Close Reading (11/18)

Goodbye to My Twinkie Days

By:  Bich Minh Nguyen

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/17/opinion/goodbye-to-my-twinkie-days.html?_r=0

As the Hostess cake company goes out of business, Bich Minh Nguyen writes about how Twinkies are a part of our past, and how they are a symbol of American assimilation.  Nguyen uses the Hostess cake company to evaluate and to symbolize America where it is headed in the future.  To help convey the meaning of the piece, Nguyen uses techniques such as diction, details, and syntax.

Nguyen’s use of diction helps the reader see the good and the bad in the company and the cakes, which then can be applied to America as a whole. When Nguyen uses the word demise to describe how the Hostess cake company has long been going out of business he implies it is due to unions.  The word demise has a connotation of something failing by corrupt means, thus implying that unions are the “corrupt means” which have caused the downfall of America.  Again when Nguyen uses the word relic to describe Twinkies, it is as if he is saying that unions are a relic of America because they have been around for so long.  Although Twinkies look good on the outside, and so do unions, they both have a downside.  Twinkies are unhealthy while some consider unions to perform unjust practices.  Through the use of diction Nguyen explores how Twinkies have been apart of our culture for decades, and through this he questions the practices of unions in America.

The second literary technique is the use of details that describe the unhealthiness of a Twinkie, and possibly unions.  Nguyen describes Twinkies’ smell to be “sugary, fake, buttery-ish vanilla…” while they are made of “partially hydrogenated oils, artificial flavors, [and] high fructose corn syrup…” From the aforementioned analysis of how Twinkies smell good on the outside yet inside they are filled with chemicals applies to these two quotes.  Although a union seems to be good as they help workers achieve safer working conditions and higher wages, some would say that they hinder the productivity of the workplace and the company’s ability to be profitable.  Similarly Twinkies are delicious to eat but once in our body they are harmful because of the chemicals from which they are made.  Again as Twinkies are described as being processed and fake, the reader applies this description to unions and subsequently questions the good in unions.

Syntax is used to emphasis key points about the Twinkie, which is used to symbolize unions.  Nguyen writes, “’Junk food’ is a phrase at once grotesque and appealing.  We know it’s bad, and that’s why we want it.”’  Nguyen separates these two sentences to emphasize how Twinkies (unions) are good and bad at the same time.  He further explains that American’s accept the paradox of wanting Twinkies (unions) while recognizing they are bad.  Through the separation of these sentences the reader is forced to acknowledge the paradox and is confronted with the incompatibility of theses two concepts and forced to consider them anew. The second sentence causes the reader to ponder whether or not keeping unions in America is beneficial or a detrimental for our country. 

These three literary techniques are used to describe the loss of the Hostess cake company that has been apart of our culture for decades.   However, the literary techniques are also used to question whether or not unions are harmful to America.

Open Prompt (11/11)

1981. The meaning of some literary works is often enhanced by sustained allusion to myths, the Bible, or other works of literature. Select a literary work that makes use of such a sustained reference. Then write a well-organized essay in which you explain the allusion that predominates in the work and analyze how it enhances the work's meaning.

                  Oscar Wilde’s novel, “The Picture of Dorian Gray” focuses on Dorian Gray’s change in morals. The innocence once possessed by Dorian is no longer present, and this transformation is achieved through Wilde’s use of Biblical allusions throughout the novel.  The Biblical allusions help establish that there must be responsibility for one’s actions.

                  The beginning of the novel introduces us to a young and innocent boy, Dorian Gray.  However, these characteristics are shortly lived.  Dorian accompanies Lord Henry Wotton who is deceiving and lacking in morals, on a walk through a garden.  The garden is where the loss of innocence and corruption begin; similarly The Garden of Eden is where Adam and Eve fell from grace.  Lord Henry through manipulation encourages Dorian to see his beauty as a distinguishing factor of himself as expressed when Lord Henry says “You have a wonderfully beautiful face…Beauty is a form of Genius-is higher, indeed, than Genius, as it needs no explanation” (34).  Lord Henry assumes the role of Satan as he connives to mold Dorian into his own character.   Resultantly Dorian becomes egotistical and centers his thoughts on materialistic possessions. Dorian’s actions are overshadowed by his everlasting youth and beauty, and through this allusion the reason for the consequences are explored.

                  One cannot disregard his actions and assume that consequences will not arise. From the beginning the reader knows the end of the story based on the allusion. Adam and Eve’s loss of innocence and disobedience toward God resulted in punishment.  They sinned and tried to hide, but God found them out.  Similarly Dorian lives his life without a care, but in the end after causing the death of a young woman, and committing a murder himself, the torture of his sins lead to remorse and his down fall.  This shows that no matter what happens your sins will find you out and repentance is a part of this process.  The allusion enhances this meaning because Dorian’s loss of innocence is related to God, the ultimate judge of everyone.  Readers are better able to relate to Dorian because they know the story of Adam and Eve and the consequences they suffered.  

                  As in the Bible and in “The Picture of Dorian Gray” readers see the allusion to the Garden of Eden and the deceitful temptation from Satan, Lord Henry.  Adam, Eve, and Dorian all lost their innocence from giving into the deception.  The Biblical allusion is necessary to show Dorian’s fall from grace and the severity of this action, while it also directs the reader throughout the novel to help him understand why Dorian repents.   Consequently Wilde’s use of this allusion shows that there are consequences for one’s actions.  

Responses to Course Material (11/4)

In the past few weeks we finished discussing The American Dream.  Reading this book before The Death of a Salesman was helpful as I was able to draw connections between both, and it helped me with analyzing.  For instance I noticed how Willy has this idea of an American dream where he wants to become a successful businessman and earn a considerable amount of wealth.  Willy always seems to be thinking about money and how much better his life would be if he could just be successful. Similarly Mommy in The American Dream is trying to get satisfaction and once she gets satisfaction her life will be fine.  However, neither of the characters will ever fully be satisfied and content because their happiness is only relative; what makes them happy can disappear.   

Reading the poems in chapter four and then connecting them to the characters within The American Dream was beneficial because it placed the characters thoughts in relation to what actual people think about America.  I noticed that not many of the authors from chapter four were indifferent to America as the young man is in The American Dream; instead the majority of them either feel disdain or gratefulness toward America.  I wonder why this is, and what Albee intended for it to mean?  Perhaps it is what people thought in the sixties, and he is trying to show us what our attitude/feelings are.

In addition to reading the poems and the two plays we learned how to approach and answer the AP Literature exam questions effectively.  I know that I will need more practice throughout the year, especially with the questions involving antecedents because those really confuse me.  I saw that another peer listed out topics that we have covered and then wrote words to describe them to help her remember them, and although it is more like restating I found it helpful so…

Rhetorical Function:  explain purpose of sentence in relation to entire poem

Context:  identify meaning of a word used in the context of a passage.  The definition has to match the way the author intended for it to be used.

Antecedent:   which antecedent the quoted word is referring to.

Style:  the author’s choices in the work (constant throughout), so see if there are any shifts.  If the answers give two options per answer make sure both fit.

Tone:  from the narrator and it shifts.  These questions ask to identify tone of a certain passage.