DRJ #1: Hamlet, Act I

Initial Reaction: Hamlet reminds me of someone I know. I have a friend who's father died and her mother married his brother. It is kind of ironic actually. She was away as well when she found out that her father died. The mother married his brother in less than a year later. My friend felt really disgusted in the situation. She did not know exactly what was going on. It was too weird to be true for her.

Character Analysis: I chose Hamlet. He is the protagonist of this story. He comes back after being away at school for awhile when he hears of his father's death. Upon his return he comes to find his mother, Gertrude and his uncle, Claudius married. His mind begins to twirl as he thinks of why the rush into such a marriage. Therefore Hamlet's fatal flaw is his anger toward Claudius. It is due to the fact that he is outraged that he has taken his father's kingdom and married his mother, all in such a short time.

Theme Analysis: The theme in the first act is evil versus goodness. The good here would be Hamlet and the bad would be Claudius. Hamlet is trying to get to the bottom of how his father died and his mother got remarried so fast. The ghost helps Hamlet by revealing how he was really killed. Hamlet and the spirit of his father want revenge from Claudius. Shakespeare uses a great amount of symbolism in the first act. Symboism is used when the ghost says, "A serpant stung me; so the whole ear of Denmark, Is by a forged process of my death..." Here, it is implied that Hamlet's father was stabbed with a poisoned sword.

Chopin Support for Thesis Activity

Thesis #1: Chopin's use of a unique writing style shows that women of her time were possessed by a lover and it was not an easy task to be freed. Also, Chopin suggests that Mrs. Mallarad's death ultimately lead to her freedom from her lover whom she was possessed by.

Thesis #2: Chopin intentionally predicts a women's unique reaction to her husband's death and then his return later on. Chopin purposefully does this because Mrs. Mallard and her husband did not have a very conversation filled marriage. So, it was Chopin's way of proving her point that women feel like they are stuck in a relationship and do know how to somehow get out or make it better.


Dawn's Comments: You have some excellent observations here. However, to adequately support a thesis, you need to cite examples of the author's use of literary elements from the text and then explain how this use creates the meaning suggested in the thesis.

SSRJ#4: Carver

This piece was interesting to me. It made me wonder why the couple was splitting up. I think this story was demonstrating the fact that when parents split up they do not realize that the child stuck in the middle is the one who will be effected negatively the most.
In the short story "Popular Mechanics," the author, Raymond Carver, uses a short to the point style in writing. He does not give any background information so that we know how the problem or arguement started. Carver starts the story with a scene by describing the weather. Then he transitions into the couples bedroom to where the arguement all began. Carver also uses irony because I felt that it was ironic that the "snow was melting into dirty water" at the same time the couple was splitting up. Although with Carver's style in writing for this story, he makes it difficult to understand the message. I think the message here was that one bad arguement can lead to bad decisions. In "Popular Mechanics" the couples urge to split up leads to a bigger arguement, which was over who gets the baby. The mother wants the father to leave without the child. But the father refuses to leave without the baby. I believe that Carver's intentions were that sometimes when a couple argues they forget how much they love one another and what was bringing them together. In this case it is the baby. I did not understand what Carver meant by the last sentence, "In this manner, the issue was decided." Did the couple finally come to and agreement?

Walker Extra Credit

He is not sure if he can aid his beloved;Roselily. He loves her pride and strength. He believes she can be changed for better. For a better life. A new beginning. For her. For him. Even for Roselilly's children. He is sure he will love her forever on.

SSRJ #3: D. Walker

I really liked "The Grass" by Daly Walker. It was really sad how he had to deal with life after the war. It seemed like he was affected by it to the point where he did not want his wife and daughter to know the things he had done and been through. I thought it was interesting when he goes back as a doctor to help the people of Vietnam. But he went in with a fear inside of him and bad memories from the war. When going back home he has a different view of the people. He even made a connection to a veteran like himself that fought for Vietnam.

I think the author, Daly Walker,uses theme to portray a meaning in "The Grass". I believe the theme in this story is that war can cause pain to any one person. But the way you deal with it is how you will be affected for the rest of your life. In the story Walker is ashamed of the things that he has done. so he does not want to let his wife and daughter know of such things. He is fearful that they will see him differently then they already had seen him. He could not stop thinking back to what happened when he was in Vietnam. It was like clicking the rewind button over and over again and then play. By going back after it had been several years it helped him cope with it. He helped the people of Vietnam and he even befriended a war veteran like himself, whom he tried to help by giving him thumbs. So he was affected by the war negatively. Although, he was able to cope with it really well when he returned as a doctor to help those in need. But what is the connection between Dinh and Walker? Why did Dinh feel so confident that the surgical procedure for his thumbs would work? I know he felt that Walker is a good surgeon but what other factors? Why do you think it did not work? How do you think Dinh was feeling?