I'm a little bit confused.

well after a conversation I was a part of, I started to wonder for myself just what mr. tolstoy thinks. After going back over the information, as well as looking at other sources, this is what I've come to:

Tolstoy derives most of his religious beliefs from the sermon on the mount, and takes special consideration to turning the other cheek. He goes so far as to try not to cause conflict, and to avoid it at any cost. What I don't understand is that he believes in these strict guidelines on staying absitnent and not getting married, but how does that line up with his life? He messed around with on of the serfs and she bore his son before he was even married.. and when he is married it is all about this sexual drive and they are emotionally detatched.. I am having trouble putting all of this together...

p.s. I commented on Nicks post

Self-centered Worldview

Today in Freshman Seminar we had a discussion about worldview. One of the ideas was that the most prominent worldview a long time ago was that God was elevated above us, but has, over time, changed to a point where there is only humans. God is non-existent and all people have to worry about is themselves according to most people’s worldview today. Apparently things were pretty close to the same in Leo Tolstoy’s day.

In The Death of Ivan Ilyich, Tolstoy shows people’s true sides from the very beginning. The very first thing that happens is that Peter Ivanovich walks in and states that Ivan Ilyich is dead. Immediately after, we see that all people are concerned with is themselves. We are told that all Ivan’s “colleagues” only thought about being promoted. Not too far after this, people start asking how much stuff Ivan had and stating that at least he died and not them.

All of these things point to an idea that we are the only important thing in life. Christians, however, need to be totally different from this. We should be focused on making God the most important thing.

P.S. I posted on “Unrealistic Materialist People” by His Beloved...

Surprise!

I'm sure all of you recall the last question asked in class on Tuesday. If you don't, let me refresh your memory.

"If they don't resist it, is it still considered rape?"

I never got my answer, whether from Dr. Mitchell, Dr. Olsen or from the rest of the class, so I'm going to do what any other professional would do in this situation: give my opinion.

I feel like it would still be considered rape, as she didn't want it and the husband definitely didn't want it for her. The rapist would still be in the wrong for doing things that he shouldn't have without consent, but how exactly do you prosecute that? I mean, the case is pretty weak as in the example he just walked in and started having sex with her, but still. If she, or her husband, never fought back or protested, how was the rapist supposed to know that she didn't want it? Also, wouldn't her husband be at fault for standing idly by and not intervening on his wife's behalf? She was given to him, by her father in marriage, to be protected and loved. I'm not sure about you, but I don't see much protecting going on. As we discussed in philosophy today, if you see a person in need and you don't intervene, you can sometimes even be held as an accomplice to the crime committed. While I don't necessarily agree that the rapist "didn't know that she didn't want it", I do believe that the husband would be at fault in this situation.

Yes, pacifism is cool as long as no one gets hurt. When your wife is being raped by another man, break the vow. God will understand. I promise.


This message has been brought to you by Sonic: The most recommended trans-fats for the student on the go. (by Benjamin Folse)

So, what did we learn today kids? It's not rape if you yell "Surprise"? Product placement is ALWAYS acceptable? Pacifism is uncool? All good answers. Tune in next week when... Oh, god.. there's a next week? Kill me now.

P.S. I commented on Lane's post entitled: "Pigs or Poems..."

P.P.S. I just like adding PS's

Mr. Fydor Dostoevsky

      So I must start off with saying that typing with manicured nails is a challenge! So excuse me if some words do not make sense. I'm learning, haha.

      I did not read the right assignment for this week, but I did read some of Dostoevsky's writings. (Sadly I did not get to finish all those either) Those which are posted under handouts on my UM.  I liked that he writes from first person view point.  I enjoyed his how he writes about self-consciousness.   How knows he is doing one thing, is aware of it, but cannot seem to stop himself. How he knows he is prideful and only enjoyed his position of power because he could make other people miserable with that power.

     "Now, then, what can a decent man talk about with the greatest pleasure? Answer: about himself", This was my favorite line. It served me as a reminder that all men are equally interested in themselves, and that all mankind is self-centered.  God let me have a "lightbulb" moment, and I remembered that with Christ our purpose is to glorify Him. So I was reminded not to talk about myself with the greatest of pleasures, but of God. 

"The World Is Too Much with Us"

Reading "The Death of Ivan Ilyich" reminded me of Wordsworth's "The World Is Too Much with Us". Wordsworth writes
The world is too much with us; late and soon
Getting and spending, we lay waste our powers:
Little we see in Nature that is ours;
We have given our hearts away, a sordid boon!
Granted I believe he is saying how man is out of tune with nature, but the reason for man being out of tune is because of his pursuit of the things of this world. Materialism and the love of things has been with us since the beginning of time. In the Bible, Jesus talks about the rich young ruler who loved his possessions to much to give them away and follow his Creator. I like "The Death of Ivan Ilyich" because it showed the consequences that come with the pursuit of possessions. The in which Tolstoy writes the story, with what I consider to be a bit of a sarcastic undertone, is both fascinating and entertaining. Unfortunately for us, rather than seeing materialism as a problem and it being changed, the closer we get to the end of the world, the more prevalent I think it will be.

COMMENT ON RACHEL'S

I feel like I am a little opposite form you. I tend to think the worse in people. If I see a man look at me on the street I put my hand on my trusty pepper spray. If I see a person walking on the streets I lock my doors, regardless of their race or gender. Perhaps this comes from being raised by a single mother. However, I wouldn't consider myself having a personal vendetta on humanity like the Underground m

One Man's Death is Another Man's Treasure

The whole opening to Tolstoy's "Death of Ivan Illyich" is just sickening. Ivan's supposed "friends" are only there because they have to be. None of them care that a man is dead. They only think about the possibility of a promotion at work now that Ivan is out of the way. They want to reap in the benefits of his death. It is like they just want to show up, hear what they have won in the will, and leave in time for lunch. There is no compassion. Even Ivan's wife is contemplating what she can get from the government. You would have thought that she had planned for him to fall off the stool just to get the life insurance. People are completely selfish and greedy. Most of us do not even care who we step on to gain our own fortunes. It is a sad reality, but it is becoming more common everyday.

P.S. I commented on Kaylie's "..." post.

Nothing is New Under the Sun

An Ecstatic Discourse from The Essential Kierkegaard reminded me a lot of our beloved Ecclesiastes. Kierkegaard very much so embodies the idea of the meaningless of life which is a constant theme, as we know, in Ecclesiastes. However, one major difference is that it seems that he has no hope. He seems to exist in a state of grayness because everything black and white will only lead you to regret and disappointment. In my opinion, his lack of hope comes from his rejection of the New Testament. His rejection of the New Testament is perhaps a representation of the actions Christian's during that day participated in. He feels that the people of Shakespeare acted on their passions which was the only way to live.

In addition, I really enjoyed Mr. K. Many of his comments were things that I have thought of myself. Not only where they humorous but they were written in a brilliant and concise way. There are different aspects of satire in his writings and he definitely be considered a realist.

Unrealistic Materialist People :(

Reading Ivan's death makes one see how really stupid people can be... im sorry is that not supposed to be said in a blog? Ivan's "friends" are materialistic men who want nothing than things for themselves. Ivan's death showed the materialism that people of his time were concerned with. How much power can they get? How much money or position can one have? Materialism shows how inhumane people can be. This kind of fires me up. Is that bad?

p.s i commented on Callie's post

Most simple and most ordinary and therefore most terrible

This probably the best line I've read in this class all semester. That doesn't say much because I probably haven't read as much as I should have to be honest (really sorry; don't hate me please). But still, this sticks out to me. When I saw this the first time I went back and analyzed it a little more and thought, "Hmmmm he could be on to something here."

Simple- an absence of complexity

Ordinary- lacking defining actions

Terrible- terrible

I can see how simple and ordinary go hand in hand, but terrible? To me that gets put in to convey the shallow-ity (I think I made that up) of Ivan's life. Ivan led a life dictated to him by the social standards of others. He acted nice and politically correct and made friends with the right people, he even married a woman out of a sense of propriety. All these things he thought would give him a happy, good life. But in the end he sees how futile all his past actions in life were. He sees that happiness (what he had searched for his whole life) was actually pushed farther away by his actions instead of bringing it closer to him. We as people (for the most part) strive to obtain happiness, morality, and honor in our lives. It's weird though, because most of which we strive for is defined by man. The fact that it's set by man means that the standard can and with time will probably change. So we strive for approval in the eyes of our peers and those around us, even though we say that we don't. We do this by attempting to attain traits and habits that are up to man's standards. Is this a bad thing? Well, by obtaining what people set for you to obtain, you become ordinary, and depending on what you acquired life may become more simple; which means you have a terrible life. I'm not advocating we are all terrible people, but according to romanticism and stuff, shouldn't we just be trying to fulfill our passions instead of becoming socially acceptable? Not saying that we don't. Just saying lol. Probably didn't get my point across in a way people could understand it, but oh wells.

Pigs or Poems...

I never thought that I would have to decide between the two. I mean both sides have pros and cons to them. For example: Pigs are bacon but at the same time pigs and pig sties smell horrible. Poetry: amazing poets like Poe and Keats not so amazing poets like country song writers. (Yes songs are poems.) We need to look at what a poet is before me make our decision though. According to Kierkegaard, "A poet is an unhappy person who conceals profound anguish in his heart but his lips are so formed that as sighs and cries pass over them they sound like beautiful music." That sounds absolutely horrible. Who would want to be a person who gives people join through there own pain? That's a little like a masochist to me. Then people wish him to sing again soon. That would require that he receive more pain and more heartache. No one in their right mind would want to have a life like that. At the same time though would some of our most famous poets really be considered poets according to Kierkegaard? If pain and suffering are required to exist in the life of a poet and their writings tell of such Frost, Seuss, Wordsworth, Emerson, and Longfellow would have to look back at some of their works. All of those poets have poems that don't involve pain or suffering so are they not poets now? Kierkegaard says he'd rather be a swineherd where he is understood by the swine instead of being a poet understood by no one. With the stipulations that poetry has to be about pain and suffering, I think I'll take the mud and slop with Kierkegaard.

I commented on Sam's Post

...

What I really took out of The Death of Ivan Ilyich was the emphasis on material things and on how truly selfish and vain these people are. Ivan hanging up a curtain is essentially what causes his horrific death. This idea is twisted but it’s also comedic in a sense, I’m not sure exactly how to feel about it. If Ivan hadn’t hung that curtain and gotten so hurt he never would have discovered truth so his death isn’t necessarily tragic in that sense. But that’s just a side note I don’t care to expound on. The characters in this story are so focused on status and the vanities that they become numb to anything that doesn’t revolve around them- these people lack humanity. They can’t sympathize with this man who was supposed to be a father, a friend, and a husband. He is suffering and their only emotions are centered on themselves. That’s a sad reality to live in. But it is realistic. People can be so vain and self-involved that it destroys our humanity, it stifles the good of humankind. Gerasim and Ivan’s son were like a tiny flicker of hope. Without them the whole story is a tragedy, even with Ivan’s discovery of truth. I liked that in them there was humanity, compassion, and selflessness.

commented on Callie Georges post.

I Want It Myyyyyyyy Waaaaaaaay

I love Kierkegaard's statement about real enjoyment:

Real enjoyment comes not in what one enjoys but in the idea. If I had in my service a submissive jinni (aka genie) who, when I asked for a glass of water, would bring me the world's most expensive wines, deliciously blended, in a goblet, I would dismiss him until he learned that the enjoyment consists not in what I enjoy, but in getting my own way.

Let me start off with admitting that, if anyone in the world is guilty of this, it is me. I HAVE to be right all the time. If it doesn't happen like I said it, It won't happen at all. One more time just for emphasis: I HAVE TO HAVE IT MY OWN WAY.

That being said, I was actually convicted by that particular bit of Kierkegaard's ramblings. Here we have a genie who, when one asks for something as simple as a glass of water, brings the finest wines in the world to him. The genie is then dismissed because he did not bring what the person wanted.

This is almost like our walk with God. Sometimes we ask for something we think is good for us, then instead He gives us something greater. Unfortunately, we're human, and we are upset with God because we do not get what we want. We then proceed to ignore His will for us because it didn't happen like we wanted it.

Coincidence that I was thinking about this today and then read Kierkegaard? I think not.

~Cody Martin

P.S. Commented on Tori Burger's Keeping Up With the Ivanoviches

Keeping Up With The Ivanoviches

"It is as if I had been going downhill while I thought I was going up. And that is really what it was. I was going up in public opinion, but to the same extent life was ebbing away from me. And now it is all done and there is only death... But how could this be, when I did everything properly."

So many times in life we compare ourselves to others and try to fit in with our peers. Yes, even you who think you're individualists. You try to be original because you observed someone else who was, and you admired them. Sorry, you're not exempt. But anyway, our society is obsessed with climbing social ladders and although we don't have distinct class separation like some countries, no one can deny that there is evidence of de facto segregation between classes, and those put in the limelight, with everyone wishing they were at least one rung higher. Unfortunately for Ivan Ilyich, he didn't realize how meaningless these material pursuits were until he was on his death bed, and could only watch as his friends and family continued down this path towards his same fate. Living "properly" by the world's standard doesn't not ensure true happiness in life.    

I Really Am a Realist, Really.

I am struggling with my identity. Half of me is a Romanticist and half of me belongs to Realism. I just love Wordworth, Keats and the rest! I just love the romantic’s poetry, but I will say, Tolstoy’s intriguing writing won my heart. I read Tolstoy’s writing and relate, and think of times in my life and in the lives of my friends. I feel like he just hits the spot on one of the hardest things to figure out—life. Tolstoy is able to discuss the real, the mundane, and the messy things in life without it seeming like a diary entry or the latest reader’s digest. He is able to get to the very substance of life that makes up each and every day of a lifetime. He ties in topics like marriage, family life, death and sorrow. These he ties in seamlessly, creating an evocative story that is somehow all cohesive.

I feel like my blog is sounding like a book review on the back cover. Sorry. Let me continue and make my point clearer.

He is able to say things that many people go through but can’t express. For example, one of my favorite excerpts shows how Ilyich was tormented by the feeling of being misunderstood. Tolstoy captured this sorrow of being misunderstood as he described the state of Ivan Ilyich, “ …and Ivan Ilyich was left all alone with the consciousness that his life was poisoned and was poisoning the lives of others, and that this poison did not weaken but penetrated more and more deeply into his being” (1441). Everyone has felt this way before or will feel this way at some point. It's terrible. Tolstoy points out that even though we all go through similar instances in life, walking through our average day, somehow we seem to run parallel to others, never taking the time to connect and give sympathy.

Finally Tolstoy brings Gerasim into the picture and brings hope and a little light to the story. Gerasim is the one who in humility takes Ilyich’s hand and walks with him through the valley of the shadow of death. Tolstoy wrote a work that both looked at reality and highlighted truly beautiful things in mankind. He showcased both the good and bad without making it seem overly gooshy or ridiculously dramatic.

I suppose I am realist also. I am won over.

P.S. I commented on Megan's Post

A Series of Habitual Events

So, our discussion in class yesterday, about the difference between Eastern Orthodox and Roman Catholic’s crossing themselves, I got to thinking. My mother was raised Roman Catholic, and my father was raised Southern Baptist, when they were coming up with a blessing to say at dinner each night, they decided to do as the Catholics do. Meaning, every night, before and after we say the blessing, we cross ourselves, Roman Catholic style. This is such a habit for me, that when they were telling Hunter to reach the opposite way as he portrayed Peter Ivanovich, I couldn’t even figure out how to cross myself Eastern Orthodox style.

This has led me to think about why we do things. Some things are habit, like me crossing myself after I pray, if not before. Some things we have to think about, like Ivanovich as he entered the room where Ivan’s dead body lay. He had to think about what seemed to fit the situation and think about each movement he made. Yet at the same time, each movement was a habitual movement. We humans are creatures of habit, and while we may have to think about what we do sometimes, normally we do things the same way.

For example, every time I walk to the cafeteria, I go the same route. I always cross the street in the same place. I always walk the same path to my classes. It’s inevitable, if we do something often enough, our bodies will eventually just follow that path, whether we think about what we’re doing or not.

So why did Ivanovich have to think so hard about what seemed right for the situation he was in? Perhaps it’s because he’d never been in that situation before. But I think it’s probably more along the lines of his attitude and his heart. His heart was not into expressing his condolences, so he had to figure out what “habit” he should perform.

On another note, I’ve been intrigued with Tolstoy since 2003 when his book Ana Karenina was mentioned in one of my all-time favorite series of books, The Series of Unfortunate Events book 10: The Slippery Slope by Lemony Snicket. Now, the only thing that is mentioned about Ana Karenina is the central theme. But I always liked the name of the book, and it always made me want to read it. This is the reason why Ana Karenina is on my reading list and my Kindle for PC, waiting for the day I have the free time to read it.

Another side note about A Series of Unfortunate Events, Lemony Snicket alludes to many different famous movies, books, poems, and writers, including Voltaire. This series has always been one of my favorites.

On a completely unrelated side note, I love writing Kierkegaard and saying it, and I love writing and saying Schleiermacher too! I’m just sayin’…

Until next week, and a Kierkegaard blog post, which I’m very excited for,

~Meghan

PS. I commented on Susan’s post “Kierkegaard’s advice”

Suffering into....

I love it when Ivan Ilyich finally gets to that point, where he simply asks himself, “What do I want?” It is at this moment, the height of his suffering, that Ivan’s perception begins to change for the first time. It is ironic, because throughout his whole life, Ivan was seeking after pleasant things – things that he thought would surely change his world forever. But it wasn’t until all these things were gone, that he actually began to have a real, permanent change within himself. Ivan Ilyich’s whole perception, his entire worldview began to change – “all that had seemed joys now melted before his sight and turned into something trivial and often nasty.” This is the idea of Socrates’ Cave; this is the idea explored through Aeshylus’ Orestes; this is the theme behind Romantic thought – gaining truth through the rawness of human experience; and now, it is the realization reached in Tolstoy’s Death of Ivan Ilyvich. Suffering into truth… this is at the heart of human experience.

I commented on Jamie's "Mild Lunch Time Rant"

Tolstoy

The Death of Ivan Ilyich reminded me of a lot lessons we learn today. "He was hindered from getting into it by his conviction that his life had been a good one. That very justification of his life held him fast and prevented his moving forward, and it caused him most torment of all...it was revealed to him that though his life had not been what it should have been..." Although we focus on material and social possessions, that is not what really matters in life. Instead of striving for more and more, we should be satisfied with what we have. Relationships with family and friends should matter more than gaining a higher job position.

Kierkegaard's Advice

First of all, the readings we've had this week have definitely been my favorite so far! I thoroughly enjoyed The Death of Ivan Ilyich, and like the reading in The Essential Kierkegaard even more! Some of the stuff is hilarious, and then other sections make me want to through the book across my room and scream "What are you thinking!?"

Right away in the first passage the section about poets literally made me laugh out loud! Then, what he says about marriage and friendship left me dumbfounded. I was always told growing up that it's important to have friends, but here comes Kierkegaard to set everyone straight! One of my favorite passages so far is one page 40: "Most people rush after pleasure so fast that they rush right past it." This means a lot to me because I always find myself wishing for the next stage in my life or even the next fun event so that I miss opportunities to enjoy myself that the time I am in. During high school I couldn't wait to get to college, so I didn't try very hard to spend time with friends.

At the end of the first reading I also love the whole section about purity and the importance for women to guard their purity so that they don't become "weak and lose the substance of her being," as Kierkegaard puts it. Kierkegaard believes that a pure woman is something to be desired, but one who is lose is better off being a man.

I can't wait to read the rest of this week's Kierkegaard readings because everything he has to say is so interesting and applicable to my life!

-Susan

p.s. I commented on Sam Oliver's Greed

No Title...

So far I've only read the first grouping of sections in "Either/Or part 1" and a part of the next section, and I simply can't go on reading. I have to stop and write out my thoughts. Of course I will finish my reading, but after this. In this bit, the author is expressing views that are consistent with many of the ideals of realism. Realism focuses on the ordinary day-to-day existence of men and women, and the author bashes these. An example being, "Most people complain that the world is so prosaic that things do not go in life as in the novel, where opportunity is always so favorable. I complain that i life it is not as in the novel, where one has a hardhearted fathers and nisses and trolls to battle, and enchanted princesses to free. What are all such adversaries together compared with the pale, bloodless, tenacious-of-life nocturnal forms with which I battle and to which I myself give life and existence." Life is instead dull and mundane. There are a few people who can see beauty in life, but they are few and far between. And, they are often stifled by the daily existence of others. "We gathered one by one, a few admirers of those melodies--a postman with his mailbag, a little boy, a maidservant, a couple of dock workers. The elegant carriages rolled noisily by; the carts and wagons drowned out the melodies, which emerged fragmentarily for a moment. You two unfortunate artists, do you know that those strains hide in themselves the glories of the world?" There is so much more that I would like to put down, but I will limit myself to one more short quote. "But to work for a living certainly cannot be the meaning of life, since it is indeed a contradiction that the continual production of the conditions is supposed to be the answer to the question of the meaning of that which is conditional upon their production." This sentence is a very complex way of saying that working is not the answer to life. I agree with this. Life often times become such a mundane thing. There is no meaning to it, and it is impossible to draw meaning into it by yourself. This is where God comes in. He gives my life meaning and purpose. When I live for His glory, life is full of colors and emotions, but when I don't then it is dull and gray. Time drags by and I'm bored. I realize now that where this was meant to be a stream of all I wanted to say, it is instead a scattering of a few fragments, but I hoped something came across to those of you who read this. Please feel free to comment! Now, I simply must go to the theatre work call...!

P.S. I posted on "Mild Lunch Time Rant" by Jamie Kilpatrick

Greed

I hate how after finding out Ivan Ilych's died most of the people's first thoughts had something to do with greed. His "friend's" first thoughts were about who would get Ivan's job. His wife's fist thoughts were about how she could milk the government for money. His daughter was upset because his death interfered with her wedding plans. At first I wanna look down on these people and say "What the crap!? How can you feel like that? The guy just died!", but then I remember I am human just like them and I realize that I am capable of doing the same thing. However much I don't want to admit it.

P.S. I commented on Will's post "It Is He who Is dead, not I"

It Is He Who Is Dead, Not I

This sums up much of the pioneering dream. America and Russia both are on the fringes of European society, always carving new ways. This, however, comes at a cost. This complacency Peter Ivanovich discovers in everyone is a disease that dulls the blade of growth. In both capitalism and communism, this complacency can be found. With communism, the citizen is paid the same amount regardless of the amount or quality of work. Complacency is fed when the worker realizes that his work is satisfactory enough to be paid, and ceases to grow for the employer. In a similar fashion, when a capitalist giant reaches near immortality financially, in a case where citizens are dependent upon a service or product, the capitalist can become full of himself and considers himself satisfactory enough in the current state. "It is he who is dead, not I," can clearly be applied in both cases; it reflects the attitude of, "well it's tough for him, but I'm still getting paid." In both cases, growth is ceased because the complacent party is content with his or her current position.

A fun side note, Joseph Stalin, Vladimir Ilyich Lenin, and Mikhail Ivanovich Kalinin were all co-advocates of Communism in Russia.

I commented on Jamie Kilpatrick's "Mild Lunch Time Rant"

Ad augusta per angusta,

Will Drake

ForEV-ER, forEV-ER, forEV-ER, forEV-ER, etc.

"I believe I can see the future 'cause I repeat the same routine.
I used to think I had a purpose, but then again, that might have been a dream."
-Nine Inch Nails, Every Day is Exactly the Same

Ivan Ilyich's life had been most simple and most ordinary and therefore most terrible. Poor Ivan lived like an empiricist to the extreme, abstaining from true extrememes in happiness, detestment, and the like, instead choosing simply to do what is comfortable, easy, and affordable. The world of Ivan Ilyich is like a bastardized version of the American Dream where everything is exactly the way he wants and feels safe in, and he has enough money and wealth to live securely and splurge as he sees fit. I say bastardized, though, because he eschews real excellence in himself and his relationships for just living comfortably. It's like you hear so many people say, "man, if I just had this or that, and could have this going on, man, I'd just be coastin'" or "if I just lived in the mountains/on an island life would be so simple and so cozy. Yeah, Ivan knows how they feel. He created his own life and lived his own way by his own rules, and by disconnected from life he could say he overcame it. Not really, for he never had one to begin with.

Death came to Ivan so quickly and so efficiently, he didn't know what to think. He had never tried to be anything better than normal and never tried to reach better heights, and when he did, it was decorating his own home or advancing in his position at work to please other people. It's like he was afraid to fall or be hurt, so he just numbed himself to everything and thought it was the good life. In this way he achieved his own personal heaven, where everyday was exactly the same. Essentially, he went to work, treated his wife and children nicely, and played cards with his friends because he knew he would win. He could say he was living well, but everything he did was without love. It's only natural that when death came knocking at his door he turned from apathy to hatred because he knew nothing else.

But back to the idea I mentioned of a bastardized heaven, I say that because we all kind of want the idea of Heaven in our lives. By heaven, of course, I mean endless peace, comfort, and joy. What a lot of people fail to remember, however, is that heaven is more than just a place of peace. It is the dwelling place of Holy God, whose power and majesty exceed the kingdom itself and makes that peace that we all so desperately cherish. Without Love, Heaven is just another pretty place. Likewise, Ivan did not have any love in his life or anything truly happy-he just had system and structure. He thought his life was a perfect heaven, but as he soon discovered, it was all just a hellish lie and his final moments were nothing but torment, reflecting the emptiness and meaninglessness of his self-sustained life. In conclusion and to sum things up, he created his dream, he lived his dream, but because he did not invest his love in something other than himself, he ultimately was just as meaningless as a dream.

So, now that I've cheered you up, please feel free to comment as you please. Thanks for reading! BTW, I commented on Sam Oliver's post Greed.

You're right about greed, it's a point that a lot of people miss out on. We all know that we can become as complacent as Ivan but we often forget about the greed of his coworkers. It all just comes down to selfishness and looking out for number one-there is no love in this poem. If there was, Ivan might've lived better and his friends might have actually cared about him, but no.

Mild Lunch Time Rant

Obviously, I know this thought probably only comes because I’m a girl, but I couldn’t help but notice that the way Ivan’s wife is described in the second chapter is almost ridiculous. It seems as if everything negative in their relationship is her fault, when in reality, relationship problems are rarely, if ever, the fault of just one individual. “His wife, without any reason... began to be jealous without any cause, expected him to devote his whole attention to her, and found fault with everything and made coarse and ill- mannered scenes.” Without any reason? She was pregnant! And what does he do to attempt to restore the problems? He invites his friends over to play cards! Of course she’s angry. Poor man, having to stay home with his wife instead of getting to go have fun. How dare that woman insist her husband to spend time with her!

P.S. The title comes from the fact that I skipped lunch to write this blog so I wouldn't have to do it later.

I Commented on Joy's "True no matter what God or gods one serves".

Life

"Ivan Ilych's life had been most simple and most ordinary and therefore most terrible."

Ivan's life was so normal that it lacked the excitement of being spontaneous. He simply did what he thought would look good to other people and didn't pay much attention to what he really wanted or believed. He does say that his marriage gave him personal satisfaction, but he also says that " it was considered the right thing by the most highly placed of his associates." He bases his decisions on what other people think when he should decide for himself who he wants to be in life.

I think this can also relate to the Christian life. Sure, we can live a "good," comfortable life, but when we get to the end and look back on our time here, what have we really done with the time we have been given? We aren't here to please other people and to fit into what they want us to be. We are here to stand out and to be what God has made us to be, which is the salt and light of the world.

PS- commented on "time swings on"

True no matter what God or gods one serves

“Every man has within his own reminiscences certain things he doesn’t reveal to anyone, except, perhaps, to his friends. There are also some that he won’t reveal even to his friends, only to himself perhaps, and even then, in secret. Finally, there are some which a man is afraid to reveal even to himself.”
You know, this is a section from the reading that kind of really grabbed my attention. How many times have we felt just like this, that we can not reveal something even to our closest friends? What causes us to feel this way. There are a number of things - guilt, shame, humiliation, etc. The devil feeds lies to us that make us uncomfortable to expose things from our past or even our present for fear that others, especially our friends, will no longer accept us. Dostoevsky is all over the place and concise all at once… But this section is a very true one, no matter what God or gods one serves. It is a struggle for both believers and none believers alike. I believe in Jesus Christ. He desires to set us free from all things past and present and to wash over it with His blood.

A piece of my heart

Just a REMINDER: Make sure you include a quote in your blog!

Also from last week, I don't "hate" Poe. I don't understand him AND I was sick. Further, even if I did understand his motivation better I would not prefer his writing. However, I still recognize him as an important literary figure and am glad we all participated in a nice study of a selection of his work. ALSO, I ONLY like sappy comedies....just in case anyone was wondering ;)

I have decided I really like Russians. (:

I throughly enjoyed this weeks reading of Dostoevsky and "Notes from the Underground". In fact I was so entertained I read the whole packet and got to the end wishing I had a little more to read. I don't know if any of you read the beginning notes on Dostoevsky, but I definitely recommend them for your understanding of this reading.

The Underground Man is angry, mad, cynical, and any other descriptive word to describe a grumpy old guy. He is the antithesis to the "beautiful and sublime" (which he quotes at least 7 times) we learned about from Kant. He stands in direct opposition to the socialist idea that man can be taught to work for his greater good, which is the good of all. Specifically, the audience can see his rant in section VII on this topic, "If his eyes were opened to his true, normal interests, he would stop doing nasty things at once and immediately become good and noble, because, being so enlightened and understanding his real advantage, he would realize that his own advantage really did lie in the good". He continues onward to satirically poke fun at this notion of a man attaining this better knowledge. The Underground man believes that a normal man is stupid, and will make choices based on what he wants whether or not it benefits himself.

This philosophy was a hard pill to swallow. I always believe the best about people often to my detriment. (sometime ask me about Silk ;) I wave and smile when I see people on the street, forgetting my small, white, female stature...Further, I am confused when my baggy shorts and tshirt do not hide the fact that I am a woman. (It really is always a surprise to me). The point not being that I will stop advocating for the poor, neglected, homeless, and fatherless; but rather, recognizing the nature of mankind. Just because the deeper I look into my soul I find a want to help more and more people does not mean that everyone else feels the same exact way. This does not hinder nor terminate my love for the broken, instead in a weird way it enhances this love.

My comment on Katinas!

The Fall of the House of Usher is my favorite too! I totally agree with the bubble thing, but I always thought of this kind of unstable mental condition as like ok hang with me here haha you know how on Tvs now a days they have this nifty thing where they can put a smaller screen of a different channel up in the corner so you can watch two channels at once? well I see it as Ushers fading reality as the bigger screen and his mind as the smaller one, but no matter how much you turn up the volume on the bigger screen, you can always hear the smaller one, nagging nagging nagging until finally it takes over and you just turn both off. Which would be Ushers death-destruction of his mind and reality.

Oh and I love your coffin description!!

Poe and Aliens?

While I do enjoy mostly Poe's Poems, my favorite of his short stories has always been The Fall of the House of Usher...except for the end, but I will get to that.

When the narrator considered what it was that so unnerved him about the Usher house, he thought, " It was a mystery all insoluble; nor could I grapple with the shadowy fancies that crowded upon me as I pondered. I was forced to fall back upon the unsatisfactory conclusion, that while, beyond doubt, there are combinations of very simple natural objects which have the power of thus affecting us, still the analysis of this power lies among considerations beyond our depth."

I love this quote because one, it really shows waht Poe's writings are basically all about: not the natural, real, tangile things that scare us, but really its our own minds. The last sentence, "considerations beyond our depth" is great because it kind of hints at the insanity of Usher. I feel like "depth" most likely means into our very being, the unknown within us. It is interesting to think about what are unhinged thoughts are capable of producing. In Usher's case, it was capable of producing images and visions that in the end killed him.

Now for the dreaded ending...but not dreaded in the way you think. It is scary in a way, yes, but for some reason I am always left unsatisfied and a bit disppointed at the ending no matter how many times I read it. FOR SOME REASON IT ALWAYS MAKES ME THINK OF ALIENS!!!...I have no idea why but I always get the feeling of a kind of cowboys vs. alien thing going on.

I cant explain it so please dont ask me to.

Our Deepest Fear

"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us."

I know everyone's talking about fear of the unknown in their blogs, but this is one of my favorite quotes of all time and relates to Poe in that way very well. In Poe's writing, he plays on the readers innate human fear of the unknown, the fear of that which cannot be seen or predicted. If we think about it, I think its pretty safe to say that we all share that fear. If we think of it from a Christian mindset, then that very fear is what keeps us from doing what we are called to do most of the time. When we begin to see the potential and power that God has, it is intimidating to say the least. When we realize the literally infinite potential that God has and the implications that has in our lives, it's a pretty terrifying thought. However, I also believe that in that fear, in that realization of the unknown that we face is where we can truly allow God to work in a big way in our lives.

Reading Poe

I love Edgar Allen Poe, and reading his stories came at the perfect time! Now, growing up and learning about him in elementary and middle school a lot of my teachers would say the Poe was just crazy and dark, and that is why his stories are so horrific. I however, disagree. I think that the reason his poems and tales are so suspenseful is because of horror, yes, but also because of Poe's understanding of the human mind and the internal struggles characters have in his tales.

Everyone can relate to the issues his characters have in some small way. We all obviously are not tortured and thrown in pits and held in captivity; however everyone has experienced getting over an enormous amount of homework and tests, finally finishing, only to be assigned more homework and tests. Readers can also relate to character's feelings of fear, guilt, or doom like how the characters feel in "The Fall of the House of Usher."

I don't think Poe was crazy or satanic at all. I believe he knew exactly how to extract emotions from readers and did so perfectly. I love how Poe describes people's mental state in his stories and just love his writing in general!

That's all for now; back to studying for the honors test!

-Susan

I commented on Tori's post, "At least, for a moment, I was free!"

Time Swings On...

Having read "The Pit and the Pendulum" before in high school it was nice to read it again and see how differently I read it now. From beginning to end of the story time seems to drag. It keeps the readers on the edges of their chair. Poe takes a good bit to describe the swooning of the character and the judgement. Then, suddenly the character is awake and in the cell with the pendulum swinging closer. I thought that the idea of the pendulum was really cool. As a clock pendulum swings marking off the seconds and taking each person closer still to his impending demise, so the pendulum, with it's seemingly unavoidable sentence, swings ever closer. It is intriguing how fascinated by death people are when they look it straight in the face. Some, like this character, take an uncanny pleasure in watching it loom ever closer and closer. This story definitely makes one stop and think about how time is ever moving and we don't know how much longer each of us has. On a side note, I remember being very relieved and glad that the story ends happily with the character escaping.

Yes, Poe, FINALLY!

Poe, because I love him!

Poe was one creepy son of a gun, and I would LOVE to listen to him speak about himself, just to see what he says. 

The Fall of the House of Usher is my personal favorite. The character’s own senses turn against him and make him go insane! I imagine that he was in his own kind of bubble in his last days, that no matter what the narrator said or did would really help in the long run (as we obviously find out). Kind of like his mind was in its own coffin, breathing, yet unable to get out, and eventually the darkness just over comes and wins over sanity. His own mind makes him go nuts! Would I like more imagination? No thank you!  

He just creates this fear that you can't run away from because the cause of the fear is within you... It's so dark and dreary, that it is perfect for this time of year, Halloween!

Insert creepy laugh here.

For the Moment, at least, I was free!

      This was my first introduction to Poe's writing.  I can honestly say the only thing I knew about poe is that his writings would be dark, and I was anxious about reading them, but I strapped my Honors Lit. boots on and trudged on ahead.  I loved the Pit and Pendulum, and it was my first work of Poe to read.

      My favorite line in this story was, "For the moment, at least, I was free". Through everything this victim of the the Spanish Inquistion has suffered through he was finally free! Then it gets worse for him, something more terrible awaits him.

     This is something everyone can relate to in life, even though not everyone has had such torturous events happen, they've experienced that feeling. I know I have. The moment when you think you've won the battle, and then the real war is just about to start.

     Poe seemed to capture this struggle all humans face and he presents it in a way that frightens us. He plays on emotions through humans worst fears, the unknown that will bring death. Poe knows what similar experiences, thoughts, and fears humans share, and he uses that. I think that's what I enjoyed the most when reading his writing, the fact that he knows what scares us. He knows how to relate to the readers darkest fears and desperations.

     On a side note, my friends enjoyed watching me read this. They took many opportunities to scare me when they could tell(by my facial expressions) that I was getting into the story. Several times I jumped either because of maniacal, malicious laughter broke out from behind me, or someone banged on the table. (Also listening to love songs while reading Edgar Allen Poe, is a very strange mix)

P.S. Commented on Tori Burger's post

I hate reading Poe...

 
I don't understand how a person can get so much joy from taking his audience into the deep dark crevices of the worst nightmares they have yet to dream and then abandoning them to let them die a slow, gothic-lit death. It's morbid and cruel! Ok, I'm done ranting...

Poe knew all too well how to give a good scare. The best way to freak someone out and keep them paranoid beyond belief is to let their own imagination take control. Their own personal worst fears are put in place of what we don't know because we HAVE to provide an answer for everything. And then, like with most horror movies, the real thing doesn't do justice to what our imaginations came up with. Some of us do the same thing in everyday life, such as when preparing for an honors test and we are convinced the test will look nothing like what we expected when in reality we arrive to class to find we were prepared for the test all along :) at least, that's what I'm hoeing for... 

Poe has never been a favorite of mine as far as poets go but I am grateful that Miller discussed him in non-stereotypical light. So many people write Poe off as a creepy recluse with a tendency

to focus on fear of the unknown. In reality Poe is much more than that, he is the genius who fathered detective fiction, Holmes and Watson would never have existed without his guidance. I have never studied Poe at depth but I enjoyed the opportunity to work it out with peers. My favorite of his works was not discussed unfortunately, but the concept behind this piece is how guilt drives us to the brink of insanity, which I can't wait to discuss in more detail with Crime and Punishment.

p.s. posted on Cameron White's

Afraid of the Dark

Ah, this one takes me back to the tenth grade, where I was under the teaching of the great Mrs. Watson. Her take of The Pit and the Pendulum, as well as Edgar Allen Poe influenced us to believe that his works were creepy, and that because of that, he was a creepy man. To call this man a creep just because he wrote nightmarish pieces of work would be to make a false accusation. It is eye-opening to try and see Poe as the philosophical type. He put this kind of fear in me when I read this piece. It is not that i am necessarily afraid of the dark as much as that I am afraid of what is in the dark that I cannot see. It is a fear of uncertainty, and Poe makes this come alive the the concept of the ‘unknown’.

p.s I posted on Nick Hamptons blog

The importance and necessity of fear

As I read Poe and other stories from the "thriller" genre, I came to a self-realization kind of thing: that being afraid isn't a bad thing at all. And really, we should look forward to fear.

Don't call me crazy yet. Somehow my rational mind found a way to rationalize the irrational concept of fear. What is really frightening about fear? It's the fact that we don't know what's going to happen; and it's also deeper than that......it's seeing what is coming, and knowing you have no power at all to stop it or control it at all.

This sounds horrible I know. But I actually see it as something good. We should view fear as a tool, not as an obstacle. You see, fear when utilized properly can compel us to our greatest triumphs. The hottest fires produce the purest ores, the darkest rooms showcase the brightest light. Fear is an opportunity; a chance to propel oneself to do great deeds. To accomplish things we couldn't under normal circumstances. The threat of losing your very life if you cannot accomplish a goal. The possibility of losing your loved ones. Nothing can spur a person on to great deeds more. Had the man in Pendulem and the Pit had tried so dilligently to escape if there wasn't something threatening his life? Most likely not. Without fear where would we be? How many soldiers on the battle field were able to act valiantly because of what defeat would bring? The fear of losing all they love? Fear when weilded correctly is just as important as ambition, because with every fear comes an opportunity to tame that fear and use it to your advantage. Fear is important and we need it. Perhaps Poe agreed?

Fearing What is Unseen...

So, it has been made clear that the fear of the unknown is the hot topic for the week. I’m not bashing that, because it is a great topic.

I think that we can all relate to the readings, not necessarily being trapped in a pit watching as a pendulum which is our ultimate demise swings lower and lower, but the fear of what is before us. We all have had moments where we don’t know either a)what will happen next, or b)how we will deal with what actually does happen next. In saying this, we must recognize that the fear does not come from what happens next, it spawns from the fact that we don’t already know what will happen next.

Sure, our unknowns may not be nearly as intense as what we read about, but they still bring about a feeling of fear. This is why many Christians are afraid to do things that are unfamiliar or that we don’t have an idea of how they will turn out. I have been reading a book called The Trellis and the Vine lately, and in it, Tony Marshall states that we get caught up in doing the “stuff” at church so that we don’t have to do the difficult, or scary, things that we need to do. He asked something along the lines of, which is easier: to go work for the church and rake up some leaves, or share the gospel with your neighbor over the back fence?

Even though Christians are commanded to preach the word, we find it uncomfortable not knowing how the person will react to what we say. I know it seems weird to compare Poe with the Christian walk, but a fear of the unknown can be applied pretty much anywhere in life.

P.S. I commented on fear and faith by Amanda.

Poe, Halloween, and the Irrational Fear Behind Both!

I first read The Pit and the Pendulum in the 9^th grade, and I absolutely hated it. I have a very overactive imagination that made everything I read or watched, 10 times more intense than they actually were. My imagination is still just as overactive, but I am now better able to control it. When I first read The Pit and the Pendulum, I remember shaking as I read each and every word, my imagination conjuring up images I had no want to see. I remember reading about the pendulum getting closer with each pass, I was so afraid and my heart was in my throat as I read.

As I reread the story this week, I couldn’t help but be impressed with the detail Poe put into his works. I guess that’s why he’s considered to be such a great author. As the beginning of this story was read out loud in class, I couldn’t help but think how ironic it is that we read these Poe stories right before Halloween. The suspense fits perfectly with the season of fear. The fear of the unknown, which is what Halloween really is, in the most simple of definitions. All Hallows Eve, the night when people left gifts for those unhappy spirits they knew nothing about, for fear that something evil could happen.

Perhaps the reason I hated The Pit and the Pendulum when I was younger was because I had no idea what I should imagine. I was afraid of the unknown elements I was being introduced to. My mind had to make something new up and as I had no starting point to go from, I had to pull from the most extreme recesses of my thoughts.

When I first heard we were going to be reading Poe this week, I thought I wouldn’t enjoy anything we went over. But the discussion we had in class, left me on the edge of my seat, wishing the class could continue indefinitely. Poe no longer scares me as much as he did when I was younger, because I can now understand and comprehend more. I now know more information and there is less of the unknown element to his works.

Now, I must return to writing my Sociology paper and studying for the midterms I have tomorrow. Good luck to all my fellow classmates, I know everyone will do well.

Until next week,

~Meghan

P.S. I commented on Jamie Kilpatrick’s Buried in Thought

Usher

This one really freaked me out. It also reminded me of The Vampire Diaries. Elena's doppelganger wanted to hurt her. The doppelganger in the story can either confine you or help you expand. Sometimes we need to go out of our comfort zone instead of rely on the normal.

What You Don't See Is Scarier Then What You Do See

So reading Poe really got me into the Halloween spirit. I read Poe in high school and I was immediately hooked. I liked when we were talking about how the dark can play tricks on your mind. When we're engulfed in darkness, our depths of perception become confused. The man in The Pit And The Pendulem wakes up in complete darkness. Poe plays well on our fear of the unknown and how it can take over our minds. The loss of perception can really let the imagination run wild. Who could say that the cold, stone wall that the man was feeling was not the body of a fierce dragon or that the slime was not blood and guts? Anything could have been in the pit with him and it is that fear that Poe uses to make this story so terrifyiing and suspenseful. A lot of people say that it is not the dark that scares them, but what could be in the dark with them. This also reminded me of something that a movie critic once said about scary movies. He claimed that "what you don't see is scarier then what you do see." A lot of horror movies play on that concept and it seems to be very effective. A lot of times, the evil creature in the scary movie does not even hold a candle to what I was picturing in my mind so I really enjoy when you never actually see the monster at all. I have an incredibly active imagination which is what makes horror movies so fun to watch for me. I know that if I was in the dark, I would prefer to not know what else in it with me. Sorry for all the ramblings. I just really love the horror elements that Poe used to make his stories so terrifying.

P.S. I commented on Samuel Oliver's blog, "The Unknown......AHH!"

Fate

Edgar Allan Poe is an unmistakable name, not because of the name itself but because of the author to whom it is attached. Edgar Allan Poe wrote in a logical manner about the dark side of the human mind, and despite not being a big fan of horror, I love reading Poe's works. What I took from "The Pit And The Pendulum" seems to be different from most other people. Everyone else is talking about the dark side and horror, but I wish to bring something else to the table. With darkness there is also light. We wouldn't know what one is without the other. Man is imperfect and his nature isn't pure, but yet we can rise above those base natures. In "The Pit And The Pendulum", there are definitely moments where the narrator gives in to despair, but there are moments where he definitely rises above that and exhibits more "noble" emotions. He feels despair and yet he doesn't give up hope, and even at the very end he is about to throw himself in the pit instead of being literally pushed into the pit by the blazing walls. Even though his life was going to be taken, he made the choice to go out on his own terms. The way that a man or woman faces what is thrown at them in life shows his or her character. Anyone who wants to comment, please do!

P.S. I commented on "Buried In Thought" by Jamie Kilpatrick

Fear

I have to say, I ABSOLUTELY loved the Pit and the Pendulum. I saw this play in high school. I am not a fan of horror movies or scary movies at all. In fact, I hate them :p there is something about them however that draws you into them to where you can not help but be curious and not turn off the t.v. The pit and the pendulum was like this for me. The way the mind works under this kind of experience makes it seem like it was going insane, the body was not there. Our biggest fears would be what we call the "unknown." In this story, the unknown was exactly what was being portrayed. Darkness, the unknown, and fear, it all shows how the mind reacts within the body.

ps. I commented on Jamie K.

Buried in Thought

I’ve never liked horror movies or most scary stories, but I actually really enjoy Poe. His works have been my favorite so far this semester. I’m not sure exactly why. Maybe it’s because the narrators are more precise and scientifically minded.

When I was younger, I had a strange irrational fear that I was going to be buried alive even though I had never heard of anyone being buried alive, and I had never seen it in a movie. I refused to stay in the dark, and I refused to go to sleep in a room alone. This lasted for a few years. I am no phycologist. I don’t really understand the human mind, so I can’t explain the source of my fear, but I think it says something about the dark side of the mind. Even as a seven year old, I understood that there were people who found pleasure in the pain of others, and I was afraid that I would be the victim. This may be the reason so many people dislike Poe. His writings make us look at part of the human mind that has the ability to not only do wrong, but to take pleasure in evil. But... taking pleasure in evil... isn’t that what we all do when we sin? Maybe we’re all crazy. But instead of putting a man in a dungeon like in “The Pit and the Pendulum,” or a woman in a coffin like in “Fall of the House of Usher,” our flesh is constantly trying to torture and bury ourselves alive.

Posted on Lane's "That Guy"

the unknown............AHH!

I had never thought before about what it is people are most afraid of, but when, in class, we talked about it being the unknown I felt like I had just gotten slapped in the face. I thought to myself, "Duh! You idiot." It was so obvious. I have seen tons of horror/scary/sci-fi movies. I should know this. Then I started to think of all of the scary movies that were my favorite and I realized that all of them have the element of an unknown creature/thing.

Yesterday I watched the movie Don't be Afraid of the Dark. In the beginning of the movie you hear these creepy voices telling this little girl to come play with them. It was pretty scary and I was freaking out until about halfway through the movie I finally saw what these voices looked like and I was not impressed. They looked like six inch tall golem creatures that could easily be curb-stomped. It would have been much better if i had never seen them at all so my imagination could just run wild.

P.S. I am a licensed movie critic.

P.S. P.S. I commented on Kelsey Moore's "Just One of those Things"

As many people have been saying, I would have to agree--I don't care all that much for Poe. That being said, I must say that there are certain things I cannot deny the validity of. Concerning the horror of the unlimited self--I'd have to say that is true. We've got to realize there is truth in that; we have to see the darkness in ourselves before we can go anywhere. We can't dwell in that darkness as Poe does. For some reason I tend to prefer Emerson, I find his writing more interesting by far. I can't handle Poe's scientific, precise narrator bit, it doesn't even seem real. Come on, who thinks like that? It's absurd.

But then again, so is Emerson with his giant transparent eyeballs. These people are crazy.

And they're making me crazy, too.

Isn't that how it's supposed to go in this class though? If it's a search for truth--we're going to run into a lot of false before we get there. I also think that we're going to find broken bits of truth mixed up with a heap of false, though. I try to look for those bits in everything I read.

(Commented on Lane's)

Just one of those things

I’m not going to lie, I actually really like Poe probably for all the reasons that everyone else hates him. I like things that people usually think are creepy or haunting – Tim Burton, music composed in minor keys, and Edgar Allen Poe. It's just personal opinion. That being said, I enjoyed this.

One thing that really stood out to me was when we were talking in class about the Pit and the Pendulum and Dr. Mitchell talked about the mind of this person. He said “It doesn’t matter how many bones they break, if they haven’t broken your will, they haven’t won.” It was this idea of immortality being defined by your will. This made sense because to me this is the same thing that we talk about as Christians. We say that it doesn’t matter what happens to us here on earth, but we all want to leave a legacy, or a lasting impact on our society, which in turn, gives us a sort of immortality.

Thoughts?

I commented on Lane's post "That Guy"

Distortion

With Poe we see that fear comes not only from the unknown, but also from the distortion of things like time, space and location. An example is in The Pit and the Pendulum "In groping my way around the prison, I could not fail to encounter this rag upon completing the circuit. So, at least, I thought; but I had not counted upon the extent of the dungeon or upon my own weakness."When things are distorted we become confused and without having been in the situation before, don't know what to do. It is different from what we are used to and that takes away the comfort. For example if you were a football player and after playing for years, the rules suddenly change or become "distorted," you may no longer be confident in your skill. We trust too much in the world around us to stay constant. Once it turned around, we are swept up in it if we don't have something steady to hold onto. Instead of counting on the things in our lives to stay stable, we should give our lives to God to take care of because He is the only rock in this chaotic world.

That Guy

There always has to be that one guy that has to support what no one else is. I suppose that that guy tonight is me. Everyone talks about how but they hate or dislike Poe but I thoroughly enjoy reading him as much if not more than the other authors we've read this semester. Let's look at Poe for a second. He was found face down in a gutter in need of medical assistance and he later died in a hospital in Baltimore. There is no clear answer to how he died or why. He married his 13 year old cousin, Virginia Clemm. She later died at a young age. Edgar Allan Poe wrote about what he knew. What he knew was pain, suffering, battles with insanity, and depression. This may be strange to us after reading Wordsworth and his description of the area around Tintern Abbey. The area around Tintern Abbey is what Wordsworth knew. We need to take these things into account when we read Poe. Would a biologist write a dissertation on History? The obvious answer is no and Poe writing about happy things would be the same as the aforementioned biologist. I think that we all have a little Poe in us, Poe being dark, demented, slightly insane as a result of things that happened to us in the past and is currently molding our future. So next time you have a bad day, think it would be a good day in the life of one Mr. Edgar Allan Poe.

P.S. I commented on Rachel's blog

Control and the Lack

Today in class we were discussing the fear of the unknown and why we fear it. For me, it is not so much the unknown that I fear, but rather the inability to control even myself in the unknown. I fear not the lack of knowing what is ahead, for that is something I have grown to embrace. However, not being able to control myself in my travels through the unknown.

"We waited in vain for the arrival of the sixth day--that day to me has not arrived--to the Swede, never did arrive. Thenceforward, we were enshrouded in pitchy darkness, so that we could not have seen an object tat twenty paces from the ship."

My fear is to be the Swede, to have lost control of my circumstances, to be caught off guard and unprepared for change, unprepared for chance. Often times, this is my approach with trusting Christ and what He is doing. It is interesting that someone announced this behavior of mine last night to me, and it left me in awe. "Samantha, you hope too much and never trust at all." It caught me off guard and I had no idea what my friend was trying to say: "Hoping is like closing your eyes and wishing for a pony to be there when you open them. Trusting is knowing that when you do, the pony will be there."

With Christ, there is not a dark abyss, but rather it is a blinding light, hindering your ability to function--a total loss of control. "What she is not, I can easily perceive; what she is, I fear it is impossible to say." I can easily say what my God is not, but what He is...I cannot comprehend.

...I completely lost where I was going to go with this, and I am afraid I have run out of time. After all, I have rehearsal.

COMMENTED ON WILL'S

fear and faith

"It was not that I feared to look upon things horrible, but that I grew aghast lest there be nothing to see. At length, with a wild desperation at heart, I quickly unclosed my eyes. My worst thoughts, then, were confirmed. The blackness of eternal night encompassed me."

For the narrator, his worst fear wasn't what he could see; rather, it was that he wouldn't be able to see. When he opened his eyes, he realized that he was surrounded by darkness and couldn't see anything. This was the freakiest part to me. He couldn't see if anything was near him or if something was about to attack him, so he wouldn't be able to protect himself in any way. At least with the pendulum he could see what was going on, and come up with an escape- even if it was torture to watch the pendulum slowly descend. To live in constant fear of what could be approaching in the darkness would be enough to drive anyone mad.

In the same way, many of us fear not being able to see. The loss of control when you can't see is frightening. But isn't that what God asks us to do? Step out in faith and obedience, even if we can't see where He's taking us? "Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see." Hebrews 11:1 ...I have such little faith sometimes. The darkness of the unknown, the loss of control, the surrender required... it scares me. Just being honest with all of you. I might be the only one like that. However, I know that the One who my faith is in will never forsake me, so I follow. "Those who know your name will trust in you, for you, Lord, have never farsaken those who seek you." Psalm 9:10

Commented on Sam's "Control and the Lack"

Dislike/Dislike Relationship

Not going to lie, I do not like Poe... He is a strange, creepy, morbid, crazy (I could keep going) man. I feel like he picks out the most disturbing topics he can find and writes on them. If I had it my way, I would not read his works... His writings do not interest me at all... He would not like me at all because I do not like his writings... That is just the way it is, and I am not going to apologize for it!!! Rachel and I have already been talking about it.

PS - Posted on Rachel's

for better or worse.

Poe is creepy. The end.

He seems to have a couple of either thematic reoccurring fears or obsessions.

1. (obviously) death

2. insanity "a sickly smile quivered about his lips; and I saw that he spoke in a low, hurried, and gibbering murmur, as if unconscious of my presence" (House of Usher)

3. a person who is buried alive

4. a person who is unaware of his surroundings

5. a person speaking gibberish

Throughout all of his work the reader can easily notice his building descriptions. He reveals the ending of the story within his constant descriptive foreshadowing. His verbal illustrations are so powerful that I would NEVER want to read Poe by myself in an empty mansion. I may never go in another mansion again. I am really wondering if Poe has a bigger goal, other than scaring the pants off his audience....Entertainment? Joy and I don't understand Poe or scary movies....oh well. guess we will just watch sappy ones (:

**ps i posted this on the UM Epic

This is Halloween

Edgar Allen Poe has a very evident connection to the darker side of humanity. "The Fall of the House of Usher" references entrapment many times. This could be an allusion to the sinful condition of man, whether or not Poe consciously realizes it is sin that is entrapping humans.

In reference to the house, "No outlet was observed in any portion of its vast extent, and no torch, or other artificial source of light was discernible."

In reference to Usher, "To an anomalous species of terror I found him a bounden slave."

In reference to Madeline, "The disease which had thus entombed the lady in the maturity of youth."

Poe of course shows that Madeline was also trapped in her coffin.

The whole story seems to represent an entrapment of the human mind or soul in darkness. With each of these instances a character is bound to something that was not physically removable. This could signify a malady within the narrator that distorted his perception of the people he was with, or it could be a reality Poe suffered himself, if only in his mind.

Ad augusta per angusta,

Will Drake