The turtle

"The turtle" is an interesting section, from the grapes of wrath by John Steinbeck. In this piece of literature there is a lot of description and the author paints a vivid picture from his words. The turtle is a section in the Grapes of Wrath which is about a lonely turtle trying to cross a highway road. In this piece John Steinbeck uses a lot of description, and symbolism to portray the harsh road the turtle has in front of him. the turtles goal is to reach the other side of the highway. The whole section about the turtle, symbolizes the hardship that the family in the Grapes of Wrath have to face. The family in the novel grapes of wrath have to leave their home, which has suffered a massive drought, to find work. This is the same as the turtle, as he is trying to cross from the harsh terrain from one side of the highway to the other side. I think this piece of writing is very interesting as in the style he writes in, its very descriptive but at the same time hard to understand. I find the use of the turtle trying to cross the highway as a symbol of people trying to find a better place is very smart. Overall I think "The turtle" by John Steinbeck is a very well written, and thought out, piece of literature.

betrayal you suck

Betrayal is something which continues to increase over the years as people become more self absorbed and look out for number one themselves. When you bond with someone and trust them that is something scared nothing should be able to break that, but that is not the case there are always people who betray you in one way or another. This doesn't mean you can't trust anyone but you should choose who you trust wisely. I think betrayal is something unforgivable sure you can be social with someone again after they have betrayed you, but the trust which was once there doesn't return in someway it never does. In a way I understand Medea's pain towards her betrayal, but that still does not justify her actions. In my case if someone betrayed me i probably would hate them or pound them but Medea killed everyone and that's kind of freaky. Overall i think betrayal is like a virus it spreads and once someone is betrayed they don't feel the same towards the betrayer anymore.

Lancelot and the chivalric codes

In class we read the short story Lancelot du Lake, in this story we met a young knight by the name of Sir Lancelot. Sir Lancelot shows a few of the chivalric codes such as bravery, Chastity, and loyalty. Sir Lancelot shows bravery as he fights his opponents without a second thought, he runs straight into a battle. He shows Chastity as he has saved himself for only one woman, Queen Guenevere. He also shows loyalty as he is loyal to only the king and his Queen. A g=few traits he lacks are justice and honour. He lacks justice as in the story he ends up brutaly killing alot of people to win a tournament. He also lacks honour as he does not stop to think what bad things he is doing and kills people without remorse. Overall i do not think Sir lancelot is a true hero, but he does posses some of the basic chivalric codes.

Compare contrast Lancelot and King Arthur

In class we first read the story, Lancelot du lake, this story was how you would say very eventful and maybe a little bit silly. In the story everything was over exaggerated, for example the black knight would impale people on his lance and carry then on the lance! back to the castle prison.
After that Sir Lancelot goes on a rampage and kills a whole bunch of people which i though was very morbid and totally irrelevant to the story. Overall i though the story, Lancelot du lake, was a big farce and what i though to be kind of funny. Whereas the story King arthur, in my opinion, was a great read. I enjoyed reading this story, because it was sensible, had action, and was more realistic. No one was being decapitated willy nilly and that is a type of story which i think is something i would read more. In King Arthur, it tells of a boy who was given by the king to a wizard called merlin, who then gave him to another person to raise. Arthur ends up removing the magic sword from the stone, and becomes king of the Britains. This is a excellent plot compared to Lancelot du lake, as it is something you can take a bit more serious.

2# suicide

Michael Torrin
Lit 2
Mrs. Lindsay
Suicide
The story Antigone by Sophocles is surrounded by a theme of love, death, and honor. In this story half of the characters commit suicide, due to events set it place by the King of Thebes Creon. King Creons arrogance and refusal of the burial of Antigones brother sets the chain of events in motion, which will lead to the suicide of King Creons son Haemon, and Antigone. King Creon declares that Antigones dead brother shall not have a proper burial as he supposedly betrayed his country. Antigone ignores this declaration, and buries her brother anyways, because she loves him and it is the right thing to do.
King Creon is furious and sends Antigone to be locked up in a stone vault. King Creon has an epiphany but is too late, Creon sais “Bring axes servants come with me to the tomb. I buried her I will set her free.” (Antigone 4. 103) This quote shows that Creon realizes what he does was wrong. Creon reaches the tomb but he is too late, Antogone has hanged herself with her own veil. King Creons son Haemon is devastated and drives a sword through his side ending in his death. Overall both of these suicides were caused indirectly by King Creon and his poor choices.

journal#1

Michael Torrin
Lit2
Mrs. Lindsay
The role of women

Antigone is the main character in a famous Play called Antigone by Sophocles. Antigone is a very strong woman for her time. It was rare to come across woman with such courage, and flare such as hers. In this story Antigone and her sister Ismene are contrasted one, Ismene, as the common Thebean woman, who is submissive and doesn’t speak her mind, the other, Antigone, as the strong, courageous, and passionate person. Antigone’s passion towards her cause and her will to get what she wants, and the fact that she did all of this although she is but a mere woman helped bring down the king of Thebes Creon. Antigone did not fear Creon she openly admitted what she did she said,”I do I deny nothing.” (Antigone 2. 52) This quote shows that she is not scared of Creon and is proud of what she did. I think that she is a symbol to other woman that they can be as strong as her, to break free from societies expectations. My reaction to this is that I think she is a great idol; because she stood up for what she believed in even, if it led to her death. One connection which I can get from this play is the fact that women today still fight for freedoms and against discrimination in some parts of the world. I think more of these women should be like Antigone, and stand up for what they believe in.

Movie or script?

In class we read the play Julius Caesar by Shakespeare, and watched the movie at different intervals. What I found was that the play was much better than the movie. I enjoyed the play much more than the movie. In the play it is easier to understand what is going on, because you Can take your time reading it. Whereas in the movie the actors talk so fast, that half of the time you don't understand what they are saying. This is not aided by their strong accent which does not tie into the movie at all, it just further complicates things. When you read the play it is much more enjoyable, because you can visualise what the character look like, make your own decisions on how the react with each other, and basically form how you think the character is. It is also better to read the script, as you can study the text, make meaning out of the words, and learn about the different rhetorical devices used in his script.