The Story of An Hour

Simone Sutton

9/ /09

AP English III

“The Story of an Hour”

Mrs. Mallard has just received news that her husband was killed, but then an hour or so later she not only learns that her husband is alive, she sees him walk through the front door. Any other woman would be overjoyed to learn that her husband is still alive, and would probably respond to this situation with joy and tears of happiness. Mrs. Mallard responds with a heart attack. The doctors believe she died “of the joy that kills”.

Aware of her heart condition, her sister Josephine and friend Richards try to break the news to her a gently as possible. She doesn’t take the news well but, she seems upset. “She did not hear the story as many women have heard the same, with a paralyzed inability to accept its significance. She wept at once…” most women who have heard that their husbands have been killed go through a stage of denial. Unable to believe their significant other is gone. Instead Louise immediately believes her husband is dead. She didn’t ask if Richards was sure of the information he gave her. She just started crying. It seems almost like she expected her husband to die, or that she was waiting for something like that to happen. It seemed like she almost wanted it to happen.

She ran to her room to be alone after hearing the news and stared out the window. She had eventually stopped crying and started thinking “There was something coming to her and she was waiting for it, fearfully”. She felt something inside of her but she couldn’t think of what it was. She could feel it all around her and she could see it in the nature around her. “She was beginning to recognize this thing that was approaching to possess her, and she striving to beat it back with her will”. When she was starting to understand what she was feeling she knew it was wrong, that she should not be feeling this way. And that is why she is trying to fight it back. “When she abandoned herself a little whispered word escaped her slightly parted lips. She said it over and over under her breath.” She wanted to push it back to where it came from, but it’s inside of her now. “Free, free, free.” She is terrified when she hears herself. She’s happy? She’s happy to be free? Her husband just died but she feels liberated. She thinks she is being silly, she would be sad at the funeral wouldn’t she? “She knew that she would weep again when she say the kind, tender hands folded in death; the face that had never looked save with love upon her” ,”But beyond that bitter moment a long procession of years to come that would belong to her absolutely” . She knew that she would cry at his funeral, and she knew that she would miss him, but only for that moment. The future was looking bright for her; she could be her own woman. The thoughts left her in a “monstrous joy”. It is the kind of joy that makes you happy for someone else’s misfortune. Her husband is dead now she can do whatever she wants. “And yet she had loved him—sometimes. Often she had not. What did it matter?!” She didn’t always love her husband. He was in the way of her freedom. “She was drinking the very elixir of life through that open window”. The fresh air coming through the window is a symbol for freedom. She was no longer trapped in a room by her husband’s life. She could escape through the window. Probably for the first time Louise was truly happy.

The twist ending is when her husband walks in completely alive and Louise’s plans for freedom are completely shattered. If her husband is still alive she isn’t free anymore. She dies symbolizing the end of her life of freedom, which is the end of her whole life. The doctors said that she was so happy her weak little heart couldn’t handle it and gave up on her. “The joy that kills”, but it was really the joy that she had that was killed that killed her. (I wrote this in one hour) J

Aren't/Ain't I a Woman

Simone Sutton

9/ /09

AP English III

“Aren’t/Ain’t I a Woman”

Sojourner Truth was a slave who became emancipated in 1827. She became an advocate for women’s rights and the abolition of slavery. She gave this speech which was titled “Aren’t I a woman” and it was very powerful. “… Aren’t I a woman? Look at me! Look at my arm!..., I have plowed, and gathered into barns and no man could heed me- and aren’t I a woman.” She makes the point that women are powerful, using herself as an example. She is even stronger than mist men. Men believed that women needed help with everything, but she was a woman right. And nobody ever helped her with anything.

People during this time probably believed that being a slave makes you not a person. But she gave birth to thirteen children like any white woman could, and she was strong enough to plow fields and take beatings like a man. She obviously believed that men and women should be equals.

She also questioned what intelligence had to do with rights. During this time white men believed that they were smarter that women and slaves, and white women believed that were at least smarter than Africans. It was a totem pole like this that made up the social hierarchy of the eighteen hundreds. Sojourner Truth realized the wrongness in this idea because she was directly at the bottom.

Christianity was the dominant religion of this time and people would find excuses in the bible to justify their treatment of women. Like how they used the story of Cain and Abel to justify enslaving people with dark skin. And here, “That little man in black there, he says that woman can’t have as much rights a man ‘cause Christ wasn’t a woman” , just because Jesus was a man that makes all men important, or even because Jesus wasn’t a woman that all women were unimportant. Truth responds with” Where did your Christ come from? From God and a woman. Man has nothing to do with him”. Women had a larger role in bringing Jesus Christ; Men probably had a larger role in killing him. This quote could be used to suggest that women are superior to men, but Truth doesn’t want it that way, she just wants equality. “If the first woman God ever made was strong enough to turn the world upside-down, these together ought to be able to turn it back”. This lone means the women are stronger than any one will ever know and, that even God underestimated us and, that our influence is just as important, if not more, than men’s.

Years after Sojourner Truth gave her speech, Frances Gage re-published her speech but with one major difference. It was rewritten with a Black/Ghetto dialect. And a debate between whether this was written by Truth or the first one is Truly Truth’s words. The Frances Gage version makes Truth seem a little less educated than the first version. From what we know Gage is a white woman and when her version is published racism is still going strong, so for all we know, she wrote this version to make fun of a black woman.

But considering that Sojourner Truth was a slave she might not have had a good education that is suggested by the first version. But Truth was a smart woman she could have taught herself or learned from other people, the kind of grammar that is suggested by the first version of the speech. And if the First Version of the speech is the one that is edited why would someone so that. Racism was a much stronger idea back then because they had just begun to reluctantly free the slaves. No one with grammar like that would want to make this women seem smarter.

I believe that the first version of the speech is the true speech, from the mouth of Sojourner Truth.

Desiree's Baby

Simone Sutton

9/17/09

AP English III

“Desiree’s Baby”

Desiree’s Baby is the story of a woman who marries a plantation owner and has a baby. The woman named Desiree was of unknown origin. No one knew who she was or what her ancestry was. They just assumed that she was white. “It was no wonder that Armand Aubigny, riding by ad seeing her there, had fallen in love with her”. This it was at love at first sight where thin man see’s her and suddenly and unconditionally loves her. He too not knowing of her origins assumes that she is white. “That is the way all Aubigny's fell in love, as if struck by a pistol shot.” All the men of Armand’s family fall in love this way spontaneously and randomly, unexpectedly and possibly painfully. Using the word pistol could mean that in the end he would end up hurt by his love. Consider Armand’s father who had to retrieve Armand from Paris at eight years old after Armand’s mother died. He would have to have been heartbroken after his wife and mother of his children just died.

“… Wanted things well considered, that is, the girls obscure origins. Armand looked into her eyes and does not care”. Armand was head over heels in love. From his behavior one would think that he would love Desiree even if she was white black mulatto Asian, you name it. “… She had no name…” so Armand would give his name to her. They would get married and have a baby.

It had been a month since Madame Val monde had seen Desiree and her baby. She would be in for quite a shock. The baby had grown and changed so much in such a short time that Madame Val monde could barley recognize “it”. “This is not the baby!” she exclaims. Madame Valmonde knows that something is not right with the baby. She knows that “it” is not white. She held “it”, looked at “it” and gave “it” back to “its” mother. She doesn’t even think of the baby as a human anymore, she see the baby as an “IT”. Desiree is so proud of her child she doesn’t even notice her mother’s change in behavior. Madame changes the subject off of the baby and on to Armand. “Desiree’s face became suffused with a glow that was happiness itself”. Things are so good with Armand and Desiree that she just glows with happiness. Her smile lights up the whole room when she thinks of her loving husband. It is like her life cannot get any better.

“Armand is the proudest father in the parish”, “he hasn’t punished one of them since baby is born” Armand is so happy to have a child, and who wouldn’t be. Babies are literally fun bags full of happy. “Marriage and the birth of his son had softened Armand’s nature greatly” Armand began to change as well. He was normally an imperious and exacting plantation owner and now he almost treats his slaves like equals. And as long as Armand was happy Desiree was too. She loved Armand so much her moods were dictated by his. “Armand’s dark handsome face had not often been disfigured by frowns since the day he fell in love with her.” Armand was happy and it showed.

After three months things start to get weird. “When he spoke to her it was with averted eyes from which the old love-light seemed to have gone out.” Armand doesn’t seem to love her anymore. His eyes have changed noticeably. He would avoid Desiree purposely and his treatment of the slaves has worsened. The exact opposite of what made her happy was happening. Armand is no longer the happy gentle man who was in love, and Desiree hasn’t figured out why yet.

“One of La Blanche’s little quadroon boys stood fanning the child slowly, She looked from her child to the boy and back again; over and over. ‘Ah’”. Desiree has seen something so unexpected and so frightening she can barely speak. It is only when Armand walks in the she regains enough composure to ask him, “Armand, look at our child. What does it mean? Tell me.” Desiree either doesn’t know what has happened or she refuses to believe that her child is black. Armand responds with “it means you are not white”. Armand quickly assumes that she is not white and she is heartbroken that he doesn’t believe her that she is not. And why would he. No one knew where she came from, and he was sure that he was not black. And so, Desiree was forced to leave the plantation. “Do you want me to go, yes I want you to go” Armand was so angry at whoever that he didn’t even say good bye to her. She was in so much pain that she didn’t go home, she just left. And when she was good and gone Armand burned everything he ever bought for her.

Armand found a letter written by his mother and learned his mistake. It turns out that Armand is the one who is black, his mother, who died before he could know her, was black. Armand’s father was more accepting of his wife even though she was black. If Armand was a kind as his father maybe Desiree and her baby would still be with him. And maybe they could still be happy. Armand learns his mother’s secret a little too late.

Spontaneous me

Simone Sutton

9/16/09

AP English III

“Spontaneous Me”

Sponteneous me is a poem describing man, nature and man;s connection with nature.

The Peoms of Phillis Wheatly

Simone Sutton

9/15/09

AP English III

“Phillis Wheatley”

Phillis Wheatley was an African woman brought to America. Compared to other Africans she had a better time of it. The family who bought her obviously saw her worth as a human being and instead of condemning her to a life time of unending servitude, they educated her. Something white women didn’t have the chance to get. Her works were very popular and highly respected scholars like Ben Franklin thought she was awesome.

On Being Brought from Africa to America

The way Wheatley describes it, being uprooted from your home land and sold into slavery was a good thing. Considering her experiences after being brought over, one would expect her to think this way. She was a lucky slave, being brought from a continent with high temperatures and having to work for your own survival into a world where you can learn. Also according to her bio she was very sickly so being brought the New World where she could receive better medical care she might feel this way.

She regards Africa as an evil ‘pagan’ land, Darkness, Evil, etc. Then being converted to Christianity in America seeing the light of Salvation. But being brought from the land of Evil is not enough. “Some view our sable color with a scornful eye”, meaning that the people of colonial America thought their skin color was a mark of cures and reinforced by the following line “… black as Cain”. This line is a reference to the story of Cain and Abel in the bible that says that Cain’s skin was marked black as punishment for killing his brother Abel. This shows that racial prejudice based off of skin color was around even back then. This was the Americans Excuse for enslaving the African people. This next line: “May be refined and join the angelic train” suggest that it is the Africans fault they are the way they are but that there is still a chance for them to be saved. ‘May be refined…’ suggests that they are still a work in progress, that there is something underneath the ‘diabolical’ skin worth saving. This is like saying that they should be sanded down in to something smoother and more Angelic. The last part of this line “… and join the angelic train”. This suggests that in the end we all look the same so that we can be in the same train together, assuming that train means a group.

This poem speaks a lot but I can’t help but shake the feeling of sarcasm coming off of the words. I can’t imagine a woman as intelligent as Wheatley as truly believing that who she was born as wrong. That if she was not sold into slavery than her soul would be damned for eternity. But this might be the effects of being converted into Christianity back in the 18^th century. This poem might be a satire on how Africans so easily surrendered their lives and culture to the slave traders.

To His Excellency General Washington

This poem starts off with a little introduction written by Wheatley acknowledging George Washington. Her choice of shows her large vocabulary and intelligence, but she still notes how she can’t be perfect, that she still has the errors of a human.

This poem seems to be congratulating Washington for being appointed General. But with the symbolism and glorious descriptions she might as well be referring to him as a King or a God. I’m sure he was flattered. The poem is also encouraging Washington to lead the country into success.

Simone Sutton

9/14/09

AP English III

“Thomas Jefferson and the Declaration of Independence”

This article begins with an excerpt from Thomas Jefferson’s autobiography, during a point before the signing of the Declaration of Independence. He speaks of how the colonies are not exactly ready to secede from England but they are going to anyway, and then he wrote the Declaration of Independence himself. The committee that would eventually vote on The Declaration of Independence asked him to do so. He also speaks about they were going to avoid the issue of slavery entirely because the southern colonies relied heavily upon slave labor to maintain their livelihood At first not one of the colonies voted for the Declaration of Independence, they all voted against it, but after about a week of deliberations all thirteen of the colonies finally agreed on it.

But it was not perfected; they didn’t want to offend any people of the British persuasion who still might support them so they omitted many phrases and proofread the declaration before everyone signed it.

The declaration itself is a beautifully written document that still manages to make a point. It stated that the British colonies in America are the United Stated of America. They made it clear from the beginning that they were separating themselves from the mother land, and they were going to tell them why.

The Declaration of Independence talks about how “all men are created equal”, and that we all have the inalienable rights of “life liberty and the pursuit of happiness”. This is ironic considering the fact that Thomas Jefferson, the man who wrote the Declaration of Independence, owned slaves himself. This fact however; does not lessen the importance or truth of those word just the man who wrote them.

The Declaration is like an essay that is explaining what America means to do, what they are doing it and, how they plan on achieving that goal. The people have the right to abolish a government that infringes upon their rights.

There is a long list of wrongs that King George III had done to the colonies and the Declaration elaborates on all of the points. How King George was all-around, oppressive, unfair and unreasonable. How he controlled their government and judicial system for no reason, taxation, forcing people to house soldiers during times of war and peace, cutting of trade, and the list goes on and on and on.

The declaration of Independence ends firmly and clearly that America cuts its ties with England and is its own independent nation with all of the powers rights and privileges of any other country of the time.

Huswifery

Simone Sutton

9/9/09

AP English III

“Huswifery”

Huswifery is a poem written by a man named Edward Taylor in colonial period of America. The word Huswifery is a variation or misspelling of the word housewifery, meaning the things a woman would do in the house, such as cleaning, cooking, sewing etc. Many of the analogies, metaphors, similes and such Taylor makes in the poem have to do with sewing.

This poem has a very simple ab ab cc rhyme scheme in all three of the stanzas. This poem is also very short and simple, and has a very simple message.

The general meaning of the poem is Taylor asking of God to make him in to the good and righteous person He wants him to be. Taylor is asking God to weave his soul into goodness and make it holy. He says things like; “… make my soul thy holy spoole to bee”, meaning make him into Gods own personal spool of yarn or thread in which to,”…weave the web thyself” weave it into,”… Holy robes for glory”. He is using words like Spinning Wheel, Spool, knit twine and web to show the obvious relationship between sewing and his soul

Taylor Pray that God helps him become the best person he was ever meant to be. He is insinuating that it was God who made him in simplest terms, yarn. He implies that it is also God who will make him into something greater and more complex. The last four lines I think are meant to described how Taylor will look like to God after he has died and gone to heaven.

I find it interesting that Taylor used a woman’s work to describe Gods work. Normally in Christianity women are on the bad sides of things, often on the opposite spectrum of God. I would think using Housewifery to describe Gods work as offensive, but as far I know it must have been seen as creative.

The poem was simply written and was very easy to understand. It was almost too easy because the message it portrays is so easy to explain. The spellings of the words are interesting because they are spelled almost how they sound. I know that back in those days the only rules on spelling were if the word looks correct then it correct, so that made reading and understanding the poem that much easier.

Simone Sutton

9/02/09

AP English III

“Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”

Puritans believed in something called predestination that from before you were born God has chosen whether you would go to heaven or hell. Jonathan Edwards is preaching that the Israelites were predestined for hell. “Their foot shall slide in due time”, means they will be cast down into heaven when the time comes.

Edwards is using the name of god to establish a source of credibility. God is his ethos because you can’t ignore the word of God. If Edwards says this is what God, says the puritan congregation he is preaching to has to believe him.

He doesn’t speak of a kind or forgiving God either. He only talks about the “vengeance”, “punishment”, and “destruction” that comes to the so called “Sinners”. Never does he mention any kind of reward for not being a sinner. It’s just “If you do bad things you will go to hell, but if you don’t…”

Edwards mentions a certain passage in the bible that says “Surely thou didst set them in slippery places; though castedst them down into destruction”. He mentions this passage several times, using repetition to make a point. They are in that environment that puts them in bad standing in the eyes of God. Then he says “…needs nothing but his own weight to throw him down.” This indicated that it is not only your environment but your own self and actions that can get you thrown down into hell.

The reason they are in this “slippery place” is because God has predestined them to go to hell. They won’t go to hell yet because it is not their time. God has his own plan for how things are going to go for the sinners. It is too late for them.

The only reason that God doesn’t just get rid of every sinner is because he doesn’t have to. There is nothing stopping him except his own kindness. It would be easy for Him to do so.

In the end if you accept Christ and everything you might go to heaven if you are destined to. If not then oh well. But this brings up an interesting point. If you are chose to be saved from the beginning regardless of what you do in life then you don’t need work so hard to be saintly.

Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758)

Jonathan Edwards went to Yale where studied theology I school and became a preacher. But he made it so one would have to prove that they were converted to take part in communion. He was a very important figure in history, because of the revivals in religion his preaching brought.

"Edwards, Jonathan." Almagest - A multimedia database for teaching & learning. Web. 04 Sept. 2009. .

Simone Sutton

9/03/09

AP English III

“Anne Bradstreet’s Poems”

The Author to Her Book

Being an author to a book is synonymous with being a mother, but not in a positive way. The “child” is ill-formed. The child is flawed. Now all normal children aren’t perfect but books meant for publishing have to be flawless. The tone of the poem seems to be disappointment. She doesn’t seem to be proud of her book, she calls it a brat, she points out an endless stream of mistakes and typos that were impossible to correct. “I washed thy face, but more defects I saw”, it would seem frustration to keep fixing something only to have it fall apart in your hands, or the more you wash something the filthier it gets.

But in the end the book is not a real child. It doesn’t have a father, because it’s just a book. “If for thy father asked, say thou hadst none”. This line could mean it has no father or it could mean that is someone asks if you have a father, if you were written by a man, say that you were written by a woman. This could be significant because the author of the poem is obviously a woman even though women in colonial time were not always respected in intellectual fields, and the book is sold or published so the author of the book can make some money because she is poor. The last two lines of the poem would be similar to having a child grow up, even though far less than your expectations, and sending it out on its own to work and make money or the family.

Before the Birth of One of Her Children

A woman is about to give birth and this is the letter she wrote expressing her feelings. From the tone of the whole poem is seems like the woman wholeheartedly believes she is going to die giving birth to her child. She says things like “The many faults that well you know I have let be interred in my oblivious grave, if any worth of value were in me let that live freshly in thy memory” ,That mean remember all of the good things about me and forget the bad.

Even though she thinks she is going to die she wants the kids she has already had to e taken care of while she is gone. She doesn’t want her kids to have to deal with any evil stepmothers.

The woman cries as she writes this letter as indicated by the last line of the poem which means she has practically given up hope. I can only imagine how happy she might feel if she survives the child birth.

To My Dear and Loving Husband

This poem could be a love letter from the author to her husband. She explains in great detail how the two of them are a match made in heaven. How they were meant to be together. If any woman were to be married to her husband it would be her, and if any man were to love her it would be her husband. “Compare with me, ye women, if you can” she challenges her husband to find another woman like her.

The last line of this poem reminds me of a song called (Don’t Fear) The Reaper. That song basically says not to fear death because there is closure and you will soon be reunited with the people that you love. “That when we live no more, we may live ever”, as long as they are together they will live on forever in their hearts.

Anne Bradstreet 1612-1672

Anne Bradstreet was an iconic figure in the history of American Literature. Some even say the she was the first American poet. She was the first woman to write and publish a book. Her works not only detail the hardships for Puritan women. She was sickly but faithful and loving, and very intelligent.

"Anne Bradstreet." Anne Bradstreet. Web. 04 Sept. 2009. .