American Horror Story aka FRANKENSTEIN (round 2)

Soooo it appears as if the current season of the phenomenal show American Horror Story (honestly everyone should watch......it may have some twisted themes but overall the show is a bon a fide thriller) just cannot seem to stay away from the underlying themes and messages that were once exploited throughout Mary Shelley's wondrous novel, Frankenstein. As the season continues to move on and various characters begin to develop internally and externally, situations keep popping up that are all too similar to the various escapades that happen within Frankenstein. An episode that vividly shows a similar relationship to the story of Victor Frankenstein's creature interaction with Mr. Delacey during one of his attempts to communicate with those around him is an episode named "The Axeman Cometh". During this episode, one of the witches of the coven, the "house mother", to be exact, becomes the victim of an act of violence and has acid thrown in her face, thus leading her to become blind. This tragic incident leads to her ironically gaining true sight; things she couldn’t see before about people’s true motives and previous actions suddenly become clear whenever she touches them in even the slightest way. For instance, this particular witches’ husband has been performing acts of adultery and murder behind his naive wife back; her mother is not one to become blind to his shady motives, however, the witch herself doesn't see past his lying exterior and goes on loving him without knowing of the unfair treatment she is actually receiving. Once the witch loses her literal sight and her husband attempts to interact with her while she is in the hospital, she gains true insight into the murderous/adulterous acts he has been engaging in and finally is able to grasp onto the characters true motives. As the episode continues, the witch begins to encounter various truths she couldn't acquire for herself before; the reasoning for a young witches suffering, the previous actions of the infamous "Axeman", and the revealing of her mother's previous murderous actions towards one of the Coven's young witches are finally brought to the characters attention. With all this being said, it's clear of the ways that those who are "lacking" sight are the ones who actually can see who a person truly is compared to others around them. In Frankenstein, Victor's creature has a brief encounter with Mr. DeLacey, a blind man who is the father of a kind, unwealthy family. Though his children and others in his community previously acted unkindly or fearful towards the lost, innocent creature, Mr. DeLacey, who is unable to actually catch a glimpse of this monstrous appearance, actually takes the time to listen to what the creature has to say and get to know him for who he is on the inside. The blind witch and Mr. DeLacey represent the harsh realities that have always appeared throughout society, and still do, in relation to the way people to tend to connect those who appear to be outsiders to this type of fearful unknown. The unknown can be scary, confusing even, and when someone doesn’t have full grasp on what’s going on around them or who they're interacting with, judgment tends to rise and emotions tends to overcome people and their coping abilities. The witch refused to accept what was right in front of her when she had sight because it was an unknown she feared and didn’t wish to see; her and Mr. DeLacey's blindness to the appearance of the unknown and first instinct of simply getting a feel for this new being or truth simply for what it was shows just how lacking sight can give someone the power to see what they need to see to accomplish greater things for themselves and others around them. Will society ever stop fearing the unknown? Or is the only way someone can really find a new truth to the life around them by losing their literal sight? Who knows. Times are changing, unknowns are continuing to rise, and if people want to survive and surround themselves with those with good intentions the negative first insight people have towards the world needs to be thrown aside so that the judgment free, motive catching form of sight we all need can be attained. Ya feel me?

Innocent Grendel vs. Experienced Grendel

So, the novel Grendel, by John Gardiner, was not what I expected it to be whatsoever. Grendel, the infamous brute like creature of the epic story Beowulf, was not only surprisingly human in the way he thought, functioned, and interacted with other animal like creatures around him but also miraculously influential when it came to the idea of how one's experience can impact their mental well being into becoming something completely different from their once completely innocent self; Grendel gains experience throughout this novel, and a lot of his internal shifts from a childlike, angsty being to a matured sinister, critical, and hopeless soul can be related to the poems "The Divine Image (Songs of Innocence)" and "The Human Abstract (Songs of Experience)", by William Blake. When we first meet Grendel he seems to be completely weighed down by his past experiences, even stating that "childhood feels great at first, before one happens to notice the terrible sameness, age after age" (Gardiner 9); Grendel stating this makes is very clear that he wasn’t always this way, and leads into the idea of him suddenly shifting inside "after his fall". Grendel's "fall" was enlightenment, and the burdens that came along with being completely aware of the world around him turned him into someone who criticized those who weren't aware not because he saw them as foolish and lost, but more so because he loathed the hope and positive outlook they had for the world. Grendel is almost sorrowful for his lacking of innocence, stating that "[he] used to take pride in that- the caution of owls when [his] shape loomed in, the alarm [he] stirred in the giant northern wolves. [He] was younger then. Still playing cat and mouse with the universe" (Gardiner 10). Grendel's playing of cat and mouse with the world around him was his time of innocence; his child like encounters that allowed him to explore the world around him while also hoping to one day become one with the society around him. Blake states in "The Divine Image", "to mercy, pity, peace, and love, all pray in their distress; an to these virtues of delight return their thankfulness" to describe the lacking of awareness those who haven't been through experiences process the world around them; everything is seen as whole, and nothing is seen as a root cause to problems that lie in every corner of society. The emotions of "mercy, pity, peace, and love" being stated as one whole personified being shows how when one lives a life of innocence they, they live a life of constant optimism; these separate factors that go into creating the whole that is society are not seen as different structures but instead as something that is one being that can be used for something to grow and prosper from. The outlook of those personified emotions being one related to Grendel before his enlightenment; before his experience his fall, Grendel saw the world as a whole factor into the future meaning of the universe. His strong faith in his innocent beliefs is what eventually lead to his harsh fall into reality after his enlightenment, and shows how one attempting to be the same free spirited soul after their fall is almost impossible to accomplish. Once Grendel becomes aware, he almost becomes one with "The Human Abstract"; Blake states within this specific poem “the raven his nest had made in its thickest shade" which correlates to Grendel's transition into his experienced self. Ravens symbolize shift, metamorphosis, and transitions which happen to be exactly the things people experience once they've experienced the world. Ravens are black, mysterious creatures that tend to lurk within the world around them, and once Grendel becomes experienced he does just that. Lurks around the common people. Mopes around with what seems to be a constant black cloud of unhappiness hovering around him. Criticizes the world he once loved. With all this being said, I ask you what does it all mean? Are these two works of literature attempting to tell readers that experience/enlightenment are bad and that the innocent stages in one’s life are what's needed if one wants happiness? Or that the experience one gains through life is positive becomes it allows them to become aware of the world around them in an attempt to make themselves stronger? Who knows, really? No one really does, and it’s for that reason alone that one must prepare themselves for what’s to come after their personal "fall". Ya feel me?

Juke Box Love Song

So on a day to day basis people can sometimes tend to feel constricted within their own lives, doings, and surroundings. The pressure to exceed everyone else's expectations in order to make a name for themselves, or stand out in a crowd, can drive people to a point of insanity in which they have completely lost themselves. People fail to realize that sometimes it easiest to become one with their surroundings and embrace the community in which they come from; if a person decides to find light for their life out of their usual surroundings, there is no limit to what they can accomplish. In certain periods during American history, communities and economies have suffered harsh downfalls that eventually led to depressions unemployment. Some chose to let the downward spiral of America to defeat them down to the core, while others chose other wise and made the best out of what they had. One little area of history that has always fascinated me is the Harlem renaissance; the ability for people to create mind boggling poems, speeches, pieces of music and so on during a time of economic turmoil and international war continues to amaze me. Out of all of the poetic pieces written within this period of history (so so so so many to choose from), one that I feel really characterizes the spirit of the Harlem Renaissance is "Juke Box Love Song" by Langston Hughes; this majestic little poem goes like this:

I could take the Harlem night

and wrap around you,

Take the neon lights and make a crown,

Take the Lenox Avenue busses,

Taxis, subways,

And for your love song tune their rumble down.

Take Harlem's heartbeat,

Make a drumbeat,

Put it on a record, let it whirl,

And while we listen to it play,

Dance with you till day--

Dance with you, my sweet brown Harlem girl.

Ok first things first, this poem just embodies jazz in my opinion; the smooth transitions and clever personification Langston Hughes uses in order to make the city around him and his "brown Harlem girl" come alive is mesmerizing. But more importantly, Hughes puts forth a message that allows one to really get a feel for what the spirit of the Harlem Renaissance was all about. Hughes and his counterpart are becoming one with the city; the duo "[taking] the neon lights and [making] a crown" makes a statement that’s pretty clear: they're the king and queen. The king and queen of the night. The king and queen of the moment. Harlem is their kingdom and in that particular instant their letting their worries drift away and simply becoming one with their city. From the making of a love song out of normal city rumbles to channeling in on the heartbeat of the city, the words written by Hughes shows that the Harlem Renaissance was a time of inspiration, innovation, and the bringing together or a community. As Hughes claims he simply wants to “dance with you till day” to his Harlem girl, a moment of enlightenment arises. They dance until the next day because nothing can bring their kingdom down. They dance until the next day because the surroundings of loved ones is the main source of drive that they need. They dance until the next day because with their city by their side, there’s nothing they can’t accomplish. Ya feel me?

 

American Horror Story aka FRANKENSTEIN

Ok, so it's definitely safe to say that fall is my favorite season. Perfect temperatures, non stop sunny days, and the fresh smell of lavender in the air.....what’s not to love? Oh that's right, nothing. On top of the perfect day to day weather that gives one a warm, fuzzy feeling on the inside, the season of fall marks the period for the return of various TV shows (all of which are kind of addicting). From the Vampire Diaries (obsessed) to Grey's Anatomy (obsessssssed), to Scandal (OBSESSED) to Modern Family (you guessed it......obsessed), it seems as if every day of the week is filled with TV shows that send one's emotions onto a high speed roller coaster that seems to be never ending. Out of all of the shows that return on the air during this season, the absolute most addicting one of all is American Horror Story; this show is not only filled with dark, mysterious, and sinister story lines that make one's skin crawl (perfect show for October *cough* Halloween) but also revolves around various topics that in a way- through the twisted writings of each episode- can make one question themselves, or even their "truth", if they were put into these insane situations. The current season revolves around a coven of witches, and while watching this previous week’s episode, named "Boy Parts", I couldn’t help but recognize the similarities the doings of these witches had in relation to the novel Frankenstein. During this specific episode, two of the witches within the coven attempt to create the “perfect boyfriend” out of various body parts that once belonged to several young men that one of the witches killed. They are warned not to engage in such a task, seeing how the form of magic they’d be using would be dark magic due to the fact that they would be cheating Mother Nature and tampering with the idea of life/death. As the witches began to cast on spell on their newly sown “boyfriend”, I instantly began to see the face of Victor Frankenstein; it was as if this episode was an exact replica of the events and outcomes that happened within Frankenstein which soon led to me wondering what the significance of tampering with Mother Nature and attempting to play god really means. The young witches create their “boyfriend” and his response to his unnatural creation is similar to that of Victor’s creature; the young male is unable to speak, appears monstrous due to his new profound uneven body proportions, and even becomes violent at times due to the isolation he now faces from the rest of society. Along with this monstrous “boyfriend” suffering from the unnatural creation he did not choose to have, the witches that created him instantly flee once they realize that they’re attempt to bring someone back from the dead/create a new being failed. As all this was going on, the images of Victor Frankenstein treating his creation like some demonic monster and leaving him alone to fend for himself popped right back into my head. The relationship between American Horror Story and Frankenstein highlights the dangers that can come along with untested knowledge and the desire to play god. In both situations, the creators selfishly give “birth” to some unnatural human-esque being, without actually considering how the outcomes could affect not only society and themselves but also the creature that they actually created. So now I can’t help but wonder, why is the desire to play god so unapproved by Mother Nature? What do these similar situations tell us about the different roles humans have in relation to the functioning of the universe? Sure each of these characters engaged into the creation of these “monsters” for selfish reasons, but if they had actually succeeded would the “crime” of cheating Mother Nature actually be looked down upon? Or in the end would they actually be viewed as gods? Who knows. In the end, only more episodes of American Horror Story and other Frankenstein like stories will truly tell. Ya feel me?

Love Song vs. Winesburg, Ohio

Reality.......some of us love to embrace it while others fear of what it really means. Taking hold of one's reality can be scary; it can be full of unknowns, regrets, and unwanted uncertainty. Our pasts have helped to mold us into the beings that we are today, however, previous actions may not make some as excited to grip reality by the hands as others. The poem "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock", by T.S. Elliot, and the novel Winesburg, Ohio, by Sherwood Anderson, intertwine with one another more than one may think based on the fact that they both shed light on a central theme: reality is the universal fear. Some fear reality to the point where they’re afraid to wake up (allusions of that can be found in T.S. Elliot’s poem) while others simply hide behind their "truth" in life due to the fact that its actual meaning may not be one that they were expecting. Whatever the reason, these pieces of literature help shed light on the idea that one's reality can haunt them if they don’t accept it for what it is and push to move past it.

So these two pieces of literature are obviously similar in there theme, but the way they portray this certain idea is what makes them so special. In T.S. Elliot's poem, the speaker is an old man, and alas, the same goes for Sherwood Anderson's modern novel. The speaker of Elliot's poem even describes himself as someone "with a bald spot in the middle of [his] hair", similar to Winesburg, Ohio, where the very first line of the novel describes the main character as "an old man, with a white mustache" (Anderson 3). The idea of these old men being the speaker of these works gives the writings a nostalgic feeling; their introductions set the tone for the rest of the novel and make one feel as if everything they’re saying/talking about is meant to be heard as some sort of a reflection about the many years of their existence. The writings also both make allusions to women being some form of beauty that they cannot blame for any of the doings that may have been previously done onto them; Elliot's speaker asks the question "is it perfume from a dress that makes me so digress?" while Anderson's speaker states that "the grotesques were not all horrible. Some were amusing, some almost beautiful, and one, a woman all drawn out of shape, hurt the old man by her grotesqueness" (Anderson 5). The reference to woman within these two writings sheds light on the idea of women being the central root of their internal struggles; the battle to decide whether women are a distraction keeping them from what they hope to accomplish or if they're what may have helped guide them throughout their life time is apparent and makes one question the nature of women. Each piece of writing also gives various descriptions of imagery that help make their reflections clear and analytical. Elliot's speaker begins to turn to the allusions of sirens and "human voices [waking him], and he drowns" making one question whether or not he himself is in nightmare (or maybe even lucid dreaming, there's so many different scenarios that fit....) and the idea of waking up to the less than satisfactory reality he's created for himself makes him fearful. Anderson's old man finds some form of pleasure in looking out the windows of his bedroom, and when his bed breaks, leaving him unable to participate in this activity, he becomes upset; his passion for looking out his window almost relates to him looking out into the life that was in front of him, allowing the imagery and citizens down below to help him feel as if he's regained his youth for that moment so that he can reflect on everything he's accomplished once more.

"The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" and Winesburg, Ohio relate to one another in sense that focus on the idea of internal reflection and internal shifts, whether they be positive or negative. The fear of the reality these old men have come to face makes clear of the idea that sometimes the life we are living is not the one we had always wanted and that eventually it may be easier to live out our deepest desires through dreams or strong moments of lucid reflection. Ya feel me?

For Selma

Poetry.......it seems as if this type of writing has actually begun to grow on me. Every time I search for a different poem to incorporate into one of my blogs, I end up coming across a new poet who's words leave a lasting impact on my mental state while at the same time dazzle my thoughts with the way these rhythmic pieces of writing are filled with hidden, memorable messages. Poems, though instrument less and beat less, are like songs whose "lyrics” simply cannot be ignored. These short little snippets of speech seem to always leave me with a lifted mental state; the majestic formation of every stanza is something that I, for one, cannot get a complete grasp on, yet, the way various beloved poets repeatedly spur fourth words of wisdom continues to amaze me. Seeing how I’m personally unfamiliar with the majority of the poets out there, finding the perfect poem to blog about never comes easy. Yet, when I find one that I particularly like, it sticks. These poems stick to my memory not just for the reason that they are short, sweet, and to the point (I can’t even help it, excess wording usually has me losing interest within the first three seconds of reading a poem) but also because the messages they secretly portray seem to always jump out at me. One poem specifically whose message happens to grab my attention, within the first few lines, is "For Selma", by Langston Hughes; this piece of poetry goes a little something like this:

“In places like

Selma, Alabama

Kids say,

In places like

Chicago and New York….

In places like

Chicago and New York

Kids say,

In places like

London and Paris….

In places like

London and Paris

Kids say,

In places like

Chicago and New York….”

So this poem is pretty repetitive, not going to lie, but the message within it always seems to grab my attention. I’ve read the poem over and over again and it seems as if every time the message it speaks becomes clearer. “For Selma” sheds light on the fact that people, no matter where they are in the world, no matter how beautiful the city in which they live is, always want more. From a young age, people begin to dream big, continuously imagining themselves in various locations throughout the world meeting new people, learning new things, and making a name for themselves. Unsatisfied within the place in which they live, people always strive to move from location to location in the hopes that changing their environment will spark a sudden life changing movement for them to take hold of. “In places like Chicago and New York……”; the repetitive notion of these lines allowed Langston Hughes to accurately depict the way people of his specific time period we’re feeling at that time. America has faced various downfalls, and when the reality that some people were living became too much to bear, the idea of going off into another country and starting from scratch seemed more tempting than ever. People are constantly moving; our emotions repeatedly impact our decisions, impulses, and internal state of mind. Humans, being the complex figures that we are, let passions run wild and steer the direction of our hearts desires/future doings. The urge to constantly fill our lives with excitement and spontaneity is what draws people towards the question of what is out there for them in “places like Chicago and New York”. Ya feel me?

Death

So, Winesburg, Ohio is full of stories that somehow intertwine into one another and lead to the book as a whole having a deeper mean than before. The seminars that were performed by the lit circles in class this week helped in explaining how specific stories had more substance to them when looked at/studied closely; "Death" was the story that my lit circle looked at, and after looking at articles, hearing what my other group members had to say, and simply rereading the chapter as a whole, my outlook on what that specific chapter brings to the novel changed completely. When I first read "Death", nothing about it really caught my eye. The protagonist’s mother dies, and he's left alone to decide whether or not he should venture off into the world alone, thus, leaving Winesburg behind. Pretty straight forward if you think about it, right? Wrong. Like so wrong. It's funny how going back and rereading the chapter, with specific questions in mind, opened up my perspective on the writing and led to fresh, internal conclusions being drawn about what the chapter actually symbolized. "Death" relates to the idea of one having a "truth" in life by showing how one's "truth" can in fact be, well, death. Elizabeth Willard is a character within Winesburg who has lived a long, miserable, loveless life; "she thought marriage would change the face of life" (Anderson 228), thus, what started her chain of miserable life events back in her youth. Elizabeth longed for adventure, but more than anything she longed for love. Her lack of communication with her father throughout her days of girlhood played a role in what drove her into so desperately desiring having a man that she could call her "own". Elizabeth deciding to marry Tom Willard just for the sake of marrying someone, instead of acquiring patience and waiting until someone she shared a true connection with to come along, is what morphed her "truth" into becoming not love, but death. Death soon becomes something that Elizabeth longs for; she craves it, hungers after it, almost in a lustful manner. She soon begins to claim death itself as her lover and speaks towards death in a way full of passion. “…she put out her hand, thrusting it from under the covers of her bed, and she thought that death like a living thing put out his hand to her” (Anderson 232); Elizabeth once grabbed for a hand in the darkness in the hopes of finding love, however, as the misery of life began to beat her internal state down, she began to grab for a new lover instead. Elizabeth greets death almost as if he is a long lost friend she has been waiting to see; the harsh realities that came along with her marrying a man for the wrong reasons soon began to haunt her in a somewhat ghostly way, and changed her “truth” in life to some would see as the worst. However, I found her new profound “truth” in death being as a positive thing. Elizabeth Willard’s personal knowing that the life she was living was offering her nothing to cherish or hold on to is what led to her experiencing an internal shift and coming to terms with the fact that death was a truth she could part ways with without regret. Death was the lover that released her from her suffering, and its impact on not only her life but also the life of her son is exactly what helped George Willard himself find his way in the end. Elizabeth Willard’s connection with death shows how everyone’s personal “truth” in life may not always be something that is expected of them, yet, in the end can provide them with the calming state of mind that they had once hungered for after all. Ya feel me?