Happy Ending... or Sad Ending?

While comparing "Happy Endings" and the story which Babette told Jack, I noted something that seemed contrasting. Margret Atwood focused on the details that led to the upcoming death of all the characters that she created, not caring about what happened really before that. Babette, however, was avoiding death as if she could somehow become immortal with a simple pill. It's interesting to read about Babette's beliefs: life and death both being something respected and yet feared of in a way that would make her avoid the inevitable end and embrace any means to stay alive. Nevertheless, Atwood approaches death with no fear, as if satisfied that it is the only real ending in the world. No whats are needed. Only how and why. Death... all we can do is embrace it.

Cookie Time!

Seems to me that all society is doing is preparing these girls - who don't fully understand rejection all that well - to feel the pain of failing. Sure, it helps them build up their esteem by saying, "It's ok! The next person will buy your cookies!" Only, they fail again and again and again. They get a few kind buyers, sure! But the rest? Heartless people who couldn't care less about the little girl only wanting to make her leaders proud of her by selling her cookies. Pitiful? Seems to only harden hearts of the enthusiastic children, making them uncaring if they become rejected or they hide themselves from the world, putting on masks so that no one can see under them. What is the world coming to? Sure, it helps them to realize that they need to work hard to meet their goals, but seriously. What is the real intent?

Why do we have to do this?

So basically, I pulled the "What is ______?" with my mom and brother. My mom just laughed it off and my brother just got mad and proceeded to ignore me after a minute or two. Over all, this blog was utterly pointless! I mean, come on! In class, we can talk to each other easily about stuff like this, but in real life... who would actually force themselves to try and understand what was going on? It was fun to try, but yeah. I don't think anyone would want to do this again for a while.

Characters = Writers?

When it comes to writing a script to a TV show or film, it is important to emphasize what you believe is right somewhere in the piece itself. However, it's not necessarily the writer's purpose to create a character that believes everything he does. It only comes due to his nature or it just fits with the character's personality at best. However, the writers could be intentionally doing this in order to "brainwash" the minds of the viewers so that they could agree with messages that are hidden beneath the facade of real life on TV. It's strange how ones life can become so different just by viewing something on the television screen. The writers are responsible for what they write and yet it is also our duty as the consumers to be wary of what we allow to flow into our minds.

Reach Out With Your Soul

To create art, one must pour their soul into their piece and ignore what other's think. To the artist, it is their pride and joy. Yet, to the consumer, they have to try and understand it to consider it art. It took many years for some paintings to even be classified as art. Nowadays, art seems to be junk tossed into one huge pile and put on display. To some, it's art. To me, that's crap. That wouldn't be worthy enough to be in the same building as the Mona Lisa. In a way, it is mocking the great works of the past with our "art" for this postmodern era. I don't think placing a crucifix in a cup and peeing on it is art. It's mocking God. With the change in worldviews, it's as if our effort for making art unique in and of itself has gone down the tubes.

Disorder Can Only Be Good In Writing

"Forgetfulness" reflects the disadvantages of becoming old and yet parallels it with mythology. To celebrate the disorder involved with becoming old, Collins writes "...the heartbreaking conclusion, the entire novel//which suddenly becomes one you have never read, never even heard of." It was difficult to pick which line, but I thought this was strange in and of itself. The fact that he was writing something for a book and yet this is the first thing he placed down. Another which we had pointed out earlier in class was "No wonder you rise in the middle of the night..." This shows the irony of it all. Doesn't it become darker as you die... your vision fading as your heart stops? Seems that it reveals the emptiness that radiates off of the character in the poem. In conclusion, disorder is celebrated with ease in this piece as the author slowly destroys the memories in the character.


Source = "Forgetfulness" written by Billy Collins

TOAST!

It seems that the breakdown of words and meaning lie completely with the inadequate understanding of the language. Despite the two options that you gave the class, sir, I believe that it is due to our lack of knowledge on our own part. Upon reading this I can across the line, "What is electricity?" The complex word was more than likely easy to describe back when it was first discovered. Most of the words used to label things were random names, a perfect example being Adam and his naming of the animals. However, the fall, the flood, and the Tower of Babel quickly confused our way of understanding how words came to find their meaning. In the end of this piece, where Snowman seems to just give up and say, "Toast is me. I am toast" reveals the postmodern way of thinking. As Cory states continually: "It's all relative." Margret Atwood seems to give up on understanding the complex language that we used which originated form the original language, Latin. In short, it is neither an inadequate system of language or an inadequate understanding of reality that answer the breakdown of words and meaning... but it is the misunderstanding of the language due to the Fall of Adam and the Tower of Babel which confused our minds as to where the true meanings of words lie.

Reality vs. Hyperreailty

Hyperreality has conclusively distorted the true meaning of love, no matter if the viewer be male or female. For example, in the recent film titled "I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry," they attempt to show that we should not discriminate against the homosexual lifestyle. For example, as Captain Tucker of the Fire Department stands in front of the court, he states "And most importantly, they showed us that no matter whom we choose to love, be they heterosexual, homosexual, asexual, [or] bisexual... it has absolutely nothing to do with who we are as people." If I just heard this correctly, the movie that we as Christians should watch with caution should embrace homosexuality into the community no matter what. Yet, the reality is that we need to be rid of the homosexuality that plagues the world that we live in today. Another example of the warped hyperreality is that young women will get the perfect man and live happily ever after. To prove this point, the famous lyrics of the well known song "Someday My Prince Will Come" come to my mind: "Some day my prince will come / Some day we'll meet again / And away to his castle we'll go / To be happy forever I know." This well known tune has touched the heart of many little girls - including myself - hoping that they well become as lucky as Snow White was. Nevertheless, the truth of reality massacred that dream of finding that perfect someone, making me realize that no one is truly perfect unless they were make believe. In the end, love is only between an imperfect male and imperfect female, and that happily ever afters don't really exist.

http://imdb.com/title/tt0762107/quotes

http://www.aquamarine.nu/lyrics/disney/snowwhiteandthesevendwarfs.php

What to do! What to do!

As Christians in a Postmodern community, we need to deal with this crisis by teaching others to be focused on the needs of others. The center of postmodernism is yourself. That's it. But for the Christian, our center is God and only him. It is difficult to fully allow him to take control but we need to in order to help others realize that they are not the center of the universe. We need to help others instead of helping ourselves.

The Ending That Saddens All

The last chunk in the "F" seciont of Happy Endings is a metanarrative because the author is telling you about what he/she is writing about while they are writing it. They want to give you a different perspective in life, wanting you to forget that there is a what and a what and a what. What they truly want is for you to focus on HOW and WHY so that no matter what you write, it can draw the readers into your story more instead of doing the basic and over used plot line/slope.

Drink up, me harteys! Yo ho!

Captain Jack Sparrow, the renowned pirate from PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN, is postmodern due to the fact that he just lets things come as they are. He cares about nothing but himself, regarding the others as being only people in his way, not friends or comrades, just things. He uses them like pawns, only to be moved around as well. It was as if he thought Cory's favorite line over and over in his head: "It's all relative..."

And the ants go marching on...

Costco. The best place to converse with someone you really don't know. I had seen him around a few times, my parents knowing him fairly well. His name was Troy and the whole time, they talked about only one thing: cars. Not a big surprise. I listen with little interest and yet intrigued as well, for some unknown interest. Maybe it was the computer talk before the cars. I love messing with computers, learning about what I can do and can't do and then taking it from there. Well, we talked a little more before we finally left for home.

Echoes

The echoes coming from Rosencrantz and Guildenstern reveal them as the film goes on. Yet since Claudius is not using them in those moments of time, people are confused, looking around to try and find a source while both R and G move away, not wanting to be seen. Why is that? Whenever they have nothing to say or have no clue what to say, they are needed instantly. Yet when they speak privately as to figure out what was going on, they hide when heard. Curious to say the least.

Approval or Disapproval?

Approval. Horatio seemed to be happy that Rosencrantz and Guildenstern were being sent to die. He might also be proud that it was Hamlet who lead them to their graves. After all, they were to lead Hamlet to his death in England. They may have been friends but because of the promise of money, they are now sponges. Also, Horatio probably thought very little about R and G due to the fact that they were barely around anyways. It was not like they made a difference. They were there because they were needed. That was all.