THE RISE OF REALISM: With multiple "isms" introduced in this week's presentation, choose ONE and explore it further by explaining how (idealism, realism, regionalism, or naturalism) that particular "ism" has meaning. Choose one of the readings from this past week to appropriately explain how it fits into one of the four "isms" listed above. Be sure to dig deeper into your reading to illustrate your ideas and show your creativity in being able to read and analyze sections of your assignments.
Finally, discuss your favorite parts of the week's presentations and offer any suggestions that you believe would have helped the presentation as a whole.
I loved the presentation! Personally, I thought that these girls had an extremely difficult section to cover. Now, it may just be my personal opinion, but I thought the reading was terribly dry and dragged on way too long. With such literature, they did so well. They made the best of the section they had been given and even turned it into a game. They covered a wide variety of information that we probably wouldn't have gone in depth into as much as we did. I congratulate the girls for a job well done!
ReplyDeleteI think my favorite "ism" we looked at was regionalism. We really don't realize how much regionalism plays into the literature we read. But the descriptions of locations is really what makes each story. This was evident in all the writings that we read. In "A Pair of Silk Stockings," everything was acceptable and improved by being in the time and setting that it was. In the narrative of Frederick Douglass, it was improved because slavery was predominant in the south and many people at the time could sympathize with it. Mark Twain's "Life on the Mississippi" relied on the river and way of speaking for its plot.
I would like to look at the excerpt from "Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass " for my example of regionalism. I personally found this to be an extremely interesting story. It was something that really happened so it made the story even more interesting. The story took place in the southern states where slavery was a huge issue. It was because of this sort of setting that slavery was accepted as a normal occurrence and nothing was seen to be wrong with it. The men spoke to Douglass brutally just as a slave-master relationship should have been in those times. Their behaviors were also very characteristic of the location.
Digging deeper, we see that this is so normal Douglass himself does not even view it as particularly odd until he gets his taste of freedom. He wrote perfectly of what really happened. I believe all autobiography of autobiographical style works are key examples of regionalism. The way people's minds work are set by the lives they have experienced and growing up in certain areas shows through in all of their life.
Like I said before, I thought the presentation was extremely well put together and composed. There was some obvious forethought. I would have loved to spend some more time analyzing the one-liners though. I found them to be really interesting and, even though we only had one day to look at them, we only briefly touched on them. I thought the game was innovative as well. It was something I would not have thought of myself. And I am jealous of all the people who got chocolate.
I just wanted to bring up something about the Mark Twain metaphor relating the river to a boat. Now, don't call me cheesy but I immediately thought of a line from the Disney movie "Pocahontas". It goes, "What I loves most about rivers is you can't step in the same river twice, the water's always changing always flowing." I really feel as if Twain was trying to relate the river itself to life. It is never the same. Each bend holds some new adventure and it may get tiring and old but there is always something just around that curve that brings a new adventure. Twain experienced this firsthand and I believe the inspiration it gave him and his love for the river are why he took a term from his riverboat days as his pen name.
Great job Sophie, Abby, Stephanie! You really got me thinking and put together a wonderful presentation. I can only hope mine in two weeks is as wonderful as yours!
Alex,
DeleteI too think that Sophie, Abby, and Steph had a very challenging section. The stories were in fact dry and honestly, very boring. I also agree that they did a wonderful job at making it a little more fun. It was a hard section to work with. I also love regionalism! Also, just so your not alone, you are cheesy, because I too thought of that Pocahontas song! It is actually stuck in my head right now! Great blog Alex!
Alex,
DeleteI enjoy how you did regionalism. Honesty before this presentation I never really looked at stories from the view of regionalism, But in all actuality that might be one of the most important thing in some stories because it plays such a big role in how characters act and think. You picked out Fredrick Douglas to concentrate on and that was great when dealing with regionalism. If her he lived in the north this whole life I honestly do not think that we would have ever heard of him because his life would not have been plagued with slavery and suffering. I also really like your explination of Mark Twains quote about the river. Just to add to you thought about how each bend is a new adventure I could not help to think that some bends might contain rapids which represent hard times in life but if you are careful and do not tip your boat the next turn could be a beautiful landscape and sunset. Mark Twain was a brilliant man and I love this quote it has so much meaning. I wish you the best of luck on you presentation.
Alex,
DeleteI agree that it was very evident and obvious that Abby, Sophie, and Stephanie put thought into their power point presentation, but that is not what impressed me because the last group showed how much effort and thought that they put into their presentation. I was impressed with their enthusiasm and clarity throughout the presentation. I think that is what made us stay intrigued. On another note, I am glad that you brought up Frederick Douglas’ story. This was not the piece of literature that I chose to blog about, however I did like this story. Frederick Douglas was a slave as we all know. We was abused when he became to sick to work. Many may think that he is a coward for turning and running to his master to tattle. I think that this was an extremely courageous act. He was severely hurt, but he went to his master to tell him that he was being abused. He could have been killed easily for doing this. I think that Frederick was not just doing it for himself. I believe that Frederick was doing for the other slaves as well. He was leading the way; showing them to not fear. Yes, they were property, but they deserved better, and Frederick was showing that to the other slaves. He has the option of running away and hiding the rest of his life. He chose to stay and fight. He chose to prove his worth. Frederick Douglas is an extremely commendable man. Even after he gained his freedom he did not sit around and watch the same thing happen to his own people. He risked his life everyday to preach against slavery. We as Americans are always complaining. We complain about the price of gas. We complain about eating leftovers. We complain about the government. We complain about our school, our coaches, our teammates, our family; the list never ends. We have no reason to complain. We HAVE gas. We HAVE food. We HAVE a government to protect us and our rights. We HAVE the opportunity for education. We HAVE the opportunity to expand our horizons and express ourselves through athletics which would not be possible without a coach. WE HAVE NO REASON TO COMPLAIN. As lent approaches, we need to start realizing how much God has blessed us. Frederick Douglas and so many others have had worse struggles than us, yet they persevered, we need to do the same.
Alex, I love how you related the Mississippi River to the song “Just Around the River Bend.” My sister Kayla and I used to sing that song all the time on road trips. Pocahontas was one of my favorite movies. I agree that regionalism is very important to a story. If you are writing a story that takes place in England the characters should not be speaking with a twang, they should have a British accent. Or if you are making a movie about space cowboys it should either take place in the west where there were cowboys or in space, not in Antarctica or India (that is just weird). Regionalism seems to me like it affects the setting and our opinion of the characters. It is a very key element to any story.
DeleteAlex: I never on my own would have thought the story about the Mississippi river would be an example of regionalism. After thinking about the river is its own thing, changing constantly, doing as it pleases, eating boats. I really liked your comment on one of Mark Twain’s “one liners” those were my favorite part of the presentation. Your comment made me think that this could parallel to one’s life. Life is full of changing situations, its constantly moving like the river, and you will not know what will happen half the time unless you experienced it before (like the old captain).
DeleteSophie, Abby, and Stephanie did a wonderful job of teaching many “isms” throughout the week. The “ism” that I remember the best is regionalism. Regionalism is how the region of the author affects their writing, art, speech (dialect), etc. One would not write about something that they were not informed about. Many times the setting of a story is the most significant place that an author was lived or experienced; it could be their birth place, it could be where they were married, where they wrote their first book, anywhere that made an impact on their life. Regionalism can also appear in a person’s speech; this is called dialect. In different parts of Pennsylvania people use different terms (they are not technically words) such as y’all, yous, yous guys, and others. Many times people can detect what region we are from simply based on our dialect. Regionalism often makes literature and art unique from one author to the next. However, some authors can write about areas that they have not actually been by reading books of those that have been to a certain place. As we mentioned in class, books can take you anywhere if you let them. If an author is able to fool his/her readers into thinking that they were actually at the place that they are writing about then they are probably very talented. I am not saying that writers that write about places that they have actually been are not as talented, I am just saying that writing successfully about something that you have never actually experienced is a hard task. Many famous authors write about the places they have experienced. Mark Twain for example wrote about the Mississippi River area, since he spent so much of his life there. As a matter of fact, the piece of Mark Twain’s memoire that we read was my favorite piece of literature over this past week.
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ReplyDeleteI enjoyed the story because it really seems to speak to me. Mark (using his pen name) really had to work hard to be able to steer the ship on the Mississippi River. He had to memorize the shape of the river. He faced an even bigger challenge; the river was constantly changing. If Mark did not learn the shape of the river he would wreck the ship when the sun was down and when the weather disguised the true shape of the river. In the end, he was able to learn the river like the back of his hand. He had done what he once thought was impossible. Yet, once he was able to drive the boat he realized that it was not that exciting. We talked about the magic of the river losing its magic, which took the enjoyment out of it in class. However, I feel that part of Mark’s problem was that once he achieved one goal he did not set another. He needed another challenge in his life to keep him interested. When we are in school and we understand what is going on in class, but the teacher has to keep teaching for those that do not understand we easily become bored because we need something that challenges us. The same concept applies to sports and music. If we have an understanding of the material, then we are not going to pay attention or be as meticulous as we would if we were learning something new. I believe that if Mark had an apprentice to teach, like he once was, then he would not be as bored. He would have the challenge of making a sailor out of that young man rather than doing something that he could obviously do in his sleep. If Mark would have written down his goal of learning the river he may have felt more accomplished when he was done because they say that “it’s not a goal until it’s written down”. I enjoy working toward success. I enjoy the work that leads to the success because in the end I know that it will pay off. Over the summer I did a basketball workout Monday through Friday (and even sometimes on Saturdays and Sundays). I also went to every single open gym and basketball camp that was offered to my team. I attended every basketball at Benzinger Park that my team had. I also played at the park with my family often. I lifted three days a week and ran the remaining days of the week. My game did improve significantly, however I did not earn a starting spot, but that does not matter that much to me. I am satisfied knowing that I accomplished my goal, and that regardless of what the rest of my team did over the summer I prepared myself for the season. There were no regrets from the summer. I cannot say I wish I would have worked on my foul shot because. I cannot say I wish I would have done this or that because I did. I worked hard over the summer, and now I have that sense of accomplishment. I recorded all of my percentages from everyday. Now I will always have prove that practice and repetition helps. Writing down my goal for the summer pushed me to get to the park on those 90 degree days when I was tired from the day before, and the seven hours of babysitting that I did daily. So what I am saying is that we need to be challenged. Mark became bored when he was no longer challenged. So write down your goal, decide how to manage it time wise, and do it. You will have so much pride in yourself just knowing that you were disciplined enough to work through those hard days, and achieve your goal, your dream.
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ReplyDeleteSo to Sophie, Abby, and Stephanie great job this week I truly did learn a lot over these past few days. I did not even need to use my notes in order to complete this blog. You were organized, enthusiastic (most of the time), and you spoke clearly and loudly (Abby I know that you were a little quiet sometimes). You intrigued the class with discussion and a fun game for today. I enjoyed the discussion, the game, the videos, and your enthusiasm for your information. The only thing that I would suggest would be using different techniques of teaching beside the power point, maybe a poster or something. You have raised the stakes from last week; let’s see if Kristy, Alex, and Elizabeth can top your presentation! Well done!
Morgan,
DeleteI agree that regionalism is one of the easiest isms that they covered in class. It is a subject that everyone can easily relate to. I also found it very interesting the way Mark Twain had to literally know the river. It is kind of like knowing your own house. You could easily get to your bedroom in the pitch black because it is so familiar. This is how I think Mark Twain felt with the river, and it is again, like you said, writing about what you know. If I were to write a book or a poem I would focus on settings such as a small town, the woods, or a river because it is what I know. I think that this group was enthusiastic as well and did a pretty good job. Great blogging Morgan!
Morgan,
DeleteYour blog was great this week. I felt smarter just reading it! After I read it what I remembered the most was how you comment on how Mark Twain’s problem was not making another goal after reaching his original goal. It is so true as to how important it is to set goals. Without goals what is the point in doing anything. But I think why people do not set more goals is because so many people aim their goals so high. yes it is good to set your goals high but if you set them too high it could actually hurt a person because they will become so down and stressed because they cannot reach their goal. Everyone needs goals but we all must realize what we are capable of. I make goals for myself every day. To some people some of the goals I make may sound stupid and silly but they help me get though my day. I also agree with your critique about how they should have used different techniques. Although I really enjoyed the video like you had mentioned. I am very excited to see your presentation because I know it will be just as awesome as you blog.
Abby, Sophie, and Steph congratulations in finishing your presentation. All of you did an awesome job and it was a very well organized and thought out presentation. At the beginning of your presentation you introduced a number of “isms” but the one that I would like to focus on is realisms. According to Dictionary.com the literary definition in literature is “a manner of treating subject matter that presents acareful description of everyday life, usually of the lower and middle classes.” also “a theory of writing in which the ordinary, familiar, ormundane aspects of life are represented in astraightforward or matter-of-fact manner that ispresumed to reflect life as it actually is.” I think that this is one of the most important things in writing. Without realism we would constantly be reading books that are all fiction and everything seems perfect. Sometimes it is nice to read about a happy ending and how everything is perfect, but other it is also great to read about what relates to you the most. When you read a book or story that relates to you and your life you can get so involved in the story. You know how characters feel and what they are going through. I do not know about anyone else but when I read realism that relates to my life sometimes it can be very encouraging. It gives you hope if you are going through a hard time and advice if you read between the lines.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite story that we read that involved realism was “A Pair of Silk Stockings” by Kate Chopin. It was so simple yet so raw and real. The story involves a mother who falls into a good deal of money, fifteen dollars, her original plan was to spend the money on her children and only some on herself, but after buying one pair of black silk stockings she indulges herself more than she had planned and spends all the money. Though out the book we wonder where is her husband? Why is she the one who in charge of everything for her children? As we continue to read we get the feeling that Mrs. Sommers is a single mother in the middle class. We can make these inferences because of how she values the money that she finds and the way that she plans to spend that money. This fits into perfectly to the definition of realism because it is a representation of the middle class. Any one is the middle and lower classes of society would defiantly be exited to receive this amount of money and would plan on what to do with it very carefully down to the last penny. To really see the realism in this story we must know more about Kate Chopin. She lived from 1855-1904 during this time women were seen more as a decoration to a man’s arm than a valuable member to society. Women were the ones who ran the kitchen and took care of the family which the man was head of.
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ReplyDeleteAnd the man is the one that take credit for the family and perfect house. This is what was portrayed in many of stories before the rise of realism. However this is not was what is actual. Women are very strong figures. Often their ideas and actions were looked down upon my men and others in society because they were not seen as important. But Chopin shows the reality of being a woman. They had to be very strong and provide for their family no matter how hard it was. They did not need a man to make them happy, however they do need some ways to make themselves happy. After reading this story many would criticize Mrs. Sommers for being greedy and spending the money on her self. But I think that this is what represents realism the best. Everyone needs something special sometimes and this was Mrs. Sommers pleasure. We all automatically think how greedy it was of her, but we cannot assume that is how she is every day and that she never provides for her kids. In realism we need to think what would I really do? This is how Chopin wrote she thought how she would really feel and put all the truth on the paper not what society expected her to write down but rather what was real.
This presentation as I had originally said was very well organized and I really enjoyed the way that the concepts were taught to us. My favorite part of the presentation was today when we made our own witty comments like Mark Twain. I do not know if you guys planned it but the game was just like The Game of Things which is like the best game ever!!! I was funny and a good was to get us to really thing. However there was one spot that I think could have had some improvement. Your slides had a lot of valuable information however sometimes I found it hard to copy the information while listening to your explanation because you went through the slides very fast sometimes. However it did improve though out the week after someone people mentioned that you were going too fast. You girls did an awesome job! You set the bar very high and I commend you for that. Congrats on finishing successfully.
Taylor,
DeleteYou are correct when you say that realism is important to us. However, when you said that without it “we would constantly be reading books that are all fiction and everything seems perfect” I do not believe that that statement is true. There are many fiction books that portray lives of those who are struggling. There are fiction books about slavery and living in the slums. Everything does not seem perfect in these fiction books. Many fiction stories have reality in them. While they are true stories, events occur that could very easily happen. The Grapes of Wrath is fiction, yet none of us would wish there life upon ourselves because of its misery. This novel depicts the reality of the people that lived during the Dust Bowl and Great Depression. Realism exists in fictional and non-fictional stories. It may be more authentic in a non-fictional story because there is no doubt that the events could actually happen. Just something to consider! The rest of your blog was great!
Taylor, you had a really strong blog with many definitions and opinions. However, I disagree with what you said about fiction always seeming “perfect.” I love fiction the most out of any other style of writing. Fiction in general is very broad. Fictional authors can write about anything. They could choose realistic fiction, like someone writing about the life of a soldier they made up that fought in WWI, the Civil War, etc. They could write about fantasy worlds were there are mystical creatures and medieval royalty. They could even write stories were the past collides with the future. Nearly every story we read this year is fiction on some level. The Great Gatsby, A Pair of Silk Stockings, The Black Cat, and Young Goodman Brown are all fictional story that do not end nicely for the characters at all. Though sometime the stories can be more relatable than others that does not remove the fact that in essence they are all fictional stories. Like Morgan said the rest of your blog is great, good job!
DeleteSophie, Abby, and Stephanie did a very good job presenting their topic of The Rise of Realism. They had very creative games and ideas relating to their discussion. A key focus on these presentations was what the group liked to call the “isms.” Out of these four “isms” (idealism, realism, regionalism, and naturalism) I would like to concentrate on naturalism. The Rise of Realism group described naturalism as the, “action, inclination, or thought based on natural desires and instincts.” In other words, it is the writers inscribing realistic descriptions of life, even the unpleasant realities.
ReplyDeleteI believe examples of this can be seen in all the stories we read this week: My Guilt, A Pair of Silk Stockings, The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, and Life on the Mississippi. Through A Pair of Silk Stockings, we see how our desire for happiness is sometimes sought through material possessions and riches. This story offered us the insight on how this woman, little Mrs. Sommers, chose to spoil herself after giving into the natural desire for comfort through a pair of silk stockings. There is nothing wrong with giving oneself a break or reward every once and a while, but not at the expense of children’s needs. We see this mother putting her desires before that of her children, and that is what I believe we found so repulsive about the character of little Mrs. Sommers. She lists off how her daughter needed a new pair of shoes, and then buys herself an impractical pair that she could never wear while preforming her daily house duties. We see similar situations in the news where the mother or father may be an alcoholic, drug abuser, hoarder, or shopaholic. In some cases the parents are deemed unfit and their children are taken from them and put into the care of other family members or foster homes to be adopted. I do not believe little Mrs. Sommers to be that extreme in her shopping endeavor. However, I do believe she is the type of person who needs to move on with her life and see the family that needs her attention, which is sitting right before her eyes.
I believe the group did a good job. They were strong most of the time, occasionally they would lower their voice or their confidence would waver a bit. For the most part they were strong. They should have relaxed a little more and had examples ready for the games (like in the one-liner activity). One should never expect a person to do something if they cannot do it themselves. The games were fun though, and my little sisters really enjoyed my prize.
Maura,
DeleteI like the way you related naturalism to the concepts shown through "A Pair of Silk Stockings". I never thought of it the way you did. That story also gives readers an understanding of what times were like when it was written. Fifteen dollars now isn't worth as much as it was back then, which can definitely be seen because of all the things Mrs. Sommers was able to buy. Nowadays, fifteen dollars won't get anyone very far. I also like how you described situations of hoarders and drug abusers. I disagree though. I don't think Mrs. Sommers "spoiled" herself nearly as much as drug abusers or alcoholics do. She was in a sane state of mind, whereas abusers are most often unstable.
Dear Maura,
DeleteInteresting how you used naturalism. That thought did not even really pop into my head. I agree that Mrs. Sommers got a little carried away with spending her fifteen dollars but I would not go as so far as to meshing her with abusive parents. I think that she just missed her own lifestyle and yes she probably should of spent it on her kids but we all make mistakes and get caught up in the moment. I don’t think she was even close really to an abusive parent or anything of the such. I liked my candy too!
Maura: your “ism” was naturalism. Your definition was realistic events in life and the unpleasant situations. I think that would more define realism because it deals with their life while naturalism is more desires and instincts. Naturalism is found in the majority if not all the stories in this section, in the silk stocking naturalism was really obvious. She had a desire to spoil herself and almost live in a “fantasy world” that she did not want to end. She desired material things that she really did not need but did not really think about her family’s needs after she bought the silk stockings. This story does not only focus on naturalism though, it covers a variety of the “ism” s.
ReplyDeleteThe “ism” word I would like to further discuss is regionalism. Regionalism emphasizes local or regional characteristics such as language, settings, or even historical events. The usage of regionalism in stories creates a greater picture for the audience. This “ism” enables the reader to really feel like they are in that area. A wonderful example of this is a good book that most of the class has read, to kill a mockingbird. In this book you are able to tell almost immediately that it takes place in the south. The audience is able to tell this especially because the variation in the speech. Not only in just one way either, one of the maids that served for the Finch family speaks differently when in the presence of other black people in the area that go to her church. Another way to tell regionalism is dress and customs. Historical events also have a great factor when deciding regionalism within a story. Usually at the beginning of the book it will give an event, such as the dust bowl. The dust bowl covered a rather large area, but the reader is able to figure approximately where the story takes place. A story that we covered in class that is a good example of regionalism is the narrative of the life of Frederic Douglass. This story is obvious from the beginning that it takes place in the south because it involves slavery. It also gives a date that tells you what time in the south it was. The story gives an account of part of one man’s life as to how he was ill and tried to “fight the system” literally. He fought his owner and escaped and eventually bought his freedom, which was a common goal of most if not all slaves. The story does not give many obvious signs of change in the speech of the people because not much dialog is used. But even without an example of the language, a reader can easily see it takes place in the south.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite part of the presentation this week was probably the game that we played in the end with mark Twain’s “one liners.” I felt it gave us an opportunity to try to write a little witty advice of our own. I thought it was interesting how were able to tell who wrote many of the quotes. The main suggestion that I make to this group is not to rely so heavily on class discussions. I felt it was repetitive after each piece to hear “so what did you think of it,” “what do you feel when you read this piece,” “I felt….,” “Anyone have any comments,” I felt almost as if the group was relying on a couple minutes to go off in discussion to fill up time. Another thing I was not crazy about within the presentation was that the material covered, I feel, did not really require that much knowledge of the assigned reading. Yes I did read the stories but honestly I don’t think I would have needed to for any of the group discussions or handouts that went along with the stories. But other than that, good job Abby, Stephanie, and Sophie; you had a tough section.
Elizabeth,
DeleteI love that you included "To Kill a Mockingbird" in your explanation of regionalism. I also thought of that when we discussed the section in class. The dialog used in that story really made it what it was. It's a great book, I think, because of the southern drawl used. "The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass" relates a lot to regionalism as well. Like you said, the south defined itself during those times as slave territory. Without Douglass's explanation of the times, readers can fully understand just by reading.
Elizabeth,
DeleteBringing "To Kill a Mockingbird" into the discussion was a great way to help everyone understand the subject even better than we already do. I think its so interesting how regionalism plays into everything. your analysis was so well done!
I agree that I thought at times the presenters were fishing for time with asking if we had any questions all the time. But unlike you, I believe that the handouts were all very helpful. We got to see everything in a new light so that we could relate it to other readings.
Overall, great blog!
Elizabeth,
DeleteAs you said, regionalism is a key element in literature that can be used to really make the reader feel like they are in a certain area. In your example of “To Kill a Mockingbird”, the story is in the Deep South, and that is shown by several ways. One way is by the language and the way people talk, with variations and such like “ya’ll”. Another way is the customs of the people and how people are treated. We see this in the way many of the people in the story treated African Americans. They did not treat them very respectfully in many cases, which was the way it was in the South during the time period of the story.
I, too, really enjoyed the group’s game about Twain’s one-liners. Especially winning the free candy.
I found this week’s presentation to be somewhat hard to pay attention through. Stephanie, Abby, and Sophie did a great job, but the section they had to discuss was very dry. The readings were difficult to read and understand only because of the dryness of them. Again, I have nothing against the group; just The Rise of Realism wasn’t my favorite.
ReplyDeleteMark Twain was known for the regionalism he used through his writing. Realism also played a great role in his stories because he actually lived through what he wrote about. “Life on the Mississippi” is a fantastic example of how regionalism and realism together can explain a story to a point that involves the reader. Twain lived on the Mississippi. By working as a boatman on the steamboats, he learned how to appreciate the way the river flowed. Not literally how it flowed, but the way it moved with the land and took people on an adventure. By witnessing firsthand the way of life on the river, Twain was able to produce a piece of literature that will continue to live on, taking readers on a journey down the Mississippi.
My favorite part of the presentation was being able to choose one of Twain’s on-liners and then come up with our own. I have a hard time making sense of certain quotes, but I think Twain’s were humorous in a way that I could fully grasp the meaning.
I can’t really offer any suggestions. I felt that the section itself was difficult to explain being it was as dry as it was. In my opinion, the group did as much as they could to make it appealing. The PowerPoints could’ve been a little more exciting, which may have helped teach the section better. The handouts and activities were good ideas. The chocolate given as a prize at the end was a really cool idea that I think most of the class enjoyed. Everybody shared, which was nice. Again, the group did a great job, but the section they had didn’t give them any justice.
Kristy,
DeleteI really, really agree with the main point you brought up: that the group did not have a very interesting but rather a very dry section of literature to try to cover. I also agree with you on that the group did their best to try and bring the class into it but facing the dryness of the section made it very difficult. I personally feel like the group deserves a pat on the back for having to try to teach such a dry section and doing a fairly good job of teaching it. I believe that if they had had a different selection of literature to present that they would have been able to grab and keep the class' attention so much better, but as you said Kristy, their section did not do them any justice.
Kristy,
DeleteI couldn't agree more with what you said. I already stated in my blog that I did not like the section very much because of how dry it was. I think they handled it really well, probably the best way they could have. I also love that you brought up how everyone shared the chocolate. Not all of us won so it was nice that we all got a reward in the end. It was a sweet ending to a great presentation.
I also loved your anaylsis of realism in Twain's story. I didn't really notice the use of so many "isms" in the writing till this group brought it up. They did a marvelous job of presenting it in a way all of us coul.d understand.
Great blog!
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DeleteWhoops, accidentally published the first time as a comment to Kristy's post. My bad.
ReplyDeleteFirst off I would just like to congratulate this week's group for their fairly good presentation and effort throughout the week. You did a good job!
The group taught us a lot about 'isms' this week, from realism to regionalism, naturalism to idealism. The one that really stuck out to me the most was realism. We learned that realism is literature that is basically about normal, average, everyday life. One of the stories that we covered in class that to me showed this the most was “A Pair of Silk Stockings” by Kate Chopin. The short story tells of poor Mrs. Sommers, who we learn is quite poor but somehow comes into a small fortune of fifteen dollars, which during the time period of the story is quite a lot of money. The tale follows Mrs. Sommers as she goes about her day. She tells of how she is going to buy all sorts of things for her children, who from the story we can assume she raises and cares for all by herself because there is no mention of a husband or father-figure. Also from the story, we can glean that at some time earlier in her life, Mrs. Sommers once lived a much more indulgent lifestyle, but just how rich or indulgent we cannot know for certain. As she begins to shop she comes upon a pair of silk stockings, which she falls in love with. After buying the stockings, Mrs. Sommers is sucked into indulging herself more and more until she has spent all of the money on very nice things and activities for herself. On the train ride home, we see that Mrs. Sommers either truly regrets what she has done, and/or wishes the train would just go on forever and she could forever remain in her state of indulgence. To me this story shows so much realism. For starters it tells the story of a day in the life of a woman. Another key realism point is that Mrs. Sommers, just like so many people, has clearly had to make great sacrifices in her life to provide for her family. She had to give up her old, richer lifestyle to give her children the best she could. So many people have to do that in their lives today, and just like Mrs. Sommers many people have those moments where they wish they could just forget about everything and go back and live their old lifestyle, but eventually, at the end of the day they get snapped back to reality, just like Mrs. Sommers on her train ride home.
Congratulations on completing your presentation this week girls! Sophie, Abby, and Stephanie, you all did a wonderful job throughout the week. You all always had such a nice, outgoing atmosphere about you, making the presentation not awkward or anything like that. I only have a few suggestions: Sophie, sometimes I think that you went just a little too fast, making it hard to stay up to par on the notes and such. Abby, here and there your speaking volume got a little low, especially at the very beginning of the week, but you picked up nicely by the end. Stephanie, you too sometimes got a little low with your volume. Overall, I think that you girls did a nice job presenting. I think though, that the section you had to cover was not exactly the most exciting selection of literature, which is no fault of yours, but I do think you did your best to make it exciting. For example, I enjoyed the game about Mark Twain’s one-liners and especially the prize of free chocolates! Your PowerPoints were pretty good as well, which are always a key element of presentations. Once again, good job girls!
Dear Scott,
DeleteI too agree with the free chocolates! Our group won that haha! I agree how it must have been hard for Mrs. Sommers to go from a rich lifestyle to a poorer one. All the things that she is accustomed to are nevermore. ( a little bit of the Raven there) I know for a fact that I would have trouble adjusting and most deffinantly would get carried away. It would be different when you have children and a family. You have to give everything to them rather than yourself. I agree that sometimes we don’t want the day to end but reality will come find us. I think you stated your blog about it perfectly.
Scott,
DeleteHow does it feel to have to blog again this week? I'm sure you enjoyed reading the blogs about your presentation more. It seems like a lot of people chose to relate realism to A Pair of Silk Stockings, including myself. That just shows that the story really does relate to a lot of people because it's written about everyday life. Those moments you talked about where you get snapped back to reality are the worst. I think we all felt her pain.
The Rise of Realism was a very difficult section of our text to cover, that being said I think that Sophie, Abby, and Steph did a remarkable job. They incorporated power points, handouts, class discussions, and even a game into teaching us a fairly boring and dry section. Realism is certainly not as exciting and engaging as the past section. One of the main points of this group’s section was isms. Idealism, realism, regionalism, and naturalism are four of the isms that Sophie, Abby, and Steph covered this past week. Because the title of this section is called The Rise of Realism I have decided to explore and further explain realism, concern for fact or reality and rejection of the impractical and visionary.
ReplyDeleteRealism is a form of writing that revolves around realistic ideas and people. It covers real situations such as slums, factory jobs, corrupt politicians, and even prostitutes. It deals with lives of ordinary people instead of focusing on the abnormal, like Poe often does, or the rich, like Fitzgerald usually does. The writings of William Dean Howells are a great example of realism. I have found that there are different subcategories of realism such as philosophical realism, scientific realism, political realism, and artistic realism. Philosophical realism is rooted in common sense and mental capacity. It revolves around an average person’s mind and thoughts. It can also be related with ideas of the universe such as works from ancient philosophers such as Plato. This could also be related to idealism. Scientific realism is writings about the real world from a scientific standpoint. This could also be related to naturalism. Scientific realism involves biology, chemistry, and physics. Political realism is part of political writings and speeches. The Gettysburg Address is a good example of political realism. It involves what is really happening in the average person’s life, while at the same time, referring to a political situation. Artistic realism involves paintings, photographs, or poems relating to real life situations. Examples of artistic realism would be the photograph of the children in the ally way that is shown in our book. These few examples of a more specialized realism shows that realism is a broad subject that could be broken down to more specific examples.
I think the girls did a good job with this section. As others have previously stated, it is very dry and not the most engaging and exciting section that our text has to offer. That being said, they did pretty well. My favorite part of their presentation was the game on the last day; it was a fun way to get the student’s attention. The prize was a very cute idea. I do have some ideas for suggestions though. Although the Power Points were very good, I think the girls could have come up with a more creative way to demonstrate their points. I know the members of this group are very creative and I think they could have definitely found some better ways to get their lesson across rather than just dry Power Points. I know this section was very difficult to work with, so I give them a lot of credit, I would have just loved to see them reach their full potential. I loved that they printed their handouts on colored paper. It was a fun, different thing to do. Overall, I think that the three girls did a fine job of teaching us The Rise of Realism. Great job girls!
Kristen,
DeleteI was glad you brought up the Gettysburg Address. It was a really good example of different forms of realism. Some people say that it can be boring because we all know what real life is about, yet how many of us can say that we have been president and written a famous speech that inspired millions. I really enjoyed that the speech sparked a discussion in class. My favorite part of English is the discussion. I find it very interesting to hear other people's points on the matter. I agree with what you said about Steph, Abby, and Sophie being creative! I think that it showed through the KWL charts we did and the other multiple handouts.
CONGRATULATIONS!!! Steph, Abby, and Sophie, you guys did a wonderful, fantabulous job!! I thought I was going to be bored because of the time period but you guys kept me interested and I was able to learn which is a hard thing to do! Oh and Thanks for the candy =)!
ReplyDeleteI chose Realism. It is said that individuals write what they know. I would not write a book on what was life was like going up in New York City in the sixties. I could possibly do research and write something but it would not be as good as someone who lived it and experienced it. Mine would not be a first-hand account. It would be more suitable for me to write a story about growing up in a rural community and attending a catholic school.
I think that all three stories that we have read showed a sense of Realism. Realism has to do with things that are in our everyday lives. They aren’t about Vampires, superheroes, or fairy-tale princesses. “A Pair of Silk Stockings,” stuck out the most to me. The story is about a woman named Mrs. Sommers that doesn’t have a lot of money and has children at home. She gets a little carried away one day with spending this fifteen dollars that she had. In this time period fifteen dollars is a lot of money. I don’t think I could even get a pair of shoes that I would want for fifteen dollars let alone more than shoes.
I think that sometimes we need to spend things on ourselves but at the end it showed that she didn’t want the day to end. Every day comes to an end whether we want it to or not. I never want summer to end and start school again but it does and I have to go back to school. I also think that no matter how much material things that a person buys can’t buy them happiness. It will give you a joy for a short amount of time but where she will find happiness is not in the objects that she owns but with her family at home. I don’t personally think that she was a bad mother but I know that my mom constantly buys me things and I can’t remember the last time she went and spent money on herself. I think that she deserves things too but to a certain extent.
My favorite part was the last day when we did the quotes. I really enjoy quotes, I find them very meaningful. I think that you guys did an amazing job and there wasn’t anything really wrong except the videos. I know that we loaded ours before class which is what you did after it didn’t work the first day. Just for future references DO NOT PUT IT IN BIG SCREEN MODE! Hahaha, that doesn’t seem to ever work! Thank you for the candy again.
Due to Mark Twain, I came across this quote recently. “Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear - not absence of fear.
Laira,
DeleteI feel as though the phase great minds think alike fits properly as I read your blog. Well i did agree with most of our points I find myself bothered by the sentence "It is said that individuals write what they know" well I do agree to some extent I have always thought that those writers take the easier path. Whereas the truly great writers have to compensate for that and they use their talent to do so. It would be hard for me to write about Africa but if i had the talent and drive to I could very well do it better than others who live in Africa. That is just my thoughts. I do really like your Mark Twain quote, very inspiring.
For my “ism” I choose realism. I found that it is extremely underrated. How many stories have been written on vampires, werewolves and witches? Countless times we have turned to books that the author created a fake world in to help us dive into it and forget the real world. But when it comes down to it, I find that I enjoy a story more when I experience even a small amount of personal growth. Now I admit that Twilight was a good book but it is hard to grow as a person when you read about picking between werewolves and vampires. I find that in realism, we are challenged to relate it to our own life and maybe even learn from the mistakes of a character in the book. In addition to that I think that realism authors have a lot more talent to make the real world that we can never truly escape seem like an outlet.
ReplyDeleteIn the story “A Pair of Silk Stockings” realism is played out the whole way through. I can say without anyone being able to deny it that no person on this earth is able to say they never felt like Mrs. Summers. We all want everything. Humanity brings greed, even the rich buy more and more hoping to fill that sense of accomplishment. But as we have all been told before money cannot buy true happiness. As for if what Mrs. Summers did was wrong, I can’t say I haven’t gotten carried away by impulsive buying before myself. What she did one time doesn’t make her a bad person or mother by any means. Everyone screw up what I think matters is that after all the good feelings that the stuff she bought made her feel, she realized she was wrong and felt remorse. Admitting that she was wrong takes more strength than trying to keep up with the charades. Even though the story honestly bored me at first over all I enjoyed it by the end.
As for your presentation, you guys really were phenomenal! Not one time did I think geez they are staring at their paper a lot or I can’t understand them. The section that you had was very rough; I would have probably been ready to fall asleep if I had to do it. It was very well done. The only problem or critique is the video problems. But you can always avoid the technical problems. I am a little upset that I missed the quote game, I heard it was fun. All in all, you were all great.
Laura,
DeleteI feel that you would have been good at the quote game. I have an idea you can make one up on the blog, ready go! I was so disappointed because Friday night I saw this car commercial that had the quote "It's the things you do when no one is looking that define you" and I was so upset I didn't see it sooner because I would have used it. Anyway, I agree that it's refreshing to read a story that's written with realism once and a while because you can relate to it and it makes you think, but I have to admit that personally I would prefer reading something that was more unpredictable and imaginative.
Laura, I have to say that I disagree with you, when you said that Mrs. Sommers felt remorse for what she had done. At the end of the story, she was relaxed and happy after her day of shopping. She did not want to go home, she did not want her day to end. I think from these statements we can realize that she did not regret what she had done. I do agree with you that buying all those things does not necessarily make her a bad person, but if she continually does it, then it’s a different matter.
DeleteLaura,
DeleteYour interpretation of realism is very similar to mine. I see and use my experiences and readings to better my life to come. If we see where others (like Mrs. Sommers) we can avoid those mistakes. Don't get me wrong, I love fantasy and science fiction. To clarify, that does not by any means include Twilight. I also do my fair share of realism reading. I read books on politics, wars, and world problems. Getting back to what you said, the realism factor aids us substantially. I read and understand the characters failures and successes and adjust my life for optimum success. Stories containing Realism is not the most exciting type of literature but it is by far the most important, in my opinion!
When I read this blog, I knew exactly what I would write about. One of the stories that stood out when I read the assignment was A Pair of Silk Stockings by Kate Chopin. I want to talk about the realism in it. When I think of realism, I think of the expression “telling it like it is.” Realism isn’t writing fantasies to escape reality, It’s embracing it. It tells the lives of everyday people with no sugar coated realities. The story A Pair of Silk Stockings reflects realism so much because it is the story of an ordinary life. It’s something we can all relate to. Of course, we don’t all want a pair of silk stockings, but what they stand for is the important part. We all want something better than we have. In the story, Mrs. Sommers spends her money on something she really wanted. The day was a dream to her because she kept spending her money on things she felt would make her life better. At the end of the day she didn’t want to go back home. She wanted more than what she had. She wanted a better life and a better reality. We can all relate to this in a way because we’ve all felt as she did. We’ve all had that day we didn’t want to end or that vacation we didn’t want to return back to reality from. It’s human nature it want what you can’t have. That’s why so many people always want more or want to have a better life than they do at some point in their lives. Realism tells a story straight forward so that we can all relate to it in some way, shape, or form.
ReplyDeleteAnother aspect of the story that makes it relatable is the way the Mrs. Sommers gets lost in her past. When she spends the money on herself, she is submerged in memories of her past and longs for it, a lot like Jay Gatsby in The Great Gatsby. I think everyone has something in their past that they miss, I know I do, It is just bound to happen. Mrs. Sommers has so many relatable traits and this adds to the realism of the story.
On a final note, spectacular job Sophie, Steph, and Abby! Hopefully presenting is as easy as you all made it look, I have my fingers crossed! Well all’s well that ends well. And you guys started great too so you’re ahead of the game! Good job!
Maria,
DeleteI liked your parallelism between Gatsby and Sommers. It is a true testament to what wealth can do to somebody that doesn't know how to properly use it. Money also distorts their point of view due to the time period. Money was life back then. Back then, if you didn't have any money then you were of low social status. That shows some of the realism that you spoke of. It is telling it like it is. Also, the emotions of these two people are real. As readers we feel the same emotions and therefore see it as real. Realism, although sometimes jejune, is important to all readers. It adds to our arsenal of experiences that will help in the future. What we learn from characters like Mrs. Sommers can help us in our lives to come.
Maria, I like how you brought up the point of making yourself better. There is nothing wrong with wanting better for yourself, and striving to make life easier. This can be a good thing actually, because it means you have ambition. This can be a bad thing though too - how or why you try to make yourself better are the main questions. If you try to be better just to prove something to the world, you are doing it for the wrong reason. Also, if you step on someone else’s toes to push yourself up, it is not for the right reason. Mrs. Sommers wanted to feel like she did before, rich and with the “in-crowd”. She thought that buying all of those “necessities” would bring her back to that position. She does not realize that she will not achieve happiness by the way she is going.
DeleteIn realism, the author tells how life truly is. It may be good or bad, exciting or boring, blissful or excruciating, outgoing or reserved. There is no facade in which these characters live under. They feel human emotion, and there most certainly is no shortage of that. The life and times of Fredrick Douglass is as real and raw as life can get.
ReplyDeleteAs we read these stories, Fredrick Douglass’ in particular, we get a sense of what life was back then. He was a stereotypical slave of the late 1800s in the rebellious south. Slavery was obviously prevalent in the south. These tie into the idea of regionalism. Understanding regionalism provides verisimilitude in the literature. Although we cannot feel the pains and sorrows of someone like Douglass, we can at least imagine what it would be like. This is one of the aspirations in realism. Realism grew substantially with slavery and the civil war and it is undoubtedly paramount in understanding the history of literature in these fifty states of America.
The “isms” of this particular section we somewhat familiar to me before we were taught them. In Spanish class, Mrs. Evans stresses the importance of these in our Spanish novels. For our big tests we are required how they are relevant to what we were reading. The literary types that I have learned previous to this wonderful presentation are Romanticism, Realism, Naturalism, Honor and Vengeance, and inequality dealing with the social classes and sexes. When she first described these to us I was confused and wondered how they have any relevance with anything. This past week of presentation has opened my eyes to why these are important. In realistic writing, the character’s personal experiences, surroundings, and ideas all add to the general feeling of what the author is trying to express. In stories like we covered last week it is crucial to understand especially Regionalism so we can connect with the characters. It helps with thinking what they think and feeling what they feel.
The game on Friday was not just fun but also revealing. I like to consider myself a philosophical person and listening to my classmate’s favorite quotes or mottos was really special to me. Their take on life was good for everyone to hear. By better understanding my classmates, I can then interact with them better, especially in my presentation. The game also made me feel like I was Twain in trying to be humorous and informative at the same time.
I heard an interesting quote yesterday. “Slideshows are the peacocks of the business world; all show and no meat.” This may be true in some context but definitely not with this group’s presentation. I found the slideshows to be relevant and ultimately they kept my attention. I get sidetracked easily so if it retained my attention then it is a good thing! Minor criticisms include talking too fast, inefficiency when passing materials out, and not being prepared with technology. Other than that, I commend Group Rise of Realism on their brilliant knowledge of the (difficult) material and their tactful ability to engage the crowd in such a way to keep our attention.
For my blog I want to describe the “ism” of realism. The story that really stuck out to me of the realists was “A Pair of Silk Stockings”, by Kate Chopin. Though I did not like this story (sorry Abby, Steph and Sophie), I found it to be very realistic. The woman in the story, Mrs. Sommers, was very naïve and selfish. At the beginning of the story, we find out that she has come upon a small amount of money, which was big for her at the time. She keeps the money with her for awhile, and thinks about what she will buy with it. The narrator says she doesn’t want to waste it on something silly, and spends a great length of time thinking of what she will spend it on. She thinks about getting new material for dresses and shirts, and new patches and stockings for her family. It all seems so unselfish, and she seems to love her family like a mother should. Then, when she goes out to buy these nice things, she gets caught up in the fashion and fast pace of the world around her. She sees the nice restaurant, the nice gloves, the nice stockings. She starts out just buying the stockings, and then everything goes downhill from there. She tells herself that these will be the only things for her, and the rest will be for the family. But then she sees the nice shoes, and so on. I think this is a good story to tell about our resolve. We may say that we are going to stop doing this, or start doing that, but we never do. The realism is very strong here. Though we see the fault in Mrs. Sommers’ way, she probably does not see anything wrong with anything she did. We criticize others, but fail to see the fault of our own ways.
ReplyDeleteI want to say good job to our presenters this week. The presentation was very well planned, and the presenters did very well in organizing the power points. One thing I want to add is that a lot of the material that was covered in the power points was very much like the information in the book. I think that some different sources could have been used to achieve a more “well rounded” presentation. I know from experience that I used many cites when making the Emily Dickinson background power point. Sometimes in class when someone asked a question from their “KWL” chart, they just got the answer that was in the book, or an “I don’t know…” We had to read the biographies for homework, so everyone should have known what information was there. The questions that were asked were deeper than what the book got into, so researching a little more would have let you answer these questions.
I think that with all of the different “isms” that needed to be covered in this group’s presentation that it would have been a very difficult section to cover and convey to the class. I also think that they did a really great job with finding examples of all of the different forms of writing which really helped them teach it to the class. They had very helpful handouts and some very creative ideas that made the lesson fun to learn.
ReplyDeleteThe most interesting “ism” to me would have to be regionalism. The group explained regionalism as ways of writing that portrayed the effect of people specific to a reason. A great example to me of regionalism is “Of Mice and Men” in the story of two men traveling through the South John Steinbeck leaves you no question on the area and time from which the story is taking place. Steinbeck uses specific narration and dialogue to connect the story to make it very obvious that the men are from the South. Regionalism can be words such as “ain’t” or whole phrases such as “we was travelin’ down the path lookin’ for some work.” These phrases can really give you an idea of the area where the people come from. A great example of this form of writing in the section to me was the work of Mark Twain in “Life on the Mississippi. Throughout reading the book on the wonders of the winding Mississippi, Mark Twain makes it obvious on where the story is taking place and what the main focus of the story is. In other stories by Mark Twain he also uses dialogue to make it obvious on what kind of people are in the story, just like John Steinbeck.
In my opinion stories that use strong realism are the best stories to read. John Steinbeck is by far one of my favorite authors because of his use of regionalism. The way he chooses his specific dialogue of usually people from the South really brings you into the story and connects you to the characters. The effect of the Great Depression also adds to the setting to create a better picture of the time and this helps describe the actions of the people. The Great Depression makes the people in the story irritable and very competitive to find work.
My favorite part of this group’s presentation had to be at the very end when we were able to get creative in thinking of the one line sayings to make a point on a very snide way. This was a great relief from the common drag of the day to day power points. When it comes to offering insight on the groups presentation I though they did a great job of getting the information across accurately, I just think it was a little drab. This is not the groups fault, this is just kind of a “victim of circumstance” because they were given some very boring material to present. Once again I think the group worked together well, they were efficient with their presentation, it was just overall a little on the boring side.