Mike Wright's Blog

[elenamonatpeace-spain-world-blog]

Post # 14.

Well, this class was a fabulous one because I really enjoyed the novels which we read. It was challenging for me to stay on track, but I feel like I have learned so much about life and some different variations of oppression, power abuse, and love in general. I enjoyed writing essays on the novels because my essays were based on the whole book with developed themes - not just excerpts from some literary works. I felt like I had more freedom in writing these essays because I could choose about what to write. I have also noticed that this class thought me how to be more open-minded and see symbolic meanings in actions, interior, and behaviour.

[mikewright11-blog]

I think having different options for the essays allowed them to not seem like tedious work.  The options allowed each student to express themselves in their own way.  The essays also helped me gain a greater understanding and respect for the books I chose to complete the assignment.  I really enjoyed the Mishnah option because it let me add to a book in my own way, but still staying true to the storyline.  This made me learn more of the book than just reading and taking notes.  I felt I had to use the little seemingly insignificant details to help tie my story into the original work.

#042315

[mikewright11-blog]

Final Post

As this semester winds down I’m happy that the last book we read was The Road.  The book wasn’t focused on some form of government control which became slightly repetitive by The Handmaid’s Tale.  Although each of the first three books had a different take on the subject it did make the books less enjoyable.  While The Road talked of survival, hope, and the journey toward a better life.  McCarthy’s writing style keep me engaged throughout the book and I wish it didn’t end as soon as it had.  I also enjoyed the movie adaptation.  I felt it stayed as true as possible to the book and only changed scenes for either time or to keep the viewer interested.  The music choice was phenomenal and I wondered if the director had to complete an assignment like the one for our second Critical Response.  All in all this has been a great semester and I’m glad I took this course.

#042315

[wylerg83-deactivated20160501]

4-8-15 Some thoughts on having read The Road.

The Road was certainly a fun, riveting journey in my opinion. The fashion by which McCarthy delineates the father-son relationship was an unprecedented achievement with how personal their relationship felt to me, and I was actually saddened to see the plot pack up its bags seemingly so soon. I’ll say that the father’s death was a foreshadowed outcome that made the resolution a bit predictable. At least the action leading up to it was some of the best in the novel concerning both the cart thief and the archer. I think to truly appreciate the messages about human nature and sacrifice I would have to give it a second read-through. The trout in the river bit left me a bit puzzled admittedly. As pointed out in class, I am genuinely happy that the kid finding a shelter with another family provides a more hopeful ending instead of an ambiguous one.

[mikewright11-blog]

I agree this was a fun journey to read.  The father-son relationship was an amazing feat of writing.  The way McCarthy was able to make them polar opposites in both reality and in their dreams was difficult to follow at first, but I was able to gain a better understanding of them in the process.  I also loved how the boy slowly changed as his father’s health deteriorated.  Towards the end of the book the boy was far more demanding of his father much like his father was of the boy at the beginning.  I was genuinely happy with the ending like you were.  The more hopeful ending also gave readers hope that they too could persevere through tough times just like the boy. 

#041715

[mikewright11-blog]

The Road - Final

Out of all the books we have read this semester The Road was the most enjoyable.  I think it’s because of the post-apocalyptic theme and the writing style.  McCarthy did a phenomenal job of describing each scene to fill the book with mini-climaxes each time they came upon a group of people or a house.  I also enjoyed how he never used the names of the father and boy.  The absence of names allowed me to fully understand the characters without having a personal attachment to them.  The other wonderful part about this book was McCarthy always making the father and boy the focus of the book, even during the scene in the Grand House.  His description of the scene in that house wasn’t so over the top to take away the readers focus of the main characters.  I thoroughly enjoyed the ending and how even as the boy lost his family he immediately gains another so he can continue to “carry the fire."

#041715

[wylerg83-deactivated20160501]

4-8-15 Initial Impressions of The Road.

The Road is already a prime example of why I continually love to read fiction, partly in that the post-apocalyptic genre is robustly appealing to me. The adventure behind the struggles for survival of a father and his son was instantly gripping. While the initial reading of their dialogue had left me somewhat confused by the stream of consciousness approach, I grew to enjoy and appreciate McCarthy’s close knit and vividly detailed writing style. The purpose of keeping the reader close to every action the characters make I feel places us right in the midst of their cold, decaying world.

[mikewright11-blog]

After reading half of The Road, I find myself looking for other post-apocalyptic stories.  While this book certainly has some disturbing elements it’s still a book classified as fiction.  While this may occur in the future it seems very unlikely.  I also enjoyed the story of survival and a father looking after his son in these troubling times.  I find myself wondering if the father will become hopeful like his son or will his son turn into the skeptic that his father has become.  I also feel that McCarthy’s writing style allows the reader to feel right in the middle of all the action.  That writing style has made this such an enjoyable and easy book to follow and makes me wonder what could possible the next thing they find along the road.

#041015

[mikewright11-blog]

The Road

I am really enjoying reading The Road.  The writing style that McCarthy uses makes me think that there are mini-climaxes throughout the story.  I find his refusal to give the father and boy a name at this point is a clever way to learn the characters without having a personal stake in each of them.  This allows the reader to see the deeper portions of their character.  I also found it fascinating that the father and boy are polar opposites of each other.  In real-life the father is a realist and always skeptical of everyone they come across, but the boy is curious and optimistic about humanity.  However, when they dream they switch roles.  The boy has nightmares about a penguin and the father has happy dreams of his wife.  Truly a fascinating book and I was hooked after only a few pages.

#041015

[rc-redmon-blog-blog]

Final Handmaids Tale post- 4-2-15

The ending to the Handmaids Tale was nowhere near what I was expecting, Atwood really caught me off guard. I just knew she was either going to start a revolution or runaway with Moira.  I found it odd that Serena Joy wanted revenge on Offred for “cheating” on her with her husband but when the eye came she wasn’t even the one that wanted that.  Throughout the book there was an abundance of detail, Atwood really described everything which is why I think the book was enjoying to read.  Besides the constant flashbacks, it was easy to follow.  On the other hand I could never see our society turning to that type of living.

#040315

[mikewright11-blog]

I too was expecting Offred to make her escape at the club after she was reunited with Moira, but sadly she went back with the Commander.  I was also amazed at Serena Joy, who showed no signs of emotion toward the Commander, was suddenly upset with their rendezvous at the club.  This from the same woman who facilitated numerous encounters with Nick.  False outrage is how I would describe the scene with the robe.  To me she was one of the more dangerous characters in the book because she fully accepts the oppression of women as long as she gets what she wants to stay in the highest status amongst the women.  I think the flashbacks made it hard to thoroughly enjoy the book, but after I finished I was able to look back and appreciate the Atwood’s ideas. 

#040215

[mikewright11-blog]

Final Handmaid's Tale

Even though I didn’t care for Atwood’s writing style throughout the book it did get better over the last 2 reading assignments.  I think this was due to the flashbacks occurring less often.  By placing the flashbacks in the middle of a scene it caused me confusion over what exactly was happening.  With that being said, the remainder of the book picked up pace and started to build up to the climax.  The tension started to build as she was taken to “Jezebel” and her initial encounters with Nick.  I felt that the van would come for her at any time and that threat kept my attention till the very end.  The ending didn’t leave any doubt in my mind, Nick secured her escape at the risk of his own life.  One issue I definitely have with Atwood is in the chapter after she is taken away.  To me, it seemed like she pulled the concept from The Diary of Anne Frank.  While she had a very interesting take on a possible society in the future during the book, the unoriginality of the final chapter ruined most if not all of my admiration for the book.

#040215

[rc-redmon-blog-blog]

While reading this book I feel that I can only think of what is going to happen next because of all the details. The book itself has a different concept of the world, that I would never imagine happening. The way everything is described makes it easy to try to visualize what I am reading which...

[mikewright11-blog]

As the book has progressed I also feel excited as to what will happen next.  You bring up a great point about Serena Joy planning with Offred to get pregnant with Nick.  I felt that Serena Joy knows it is the Commander who is infertile, not her.  Under the current society the wives are the ones considered infertile.  So if Serena were to mention this I’m sure she would be punished for saying such things.  I also thing that Offred’s flashbacks, although confusing at times, are her way to never lose her identity even after losing her name under this society.

#032615

[mikewright11-blog]

Handmaid's Tale

Even though I don’t care for Margaret Atwood’s writing style, especially the constant flashbacks, the book is an interesting look at a potential future society.  While the other books talked about the concept of government control of everyone, this one focuses on how women are the ones controlled.  The government makes them wear non-form fitting clothes and forces them travel in groups of two to go shopping.  Women are even prohibited from reading and writing.  The government takes this so far as to only use pictures in the stores that they shop at for the Commanders and their families.  I still think the most amusing part (of a very sad and disturbing society) is how Scrabble is considered taboo!

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[kellie1620-blog]

So I’m so glad we are halfway through this class. It seems like it has gone very quickly. Contrary to some of the feelings about this book I really like it! I guess because it’s different than the other books because it’s in the perspective of a woman. I like that because it’s different that the...

[mikewright11-blog]

Even though I don’t like this book as much as the others, it's still great to have a story from a woman's perspective.  Although the ideas within the book are creepy and would be a special on NBC Dateline, seeing the demeaning way these women are treated should be an eye-opener in today's society.  The rest of the book should be interesting to see if men like Nick will continue the status quo or rise up with the women.  It will also be interesting to see how the Commander treats Offred since he has already played Scrabble with her.  Like you, I also hope she can meet back up with her husband and child in real life instead of in flashbacks.#031315

[mikewright11-blog]

Handmaid’s Tale Ch1-18

So far this book has been less interesting than the previous readings.  Margaret Atwood spends more time describing each scene, but spends less time building up the story.  One thing I have noticed with this book is focusing on controlling certain groups instead of the entire population in 1984 and Fahrenheit 451.  I am curious as to how the rest of the story plays out and if Offred can break free from her “imprisonment“ of the Commander.  She has already attempted to break the rules, much like Montag and Winston.  I wonder what will become of her and the other women in this society.

[rc-redmon-blog-blog]

As we all know we are half way through the class. I hope everyone did well on their midterms. I am looking forward to the second half because I have never read either of these books. Just by judging them by their covers they both look interesting. I have heard that one is better than the other but...

[mikewright11-blog]

I also enjoyed our group discussions we had after each section of the book.  It allowed me to see different perspectives other than my own.  Making each group discuss the various elements within each chapter helped gain a complete understanding of each book.  The discussions also helped me to study for the quizzes and midterm so far this semester.  These next two books will be interesting since I don’t remember reading them before, but I had read Fahrenheit 451 and 1984 multiple times.  As long as we have open discussions I think everyone will do just fine in the second half of the semester.

#030515

[mikewright11-blog]

Midterm

As others have said, I’m not sure what to post this week since we just had our midterm exam.  The only thing I could come up with is the constant idea of government control in a majority of our readings up to this point.  Whether it was control through censorship of literature or control through threat of being “vaporized.”  One of the most important things students should take away from our readings is how being preoccupied with various things (technology, lack of education and lack of interest in politics) can easily lead to government control seemingly overnight.  Stay engaged, stay informed and stay free!

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[kellie1620-blog]

[mikewright11-blog]

So I am extremely glad I am done with the book 1984. I honestly didn’t like it just because it was pretty slow it more than one part of the story. I was pretty disappointed with the ending. I wanted...

  The book did slow down considerably in parts, but I found those times were filled with subtle hints about the direction of the book.  I agree about your point of us being accustomed to control.  At 40 years old, I remember a time when there was more scrutiny of government actions, but sadly that has slowly ended.  I think this is due to the non-stop interaction with the various forms of technology.  From 1,000 channels on the TV, to always staring at our cell phones and using “un”social media.  We have allowed ourselves to be constantly distracted from the controlling actions of our government…right in front of our eyes.

#022415

[mikewright11-blog]

1984 Completed

Now that I have reached the end of the book, there are two ideas I found interesting.  First, in a world where you can never trust anyone, why Winston believed O’Brien is beyond me.  In all honesty, both Winston and Julia became too relaxed and got sloppy with their actions.  Starting in the secret rendezvous in the country they eventually let their “love” for each other cloud their judgment.  Secondly, Winston chose self-preservation over his “love” for Julia.  This action was perfectly in-line with what Big Brother wants from the citizens.  If everyone is more worried about themselves then they would never feel free to challenge the party ideals.  Sad ending, but a realistic one rather than the optimistic endings most people probably desire.

#022415

[kellie1620-blog]

[mikewright11-blog]

So I have read 1984 before this class and the only part of the book that I remember was the telescreen behind the painting. It was such a significant moment in the book. Although you could guess that...

I was expecting Julia to be the one who turned Winston in after she fell asleep while reading Goldstein’s book.  I agree that the reader knew they were going to be caught, but at what moment?  Both Mr. Charrington and O’Brien played their role perfectly and lulled both of them into a false sense of security.  While Winston may have gotten a bad deal it was his fault by trusting people in a society where there is no trust.  It made me wonder if the Inner Party saw Winston the same as Syme, but with less intelligence.  I think they used that to let them continue their actions to see how far were they willing to go to attempt an overthrow of the Party.  

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