Lit Analysis #2

Of Mice and Men
1. This is the story of two migrant workers in Cali. during the Great Depression. George Milton and Lennie Small. George is an intelligent, self-centered man who wants to find a way to get financially stable in these hard times. Lennie is his cousin. His mental facilities are lacking at best. His intellect and attention span resembles that of a second grader. But what he lacks in intelligence he more then makes up for in immense strength. The two find their way to a ranch near Soledad. There, they meet a man named Curley. He is the son of the ranch owner, and he suffers from an extreme inferiority complex. Shortly after their heated encounter with Curley, they meet Candy, the elderly one-handed ranch worker who offers to pitch in money for George and Lennie's ''dream ranch''. Curly's flirtatious wife makes a pass at Lennie. Unfortunately Lennie's limited mental abilities keep him from remembering his own strength. He gives her a hug equivalent to that of a mechanical vice which ends up breaking her neck. Curly rallies the rest of the workers in an all out man hunt. George knows that Lennie would never hurt anything intentionally. So George is forced to....help Lennie, ''shuffle off this mortal coil'' before the mob gets ahold of him.
2. The title of this book I feel speaks for itself. ''The best laid plans of mice and men often turn awry.'' Which simply means that no matter how well you feel you've planned out something, there's no guarantee that it will go off without any complications.
3. John Steinbeck's tone throughout the book was fairly serious. He was able to play on your empathy for the characters. Making you feel sad for them when things went wrong, or hopeful when their plans seemed like they were coming to fruition. George has the difficult job of looking after Lennie. The reason they left their home town was because they were run out after Lennie touched a woman's soft dress. With that comes the added weight of knowing how sweet and harmless Lennie is, when all the other characters see a lumbering moron who just hurts things. The older ranch hand, Candy, had a dog that he had raised and used on the farm since he was a puppy. As pets do, he got older and less able to work. The other workers forced Candy into agreeing with them to put his dog down. To add insult to injury they didn't even give him the respect and honor to do it himself.
4. George's characterization was pretty much all indirect. Minus the description of his clothing, all his mannerisms and the way he speaks to Lennie in the beginning paint him as a self-centered man. Underneath that though, is a person who really cares about Lennie. He reads Lennie the same story anytime he asks for it. As I mentioned in #3 up there, Steinbeck plays with the readers emotions. Making you care for the people by giving them some sort of sad or tragic event.

In Search Of....

Filter bubbles are just one of the many magic tools the internet uses to make our day easier by limiting the information we receive in a search. Instead of crushing us under the vast stores of knowledge the internet contains, it only shows us the information that is relevant and we can understand. This video makes me want to say, ''Thank you internet! You never cease to amaze me. Unlike real friends, I know you'll never do anything to hurt me.'' Although, even though I am given A LOT of information on what I search, I'm rather curious on how I access the rest of the information that is being withheld. What are you hiding from me internet? To see if I could get to the bottom of this, I have redone my search on Hamlet. Like last time Wikipedia is the top site. No surprise there. Subsequently is sparknotes. Ok, yeeees I've used sparknotes before. Guilty. Next seems to be the image bar. It is filled with images that are relevant to Hamlet and....oh, hang on........oh my!......ok I don't know how THAT picture relates but the internet has yet to steer me wrong. So I will trust it's opinion.

Notes'O Hamlet

Hamlet's actions early on in the play seemed to indicate that he was emotionally drained and confused at the circumstances of his fathers death....or murder as the case may be. As the play continues to unfold, Hamlet is able to regain his composure. Hamlet's sharp mind and keen sense of strategy gives him an edge over Claudius. Chipping away at his psyche, Hamlet is beginning to set into motion his master plan to end Claudius. If Shakespeare's other works are any indication, I think the rest of the book will end in an unholy rain of death and sorrow. Of course there are two sides to every war. Just as Hamlet is hatching a plan, I'm sure Claudius has some ideas of his own. Which will collide with each other to make for an entertaining read.

Who was Shakespeare?

Shakespeare, or the "Master" of English Literature, was an actor and playwright. Shakespeare lived in London where he wrote a variety of plays. However, these plays were not always published, some were written down as tracts, instead. Many of his plays were performed in the Globe Theater in London. We don't know how Shakespeare attained his knowledge of royalty because he was simply a middle-class man. It's odd for Shakespeare to know the upper-class system in depth, and many people believe he cannot be the true author of his work because it seems impossible for one to accumulate this knowledge under his circumstances. Students are sometimes intimidated by his works. Shakespeare is strenuous and difficult to expound. Sometimes even slightly tedious. After practicing with his works, however, I find myself being familiar with his writing style, and it doesn't take me nearly as long to comprehend his work. I am better at reading the text and interpreting the words, but I still struggle with finding the deeper meaning within his text. It takes a literary genius in order to fully understand what he truly meant by his words.

Facebook or Not to Facebook

What can I say about Facebook? Except that it's a fairly useful tool that enables people to network much simpler. Keeping in touch with friends and assets has never been easier. For that I say ''Thank you facebook.'' It's also given up-idy parents the world over a reason to flood the media with claims of how much it ruined their children. ''My child could be speaking with some form of predator!'' they say. You mean theres a chance you will have to actually TALK to your child? Sorry facebook, looks like you're getting thrown under the bus this time. Oh and just a warning, Twitter, they are coming for you next!

(Don't) Be Hamlet

      As you are all aware Hamlet has some issues that he should address. In his soliloquy he contemplates suicide verses exacting revenge and killing his uncle for the murder of his father. Tragic stuff. His religious beliefs and views however, prevent him from acting upon either impulse at this moment. As he mulls these ideas around in his head he comes to the conclusion that if he has an impulse to do it then it is just as bad as acting upon it. So he is caught between a rock and a hard place. This kind of dilemma would weight heavy on a sane persons mind, so it's no surprise that Hamlet is struggling with his psyche.

     If Hamlet kills himself, then absolutely nothing will be accomplished. Although, nothing being accomplished would probably result in a more desirable outcome for the other characters. They all would go on to live happy Hamletless lives. With no reason to plot, or conspire against anyone. Basically life would remain the same if not better.