Introduction
In Hills Like White Elephants (Ernest Hemingway), a woman and a man are in Spain at a train station drinking beers. It is obvious that there is something that is bothering them too and the woman keeps referring to the hills as “white elephants”. By the end they are arguing about an operation that is “perfectly simple”, an abortion, and it is unclear how they end. Due to the open ending, in this blog post I will share how I believe the book ended. I will also share a time I had to decide to stay or leave ____________________________________________________________________________________________ The short story ends with the couple waiting for the train and when the guy asks how the woman is doing she says “I feel fine... there is nothing wrong with me.” I believe that this tells the readers that after this the girl keeps the baby and leaves the relationship. When she says there is nothing wrong with her, I interpreted it that she is fine and having the baby will not make something wrong with her. Ernest Hemingway hints throughout the story that she wants to keep the baby as well. He keeps referring to a beaded curtain that is hanging in the restaurant. This symbolizes many things to me, such as the bond between a baby and a mom through an umbilical cord. The woman reaches out and grabs just two beads which could show how she is now two and wants to keep the baby. I also believes that she leaves the relationship because it becomes clear the guy does not have the best intentions for her. He keeps bringing up the simple operation and that they will be perfectly happy after it is done. When he does ask if the girl is okay with it he says, "But I know it's perfectly simple" (Hemingway). To me this did not allow the girl to give her honest answer and he's trying to influence her decision. The two drink a lot and seem to party and it is clear the guy will not love her the same if she keeps the baby because things will change. With the baby they will not be able to party as much and their lifestyle will change and this does not seem appeasing to the man. As the short story goes on the woman asks questions to strengthen her suspicion about his true feelings that the guy does not want what is best for her. His responses go on to show that the woman was right, guiding the woman to leave the man. After our annual Christmas luncheon, all my aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents went back to my house. You could hear the laughter and screams of the kids playing house in the basement. The living room was filled with whistles, and announcers voices from the football game playing. The adults enjoyed their drinks as they could talk and watch the game. Some cousins and I sat around the kitchen table as we were way too full from lunch and talked about what we wanted for Christmas. My uncle walked in, stumbling all over and wreaking, Brianna you look like you got chunky, and Victoria that outfit is hideous." This was the man I had always idolized and characterized as my favorite uncle. He was the next best man to me after my dad. I was stunned, unable to form words and confused on why he was acting this way at first. Looking at him in the eye, "You're an awful person! I do not want you to speak to me again." At the time I believed this was the best response I could have given and saw this as the meanest thing I could have said. If I could go back I would have been more rude and made more of a point. That was the day I ended the relationship I had with my uncle, and no longer saw the good in him. I was done making excuses for his behavior after long hours of disappearing. Until he fixes what the problem is I was done supporting him and dancing around his problem.
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Introduction
In What You Don't Know (Lulu Wang), Lula Wang is put in a difficult situation with her family. Her Gramdother, Nainai, is diagnosed with stage four cancer and given only three months or less to live and her family decides not to tell her. In China it is believed that mental health is as important as physical health and not telling Nainai will prolong her life. Lulu Wang does not agree with this decision and struggles to keep it hidden from her Nainai. In this blog post I will provide my opinion on how the family handled the situation, and a time I was challenged with a difficult situation. ____________________________________________________________________________________________ My opinion on lying to Nainai changed as I listened to the podcast. In the beginning I felt as if this was very wrong because if it was me I would want to know I was sick and be able to fight it. I think every person should have a right to know about their health and what kind of condition they are in. My opinion varies from the families though because we live in different cultures. In China it is costmary to give bad medical news to a family member, not the patient and they feel joy helps heal sickness. I can understand why Lulu was so upset about keeping the secret from her grandmother because if it was me I would want to tell mine and be able to grieve with her. Although, I understand why she did not tell her grandmother because she did not want to go against her family. My opinion had shifted towards agreeing with the decision by the end of the podcast. After three years Nainai does not succumb to the cancer and stays healthy, and this could be related to the fact that her mental health never declined. Also, the podcast revealed that Nainai's husband was sick and she kept his illness from him and did not tell him. This helped to change my opinion because if Nainai did this to someone else maybe she was not totally opposed to the choice herself. In China they believe in other ways to treat sickness than in America and I was able to understand and accept their choice of keeping Nainai happy. I had faced a difficult choice just like Lulu Wang last summer. A few friends and I had a party on Christmas in July since my friends mom was away, telling our parents we were just having a movie night. We all dressed up in ugly sweaters and invited people over and were having a good time. The beginning started out fun but it turned into the grossest night of my life (we can't even talk about it because it was awful). My one friend got a little out of control and began to throw up but we got her crackers and water and decided she was okay and she went to bed. The next day we both had to work as lifeguards at Ridley Park Swim Club at nine am. My friend was not feeling well but we knew it was just the result of the night before so I tried to get her to eat and drink something all day at work. Since we knew we would get in trouble if our parents found out we decided not to tell anyone. When she went on stand for her final time she called me over and said, "Bri I really don't feel good, this is the worst I've ever felt my hands are cramped I can't move them." Immediately after this I ran to get my boss to help me and as I was running to him she fell out of her stand. She was throwing up all over herself and was shaking, unable to move. We called the ambulance right away and when they came they got her on the stretcher and to the hospital. Me, being her partner in crime, was questioned by our boss, the paramedics, and parents. I had to tell the truth about the night before in order for her to get the best treatment possible. Deciding to tell the truth I knew there would be consequences but I had to decide to do what was right in order to make sure my friend was going to be okay. Introduction
In this blog post I am going to share my six steps to writing a story, paper, or whatever it may be. I hope this may help some people with their own writing process and give readers an insight to how I go about writing. ____________________________________________________________________________________________ Step 1: Start writing typically on a Monday, Wednesday, or Friday morning from 9-10 am in my room. This is when I don't have class and I have free time. If it is the winter I have a tea and am under the covers. Step 2: Write down ideas or events that have happened to me that are related to the assignment I need to write about. Step 3: Pick the event that gets my attention the most and I write about the event in detail with no structure just getting as much down as I can. Step 4: Use the writing to find structure and fix up the writing and develop the assignment. Step 5: Once I finish I will have someone close to me read the paper and edit it. Step 6: Revise the corrections they gave me and correct the writing until it is good enough. Introduction
In this blog post I will reflect my thoughts on My Name is Margaret (Maya Angelo). This short story is set during the 1960s in the south when segregation was very evident. Margaret works with Mrs. Glory, and they are both housekeepers for Mrs. Cullinan. During the story Margaret stands up for her rights and rebels when they are taken from her. ____________________________________________________________________________________________ During the pivotal scene, Margaret breaks Mrs. Cullinan's casserole dish and green cups which were very important to her. These pieces were very important to her family and had been passed along generations for years. What causes the breaking of the glasses is when Mrs. Cullinan says to Mrs. Glory and Margaret, "She’s Mary from now on"(Angelo). Mrs. Cullinan says this to exhibit her power over Margaret and demonstrates how racism is still a problem Mrs. Cullinana believed she had so much power over her black servant to change her name and this was diminishing. In an effort to keep her self worth and to stand up for what she believes in Mary rebels. The scene that showed her rebellion was, "Her favorite piece was a casserole shaped like a fish and the green glass coffee cups. I kept his instructions in mind... I picked up the casserole and two of the green glass cups in readiness. As she rounded the kitchen door I let them fall on the tiled floor"(Angelo). Breaking the glass demonstrates the breaking of power and challenged the status quo since the dishes were in the family for so long. I believe that the way Margaret handled this was very well and agree completely with her behavior. She was not going to let anyone diminish her self worth and I think this is a very important trait to have. Breaking the dishes allowed her to make her point and stand up against racism and at the end it worked out in her favor. Mrs. Cullinan ended up calling her Margaret and this was very important to her. I believe it is vital that you never let anyone take your identity from you and staying true to who you are and Margaret does exactly this in this short story. In my life the status quo was doing gymnastics considering I had done it since the age of four. My life revolved around this sport and I spent almost everyday during the week at practice for hours. My weekends consisted of me traveling the country to compete at local competitions, nationals, or even worlds for a couple years. My parents invested endless money and time into this sport but it was all worth it since I was doing the sport that I loved. My goal was to eventually compete in college gymnastics and be able to receive some sort of scholarship from it. This sport brought me happiness and I wanted to make it last as long as I could. My dreams all came to an end when my body started to fight back the endless hours of intense work. Around the time of fourth grade I began to get injured constantly. I went from having a boot on my left foot, to a cast on my right, right back into a boot on my left. The injuries were never ending and around ninth grade they became more severe. My back became the center of my injuries and at first I thought I could push through the pain but it turns out I was wrong. Somedays coming home from practice I was unable to even walk because of how severe it was. I had to change my whole life to overcome these injuries starting with giving up gymnastics. My parents were not happy with my decision and I had to go against them in order to be happy again. I had to make the decision that was best for me even though I was letting everyone else down. This major decision happened two years ago and to this day I could not be happier with it. I have found a new love in cheerleading and I am so passionate for this sport!
Introduction In this blog, I will provide quotes that reflect author's writing process from each of the following articles: The Daily Writing Routines of Great Writers (Maria Popova), Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life (Anne Lamott), and Zen in the Art of Writing (Ray Bradbury). I will also provide three quotes to give readers insight on my own writing process. I co-authored most of this blog post with my classmates: Caroline Harris, Kira McFadden, Janie Bohannon, and Nicole Passomonti. The Daily Writing Routines of Great Writers (Maria Popova)
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Introduction In this post, I will provide answers to the The Proust Questionnaire. This is the first blog post I am writing for my English 100 course, and I think my answers will provide my readers with insight to who I am, what my beliefs consist of, and how I view the world. __1.__What is your idea of perfect happiness? [insert a sentence or two to answer the question]. My idea of perfect happiness is being on a beach in the middle of summer with my toes in the sand and eating an ice cream from the fudgy wudgy man(preferably a choco taco). The feeling of my toes in the burning hot sand and my skin roasting in the sun brings me unending happiness. __2.__What is your greatest fear? I have two things that I am terrified of, first one being snakes. I am always scared a snake is going to bite me or attack me and be poisonous. My other fear is that I'm not good enough, whether it is in athletics, academics or anything else I'm scared I won't be good enough to please people. __3.__What is the trait you most deplore in yourself? One trait I most deplore in myself is how uptight I am and how I always have to be on a schedule and can take everything serious. I believe this takes the fun out of things but it is who I am and I can't change it. __4.__What is the trait you most deplore in others? The trait I most deplore in others is not being able to be flexible. I do not like when people stick to their own time and are unable to change it for other people. __5.__Which living person do you most admire? The person I most admire is my grandma for many reasons. To me she is the strongest person I know because she lost my grandpa at a young age to cancer and since she's been able to find happiness in other ways to enjoy life. __6.__What is your greatest extravagance? My greatest extravagance was my 18 day trip to Spain and Portugal I attended this summer with 50 of my classmates. We traveled Europe and discovered a brand new culture that has opened my mind and heart to many things. __7.__What is your current state of mind? My current state of mind is stressed and packed. With the beginning of the school year I am always stressed on how I will manage my classes and be able to work and participate in sports all at the same time. __8.__What do you consider the most overrated virtue? The most overrated virtue to me is fairness, I believe that people who expect things to be given to them are unreasonable. I think that everyone should have to work for what they earn and fairness is getting what you deserve. __9.__On what occasion do you lie? I only lie when it is meant to protect someone from being hurt or to keep myself out of trouble. __10.__What do you most dislike about your appearance? I most dislike my legs about my entire appearance. I always wished for long skinny legs and hated my short muscular legs. __11.__Which living person do you most despise? I most despise my manager Jim from Ridley Park Swim Club. When we work with him he is very unreasonable and angry and makes everyone do stuff they do not want to do. __12.__What is the quality you most like in a man? The quality I most like in a man is when he is very old school like and still has old school characteristics. It is very considerate when a man holds the door open for you, buys you flowers, and offers to help with everything. __13.__What is the quality you most like in a woman? I find it very nice when woman have respect for themselves and are independent. Woman shouldn't need a man to feel good about themselves and should love themselves. __14.__Which words or phrases do you most overuse? I most overuse the phrase "I don't care" because I always wanna make sure that other people are happy so I would rather them make the decision so they are doing something they like. __15.__What or who is the greatest love of your life? The greatest love of my life is all sweets. I have such a big sweet tooth and I love chocolate, cookies, and especially ice cream. __16.__When and where were you happiest? I was most happiest on June 22, 2017 when I was in Tarragona which is located in Spain. We swam in the Mediterranean Sea and the water was crystal clear and it was the happiest I have ever been. __17.__Which talent would you most like to have? Ever since I was little I have wished that I could sing. I am always so jealous of people who aren't tone deaf and can sing beautifully. __18.__If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be? One thing I wish I could change about myself is to be less uptight and to be more flexible. I want to be more easy going and be able to change quickly and enjoy myself more. __19.__What do you consider your greatest achievement? I recieved an award at cheerleading camp called "pin it forward" and it is given to honor people who show kindness and help everyone out. This was a big achievement for me because it made me realize that I can help people and I have done some good. __20.__If you were to die and come back as a person or a thing, what would it be? If I were to come back I would love to be a bird in my next life. I would love to be able to fly and see the world from a different viewpoint. __21.__Where would you most like to live? I would most like to live in Pennsylvania or Delaware because I love having all four seasons. I enjoy being able to go to the beach in the summer but I also love the snow and fall time. __22.__What is your most treasured possession? My most treasured possession is my pop-pops necklace my mom-mom gave me when he passed away. __23.__What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery? I believe that the lowest depth of misery is when you lose a loved one and have to continue on life missing them. __24.__What is your favorite occupation? My favorite occupation is a marine biologists because they get to research marine animals. I think researching is the most interesting way to learn and being able to research animals is amazing. __25.__What is your most marked characteristic? My most marked characteristic is working hard and being persistent. I often tend to get really busy but I never use that as an excuse to stop trying and lessen my work load. __26.__What do you most value in your friends? I find it most important when friends are trustworthy and are always there for you. Having friends who will help you when you need it is very important to me. __27.__Who are your favorite writers? My absolute favorite writer is Kristin Hannah, I have read a lot of her books and I've loved every one. I also like John Green a lot and I believe he makes his stories very relatable and enjoyable to read. __28.__Who is your hero of fiction? My hero of fiction is Dan Scott from One Tree Hill. Even though he does a lot wrong when it comes to his family he does everything he can to protect them and I respect that a lot. __29.__Which historical figure do you most identify with? __30.__Who are your heroes in real life? My heroes in real life are both of my parents. They do everything to make sure I live the best life and work so hard to always provide me with everything I need, often unthanked. __31.__What are your favorite names? My favorite names for a girl are Reagan Leigh, and Emma Lynne. My favorite boys are Caden and Riley. __32.__What is it that you most dislike? I most dislike when I am forced to do things I don't want to do and being bossed around. I like to do what I want on my own time and don't like being forced into things. __33.__What is your greatest regret? __34.__How would you like to die? I would like to die peacefully and at an old age. I want to make peace with my life before I die and be able to experience life to the fullest. __35.__What is your motto? My motto is "follow your dreams wherever they may lead". If you continue to pursue your dreams you will end up in the right spot and everything will be okay. These are a few images for my readers to enjoy from my Europe trip that I stated was my greatest extravagance! |
Brianna Costa
Within this blog I will write about concepts in my English class and about events in my life. Archives
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