“The Same River Twice: Pages 54-109” ~Chris Offutt

The Same River Twice has been quite a racy and controversial book so far.  I have found it to be quite intriguing, especially considering that it is a true story and the author’s reflection on his own life (somewhat autobiographical).  The journeys that he has already gone on and the experiences he has encountered are not of your typical American (or at least not of middle-class like we are living in).  My overall impression of the story’s theme at this point in time is self-identity.  Chris has gone back and forth between choosing what he truly wants to do with his life—one moment he wants to be a poet, and then an artist, and then a playwright, but by the very end of the last assigned chapter, he changes his mind again.  I think this battle in self-identity is also portrayed in the way that Offutt has decided to organize his chapters, going back and forth between his risqué, naïve days, and his mature parenthood days.  This shows that he, as a whole, will never forget the two completely different sides that have encompassed his life and who he has come to be.

I would have to say that this book has been the most interesting to me out of the many short stories and poems that we have read thus far.  Not only have I been able to make more connections to previous pieces I have read, but also this book tends to grab my attention much more than others because of both the storyline and the ease of the reading.  Offutt encases his evident talent of imagery in many places throughout the book, which helps us as readers to feel like we are a part of the story, feeling what he is feeling.  On page 73, Chris Offutt talks about the Lamaze pregnancy class that he and his wife are attending.  “Again and again she emphasizes the pain of birth, saying it is similar to having your lips peeled over your head.”  This is a clear example of Offutt’s use of imagery.  Aside from the fact that this quote actually made me cringe, I felt bad for Chris and his wife, Rita.  There is no way in this world that I would want to be attending a pregnancy class that just makes me more scared to give birth.  I feel Rita’s pain in not wanting to attend the class anymore because the instructor’s techniques are not soothing whatsoever and actually seemed to be more on the negative side of pregnancy, rather than preparing the spouses in a positive manner.

            The part of the story that I could relate most to previous reading was when Offutt was riding and driving with Winner, the creepy man with skull tattoos and grungy biker clothing.  First, I thought it was strange that Chris encountered two polar opposite people back-to-back.  Coming from riding with Al, the spiritual, innocent man who was determined on going to heaven, straight to riding with a man who is constantly talking about the devil and cursing every other sentence, must have been frightening for Chris.  The reason Chris’ experience with Winner reminded me of something I had read in the past was the excerpt on page 84, “Maybe he and Winner were both correct—the world was doomed to extinction.  Global annihilation was better than getting old; heaven and reincarnation were the same guarantee.  No one surfed the river Styx.”  Immediately I thought of Dante’s Inferno, because I remembered reading about the river of Styx in Dante’s portrayal of Hell.  I’m still not quite sure if Offutt was purposefully making a reference to The Inferno, or if it was a mere coincidence.

Although there were many parts of the story so far that grabbed my attention, such as the description of the Parrot Lady’s act (so bizarre), the third passage that really got me thinking was on page 102, when the circus members are tormenting Gabe the Gorilla.  Because they feel bad for doing such inappropriate acts and violating Gabe’s privacy, they try to make up for it by apologizing to him and giving him bananas.  “Arnie went last.  He was crying.  He opened his pants and said, ‘See, they ain’t that much to mine either.’  Arnie stuffed four bananas through the cage and claimed credit for bringing all the men to apologize.”  What this scene made me realize is that the gorilla didn’t really know what the men were saying to him, yet he was smart enough to associate the giving of bananas with apology because of their wrong-doing.  I never really thought about how humans are the only animals to have a sophisticated language and that most other animals communicate through body language, which is how Gabe still understood the point that the men were trying to get across.

Vocabulary I was unfamiliar with:

Fisticuffs: combat with the fists

Equanimity:  calmness

Coalesce:  to unite or grow together

Affront:  to insult

"Cathedral" ~Raymond Carver & "The Things They Carried"~Tim O'Brien

"Cathedral"

Raymond Carver's, "Cathedral," was a very unique short story and I enjoyed reading it because it seemed to sort of teach a lesson.  The story begins by making a clear display of the husband's feelings toward the blind man, Robert, and how he seemed to almost have a feeling of disgust toward him.  I believe this feeling came from his inability to relate to Robert.  However, by the end of the story, the husband's outlook has completely changed because the experience of drawing a cathedral with Robert allowed him to experience a little of what his life is like, thus making him able to relate more.

A couple quotes stood out in the text.  On page 110, the husband is speaking about his wife's experience with her first marriage and how badly it affected her.  He says, "She got to a feeling she couldn't go it another step.  She went in and swallowed all the pills and capsules in the medicine chest and washed them down with a bottle of gin.  The she got into a hot bath and passed out."  I was utterly shocked while reading this because of the way Raymond Carver changed the subject so quickly.  One moment he was describing the relationship between the wife and her first husband and the military, and the next moment he has switched to an extremely depressing subject.  I felt that the wife's reaction to moving around was a bit extreme and because suicide is so dramatic in the middle of the context of the story, this scene jumped right off the page.  The second quote that made me think was on page 111, "All this without having ever seen what the goddamned woman looked like.  It was beyond my understanding.  Hearing this, I felt sorry for the blind man for a little bit."  After reading this, I realized how truly depressing it would be to never be able to see what the person you're in love with looks like.  I know that for me, personally, I'm not sure how I would handle being in a situation like that.  I feel that despite how much personality and mental connection matter, being able to see your "lover" is equally as important.  After all, I believe that one's initial attraction to someone is based solely on their attraction to the other's appearance.  This quote made me feel very bad for the blind man, even if it didn't matter that much to him.

My overall reflection on this short story, aside form the plot, was that I realized that Raymond Carver seems to use a lot of repetition throughout the story.  At first it was only the wife who kept asking or saying the same things over and over, but then on page 118, the husband begins to to it as well.  I'm not quite sure what Carver was trying to get at by being so redundant, but it definitely caught my attention while reading.  Also, my own personal connection with the story was the fact that Robert kept calling the husband "bub," because I use the same nickname with my friend--and its not a very common nickname!

"The Things They Carried"


Tim O'Brien's "The Things They Carried" went about telling a story in two different ways: imagery and repetition.  There were also two sides to the story: a love story, and the mens' battle at war.  O'Brien's allusion to "the things they carried" served as a deeper meaning than literally what they carried.  Although he does describe exactly what each troop carried and how much it weighed, the deeper meaning to this was the mental weight that war held in the troops' minds. The way that O'Brien also describes each and every element that the men are carrying allows us, as readers, to picture them "humping" all these things around and how much weight truly lies on them.  The story sort of gives the audience an insight to men's lives at war and the toll that it takes on their mental state.

The love story portion of "The Things They Carried" was what actually caught most of my attention.  On page 371, the passage speaks about the pebble that Martha sent Lieutenant Cross, "Lieutenant Cross found this romantic.  But he wondered what her truest feelings were, exactly, and what she meant by separate-but-together."  This whole scene reminded me of one of my favorite books and movies, "Dear John."  It seems as though many love-military stories, encompass this scenarios of the person at war wondering how much the person at home really does love them.  In both cases (Dear John and The Things They Carried), the men at war end up burning all the letters and pictures of the loved one.  I found that ironic.


Words I was not familiar with:
Encyst: enclosed
Unencumbered: to free of burden

“Crying of Lot 49: Chapter 6”~Thomas Pynchon

I have to admit that I was eager to start and finish this chapter of “The Crying of Lot 49” because I knew it was the last chapter and I had hopes that it being the final opportunity to make some sense of the book, would clear up the entire purpose of the story.  Thankfully, it did, and I now understand why we discussed, “meaningless vs. full of meaning,” “everything is connected vs. nothing is connected,” and so on.  Within the last few paragraphs of the entire book, the reader is essentially informed that there has been one person controlling all of Oedipa’s actions (persuading her to go on this journey) and she is finally given the opportunity to see who that person is.  Unfortunately, Pynchon leaves his readers on a cliff hanger and we never get to see who’s been leading her on through this practical joke the whole time!  But at least with this knowledge, we as readers now know that the “Trystero story” essentially did not mean anything to the heart of the story, Pynchon rather created a mystery story, with deeper meaning found in the purpose of Oedipa as a character and her meaning of life (problems, losing her friends and family to this search, drugs, and failure to communicate).

Although much of this chapter seemed disconnected until the very end tied the whole book together, there were a few passages that stood out to me.  On page 126, Oedipa reflects on how pathetic she has come to be, “...my husband, on LSD, gropes like a child further and further into the rooms and endless rooms of the elaborate candy house of himself and away, hopelessly away, from what has passed, I was hoping forever, for love; my one extra-marital fella has eloped with a depraved 15-year-old; my best guide back to the Trystero has taken a Brody. Where am I?”  Even though this entire time Oedipa’s character has somewhat annoyed me because of her naivety and lack of realizing what is truly important in life (losing her friends and family to this nonsense), this passage actually evoked some pity in me.  Many aspects of her life were truly falling apart to the point that she couldn’t even ground herself anymore, which made me feel bad for her for the very first time.

The second passage that stood out to me was on page 137, during which is seems as though Oedipa is giving up on her journey.  Although we do find out, by the end of the book, that she continues far enough to discover who has put her to “all of this,” this passage, “…She knew that if she went back to Vesperhaven House to talk again to old Mr Thoth about his grandfather, she would find that he too had died.  She new she out to write to K. da Chingado, publisher of the unaccountable paperback Courier’s Tragedy, but she didn’t, and never asked Bortz if he had, either…” implies that she has just had enough with doing so much and just leading herself into more confusion.  What I didn’t understand at the time of reading this was why she would come this far (almost to the end of the book) and then just give up completely.  Ultimately, we discover that she does not give up, so this was actually cleared up for me upon finishing the chapter.

The final passage that I found interesting was on page 140, “Meaning what? That Bortz, along with Metzger, Cohen, Driblette, Koteks, the tattooed sailor in San Francisco, the W.A.S.T.E. carriers she’d seen—that all of them were Pierce Inverarity’s mean? Bought? Or loyal, for free, for fun, to some grandiose practical joke he’d cooked up, all for her embarrassment, or terrorizing, or moral improvement?”  This thought that the entire journey that Oedipa has been on to find the Trystero was indeed a prank being played on her reminded me of a movie that I watched in my Psychology class in high school called, “The Truman Show.”  My immediate relation to this sort of fictional world that Oedipa may have been placed in was the thought that maybe “The Truman Show” was based lightly off of “The Crying of Lot 49.”

Words I was not familiar with:

Infanticide: the killing of a human infant

Tabernacle: a tent sanctuary used by the Jews to carry the Ark of the Covenant

"The Crying of Lot 49: Chapters Two & Three"~Thomas Pynchon

Chapter Two of "The Crying of Lot 49" was not nearly as difficult to follow as Chapter One, however, I became lost again in Chapter Three.  I could definitely piece together parts of the chapters that made sense to me and consequently figure out what was going on.  Also, the satire of "The Crying of Lot 49" was more evident in Chapter Two than it was in Chapter One.

On page 22, Pynchon uses an excessive amount of repetition, "...impersonating a lawyer, who in front of a jury becomes an actor.  Me, I'm a former actor who became a lawyer... a one-time lawyer who quit his firm to become an actor.  Who in this pilot plays me, an actor become a lawyer reverting periodically to being an actor."  This paragraph created what felt like a revolving door and it almost felt as though Pynchon was beating a dead horse, yet simultaneously this repetition was actually entertaining.  It took me a minute to untangle what Pynchon was truly trying to say by going back and forth, confusing the reader.

The second passage that stood out to me, was probably one that would stand out to anyone reading this story.  On page 24, "...quickly undressed and began putting on as much as she could of the clothing she'd brought with her: six pairs of panties in assorted colors, girdle, three pairs of nylons, three brassieres, two pairs stretch slacks..." and the list continues on.  I was actually picturing Oedipa doing this, which made me giggle.  It seemed as if she was going a little overboard to try and prepare herself for not ending up naked at the end of their "Strip Botticelli" because she could have saved herself from that situation by having not agreed to such an absurd bet in the first place.  By the end of that scene, I was confused as to why she even wanted to cover up so much, when in the end she planned on being "laid" by Metzger anyway--maybe she was just putting on a show to act like a tease.

There was one last excerpt that reminded me of something I had read in the past--everything else in Chapter Three I was very confused by.  On page 50, "...Being in thick with the Duke of Squamuglia, Pasquale plots to do away with young Niccolo by suggesting a game of hide-and-seek and the finessing him into crawling inside of an enormous cannon, which a henchman is then to set off, hopefully blowing the child, as Pasquale recalls ruefully, later on in the third act..." Oedipa is reflecting on a play in which the older half-brother is plotting against his younger half-brother in order to succeed him.  This reminded me of the play "Hamlet," in which I vaguely recall a half-sibling plotting against his half-sibling.  It seems as though many "older" plays have family members deceiving each other.

Vocabulary I was not familiar with:
Nexus: a connection; a link
Convolution: rolled up; coiled
Penal: prescribing punishment
Proselytizing: to convert someone/something
Ogive: a pointed arch

"Fences: Act One"~August Wilson

The beginning of Act One, during Scene One, I found myself a little lost.  The story was a bit slow and I was having trouble finding the meaning of the plot because the introduction sort of throws the reader right into the story.  Because it was filled with mostly general information and small, unsubstantial dialogue between the characters, I wasn't very interested in what I was reading.

However, upon Scene Two and Three of Act One, my opinion turned around. By the end of Act One, I had a solid knowledge of the personalities of the different characters--Troy is an extremely frugal, hard working and grounded father; Rose is a domestic mother and wife, yet has a strong backbone and a lot of spunk; Lyons is a young man learning his responsibilities but still not too far from the nest; Cory wants to be like his father with his passion for a sport, but just as many adolescents, he doesn't always understand his parents' reasoning; Bono and Gabriel are two characters that I still need to read further about to truly have a grasp on their personalities.

Scene Three was definitely my favorite of Act One;  I was actually laughing out loud at some parts and could relate to others.  On page 33, Cory and his father, Troy, are talking about buying a TV because Cory is in desperate desire for one.  Troy is frugal and would rather spend his money on something more practical, like repairing the roof, but he tells Cory, "I'll tell you what... you get a hundred dollars and I'll put the other hundred with it."  I related to this because even though the story is set in the 1950s, mine and many of my friends' parents have made this compromise; mainly this compromise is heard of with helping one buy their first car.

Page 55 holds a discussion between Bono, Rose, and Troy, whom is telling his life story and about how he met Rose. Troy says, "She asked me when I met her if I had gotten all that foolishness out of my system.  And I told her, 'Baby, it's you and baseball all what count with me.' You hear me, Bono? I meant it too.  She say, 'Which one comes first?' I told her, 'Baby, ain't no doubt it's baseball... but you stick and get old with me and we'll outlive this baseball.' Am I right, Rose? And it's true."  Rose responds with, "Man hush your mouth.  You ain't said no such thing.  Talking about, 'Baby you know you'll always be number one with me/' That's what you was talking."  I enjoyed reading this passage because I love that Rose is not afraid to stick up for herself and be completely and brutally honest with Troy.  This is in extreme contrast with other stories of this era because most women are too domestic to be this headstrong, but I appreciate Rose's honesty.  Troy does also.

Lastly, I thought the baseball analogy on page 58 was very clever.  "I'm gonna tell you what your mistake was.  See... you swung at the ball and didn't hit it.  That's strike one.  See, you in the batter's box now.  You swung and you missed.  That's strike one.  Don't you strike out!"  I am a huge baseball fan, so this element of the play I can relate to, and I like that August Wilson went to the depth of tying Troy's baseball/sport experience into his wisdom of life.

Vocabulary I wasn't familiar with:
Guile: sly or cunning intelligence

"The Glass Menagerie"~Tennessee Williams

Before beginning "The Glass Menagerie," I was not aware that it was a play.  It started out slow and I could not submerge myself in the story.  However, the second half was more of something I could relate to.  The younger female character, Laura, has been set up to have a gentleman caller over for dinner with her family.  She is a very nervous girl, as am I, so I could relate to her apprehension of having the man over.   The conversation between Laura and her mother, Amanda, on page 55 reminded me very much of my mother and me.  We have gone through her old yearbooks countless times, reflecting on her old boyfriends and how she thought they were so cool back then.

Another part of the second half of the play that stood out to me was Tom's quote on page 61, "...People go to the movies instead of moving! Hollywood characters are supposed to have all the adventures for everybody in America, while everybody in America sits in a dark room and watches them have them!"  I had never thought about this concept before and it struck me as so true, that our lives have been consumed by the media and its outright display of fame and the importance in celebrities lives.  I actually find it quite ridiculous that we have illuminated celebrity life so much, when they are truly human beings just as we are.

Lastly, the final scene, during which Laura finds out her gentleman caller, Jim, has a fiance struck me all too familiarly.  It seems as though many boys will never learn the lesson of honesty or faithfulness.  Too many times I have given advice to friends whose boyfriends have cheated on them, or lied about something in their relationship, and this scene seems to display a similar situation.  Jim may not have been unfaithful, but he was sneaky enough to lead Laura to believe that he was there at that dinner because he was interested in her.  Unfortunately, he ends up telling her that he is going steady with another woman and Laura is crushed.

Vocabulary I was not familiar with:

Jonquils: a narcissus flower with long leaves, and usually white or yellow petals.

Tumult: a noisy commotion, outbreak, riot.

Jalopy: an old, worn out automobile

"In Dreams Begin Responsibilities" ~Delmore Schwartz

Delmore Schwartz's "In Dreams Begin Responsibilities," portrayed many pictures in my head and I found the story line to be intriguing in the fact that it involved romance.  No surprise there, considering most girls enjoy reading love stories. 

The descriptions of of town as the young man who walks to his girlfriend's house on Sunday brought vivid imagery to my head.  "It is obviously Sunday, for everyone is wearing Sunday clothes and the street-car's noises emphasize the quite of the holiday," lead me to picture families in pastels walking the streets, with horse-and-carriage transportation running around them.  Knowing that the story is set in 1909 helps to picture the old-fashion feel portrayed in the description of the setting.

Later in the story, as the young man and his girlfriend are speaking about the book she is reading, it states that, "This is a habit which he very much enjoys, for he feels the utmost superiority and confidence when he is approving or condemning the behavior of other people."  I immediately thought of my father and many other boys I know that ironically act the same way.  I found it funny that even though the story is set 102 years ago, men still have the same stubborn attributes and feel most manly when they are putting others down, or at least in control of the situation.

The imagery used in describing the ocean and crashing waves was so clear that I could literally picture myself standing on the pier, watching it with the couple.  "The moment before they somersault, the moment when they arch their backs so beautifully, showing while veins in the green and black, that moment is intolerable. They finally crack, dashing fiercely upon the sand, actually driving, full force downward, against it, bouncing upward and forward, and at last petering out into a small stream of bubbles which slides up the beach and then is recalled."  I have seen this crashing of waves so many times now, but I don't think it would be possible for me to describe the series of events in such a nature.  It is amazing how a reader can know and picture exactly what the author is writing about purely through his detailed description.

Overall I found this short story very different.  I was expecting it to be uplifting with the way it started, but once the narrator begins crying at the scenes being described, I, as a reader, knew that there was deeper meaning to the couple that just a cute romance.  Then, toward the end when the narrator yells for the couple to not follow through with their engagement, it is very clear that later in their life, their marriage falls apart, which in turn took a hard toll on their child (the narrator).

Vocabulary I was not familiar with:

Exaltation (page 473, paragraph 4): a feeling or state of extreme happiness

Mirth (page 474, paragraph 2): amusement, especially as expressed in laughter