Home Burial Analysis

Thesis: The husband and wife's relationship has been damaged by the death of their first born child. The strain on their relationship stems from each spouse's inability to understand the other's method of grieving.

The poem begins with the wife visibly bothered by something she has just seen. The husband tries to make her share the source of her distress but she refuses: "She, in her place, refused him any help/With the least stiffening of her neck and silence." The husband quickly decodes her silence and realizes that she is bothered by their child's grave outside of the window. The wife's silence shows that she is not willing to face and accept her child's death. The home grave is an everyday reminder of her loss and she has difficulty coping with her grief. Unlike his wife, the husband is willing to face the death of his child. After realizing the source of his wife's silence, he tries to express his feelings about the grave: "The wonder is I didn't see at once./I never noticed it from here before./I must be wonted to it-that's the reason." The husband explains that the sight of his child's grave does not bother him because he is used to seeing it everyday. He has grown so accustomed to seeing the reminder of his son's death that he does not notice it immediately any more. The husband and wife have opposite reactions and feelings towards the grave, which initially introduces the strain in their relationship. The wife does not like to discuss her child's death, but she is constantly reminded by the relic in her yard. The husband is willing to talk about his personal loss, but he does not typically notice the grave outside of his house. Each spouse has difficulty understanding the other's reaction to the grave and their child's death, providing explanation for the strain in their relationship.

Although both parents feel sorrow from their child's death, they do not sympathize with how the other mourns. In the poem, both spouses express their disapproval of the other's method of mourning. When the husband expresses that he is willing to work on their communication issues, he displays his disapproval of his wife's reaction to their child's grave. He says, "I do think, though, you overdo it a little." Although the husband appears to want to fix his strained relationship, he is not willing to sympathize with his wife's coping methods. As a reaction to her husband's comment, the wife expresses her disapproval of her husband's rection to their son's death. She shouts, "You couldn't care!" because her husband does not display outward sorrow over the loss of their child. She cannot understand why he is not as emotional as she, and she is deeply bothered by his acceptance of their son's death. Although the spouses are simply mourning in their own way, each refuses to accept and sympathize with the other's method. Because each is not willing to understand the other, their relationship suffers.

The Stranger Opening Paragraphs Analysis

The opening paragraphs of The Stranger serve as a synecdoche for the text as a whole. The opening sentence of the novel is, "Maman died today" (3), presented casually and without feeling or care. The initial introduction of the protagonist presents Meursault as an insensitive character lacking emotion. As he continues to explain the circumstances of his mother's death, he is unaware of when his mother actually died: "Maman died today. Or yesterday maybe, I don't know" (3). As the son of someone who recently passed, it would be expected that Meursault knows all the facts surrounding his mother's passing. The way in which he delivers the news of his personal tragedy shows that he does not know the simple facts of his mother's death, and he does not appear to care. Throughout the novel Meursault does not care about most things, including the senseless murder he commits. His lack of emotion in reaction to his mother's death introduces the self interested nature of Meursault. He is not bothered by the loss of his mother because it does not affect him in any way. Meursault only cares about himself throughout the novel, which is why he lacks emotion or care for almost everything.

Throughout the novel Meursault is extremely judgmental of other characters. He consistently comments on the appearances and actions of those around him, but he fails to reflect personally. In the opening paragraphs he describes his interaction with his boss when asking for time off to attend his mother's funeral: "I asked my boss for two days off [...] He wasn't too happy about it. I even said, 'It's not my fault.' He didn't say anything. Then I thought I shouldn't have said that. After all, I didn't have anything to apologize for. He's the one who should have offered his condolences" (3). Meursault  notes the fault of his boss for not offering his condolences, but Meursault fails to see his own faults in his inappropriate reaction to his mother's death. Meursault is quick to comment on another character's social misconduct, but he fails to see his own. Throughout the novel Meursault refuses to acknowledge his own social abnormalities, while continuously commenting on the faults of others. 

The Stanger #2

Throughout the second book of The Stranger there are several references to heat and the sun that offer potential explanation for Meursault's senseless murder. When Meursault is being questioned, he is asked why he paused before firing additional shots. Rather than responding, Meursault flashes back to the beach and explains his thoughts: "Once again I could see the red sand and feel the burning of the sun on my forehead" (67). Although he does not provide explanation for his excessive firing, it is clear that heat of the beach contributed to his lack of judgement. The inclusion of "red sand" and the use of "burning" provides a troubled connotation, suggesting that Meursault was greatly bothered by his discomfort cause by the heat. Irritated by the temperature, Meursault is more likely to make rash decisions and to take unjustified actions. Although annoyance with the heat provides little justification for murder, Meursault's reaction to high temperatures can provide some explanation for his murderous actions.

As questioning continues, Meursault expresses his impatience and directly connects his irritation back to the temperature. After being asked a question about his belief in God, Meursault explains, "I had had enough. It was getting hotter and hotter" (69). Similarly to the murder on the beach, Meursault is bothered by his discomfort caused by the temperature. He becomes irritated with the questions he is being asked and he does not want to continue the questioning. Meursault's reaction to the heat displays his lack of patience with the weather. Meursault attempts to speed up his questioning by mindlessly agreeing with his questioner about religion in order to end his discomfort. Meursault strongly disagrees with religion and the belief in God and his affirmation of the questioner's belief displays his desperation to escape his discomfort from the heat. Although he quickly corrects his agreement and expresses his impiousness, he previously agreed to the belief in God out of desperation. Meursault wanted to escape his discomfort, and he did not think about what he was doing before he acted. Meursault's behavior while being questioned parallels his rash behavior on the beach.

The Stranger #3

As The Stranger comes to an end, several themes of existentialism are illustrated through the thoughts of the protagonist. In a meeting with the prosecutor and his lawyer, Meursault is excluded from conversations about his case. Expressing his feelings about his exclusion, Meursault explains, "In a way, they seemed to be arguing the case as if it had nothing to do with me. Everything was happening without my participation. My fate was being decided without anyone so much as asking my opinion" (98). Although existentialism rejects the idea of fate, it focuses on the idea that people are punished for the decisions they make. Meursault made the decision to senselessly kill a man and he has no control over the punishment he will receive. The universe does not care for humanity according to existentialism, and in Meursault's case, the lawyers do not actually care what happens to him. Meursault made a bad decision and according to existentialism, he must be punished for his actions. 

After Meursault loses patience with the priest, he takes time to reflect on life: "I had lived my life one way and I could just as well have lived it another. I had done this and I hadn't done that. I hadn't done this thing but I had done another" (121). Meursault's reflection highlights main ideas of existentialism. Life is full of decisions and people are punished for the decisions they make. Humanity is punished for all the decisions, paving the lives of people. Although people have free will to make their own decisions, they cannot control what punishments they receive. Meursault understands that he had the power to make his own decisions, but all of his decisions wouldn't change anything. He would eventually be punished the same in the end.

The Stranger #1

In the first book of The Stranger, Albert Camus introduces the seemingly unenthusiastic character of Meursault. The Stranger opens with Meursault reflecting on the recent death of his mother. Rather than being openly upset by his mother's death, he is more concerned about the time he had to take off from work to attend the funeral: "I asked my boss for two days off and there was no way he was going to refuse me with an excuse like that" (3). The use of "excuse" rather than "tragedy" (or something similar) makes it seem like Meursault does not care that his mother died. It seems that he views his personal loss simply as an excuse to get out of work. Throughout the first chapter Meursault lacks sensitivity on many occasions. At his mother's vigil, he grows annoyed with his mother's friend: "Soon one of the women started crying. [...] I thought she'd never stop. [...] I wish I didn't have to listen to her anymore. [...] She finally shut up" (11). Meursault is annoyed with the woman because he cannot understand her hysterics. He is not upset himself, so he is not willing to accept someone else's devestation. In his mind, his mother's death did not change anything. Meursault did not go to visit his mother often, and her permanent absence will not affect his life greatly.

Sound & Sense Chapter 7

Lady Luncheon Club
Maya Angelou

How does the speaker use rhetorical devices to express their feelings towards the women in the poem?

Thesis: The speakers uses literary devices such as contradiction, selection of detail, and juxtaposition to display their disapproval of the women in the poem.

Topic Sentence 1: The speaker initially introduces the "Lady Luncheon Club" as women interested in socially diversifying themselves through exploration of the dark reality of the world but immediately contradicts the good-natured introduction to display the falsity of the women's intentions.

Quotation: "Her counsel was accepted: the times are grave. / A man was needed who would make them think, / And pay him from the petty cash account" (1-3).

Analysis: The women in the poem want to make it seem like they care about the current issues in society, but they plan to pay the man "who would make them think" with "petty cash." Typically, "petty cash" has a careless connotation and is used on senseless spending. The speaker immediately contrasts the women's seemingly well intentioned plan with the inclusion of "petty cash" in order to express the women's lack of interest in the grave times of their present. The women will pay the lecturer with "petty cash" because they do not care about the money they are spending, suggesting they do not care about why the lecturer is coming. The speaker's diction and use of contradictions expresses the speaker's disapproval of the women. The women appear to be interested in socially diversifying themselves but are actually interested in keeping up a respectable public image.

Topic Sentence 2: The speaker continues to comment on the women's false representation through selection of detail.

Quotation: "Our women checked her golden watch, / The speaker has a plane to catch. / Desert is served (and just in time)" (4-6).

Analysis: The speaker's inclusion of a golden watch connects back to the petty cash the women plan to pay the lecturer. They clearly have sufficient funding to pay the lecturer, but the referral to petty cash expresses their lack of sincerity in their decision to have him come and speak to the "Lady Luncheon Club." Additionally, the inclusion of a watch suggests that the women are growing impatient with the lecturer, supporting the idea that they do not care about what he is speaking about. The woman's apparent impatience subsides when "dessert is served," which acts as a comment on the woman's materialism. She no longer cares about the length of the lecturer's speech because dessert acts as a distraction from what the lecturer is saying. The speaker believes the women are materialistic because they are more interested in the dessert being served than a socially educated lecturer. Additionally, the women grew impatient with the lecturer, proving that they were not actually interested in having someone come speak to them initially.

Her Extra Credit

Is the film a dystopic vision into the future or a utopic one? Or, is it simply an extrapolation of our present, and therefore, neither dystopic nor utopic?

The film Her is initially introduced as technologically advanced version of today’s society. The population is reliant on cutting-edge operating systems to organize daily life, rather than the smart phones of today. Similarly to today’s society, technology is ever advancing, as shown through the introduction of Samantha. Her is neither a dystopic nor utopic version of the present, but is simply an extrapolation of today’s society. The film cannot be considered a dystopia or a utopia because its reality is too similar to the present. The lives of characters in the film, specifically Theodore, are not better or worse than today’s average person. Theodore is introduced as a depressed, soon to be divorcee. Like over 50% of the married population in America, Theodore is forced to struggle through a divorce, showing that the advancement in technology in the film does not better human-to-human personal relationships. Although human relationships are not shown to improve through the betterment of technology in the film, a whole new type of relationship spawns from the invention of personalized operating systems. Theodore quickly becomes friends with his operating system, Samantha, and the two begin a romantic relationship soon after. The early stages of Theodore’s relationship with Samantha appear flawless, but the joy-filled time period for Theodore and Samantha can be directly compared to the typical “honeymoon phase” of human-to-human relationships. Similarly to the relationships of the present, Theodore and Samantha begin to have problems within their relationship. For example, Theodore struggles with his divorce and shuts Samantha out, avoiding showing her his true feelings. Theodore’s internal refusal to share his emotions with Samantha eventually leads to an outburst, causing tension in the relationship. Like everyday couples, Theodore and Samantha have influential fights that make them question the future of their relationship. After a failed sexual experience with a surrogate, Theodore and Samantha become emotional and lash out towards each other. Samantha is deeply hurt by what Theodore says to her and takes a few days to think about their future as a couple. The human-to-operating system relationship displayed through Theodore and Samantha is no different from typical relationships of present day. Samantha was designed to have feelings and grow emotionally over time, similarly to a typical human. Because the operating systems in the film are meant to be like humans, it is impossible for the society in Her to resemble a utopic (or dystopic) world because the film is set up to be like the present. With no change in emotional structure, in humans or operating systems, there can be no advancement in quality of life to allow for a utopia. Quality of life in today’s society and society in the film are both heavily reliant on personal relationships. With no change in personal relationships, Her is and extrapolation of the present.

Explicate one specific scene from the film.

During the typical “honeymoon phase” of a blooming couple, Theodore takes Samantha to a cabin in the woods for a romantic getaway. Unfortunately for Theodore, Samantha is learning about the extent of her capabilities as an advanced operating system, and she is absorbed in her exploration. When Theodore is trying to enjoy quality alone time with his girlfriend, Samantha introduces him to an operating system she has just met. Theodore is visibly affected by Samantha’s interaction with the other operating system. He is hurt that Samantha is more interested in talking to an operating system than him, and he is disappointed that he is not the only thing* in her life anymore. Theodore and Samantha’s mini vacation marks a change in their relationship, but specifically a change in Samantha. Over time, Samantha’s emotional and personal capacities grow. She is no longer satisfied with just Theodore, and she feels obligated to use her resources to experience new things. Samantha’s explorations do not stop at just speaking to different operating systems. She begins speaking to other humans, and eventually starts relationships with a multitude of people. Samantha’s exploration of her capabilities represents the fundamental difference between advanced operating systems and humans. Operating systems are capable of carrying on hundreds of separate lives. Their technology provides them with opportunity to experience anything with anyone at anytime. Operating systems are given freedom and opportunity that humans could never dream of, which is why Theodore cannot fully understand Samantha by the end of the film. Samantha felt that it was appropriate to carry on several relationships, innocent and romantic, when she was already committed to Theodore because her technological make up allowed her to do so. Theodore feels betrayed by Samantha when she finally tells him about her lifestyle because he cannot comprehend how she relates to so many different things. Although personalized operating systems were meant to mimic human feelings and personal growth, Samantha’s emotional and personal capacities far surpass those of humans. After Samantha begins exploring a life beyond Theodore during their woodland adventure, their relationship is destined to fail.

*I didn’t know what noun would be appropriate as middle ground for human and operating system, so I decided “thing” would be the safest.

 HHH