevitable and the changes might be vital as it helps make it more comprehensible and simplified to its users. In the English language words become colloquial; they take on a life of their own. For example “pop” it has taken on the meaning of soda when its initial intention was to describe a sensation.

Language has evolved for the necessity of humanity. By speaking, you can give others information about yourself and the world around you.