Can you love a Roach? Gregor Samsa wakes up on morning transformed into a beetle of some sort. His whole family depends on him to wake up every morning and go to a dead end job, to pay off the debt of his parents. After missing the train to go to work because, his little beetle legs can’t flip himself over, the chief clerk comes to check up on Gregor. The chief clerk becomes impatience and starts banging on the door. Gregor manages to get off the bed and open the door. There reactions were strange. It wasn’t that they were surprised that much but more scarred of his new form. The family now has to adjust to the fact that Gregor can’t work any more. His younger sister must work at a general store and give up playing the Violin. The dad and the mother have to start working again and they have to have two loggers come live with them. The family has to sacrifice so much because of Gregor’s new form, that when he dies it is a relief. The family now can move to a small town house and hopefully marry off the young daughter.
I felt that this story had a lot of hidden meaning behind it that I just couldn’t quite grab. Why was it that out of all of the things he could have transformed into he transformed into a roach. I though that this could have been because he felt as insignificant and mistreated as a roach. He had to work off his parent’s debt, he hated his job, and his boss was not very pleasant. It wasn’t until he was hiding under the couch in his roach form did he actually get to appreciate all the hard work he had done. Everyone has felt like a roach at one point of his or her lives, and this story exaggerates it. I think that the writer must have had a lot of self-pity for himself, to have made such a sad a pathetic character.
When have you felt like a roach? Would you consider Gregor a hero? If you transformed into a roach would you let your family go? Could the fact that the family was so frightened by his new form be a metaphor on how people are so afraid of what doesn’t look familiar?

peer evaluation

I learned from my peer evaluator that I'm going to need a lot of work on my grammar. Most of my papers do. I could definitely see where he was coming from when he said that some times my sentences didn't flow together. Often when I write a paper I have a lot of different ideas and I just put them all down and they sometimes don't flow together. I plan on making my paper sound more like I am just telling a story to someone. Something my peer evaluator though was that my conclusion needed to be put more through out my paper. I love my conclusion, but I did have a hard time bringing it all together with my paper.
My peer evaluator liked the development through out the story and how it had a clear transitions. He said that he like the development of the characters relationships. I agreed. I thought that it was important to see all the different levels of Hannah and I relationship. If any thing I'm glad he came away from this story seeing that.

My views on my paper

I had a hard time phrasing what it was that made Hannah such a difficult person to be with. There were two things that went wrong with our friendship. One was that Hannah would often mistreat me as a friend, and really munipulate me. They other problem was Hannah's parents never taking charge of Hannah. I didn't know how to phrase what I learned because I guess what I did learn was that our friendship didn't work. I didn't want put that in my paper because I felt like then why did i write it. The only reason I could think of was why I wrote it was because of how imporant she was in my life for a while. How unblieveably creative she was and how she brought that out of me. As much as I wrote about the bad things I really wanted to end the paper on how amazing she was.

My favorite parts of my paper is about the imaginary games we would play. They truely were one of my most favorite memories of my childhood. As crazy and hectice as her life was she was amazing in her creativety. I guess that is the point I wanted to get across in my paper. I wanted to make this paper funny, but at the same time sad because of her hard family life. I had a hard time deciding weather I wanted to put what was really happening in her family life into my paper. Her Dad was mentally Ill, her mom was never home, she was always doing business trips. Her sister got engaged by 18 and was a model, who could have had an eating disorder. Hannah was stuck in all of this. I felt like I got across how hard it was for her and how she looked for my family and her creativety as an outlet.

The offshore Pirate

This story was very strange and took many different turns than the usual story. Ardita the main character did not have the usual characteristics that most main characters have. I was so sure that by the end of this story she would change her spoiled, shelfish ways and become a better person. Instead I think she liked Carlye better once she knew that he was a convincing, trickster. Who would have guessed that Carlye the humble ragtime player would become a lieing old man just tryig to trick Ardita into marriage. I feel that Ardita was always borred with her life because she could always get what ever she wanted. Thats why she was ok with the idea that Carlye had made this big scheme to get her to fall in love with him. She likes the idea of a constanst journey or adventure and Carlye can give that to her. I also think that because Ardita is selfish and coniving herself that she was looking for a man that could out do her.
I usually like the stories were the main character becomes a better person by the end. This story took a completely different turn than what I expected it to, but it made the story very intersting. I though that it was very different to the usual Hero's journey. In the usual Hero's journey the Hero learns something about them selves and makes a change for the better. In this story I do think that Ardita learnes something, but maybe not for the better. It doesn't make since to me that there relationship could be based on so many lies and that Ardita would like that. I don't know how Carlye could every out due himself after his first scheme to get her to fall in love. What does Ardita expect know?

Why do you think Ardita was ok with the whole scheme? What was is that Ardita really desired in a man? What kind of man do you think Carlye is?

Character Archetypes

This section of the book talks about the different character Archetypes that most stories have. The threshold guardian, the herald, the shapeshifter, the shadow, the ally, and the tricksters. The threshold guardian is the character that is seems threatening. They are ofter guarding the gates of where the hero is heading. They challenge the hero's strengths in order to go on in their adventure. The character the herald is a messenger that provides motivation for certain characters. The message can ususally be confertational which will get the hero or other character to start an action, such as war. The character the shapeshifter is ussually the heros's subcouncience and is ussually the oppisite sex. They usually constantly change in shape or emotions. The character the shadow is usually the hero's iner most fears or flaws. They are the hero's enemies or villains. The character the ally is the hero's right hand man. the can serve many perposes such as comedy reilf or a sparring partner. The character the truchster symbolies mischief and disre for change. They bring the hero's ego down to earth. They give the audience different perspective and often hav slips of the tongue.
When I read this I though about the different stories I knew and how where these characters fit. The threshold guardian reminded me of "The Never Ending Story" where Atreyu the main character had to pass the two large phoenix. Only the most noblest men are allowed to pass them other wise they will burn you to death. The Herold reminded me in the story of Othello when Iago convinced Othello on faulty evidence that Desdemona was cheating on him. The shadow that I though of was of course the eye in the "Lord of the Rings". The scary eye that was constantly looking for Frodo. The Ally I though of was the Donky in Shriek. He gave so much comedy to an already pretty funny movie, while never leaving Shrieks side. For the Trickster I though of Gollum because you never knew who's side he really was on. He always brought Frodo back to eath about how corupting the ring can be. All of the character types are really imporant to any story and I enjoyed getting to see a clear cut explantion of them.


Do these character inter twine at all? What are the stories that came to mind for other people?
Was the Shapeshifter suppose to be the Hero's lover?

neighborhood adventures

Sarah McDuffie 2/12/09
Adventures Right in my Back yard
Even growing up in urban Atlanta, I have always believed that can magic exist any wear. My neighborhood was filled with block after block of beautiful old houses that were made back in the civil war. The blocks are all connected by ally ways, which felt like my own little secret garden that I could play in. There were always a lot of children on my street, but there were never my age. My two older sisters had lots of friends on the street. They would all go ride their bikes, but I was never allowed because I was to young. Even though my street felt very safe to me, my parents would worry. The bad part about living in the city is once you left the street you were on a very busy road and right next to some very busy bars as well. I was never allowed to go further from where I could hear me mom yelling, unless I told her where I was going. I loved and still love my neighborhood for its beauty and the doors of creativity that it opens for me.
One day I noticed that I had new neighbors moving in only two houses down from me. I also noticed that they had a little girl with blonde short hair like a boy and she was rather short. I saw her playing in the yard with a funny little rat looking thing. It would scurry around while she would fallow it on her hand and knees and grab it right before it made an escape. I told my oldest sister named Laura what I had seen and that I wanted to see what the girl was playing with, but I was to scarred to go over there by my self. Laura quickly grabbed my hand and we
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started walking down the street. By the time we were getting past the second house and coming upon the lawn with girl, she looked up, grabbed the rat and ran into the house. I remember feeling embarrass that we had come all this way for her to run away from us. Right as Laura and I were turning around to go back to the house the little girl returned back through the door holding her older sister’s hand in one hand and the rat in the other. This was the first time I met Hannah. Hannah was a small girl who was a tomboy just like me. The rat in her hand was actually not a rat at all, but a ginne pig named Brownie because that was Hannah’s favorite dessert at the time. Even though Hannah was half my size her creative mind was bigger than any one’s I have ever met.
Hanging out with Hannah became a daily thing. After school I would run down to her house or it would be the other way around and she would run down to my house. We would play endless, inventive games. One of our games was playing in the ally. There was always some sort of weeds growing there. The weeds would be our crops and we would be the farmers. We would spend hours pulling out these weeds that looked like a wheat plants to us. We would wash them in a bucket. Then we would bundle them together, tie them with a string and put them in a cooler. Once that was all done we would make up different people to come buy the wheat from us. After pulling out enough wheat we started noticing other little plants that grew in the ally. Such as little weeds that if you pulled out they looked and smelled like onions. We also found wild strawberries that we never dared to
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eat. We would find all sorts of berries and wild flowers as well. With all our different crops we would take them down to Hannah’s basement. This is where we would smash them up and put them into little bottles. They were our magical potions, that could cure anything and I’m pretty sure they are still there today.
Hannah was the most, picky eater I have every met. Her diet contained of pizza roles, apple juice, and Butterfinger chewy bars. She would never ever put a fruit or vegetable in her mouth without wanting to gage. Even though her diet was very strict she still wanted to be a chief. Most days after school she would come over to my house and make me food, but she would never try it herself. Her favorite thing to make was nachos. She said that if she ever owned a restaurant she would make these nachos and call them the McDuffie’s special.
It would always upset my mom that Hannah would not eat the super that she would prepare. Instead she would bring her pizza roles down to our house and eat those instead. I would always complain how Hannah never had to eat her broccoli, but I did. This is when is my mom started to notice that Hannah never had any rules. Hannah’s parents never had any control over Hannah’s actions. She was a wild child and I was a goodie toshoes because of this there was a lot of conflicts. The first time this became a problem was when Hannah wanted to cross the busy street. Hannah and I were getting older and my mom would finally allow us to go walk down to CVS. If you walk out of our street and take a right you can go straight down to CVS without having to cross the busy street. We though it would be fun to
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take our allowance which was a whopping five dollars and roller blade down to the CVS, where we would buy candy. We had a good time skating down and getting our favorite candy bar “Butterfingers”. On our way home Hannah decided that she wanted to cross the street because there was a yard sale. I was to scared, because I had promised my mom that I would not cross the street. No matter how hard Hannah tried to convince me that we would be fine I couldn’t help but feel the guilt of betraying my mom. Since Hannah wasn’t going to go alone we ended up back at my house.
This was just one of the many conflicts I had with myself. Weather to fallow Hannah’s lead and go down a dangerous yet fun path or fallow my mom and be safe. No matter what side I took Hannah and I were inseparable. At one point Hannah basically lived at my house and I considered her one of my sisters. Even though Hannah had no rules and I had plenty. Hannah had a hard relationship with her parents and I had a close one we connected through our imaginary games. Our playful games kept us together and made us have the strongest friendship ever. I’ll never forget the time when we dressed up funny and congregated the whole neighborhood to have our very own Mardi Gra. We got all our neighbors to dress up, ride bikes and through beads to people in cars that passed by. My memories with Hannah are my most, fondest memories of my childhood. Our games will always stick with me and because of that the magic in our imagination will always be in my heart.

Indian Camp

This story starts off with Nick, his father and his Uncle George getting into two Indian canoes. After they cross the misty cold river they get to the Indian camp ground. At the Indian camp ground there is a women who had been going through labor for two days. Nick's father is a doctor who thinks that the baby might be coming out the wrong. Instead of coming out head first he thinks they baby is trying to come out feet first. He was right and he decides the best solution is to have surgery. After the surgery Nick and his father go to congratulate the father, but finds his dead body. The father had killed himself. Uncle George quickly takes Nick out of the room, but it's to late he has already seen everything. On the boat ride home Nick talks to his father about death. He feels so safe with his father that he thinks that he will never die.

At a young age I know how it feels when you are with your parents and you feel invincible. Death seems so far fetch and that it will never happen to you. Nick saw the trouble of labor and the pain that she was going through, but how his father saved her. Then he saw a man who had given up and committed suicide. Through his eyes death seemed so avoidable. Either that his dad will save him or that he would never give up they way that man had. He is so young and naive like most of use we never think we will die.

In class we talked about morality. I fell like in this story it shows that death is all around us, but we refuse to admit that we will die one day too. By reading stories such as "A Good Man is Hard to Find" and "Indian Camp" it shows the reality of death. Death can happen to any of us at any time.

Why do you think the little boy felt that he would never die after seeing so much death?

My own heros journey

In 6th grade I was playing on the monkey bars at my school's playground. The playground was very large and the jungle gym was at the back of the property behind the soccer field. I would every day go back with my friend Abbye and we would play on the monkey bars. One day Abbye was trying to leap from the first bar to the very last one. She flung herself, her body completely stretched, but she couldn't make it to the last bar. She ended up doing a belly flop on to the ground. My call to adventure had begun. I had to decided fast what I was going to do. She had knocked her breath out and was having a hard time speaking. All the kids sat around shocked not knowing what to do. The reality of the situation finally came to us. We all looked around at one another trying to decided who would go get a teacher. I finally leapt into actions, I ran for a teacher. I ran as hard as could in a frantic mode and found one of my teacher near the soccer field. She noticed my worried face at once and quickly fallowed me back to the monkey bars. By the time we had returned Abbye had regained her breath and was talking, but was still very rattled. The teacher took Abbye and I back into the class room. Abbye was fine but she gave us both lollypops anyways. We sat content with our lollypops waiting for the other kids to arrive to tell about our adventure on the monkey bars.

A Good Man is Hard to FInd

This short story was about a family of six that goes on an adventure, but ends up in tragedy. The family is made up of a grandmother, her son, his wife and three children. They are heading for a vacation in Florida. The two young children named June Bug and John Wesley are very impolite and selfish, which upsets the grandmother greatly. After stopping shortly at a restaurant the grandmother remembers an old plantation she use to visit. After convincing her son to take the car down a dirt road to see the plantation they get into a crash. All of them survive the crash, but three misfits come along to cause trouble. The leader of the misfits is an older man who enjoys telling his life story to the grandmother. While he gets his followers to take family members at a a time in to the woods to shoot them. Terrified the grandmother tries to convince the misfit that he has good blood and is really a good man, but in the end he shoots the grandmother three times.
To me this is a very sad story, but in its harshness there is reality. I think most people want a fairy tale ending to every story, but in the real world not every thing ends happily ever after. I think that the title of this shot story "A Good Man is Hard to Find" explains the truth about people. That humans can't always be good, and that there is potential for good and evil in every human being. People can so easily go a stray and the way this misfit saw it was that he was a bad man and he might as well burn some houses or kill some people while he still had time on this planet.
I was confused on what the misfit was trying to say about Jesus?

Hey professor Kat,
I have got my new blog pass word. Hopefully I will be able to start posting more blogs.
Sarah McDuffie