Ingrid Illustrated

In our harkness discussion today, we talked about whether or not we should decolonize the literary canon. One point our circle discussed that I would like to expand on is what benefit decolonizing literature would have on readers. Because most authors of the pieces of literature we have read are white and male, the characters they have written about are also primarily white and male. There is little to no representation of minorities in almost all of the pieces we have read this year. These titles only show a narrowed point of view and as classmates said, a “bubble” of a privileged world. Because of this lack of diversity, we don’t see an accurate representation of the world we live in.  Another benefit to decolonizing the literary canon is that it would motivate us to read more books. A classmate brought up the fact that one of the best books she has ever read was about a character that she could relate to and understand. If the characters in the books we read are primarily white ...

During Thanksgiving last week, we got to spend some precious time with our families enjoying some of the most delicious food. Everybody has their own favorite thanksgiving dishes including stuffing, green beans, mashed potatoes, and the most controversial dessert: pie. There is always the notorious battle of pumpkin pie versus apple pie. Although pumpkin pie and apple pie are both delicious fruit pies, apple pie is more flavorful and can be paired well with other toppings, making it the better pie.  Similarly, pumpkin pie and apple pie are two delicious pies with fruit fillings. However, they have very different flavors. Apple pie is tangy and fruity, while pumpkin pie is more creamy and bland. Apple pie has just the right amount of tartness, while pumpkin pie can sometimes be overwhelmingly sweet. The textures are also very different. Pumpkin pie is too mushy and soft for me, while apple pie filling is soft, but still firm with distinct pieces of apple in it.  Also, apple pie...

In the book I’m currently reading, Big Little Lies , first impressions are everything. It is from the point of view of a group of middle-aged kindergarten moms, who judge each and every person they see, by their first impressions of them. For example, Celeste seems like the most young, beautiful, wealthy, and happy mother, but if you dig a little deeper, there is so much more to her story beneath the surface. Through this novel, I can see the theme of how first impressions are very important and how there are many factors of a first impression.  The ethos of communication revolves around the person you really are and, more important, the person you are perceived to be. For instance, your first time meeting a celebrity would be a whole different experience from your first time talking to a random person on the street. You would likely idolize a celebrity not because of their personality, but because of their fame and appearance. However, meeting a normal person on the street, having...

  Social order is disturbed and chaos occurs because of the human instinct of desire for structure and the fear of the unknown as shown in the novel Lord of the Flies by William Golding, the short story “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson, and the Stephan King excerpt.  We crave structure to the point where we will do almost anything for it, even if that means completely upsetting social order. For example, “‘P’raps we ought to go too.’ Ralph looked at him, quickly and Piggy blushed. ‘I mean— to make sure nothing happens’” (Golding 148). In Lord of the Flies , Piggy and Ralph both desire a society with structure, unlike their own. This quote shows how easy it is to give into that instinct because we naturally fear a society with many unknowns. However this could create lots of chaos, for example, the complete loss of humanity of Jack’s group even with structure. Another instance of this is, “Mr. Summers spoke frequently to the villagers about making a new box, but no one liked t...

  A recurring theme I have noticed in many of the pieces of writing we have analyzed is intersectional oppression. Intersectional oppression is when already oppressed groups start to oppress each other, to feel some sort of power over others. I have seen this type of oppression in “Indian Education”, Lord of the Files , the Smithsonian article, and sadly, real life.  In the short story “Indian Education” by Sherman Alexie, intersectional oppression is seen when a Chicano teacher points out that the Indian kids had been drinking. Even though the teacher knows what oppression is like himself, he feels the need to oppress others below him to feel better about himself. In the novel Lord of the Files by William Golding, Piggy and Simon are minorities themselves, but continue to pick on the littluns, the group even lower on the social ladder than them. The Smithsonian article also mentions this quote by Audre Lorde, “There is no hierarchy of oppressions”, which shows that oppressed...

  This week, for my silent book club reading book, I am reading Big Little Lies , by Liane Moriairty. In the book, age is something that is talked about immensely. The older women want to be young again and alive, while the younger women want to become more mature and stronger. The two groups of women are both jealous of the other, signifying the human instinct to want what you can’t have.  Ever since we were little, we were taught to always be content with what we had and to only worry about ourselves. However, we were always still jealous, leading sentences with “but she has this” and “why can’t I have this like her”. Our parents have helped us realize that not everyone is equal, so not everyone gets the same things or opportunities, but the instinct is still there. As we get older, we will never stop being jealous of what other people have, but we can learn to be more appreciative of what WE have.  Shakespeare actually classified jealousy as a green-eyed monster that a...

  This week in class, we had a Harkness discussion about the short story “The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson. In the story, all of the townspeople participate in the horrible tradition of stoning someone to death every year for no real reason. Even though they all don’t want to be the one stoned to death, nobody speaks out about it. This is an example of people conforming to the norm just to not stand out.  Conforming to the norm isn’t always good. The example seen in the story is that conforming can actually harm yourself, others, and societies as a whole. When something is wrong, but everyone still does it, that doesn’t make it any more morally correct. Society has brainwashed us into thinking that the norm, and only the norm, is correct. We shouldn’t be afraid to voice our opinions to protect each other or state what we think is correct. Everyone can have their own ideas, and it’s ok if they’re not all the same.  Another example of why conforming isn’t always good is beca...