John Wild Blog

John Wade’s rough childhood shaped who he became as both a soldier and a politician.  So, in analyzing the relationship between sorcerer Wade and politician Wade, it is almost like comparing the man’s past and present life.  Wade’s father was abusive.  Having this sort of thing growing up can cause many things to happen in a young mans life.  He could become self loathing, or loath those whom abuse him.  In Johns case it seemed to be a bit of both.  While his father was a bad man, John still loved him.  But he wanted a way out.  So he found an interest in magic; hence the title of Sorcerer for his youth self.   I feel there are more similarities between his past and present than differences.

John seeks control of his life, and in order to do that he skips magician and goes strait for sorcerer.  He recognizes a sorcerer as the most powerful magician there is.  A sorcerer can change any bad situation into a good one.  This quite possibly helped him survive his childhood.  Ultimately this struggle for control of his own life, makes him want to possibly help others.  I don’t think he wants a position of control (Politically) because he wants to control people, but because he actually wants to help them be in control of their lives.  But seeing as I have not yet finished the novel, I could be wrong.

 

OUTLINE

OUTLINE FOR MRS. DALLOWAY PAPER:

Introduction:
Introduce the theme of the novel that I have selected
Give some brief background information
Relate it to the story and give a short summary of the novel
Make a claim and explain how I will back it up (thesis)
Body sections 1-3:
In each section assess one aspect of the theme and support it with two of my quotes.
Explain the context as it relates to the time period and setting of the novel
Then explain the context as this aspect still holds true or doesn’t hold true in today’s society.
Conclusion:
Tie together all three aspects of the theme and contextualize the novel and modern society.

Quote analyzed

“’It is the hat that matters most,’ she would say when they walked out together. Every hat that passed, she (Lucrezia) would examine…” Page 85

As outlined in my opening statement, appearance is a part of judgment. This judgment could take many forms. In this case, it could be the hat that someone is wearing. There is an old saying that goes, you can tell a lot about a man by the shoes on his feet. While some may argue this is a very direct and specific statement, the same argument could be made that the creator of the quote was referring to any part of a person’s wardrobe; like a hat for instance. If you pass a man on the street wearing a Fedora you think of two things, businessman and frank Sinatra. Since not many people drop their briefcase in the street to sink “New York, New York”, businessman is a safe bet. Wearing a hat is like wearing your persona on your head. It’s safe to say that most people wear hats that best reflect who they are. This is why many people have found hats to be a great way to judge someone.

Intro

Society changes. This is inevitable. But there are many things about society, people, and the way we interact, which are timeless. One of these things is the way we feel about others versus the way we feel about ourselves. In the time leading up to meeting someone, you may wonder ‘will they like me?’, ‘am I dressed appropriately?’, etc. But when that moment comes that you finally get to meet someone all those thoughts go out the door. You immediately begin to judge them on the same things you were considering about yourself. The novel Mrs. Dalloway exemplifies this phenomenon perfectly, mostly from the perspective of women of the time period (post WWI Britain). The way we judge is what changes with society, but the fact that we judge will never change. People are always worried about how they are viewed in the public eye. No matter what you consider yourself, you are a victim of this. One may say, “I don’t care what people think about me”, but that they feel they need to say that is proof enough that they care very much. In this narration I will examine the action of judgment through passages of Mrs. Dalloway, and discuss how it plays into society today.

Theme and Quotes

Theme: Peoples’ Need to Judge Others Before Themselves.

Quote 1; “Sally suddenly lost her temper, flared up and told Hugh that he represented all that was most detestable in British middle-class life.” Page 71

This quote was in response to Hugh’s argument about women’s rights, but still shows that people are quick to judge others opinions. It begs the question, who speaks the truth? Today’s society would of course side with the female, because women’s role in society has changed drastically.

Quote 2; “He’s read nothing, thought nothing, felt nothing.” Said Sally. Page 71

This quote goes well with the first (as it follows it) in hammering home the point about judgment. Its no wonder drama is the way it is today (MTV) when people have always been known to talk about others behind their backs in a negative light.

Quote 3; (Referring to the neighbors squire marrying his housemaid, and her visit to Bourton) “’She was absurdly over-dressed, like a cockatoo,’ Clarissa had said, imitating her, and she never stopped talking.” Page 59

This quote shows the importance of appearances in society at the time. Not only was Clarissa judging this lady, she skipped right over the taboo that was a match between a man and his chamber maid, and went right to the issue of her appearance.

Quote 4; “’It is the hat that matters most,’ she would say when they walked out together. Every hat that passed, she (Lucrezia) would examine…” Page 85

Another quote outwardly stating that how one looks is very important, and is scrutinized by ones peers.

Quote 5; “And people would say, ‘Clarissa Dalloway is spoilt.’” Page 117

This quote refers to the general public making a judgment on a character and not a character on character judgment. It’s curious that Woolf would include this because it only strengthens the claim that appearance is everything. To the public she appeared spoiled.

Quote 6; (Clarissa on Lady Bruton) “Clarissa thought she liked her. She had lots of fine qualities, but they had nothing in common- she and Clarissa.”

Yet another example of how every aspect of life involves judgments. Whenever you meet someone you judge them; first on appearance, then on personality. And it’s too bad when you catch someone on a bad day.

Summary of “Anatomy of a Controversy”

The article “Anatomy of a controversy” is written by Edward T. Linenthal.  In the article the author gives his personal account of how the Enola Gay would be displayed in a museum after he was asked to serve on a board that would be making the decision.  The Enola Gay is the aircraft that was used by the United States military to drop Atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.  The need for a board to decide how this aircraft would be displayed (if at all) is obvious.  This aircraft carries with it not only profound history, but also great conflict.  At the time of its use the American public viewed it, for the most part, as the heroic vessel that dropped the “end of war” bomb.  But until we wanted to display the plane to the public, we hadn’t considered the peoples on the receiving end of that bomb.

So the debate ensued.  On one hand, people felt that the plane should be scrapped and forgotten because it was used in the massacre of many people.  They felt that it would be in bad taste to display an instrument of such destruction.  On the other hand, many people felt that the plane should be displayed for many reasons.  First, they argued, it is an important piece of history, good or bad, and it should be up to the public to decide its true value.  Also, they felt it shouldn’t be forgotten, because to forget it would be to forget those who lost their lives in its wake.

After some time, the board was able to come to an agreement to display the Enola Gay and they began to request and acquire other artifacts from the Japanese.  But another problem arose.  The board had another dilemma.   They had to come up with a story to accompany the exhibit.  Every time they would develop a new piece of literature to go along with it, one of the groups that contested the exhibit would be upset.  They couldn’t come up with a selection that was objective enough for all parties.  So the plane ended up being the only thing displayed, and nothing went with it say for a placard reading “Enola Gay”.

 

Hello world!

Welcome to WordPress.com. This is your first post. Edit or delete it and start blogging!