Lit. Analysis #2

1) Like Water for Choclate by Laura Esquival is about a family made up of three daughters and a widowed mother. The youngest daughter is Tita, the middle child is Gertrudis and the eldest child is Rosaura. Mama Elena has to watch over the home and ranch therefore she assigned Nacha, the cook, to raise Tita. Tita grew up in the kitchen and fell in love with a man named Pedro. Mama Elena said she was not allowed to marry or experience love becasue what she had to do for the rest of her life was take care of her until the day she died. Pedro comes one evenning after dinner to ask Elena for Tita's hand in marriage and Elena says he can't have her but that he can marry her older daughter Rosaura and he does in order to stay as close as possible to his true love, Tita. Tita suffers thtough the whole marriage but can't show it or else her mother will punish her. Rosaura and Pedro have a child named Robert whom Tita feeds. Pedro and Rosaura leave to live in Texas as part of Mama Elena's plan to keep Pedro and Tita seperate from each and the baby, Robert dies because he was no longer getting fed from Tita's breast. Tita rebels on her mother because too much has gone wrong in her life thanks to her. Nacha, Tita's second mother has died as well and now Robert. Mama Elena tells Jophn Brown, the village's doctor to take Tita to a home for the crazies but instead he takes her to his home becasue he has fallen in love with her. Rosaura dies but her and Pedro had a new daughter named Esperanza whom marries Alex, the doctor's son. Pedro and Tita are left to finally fall in deep love and while making love Pedro dies and Tita "kills" herself to follow him into the afterlife and she succeeds. Mama Elena has died as well and now all that are left are Esperanza and Alex, Gertrudis, and John Brown to live their lives. All Tita wanted was to be happy with Pedro and have no one to stop them from being together.
2) The theme of the novel is Love vs. Authority. Tita is not allowed to do what she wants because Mama Elena one way or the other always stops her. Tita fights against her mother's authority several times throughout the novel but doesn't succeed and doesn't get to be with Pedro until her mother dies and her mother's ghost is completeley banished from their home.
3) The author's tone is romantic, sincere and reflective.
Romantic: "Pedro placed Tita on the bed and slowly removed her clothing, piece by piece. After caressing each other, gazing at each other with infinite passion, they released the infinite passion..."
Sincere: " Tita's voive stopped him. That melodious voice had not spoken a word for six months. 'John! Please don't leave!'"
Reflective: "From what he'd said said, Tita realized that the woman she'd sat with so often was John's dead grandmother."
4) Five literary elements/techniques I observed that strengthened my understanding of the theme and my sense of the tone are:
-Imagery: "Tita looked up, her eyes vacant, and stared at Chencha as if she had never seen her before."
"Under her blouse, her breasts moved freely, since she never wore a brassiere. Drops of sweat formed on her neck and ran down into the crease between her firm round breasts."
-Similes: "She heard, as she passed, the whispers in the church, and she felt each comment likr a stab in her back."
“She could pick up the watermelon and give it a single blow against a stone, in a particular stop, and like magic the watermelon rind would open like the petals of a flower leaving the heart intact on the table”
 “It went through the window and shot out onto the patio, like a firecracker out of control”
-Metaphors:  “Seeds didn’t have that kind of problem, they didn’t have a mother to be afraid of or a fear of those who would judge them.”
“It was definitely true, Pedro had turned into a monster of selfishness and suspicion.”
“Tita liked to take a deep breath and let the characteristic smoke and smell transport her through the recesses of her memory”
-Personification: “She felt she had the best chance of “educating the innocent child’s stomach,” even thought she had never married or had children.”
“But once, Tita managed to convince them to join her in watchin the dazzling display mad by dancing water drops dribbled on a red hot griddle”
“Now she admired the way they opened their skin and allowed the water to penetrate them fully, until they were split asunder to make way for new life. She imagined the pride they felt as the tip f the first root emerged from inside of them, the humility with which they accepted the loss of their previous form, and the bravery with which they showed the world their new leaves.”
-Hyperbole:  “Yes, a thousand times. From that night on she would love him forever”
“Her heart burst into a seething passion”
“The house became a battlefield. Slammed doors were the order of the day.”

"Tools That Change The Way We Think"

"Back in 2004, I asked [Google founders] Page and Brin what they saw as the future of Google search. 'It will be included in people's brains,' said Page. 'When you think about something and don't really know much about it, you will automatically get information.'

'That's true,' said Brin. 'Ultimately I view Google as a way to augment your brain with the knowledge of the world. Right now you go into your computer and type a phrase, but you can imagine that it could be easier in the future, that you can have just devices you talk into, or you can have computers that pay attention to what's going on around them and suggest useful information.'

'Somebody introduces themselves to you, and your watch goes to your web page,' said Page. 'Or if you met this person two years ago, this is what they said to you... Eventually you'll have the implant, where if you think about a fact, it will just tell you the answer."

-From In the Plex by Steven Levy (p.67)

My Thoughts:

      Extensive Internet/media/technology use changes the way I think for many reasons. I think that the more technology comes out or is improved the less we all make use our brains. We don't necessarily have to think for ourselves anymore because all around us there are things that do it for us. Technology not only affects the amount of thinking that I do but also the concentration level I have when trying to complete school work or other things of importance. I always get on the computer thinking , "Okay, I'm going to complete my homework within an hour and be able to go to bed." Guess what? Doesn't happen, ever. I always get distracted with Facebook or other interesting websites that have nothing to do with my homework.I think that it's not only the internet but all technology in general that becomes a waste of my time because I don't use the tools to learn and when I do, it's only to get a quick answer on something, never to spend time actually learning something in depth. Older people who did their learning before smart phones and 2.0 existed are full of knowledge that I have at my fingertips and don't bother trying to learn about it. I have talked to elders and even the way they speak sounds smarter than today's generation. They actually had to use their brains to their full capacity to learn things back in time because no computer or phone was there to do the thinking for them. People who don't use the technology there is today and actually care about the amount of knowledge they have and an education read a lot and have their time and priorities set in order and actually follow through because they don't put their focus on technology. I read an article titled, "Leadership by the New Generation" and it was interesting to see what leaders that are going through retirement are worried about. They say that today's generation is basically lazy and always looking for more "me time". "They want flexible hours, more vacation time, continuous training, and telecommuting options. They expect to leverage technology to work efficiently instead of staying late in the office to get it all done.", this is what article says today's generation's mind is on constantly and I completely agree because I've heard people around my age or mid 20's complain about work and hardships in life when in reality what they go through is not much but they are so used to the easy life that when something "hard" comes up in life, they freak out and complain. Ttechnology may be used for good by some but for the majority of today's generation it is used for entertainment and wasting time.

Article URL: http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newLDR_59.htm

"In Search Of"

Experience with video:


a)I learned that we all have filter bubbles and that our searches get tailored making our information be different from someone else doing the exact same search.
b)This inforamtion makes me think differetnly about what I see online becasue it makes me realize that we don't have all the information there is out there at the end of our finger tips, we only have the information search engines want us to see.
c) The questions this raised for me over the Internet in general are:
-Why do search engines tailor individuals' searches?
When will the Internet stop using filter bubbles?
-How are my searches information different from that of someone else doing the exact same search but getting different results? Is it less useful? Or more useful?
d)To improve the effectiveness of my searches I can use different phrases and words to search the same thing as well as use multiple search engines to make my results more accurate and to feel like I collected most of the information there is out there to know.




Summary of research re-done:


     Yesterday, I had researched on who Shakespeare really was and the information that is known about his life. I used Google and typed in "Shakespeare biography timeline" and "Shakespeare biography" and I got results from sites like eNotes and SparkNotes because I go on those sites quite often to help me with other homework. It was intriguing to see how Google knew what sites I use more often and there for made them the top results for my search. Today i went back onto Google and typed in "history on Shakespeare" and "What proof of Shakespeare's work is there?" and the difference in the information I received in today from yesterday was amazing to see. To make my search results as accurate as possible I also used the search engine Yahoo! and when I typed in the exact same phrases as I had on Google my results differed. The video helped me understand why I get the search results I do and a better idea as to why we need to go to different resources when making research.

"Notes on Hamlet"

      My thinking on Hamlet has evolved from the moment we began reading it because of all the class discussions we've had. Before I could understand fragments of what I was reading but now I can full on translate sentence after sentence, word after word with almost no problems. I have evolved from being just any other student reading Shakespeare because it is assigned as homework to a person who reads because it is enjoyable and analyzing Shakespeare's works extend my thinking. I have actually not changed in thought about the plot but I have changed my opinion about characters. For example, Ophelia, she seemed to be a sweet girl who only wanted to be with Hamlet because she loved him but now I see her as a girl who plans on just spying on Hamlet  and playing with his emotions because she agreed with the King to get information. I predict that Hamlet is going to go through with his plan of revenge and kill Claudius. Claudius already is feeling under pressure, thanks to the play-within-a-play that Hamlet put on for him. I also believe that Hamlet will do something to feel like he also got some revenge on his mom because she has hurt him a lot. 

"Who was Shakespeare?"

• Used Google search engine
• Typed in Shakespeare biography and Shakespeare works proof
• Read http://www.shakespeare-literature.com/l_biography.html
• Read http://shakespeareauthorship.com/howdowe.html

     We know that William Shakespeare was born on April, 1564 and was the oldest out of his siblings. Shakespeare married Ann Hathaway on November, 1582. Later on three daughters were included into the family, Susanna, Judith and Hamnet. I also read that good evidence that Shakespeare wrote his poems and plays is that a lot of them are signed by him and contain his name as the author. We are left to wonder why he never wrote his name as the author on all his works and what was Shakespeare's life in depth because all of it was kept a secret. Shakespeare is perceived by students as a man with amazing writing skills. I personally find him to be an author to be looked up to as an inspiring person because his works are well known today all over the English world and genius. My understanding of his works has progressed over the years because the more practice I get interpreting them the easier they are to follow along with. Before I found no meaning in reading them but now I can analyze his works and discover the deep meanings and train of thought they create. What still causes me to struggle is the way the plays are set up because sometimes I lose track of who is n the stage and who is speaking to who. The Old English is still difficult to translate but if I actually focus and try I can understand about 80% of what is being said even though I wish I could understand 100% of what I read. 

"To Facebook or Not to Facebook"

      The initial impressions of Facebook to me was that it was any like any other typical social networking place. It was a lot like myspace when I first started using it but now it is so well developed that it's completely different from all social networking applications I use. The advantages of Facebook are that people from all over the world with a working computer with internet access can communicate with each other. Fo example, I use it to get help on homework or talk to friends when I am "bored". Facebook is "frictionless", meaning it is so easy to use that most people go on because they like not having to put a lot of effort into communicating with friends online, compared to other social networking applications that are impossible to learn how to use. The disadvantages of Facebook are that all the information that is put into one's profile is exposed for millions and millions to see without us even getting notice. Facebook changed the world of social networking but also brought in huge risks with it because as I read in the article I realized that Zuckerberg does not care about peoples' privacy, he cares about the money. Reading the article and the in class discussion informed my thinking by letting me know of all the dangers there are everyday when I log onto Facebook and "like" posts or post pictures from my phone. I helped me become a more alert person and careful about what I do online.

"(Don't) Be Hamlet"

         Hamlet's soliloquy states a dilemma that is important to the whole play and I think that I can help him make a decision based on life experiences and logic.

         In his soliloquy Hamlet is trying to make a choice between committing suicide or staying alive. There are certain factors that come into play when he thinks to himself. He talks out loud to not keep everything inside and mental but also to listen to himself discuss his choices and give him a better picture of his choices. His soliloquy starts off with him saying that in the mind of others as a noble prince he'd be looked up to better if he were to just stay alive and just suffer through the hardships. I think that Hamlet is thinking that suicide is the best choice at the time of his soliloquy but he doesn't think about the fact that "Hey, I am a prince." He completely focuses on his life troubles and not the big picture that later on in life he will be king after the death of Claudius.

         Hamlet continues on with his train of thought and gets into the benefits of death. For example, not having to live among people who only hurt you like his mother who has hurt him with the marriage and uncared for death of his father. His soliloquy reads, "To sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there’s the rub;For in that sleep of death what dreams may come
When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,". This states that if he were to die everything that troubles him would be shoved off, it's as simple as that. Hamlet is understands that death ends life and that there is no going back from death but I believe he has hit that point of madness where he doesn't think straight and that's why he is running to suicide. 

         Hamlet asks a question of interest midway through his soliloquy which is, "For who would bear the whips and scorns of time,the oppressor’s wrong, the proud man’s contumely,the pangs of despised love, the law’s delay,the insolence of office and the spurns that patient merit of the unworthy takes,when he himself might his quietus make with a bare bodkin?" and this question is rhetorical. It states that no one in life would deal with obstacles such as being rejected by the one you love, people who are only useless in one's life, the pains that life brings, unjust authority, overly proud men and being taken advantage of when all you need a blade to make it all be gone. It is logical for someone going through major conflicts in life to feel there is no way out of it all. I have been in his shoes and if i was  a friend of his I'd suggest he thought about the benefits of living and encourage him to get help from someone that he feels has not betrayed him in life. Suicide should never be the answer.

         Hamlet also discusses the fact that once one dies there is nothing of death because no one ever has come back to speak about it. He wonders if life is worse than death or if death can end up being a worse experience full of evils that are worse than the ones he already was facing in life. Death scares me and I'd tell Hamlet that deciding whether or not to continue with life is a tough choice but that death is something unpredictable per say because we don't know what comes after. he himself says that running to death as an exit of life's problems is considered being a coward then why is he bothering even making that a choice?

        In conclusion, Hamlet has a decision to make and I would one-hundred percent tell him to continue with life and stay away from the thought of suicide because  life has good and bad to it but it always goes on and things can always be fixed one way or another.