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| In a way we are at our own crossroads |
Not to be melodramatic, but our recent reading material is worrying me a little bit. Faced with a lack of data sheets, my AP English paranoia and dismay has refocused on literary themes, and I am coming to some disturbing conclusions. First, we encountered a weepy and depressed grandmother who sees sadness in everything. Then, we were set loose on the internet to learn about Mr. McEwan, a man known affectionately as "Ian Macabre" who said himself that he "hate[s] comic novels." Tied into McEwan and
Amsterdam is "Crossroads", which opens with the uplifting first lines "Two friends who met here and embraced are gone, / Each to his own mistake."
Amsterdam itself opens outside a crematorium after a woman's sudden and unexpected death. Of course sadness, mistakes, and death are all a part of life and should be reflected in literature, but these themes have occurred with alarming frequency over the past couple of weeks. I am left wondering, am I in for a month of depressing literature? Or will further reading of
Amsterdam and deeper analysis of "Crossroads" pleasantly surprise me?
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| Ian looking Cheery |
Kaleigh, I am very glad you bring up this point because I too grow a little bit frustrated with the overwhelming amount of depressing literature we read. Of course I agree with Ms. Serensky that we can learn more from the unhappy and gloomy novels and poems, but I worry about how they affect the rest of my life. I worry that because we read so many stories that focus primarily on such downtrodden circumstances, this affects my mood and outlook during the rest of my day. It is an interesting thing to ponder. Think about if we read books about someone who is successful or figures out how to live a happy life, would we feel happier as well throughout our days? And also Kaleigh, I like the sarcasm under the picture of McEwan.
ReplyDeleteI feel as if this book will be depressing as well. But what will really depress me are these monumental (yes, they are definitely monumental) changes in our schedule. I mean, the lack of a data sheet? And the in class writing after only Part 1 of the book? I do not like this at all. First, obviously data sheets involve long tedious work, but it serves as a grade booster and helps me to further understand the novel. Also, this in class writing. After reading only Part 1. What? This is not normal. But at least we get to use our books! (and at least we did not have an in class writing for One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest!)
ReplyDeleteKaleigh, this is an interesting point that you bring up. I can not really think of a story we read in AP English 11 or 12 that was a happy story. Frank McCourt was basically an orphan and Harriet Jacobs lived in an attic. Othello was not very pleasent considering he murdered his wife and One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest was not much better. However, are we really interested in stories about people who live happy and perfect lives? That's not reality and personally I feel we can learn more from the bad times than the good.
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