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19 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
New Criticism
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Analyzes literature only through what is in the text
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Formalism
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Grammar syntax, syllables
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Parasyntactic - simple writing (journalism)
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Hypertactic- use dependent clauses
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Marxism (socioeconomic) / Classism?
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tension between power and economic situations (Charles Darwin)
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Feminist / Gender Theory
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Does the author change the role of power?
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Post-Colonialism
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How does colonialism affect national identity? Who do they feel devotion to?
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New Historicist
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Literature is not in a vacuum. Shaped by cultures and everything. (opposite to New Criticism)
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Psychoanalytic Theory
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Freudian motivation, mental states of the authors, characters, everything, sexual issues
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Gilgamesh = oldest lit. piece
Written in 2000 B.C. |
Epic hero
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Island of Manhattan - Rene Marques, Puerto Rico
Motifs: churches, light, cross, conquerer MP: Give up humanity to assimilate Author Asks – Will Puerto Rico ever be independent from the U.S.? Puerto Rico = light ; wide / frank spaces New York = dark ; closed spaces |
- Gets followed by a man who calls her spik; she calls him “Yankee”; “brute”
- Young man whistles at her - Past: 1 year- Rio Piedras; 2 in San Juan; 4 in NY - 2 boys wrestling over a bag: Puerto Rican v. Yankee o Cheers on the Puerto Rican - Nico knows about her past: Her 1 year @ university ; radio ; New York - Nick = Nico = foreman - Jenny = Juanita = prostitute (met Nico @ school; strike) - Past: Both expelled for protest; Nico NY ; followed him later o Played villainess on radio shows ; went on strike @ radio station too - Waits for Nico @ bar; supposed to get married o Rally for 8 black men condemned to death for trying to rape 1 blonde - Past: Could not find job @ NY b/c of past as striker o Blonde man took her Palisades park o Won caged canary @ wheel of fortune Canary didn’t sing (canary = warning sign) o Drank whiskey; blonde man raped her Paid her o Abortion - Jenny signs petition even though Nico didn’t want her to o Communist flag @ rally o Jenny thought she was doing justice o Nico said he won’t marry her if she signs - Nico’s fear drove him to assimilate into NY - In the end, it is the NY streets that opens up wide and frank - Clock hands forms the arms of a clock |
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The Doll Queen- Carol Fuentes, Mexico
MP- “Nothing gold can stay” ; “art is long, life is short” ; “ars longa, vita brevis” Once her beauty was destroyed, her parents pretend that she’s dead Motifs- gold, youth, gardens, city, flowers, panties, pre-pubescence |
- Card found in a book that MC had forgotten about
o “Amilania wil not forget her good frend- com see me lik I draw it.” o Path drawn from park to girl’s house - MC thought of girl as more grown up than she actually was o He was 14; she was 7 o MC would meet girl when he was cutting class to read books in the park o Remembers girl as running down the hill- looking like in height of orgasm o MC didn’t have relationships with women, only with ones in books o Stopped seeing each other when they fell into each other MC realized that he shouldn’t be feeling that way about a little girl - MC = grown up o Unsatisfied w/ sex life o Kind of hopes that she’s still a little girl o Tries to visit her; no one answers door but he sees her blue checked apron - Goes to the Bureau of Records to find out who lives there o Finds out Valdivia owns / rents the house - Visits again; pretends to eval house for tax purposes o Old woman answers the door, clutching rosary o Sees signs of a child: red scribbling in lipstick / comic book o Fruit bowl buzzing with flies - Second visit o Sees bite mark in a piece of fruit ; bicycle tracks on the floor o Woman’s husband tells MC that Vald. died 4 yrs ago o They ask MC what girl was like o Take her to “royal chamber of death” Room w/ porcelain sepulcher of girl “Don’t come back, senor. If you truly loved her, don’t come back again.” - 9 mos – 1 year passes o MC saves for himself in his head the image of the live Amilania o Returns to give the parents the card - Girl opens the door in wheelchair o “Hump on her chest” = breasts (MC likes ‘em young / undeveloped) o Father races after her as she closes the door, threatening to beat her |
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Paseo - Jose Donoso, Chile
MP = see quote under bullet #2 Motifs = books, Whiteness / lightness = sheets, dogs v. darkness, death / disappearance, chaos v. order, draw of the city, perfection v. imperfection Setting = heavy in the story Family = closed off from the rest of the world Like the spine of the book? Symbiotic relationship Relationship extends beyond fam @ the end of the story Pat McNees: “in everyone exists the possibility of being both beautiful and monstrous” |
- Present: Everyone in the (pureblood) family may as well be dead b/c they are frozen into silence
o Main character is older o Family constructed wall of forgetfulness / indifference to shut out everything “So that they would not have to harass themselves with impotent conjecture.” - Main character lived w/ his father (Pedro), aunt (Mathilda), uncles: Gustav / Armand o Brothers = maritime lawyers Watch from the windows for the white bitch o After Mathilda left: brothers isolate themselves behind the library door o “The streets of the city can swallow up a human being, leaving him without life and without death, suspended as it were, in a dimension more dangerous than any dimension with a name?” - The house was a tall book: “not sad” = emotionless family o Boy’s mom died when he was 4 o Mathilda + uncles live @ boy’s house She focused on uncles instead of boy although she was brought in to care for boy All relatives = No love. Rigid affections. Sense of respect. - Mathilda concentrated on brothers o Born ugly woman; brothers = handsome o Physical wellbeing = paramount o Had a need to remedy problems o Set up beds for brothers , not the boy o Aunt set their lives in order, which was rebellion v. chaos o Billiards; boy blue chalked their sticks Mathilda won every game; kept affection in check - White bitch (mixed blood) got hit by a car followed them home after mass Aunt defies (1st time?) Pedro’s wish to throw dog out Took dog to the vet; boy never saw dog, but saw signs of it - * Mathilda lost billiards for 1st time; forgot to call brothers’ names o * Dog followed her to game 2nd time. Snatched up blue chalk, caused aunt to laugh Dog jumped into lap 1 uncle left, the others ignored the change Aunt petted dog; boy hoped she’d adore him but didn’t o Dog pees on the floor *Mathilda goes outside to walk her Aunt goes outside instead of setting beds up for now on Walks became longer and longer Came back disheveled, covered in mud • Adventure had happened o Aunt never came back after 1 walk Uncles shut themselves inside library Sent PI after her |
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The Proof - Rodrigo Rey Rosa, Guatemala
Motifs: omens, god, devil, bright colors MP: God is everywhere and so is the Devil. They Comedic : “Indians and savages” Passage connects to awakening in the Garden of Eden Rationalization When boy sees that the bird is back, he knows that GOD EXISTS! |
- Miguel (Boy) went to living room, found canary’s cage
o Parents driving back from party o Turned all lights on o “God can see you no matter where you are, Miguel told himself, but there are not many places suitable for invoking Him.” - Killed canary in cellar o Told God to bring bird back to life o Bird died: b/c bird wasn’t brought back to life, boy didn’t have to fear punishment o Wondered if he should ask Satan o Hid bird under brick - Parents come back o Miguel dreams that bird comes back - Maria Luisa (Maid) discovers missing canary o Thought it had escaped since she was careless o Runs to market to try to replace canary before anyone notices - Dad wakes up; thought Maid hadn’t come back yet o Went into cellar to get oranges to make OJ o Discovered bird; put it into his pocket o Felt as his father/son = accomplices - Maid / father pass each other o Father has bird in pocket o Maid puts new canary (has black foot) into cage - Boy wakes up o Before he goes to school, looks for bird under brick o No bird under brick; bird = in cage - Maid / Boy go to bus stop o Boy tells maid of proof of God (bird lives!) o Maid: “If it has a black foot, it was sent by the Devil.” - Boy boards the bus o Calls maid a witch o Boy hears tires / horn; thinks of Dad’s car o Bus picks up fat kid. 2 boys talk abt God. |
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Girls at War - Chinua Achebe, Nigeria
Motifs- air raids, women, starvation MPs- We do what we can to survive, but the powerful get away with more Narrator = full of contradictions / hypocrite Has a lot of regulations for other people, not for himself Makes lots of speeches on everything narrator’s lofty speeches die in that car Says a lot but can’t follow through Nigerian Civil War (Biafran War) |
- Main: Reginald Nwankwo, Ministry of Justice
- Too many people trying to enlist - Narrator / girl meet at war prep; checkpoint at Awka o Approved of searches even though he didn’t think he had to since he had power - Checkpoint- girl inspected all parts of car o Man recognizes girl (Gladys) from before o Girl had left school to join militia o Searches everyone, even man, who gave her ride before o “We are doing the work you asked us to do.” - 18 months later- meet again o Girls were soldiers, now girls again o Man went to WCC depot to get food b/c he didn’t like what he had Food was supposed to go to the starving masses; stealing food from them Tried to make up for it by giving food / money to his driver Help the masses by helping immediate neighbors - Man pulled over to pick Gladys up b/c she was beautiful when others needed help o Gladys has wig, expensive clothes o Man offers place to stay in case Gladys’ friend isn’t there o False alarm for raid; man blows it off as being too early for raid - Invites girl to a party in town, where men live happy bachelor lives o Remembers that he hates the parties, but using it so he can take the girl home, just like the man who finances Gladys o Gladys was apathetic when he came on to her; man claimed he liked that b/c girls = too easy o Her friend is in embezzlement (brings on hypocritical preaching) Man preaches about starving masses while he steals from them himself Man claims he wants the girl before she became escort w/o wigs, claims girls are frivolous Gladys says she looks this way to survive, as he does - Red Cross guy says women smell in Nigeria (b/c they sleep around) o Reginald doesn’t dance w/ Gladys cause she dances w/ someone else, then he lectures her for dancing during wartime o Wasn’t interested in her after he slept w/ her - When they were driving to return Gladys, Reginald stopped to give disabled soldier a ride although he hadn’t given starving masses a ride o Air raid- everyone left car; Gladys went back for disabled soldier o Gladys and soldier didn’t survive; she was a hero at heart |
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Two Sisters - Ama Ata Aidoo, Ghana
MPs- Different modes of survival, just like Girls at War Motifs- shoes, oceans, dreams, romance Switches between POVs - Mercy = materialistic - Connie = teacher; sends Mercy to school to become a typist - Mercy has a need to consume a lot of things - James has commitment and relationship issues Connie highly disapproves of Mercy’s behavior (religion, family, reputation, etc.) |
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- Mercy (23 yrs) dates Joe, taxi driver / the Big Man, Mensar-Arthur (50 yrs), who she must be discrete with - New shoes from Big Man ; he gave her a purse o They sing, “Count, Mercy, count your blessings.” - Takes the bus home b/c she doesn’t want to be embarrassed by Joe, ask her Boss, or be indiscrete w/ the Big Man - Connie = 6 yrs older / a teacher; preg w/ 2nd child o Married to James, who is rumored to be chasing other women - Mercy wants to move out, get married / preg o Connie asks her abt the shoes o Admits to Connie that she’s going to the movies w/ M.A. (Parliament member) - “But Connie knows that running around with an old and depraved public man would have been considered an abomination by the parents.” - Mensar-Arthur picks up Mercy in his luxury car / drives to Seaway (been together 1 month) o “She has often wished she could do what she danced: one thing she fancies. Which is to drive very near to the end of the sands until the tyres of the car touched in the water.” o Tells M.A. that she told Connie; gets Connie electric sewing machine motor to keep her quiet o Bought Mercy a government estate house - The Gulf of Guinea watches them o The ocean is watching Mercy with the old man playing w/ each other’s bodies o (Watching humanity. This is just humanity. Happens so often that the ocean is bored) - James comes home late; Connie is crying o Told her in the past to sleep turned to the wall so he wouldn’t see her belly - James defends Mercy b/c all girls have stuff that Mercy doesn’t have o Encourages Connie to use sis so gov’t won’t move her when she has baby o “ “ get James a new car - Few months before the coup o M.A. bought stuff for Mercy, including the motor & house o After coup- Mercy leaves before she’s evicted. o New baby; James didn’t get a car o Coup came before ppl could find out abt Mercy o M.A. thrown in jail; James says if he were Mercy he wouldn’t move back o Mercy is now w/ Capt. Ashley, who has a wife, kids, grandkids |
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A Meeting in the Dark - Ngugi wa Thiong'o, Kenya
Motifs: irimu story, departure, circumcision, planes MPs: If a woman is uncircumcised, she’ll be promiscuous FGM = gateway to adulthood/citizenship The author believes that FGM is right |
- Boy (John or Njooni) dreams of girl who follows stranger who visits her home.
o Spoke of faraway land; girl realizes stranger is Irimu o Runs back, home is not there. Can’t go to beautiful land b/c Irimu is there - Father (Stanley) = preacher. Mother used to be more tribal, connected to roots. Told him stories. - Father looks @ John like he’s a sinner, interrogates - John = abt to leave village in Kenya to go to school in Uganda o Born before parents = married. Child of sin. o Men left the village to get education OR wife - Goes into his personal hut o Wishes he had rebelled @ early age like other young men - Goes to girl’s (Wahumu’s) hut o Diff between John / Wahumu: her tribe circumcises women; his doesn’t o Girl’s father remembers when everyone was virtuous b/c they were circumcised o After white men: new religion, news ways, men would leave Leave women w/ fatherless children - Wahumu/John walk o Wahumu = John’s fall o Blames Wahumu for her pregnancy (preg for 3 mos) o Had promised he’d marry her - John doesn’t want to fail Calvinism, his father, everyone o Marrying her would cause him to lose scholarship, defy expectations o She wasn’t educated past 6th grade / circumcised o Dreamt of ghosts from homeland/foreign fight over him Dream was about circumcision; sign of death - Next day: shops w/ his dad, who he fears o Dad leads staunch congregation, even though he had fallen to sin o “ ” was product of tribal disintegration - John thinks of rebelling . father but doesn’t - John meets w/ girl; offers to pay her / maybe she can find another husband o Keeps upping the price o Strangles her to death when he thinks he is hugging her / had run after her o Now instead of hiding the preg, the whole village will know anyway |
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The Complete Gentleman - Amos Tutuola, Nigeria
Motifs: cowrie, skull, palm wine MP: And this is how I got a wife |
- Girl saw tall but stout, completely beautiful man at the market
o Asked him where he lived o He didn’t answer; she followed him down a trail o He told her to go back / not to follow him o “Do Not Follow Unknown Man’s Beauty” - Left trail / entered unending forest where demons lived - “Return the Parts of Body to the Owners; or Hired Parts of the Complete Gentleman’s Body to Be Returned” o Man returned his body parts from where he returned them/paid them rentage o Ex.: pulled out each foot / returned to the man he rented them from o Incomplete creature wouldn’t let girl leave now; he had warned her before - “A Full-Bodied Gentleman Reduced to Head” o Returned skin; became nothing but a skull o Told skull that her father wanted her to marry man o Girl tried to run away; skull stopped her by turning into a log of wood - Skull brought her into a hole where other skulls were living o Put cowrie around girl’s neck / made her sit on a frog as a stool o Girl tried to run away, caught by skull family - Cowrie whistles when she tries to leave / makes her silent - “The Father of the Gods Should Find Out Whereabouts the Daughter of the Head of the Town Was” o Palm wine drunkard claimed he was “Father of the Gods who could do anything in the world” o Girl’s dad asked palm wine drunkard to find daughter o Dad would tell him where the palm wine tapster is o Drunkard sacrificed to juju, drank - “The Lady Was Not to Be Blamed for Following the Skull as a Complete Gentleman” o Drunkard found gentleman; followed him - “Investigation to the Skull’s Family’s /house” o Drunkard changed into lizard; followed gentleman same way - “The Investigator’s Wonderful Work in the Skull’s Family’s Home” o Drunkard changed into man to talk to woman o Skulls tried to tie cowrie on him too, but he turned into air to avoid it o Escaped w/ girl; changed her into kitten / himself into sparrow Put her in his pocket o Brought girl home, but she could not talk, eat, or loose away cowrie on her neck Cowrie kept making sounds - “There Remains Greater Tasks Ahead” o Dad asked drunkard to fix the cowrie problem - “Back to the Skull’s Family’s House” o Drunkard changed into lizard, watched gentleman skull o Gentleman did a spell w/ leaves o Brought leaves back, fed them to girl - For rescuing girl, drunkard got 50 kegs of wine, wife, 2 rooms in the house |
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Nomad & Viper - Amos Oz, Israel
Nomads- herding Jews- agricultural Guela – woman: Female finally experiences power over a male The woman was not raped; it was a rape fantasy |
- Nomads settled near kibbutz b/c of the famine
- Blaming nomads for destruction, crime, etc. o Driving dogs mad, foot and mouth disease that infected the kibbutz cattle, crop damage - Darkness was the accomplice of the nomads - Nomad tries to communicate at first in Hebrew o Where the language is in whichever ballpark = power o Etkin, the Kibbutz leader, replied in broken Arabic - Geula (29 yrs) had good qualities, but not a lot of people like her sexually o Makes good coffee - Meets nomad in the orchard o His goat chews on the tree; he throws it to the ground o Comes on to nomad, breathing heavy, etc. - Returns to kibbutz; cleans and changes into new clothes o What happened to Guela was a rape fantasy - The secretariat met, wondered where Guela was o MC acknowledges the damage caused by nomads is not that big a deal o States that there had been no rape or murder o Venomous snake bites Geula; she dies o If she had come to the meeting with the coffee, tempers would have been calmed. |
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Half a Day - Naguib Mahfouz, Egypt
MPs= life cycle of growth Observable v. pnemonic time Gate = can’t go back in time Want to rewind everything Doesn’t like having help crossing the street Msg to youth: things can change if you want them to Motifs = war, bell, gate |
- Boy = going to the first day of school
o New clothes, shoes, etc. o School = not a punishment; “factory that makes useful men out of boys.” o To the boy: school = fortress o “Today you truly begin life. You will find me waiting for you when it’s time to leave.” - Men sorted the kids into ranks o School = new home; fulfills needs in knowledge / religion - Boy fell in love, played games, met new people, sang songs o “Rivalries could bring about pain / hatred or rise to fighting” - When boy left school, could not find father o Found middle aged man who he knew, shook hands - Returned to street, wasn’t what he left o More people, trash, vehicles o Circus, conjurers all over the street - Could not find his home; there were only skyscrapers - Scared of crossing the street; fire truck going at slow rate o “Let the fire take its pleasure in what it consumes” o Young lad from ironing shop said, “Grandpa, let me take you across.” |