Research Paper (The Bell Jar) - CM1135

Writing my final paper for this course was difficult but proved to be interesting at the same time . In my research i discovered a lot about Sylvia Plath and her literary work. I have to say she is my favourite writer. I've now read a variety for works by Plath however, my favourite of Plath's works is The Bell Jar.

I loved this book because in conducting my research I discovered that this novel is based off of Sylvia Plath's life. Esther Greenwood is Sylvia Plath. So in reading the novel without realising it you are basically reading a biography of Sylvia Plath through the fictional character of Esther Greenwood. It is amazing how similar Esther Greenwood and Sylvia Plath are. First of all they were both straight A student in college and both went to college on a scholarship provided by a wealthy older woman.  Both of them had also lost their father, had unsatisfactory relationships with men and spent the summer of 1953 doing an internship for a magazine in New York. After they had finished their internship both had learned that they did not make their summer course that they had been hoping to get into which was one of the factors that lead them into depression. Sylvia and Esther both attempted suicide with pills but were unsuccessful and were hospitalised afterwards where they were treated with EST. Esther was later released into society where her future was uncertain however Plath took her own life about a decade after the release of the novel. In conducting my research this is what I discovered about the similarities between Esther Greenwood and Sylvia Plath.

Doing research for my final paper - CM1135

Research Paper

          Finding useful information for my final paper has been one of the most frustrating experiences of my life. One would think that writing the research paper would be the most difficult part of finishing a research paper I don’t find that to be true. It took me at least two hours to find my three academic journals for my paper. Finding academic journals that you can extract at least a little useful information from is often times a nightmare. Most are extremely complicated and hard to understand. After you’ve read through them then you have to try and figure out what parts will be useful to include in your paper.

          After I had found three academic journals I then had to find three other sources that would provide me with useful information. This took about another hour. After picking through all six of my sources I had to begin writing my paper and this involved jumping back and forth from source to source. One thing I’ve learned is that the one perfect source that you’re hoping to find that will include all the information, or at least most of the information that you need is never there.

          My paper is due today and I’ve finally finished after three long days of writing and editing. Next time I write a paper I will not leave finding my sources to the last minute. It took me a day to write the paper and twice as long just to find my information. I would recommend anyone who writing a research paper to start the research process at least two weeks prior to the due date.

The Bell Jar

The Bell Jar (Sylvia Plath)

            One reason why The Bell Jar is so interesting is because it is based almostentirely off the life of Sylvia Plath. Sylvia was born to Otto and Auriela Plath. Plath was more advanced than most children her age. She learned to speak much Earlier than most children and by the time Plath was five years old she was already writing complete poems. Plath’s father passed away on November 5^th, 1940. After shelearned of her father’s death eight year old Plath said that she would never speak to God again. Sylvia was sad, angry and grieving at the same time. It seemed that Plath never truly got over the death of her father and was angry at him for leaving her. Plath was an amazing writer and wrote many works while she was alive. Two of herworks that I am most familiar with are her poem Daddy and her novel The Bell Jar. Once you are familiar with Sylvia Plath’s biography you can easily link these works to her own life. Sylvia is no longer alive today as she took her own life by sealing herself in the kitchen, turning on the gas in the oven and keeling in front of it where she was later found by a nurse and a construction worker.

The Bell Jar

My favourite novel this semester was The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath. I did enjoy a couple of the others but this one surpassed all of the other novels in the course for a variety of reasons. First of all you can't help but become interested in the character of Esther Greenwood. Whether you love or hate her you will always want to know what is going to happen next. The novel is also extremely easy to read. Unlike Mrs.Dalloway for example, the novel is not hard to understand. Anyone can simply pick up The Bell Jar and understand it as soon as they begin reading. After reading through most of the novel the reader quickly becomes used to Esther's strange behaviour. I find it interesting how Plath was able to write the novel in such a way that Esther's strange behaviour eventually seemed normal to the readers. I loved this novel, it was not only my favourite novel this semester but, the my favourite novel of all time.

Last blog for CM1145

Final Blog

            So this will be my final blog of the semester for CM1145. I can’t believe my second semester here at CNA is coming to a close already it seems like Christmas break was just last week and now it’s nearing the end of march. Next month marks the beginning of our exams. At the beginning of the semester when I was told my writing skills would definitely improve by the end of the semester I honestly didn’t believe it. Mainly because my writing skills have been extremely weak for a long as I can remember. My grammar and punctuation were terrible as well. Even though I am certainly not a top English student I feel like I’ve improved at least a little because of the endless line of writing assignment’s we’ve had to do this semester. I enjoyed doing the blog for this course because there we’re no specific guidelines as to what we had to do our blog entry’s on. We were allowed to write on whatever we chose as long as it pertained to the course. The only issue with this course was coming up with topics for my blog entries. One would think that deciding what to write on for your blog entries would come easily. Trust me it’s not. For this last entry alone I spent fifteen minutes racking my brain trying to think of what else I could write about without sounding repetitive because I’ve written about pretty much everything else in the course. If there was something that we covered that I didn’t write about I certainly don’t remember. I’ve written about so many random things in my blog that I’m sure some outside readers who are not in the course are going to think I’m insane. It doesn’t matter now though. As I write these last few words I finish all of the blog entry’s I had to do this semester. In a way it’s kind of sad this this course/ semester is coming to a close. My year at CAN went by way too fast I know I’ll miss being here next  year.

To Lie or Not to Lie?- CM1145

To Lie or Not To Lie

            Ok so yesterday in English class we were assigned to read two essay’s from out book and do the questions that followed. After skimming over the different essays I finally chose one titles to lie or not to lie. In this essay Bok discussed and argument that many people have stood on opposite sides of for quite some time.  Should doctors be allowed to lie to their patients? Whether it is for health reasons and so on. Some doctors argue that doctors should have the freedom to decide whether or not they should have to be truthful to the patient because it may cause them to lose hope or deteriorate faster. Take for example if a man tested positive for cancer and he only had a limited time to live, but he was due to leave for a family vacation soon . Should the doctor wait until after the vacation or tell the man right away? This was the example presented in the essay. Regardless of the situation the doctor should have to tell the patient the reality of their situation no matter how severe the outcomes. In the essay it is clearly stated that being truthful to patients often helps them recover more quickly and choose the appropriate treatments to better benefit their health. Doctors should have to be truthful to their patients

Put yourself in the position of a terminally ill patient who had just a couple of months to live. The doctor is aware that the patient is going to die but chooses not to tell the patient right away because he thinks that it would benefit the patient to live their last few months without worrying about death. Is this fair to the patient? The answer is no regardless of the situation. Without knowing the reality of their situation the patient is left unable to make decisions about their health, and about ending their life. If they are unaware that they are dying they will not be able to choose who they want to spend the remaining time of their life with, or do things they wanted to do before they die. Doctors must keep in mind that the patients have a right to know about what is going on with their body. If the roles were reversed and the doctor was in the position of the patient one would think that the doctor would like to know any information that the doctor holds concerning their health.

Overall I think it should be illegal for a doctor to hold information from a patient at any cost. If I were terminally ill or I was suffering from a major health condition that could put my life at risk I would want to know immediately so I could choose what to do about it. It frightens me to think that doctors think that withholding information regarding one’s health is appropriate or beneficial to the patient. All doctors should have to provide their patients with any information relevant to their own personal health.

Preparing an Outline -CM1145

Preparing an Outline

          Preparing an outline is an essential part of preparing any piece of writing. If you attempt to write without being prepared the outcome will not be as good as it would have been if you had taken the time to prepare. There are multiple steps that you need to take when getting ready to write an essay, research paper and so on. Many people feel that they can simply write off the top of their heads, but I can assure you that an outline will result in you achieving a better grade in the long run.

Before you prepare your outline you must decide what exactly you will be writing about so you don’t go off topic and lose you train of thought. If you allow yourself to get off topic your outline will become unorganized and you are more likely to waste your time doing extra research that is unnecessary for your paper. Second you must write out your introduction as this will save you time when you are actually in the writing process and allow you to make any changes you wish to your introduction before you begin writing.

Next you should split the body of your outline into three different sections. This will allow for a more detailed body and allow you to decide exactly what you will include in your writing and in what order. Therefore you will produce and more organized paper. In the three sections of the body you can present the information in any order you wish but try to ensure that you will keep you reader interested throughout the body of the paper. Ensure that you include quotes and use valid sources to prove that the information presented in your paper is valid.

Finally you must write your conclusion. Here is the only section of your paper in which you are allowed to include personal pronouns (remember this throughout the course of your paper). Here you should restate your thesis statement and include your personal opinion. Ending with a question might also help to make your paper more interesting to the reader as it will give them something to think about. Hopefully this helps you with preparing an outline

Overal Opinion of the Course- CM1145

Before starting this semester I was faced with a choice. I could take either CM1135 and read four novels and write in class essays much like last semester or i could take CM1145 and improve on my writing skills. Little did i realise at the time that i would be taking both because i needed to make up for a credit that i was short last semester because i had dropped biology. I thought when i finally chose to do two English courses in the same semester it was going to be a living nightmare. However that wasn't entirely true.

Although there is a lot of work and i am struggling to get all three of my research  paper's done for my two English courses and my Sociology course I am happy to say that i think i made the right choice in choosing to take both courses this semester. In the end I've improved at writing demand essay's and I've learned  how to write a variety of papers so that i will be better prepared when I go on to a larger University this September. I feel much more prepared to take on next semester because my writing skills aren't so weak. Therefore my grades won't suffer a major loss next year . However if i had not taken both English courses this semester this might have been the case. I have to say I've learned a lot.

Although it is going to be a major struggle to finish all my assignments on time this semester I do not regret the choice i made because I feel I made the most beneficical choice for myself and that all the hard work and long hours will pay off in the long run. I have to say i really did learn a lot in taking this course which is something i can't say for some of my other courses. I feel much more prepared for writing English paper's and essay's this September when I go on to university.

Final Exam-CM1145

Sitting here in English class panicking about all the assignments that i have due it doesn't help to think that i also have a final exam coming up in this course. Now most people would tell me not to worry because it's only English right? I mean really how hard can an English final be? Well the level of difficulty regarding the exam is not the issue. No it is the long drawn out process of the writing and trying to have time to re-read what you've written and edit it. Seriously who has the time or patience to do that after having spent at least and hour and a half writing till you feel like you're finger are going to suddenly fall off because you can't bare to write anymore. Not to mention that on top of the pain physical pain caused from non stop writing you also develop a massive stress headache because you are under so much pressure to finish your exam and to do it well. I can't stand it.

I don't even understand why we have to have final exams. Honestly we spend enough time coming to classes, doing the requires work, assignments and tests as is. Is that not enough torture for us students? If you are capable of achieving high grades all throughout the semester, you've attended most of your classes and you have a good overall average I don't think you should have to do the exam? All it does is stress the students out and put far too much weight on one exam? Honestly is that fair? What if you haven't slept the night before the exam or something traumatic had occurred the morning of you writing the exam? Now because of a series of events that was out of the student's control they are going to loose everything they're worked for that semester just because they had a bad day? The overall result will be a grade that does not reflect the student's academic ability but will cause them an extreme amount of grief as it may close off some opportunities that may have been available to them if they had received a better grade on their exam.

I feel that final exam's shouldn't exist. I don't feel that one exam respects a student's academic ability and i think final exams just cause far too much unnecessary stress on the students who have to write them. I feel the workload without final exams is enough and if final exams were no longer a part of the requirements to graduate students would excel at school because there would be a huge amount of stress taken off their shoulders. I think there should be no such thing as final exams.

Learning how write a comparative essay- CM1145

This is something that has been drilled into our heads is since the beginning of time. Seriously teachers have been preaching this to us since junior high. You can only imagine my delight when we had to spend a class this semester hearing the same things that our teachers have forced us to learn over and over , time and time again.

I still fail to see why this was basically the only thing that was made to seem of any importance by our teachers in high school. In university there is nowhere near as much emphasis put on comparative essays. There are a variety of different kinds of essays that you learn to write in university which you are unprepared for. You are unprepared because you are not taught in high school. I really hate comparative essay's.

The Einstein Of Happiness- CM1145

You will often hear people ask you "are you happy?". When asked if you are truly happy how would you respond? Perhaps this was a question Patricia Freeman herself was curious about . I imagine that she had done some previous research on Parducci prior to the interview .

Parducci is known as the "professor of happiness". Allen Parducci is a professor of psychology at an American University who had spent much time studying happiness it's self . In the interview Parducci ha recalled one woman who was dying of cancer but was completely happy. She said "every day was like a party". Words one would not expect from one who is terminally Ill. However this really makes readers think about what it means to be truly happy . If I woman who is dying can continue to be happy even though she knows that she will soon die then why do we allow the smallest things to render us unhappy?

After reading The Einstein of Happiness I had to question myself . Was I truly happy ? Despite all the things in my life that I let get me down I came to realize something . You can't sweat the small stuff. I'm sure I'm not alone when I say that I over stress far too much over small things like projects and tests. There is really so much more to worry about in life . You truly only live once. Are you truly happy?

Book Review- CM1145

Book Review

          Writing this book review was probably one of my favorite assignments to do this semester. I loved taking the time to review one of my favorite books. Getting the chance to review One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest was actually a great experience. This was by far the best book I’ve ever had to read for school. Throughout the novel you follow the protagonist, Randle Patrick Mcmurphy through the Chief Brombden’s eyes. Randle comes into the asylum as the picture perfect definition of masculinity. However the relentless Nurse Ratched soon tares Randle down just like she does with all of the other men in the asylum. The men are figuratively castrated. This novel is believed to support the author’s views on the women’s movement of his time.

Editing a pre-written essay- CM1145

Editing a Pew Written Essay

        This semester has flown by so much faster than I had expected. Looking back I think I’ve made quite a bit of progress in my writing. Although it may not seem like a big change to others this course has made all the difference in the world to me. I’ve learned to become a better writer which will help me in the September when I go on to a larger University.

I really had no idea how poor my writing and punctuation was until I received my grade for my first assignment. For this assignment we were given a pre-written essay which contained absolutely no punctuation and we were expected to add in punctuation wherever we felt it was necessary. I have to say it was nerve wrecking for me. Mainly because I’ve never been good at Grammar and Punctuation.

After writing the essay I had thought that perhaps I’d at least passed. Sadly I was wrong. I was so upset when I received a failing grade. I had convinced myself that I would not pass English this semester. Much to my surprise I was completely wrong. After receiving a failing grade on my first assignment my grades went up. I eventually came to realise that I was not a failure just because I had received one failing grade. Instead I realised that this was the wakeup call that I needed, and it was better I come to realize that I need to work on my Grammar and Punctuation now rather then find out later in my university career.

Since having done this in class assignment I’ve learned to be more cautious and take my time when writing an essay or a paper for class. You will pick up on a lot of mistakes when you take your time and re-read your work. Many mistakes that you might have missed while in the writing process. I may have received a poor grade on my first assignment but because of that I’ve made major improvements.

Writing a Casual Arguments-CM1145

Writing a Casual Argument

         

The workload this semester seems to be endless. After just having turn in my Rhetorical Analysis here I am again with another assignment. At first I started to panic because everything seems to be piling up. However after thinking about it I can have some fun with this assignment .With this particular essay we have a little more creative freedom them with some of the others. After thinking about what I would write about for the entire English class I finally came up with a topic.

This is something we as women all wonder about, you have to admit it. If you live with any teenage boys in your house hold, you have friends, kids of family friends, or you know teenage boys in general you’ll notice that for many of them of their great loves are video games. Now I’m not saying this is the case for all teenage boys but most people would admit there are a lot of teenage boys who spend endless hours at things like Xbox. Playing games like call of duty ,or grand theft auto. I’ve seen some of the teenage boys that I know (yes I realize girls do this too) spend up to five hours nonstop playing games like call of duty, and I have to say . I just don’t get it. Maybe it’s me, maybe it’s just not my thing so I don’t understand why it’s so fascinating to play a soldier and run around a battle field in an online game shooting other online players and getting aggravated to the point that you start screaming profanities and throwing things at the wall because “you were trying to prestige and some *unmentionable profanity* just killed you”. Am I the only one that see’s something wrong with that? (Yes I’ve seen this happen)

I am not a professional I cannot confirm that these video games make an individual violent; however there is research out there to suggest that this may be the case. I’ve also seen many instances in which I’ve seen boys my age throw a conniption because of a video game (this not just teenage boys). Think about it though if a video game can make a teenager act like this what kind of message does it send to young children who are playing video games such as these? I am not saying that these games should not be available. It is completely the choice of the individual, or in the case of a young child it is the choice of the parents whether or not they wish to purchase such games for their children. I am simply throwing a thought out there for people to form their own opinions on. I think this will make for an interesting casual argument

Blogging assignment - 1145

Being in two English courses this semester I've had a lot of reading and writing to do. Although I do like English many of the assignments have been time consuming and have required a lot of research. However this blogging assignment is an exception. At first I couldn't understand why we were required to do this . Simply because it is outside of what you would normally expect to have in a university English course . However then I thought about it in a different manner.

This assignment allows student to exercise their creativity . Something we generally are not allowed when we are given a traditional essay or research paper to complete .

For this class we have been assigned fourteen blogs . I like the fact that we are able to write on anything we want as long as it pertains to the course . In my opinion the blog assignment is a great way to get students excited about English because not only can the express their creativity , but everyone can view their work whenever they please . Students are also able to customize and their blogs in any fashion that they wish.

I think it was an excellent idea to have students do this as an assignment because students are able to learn and enjoy English.

Writing a Retorical Analysis- CM1145

Writing a Rhetorical Analysis

        Today in English we had to turn in our rhetorical analysis that we had to work on over the break. When I was first assigned the paper I was frustrated because I wasn’t sure how I was going to go about writing. However now that it is finished I can say that it was actually a great learning experience.

        We are exposed to magazines, book, and more from a very young age. We are exposed to so many things in the media that sometimes it’s hard to process all the information that is thrown at us. As we grow up it’s important to be able to think for ourselves and not allow what we see to corrupt how we think as individuals. That is why coming to university is so beneficial because through assignments such as these we learn to think critically and form our own opinion by questioning the information that we are presented with.

        For my analysis I wrote about the new found dangers of second hand smoke according to an article published online on Time.com. The article is slightly dated being written in 2007. However the information presented in the article still supports what health officials’ argue about the dangers of second hand smoke today. If it were not for scientists such as those at the Oregon Department of Health smokers would still be free to smoke in many public places today. Through their research they proved that second hand smoke truly is just as dangerous as smoking itself (you can read more about this in the link provided below).

        Through writing this article I learned a lot on the dangers of second hand smoke. I had always known it was dangerous and I’ve read many different things regarding the dangers of smoke. However I hadn’t read all that much about the dangers of second hand smoke. If you are interested in learning more about the dangers of second hand smoke please take the time to read this article.

http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1638535,00.html

Mrs.Dalloway

Yesterday I wrote my in class essay on Mrs.Dalloway. I have to say it was one of the most frustrating experiences of my entire life. Allow me to explain why. First off this book is my least favourite of the three i have read this semester. I understand that the point of the novel is to pay attention to the major themes in the novel, however a book about a superficial woman who lives for planning and throwing parties, care far to much for social status, and degrades those who are of lower status is not my ideal novel. When her cousin wished to be invited to her party she was unhappy because she did not want to invite "all the dull women in London" to her party. That is just plain rude. There was also another instance when septimus said he was going to kill himself and the only thing that concerned Clarissa was whether or not people had heard him, and not the fact that septimus was so distraught that he was considering suicide. In my opinion Clarissa Dalloway is just plain selfish and superficial. She seems to be concerned for nobody other then herself. I think that because of her luxurious life style Clarissa is ignorant of the pain and suffering of others who are less fortunate for her, maybe that is why Clarissa is so self-centred. I do not feel bad for Clarissa, or the fact that she had a mental breakdown at her party because she was coming to terms with the regrets she had for the way she had lived her life. Perhaps if she hadn't lived so superficially she would be more content now as she had gotten older. Although I did not like her , Clarissa does make us think about ourselves and question ourselves as individuals. She makes us question whether we are superficial or whether we regret certain things we have done throughout our lives. Think about it. Does Clarissa Dalloway remind you of yourself?

Emotional Appeal -Child Abuse(cm 1145)

Child Abuse
How a parent can bring themselves to harm their own child, I will never understand. Most parents would describe the day their child came into the world as the best day of their lives. So why is it that some parents choose to neglect, beat , and starve their children? How much of a sick, twisted individual does it take to be capable of this? All my life I’ve grown up hearing stories of child abuse, children dying from abuse, or neglect , and parents who should not be aloud to have children in their care. However I have to say , of all the child abuse cases I have come to learn about none have proven to be more barbaric then "Debra Luptak case".
Debra’s story is bone chilling, and barbaric. Her story shows us all what an individual is capable of. For Debra her life that would prove to become a nightmare began the day she was born. Debra’s mother was paranoid , and schizophrenic. Her mother was desperate to secure a family which only possessed male children. Debra’s mother had also been sexually abused as a child herself , and as soon as her daughter was born began to abuse her as well. One of the earliest instances of child abuse of her mother’s part was immediately after birth. Debra was placed in a crib by her mother and placed in a confining closet at the back of their home. Her mother was convinced that her infant daughter was trying to destroy her marriage and that she would one day have sex with her husband.
At only three weeks old mosquito from a swamp nearby her home had gotten into the closet where she was kept. After being bitten by the mosquito this caused encephalitis combined with a high fever and convulsions. Debra eventually went into a coma because of this. Debra had to spend three weeks recovering in the hospital and had to have her spine drained. During the entirety of her stay Debra’s mother insisted that her daughter was "born crazy". Shortly after at only six weeks old Debra had stopped breathing and soon turned black and blue due to the lack of oxygen. Her mother insited that her daughter had tried to commit suicide by stuffing a blanket down her throat. Her mother did not admit to the police that she herself had tried to suffocate her daughter until she had almost died.
Debra was the oldest of the children to be born in her family therefore she was subjected to the majority of the abuse by her mother. However her younger sister Danielle was also abused . The two were both constantly subjected to abuse by her mother however Debra remained her mother’s main target. Debra also had two brothers however they were subjected to no violence. The two girls were confined to small separate closets daily. After moving into their new home the circumstances did not improve by mush. They were kept in a dark unfurnished basement with just a mattress for the two. The were given small amounts of food which their mother left on the stairs and neither were potty trained
Debra’s mother was evil and relentless. Every day seemed to just be another thing she had to endure. Her mother showed no mercy for Debra and the abuse is sickening to read. Take for instance the time that Debra’s mother forced her to sit with her arms and legs strapped to a potty chair and tried to make her urinate by inserting a syringe into her vagina. Debra withheld urine and bowel movements for as long as possible however this lead her to make a mess in her underwear . Her mother then smeared Debra’s face with it and dried it with an electric fan. The stories of abuse at the hands of her mother go on and never cease to disgust any normal human being .
Despite her terrifying child hood Debra is now a successful woman and has raised four young boys of her own. She is happily married and receives endless support from her husband. Debra tries to reach out with her story to anyone who will listen. Debra’s disrobing childhood is an extreme case that reminds us all of the sick, twisted things children can suffer at the hands of their abusers.

Mrs.Dalloway(biography on virginia wolf)

British writer Virginia Woolf was born in 1882 and lived until 1941. She had become one of the most prominent literary figured of her time. Virgina had written a few novels during her life which include , Mrs.Dalloway, Jacob's Room, To The Lighthouse, and The Waves. She had learned at a young age that she was to be "the daughter of an educated man". After her fathers death in 1904 she wrote in one of her journal entry's " His life would have ended mine..No writing, no books". However Virginia overcame her conviction due to her drive to write.

Virginia was born as "Adeline Virginia Stephen" on January 25th, 1882 in London. Growing up Virginia was educated by her father while she stayed at home. Her faher Sir Leslie Stephen who was the author of the Dictionary of English Biography. Virginia's mother Julia Duckworh Stephen had been a nurse , and had published her own book on nursing. Her mother's death in 1885 was the leading factor for Virgina's first mental breakdown. Her sister passed away soon after in 1897 to be followed shortly after by the death of her father in 1904. Virgina was constantly faced with peroids of grief and extreme depression becuause of the tradgic losses of her loved ones. In such a short time span it is no wonder Virginia had gone mad.

One good thing that remained a part of Virgina's life was her husband Leonard Wolf. Leonard had been a journalist. Together her and her husband aciheved great sucess. In 1917 the two fonded Hogarth Press which became a sucessful publishing house. There they printed the early works of many authors'. Some of which included T. S Eliot and Katherine Mansfield. They had also introduced the early works of Sigmund Freud. Their publishing house cotinued to publish a variety of other works including all of virgina's novels with the exception of her first novel which was The Voyage Out.

Despite her sucessful career as a writer Virgina often found herself overcome by grief and not knowing what to do about it. On March 28, 1941 near Sussex , England Virginias life had become too much for her to hanlde, and she did not want to become a burden on her loved ones. After leaving a suicide note for her husband, and her sister Vanessa , Virginia walked down to the river ouse and placed a large stone in her pocket then drowned herself. Her body was discoverd by children about 18 days later.

One Flew Over The Cukoo's #1

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
My favorite character is Randle Patrick McMurphy .Randle is an attention seeker. He won’t settle for simply playing monopoly and reading magazines every day in the asylum. Instead he convinces the men to make bets , gamble, and challenge the authority of the Nurse. From the very beginning Randle does not like the Nurse. At every opportunity that presents it’s self Randle is rebelling against her and trying to get under her skin. The conflict in the novel revolves around himself and Nurse Ratched. Randle is a lover of women , a gambler and despite his flaws he is a loveable character and becomes very much a father figure to the other men. One of the men that look up to Randle and view him as a father figure is the Chief.
The Chief Bromden often says that Randle in many ways reminds him of his father. Randle is the first person that Chief breaks his vow of silence too. Chief was considered to be deaf and dumb by all of the staff and other patients. Little did they know that Chief was neither of the two. Chief was very observant and watched, and listened to everything that went on around him in the asylum. Chief also suffered from frequent hallucinations in which he was trapped in a dense fog that was triggered by the combine. It was from Randle that Chief regained his identity.
One of the other characters in the novel, one that runs the asylum with an iron first and causes much grief for Randle Is the Nurse Ratched. The Nurse is a symbol of power that is similar to the power that stripped the Chief’s father of his home. According to the Chief the Nurse keeps the machine going. The Nurse has a rather steel- like but also calm and somewhat tense appearance. The Nurse’s facial expression rarely changes and if it does it just changes enough for the Chief to notice. The Nurse losing her composure is very rare. It is the Nurse that shames poor Billy Bibbit into committing suicide by cutting his own throat and them puts the blame on Randle. In his rage over Billy’s suicide Randle tries to kill the Nurse by strangling her. This lead to the Nurse having Raddle lobotomized which lead to his death.
Each of these characters are vital in the novel. It is the conflict between Raddle and Nurse Ratched that creates the story , and the narration of the Chief which allow’s us to see the transformation of the protagonist.

Perhaps one of the most important elements of a novel is the characters. In the case of One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest there characters were my favorite part. The characters were what made the n novel so interesting . Each of them with their individual personalities and reason’s for being in the asylum. Or the reason’s they believe they are in the asylum because as we all know Nurse Ratched manipulates and shames the men into believing that they need to be in the institution.

Logical appeal( cm1145)

The Dangers of Smoking Cigarettes

     If somebody offered to pay you about three hundred dollars per month, or almost four thousand dollars per year to slowly poison you would you accept? Most people would say no. Who would be okay with that? For those who pay about ten dollars a day to smoke a pack of cigarettes you are basically paying for the same thing. The harsh reality is that cigarettes kill; most people who smoke don’t want to think about ending up in a hospital bed dying with lung cancer. However that could very well be the fate that you’ve literally paid for.

        The fact of the matter is that on average smoking kills about four hundred and fifty thousand people per year in the United States and about forty thousand Canadians over the age of 35. Smoking also comes bearing the risk of many other health risks. Some of which include: cardiovascular disease, gastrointestinal problems, tooth/ gum disease, and cancers.

        Take into consideration this fact. Tobacco related deaths in the province of Ontario account for about thirteen thousand deaths. Which accounts for about one fifth of all deaths’ in the province? As opposed to three thousand annual death which include: AIDS, traffic accidents, homicides, and suicide combined.  Paying inhale tobacco into your lungs puts you at a greater risk of dying then any of the causes of death listed above. Smoking is both physically, and mentally addictive.

        Anyone who smokes must keep in mind that cigarettes do not only affect you. Cigarettes affect the smoker and those around them. Second hand smoke contains about four thousand chemical compounds forty of them are known to cause cancer. Second hand smoke also accounts for about one thousand to about eight thousand deaths’ per year. Parents who smoke in the presence of their children also put their children at risk of lung infections and breathing problems.

                In conclusion if you choose to smoke while ignoring the facts, you put yourself and those around you in danger of smoking related health risks. Lung cancer, breathing problems, cardio vascular disease, and more. This is what you are increasing your chances of with every cigarette you smoke. In the end smoking can result it you paying the ultimate price, your life. Is smoking really worth it?

One Flew Over the Cukoo's nest #2 (cm1135)

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s nest

       When you’re told the next assigned novel you’re going to read for class is about an insane asylum your reaction might be the same as mine. I thought that this novel was going to be yet another book I didn’t enjoy reading, but I am happy to say I was wrong. This is certainly one of the better books I have read in my educational career.

       The novel is told through the Chief’s eyes which gives it an interesting take. One thing you’ll notice about the Chief is that he is very observant, he notices everything. He has been there the longest of the patients. The only one who has been there longer than him is Nurse Ratched. She is not a likeable character. She is a rather cold mother like figure. She seems to be somewhat afraid of men; she strips the men in the asylum of their dignity, freedom and manhood. In other words she is a female “castrator”. Which goes along with the point the author was trying to make about how he felt regarding the feminist movement of his time going too far?

       Chief is one of my favorite characters. You just can’t help but like him. He is so large and strong, but so gentle and quiet. It’s sad to see in the beginning of the novel that the Chief is so emotionally, and mentally beat down by the Nurse, and the asylum that he has taken a vow of silence. Everyone thinks he is stupid and can’t understand anything, but he has them all fooled. We see a major change in the Chief from the beginning of the novel to the end. He gains strength as RPM loses strength. He views RPM as a father figure.

       This brings me to my second favorite character in the book. Rendell Patrick McMurphy. As soon as he enters the asylum he is laughing, and talking with the other patients. Rendell tries at every opportunity to overpower the Nurse which eventually leads to him trying to kill her. I personally like Rendell because he constantly tries to pull all of the patients out of the “fog”.

       Rendell ultimately sacrifices his life for the Chief’s. The Chief slowly regains his identity through Rendell, and eventually escapes the “combine”. It’s sad however to see the demise of such a lively, outgoing character like RPM

              Overall I loved this book, and would recommend it to anyone. Ken Kesey makes his point while allowing readers to enjoy the novel and explore the asylum, and the others character through the chief’s eyes.

The wars 2(Cm 1135)

The Wars

      One of the main questions that I had in regards to Timothy Findley’s work with this novel was “why did he include the rape scene?” I know that is an important scene in the novel, but I decided to research the question further on my own.

I found out that the reason that he included the rape scene in the book was because it was a metaphor for how world war one had “raped” a generation in different ways. When you think about it this is very true. A generation that at the time was my age lost so many young men in world war one. They wanted to be brave and fight for your country. To go to war and to fight for your country was considered to be a real man. These young men lost their innocence, sanity; friends, family, and worst of all many lost their lives. That is the price their generation had to pay for war.

Timothy Findley does a marvellous job in proving his point, and regardless of any speculation of how the rape scene would affect the success of his novel he proceeded. Although very graphic I think the rape scene was one of the most important scenes’ in the novel. It was this scene that allows the readers to understand the effects of the First World War on the young generation of men that had to endure the battle.

          When reading this novel I began to think about what it would have been like if I had lived during that time period. What it would have been like to be a woman at home who lost her son or husband, or a man in the war who was staring death in the face. What could these men have become if their lives had been spared, and how would it affect my life today if the same thing we’re to happen?

The Wars

 

The Wars

When I was told that I had to read the wars by: Timothy Findley for my CM1135 English class I had no idea what to expect. I was about a week and a half late staring this course so I fell a little behind. By that time most students had almost finished the novel. I remember sitting there in my first class listening to the discussion on the novel. My teacher discussed important characters, the importance of the symbolic value of animals, and important scenes in the novel. I have to saw that my initial reaction was shock. I had never read a novel before that gave the readers such an explicit insight into the horrors of war. I found it hard to understand how a man like Robert Ross could go from someone so innocent to someone, well someone so cold.

       Robert started out as an innocent young man who really never even had much experience with girls. When Robert was pressured into going to the whore house he really didn’t know what to do, nor did he appear comfortable.

One of the major factors that influenced Robert’s decision to go to war was the death of his sister. Rowena was Robert’s dearly beloved sister. He spent much of his time with her, and knew how much she loved her rabbits. After she died Robert chose to go to war. I noticed that throughout the novel at the hardest times during Robert’s life he would see an image of the rabbits.

I also found it fascinating that Robert ran with a coyote one day in military training. He followed the coyote for over a half an hour till the coyote rested for ten minutes and crossed the valley to the other side , and barked at Robert to let him know that the valley was safe. I admire his strong connection with animals.

One thing I did not enjoy about this novel was reading about the rape scene. This scene was very detailed and explicit. I really did not enjoy visualizing the rape. I can’t imagine what Robert must have been feeling as he was being raped, and on top of that the shock of finding out that it was not patients from the mental hospital that he had thought had raped him but instead it was his fellow soldiers. How would you ever be able to trust anyone again after that? I think after that experience Robert’s mental state began to rapidly go downhill.

In conclusion I did enjoy reading this novel however I can’t help but wonder why Timothy Findley chose to include the rape scene in the novel. I would recommend this book to anyone who has in interest in world war one.