Harriet Johnson-Inspiring

I almost wish I had not seen the photo of the author prior to reading her essay. Only at a certain point in reading do you get the visual description of her disability; up until then all you can decipher is that a very eloquent, humerous, and intelligent woman wrote the article. In reading, I couldn’t help but admire how brave and strong willed a woman Johnson must be-to attend these lectures questioning her very existence, to “dining with the devil”, and even to eventually accept him as a kind man. Its apparent she has already reached a maturity and completeness within herself that I believe both Walker and Grealy had only hoped to obtain.

She in no way shyed away from saying all that she needed to. At some points, I almost felt awkward reading her writing of such personally intimate details of her life. From commenting on how she “roll[s] around the corner”, how she “sit[s] where [shes] parked” even to mentioning her being “28 inches wide” , to talking about the discomforting things that happen to her on a daily basis- dropping her fork, always needing to rerroute in order to avoid stairs, her physical therapy, even her difficulties in using public restrooms- She is so accepting, honest, and down to earth about her disability that by the time I finish reading, I in no way feel bad, or any sort of discriminating emotion towards her. She doesn’t take herself so seriously, meaning that in a good way. After reading her essay I have a greater understanding of what life is like in those shoes/ wheels, and how, as she puts it, “the presence or absence of a disability doesn’t predict quality of life.”

Is wires due thursday>?

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what'd you do in the war grandma:?

Though both Hardy and Laurence’s passages concerned the same major issue, the writings seemed to focus on completely different aspects of that event. Still, both writers expressed some parallels. Personally, I enjoyed Hardy’s writing more. For one, her style was insightful to read, and had me taking note of the techniques she used to convey ideas. More importantly, the subject matter was more focused on the war’s daily effects on a particular person rather than the generalized idea Laurence wrote of containing only conversations and descriptions from a navy jet.

It was interesting how hardy’s story got me thinking about the after effects of war on the victor. Whenever “war” comes to mind, I tend to think of the side that was defeated-the people they’ve lost, the mess to be cleaned up, how they are to recover. Never have I considered the effects (besides celebration) of the winning side. Its possible citizens of that country were unsupportive of the war, or maybe some even had social ties with the defeated country. It just never crossed my mind how there can be negative emotions felt on the winning side. Hardy illustrated this point when she asked, “…do you think we should have done this thing?… it[’s] sort of like kicking a dead horse-brutally.” In contrast to the people that wanted to end the war, whatever the cost, the narrator is depicting a greater realization about humanity.

A change occurred in the narrator during the story. From the start, she was leaving her family to actively do something to end the war. She didn’t want to stand on the sidelines. However, the “end” that she imagined for the war was completely different form the solution she later turned out working towards. In the end, she was not satisfied whatsoever with the solution the country enforced. “…how could such a thing [the atomic bomb] make a just end to our just cause?” a pivotal question she would have directed to the president. I wish I could see the response he would have given her. Yes, the bomb solved the issue, but it was so overdone and not all necessary to that degree of casualty. This article appeals to emotional and rational reasoning in a means to end.

atomic (ka)boom

Realizing that Lawrence was a news reporter meant to give a total objective account of the experience, he gave us clear cut facts. His not being exposed to the event before was interesting to note how he saw the bomb with the same eyes that would've seen it if it were me or you in that cockpit.

Had the account been written by someone more experienced in the field it would have given a completely different feeling to its readers. since it was written for the general public, I think it was best that the author himself was of the same general population.

In the last paragraph I had to continually pause as I couldn't believe some of the phrases Lawrence was using. To me, using the expressions "flowerlike", "rose-colored", and "rainbows" in speaking in synonmity with the catastrophic effects of an atomic bomb almost seemed blasphemous. I couldn't believe what he was saying! But as I thought about the situation- Lawrence was on that jet doing a job. He was sent to give a detailed but distanced account of what he saw. For someone to be so involved in witnessing thousands of people about to be destroyed, distance is needed. So reading the passage again, applying this "distanced-reading" mindset, I found that his writing gave me beautiful images of the wonder of human technology.

The graduation

Being my first reading of Maya Angelou, I was interested to see her perspective of the racial issues she faced and bore witness to.

Her change of narration after the first few paragraphs was not something Ive been accustomed to. But by starting her piece in third person, it allowed to reader to grasp an overall feeling of what was going on in town and how much that event meant to everyone.

It seemed that for the narrator, that moment of being handed her diploma was going to be pivotal in her life; from there she would be a changed and matured woman with a world of possibilities open to her. However, after hearing the message, A complete 180 degree change was seen in the her. I thought one of the saddest images was how the narrator "... had to be nudged to go and receive [her] diploma." How tragic! Coming from the same woman that imagined with great anticipation "...the chance to walk up the stairs in the auditorium and gracefully receive [her] hard earned diploma." Unarguably, the speaker had drained every ounce of hope in this young graduate.

Despite the negative connotations of the speech, when the crowd heard the words to some familiar songs, they recognized how far they as a race had come, and as a result, their spirits were lifted and they were encouraged once again to reach for their dreams.

I thought it was important that the graduates faced this difficulty. Had the ceremony gone by seamlessly as expected, it wouldnt have as much of a deep rooted meaning to the people. It was vital that they realized the hardships they have already, and will still have to face as a people. Every time a group is knocked down, they seem to rise only stronger, and it seems this is the case with the group that Angelou writes of.

Elephant

About midway through this short story, I realized I couldnt walk away from the reading without knowing what would happen in the end. learning about both emotional sides of the man kept me locked in. Orwell did a great job at fully expressing the roundness of his character in so few pages.

Shooting an elephant not only connected with the emotional states and choices that one faces on a daily basis, but also forced me to "pick a side" as it were. Not just of 'shoot or not shoot', but also of who i am in the story: the officer (the puppet), the people (the influence), or the elephant (facing difficulties but not letting it phase me). come to think of it, Im sure theres no definitive response i can give, since with time comes better judgement.

But besides the point, Orwells writing forces the reader to question themselves in a myriad of ways.

perspective of a hardship

It was a pleasure reading Alice Walkers short narrative. in reading it right after the reading by Lucy Grealy, i feel as if i gained more of an understanding of what life is like when living with a condition or physical ailment. Walkers, through the course of Beauty, learns to accept and even to love that which sets her apart from other people. She has the motivation and perspective to let her cataract propel her into new levels of comprehending the world. In my opinion, she and Grealy went through the same stages of progression in their disabilities: they both experienced everything from denial, isolation, and hopelessness, to a later acceptance. In Walkers writing the perspective seemed to be written in more of a hindsight, while Grealy wrote hers by actually reliving the trauma and hardships all over again. Either way, the fact that they could share their stories and the ways that they kept themselves alive and motivated through their (rather extreme) difficulties is an inspiration for me (as well as others, Im sure) to see life in a clearer manner.

ello

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