Journal entry# 15 Mark Twain

Siu Faat Jimmy Wong
English 48b
January 25, 2008
Professor Lankford

Quote:

You fetch them to the cave, and you’ve always as polite as pie to them; and by- and- by they fall in love with you and never want to go home any more.

Summary:

Tom gave this statement when he was in the meeting with the other members in his gang.

Response:

Tom was such an interesting boy that he gave a lot of stupid instructions to the other members. For example, the members mustn’t eat and sleep until they have killed their targets and they shouldn’t tell the secret to anyone, otherwise, their parents would be killed. I realized that these teenagers always wanted to do something different. Indeed, I quite agree with one thing which Tom suggested. Tom said that the members had to bring the women to the cave since the women would fell in love with them. In reality, there are always cases like what Tom suggested. Frankly, there are many kidnapping cases in my country. The criminals locked the women in the room and raped them everyday. The women initially would feel very afraid and helpless. However, once they found out that they had little hope to escape. They would start to fall in love with the men since the men always took care of them. Though it was quite ridiculous, it was extremely true. It was a kind of psychological disease.

After reading this part of the story, I remember that I also did something bad with some friends when I was small. I always planned something evil with my friends. We made jokes to the teachers and shot the soccer at the window. However, we really didn’t think about bringing a girl to a cave and making her to fall in love with us. If I was able to read this book at that time, I would also come up with this evil thing.

Journal entry# 14 Mark Twain

Siu Faat Jimmy Wong
English 48b
January 25, 2008
Professor Lankford

Quote:

"All right, then, I’ll go to hell”---and tore it up.

Summary:

It is a quote also found in the “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn”. It is said by Huckleberry Finn when he wanted to send a letter to Miss Watson and told her the location of her slave, Jim.

Response:

At first, Huck wants to inform Miss Watson about the location of Jim in order to let Miss Watson to protect Jim or save Jim. When Huck is writing this letter, he thinks about the happy moments between Jim and him. On one hand, he wants Miss Watson to help his good friend. On the other hand, he sadly understands that after Miss Watson finds Jim, she will punish him. Also, if he frees Jim, he would go to hell. Therefore, Huck put himself into a very hard situation. He struggled between right and wrong. He knew that once he sent Miss Watson a letter, she could come to find Jim and save Jim. If I was him, I would definitely be mad. At last, Huck chose to tear up the letter because it would be better for Jim. He understood that it was wrong to free a slave and he claimed that he was ready to go to hell. From this quote, I can see their deep friendship and I also appreciate that Jim has such a good friend like Huck.

After reading this part about Jim and Huck, there is suddenly something coming out in my mind. Decades ago, friendship was more real and was placed in a more important position in people’s lives. However, in this century, I think that people are getting more self-centered. Relationships between friends are getting looser. I admit that people in today’s world have to deal with much more things than the people in 70s or 80s. However, I think that it is not an excuse to overlook friendship.

Journal entry# 13 Mark Twain

Siu Faat Jimmy Wong
English 48b
January 25, 2008
Professor Lankford

Quote:

So we slid in there and got three candles, and Tom laid five cents on the table for pay…But Tom give him five cents to keep quiet.

Summary:

Tom gave five cents twice for the candles and the crying boy.

Response:

I think that Tom fully understands the power of money. He is supposed to be a robber in the story. However, after he got somebody’s candles, he put down five cents for paid. In his mind, he was not a normal thief who would steal somebody’s candle. Therefore, he was willing to pay some money. It was quite interesting.

Moreover, he knew well that the member in his gang also loved money as he did. So Tom would give the crying boy five cents to ask him to “shut up”. I think the reason why Tom is so eager to be a robber is mainly because he really knows that money really works in many aspects and he really wants to do something different. Right after I read the passage between Tom and the crying boy, I remember my teenage. My father and mother always pay me some money, like several dollars, to ask me to get an A in school. Like the crying boy, I always obeyed the one who gave me money. I would try my best to study at home. The several dollars could really motivate me to study. Therefore, I think that giving money to children really works.
However, this act should not be 100% okay in the actual world. Otherwise, we may be charged with corruption. We cannot always pay money to get what we want. We have to be aware in some cases. For example, we cannot pay the policeman and tell him not to give us tickets of speeding. We cannot pay our professors and ask him to give me an A. Otherwise, we will get into trouble.

Journal entry# 12 Mark Twain

Siu Faat Jimmy Wong
English 48b
January 25, 2008
Professor Lankford

Quote:

And I about made up my mind to pray; and see if I couldn’t try to quit being the kind of a boy I was, and be better.

Summary:

Huck was struggling whether he should free Jim or not. At that moment, he decided to pray and ask for the answer.

Response:

After I read the first part of the story, I don’t think Huck really believed in religion and God. Instead, under Mark Twain’s description, he was very superstitious. He thought that killing a spider would bring him bad luck and tying his hair up with a thread can send witches away. However, when he encountered the problem that whether he should free Jim, he understood that his superstition could not help him. Therefore, he chose to pray to God for help. In his society, freeing a slave had no difference with stealing other’s property and the stealer would not be allowed to go to heaven. The only place for him after his death would be the hell. On one hand, he really wanted to free the slave. On the other hand, he really wanted to go to the heaven instead of the hell. At that point, he was helpless.

The funny part of the quote is that Huck wanted to “quit being the kind of a boy [he] was”. He understood that God didn’t like a robber or a naughty boy. Therefore, when he was praying, he even thought about to wash away his sin. Though the God didn’t do anything to send him the answer, he finally chose to tear up the letter which he wrote to Miss. Watson about the location of Jim. This part was so sweet. Huck was willing to go to hell after freeing Jim, his good friend. After reading this part, I wonder how many friends around us can do something like Huck.

Journal entry# 11 Mark Twain

Siu Faat Jimmy Wong
English 48b
January 25, 2008
Professor Lankford

Quote:

“Pretty soon I wanted to smoke, and asked the widow to let me. But she wouldn’t. She said it was a mean practice and wasn’t clean, and I must try to not do it any more… And she took snuff too; of course that was all right”.

Summary:

This quote is found in the “Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” of Mark Twain. It mentions that Huckleberry Finn asks the Widow Douglas for permission to smoke.

Response:

In this quote, I realize that the Widow Douglas is a very straight woman who holds authority in the family. She did not allow Huckleberry Finn to smoke because Tobacco “wasn’t clean” and smoking “was a mean practice”. When you first study the first part of the quote, you may think that this woman cares about Huckleberry Finn a lot. Yet, if you read the last part of the quote, the Window Douglas “took snuff too”. On one hand, she asked the boy not to smoke. On the other hand, she smoked actually. It was quite ridiculous. She didn’t act as a role model to the boy. From my point of view, this lady indirectly causes Huckleberry Finn to be so rebellious.

Moreover, I want to point out an interesting point. Mark Twain said that “that was all right” for the Widow to smoke. When I am reading this part, I don’t know if he really said it faithfully or ironically. I discussed this part with my friends. We all agree that on one hand, Mark Twain was afraid of the Widow Douglas and understood that smoking was bad. Therefore, he didn’t smoke in front of her. On the other hand, he though that the Widow Douglas was not fair. She said it was mean to smoke. So she shouldn’t smoke at all. Yet, since she held the power, she could do whatever she wanted to.

Journal entry# 10 Ambrose Bierce

Siu Faat Jimmy Wong
English 48b
January 17, 2008
Professor Lankford

Quote:

Love ---A temporary insanity curable by marriage or by removal of the patient from the influences under which he incurred the disorder. This disease, like caries and many other ailments, is prevalent only among civilized races living under artificial conditions.

Summary:

This quote is found in the Devil’s Dictionary of Ambrose Bierce.

Response:

Bierce puts a lot of interesting explanations about the words in this dictionary. Among so many interesting words, I finally chose a very familiar word, “Love” and I really like this quote because it really explains the reality about love. He uses a very good metaphor to explain the nature of love. From my viewpoint, the author compares the “love” with “disease” which is a negative word. My interpretation is that the author views the love in a negative way such as couples may be suspicious of each others. However, in order to cure this kind of suspicions, one way is to get married in which couples give promise of commitment for each other (though this may not be true in the society nowadays). The other way to get rid of this kind of clueless suspicious or other kind of crazy acts when falling in love is to break up, in other words, staying alone.

In the second sentence, the author defines “love” as something that only happens within people who are civilized. In the old days, people seldom have the concept of “love”. People’s marriages are mostly appointed by their parents in which they have no way to choose their own spouses. Yet, as people get civilized, they need to have more rights and freedom. Therefore, the security to have a stable partner becomes lower. People will easily do a lot of crazy things for their boyfriends or girlfriends. No matter they are homosexual or heterosexual, they are all the same.

All in all, I think that Bierce really did a very good job to explain the “love” to his readers. “Love” really makes difference between today and the old days.

Journal entry# 9 Mark Twain

Siu Faat Jimmy Wong
English 48b
January 17, 2008
Professor Lankford

Quote:

“If you pray for the blessing of rain upon your crop which needs it, by that act you are possibly praying for a curse upon some neighbor’s crop which may not need rain and can be injured by it… there was no sense in what he said”.

Summary:

It is quoted in Mark Twain’s “The War Prayer”. It illustrates the idea that the things you like may not necessarily be the things others like. This quote actually wants to explain the harm of war.

Response:

The majority of the story is talking about citizens went to a church to bless the soldiers who have been called up for a victory in the war. These people were so happy with the war. They might think that the war could bring them victory and stability. Suddenly, one stranger appeared and gave a speech to the citizens. He told the citizens that everything has both sides. The rain you bless for your crops might hurt your neighbor’s crops. I think it is extremely true. People always focus on the positive side which they prefer to, but they usually overlook the negative side which may cause suffering and destruction from the war.
Indeed, there are a lot of things, like the war, which people only focus on one side. For example, most of the people may think that a prosperous economy, like the one we are having, must benefit people. However, do these people know that there are still a lot of people suffering from hunger today? Frankly, businessmen in the developed countries love to use labors in the non-developed or developing countries in their production lines. Moreover, these workers are usually suppressed with a very low salary which cannot improve their standard of living. Therefore, I really cannot see that most of us will care about the people in this poor area when we are having our high quality of lives.

The last part of the quote really shows the response of the people when they see or listen to the unfavorable side. The negative side is always ignored by the people. Luckily, in recent years, the cost of developing industry is already discovered. People start to realize the problem of global warming and try to solve it. Otherwise, the cost of developing country may be similar to the cost of the war which may cost a huge degree of suffering and destruction.

Journal entry# 8 Mark Twain

Siu Faat Jimmy Wong
English 48b
January 17, 2008
Professor Lankford

Quote:

“It never make no difference to him--- he’d bet on anything--- the dangdest feeler”.

Summary:

This quote is found in “The Notorious Jumping frog of Calaveras Country”. It explains that Smiley loved to bet very much.

Response:

This quote simply tells me that this crazy guy loved to gamble a lot. He was so crazy actually. In the story, he could even bet on Parson Walker’s wife that she would feel sick again. I think that the author was quite smart in writing this story. Since he was writing about a man and a frog, he used a lot of words to explain how crazy he loved to bet. He could bet on cats, dogs, or chickens. If he simply told me that Smiley loved to bet a lot, I might have a milder feeling about his craziness. However, now I have a much clearer idea that he was extremely crazy about gambling. Moreover, I think that the author was so successful in making things humorous. I believe that most of the readers probably think that his writing is so humorous though he actually used a lot of simple words to describe a man with a frog. I think that this kind of writing can leave a deeper memory in the reader’s mind. Also, readers may tend to believe what they are told.

Lastly, this story makes me think about the society. Smiley thought that he was really able to win every time because of his luck and talent. Many people were the same. They did not want to believe that there was actually somebody better than they were. So, they kept challenging others before understanding their actual ability. Similar to Smiley, this kind of people might encounter failure one day. One last thing, after reading the book, I think we should not gamble since we don’t know when “the stranger” will appear in our lives and put bullets in our frog's stomach.

Journal entry# 7 Ambrose Bierce

Siu Faat Jimmy Wong
English 48b
January 17, 2008
Professor Lankford

Quote:

“Peyton Farquhar was dead; his body, with a broken neck, swung gently from side to side beneath the timbers of the Owl Creek bridge”.

Summary:

It is found in the end of "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge". The man was executed and his body was remained on the Owl Creek Bridge.

Response:

In the beginning of the story, I feel so sorry to Peyton Farquhar since he has to be hanged on the bridge. However, he escaped from the bridge and jumped into the river. I was so happy that he did not have to be killed. Moreover, I could also felt his courage and insistence to be alive until he could go back home. Before the last sentence appeared, I thought this story was very sweet and touching. Nevertheless, I thought I was fooled that the man was already killed and the story did not actually happen. He did not fall into the river and he did not save his life.
Frankly, I did not like the structure of the story since I did not like to be cheated to move my emotion by some fake words. After reading several times, I figured out that the author actually gave out some hints to the readers that the man was already killed. Throughout the paragraphs, Farquhar kept feeling painful on his neck. He even found that his neck was horribly swollen. However, readers including me still believed that the man was alright and alive. Though I did not like the structure of the story, I think it was quite successful. Under the author’s wonderful description and imagination, readers most probably came up with the image that the man was really swimming in the river and he was feeling so painful with his body.

Anyway, I do not know whether other readers like the structure of this story. One thing I am pretty sure is that they must feel very sorry about the man and feel sad to be fooled.

Journal entry# 6 Ambrose Bierce

Siu Faat Jimmy Wong
English 48b
January 11, 2008
Professor Lankford

Quote:

“I might throw off the noose and spring into the stream. By diving I could evade the bullets and, swimming vigorously, reach the bank, take to the woods and get away home”.

Summary:

This is quoted in “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge”. I chose this quote since it explained what it was going on in the second part of the story.

Response:

After reading the whole story, I thought I really had been fooled to believe that the man was still alive. I was not willing to be cheated in this way. Indeed, this quote really made me truly believe that the man really escaped in the death penalty. I felt so sorry about him and from this quote, I could see the man actually missed her family so much and wanted to see them again when his neck was already encircled by a rope. He did not know when he would fall down and break his neck. He just knew that his family was his no.1. It showed me that even though he realized that the chance for him to throw off the nooses and spring into the stream was almost impossible, he was so unwilling to be killed at that time. I understand that every convict who is sentenced to death must have the same feeling as he did. I feel so sorry and sad. As far as I know, America still has death penalty in this modern decade though it always calls itself to be the country with the highest degree of freedom. I can’t see the point that this kind of penalty is still not abolished. I understand that the convicts must have done something very bad to others. They may murder others, rape others or rob others. However, it is already in a past tense. Jesus says, “We have to forgive others seventy times seven.” Therefore, why can’t we just look forward and give him/her a chance to make a return to the society instead of ending his/her life?

Journal entry# 5 Emily Dickinson

Siu Faat Jimmy Wong
English 48b
January 11, 2008
Professor Lankford

Quote:

Wild Nights—Wild Nights!
Were I with thee

Wild Nights should be

Our luxury!

Futile - the winds-
To a Heart in port-
Done with the Compass-
Done with the Chart!

Rowing in Eden-

Ah- the Sea!

Might I but moor- tonight-

In thee!

Summary:

I chose this poem because it is one of the most popular poems of Dickinson. However, it is quite ambiguous since it is very difficult to figure out whom she is describing. After reading for many times, I think that the one she is referring to is her lover. Additionally, I paste the entire poem here because I really have no clue to cut this poem since the whole poem is so amazing and it is focusing on one thing, her passion for sex.

Response:

This poet is illustrating the speaker's desire for sex. In her poem, Dickinson points out that “wild nights” can be the speaker's“luxury”. I am really surprised that a woman like Dickinson who always shut her door up and stayed inside her room might also write something about sex desire. This “luxury” can really show that the speaker really yearns for having a close relationship with a man. Therefore, this poem is showing the speaker's desire of sex or maybe her past experience. Moreover, “Sea” is a metaphor for a wish because no one can easily see the opposite shore with bare eyes while the opposite shore may be thought to be people's destinations. Therefore, people may have an intention to reach the opposite shore. In the poet, the speaker's destination is to have sex with her lover. It is quite obvious that “A Heart in port” means that she feels so warm and safe when she is with her lover. In her poem, I think that “Done with the Compass-/ Done with the Chart!” shows something sexual. It explains that there is no need for them to use compass or chart when they are having sex because their destination is already reached at that time. They do not need these guides any more. Furthermore, “Eden” is a very beautiful place where the first man, Adam, and the first woman, Eve, had sex together and broke the rule which was set by the God. Therefore, Dickinson uses “Eden” to further show that she is referring to sex. Under my imagination, I consider “Rowing in Eden” as well as “moor…in thee” as making love. All in all, Dickinson is superficially writing something related to religion. However, it is actually referring to something sexual in her mind or from her experience. I think that she is really a great poet who uses a lot of normal and religious words which can escape from the blame for writing something sexual.

Journal entry# 4 Emily Dickinson

Siu Faat Jimmy Wong
English 48b
January 11, 2008
Professor Lankford

Quote:

But no Man moved Me -

till the TideWent past my simple Shoe -

And past my Apron -

and my BeltAnd past my Bodice - too –

And made as He would eat me up

Summary:

It apparently shows that the tides make her wet and scared. However, I think that it is actually about something sexual. The tide does not mean a strong water wave.

Response:

In the beginning of the poem, readers can easily misunderstand that the speaker is very afraid of the horrible sea. She does not want to be eaten by the sea. However, in stanza three, “No man moved me – till the Tide” shows that Dickinson is actually writing about what the speaker feel about having sex with a man. In her experience, there might be a man who could really move her sexually. The “tide” is a metaphor of orgasm. Before this man appears, no one can convince her to make love and she has never tried the taste of having an orgasm. However, this man is different. He can make her happy and have an orgasm. In the poem, Dickinson uses “Shoe”, “Apron”, “Belt”, and “Boddice” to show that the speaker is so excited and happy about the sex with the man. After writing about the pleasure the speaker is having, Dickinson writes something more. Although the speaker is so happy at that time, she doesn't want to be eaten up by the man. This can show that she cares about her freedom and autonomy. She doesn't want to be controlled by the man. As a reader, I can see that the speaker is an autonomous person. She does not love to depend on a man since she loves freedom in her life.
I think that Dickinson is such a great poet because she can use the clothing to show the happiness of the speaker. Moreover, she keeps using several “And"s to show that the happiness is coming from the speaker's lower body to upper body. It can help to explain that the speaker may be having sex with her man. By using some metaphors, Dickinson is able touse some acceptable words to describe something sexual which is not quite acceptable in her society.

Journal entry# 3 Emily Dickinson

Siu Faat Jimmy Wong
English 48b
January 11, 2008
Professor Lankford

Quote:

Tell all the Truth but tell it slant-/Success in Circuit lies/ Too bright for our infirm Delight

Summary:

This is the first sentence of opening sentence of one of her most popular poems. I chose this quote because I think it is so meaningful which apply to most of our daily lives.

Response:

Almost all parents ask their children to tell the truth when they are young. They have to report the truth to their parents, their teacher, their friends or even anyone around them. However, do they really have to be so honest? Is telling the truth always good? After reading this poem of Dickinson, I will say telling truth is good, but only when it is given out in a slant way or only part of the truth is mentioned.

In the poem, “Success in circuit” means that there is a sharp light produced on the wires after the wires are connected successfully while “lies” means that the light is useless. On one hand, the light cannot last stably. On the other hand, the light is too bright for our “Delight” that we cannot just use it to see things and this light may even hurt our sights. After reading the whole poem, I have some basic understanding. If someone suddenly tells you the whole story of something without any concealment, you may feel very uncomfortable and you may not even trust that person. However, if he or she gradually gives out the most acceptable part of the truth, you probably will feel more comfortable and consider his or her words. In this century, the communication between people is getting more complicated and modern. There should be less social conflicts in order to have a more peaceful society. Therefore, people should think about this statement of Dickinson, “Tell all the Truth but tell it slant”. It definitely helps to make lives easier.

Journal entry# 2 Emily Dickinson

Siu Faat Jimmy Wong
English 48b
January 11, 2008
Professor Lankford

Quote:

A bird, came down the Walk-/He did not know I saw… And then hopped sidewise to the Wall/ To let a Beetle pass-

Summary:

This poem is actually describing some very usual and normal things. A bird eats a worm and it does not know that it is being watched. Also, it waits for a beetle to pass by. Though the whole poem only depicts the event which happens in Dickinson’s garden, she can still write a very good poem with these kinds of simple material.

Response:

Not similar to other poets who love to travel all over the world to find something which is worthy to be included in their poems, Dickinson chooses to stay in her house or in her garden to write her poems by observing something in her daily life. In this poem, after she observes a bird and some insects, she uses her wonderful description skill to depict the whole event on a paper. “He bit an Angle Worm into halves” can really make me imagine that there is really a bird eating an Angle Worm. Moreover, the bird “drank the Dew” after finished eating the worm. It is just similar to human beings who usually drink something after having a meal. Her observation and description greatly increases the creditability of the poem. Moreover, this poem is quite reading-friendly since she either starts a new line or uses a dash when there is a new motion. For instance, “drank a Dew/From a convenient Grass” and “hopped sidewise to the wall/ to let a Beetle pass” can show this result. Though she cuts the poems into pieces by having new lines or dashes, I do not have any feeling of over-split. Dickinson’s poem is more casual comparing with other poets. Most of the material of Dickinson is about daily lives which can arouse reader's echo easily. She encourages me that in order to be a good poet or a good writer, there is no need to always travel around to get idea. Instead, I can just simply use something happen in my lives to be the writing material. For instance, I may write something related to my family, my lover or my friend. My reader may even feel happier when they are reading something more familiar with them.

Journal entry# 1 Emily Dickinson

Siu Faat Jimmy Wong
English 48b
January 11, 2008
Professor Lankford

Quote:

So huge, so hopeless to conceive…Parting is all we know of Heaven,/ And all we need of hell.

Summary:

They are found in the last two lines in one of her poems about death. I chose them because I think they are quite meaningful about life and death.

Response:

In this poem, “Parting” means a person die and leave the others. Therefore, parting must be sorrow. In order to decrease the sadness, people may think that the dead will go to the heaven where contains a lot of joy. However, the people who are still alive will be even sadder than the dead. They may feel like they are in “hell”. Dickinson truly tells the truth that the people who are alive suffer a lot about the deaths. I have read this quote for many times. Each time I feel very sad because it is so factual that it applies on me. My grandmother passed away six years ago. Hopefully, she is now having another kind of life in heaven with many friends. I can keep persuading myself that she is fine. However, I can't deny that I really feel like I am in hell in these years. Indeed, after I witnessed my grandmother’s death, I figure out that death is really like what Dickinson says. It is “so huge” and “so hopeless”. The reason for life to be so huge is because one person's death can really cause a lot of people sad like being in “hell”. Moreover, it is so hopeless because people cannot control themselves to live forever. No matter how modern the technology is, no one is able to change the rule of death. After reading this poem, Dickinson is really one of the best poets I have ever seen who can write so well about the death and the sorrow. She knows well that whenever somebody is in heaven, somebody will feel like living in “hell”.