In the short story "No Face", we are drawn deeper into the life of the character whom we assume is Ysrael. Diaz shows us the many hardships he has face and is still facing in his life. He is always the outsider and the center of someones joke. In the story, there is a scene when No Face is jumped by four boys. They ask him if he has ever been a girl before which is basically a threat to castrate him. In class we discussed how No Face is a similar character to Bengy from The Sound and Fury. Bengy to was the one character in the story who everyone made fun of and picked on, but the ironic thing is he was the one who survived and remained sane unlike the rest of the family.
No Face, like Benjy, doesn't sit around feeling sorry for himself. Instead, he carries on living his life as a super hero. While exploring deeper into No Face's life, you begin to see his true Identity. He posses all the characteristics of a great hero which are, strength, speed, invisibility, he's a helper to others and he has a mask. His super powers give him the ability to withstand the torture and cruelness of the world that he lives in. But like all superheros, No Face is also vulnerable. No Face is only picked on because he doesn't have a face. He gave himself super powers as a defense mechanism to face the taunting that he is approached with daily. If or when his face is fixed what will become of him? Will he still be a superhero or will he just be a regular kid? All his life he has been No Face, its all he has known. So to me when his face is fixed he looses his identity. He is no longer the center of every ones joke and he no longer has to defend himself. He will be able to walk around and be a normal kid. My Question is will he be a true superhero and survive?
Friday, February 27, 2009
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Cause and Effect
In Ysrael we witnessed a long string of cause and effects. Starting with, the pig that ate Ysrael’s face off when he was a baby. The repercussions of this accident caused Ysrael to be a victim of verbal and physical abuse throughout his life. One incident of this abuse was with Rafa and Yunior. The reasons why this attack happened are also connected. The boys were sent to the country so their mother could work. The boys were allowed to wander in the country because, they finished all of their chores.
Even in the story Aurora, many events were connected in different ways. Aurora was sent to juvie for using drugs, which she sometimes received from Lucero. Even though Lucero did not agree with her drug abuse he still kept their relationship intact. By keeping their relationship intact Lucero and Aurora continued with their abuse of each other. Their constant abuse will eventually lead them to their final goodbye, or perhaps a normal relationship.
In class we discussed other connections and cycles in these two short stories. The amount of causes and effects in these stories seemed very evident to me. This reoccurring theme makes me wonder if it is just a coincidence that cause and effect plays such a big part in the stories, or if it plays a larger role in the message the novel tells? I have had many ideas as to what it might mean. Such as, one event being able to construct the rest of a person’s life like the instance of Ysrael, and the pig. My question for you is what role, if any, you believe cause and effect plays in these short stories?
Even in the story Aurora, many events were connected in different ways. Aurora was sent to juvie for using drugs, which she sometimes received from Lucero. Even though Lucero did not agree with her drug abuse he still kept their relationship intact. By keeping their relationship intact Lucero and Aurora continued with their abuse of each other. Their constant abuse will eventually lead them to their final goodbye, or perhaps a normal relationship.
In class we discussed other connections and cycles in these two short stories. The amount of causes and effects in these stories seemed very evident to me. This reoccurring theme makes me wonder if it is just a coincidence that cause and effect plays such a big part in the stories, or if it plays a larger role in the message the novel tells? I have had many ideas as to what it might mean. Such as, one event being able to construct the rest of a person’s life like the instance of Ysrael, and the pig. My question for you is what role, if any, you believe cause and effect plays in these short stories?
Friday, February 13, 2009
Fate Prevails
The last chapter in The Sound and the Fury had to do with fate. Everything that happened at the end needed to happen in order for justice to be established. As we discussed in class on Wednesday, the Compson family is ending, and it is ending in shame. Jason, the last Compson of the family, is a disgrace to his entire family and everyone knows that but no one can truly stop him. He is so evil that even his mother does everything she can to keep him happy. However, both Miss Quentin and Dilsey see that it is not right for him to be treated with such respect because he neither deserves it nor demonstrates it towards others. That is why Miss Quentin runs away and why Dilsey says “I’ve seed de first en de last…I seed de beginnin, en now I sees de endin,” (Faulkner 297) while she walks home crying from church. Both women realize that the Compson family is being destroyed and they are going to get all they deserve.
As the novel ended, fate came into play. Jason and Mrs. Compson had to be the only remaining people, besides Benjy, in the Compson home because they were the only two that could live with each other. They are the “Bascombs” of the family and so they will be together and miserable until the end. Miss Quentin, like Caddy, needed to escape from the Compson family because she was not like them. She wanted to be free and happy and she only found that happiness with a man. In that time, it was uncommon for women to live on their own, therefore she needed to give up some of her freedom and give herself to another man (after Jason) in order to be happy. Benjy could not escape his family. He would forever be with his unloving family with the only care from Dilsey and Luster. Dilsey will remain with the Compsons till the end. As she said, she saw their beginning and will be there to see their ending.
The last evidence of fate is the money. Miss Quentin deserved that money to begin with and that is why in the end, she had her way. Although she did not retrieve all of her lost money, she did retrieve a decent amount and was able to keep it for herself. Jason believed he had everything under control, but just as Macbeth lost control through his thirst for power, so did Jason. He became so blind-sighted by his control that he did not see his family slowly dissolving. In the end, everything was as it should have been; those people who were evil remained unhappy and those who deserved happiness and justice finally received it.
As the novel ended, fate came into play. Jason and Mrs. Compson had to be the only remaining people, besides Benjy, in the Compson home because they were the only two that could live with each other. They are the “Bascombs” of the family and so they will be together and miserable until the end. Miss Quentin, like Caddy, needed to escape from the Compson family because she was not like them. She wanted to be free and happy and she only found that happiness with a man. In that time, it was uncommon for women to live on their own, therefore she needed to give up some of her freedom and give herself to another man (after Jason) in order to be happy. Benjy could not escape his family. He would forever be with his unloving family with the only care from Dilsey and Luster. Dilsey will remain with the Compsons till the end. As she said, she saw their beginning and will be there to see their ending.
The last evidence of fate is the money. Miss Quentin deserved that money to begin with and that is why in the end, she had her way. Although she did not retrieve all of her lost money, she did retrieve a decent amount and was able to keep it for herself. Jason believed he had everything under control, but just as Macbeth lost control through his thirst for power, so did Jason. He became so blind-sighted by his control that he did not see his family slowly dissolving. In the end, everything was as it should have been; those people who were evil remained unhappy and those who deserved happiness and justice finally received it.
Saturday, February 7, 2009
Time changeover
Time changeover is the most typical characteristic in the first section. This section is narrated by Benjy, a speechless idiot who can only express his feeling by moaning and crying. The story skips back and forth 34 times in all to demonstrate how disorderly his brain is. The title “April 7, 1928” shows the present time, which is also Benjy’s 33 years old birthday. In the whole section, time jumps eleven times back to the day of Dumuddy’s death in 1898, five times back to Caddy’s depravation and her Wedding in 1910, four times back to the days of Quentin, Mr. Compson and Roskus’s death and 14 times back to other impressive events.
The signal of the time changeover is the similar things that Benjy has met both in the past and at present. He always mistakes what he sees now to what happened before. For instance, the first jump in time is when Luster goes to many places in order to find his quarter and takes Benjy with him. A caddie’s crying causes Benjy recall his sister Caddy owing to the same pronunciations of “caddie” and “Caddy”. One way to identify the time of Benjy’s memory is to see who his caretaker is. Versh takes care of him before 1905, T.P. doing after 1905, and now is Luster. Another way is to see who the “Quentin” and “Jason” represent. His brother Quentin died in 1910 while his niece Quentin had not born. His father Jason died in 1912 while his brother Jason still lives.
One of the significances of the frequent time changeover is to reappear the rich and carefree Compson family in the past, just like old people always say “Once upon a time, when I was young……” when talking to others about the current situation. Because of his poor intelligence, Benjy, like a three years old child, is not able to understand the surrounding world. On the other hand, he has such exquisite sensitivity and witness the Compson family’s declining. The previously harmonious family in his memory is in sharp contrast to the present situation. Benjy recalls many interesting things in his childhood, such as he played with his brothers and sisters and he helped Uncle Maury deliver a love letter. Then with his growth, what he memorized turns grey. His sister Caddy became depraved and married with a man she did not love. His brother Quentin killed himself. His father died. Roskus died. In other words, by means of time changeover, the writer tells us the brief story through Benjy’s memory.
The signal of the time changeover is the similar things that Benjy has met both in the past and at present. He always mistakes what he sees now to what happened before. For instance, the first jump in time is when Luster goes to many places in order to find his quarter and takes Benjy with him. A caddie’s crying causes Benjy recall his sister Caddy owing to the same pronunciations of “caddie” and “Caddy”. One way to identify the time of Benjy’s memory is to see who his caretaker is. Versh takes care of him before 1905, T.P. doing after 1905, and now is Luster. Another way is to see who the “Quentin” and “Jason” represent. His brother Quentin died in 1910 while his niece Quentin had not born. His father Jason died in 1912 while his brother Jason still lives.
One of the significances of the frequent time changeover is to reappear the rich and carefree Compson family in the past, just like old people always say “Once upon a time, when I was young……” when talking to others about the current situation. Because of his poor intelligence, Benjy, like a three years old child, is not able to understand the surrounding world. On the other hand, he has such exquisite sensitivity and witness the Compson family’s declining. The previously harmonious family in his memory is in sharp contrast to the present situation. Benjy recalls many interesting things in his childhood, such as he played with his brothers and sisters and he helped Uncle Maury deliver a love letter. Then with his growth, what he memorized turns grey. His sister Caddy became depraved and married with a man she did not love. His brother Quentin killed himself. His father died. Roskus died. In other words, by means of time changeover, the writer tells us the brief story through Benjy’s memory.
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