Images from Text 7/10/07

"The Yellow Wallpaper"

In the story the author talks about the house and describes it in detail at the beginning of the story and it reminds me of the old country mansions that I have read about in other books and seen in movies, such as "Pride and Prejudice". The quote that reminded me of this was, "The most beautiful place! It is quite alone, standing well back from the road, quite three miles from the village...for there are hedges and walls and gates that lock." (pg 42) Then when she is talking about the wallpaper's design, "You think you have mastered it, but just as you get well underway in following, it turns a back-somersault and there you are", (pg 49) this reminds me of one of those brain-teaser eye tricks that are sometimes in children's books and it gives me a good visual of the chaos that is in the wall-paper pattern.


"Ain't I a Woman?"

I liked the part in the text where the author said, "If the first woman God ever made was strong enough to turn the world upside down all alone, these women together ought to be able to turn it back and get it right side up again!" This quote gave me a picture of strong women who are willing to take a stand to try and make the world a better place. As I read it many of my role models and heroes came to mind, Princess Diana was one who I always looked up to. The text also brought a point to mind that I had never thought of before, even though Eve messed up her actions carried a lot of power, so why can't women today use that same kind of power in a positive way? I know that there are so many women today that are working hard to fight diversity and to make the world a better place and it is truly an inspiration to look up to these women.


"Lady Lazarus"

I had to read this poem a couple of times to realize exactly what it was talking about and when I got the meaning of it, it was so dark and kind of disturbing. The part of the text that says, "And like the cat I have nine times to die", made me think that the author was committing suicide or trying to and as I read on I pictured different scenes in movies where I remembered women trying to kill themselves and I pictured this woman being so sad that she has tried to kill herself not once but three times as it says in the poems. Also the text says, " Out of the Ash, I rise with my red hair," and at first I didn't connect it but as I later thought about how the poem talks about dying and coming back to life and burning and coming out of the ash, I was reminded of Harry Potter. I know sounds dorky but in the movie there is a bird called the Phoenix and it dies and is reborn but not only that, it catches on fire and rises out of ash, just like in the poem.


"When I was Growing Up"

When I read the stanza, "When I was growing up, I read magazines and saw movies, blonde movie stars, white skin, sensuous lips and to be elevated, to become a woman, a desirable woman, I began to wear imaginary pale skin," I felt somewhat connected to the author. I pictured a young girl going through her awkward early teens wanting to look like girls in the magazines. I’m sure most young girls do that and feel that exact same way, I know I did, so regardless of race the author may have been more like the other girls than she had thought at the time.


"The Thirty Eighth Year"

One of the mental images this poem gave me when she said, "Plain as bread, round as cake," was a middle-aged woman who is worn from the years and is also a bit heavy set. She talks about her mother and the sadness that her mom had and now it seems that this woman (author) has followed in her mother's footsteps and seems to reflect the same kind of sadness. I think this just because of how she talks throughout the poem, she seems sad in her own life just like her mother. She doesn't sound happy with her life or with who she is at this point in her life. By the way the poem goes on I can tell she is full of regret and doesn't like how her life turned out.