American Literature

My experience this term studying American Literature has definitely been a challenge for me because I'm not a person who like to do a lot reading especially when I was in high school I hated reading. But I had to learn that if I wanted to pass this class then I was going to have to read and I must say it has been very enjoyable. I love reading all of the stories and the poems as well since I have a passion for poems. I had to explore my mind a little bit and put my thinking cap on and put myself in each character shoes and what they had to endure in order for me to write about them. The story about Amy Tan and Alice Walker had the greatest impact on me because it talked about guilt people be walking around feeling guilty about certain situations and all they have to do is apologize for whatever it was they did wrong. Some people let guilt take over their lives and they end up being so unhappy and miserable those type of people live in what I consider to be darkness. If you go to their home they want let you in because they don't want you to see how they are living with the lights always off and the blinds always close staying away from the rest of the world.

I think the reading I related to personally would have to be about "The Great Gatsby" because I have a friend that I'm very close to who is just like Daisy Buchanan always has to be center of attention especially when it comes to men and always throwing herself on them and flirting with them. One man was never good enough for my friend. She only married or dated men who were rich it was never for love. She is very materialistic person sometimes I have to wonder about her lifestyle because to me a person like is never happy. "Who wants to go to town?" demanded Daisy insistently. Gatsby's eyes floated toward her. "Ah," she cried, "you look so cool." Their eyes met, and they stared together at each other, alone in space. With an effort she glanced down at the table. "Trust thyself: every heart vibrates to that iron string." This quote from Ralph Waldon Emerson is my favorite because I tell my children and others this all the time that you have to trust thyself with an open heart and with all understanding.

The character with whom I identified is Rose how she blames herself for the drowning of her infant son and it was an accident. I can easily relate to that because I blamed myself for not being at home when my husband passed away. I felt like it was my fault but I had to understand that it was nothing I could have done that would have made a difference. I felt that I made a connection with that character because when I was reading the story, I said that is me that is how I felt when my husband passed away. So I could feel Rose's pain and understood how she felt. It is so easy to blame yourself in a situation like this. In conclusion I have learned a lot this term and