After reading "The Hull Case", I found this story to be really interesting. Bessie claims that she spotted a UFO in the sky and then her and her husband were abducted by aliens. Do we know if she is telling the truth? Do aliens really even exist? Was this all a dream she had? We will never know as readers, but will have to continue to speculate and wonder as we read the story. Another thing that is interesting about this story is that many motifs arise as the story is read. One big motif throughout the whole story is the motif of colors. The story begins with Bessie telling the colonel that whatever she saw in the sky had blue lights. She then goes further than that and adds that the lights she saw were not only blue but baby blue. However, Bessie claims that she could swear the lights were that of a UFO while Bernie claims the lights were of a cop car. Bernie keeps repeating the phrase, "He thought the lights were a cop at first" which indicates that he was scared and uncomfortable with the situation. However, we do not know for certain what the blue light could have been, although it could have been any of these things. To me, this situation is really ironic because when we think of the color blue, we usually think of peace, tranquility, being calm, harmony, unity and so much more, but in Bernie's situation, the color blue was associated with fear and anxiety.
Another two colors that arise throughout the story, are the colors black and white. On the drive back from Niagara Falls, Bessie and Bernie had already been stopped once and encountered a cop. The cop came to the car and shone the flashlight in both Bernie's and Bessie's face to make sure everything was okay. When the light was shone on each of their faces, Bernie's face revealed black, and Bessie's face revealed white. The officer asked if there was any trouble and Bessie answered back "not at all officer." During the time when Bessie was talking to the officer, Bernie was gripping the steering wheel as hard as he could. This indicates that he was very scared and very afraid. When we usually think of the word black, we think of dark, fear, evil, etc. Bernie's emotions, and the color black, definitely go together 100 percent in this situation. Bernie was not only feeling like the color black, but it was the color his skin represented. On the other hand, Bessie was feeling no fear at all. She was feeling like the color of her skin: white. The color white is usually associated with: purity, simplicity, innocence, etc. Bessie was not scared or worried about the situation at all with the cop. She was staying calm, and knew she was innocent. She knew she did not do anything wrong, and that there was nothing to be worried about. Her and Bernie in this scene were feeling totally opposite with the colors. You could almost compare the colors of who they are and how they felt to night and day. Bessie would represent day with feeling calm, while Bernie would represent night with feeling uptight.
Another thing that caught my eye was the time period this was written in. Peter Ho Davies wrote "The Hull Case" in the early 1960s. What I find interesting about this, is that in his story he picks two characters who are racially different. One is black and one is white. I did not think back then interracial marriage was very common or popular. I thought people would often look down upon you and in fact make fun and discriminate against you. I just found that really shocking because of the time period it was written in.
Friday
Tuesday
Interpreting Two Titles Both Literally and Figuratively: "The Use of Force" and "The Gift of Sweat"
second draft so far
No matter what kind of work someone looks at, whether it is a book, short story, or even a poem, most every work has a title. Now how you interpret that title might be a different story, but often titles tell us a great deal of information. “They tell us not just what we’re reading, but what we’re writing- about its thematic, metaphoric, or symbolic content” (A Meditation on Titles). From the titles of the two short stories we read, “The Use of Force” and “The Gift of Sweat,” the reader is able to get a feel about what the story is going to be about, and possibly the tone of voice used throughout. When looking more deeply into the titles of these two short stories, we begin to notice something; they look very similar. Both titles have four words, each consisting of a transition and two nouns. However, these two short stories are very different. Therefore, the author’s preference of titles in both short stories, “The Use of Force” and “The Gift of Sweat” set aside readings intended for two extremely different stories: one to be taken literally and one to be taken figuratively.
“The Use of Force,” by William Carlos Williams is about two characters in confrontation. The story describes the fight a little girl puts up against a doctor who thinks she has diphtheria. Diphtheria is an upper respiratory tract illness that is characterized by a sore throat, low fever, and an adherent membrane on the tonsils. In order for the doctor to diagnose her, he must first get a throat culture. However, this task is not easy for the doctor as force must be used on the little girl to facilitate the throat culture.
As one can see, the title of this short story, “The Use of Force” should be taken literally. It is evident that force is a motif throughout the story as the doctor uses the force of himself and his instruments on the little girl. The force of the little girl’s parents and of her resisting is also very obvious in the story. In the last paragraph on page 93 we read:
Then I grasped the child’s head with my hand and tried to get the wooden tongue depressor between her teeth. She fought, with clenched teeth, desperately! When finally I got the wooden spatula behind the last teeth and just the point of it into the mouth cavity, she opened up for an instant but before I could see anything she came down again and gripped the wooden blade between her molars.
From looking at this quote, the reader can definitely relate the literal meaning of the title to what is happening here. It is extremely clear that the doctor is using force to get the wooden spatula down the little girl’s throat. He uses force not only with the wooden spatula but with his hands as well. The doctor states that the diagnosis needs to be done in order for the girl to be cured and possibly get rid of diphtheria.
However, due to the fact the little girl does not like what the doctor is doing, she too puts up a fight and uses force. She does not want that man anywhere near her and will do anything to keep him as far away as possible. In the last paragraph on page 92 we read, “As I moved my chair a little nearer suddenly with one catlike movement both her hands clawed instinctively for my eyes and she almost reached them too. In fact, she knocked my glasses flying and they fell, though unbroken, several feet away from me on the kitchen floor” (pg. 92). This is a great example of how the title is to be taken literally. In this situation the little girl’s force is so strong that she knocks off the doctor’s glasses. The girl not only uses her force to keep the doctor away, but she uses it to try and hurt the man.
As a result, it was now the parent’s time to step in and take their roles. They too must now use force against the girl in order for the doctor to take the throat culture. After the daughter had already put up enough of a fight, the doctor ordered the father to hold his daughter down. The doctor stated her father should, “Put her in front of you on your lap, and hold both her wrists” (pg. 93). If this was the only way the throat culture was going to get done, then that’s the way it had to be. From this quote, the reader can clearly see that the parents had to use physical force on their daughter. Even if she screamed and carried on, her father was not going to let go. She was not going to have her way and hide her sore throat any longer. If force was the only answer to this problem then it was the method the parents were going to use. Once again, the literal meaning of the title “The Use of Force” is predominantly noticeable throughout the story.
Although some titles may be taken literally, they may also be taken figuratively. “The Gift of Sweat” is an example of this kind of title. “The Gift of Sweat” by Rebecca Brown, is about two male gay lovers, Rick and Barry. Rick has lost his gay lover to AIDS and now has to cope with living alone. This loss of Barry not only affects Rick, but also causes him to greatly suffer throughout the story. He eventually becomes very sick one day to the point where he can't even open the door to let his "lady friend" in. By the end of the story, Rick dies and we can infer that he too has lost his life to AIDS.
Rebecca Brown’s title, “The Gift of Sweat” is an interesting title that has a figurative characteristic to it. The title is open for much analysis, however, the story itself is written in an extremely plain and simple style. After looking at the title more closely, we notice that the word sweat immediately follows the word gift, and think to ourselves how can these two words possibly go together? Although these two words may not fit together by definition, their connotations come together in the short story, “The Gift of Sweat.”
On page 105 we read:
He was still shaking. I pulled my body close to him so his butt was in my lap and my breasts and stomach were against his back I pressed against him to warm him. He pulled my hand onto his stomach. I opened my hand so my palm was flat across him, my fingers spread. He held his hand on top of mine, squeezing it like the quilt. I could feel the sweat of his hand on the back of mine, and of his stomach, through his shirt, against my palm. I could feel his pulse all through him; it was fast.
From this quote, we see that Rick’s sickness is beginning to kick in, and his “lady friend” is trying as hard as she can to help him. She realizes that this might be the last time she is with him and therefore, could care less about all the sweat she has on her. Although we may never know, we can infer that Rick’s sweat might be a gift to his “lady friend.” This gift may signal that Rick will no longer be alive and will be free of any pain he was coping with. This gift of sweat is something his “lady friend” will always remember and cherish. This gift to her can be looked at as a gift of love and happiness from Rick.
......last paragraph to come!
No matter what kind of work someone looks at, whether it is a book, short story, or even a poem, most every work has a title. Now how you interpret that title might be a different story, but often titles tell us a great deal of information. “They tell us not just what we’re reading, but what we’re writing- about its thematic, metaphoric, or symbolic content” (A Meditation on Titles). From the titles of the two short stories we read, “The Use of Force” and “The Gift of Sweat,” the reader is able to get a feel about what the story is going to be about, and possibly the tone of voice used throughout. When looking more deeply into the titles of these two short stories, we begin to notice something; they look very similar. Both titles have four words, each consisting of a transition and two nouns. However, these two short stories are very different. Therefore, the author’s preference of titles in both short stories, “The Use of Force” and “The Gift of Sweat” set aside readings intended for two extremely different stories: one to be taken literally and one to be taken figuratively.
“The Use of Force,” by William Carlos Williams is about two characters in confrontation. The story describes the fight a little girl puts up against a doctor who thinks she has diphtheria. Diphtheria is an upper respiratory tract illness that is characterized by a sore throat, low fever, and an adherent membrane on the tonsils. In order for the doctor to diagnose her, he must first get a throat culture. However, this task is not easy for the doctor as force must be used on the little girl to facilitate the throat culture.
As one can see, the title of this short story, “The Use of Force” should be taken literally. It is evident that force is a motif throughout the story as the doctor uses the force of himself and his instruments on the little girl. The force of the little girl’s parents and of her resisting is also very obvious in the story. In the last paragraph on page 93 we read:
Then I grasped the child’s head with my hand and tried to get the wooden tongue depressor between her teeth. She fought, with clenched teeth, desperately! When finally I got the wooden spatula behind the last teeth and just the point of it into the mouth cavity, she opened up for an instant but before I could see anything she came down again and gripped the wooden blade between her molars.
From looking at this quote, the reader can definitely relate the literal meaning of the title to what is happening here. It is extremely clear that the doctor is using force to get the wooden spatula down the little girl’s throat. He uses force not only with the wooden spatula but with his hands as well. The doctor states that the diagnosis needs to be done in order for the girl to be cured and possibly get rid of diphtheria.
However, due to the fact the little girl does not like what the doctor is doing, she too puts up a fight and uses force. She does not want that man anywhere near her and will do anything to keep him as far away as possible. In the last paragraph on page 92 we read, “As I moved my chair a little nearer suddenly with one catlike movement both her hands clawed instinctively for my eyes and she almost reached them too. In fact, she knocked my glasses flying and they fell, though unbroken, several feet away from me on the kitchen floor” (pg. 92). This is a great example of how the title is to be taken literally. In this situation the little girl’s force is so strong that she knocks off the doctor’s glasses. The girl not only uses her force to keep the doctor away, but she uses it to try and hurt the man.
As a result, it was now the parent’s time to step in and take their roles. They too must now use force against the girl in order for the doctor to take the throat culture. After the daughter had already put up enough of a fight, the doctor ordered the father to hold his daughter down. The doctor stated her father should, “Put her in front of you on your lap, and hold both her wrists” (pg. 93). If this was the only way the throat culture was going to get done, then that’s the way it had to be. From this quote, the reader can clearly see that the parents had to use physical force on their daughter. Even if she screamed and carried on, her father was not going to let go. She was not going to have her way and hide her sore throat any longer. If force was the only answer to this problem then it was the method the parents were going to use. Once again, the literal meaning of the title “The Use of Force” is predominantly noticeable throughout the story.
Although some titles may be taken literally, they may also be taken figuratively. “The Gift of Sweat” is an example of this kind of title. “The Gift of Sweat” by Rebecca Brown, is about two male gay lovers, Rick and Barry. Rick has lost his gay lover to AIDS and now has to cope with living alone. This loss of Barry not only affects Rick, but also causes him to greatly suffer throughout the story. He eventually becomes very sick one day to the point where he can't even open the door to let his "lady friend" in. By the end of the story, Rick dies and we can infer that he too has lost his life to AIDS.
Rebecca Brown’s title, “The Gift of Sweat” is an interesting title that has a figurative characteristic to it. The title is open for much analysis, however, the story itself is written in an extremely plain and simple style. After looking at the title more closely, we notice that the word sweat immediately follows the word gift, and think to ourselves how can these two words possibly go together? Although these two words may not fit together by definition, their connotations come together in the short story, “The Gift of Sweat.”
On page 105 we read:
He was still shaking. I pulled my body close to him so his butt was in my lap and my breasts and stomach were against his back I pressed against him to warm him. He pulled my hand onto his stomach. I opened my hand so my palm was flat across him, my fingers spread. He held his hand on top of mine, squeezing it like the quilt. I could feel the sweat of his hand on the back of mine, and of his stomach, through his shirt, against my palm. I could feel his pulse all through him; it was fast.
From this quote, we see that Rick’s sickness is beginning to kick in, and his “lady friend” is trying as hard as she can to help him. She realizes that this might be the last time she is with him and therefore, could care less about all the sweat she has on her. Although we may never know, we can infer that Rick’s sweat might be a gift to his “lady friend.” This gift may signal that Rick will no longer be alive and will be free of any pain he was coping with. This gift of sweat is something his “lady friend” will always remember and cherish. This gift to her can be looked at as a gift of love and happiness from Rick.
......last paragraph to come!
Friday
Intro Paragraph
No matter what kind of work someone looks at, whether it is a book, short story, or even a poem, most every work has a title. Now how you interpret that title might be a different story, but often titles tell us a great deal of information. “They tell us not just what we’re reading, but what we’re writing- about its thematic, metaphoric, or symbolic content” (A Meditation on Titles). From the titles of the two short stories we read, “The Use of Force” and “The Gift of Sweat,” the reader is able to get a feel about what the story is going to be about, and possibly the tone of voice used throughout. When looking more deeply into the titles of these two short stories, we begin to notice something; they look very similar. Both titles have four words, each consisting of a transition and two nouns. However, these two short stories are very different. Therefore, the author’s preference of titles in both short stories, “The Use of Force” and “The Gift of Sweat” set aside readings intended for two extremely different stories: one to be taken literally and one to be taken figuratively.
Tuesday
The Gift of Sweat
The short story, "The Gift of Sweat," by Rebecca Brown is about two male gay lovers, Rick and Barry. Rick has lost his gay lover to AIDS and now has to cope with living alone. This loss not only affected Rick, but also caused Rick to greatly suffer throughout the story. Rick eventually becomes very sick one day to the point where he can't even open the door to let his "lady friend" in. By the end of the story, we learn that Rick is so sick he has to be taken to the hospital, and it can be inferred that he too dies from AIDS.
Throughout the story, there are many questions that arise and many things I find interesting. The title of the short story really caught my eye. Why did the author decide to name the story, "The Gift of Sweat?" Was Rick's sweat really a gift to his "lady friend?" Or does it go further than that? Does it resemble the relationship they had, or maybe they even had more than a relationship. For certain we don't know, but can infer and get clues throughout the text. Another thing I found interesting between Rick and his "lady friend" is that the two of them seem to have some kind of routine every Tuesday and Thursday. Every time before his "lady friend" would stop over at Rick's place, she would always go to Hostess to get two cinnamon rolls. One for her and one for him. Why did this routine only happen on Tuesdays and Thursdays? Did Ricks "lady friend" go to his house everyday, or only on those days when she would bring the cinnamon rolls? Another thing I found interesting was how we can infer from the story that Rick never used to go out of the house when Barry was still alive. Both of them always used to stay home and just enjoy each other's company. However, after Barry died, that changed. Rick started going out. "After Barry died Rick started going to the Hostess, especially on Sundays, because he had to get out of the apartment. He used to go to the Hostess all the time until it got to be too much for him." From this, maybe you can infer that Rick started going less because he realized he was sick. He couldn't go everyday anymore because his body just wasn't up to the running around, and was slowly breaking down. Maybe that was nature's way of telling him that he did infact contract AIDS from Barry, and his time to pass might be soon. As a reader, we will never know any of the answers to these questions, but can only guess at what we read and infer from the text.
Throughout the story, there are many questions that arise and many things I find interesting. The title of the short story really caught my eye. Why did the author decide to name the story, "The Gift of Sweat?" Was Rick's sweat really a gift to his "lady friend?" Or does it go further than that? Does it resemble the relationship they had, or maybe they even had more than a relationship. For certain we don't know, but can infer and get clues throughout the text. Another thing I found interesting between Rick and his "lady friend" is that the two of them seem to have some kind of routine every Tuesday and Thursday. Every time before his "lady friend" would stop over at Rick's place, she would always go to Hostess to get two cinnamon rolls. One for her and one for him. Why did this routine only happen on Tuesdays and Thursdays? Did Ricks "lady friend" go to his house everyday, or only on those days when she would bring the cinnamon rolls? Another thing I found interesting was how we can infer from the story that Rick never used to go out of the house when Barry was still alive. Both of them always used to stay home and just enjoy each other's company. However, after Barry died, that changed. Rick started going out. "After Barry died Rick started going to the Hostess, especially on Sundays, because he had to get out of the apartment. He used to go to the Hostess all the time until it got to be too much for him." From this, maybe you can infer that Rick started going less because he realized he was sick. He couldn't go everyday anymore because his body just wasn't up to the running around, and was slowly breaking down. Maybe that was nature's way of telling him that he did infact contract AIDS from Barry, and his time to pass might be soon. As a reader, we will never know any of the answers to these questions, but can only guess at what we read and infer from the text.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)