Golden vs Glass

In my group's class discussion (which was a while ago but I really want to get my thoughts down), the writing prompt was to compare Dr. Golden vs Dr. Glass, and I didn't really say anything at the time but I definitely have some things to say about the two psychiatrists.

So Dr. Golden. He is a jerk. I guess I kind of understand why he wouldn't want to invest himself too much in Bethany's life and might not want to become best friends with her or anything, but at the same time he's her doctor. He has a job to do, and he doesn't seem to be doing it very well. In this way, I guess is the opposite. She quickly befriends Bethany, and although she cares more for Bethany's well-being, this also seems to skew her judgement and cause bias. Neither doctor really seems to be helping her like they should be. Bethany doesn't improve with Golden, who really couldn't care less, and it sort of seems like Glass helps her get a bit better, but we kind of already know how it's going to end. 

I strongly disliked Dr. Glass because of how she treated Smithy, but after discussion, I don't dislike her as much (still not her fan though). Smithy does come off as a sketchy character, and probably only looked at her chest every time they met. I personally don't see Smithy as too creepy, although I do remember once he told Dr. Trivitch that he used to think he loved his sister. I don't really know how to interpret that, but it does make Smithy seem a little more creepy. I guess what I'm trying to say is I can see why she might think he would be creepy, but still, the whole scene to me was just frustrating, especially with his response to the allegations.

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Hero's Journey?

I guess one of the big questions at this point in As I Lay Dying is: Is the Bundren journey heroic?

I'm not really sure if I consider this a heroic journey for Anse. Not so much because he keeps talking about how he wants teeth (which I really don't think is a big deal because everyone wants something from town, so whatever), but more so because he's not really doing anything.

He's not carrying the coffin, his life isn't put in danger. Meanwhile, Darl, Jewel, and Cash are made to cross a dangerous river and Cash breaks his leg in the process and loses some of his tools. Even Vardaman is taking a role in this, and he's 6 or something like that.
Something we talked about yesterday was if Anse is a hero because he's doing all of this for Addie, who made this request just to spite him, as she hated her life and cheated on him. This makes sense, since Anse isn't interested in moving at all, but insists on burying her where she wants to be buried.

(Side note: At the beginning of the book I really felt bad for Addie because.. well she was dying. Reading her chapter has definitely changed my thoughts about that.)

Then following that idea, it makes the Bundren children even more heroic as well. I think going to Jefferson is a heroic journey for the kids, who are spending their time going on a dangerous journey to bury their mother, who didn't really love them anyways (except Jewel). Yeah, I think it's nice that Anse is doing this for Addie, but making the decision doesn't really mean anything because all he's doing now is ordering his children to complete the task while he watches (and spending all their money too). The situation with Addie makes me sympathize with Anse a lot more, but just making the decision isn't enough for me to think of Anse as a hero.

I don't know, I feel bad for Anse and all, but I'm not really seeing him as heroic. To me, the heroes of this story are the Bundren children.

Do you see Anse as a hero?

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Carpenter Cash

After yesterday's class, I've been thinking a lot about Cash, and if he cares the most for Addie or if his work on the coffin is simply because he likes being a carpenter.

Grief comes in many different forms, and Addie Bundren's death seems to affect the other Bundrens, even emotionless Cash. When I think of grief from a death, I think of a reaction like Jewel's or Vardaman's. Both are confused and don't know what to do. This causes Jewel to be angry about everything. Vardaman is so young that he doesn't know how to deal with death and drills air holes in Addie's coffin. Cash's grief isn't as easily detectable as theirs, but that doesn't mean he's not mourning. 

Cash definitely has an insane work ethic and a clear passion for carpentry. He pays so much attention to small details and focuses on everything he does. But he seems to focus even more on the coffin. Of course his hard work could just be because he really loves being a carpenter but I feel like it's more than that. He seems to be channeling his grief into Addie's coffin by making something for his dying mother. There's really not much Cash, or anyone in the family, can do about Addie dying, but he knows he can make her a coffin, so he gives it his all. He builds it right outside her window, which Jewel hates, but it can be seen as act of love for his mother. He wants to show Addie that he's putting a lot of time and care into making her coffin and that he's making sure everything will be perfect just for her. I'm sure he could act like the other Bundrens when Addie dies, but he's putting any emotion he has aside to finish his work and making sure it's all complete. 

Cash made a piece of art for his mother as she lay dying, and it seems like he's the child who has put in the most effort for his mother, even if it doesn't seem like he's reacting at all to her passing.

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Who's The Hero?

So in my notes from yesterday's class when we discussed books 23 and 24, I have written down "the hero in this poem?" I sort of mentioned this a little bit in class but I feel like I can expand on this topic. (prepare yourself for some rambling)

Let's start with Odysseus. From the very beginning of this poem, we learn that the hero of this story is the man of twists and turns. Although in my last post I said I felt a little uneasy at the slaughter in the hall, at least some of Odysseus' actions felt justified (killing Antinous at the very least seemed alright). However, I think I feel this way because for the entire book, Homer has painted the suitors as evil, power-hungry men. Even though we know that Odysseus is unfaithful and at times careless, Homer hasn't made him look like as villainous as he made the suitors look. Hearing things from the suitors' families' perspectives changes things. Ben pointed out that this makes Odysseus look like a dictator, seeing as he killed hundreds of his own people and then just threw them outside his house for their families to collect. After reading about how all the suitors' parents had to identify their children and imagining what it would be like to be in their place, I feel like what Odysseus did to the suitors kind of undoes all of his heroic actions from the Trojan War. Even though he's meant to be the hero of the story, I'm not so sure anymore.

I feel like I should mention Telemachus because I've been rooting for him this whole time. Telemachus is one of my favorite characters so I'm hesitant to deprecate him. There's been a lot of talk ever since we started The Odyssey about whether or not it's even possible for him to be a hero. I've been commenting a lot about how I think he has potential to be a hero and how if he overcomes his insecurities he could be great. If you consider Odysseus' massacre of the suitors to be heroic then I think you could also deem Telemachus a hero. He finally meets his father and fights alongside him to regain control of their palace. If you were to put it like that, I think you could absolutely classify Telemachus as a hero. However, now that I'm questioning Odysseus' heroism, I'm not really sure where Telemachus stands. He followed his father and fought with him to get rid of the suitors, who treated Telemachus like dirt. Telemachus still doesn't really do this on his own, he just does what his father does, so I'm not sure I would classify him as either a hero or a villain. What he does isn't morally just but And he yells at his mom a lot, which I'm not fond of.

When you think of the gods, or any divine power, you would expect perfection. We know that humans make mistakes and that no one is perfect, but I don't think this way with omnipotent beings. A ton of what happens in this book is because Athena wanted it to happen. This is all her show. Athena sets up everything and watches the events unfold. She's the one who wants to see Odysseus kill all the suitors and she's the one who tells Laertes to throw the spear and kill Eupithes (who wasn't really doing anything wrong?). I think Athena can take most of the blame for everything that happened. I understand that playing with humans is kind of a pastime for the gods, but I would at least expect her to do the right thing. But instead of doing the right thing, she erases everyone's memories?? I believe the parents of the suitors have the right to be upset that their supposed mighty king slaughtered all of their children, and to fix this, she just makes them forget they ever had kids. At least Odysseus (and Telemachus) have a bit of an excuse, being human and prone to mistakes and doing unjust things, but Athena is a goddess. It feels weird to say that she is to blame for everything, but maybe this is the case. 

Who do you think the hero is?

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"They Deserve to Die"

We talked in class today about the suitors. We established before that the suitors have clearly overstayed their welcome and abused Telemachus' hospitality. When I was talking with my group about our thoughts about the suitors, "they deserve to die" came up. I agree that the suitors need to go. I don't like them at all, but it feels weird to think that someone deserves to die for being a rude house guest. A few of them did plan to ambush and kill Telemachus, but the others are just rude people.

Also, the idea of Telemachus being at fault is interesting (or maybe it's not, but it's something I never considered before). He could just throw them out since he's the prince of Ithaca. Is waiting for his mother something that is worsening his situation?

Whether the suitors deserve to die or not, I guess the slaughter is inevitable.

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One-Eyed Sheep Lover

I mentioned in class yesterday during mine and Lydia's presentation that there is a lot of debate over whether or not Polyphemus is a sympathetic character. Because Odysseus is the hero of the story, it's a little hard for me to think of the cyclops who ate his crew as sympathetic. However, looking a little closer into it, I think I do have some sympathy for Polyphemus.

Polyphemus is really just a shepherd who tends to his flocks everyday and makes cheese. He minds his own business, until a crew of men he's never seen before show up in his cave indulging in his possessions. This is where judging the situation becomes difficult because Odysseus is used to hospitality wherever he goes, as it's a tradition and he expects basically everyone he meets to be nice, and thinks it's perfectly acceptable to help himself to whatever he wants in Polyphemus' cave. He's used to being treated well by strangers. However, Polyphemus doesn't believe in hospitality and is incredibly offended that Odysseus and his men would do such a thing. I don't think what Odysseus did here was completely wrong because he's used to hospitality, but it is rude. On the other hand, if I were Polyphemus, even knowing about the tradition of Greek hospitality, I think I would also be mad at the intruders. As a two-eyed, pint-sized human, I can't say I would have been so angry that I would eat Odysseus' men, but I can kind of understand Polyphemus' reasoning. 

I'm not sure if I completely pity the Cyclops or not. I initially saw him as simply the villain, but after considering what happened in Polyphemus' perspective, I definitely think there's more to the story than that. The different views on hospitality complicate the scenario, but overall I think that I do pity the Cyclops a little bit; Odysseus' actions don't make him seem like a perfect hero.

(if you have any thoughts on this please comment them, I would love to see different opinions!)

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From the Bat's Perspective

One thing I have written in my notes that I find to be true for all of the readings we've done so far is: 'Perspective skews judgement.' I think this is something that I tend to forget when watching an action movie. I often find myself questioning why the police is always so hellbent on catching the protagonist. They're doing your job for you, how will chasing after them help anyone? Slowing down the hero isn't going to help anything. 

Well I think putting things into perspective has changed that view. In "Easier Than Typing," it's pointed out that though we see Batman on screen as a superhero who has good morals and has little flaws, if these movies weren't created and Batman was running around Champaign, I would be a bit wary of his motives. A normal person can only appear to be perfect for so long. I think I would recognize the good aspects of Batman, but at the same time I would expect his perfection to fade as he gained prestige. If he can inspire fear in criminals, he could inspire fear in the public as a vigilante. We wouldn't assume he's perfect because we would see him as a person dressed like a bat. With more power, his morality could shift and be a threat to anyone, not just criminals. I so often associate heroism with perfection that it almost surprises me that a person can be both a hero or a villain 

Perspective definitely played a role in "Victory Lap," but in a different way. If I heard about things that Batman did, I would be inclined to think of him as a hero, but if I heard anything about Kyle Boot similar to the descriptions that Alison gave, hero is the last thing that would come to mind. Even as I was reading, I was trying to figure out how he would fit into the story. If I knew Kyle as just another Uni student, I probably wouldn't think anything was particularly off about him. But like I mentioned in class, when Saunders gives us insight on his thought processes, I went from thinking about him like just another person to almost worrying about him. He has so much emotion built up inside of him that at any time he could crack at any point in time, and if he were a classmate I would be worried that he would crack at something I said (and if his reaction would be anything like what he did to the kidnapper, I would definitely be terrified). It happens to occur at a more convenient time and it is this aspect of him that turns him into a hero. 

So I guess something I'll keep in mind throughout this class is that perspective skews judgement.