Literature Circle Blog Post 2

We've wrapped up our first book already so today I will be posting on our second book: "Notes from the Underground"

Part 1: http://bigdr00.blogspot.com/2007/12/literature-circle-resonse-1.html

Part 2:

a) Observations

What strikes me about the book is that it does not neccessarily follow the normal 'novel format' because the first part of the book occurs mainly in the 'underground man's' head. There isn't neccessarily a 'story' being told in part one, more just a series of commentaries made by him about his opinions and viewpoints of himself and the world as he sees it.

Developing themes:
*Justice
*Revenge
*Madness
*Perception and self respect

b) Ouestions

Interpretive question: What is the difference between revenge and justice and how do they relate to "Notes frome the Underground"?

(So far) my opinion would be:

Justice: What is considered 'just'. However this is often hard to determine as having a personal connection to the situation autimatically makes you biased and your punishing actions may be more done out of spite, personal opinion, or emotional fulfillment.

Revenge: Personally implicating punishment or consequences for actions that were done against you or relate to you.

c) Quotes

A quote from NFTU that is relevant to the question above occurs on page 12:

"I said that a man revenges himself because he sees justice in it. Therefore he has found a primary cause, that is, justice. And so he is at rest on all sides, and consequently he carries out his revenge calmly and successfully, being persuaded that he is doing a just and honest thing. But I see no justice in it, I find no sort of virtue in it, and consequently if I attempt to revenge myself, it is only out of spite."

A brief reflection on Conrad’s “Heart of Darkness”

I think this piece (or novella or novel or something because it’s really short) is a accurate representation of how greed affects the human mind and the slow descent into madness. From what we have gathered, the concept of ‘darkness’ appears to be a) lust and greed for material possessions, b) an abandonment of moral values, or c) seeking things (whether material or not) for your own selfish gain.

At first the reader is meant to picture the enigmatic Mr. Kurtz as this ideal leader, strong and powerful and smart and a real influence on the company. But perhaps this ‘influence’ is not always ideal. He is later depicted as this selfish, personally interested man who yes is quite successful at his job (gaining ivory) but his methods are questionable.

Possession of ivory is Mr. Kurtz’s ultimate goal. In the book there are constant references to its value and luster. Think of it as the modern fight for oil, and Mr. Kurtz the leader of a country who must obtain it in order to support the live the life they have become acquainted to. Thus, humans will lose their inhibitions and may resort to more controversial methods as many political issues depict today.

I sometimes got distracted during the course of the book. This is mostly due to the way Conrad writes. His style tends to be very descriptive and reading a page is sometimes like decoding a puzzle. It is not his fault that I got distracted. I fear that I have been stuck in the ‘teen genre’ for too long and it was a total change of gears from what I had been used to lately. The book definitely warrants a second reading I did enjoy it regardless of my sometimes confusion.

"The Melancholic Pedestrian" by Salvador Garmendia

Wow.

I liked this story granted that it was extremely CREEPY.

What kind of sick, twisted, Jekyll and Hydish individual would kill a helpless old lady in her sixties, and a church organist nonetheless.

Though I suppose that's the point- the PERFECT victim...

(I'll update tonight on specific passages that stood out to me)

Water Presentation: Bottled water vs. Municipal water

So, it's going better now that we've actually found some sources, we didn't present today however which is irritating because that means tommorrow is going to be hectic with two quizzes and a presentation.

However I can't complain as Anne was gracious enough to let us go last because we had so much trouble in the beginning.

(Cheers and Kudos for Anne!)

The good news: tomorrow is Friday.

Final Sources for Water Project:

http://www.bottledwater.org/default.htm

http://www.brighamandwomens.org/healtheweightforwomen/special_topics/intelihealth0804.aspx?subID=submenu10

http://www.jupiterionizers.com/catalog/article_info.php?articles_id=10

Water Project: Some resources and frustrations

http://www.fda.gov/FDAC/features/2002/402_h2o.html

http://www.nsf.org/business/water_distribution/pdf/NSF_Fact_Sheet.pdf

http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761573158_2/Water.html

http://www.lenntech.com/water-purification-steps-FAQ.htm (some chemical info)

http://www.bidness.com/esd/water_facts.htm


This is starting to appear a lot harder then I had originally thought. The topic is overall starting to become a frustration, it seems as if we can't get a definition for 'municipal water' anywhere, and those that claim to be are extremely vague. I'm simply starting to think that everything is simply tap water through faucet or bottle and there is NO difference between bottled and municipal water.

Sources

Operation Wetback

http://www.pbs.org/kpbs/theborder/history/timeline/20.html

http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0706/p09s01-coop.htm

http://www.csmonitor.com/2006/0706/p09s01-coop.html

http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/articles/OO/pqo1.html


Border Industrialization Program.

http://www.pbs.org/kpbs/theborder/history/index.html

http://www.medc.org/roots_maquila.php


End of Bracero Program

http://www.farmworkers.org/bracerop.html

Blog Critique: Emlyn

I was impressed with Emlyn's blog as a whole. His group, I believe, is doing something on the topic of (illegal)immigration. It may not pertain fully to us but perhaps we'll be able to glean some good info about past border immigration policies.

(Many) Notable posts:

http://wombicsec.blogspot.com/2007/09/hm-he-is-geep-in-thought.html

http://wombicsec.blogspot.com/2007/09/more-bad-news.html

http://wombicsec.blogspot.com/2007/09/if-i-were-good-person.html

http://wombicsec.blogspot.com/2007/09/argh.html

http://wombicsec.blogspot.com/2007/09/jackpot.html

Like Carter he's applying the 'paragraph strategy', which I believe, along with actually putting our own thoughts/responses about the research is what Spencer is trying to batter into our heads.

Blog Critique: Carter

Another group doing a topic that isn't very relevant to ours (pesticides again).

I was particularly impressed with the following:

"This site talks about how its all nice and happy up here in the U.S., but in Mexico, it a lot rougher in the pesticide business. Its anything goes, no harmful chemicals are illegal down there in Mexico. This means that companies can, 1) Make pesticides that are harmful towards the environment and 2) Make pesticides that will wind up on the plates of the Mexicans and possible poison them. Both of these are bad things. Along with that, the government is so corrupt that they don't mind as long as the companies who make pesticides keep paying them. Another bad point is that there are tons of pesticides, and the farmers don't care that much, so they could end up picking the worst of the lot. Bad news indeed, but a good source."

Site: http://multinationalmonitor.org/hyper/issues/1988/10/mm1088_06.html

Post: http://blogofepicfail.blogspot.com/2007/09/whadaya-know-another-site.html


WOW, it's a solid paragraph!

Obviously someone's comprehending what he's been researching (kudos Carter!).

A trend in several other bloggers (including myself admittedly) is to write merely a few sentences about the source but he clearly has taken his time to sum it up.

Good research!

Blog Critique: Laura

Well well well...

Laura has found a great source about the history of the border, I should know, because it's the SAME source our group is using!

http://laurathephilanthropic.blogspot.com/2007/09/beyond-border-resources.html

gotta luv them pbs folks.

No, it really is a great site, the have a timeline of events that led to the creation of the border and it really breaks things down and makes them easier to understand.

It also includes a very cool flash of how the US expanded over the years.


One other thing I've noticed about Laura's blog is she also includes a lot of humor which (I must make a note) makes blog reading more enjoyable, however mundane/complicated the topic is. It also helps jog your memory of important facts.

Blog Critique: Nicolette

I found some interesting info about the modern day border on Nicolette's blog. Two intersting sources dealing with the modern perceptions of the border/modern day issues of it she found are:

http://nicol3tt3harris.blogspot.com/2007/09/exploitation-vs-opportunity.html

and

http://nicol3tt3harris.blogspot.com/2007/09/death-tolls.html


They seem to be focused mainly on human rights and the treatment of the migrant workers and the somewhat controversial methods of the Border Patrol.

Blog Critique: Coco

I've read over a few of the posts in Colette's blog. Her group's topic doesn't really match up with our's at all (as she is focusing on pesticides and herbicides) but I'd like to appluad her reasearch skills none the less.

She is very good at summarizing the information she researchs, and not only that but gives us her own opinion of whether she believes the article/information is valid or not.

Notable posts would be:

http://coletteconover.blogspot.com/2007/09/andrews-blog.html (sorry Andrew)*for her comment about the workers of Latin America

and

http://coletteconover.blogspot.com/2007/09/dr-george-weiss.html *for her comment about natural fruits and veggies

BTB: Expert Source

I'm catching up on all this now as I spent much of the weekend biting down on gauze and rinsing my mouth with salt water.

But, enough about that.

I must have sent half a dozen emails now to various professors asking for an interview, I FINALLY got a response, from Dr. Van Young at UCSD whom I emailed a week ago who referred me to yet another professor, Dr. Rene Zenteno.

I've emailed him and have my fingers crossed he will respond promptly.

If not, Raquel will have to face her fear of telephones.

BTB: Script intro

This, is what I have written so far as an introduction to our video, and our question. Melissa and Brianna are covering the history for the rough draft so we'll see how it all goes during script critiques (or, how it all went, as I couldn't be there for script critiques due to a tooth extraction).

THIS IS A ROUGH DRAFT!

"Stretching 2000 miles and surrounded by four United States and six Mexican states, the US-Mexican border has long been a subject of controversy and conflict. Facing issues such as immigration, whether considered “legal” or “illegal”, free trade, and labor rights; the idea of the border itself has changed drastically over the years.

To some, it paints a portrait of hope, a landscape to a new life, through immigration and naturalization. And yet to others, it is an area in need of excessive security, with closed walls and a dividing line. It is native land to generations of indigenous South American tribes and home to the Latin American born Spanish- who with the help of the Indians and the rest of the populace won their independence from Spain in 1821.

But, how did this all begin? How did the border develop into what it is today and why? How did it evolve from a community of Native American groups, including the Aztecs and the Incas into such a symbol of debate; drawing the line between the United States and Mexico?"

I figure, once we put it all properly double spaced, and the camera views in it measures out to about a page, which, if the three of us each did a page, then our first draft should be about three pages.

BTB: CHANGED QUESTION

Our new question is:

How did the border evolve & who took a role in it? What is the modern perception of the Mexican border?

BTB: Olmec Civilization

http://www.crystalinks.com/olmec.html

This site has a lot of great info on the Ancient Olmec, I also took a look at the cited sources and there are sveral books worth taking a closer look at including one called "Mexico: From the Olmecs to the Aztecs" by M. D. Coe that might give us a better idea about the relations between the various tribes.

BTB: Some history on the ancient tribes of Mexico (post for 9/4)

http://www.geographia.com/mexico/mexicohistory.htm

So far I haven't gotten a chance to really explore this site but it lists the Olmecs, the Maya, and the Aztecs as some of the main tribes of the area.

I suppose we'll be able to find plenty of info on the Maya and the Aztecs and their trading policies/ 'border' interpretations.

The Olmecs were apparently the first of Mexico's ancient civilizations appearing in around 1000 BC and vanishing around 400 BC. They apparently were a great influence to the later tribes though finding info on them may prove difficult.