THE LOTUS EATERS

1- Languid means calm and relaxing.

2-The Lotus Eaters in line 27 are described as “mild eyed” to represent the fact that they are high.  The lotus that they eat gives them this affect.

 3-Tennyson uses the word ‘mourn’ to say that the idea of mourning seems like a feeling that they couldn’t feel because of where they are.  The mourning feeling is foreign to them

4-The Lotus fruit is a fruit that gives you a drug-like affect when eaten.  It also wipes away your memory.

5-The lotus fruit erases the memory of anyone who eats it.

6-The sailors think that there is no point in going home.  They decide to stay on the island forever.

7-The idea of not having to worry about the responsibilities of life are seductive about the island.  Becuase they can live here freely, they do not want to leave.

8-The mean are jealous of the flower because it just sits there all day and doesn’t haveto work.  It gest ripe, falls, and becomes a new flower.

9-The idea of part IV is to question their existence, and ask what is the point of life.

10-The sailor is afraid of having to live his old life where he had responsibilities.  He wants to stay and “eat the Ltosu day by day.”

11-The sailor is saying that no one back home will remember them, so they should go back to their homelands and cause trouble to everyone’s joy.

12-I think that the theme of this poem is that we shouldn’t give up during hard times.  Ulysses chickens out, and decides to say on the island instead of going home and facing life.  The poem is saying that the reader should be like these sailors.

Frankentstien II

     My perspective on Victor Frankenstien completely changed after reading the “monster’s” perspective.  For the beginning of the story, I saw him as the victim of an experiment gone wrong.  I thought of him as the good guy who accidently created a monster, and would unfortunately be connected emotionally to this monster for the rest of his life. 

     However, after reading the monster’s perspective, my opinion is completely different.  Frankenstein didn’t really create a monster, he created a life form and gave it no chance to be anything but a monster.  The monster was a civil, intelligent being, and Frankenstien was the barbaric one in abandoning his creation.  The monster’s perspective on the story is a very upsetting one, and caused me to feel bad for him.  This took away from my sympathy for Frankenstien.  Frankenstein may think he’s the good guy, but after reading both sides of the story, he is clearly not.

Frankenstein

       I think that the monster’s perspective will be completely different than Frankenstein’s perspective.  First of all, the monster will not consider himself a monster.  Frankenstein has a bias view on the story, and so everything from him is in negative terms.  However, the monster seems like an intellegent person, and so his story will probably be much more realistic and possible.  Based on foreshadowing in the book, I think that the monster will not try to fight anyone.  He will try to run away, and Frankenstein will chase him to the north pole.

     Also, I think the monster will represent romanticism.  Where Frankenstein’s story showed what we shouldn’t do, the monster’s side of the story will be an example of how romantics think people should live.  Since the story portays Frankenstien as evil, it would be a good way to persuade people to live a romatic life.  There could also be a slight difference because Frankenstein is telling his story to persuade Robert to not make the same mistake, but the monster will be trying to explain to Frankenstein what happened to him and why he isn’t evil.

MacBeth

     In the movie Macbeth, Duncan dies by falling into the boiling fry-grease.  In the story, Macbeth stabs Duncan as part of a well thought out plan.  My original interpretation of the scene was that it was a dramatic, story-changing part of the play.  In the movie, however, Duncan is accidently killed, and in a somewhat funny way.

     Another scene from the movie that reminded of the play was the scene where Banquo’s ghost showed up at the opening party of MacBeth’s restaurant.  In the play Banquo’s ghost shows up at the party for MacBeth becoming king.  In both versions, MacBeth is the only one that sees him, and Lady MacBeth must cover for him, saying he has an illness.  This scene was very much like i imagined it.

Miller’s Tale

   I think that the theme of the Miller’s Tale is that just because you are  smart, doesn’t mean that you are  good.  The scholar is described as a very bright character, yet he unphysically forces a women to cheat on her husband.  Also, he lies to his boss and makes him  think that a flood is coming.  Adding insult to injury, when the carpenter tries to tell people about the great flood, the scholar laughs it off.  As a result, the carpenter is considered the village idiot.  This is the perfect theme for the Miller’s tale.  The Miller is not an exceptionally bright character, and he doesn’t show any kindness towards nobility.  To tell a story about how brains can be bad fits him and his ethics and his prejudices perfectly.

King Arthur

Yes, I think that the forces that end Arthur’s reign are the same forces that bring down governments in the real world. King Arthur’s story is about good vs. evil. King Arthur is good, and his son is evil. The same is true in real life. There may not be illegitimiate children, and wives cheating on their husbands as much in the real world, but the general concept is the same.

Hitler brought down the democratic government in Germany. He became a high ranking official and then took control (as did Modred.) When people decided to fight against Hitler, he became too strong, and so millions of people died stopping him.
Also, Arthur’s reign ended because he attacked Modred when he knew it would kill him. Therefore, Arthur ended evil knowing that it would also end himself. This however, is mostly not true in real life, only movies and books. All in all, parts of the King Arthur story are true to real life, while others are not

Beowulf

Kennings:

 That shepperd of evil, 273

The infamous Killer, 285

Mankind’s enemy, 79

 Alliterations:

to grow across the land and light it, 10

So mankind’s enemy continued his crimes, 79

Great king.  They have seen my strength for themselves, 151

Questions

1)What is the significance of Grendel being descended from Cain?

     In the bible, Cain is the brother of Abel.  As the story goes, Cain kills his brother.  This is important because Cain represents evil, and saying Grendel is Cain’s descendent is giving an example of how evil Grendel is.

 2)Why does Grendel attack Herot?

     Grendel attacks Herot because he knows that if he goes to the meadhall at night, everyone will be asleep and he will be able to eat them.

 3)What are Beowulf’s thoughts as he waits for Grendel’s arrival?

     Beofwulf’s is telling himself that he shouldn’t use a weapon.  He is saying that since Grendel uses only his own strength, it would be fair and honorable to make it an even battle.

4)Why does Beowulf wait, allowing Grendel to kill one of the Geats, before he attacks Grendel?

     Beowulf lets Grendel eat a Geat so that he knows what Grendel’s system is.  This way, when Grendel tries to eat Beowulf, he will know what Grendel is going to do, and can counteract is easier.

5)How does Beowulf wound Grendel?

     Beowulf wounds Grendel by ripping off his arm.  Grendel is used to being protected from human weapons, and so being hurt by a human throws him off.

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