The book “A Raisin in the Sun” describes life as it were for black families living in Chicago when racial segregation and discrimination was rampant. During the period, African Americans did not receive equal treatment and opportunities as whites. Black families had to defer the American dream since they lacked the resources to pursue those dreams. The author highlights the challenges based on racial discrimination faced by black families as they struggled to establish their identity in a segregated society. In the book, black families lived in crowded spaces characterized by poor living standards. Therefore, most of the families hoped to improve their living standards by seeking all the means available. Each character in the book has a different dream and aims at improving his or her lifestyle. All the dreams are aimed at pursuing the American dream of a good lifestyle and better living conditions. Each family member wants to use the insurance money received after his or her father and husband’s death to fulfill his or her dream. Walter appears selfish in his dream and only cares about his interests rather thanthat of the family. He wants to be rich by investing the money in a liquor store business. On the other hand, his sister has a dream of pursuing an education and becoming a doctor. The money would cover her medical school tuition and help the family to progress after securing a job. Lastly, their mother has a longstanding dream of owning a home. She wanted to use the life insurance money to buy a family house and improve their social status and quality of life. I can feel the author’s voice in the story through the characters’ conversation and feelings. The family is very resistant to joining the white world. They want to have an identity that represented their culture. Therefore, Beneatha appears to be a deserter since she wants to pursue higher education, which was a white culture. In my opinion, there is nothing wrong with their dreams since each aims at improving the quality of life and status in society without losing their identity. I feel that the pursuit of the American dream is a constant theme portrayed by all the characters. Each wants a better life for the family.
Author Archives: Mohamed ezeldee ahmed
Blog 6
The end of the story By Herman Melville gives a good description of the hero Benito Cereno. He is one of the celebrated heroes due to his great ability to save his life and the lives of some of the Spanish sailors from the hands of the rebelled slaves. The domination of the slaves and diseases put the Spanish people very difficult for them. The author does not believe in the enslavement process’s negative effects and views it as just a normal way of expressing his greater concerns for the Spanish rather than focusing on the bigger issue of slavery. As the novel unfolds, we understand that the goal of the slaves was not to fight with the Spanish but rather to be taken back to Africa. The slaves lacked cooperation and sometimes did not respect their leader Babo. At the end of the story, the slaves and the Spanish were both in a very difficult moment since they did not have the security to protect their lives. As a critic, I had to consider both sides of the coin, and that’s how I decided to with the slaves. The slaves were taken from their peaceful homes by forcefully being taken away from their families and mistreated in America. In the journey to the slaves were greatly exploited by being subjected to hunger and murder since there were considered as properties.
Blog 5
I watched a movie named Lucifer, and I liked the plot and discourse of the movie. The plot is about how the king of hell, Lucifer Morningstar, gets bored to stay in hell and decides to change his lifestyle. He decides to live in Los Angeles and owns a nightclub named Lux. Here, he considers himself a retired King who should enjoy life. Lucifer meets with a Detective (Chloe) in his club, and their chemistry leads them to work together at LAPD, where he teams up with Detective Chloe as a consultant to help solve cases. His ability to know people’s desires helps solve the crimes, and he tries to discipline criminals by use of the law. The movie has discoursed unlimited length on religion, matters regarding God and his judgment of sending Lucifer to rule hell.
In the narrative “what stories do,” Culler discusses the purpose of narratives. First, he says that stories give the readers pleasure and desire. The readers get the pleasure because the stories mostly talk about lives and are twisted at some point, and when things turn out wrong or good, there’s a pleasure experienced. Desire arises when a reader gets curious to know what happens next or how the narrative ends. The urge to know everything the story is desire. Also, Culler explains that narratives might be a source of knowledge or create illusions in the reader’s mind. He says that it would be best if a reader would be wiser after reading the narrative, rather than sadder. In my opinion, what Culler says should be helpful to everyone who reads because it can help them understand better what the stories do. I think Culler’s message in this section explains how the readers feel and how much stories influence their lives.
Blog 4#
The stylistic and linguistic devices an artist use in their work contribute to the meaning of their work. Culler aims to demonstrate the relationship between poetry and rhetoric by exploring their similarities and distinguishing characteristics. Although there are other tools that writers can use, some devices contribute to the creation of mental images and experiences that a reader derives while reading. The scholars highlight the using metaphors, irony, metonymy and synecdoche in literary work like poetry as the most appropriate tools towards that goal which has earned them the phrase “master tropes”. Studying the language of poetry broadens a person’s thinking and it helps both the writer and reader in determining many meanings from the tools that are in use. In “Driving into the Wreck” by Adrienne Rich the persona uses first person to tell a narrative that draws in the reader’s empathy by drawing them in using these figures of speech to shape their experience. In my view the poem shifts the reader’s perspectives regarding situations since they can try to analyze a situation from the persona’s position. “I am having to do this/ not like Cousteau with his/ assiduous team/ aboard the sun-flooded schooner/ but here alone” give a peak into the mental state of the person. The use of metaphors further describe the circumstances which a reader can use to derive deeper meaning. The persona says “We are, I am, you are by cowardice or courage the one who find our way back to this scene carrying a knife, a camera a book of myths in which our names do not appear” is symbolic of the struggles people have especially from historical injustices that have very few recorded instances of personal experiences.
Blog 3
The relationship between a word and the meaning can be clearly understood using chapter 4 by Culler. According to Culler, terms, setting, purpose, and readers’ skills happen to be the four prime factors influencing the interpretation of a poem. It relies on localism for these aspects to convey meanings with one another. With a more established and well-organized language use, the language policy can function better for the barriers will be fewer. Still, it can never be a perfect determining factor since the readers’ experiences can, at times, be insubordinate. The notion of intellectual competence draws attention from the implied understanding that readers involve in their experiences with narratives. However, the variation of meaning is simple with better pronunciation. In their early lives as kids, many people get hardships speaking even in their native languages, true to what Culler says in chapter 4 that one might have meant to say x, but what they say literally implies y. They end up being misunderstood and depressed that they decide to stop talking. The same way some people are better in arithmetic and practical classes than they like theory classes. They may experience difficulties coping with narratives, maybe because they feel their cerebral are not mature when it comes to words or only because they lack the attitude. But all the same, they have to work hard to adjust since language is compulsory.
My Blog #2
Many readers address literature uniquely because its words are fictional. Writers in their work include fictional actors, speakers, episodes, and an assumed audience. According to Culler, “Literary works refer to imaginary rather than historical individuals,” though imaginary is not bounded to nature or phenomenon. What writers think and what speakers say in fiction bear upon interpretation. Fiction writers in their work interpret or form various events that can be associated with the real world in such a way to allow readers to expand their knowledge of thinking into the fictional world.However, a fictional setting opens up the question of what the narration concerns. As said in this chapter, the speaker has a significant role in evaluating the fictional world, considering their opinions and life skill. Following their attitude, the writer could write fiction on their real-life or even other person’s life to illustrate their perspective. At other times the author can use early events to figure up some components to perfect the history by adding missing details or creating awareness. In writing fiction, there is a lot unspoken, as readers have great anticipation. It isn’t very comforting because many people get to be reading great novels by the best authors when they are still very young. But one can always try writing fiction, especially with a little aid. It’s fascinating how writers write fiction without addressing the real event categorically. It’s mainly seen where human rights advocates, writers, and reporters are sued. Anyway, though fiction might be the most challenging type of writing to advance for even the professional writers, but with the correct mechanism, even the anxious writers can make it.
Blog post #1
In chapter 2, Culler, says that literature does not have to be depicted in a certain way as its main purpose is to convey an idea, story or knowledge to its audience. He uses this as a backbone in his argument that it is unnecessary to compare literature and non-literature. Literature conveys a message in an imaginative and engaging way that non-literature does not require.
Q: do we gain anything when we read literature more than we would have gained if the author used a less aesthetic form of writing?
Hello everyone, my name is Mohamed Ezeldee Ahmed , I am Egyptian , I have been studying in LaGuardia since 2018 , my major is Computer science , when I was young my dream was to be one of the best programmers in the world and when I moved to United States I felt that it’s not impossible to do it and I wish one day I achieve this dream.On the other hand, I am working in the halal guys as Shift lead. In my free time , I watching movies in English to improve my English skills, and my favorite hobby is fishing. in the end I will work hard in this class to get a good grade, and I want to share one of my best quotes with you (
you have to have a dream so you can get up in the morning ) “Billy wilder”
