Weblog Entry 8

In Jhumpa Lahiri's short story "Interpreter of Maladies," Jhumpa meticulously inserts small details to reveal the unmet needs of her many characters. For instance, early on in the story Jhumpa highlights the neglect that her character Tina receives from her mother Mrs Das. In that scene in the story Tina wants to use her mother's nail polish yet her mother Mrs Das, agitated by her remarks, tells her to leave her alone. By using the small detail of Mrs Das neglecting to paint her daughter's finger nails, Jhumpa manifests the non existent bond between Mrs Das and Tina. Not only that, however, there are many other unresolved Das family issues that Jhumpa carefully unveils throughout the story. This can be seen within another scene between Mrs Das and Mr Das on page 63. Mrs Das complains that the car they are riding in is too hot, and that Mr Das is a miser for being so reluctant to rent a car with air conditioning. However, to Mr Das rebuffs that remark by stating car isn't very hot at all, thus implying that Mrs Das should quit complaining. This short argument reveals the flaws in Mr and Mrs Das relationship, and how Mr Das fails in satisfying Mrs Das's needs for comfort. Finally, Jhumpa Lahiri indirectly reveals how Mrs Das is unsuccessful in providing for the children's well being and safety when she disregards Mr. Kapasi's warning to not feed the monkeys, and trails behind puffed rice which leads to Bobby's isolation from the group and being attack by the monkeys. In this way Mrs Das is not accounting for any of her children's needs and is ultimately a danger to her family in an insidious way. Although minute and minuscule, the small details that Jhumpa embeds in her story ironically reveals more about her characters than most broad descriptions on them ever could.

Weblog Entry 7

In Tobias Wolff's story introduction, he vividly analyzes the transition between the styles of writing in the past, and the implications it has for writers and readers. For instance, he frequently speaks of a "renaissance" that occurred which helped literature transition into a different form. He conveys the idea that this "renaissance" has caused stories to evolved from being "witty" to simple yet convincing, even to the point where the story inspires a sense of "kinship" in readers. He feels that the new form of writing can be fictional, but realistic and relatable enough to endure in our deepest memories, or evoke our deepest emotions "We need to feel ourselves acted upon by a story, outraged, exposed, in danger of heartbreak or change". He also dwells deep enough to reveal the the reason why people read is because we have the ability to relate our emotions or everyday experiences with the text we read, and that when we can emotionally link with the text we are granted an "exhilaration" that compels us to continue. Not only that, but he feels that readers themselves have grown mature throughout the centuries and are able to accept controversial yet realistic stories about human nature"We're grown-ups now, we get to stay in the kitchen when the other grown-ups talk. Finally, in Introduction Tobias assess the reason for writing stories, and the force that compels writers into doing so. For instance, Tobias states that writers, although different in genres and writing styles, each share a passion to "clarify a sense of reality" in their stories, which to me means that they try to instill a sense of reliability from the text to the writer. He also states in his story that "Romance is what keeps us going, the old romantic Frankenstein dream of working a miracle" which shows that writers also want to write brilliant stories, so good to the point that their work "lives on" in a way.

Weblog Entry 6

As a child, I had an almost incorrigible passion for flying, and the endlessly blue realm above that was the sky. I would go to city parks to fly simple diamond shaped kites, or tiny little helicopters that soared a staggering two feet above me. Whenever I was in school or simply forbid of doing these things, I would conjure up images of the sky in my mind and all of the tiny little entities that made it up, such as the clouds, the stars, and of course myself soaring threw them. Although I went through all of these activities to attune myself with the sky, deep down I knew that I would never actually know the joy of flight. To me, flying within an airplane was almost as unsettling scuba diving in a pool, and unfortunately as the years passed by my passion for flight was overtaken by the many sports and activities that i also played at that time such as swimming, simply by the fact that swimming was actually achievable. Much like my faded childhood endeavor,in the story The Bass, the River, and Sheila Mant, the author knows that although he has a passion for Sheila Mant, he will be unsuccessful in "wooing" her. This can be seen through the details in the text, for instance, he writes that "I would boost myself up onto our dock and glance casually over toward her, but she was never watching" showing that no matter what extremes he goes to to please her, she never notices or cares about anything he does. He also dresses her up to resemble this superior being,as he always addresses anything she does with prestige. For instance he describes her character as "unutterably suave, the epitome of sophistication" and even a simple action such as tilting her head as "proud and alert" while himself "as bashful and frightened as a unicorn" showing that there is a vast gap between them, and that he will never be worthy of her.

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Weblog Entry 5

1. The implications of giving a newspaper article the title "No News" are numerous. For one thing it is rather ironic to entitle an informative piece with a heading that makes the piece look as if it were not worth reading(since theres "No News"). However, the fact that there is "no news" to be delivered in an article could also give the article a purpose to be read, as if the article were an un-addressed problem that desperately needs to be solved. In the newspaper article "No News From Auswitch" instead of addressing an unsolved problem, author A.M Rosenthal addresses the millions who died in Auswitch and the fact that there was "No News" about their lives or any or their trials in a most unspeakable place.  In 1958, this article was debut in the New York Times newspaper, and within this story Rosenthal describes the concentration camp Auswitch and the horrors that were conducted inside these walls. In this story Rosenthal uses imagery of cheerful things such as children playing and daises at Auswitch to amplify the horrors the victims experienced during one of the darkest periods of time. Although this was a very despondent story to include in a newspaper, Rosenthal felt that it was his duty to honor the victims of Auswitch, even though there is nothing evil occurring at Auswitch anymore. By entitling his article "No News From Auswitch," Rosenthal gives the millions who died a voice that could not be heard long ago. 
2. Rosenthal's piece "No News From Auswitch" would probably belong in the Tourism/Travel tips section of a newspaper. This piece would not encourage or discourage people from traveling to Auswitch, but it will provide tourists with information on one of the most unsettling travel spots that one could ever want to visit to.