THE RESPONSES

DAY 1. ANDREW SUMMERS:

Well done, Andrew. Throughout your whole presentation I could tell that you had a real passion for both of your referenced texts. I have hear comparisons between C.S. Lewis book and the Bible before, but you did a really nice job of laying it all out and giving specific examples. I especially love the part when Aslan says, “By knowing me here for a little, you may know me better there.” That is such a great line. I love that you pointed out that all important, “I am” statement. I’m not sure if you noticed this but when Lucy says, “And oh, do, do, do, make it soon.” there is numerology intertextuality there. As you know, the number three has some very strong biblical ties and Lucy says ‘do’ three times. I loved the lamb and the fish references. In addition to the fishermen parts of the Bible it also reminded me of Christ feeding the 5000. If I could put your thesis in my own words, I think it would be this: C.S. Lewis writes Christian allegory and borrows Biblical themes for his Chronicles of Narnia. You had great perspective and confidence while you presented and I could tell that you had a real passion for both texts. P.S. Well done on the semi-colon question. I didn’t know those things at all…

DAY 2. NICOLE SCHILLEMAT

Nicole! Your essay title “Wickedness Never Was Happiness” is fabulous. Way to appeal to your audience. That was very smart to do and a great attention grabber for most of us. You had a great examples and quotes. I was very impressed, as I know you have not actually read Inferno. You seemed to be very knowledgeable on your subject and both of your texts, whether you were or not. I was very proud of you. I loved your “companion” example with Virgil and the Holy Ghost, I am not sure that I ever would have thought of that, but it totally and completely makes sense. What a great perspective to have. I also loved your ideas on repentance and the sinners. Overall, you made really great points and your ideas were well stated. Very well done.

DAY 3. CAELI TEW

Caeli, you were the only one to present on Tuesday, so I am forced to write about you. But let’s face it, I probably would have written about your presentation anyway. Through the points you read, I could easily identify the subject and main points of your essay. It was obviously about Virgil’s reflection of Odysseus in Aeneas. I liked your example of the heroes’ similar backgrounds and social standings. I hadn’t really considered that before. You made a really good statement when you said, “Virgil transformed it for his own use.” That is exactly what intertextuality is all about, and you obviously had a good handle on that. You did kind of just list off comparisons a lot of the time. They were great comparisons but I think what they want from the essay is why we can make these comparisons.  I love that you said “they played house.” That was a funny was to put it, I chuckled to myself for a bit, but it totally makes sense. I think Dr. Silverman asked some really good questions to put your points into perspective. His questions were really helpful for me, so be sure to consider them.

THE PRODUCT

Hey, you! Yes, you! Have you ever broken a bone or have you ever stepped in a puddle while wearing the wrong pair of shoes? Boy, oh boy, do I have a product just for you. No, it is not a pair of rain boots. This product will change your life. If you have a problem, it will be fixed. Never again will you need a new pair of shoes when the soles of your old ones comes off. Those holes in your brand new sweater? You don't need to return it! Because we have just the thing to fix it. No, it's not a needle and thread. You need to use what professionals of many industries, including construction, kidnapping, fashion and theatre, use everyday. This product will be there for you in every sticky situation, I guarantee it. This product is convenient too! It doesn't take up too much space and anyone with fingers can use it easily. You can get this product in just about any color and it even come in multi-colored patterns too! This product has been around for years. I mean it, traces of it were used in the early 20th century, and the human race has never gone back. What is this miracle product you ask? 

Duct tape. 

Face it, you want to try it. You want to use it to fix every broken thing you have ever seen. And you will. You will successfully fix your life, one roll of Duct Tape at a time. 

THE UPSETTING

Rant about something that has happened this semester (not necessarily on campus or at school) that has really upset you. 

glorification of sports.

I have a problem. A problem with sports. Now don't get me wrong! I do love sports. I spent most of my childhood at my brothers' sporting events. I grew up in huge gymnasiums, humid from the sweat of wrestling boys (and the occasional girl). I learned about life as I sat in the hot sun on the bleachers at baseball diamonds. And I loved it. The only thing I wish had done more as a child was go to more art events. 

Today, as in "this day and age," I am a great supporter and doer of the arts. I love to perform. I sing, I dance, I act. All that fun stuff. I love observing art. Looking at paintings, reading good books, going to concerts and shows. Real work has gone into these things and I want to support them to the best of my abilities. 

This football season at SVU has been our best ever. I applaud our team and all the hard work and effort they put into their sport, I am very proud of them. But I do not approve of all the glorification of sports that is happening here at SVU and around the world. At our Friday devotional last week "scholar athletes" were recognized. They stood up and we as an audience clapped for them, for all their great achievements. And another few minutes of forum were dedicated to the naming of all the things our football team has accomplished. 

As a performer and a member of the cast of "Hello, Dolly!" I was upset by this. Musicals also take a lot of time, effort, blood, sweat and tears. No one got up infront of the the whole school to list our accomplishments. No one clapped when they found out that our lead actress seriously sprained her ankle with three performances to go, because no one cared to tell them all the great things that we accomplished. No one bothered to recognize us in forum, but every week they tell everyone to be sure to come to the football game. We don't have a board hung up comemorating the graduates performing artists. 

I understand that this is just how our culture has developed, but I wish it wasn't. That is all. 

THE INTERTEXTUALITY

I had a hard time recalling one good case of intertextuality to review. So, I am using a few and we will see what happens.

My first thought was to relate something from Barbara Kingsolver's The Poisonwood Bible to the actual Bible. But it has been far too long since I have read that novel. Also that is a really broad topic, seeing as how most of that book is in relation to the Bible. But as I write this I am thinking of a few good examples. The town's mass exodus during the fire ant invasion. The trying of a faithful man's patience seen in Job and Nathan Price, though Nathan's end is not the same as Job's. I would even go as far as saying that Nathan was as unsuccessful at teaching the people as Noah was before the floods.

Another thought was of John Gardner’s Grendel. The whole thing is based on the old epic poem Beowulf, it is just told in a different perspective. In Beowulf we see all these terrible things that happen and we hate this monster that is Grendel. In Grendel, we read the same stories but we know of their justifications and we feel sympathy for what we thought was the most terrible monster.

My next idea includes Catherine Marshall’s Christy, Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House on the Prairie series, and L.M. Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables. Each one is a teacher-on-a-frontier-of-sorts story. I love that. Each main character has that great spunkiness. Each one is given challenging students and each one solves problems with these students. Each one does their best to better their community and work with what they have, which isn’t a lot.

Is it even a question that there are connections between Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women and Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice? The beautiful oldest sister. The spunky and independent second sister. The sweet, quiet sister. And the ridiculous sister(s). Lizzie Bennet and Jo March really are two characters that I see hand in hand all the time. Thank goodness their mothers aren’t the same kind of character. Can you imagine?

Next we have the orphan stories. Frances Hodgson Burnett’s A Little Princess, The Secret Garden, and Johanna Spyri’s Heidi. I especially like the thought of The Secret Garden and Heidi together. The little orphan girl whose parents tragically died was brought to live with a cranky male relative that does not want to take care of her but in the end she charms her way into the man’s heart and life, never to be separated again.

I am so glad I was able to think of these things. It brought back a lot of good memories and reminded me of my love for literature and the movies of some of these great books. It is so interesting to find those little similarities, I loved it.

THE APPEAL

Do you love anime? Are you a wacked out fan girl? Is your roommate a normal person? Then we have just the thing for you! Since their first appearance in 1910, headphones have made listening to your personal stuff PERSONAL. Now you can keep all of your fan girling all to yourself! Isn't that great?! Now go, get some headphones and enjoy your life with your stuff. Isn't that lovely.

THE RHETORIC

The commercial rhetoric in this commercial is outstanding. It didn't take them long to catch our attention and keep it for the rest of the commercial. They are appealing to our knowledge of life and poop. They are making our minds automatically relate these fairly everyday objects to poop. For a moment they are ruining our opinions of these things we love. We love tap water and poop dog poop can ruin it. Also, that catchy tune can easily get stuck in your head and through that your mind keeps returning to the commercial all day.

THE EDUCATION

My generation has been fairly lucky when it comes to higher education. Back in the day, way back in the day, college was a thing fro preppy boys going to Harvard and Yale. Finishing schools were designed for the perfecting of women. You could find a women's college here and there (SVU, for example). College wasn't a "necessity"  for women or men. Even my own mother didn't go to college. I know she loves the life that she has, but I think she regrets not getting a higher education. My dad only has an associates degree and I think he also wishes he had more. Now-a-days college is pretty much an expectation. People will say that you don't have to go, but they mean that it's best if you do and you should and people will judge you if you don't. Some people are successful without it, but not many. I suppose we need to know ourselves and know if it's worth it to invest in ourselves.