My Dear Former English Class,
I wrote this letter for you. I am glad this is not on paper, for the ink would be blurred by my tears.
My mother once told me that all good things must come to an end. And so I say, that today we must come to an end.
Please, do not take this personally. Believe me that this is not my choice, but it was God’s divine will that resulted in this change.
Though from now on we will not be able to enjoy the close company of one another, please remember one thing: our love transcends all physical feelings; our love will never die through our memories. I will always be in your heart, as you will always be in mine.
Don’t look back. Enjoy the extra seat.
I love you. Good luck. Goodbye.
Sincerely,
Until we meet again
Aravind Swaminathan
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Kafka!
Kafka’s Metamorphisis is an extremely interesting story that helps us as readers to analyze the human mind. The story itself is quite strange, unlike anything I have ever read before. Why did Kafka write about a man turning into an insect? Why, out of all the things in the world, an insect??
There is an answer to these questions. Kafka is trying to teach us readers an important lesson, through analyzing the characters, especially Gregor. Through Metamorphosis, Kafka shows that suppressed feelings, mindsets, and attitudes can seriously affect an individual. In the story, the attitudes and mindsets of Gregor’s family in combination with his own suppressed feelings of anger and worthlessness transform Gregor into an insect.
It is obvious that Gregor’s family did not treat Gregor with basic respect and appreciation. Though Gregor slaves away to repay his father’s debts, his family treats him as a pest, both literally and metaphorically. After so much horrible treatment, Gregor’s mind starts to make himself believe that he is nothing better than an insect. My mother has told me something similar to the story. When my brother and I were younger, she would always tell me not to bully my brother, for that would eventually ruin his self esteem and proud. But, this is exactly what Gregor’s family does: they ruin his self esteem, his pride, and his confidence. Gregor begins to believe that he is really nothing better than an insect, a pest. How sad. If only my mother taught his family.
It is not just Gregor’s family that turns him into an insect, but it is Gregor himself who aids in his own transformation. Gregor’s suppressed feelings of worthlessness and self disgust only help him quickly become acquainted and normal with his new insect life. After so long, Gregor’s suppressed feelings built up and his transformation into an insect helped him release his suppressed feelings. By transforming into an insect, Gregor was able to let go of the harboring pain and accept the harsh reality with which he is treated with.
Furthermore, Gregor’s suppressed feelings lead him to believe that he is actually a pest. This situation is very typical in human beings. Many times one hears, “I feel so free, like a bird” or something like, “I felt like a lion”. I believe that humans associate themselves with specific animals or other creatures to help express suppresses feelings. In Gregor’s case though, he turns into an insect.
Kafka’s Metamorphosis teaches us an important lesson: be careful about the way you treat others. As Kafka showed us, harsh attitudes and suppressed emotions can turn into life changing transformations. Do we want others to feel useless, worthless, or insignificant as a result of how we treat them? Is that right? We should always be aware of how we treat others, because our attitudes can transform others in ways we can not expect or do not intend to. Kafka, through his strange story, teaches us this important lesson; a lesson that everyone can use on a universal level.
Thank you Kafka. After writing this blog, I don’t think you were on drugs while writing this story: I think you were a man who was writing a story with great passion and wisdom.
There is an answer to these questions. Kafka is trying to teach us readers an important lesson, through analyzing the characters, especially Gregor. Through Metamorphosis, Kafka shows that suppressed feelings, mindsets, and attitudes can seriously affect an individual. In the story, the attitudes and mindsets of Gregor’s family in combination with his own suppressed feelings of anger and worthlessness transform Gregor into an insect.
It is obvious that Gregor’s family did not treat Gregor with basic respect and appreciation. Though Gregor slaves away to repay his father’s debts, his family treats him as a pest, both literally and metaphorically. After so much horrible treatment, Gregor’s mind starts to make himself believe that he is nothing better than an insect. My mother has told me something similar to the story. When my brother and I were younger, she would always tell me not to bully my brother, for that would eventually ruin his self esteem and proud. But, this is exactly what Gregor’s family does: they ruin his self esteem, his pride, and his confidence. Gregor begins to believe that he is really nothing better than an insect, a pest. How sad. If only my mother taught his family.
It is not just Gregor’s family that turns him into an insect, but it is Gregor himself who aids in his own transformation. Gregor’s suppressed feelings of worthlessness and self disgust only help him quickly become acquainted and normal with his new insect life. After so long, Gregor’s suppressed feelings built up and his transformation into an insect helped him release his suppressed feelings. By transforming into an insect, Gregor was able to let go of the harboring pain and accept the harsh reality with which he is treated with.
Furthermore, Gregor’s suppressed feelings lead him to believe that he is actually a pest. This situation is very typical in human beings. Many times one hears, “I feel so free, like a bird” or something like, “I felt like a lion”. I believe that humans associate themselves with specific animals or other creatures to help express suppresses feelings. In Gregor’s case though, he turns into an insect.
Kafka’s Metamorphosis teaches us an important lesson: be careful about the way you treat others. As Kafka showed us, harsh attitudes and suppressed emotions can turn into life changing transformations. Do we want others to feel useless, worthless, or insignificant as a result of how we treat them? Is that right? We should always be aware of how we treat others, because our attitudes can transform others in ways we can not expect or do not intend to. Kafka, through his strange story, teaches us this important lesson; a lesson that everyone can use on a universal level.
Thank you Kafka. After writing this blog, I don’t think you were on drugs while writing this story: I think you were a man who was writing a story with great passion and wisdom.
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Tolstoy the Artist
In class, Mr. Coon’s first question about Tolstoy’s The Death of Ivan Ilych was why is the funeral scene presented first? I had an immediate answer, but lacked the courage to present what I believed. But, now, I have mustered enough strength to articulate my thoughts.
To me, reading The Death of Ivan Ilych is like watching an artist paint a painting. The first chapter is like the beginning of the painting, the sketches or the outline. Tolstoy provides the reader with the beginning of the painting, enough to make the reader more interested to see how the painting turns out. The reader wants to know what colors are added and why. The reader wants to know what the “random” pencil sketches will turn into.
The sketches and the outline of the painting are presented in the form of the questions raised in the first chapter of the first story. We wonder why Ivan Ilych does not have any true “friends” but only close “acquaintances”. We wonder why Ilych’s “friends” are so impassionate about his death, and why they do not react as most normal human beings would to a friend’s death. We want explanations to add color to the painting.
As Tolstoy continues his short story, the painting starts to come to life. We see colors added to the sketches of figures. We see “fake” colors added to Ivan Ilych’s “friends”; we see colors mixed together. We start to comprehend the true nature of the characters and what the characters represent. An example of this is Peter Ivanovich. The author first paints Peter in colors that show that he is not really a true friend, he is labeled a friend through his motivation for more; but we see that Peter does have some compassion when he feels sorrow for Ivan. We start to learn more about the characters. We see that under the human flesh colors, there are deceiving colors in Ivan’s wife, Ivan’s friend who loves bridge, and Ivan’s coworkers. We learn that behind the colors that stand out, there are really depressing and dull colors. The colors themselves are deceiving.
The metaphor of the short story being like a painting is a great way to view the short story. By keeping this metaphor in mind, the story can be interpreted on a deeper level as the reader continues through the chapters. Tolstoy is not just a great author, but he is a great painter as well.
To me, reading The Death of Ivan Ilych is like watching an artist paint a painting. The first chapter is like the beginning of the painting, the sketches or the outline. Tolstoy provides the reader with the beginning of the painting, enough to make the reader more interested to see how the painting turns out. The reader wants to know what colors are added and why. The reader wants to know what the “random” pencil sketches will turn into.
The sketches and the outline of the painting are presented in the form of the questions raised in the first chapter of the first story. We wonder why Ivan Ilych does not have any true “friends” but only close “acquaintances”. We wonder why Ilych’s “friends” are so impassionate about his death, and why they do not react as most normal human beings would to a friend’s death. We want explanations to add color to the painting.
As Tolstoy continues his short story, the painting starts to come to life. We see colors added to the sketches of figures. We see “fake” colors added to Ivan Ilych’s “friends”; we see colors mixed together. We start to comprehend the true nature of the characters and what the characters represent. An example of this is Peter Ivanovich. The author first paints Peter in colors that show that he is not really a true friend, he is labeled a friend through his motivation for more; but we see that Peter does have some compassion when he feels sorrow for Ivan. We start to learn more about the characters. We see that under the human flesh colors, there are deceiving colors in Ivan’s wife, Ivan’s friend who loves bridge, and Ivan’s coworkers. We learn that behind the colors that stand out, there are really depressing and dull colors. The colors themselves are deceiving.
The metaphor of the short story being like a painting is a great way to view the short story. By keeping this metaphor in mind, the story can be interpreted on a deeper level as the reader continues through the chapters. Tolstoy is not just a great author, but he is a great painter as well.
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