Faulkner and Carroll on the Little Screen

I begrudgingly shared a video of myself...talking...to a camera...on Google+. Here it is!

As reluctant as I was to talk about my paper on video, I am a little sad to let it go. It's occupied so much of my thinking time these past two months, and I might go through some Alice withdrawals. In fact, I'll probably read both books again this summer.

Thanks for a WONDERful semester, everyone!

Faulkner, Carroll, and Me: A Brief History

What a journey this has been! The most amazing thing to me about writing my paper on As I Lay Dying and Alice in Wonderland is how much my ideas evolved throughout the process. I began with a general idea that I would write about how damaging some parenting styles are on children, and through my blogging process, I thought of many different styles that are represented in Alice in Wonderland. 

Yet, my ideas were still very broad. I received great feedback from my peers, and found, through them and my own research, many sources that helped me focus my thoughts.

One of the biggest turning points for me was Jessica's comment on my post where I discussed how different the two genres I'm studying are. She mentioned universal ethics, which eventually became a main focus point of my paper. The way that I was able to combine the two authors was with universal ethics: the idea that the morals that they believed in and wrote about transcend time and location. 

Two Outlets for a Paper on Faulkner

I am still very interested in submitting my paper to the BYU English Symposium. After attending, I know that it would be a great way for me to start small and learn how to present my ideas to a group of peers and professors. The English Symposium also accepts a wide variety of papers, which will give me a lot of freedom with what I want to say in my paper.

However, I also found a call for papers for May 1st. It is the Southern Writers/Southern Writing Graduate Student Conference located in Mississippi. The graduate students are putting on this conference and calling critical and creative works focused primarily on Southern writers. If I submit my paper to this conference, I will have to focus more on the Southern nature of As I Lay Dying and how that affects Faulkner's portrayal of the family. The conference is on the 17th-19th of June. I think this would be a good way to focus my writing.

...

I just saw Kate's comment on my most recent post, and she gave me a great outlet for my paper that I hadn't found yet! It's the CFP Faulkner and Print Culture Conference, and submissions are due in January. I will definitely be considering how I can tie my paper into one of the topics suggested in the information for this conference! Thanks, Kate!

A Treasure Trove of Information

Creative Commons license 2.0 / flickr

I emailed my high school English teacher last week because i knew that she liked Faulkner a lot, and within mere minutes, she emailed me back! What a gem! This is what she sent me:

Because I haven't specifically studied him for a long time, I'm not sure what to say but I do remember he grew up in a very strict southern household where he was sent to a corner of the parlor for punishment. His family owned slaves and became close their children--playing games with them. He played hokey when it came to go to church and often got in trouble for it. It was during his Parlour Punishment that he took out the dictionary and read it over and over--hence his love and mastery of words. I also know he was bitter about the U.S. army's rejection of his desire to serve in the military, saying he was too small--to short, only 5'6". He was not particularly close to his father--he was also alcoholic and tyrannical. He fought a great deal with Hollywood elites when he worked there briefly as a screenwriter. He drank a great deal, and the only person he ever really loved was his wife--who was forced to reject him as a young girl and even married someone else. She later divorced that man and married Faulkner. He was an extremely proud man and didn't take rejection kindly. He didn't like others telling him what to do and battled that all his life. He was extremely proud of his roots, even the distant grandfather/relative feud that he tells stories about in many of his novels--a recurring character, Colonel Satoris. He is based on a real character in Faulkner's family tree. I hope this helps.

This is definitely useful information, and a good way for me to understand one of the authors I'm studying and what he thinks about family. 

After my success with my teacher, my library visit, and the English Symposium, I am excited to dive into my books and write! 

Striking Gold at the Symposium

I just about died and went to heaven at the BYU's English Symposium. I heard three presentations on Catcher in the Rye, and although I've never actually read it, the information was incredibly helpful for my research and ideas on As I Lay Dying! Specifically, a student named Katie Nilson discussed her paper called, "A Phony Family: Upper-class Materialism and the Creation of Holden Caulfield." Well there you go! 

Her discussion on the influence of parents on their children and what that does to individuals and family was right along the lines of what I'm discussing in my paper. I spoke to her afterward and asked her about an article she quoted. It was called "Making Normal People" by Read Bain. Bain says that "Adolescent rebellion is a disease of parents." Perfect! I'll definitely delve more into this article as I write my paper.

Wrapping Up

Have you ever seen the "I Love Lucy" episode where Lucy and Ethel work in a chocolate factory for a day? Their job is to wrap every single chocolate on the conveyor belt, and in the beginning, it's a piece of cake. They begin wrapping the chocolates lackadaisically. Then, the conveyor belt gets faster...and faster...and faster, until eventually, this happens:

dzturbinbhavior.blogspot.com

Feast your eyes on the end of semester for a college student.

This is how I feel about all of the information, feedback, and research I've collected. It's all precious as chocolate. But with so much information and so little time, I think I'm ready to stop the conveyor belt and wrap everything up neatly.

I've made connections with many characters in Alice in Wonderland, I've begun to analyze the characters in As I Lay Dying, I've found useful background information about Faulkner through an enthusiast, I've found some Aristotelian ideas, I've found some present-day applications--time to narrow down, zero in, flesh out, and organize.

Wish me luck!

Thank You's For Enthusiasm

I have tried to contact a few literary enthusiasts this week, and while I haven't had a response yet, I am confident that I will get at least one reply.

However, I have had some success getting sources from classmates, which is fantastic! I haven't had the chance to look at the sources yet, but Morgan posted on my mini-paper post and suggested I look at Cyclopedia of Literary Places. Her interest in my topic and helpfulness is reassuring, and I think using this source would be a great way to strengthen my argument about authority affecting the development of children.

Cristiano also gave me a great source to use on my annotated bibliography. It has to do with the evolution of the portrayal of the family from the Victorian era to the Modern era. Perfect! This will put my analysis in context, and I'm excited to see what I can find in this book.

Thanks to both of you, and to everyone else who has commented!

When You Give a Girl a Library...

Public Domain CCO / Pixabay

All I had to do was browse the Faulkner section of the library, and it was like themes of family, childhood, and parenthood started to launch themselves at me. Needless to say, I found several new sources for both Faulkner and Carroll's portrayals of authority and themes of family in their works. I couldn't help but check just a few out to take home with me...I feel a bit like a literary hoarder.

At any rate, here is a new and improved list of sources:
 
THESIS: Just as Alice is ridiculously scorned, mislead, and reprimanded by the authority figures in her journey through Wonderland, the offspring of Addie Bundren represent the precarious condition of children that do not have reliable authority figures in their lives in the novel As I Lay Dying. Lewis Carroll and William Faulkner's works identify the damage caused to children by dysfunctional family environments and autocratic adults.

To Overcome Authority

This is a pretty naked overview of my aspirations for my paper. However, during the past couple of weeks, I have fallen in love with FEEDBACK! So, if anyone is willing, take the time to read the following mini-paper, I'd love to have a conversation about the ideas I'm presenting!

Question: What is the effect of ignorant parenting on children and can they overcome it?

Depriving Childhood Through Authority

In Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying, the Bundren children are dwindling in poverty, selfishness, and animosity. However, in each child’s narration of the story, there can be found deep insight into human nature, which contains more prudence and virtue than that of their parents. Still, they are at the mercy of their father and recently deceased mother. Similarly, Lewis Carroll’s character, Alice, journeys into Wonderland and finds herself succumbing to the whims of various adults. Just as Alice is ridiculously scorned, mislead, and reprimanded by the authority figures in her journey through Wonderland, the offspring of Addie Bundren represent the precarious condition of children that do not have reliable authority figures in their lives in the novel As I Lay Dying. Lewis Carroll and William Faulkner's works identify the damage caused to children by dysfunctional family environments and autocratic adults.

Creating Ideas in Conversation

 Wikimedia Commons License / Wikipedia

 If this English class (Writing Literary Criticism) has taught me anything this semester, it's to be proactive about my work. There is definitely a difference between plugging key words into library and Google search engines and asking people what they think about a certain topic. It's the difference between finding what already exists and bringing a new conversation, and consequently new ideas, into existence.

I sent out messages to a large group of people on Facebook and tried to contact someone on Goodreads. I just noticed 30 seconds ago that I got a response! Thank you to my cousin, Melissa! Her comment makes me even more confident in my thesis, and I think I will be able to really run with it, now.

Newborn Research Paper

Since As I Lay Dying and Alice in Wonderland are so different, I decided to write down some key areas of both books on which my paper is focusing. Then, I just wrote down the facts. I was definitely happy with my results, and it is going to make it a lot easier for me to compare these two, vastly dissimilar works.

Turns out, it's the selfishness and ego-centrism of the adults that negatively affects the children.

So...

Here is my developing research paper for As I Lay Dying and Alice in Wonderland. Let me know what you think so far! And if you have any ideas for me/sources to share, don't be shy!

Depriving Childhood Through Authority

The Effects of Parenting on Children: The Bundrens

Because a fellow can see ever now and then that children have more sense than him. (125)

In Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying, the Bundren children are dwindling in poverty, selfishness, and animosity. However, in each child’s narration of the story, there can be found deep insight into human nature, which contains more prudence and virtue than that of their parents. Yet, they are at the mercy of their father, Anse, whose lazy nature causes them to work harder than necessary, and whose stubbornness brings about injury, pain, and mental instability. They are also at the mercy of their mother, Addie, whose dying wish to be buried in the town of her people instigates their terrible and tragic journey from one town to the next.

What is the effect of these parents’ selfishness and manipulation on their children? Do the actions of Anse and Addie Bundren cause problems such as anger, passivity, despondence, and mental illness in their children?

I plan on contacting people who have reviewed As I Lay Dying on Goodreads, as well as contacting people who have blogged about this book, and topics about the affects of specific types of parenting.

"Children Have More Sense:" Evidence in the Text

Whenever I sit on the couch, get snuggled in my blanket, and open As I Lay Dying, I immediately regret not first grabbing a pencil. There is so much verbal gold in this book, and it makes me go a little highlight-happy.

One such passage is a brief comment from the character, Vernon Tull. He says,

Because a fellow can see ever now and then that children have more sense than him (125). –Tull

This will support my thesis as a statement of insight from a minor character. This shows Faulkner’s focus on children and their value. This shows that adults should not manipulate children in the way that Anse has manipulated his, because his children are significantly wiser than he.

They are two passages that stand out to me from Addie Bundren’s chapter, Anse Bundren’s wife and mother to five children. She has already died in this part of the novel, but her commentary gives us insight into what kind of mother she was and how damaging that has been to her family. 

I could just remember how my father used to say that the reason for living was to get ready to stay dead a long time. And when I would have to look at them day after day, each with his and her secret and selfish thought, and blood strange to each other blood and strange to mine, and think that this seemed to be the only way I could get ready to stay dead, I would hate my father for having ever planted me. I would look forward to the times when they faulted, so I could whip them. When the switch fell I could feel it upon my flesh; when it welted and ridged it was my blood that ran, and I would think with each blow of the switch: Now you are aware of me! Now I am something in your secret and selfish life, who have marked your blood with my own for ever and ever. (155) –Addie

I will talk about how people parent the way they have been parented. Addie’s father was emotionally abusive, so she becomes abusive as well.
 

When he was born I knew that motherhood was invented by someone who had to have a word for it because the ones that had the children didn’t care whether there was a word for it or not. I knew that fear was invented by someone that had never had the fear; pride, who never had the pride. I knew that it had been, not that they had dirty noses, but that we had had to use one another by words like spiders dangling by their mouths from a beam, swinging and twisting and never touching, and that only through the blows of the switch could my blood and their blood flow as one stream. I knew that it had been, not that my aloneness had to be violated over and over each day, but that it had never been violated until Cash came. Not even by Anse in the nights. (158) –Addie

This is Addie’s attitude toward motherhood. I am still analyzing, however, whether this is completely negative, or partly positive. Addie wants her aloneness to be violated. That’s what she was seeking when she tried to make her students “aware” of her by whipping them. So, does that mean that she loves being a mother?

Taking Risks and Owning My Thesis

While I've been sharing my ideas with friends and family through Facebook, I've collected a nice array of compliments and support, which has been beautifully propelling my confidence as a writer and blogger. That is step one, and I'm glad I have them to help me with it.

Additionally, I know that my fellow classmates are a little more confident and comfortable to give me criticism, which I am very thankful for! I relish the opportunity to question my thought process and see my ideas through another's point of view.

Krista mentioned to me that my thesis could be a little riskier. I think I will be able to do this by making my argument more specific. A broad topic is less risky and less interesting.

Dr. Burton and Adam commented on the dissimilarity of the genres that I am analyzing. The Alice books are Victorian children's stories, while As I Lay Dying is a more mature American rural novel written in 1930. Through their comments, I realize that I do need to acknowledge that the two genres are vastly dissimilar, but there is a connecting theory about the importance of having strong and value-centered parental figures that ties the novels, which says a lot about psychology and human society as a whole.

Childhood in Wonderland

Creative Commons License 3.0 / Wikimedia

I am connecting the Alice books with William Faulkner's As I Lay Dying like so:

Just as Alice is ridiculously scorned, mislead, and reprimanded by the authority figures in her journey through Wonderland, the offspring of Addie Bundren represent the precarious condition of children that do not have reliable authority figures in their lives in the novel As I Lay Dying. Lewis Carroll and William Faulkner's works identify the damage caused to children by dysfunctional family environments and autocratic adults.

Feel free to critique, compliment, make suggestions, ask questions, or share!

"What I Think You Think I Am"

 “I am not what I think I am; I am not what you think I am; I am what I think you think I am.”

My high school history teacher is responsible for the installation of this quote in my mind. Time and time again, she would prove that human behavior is highly affected by what we think others think of us. And I suppose it's true…

With Brooke and the Poppies / Photograph by Penny Linford

As people, we try to live up to the expectations that we think people have for us. Because they laugh at my jokes, I think my friends think I’m funny; so I’m funny around them. Because my mom tells me I’m very smart and creative, naturally, I find that the things I say around her should probably be intelligent and profound. Because strangers compliment my thick-rimmed glasses and long sweaters, perhaps—I hate to admit it—I feel the need to be a little less “main-stream.”

Words: Inadequate and Plentiful

Creative Commons License 2.0 / Jeffery Wright

I didn’t like it at all. I didn’t like the time period, the setting, or the strange and tragic plot. 

I had to read As I Lay Dying for my AP Literature class during my senior year of high school, and it was a struggle. In that class, we would read the book first, and try not to discuss it in too much detail until the date upon which everyone should have finished (which I didn't do). Then, we would begin together. Our teacher would take the black and white print and transform it into a compendium of literary genius and philosophical insight. 

Through our discussion, what at first was an incomprehensible string of “is’s” and “is nots” in a paragraph narrated by the apparently insane character, Darl, slowly developed into a deeply profound and unsettling thought process about the reality of human existence. Reminiscent of Descartes’s “Cogito ergo sum” (“I think, therefore, I am”), Darl comes to the conclusion,

And since sleep is is-not and rain and wind are was, it is not. Yet the wagon is, because when the wagon is was, Addie Bundren will not be. And Jewel is, so Addie Bundren must be. And then I must be, or I could not empty myself for sleep in a strange room. And so if I am not emptied yet, I am is. (Faulkner 72)

I must be honest and say that most of this is over my head. However, Faulkner’s mastery of the English language—his bold use of stream of consciousness and his manipulation of verbs into nouns—affected me then and deeply affects me now. In this way, language is magic.