As the group project draws (quickly) to a close I want you to discuss the piece of writing that has attracted you the most and why. How can this 200 year old material still apply to today? How is it somehow outdated? This is your chance to speak about something that has caught your attention while reading.
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In the “Modest Proposal,” I don’t understand the idea or even what mind set Swift or anyone else could be in to even think about eating babies. “That the remanding hundred thousand may at a year old be offered in sale to the persons of quality, and fortune, through the kingdom, always advising the mother to let them suck plentifully in the last month, so as to render them plump, and fat for a good table.” As crazy as the world is today, I am kind of scared that someone might even take his idea a little too far. Reading and understanding the story is one thing but actually doing what the story is talking about would be flat out stupid. This 200 year old material still applies with the sex offenders we have on the earth. The sex offenders may not eat the babies, but they have a cold enough heart to take the children from their parents to abuse them and then kill them. When authors right stories today they think of things that are realistic and in simple terms, but today “Modest Proposal” would not be in that category.
ReplyDeleteThey have already used everyone else up. "I grant this food will be somewhat dear, and therefore very proper for landlords, who, as they have already devoured most of the parents." They only think of their own pocket book and how others perceive them and look at them. Washington politicians are trying to give us Socialized Medicine, but yet they don’t want to follow their own rules.
“A young healthy child well nursed is at a year old a most delicious, nourishing, and wholesome food, whether stewed, roasted, baked, or boiled….” For anyone that would actually make their own babies fat to sell or to eat is so wrong, because that lord gave us animals to eat, not your own children. God may have given us the decision to make our own choice, but I really don’t think eating your baby was one of the choices. Hunger is never out dated, it is all around us everyday. Weather it is because of the economy or destruction of an earthquake like in Hatti or Chili.
Tabitha Howell
I posted at 2:12. you might want to get that fixed if you want to know if everyone did the blog on time!!!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteThere was a piece of news that a lot of poor couples who have several kids would sell their girls to others as daughter or food if they were no more than ten months. As the journalists who had pretended as buyers report that some of the rich would pay a lot money to eat a baby meal, even just a bowl of baby soup. And the group purchased babies from backward areas or hospitals, the poor could not afford one more child or the ladies who were abandoned by babies' father, they may threw their babies away, so the group can buy babies in a low price. In the "A Modest Proposal", there is a proposal that the poor can sell their babies to lords, so that the poor can have food and lords can enjoy their baby meals, they can both be satisfied.
ReplyDeleteI think this kind of thing may be happen at anytime anywhere, it is because of the unbalance of income and personal morality. Maybe it is also a part of class distinctions.
Throughout this project my group and I have been adimately searching for the one piece of literature that summarizes the ideas and feelings of the 18th century people towards their government. Many stories such as Gulliver’s Travels gave satirical hints about the people’s beliefs; the story’s satirical hints about the inconsequential arguments that occur between parties suggests the way people view the opposition in government.
ReplyDeleteAnother selection dealing with government was A Letter to Lord Chesterfield. In this selection, Johnson gives an account about his meeting with Lord Chesterfield. “When upon some slight encouragement, I first visited your Lordship, I was overpowered, like the rest of mankind, by the enchantment of your address…but I found my attendance so little encouraged that neither pride nor modesty would suffer me to continue it,” (Johnson 577). The government of the 18th century was sometimes seen as unapproachable.
The most applicable literature was a poem by Johnathan Swift titled “A Satirical Elegy on the Death of a Late Famous General”. In this poem, Swift satirizes the funeral of a person in government. “…behold his funeral appears,/ Nor widow’s sighs, nor orphan’s tears,/ Wont at such times each heart to pierce…” (Swift). I believe this small portion from Swift’s poem fully summarizes the people’s feelings towards the government. Although the government was the political head of the country at that time, the people were not always emotionally attached and supportive of their government. The lack of emotion shown towards the death of a government official in, ”A Satirical Elegy” gives a perfect example of this.
Much of the literature we had to read during this project was written over 300 years ago. Some of the political issues and conflicts seen in these stories do not apply to the situations today. The same problems do not occur, but the people’s feelings towards the government have not changed much. Many people still feel as though the government is solely a law making body and they too feel no emotional attachment towards the government. Likewise, many of the issues dividing political parties seem trivial to the average person. Though the specific disputes between parties do not occur in today’s society, some of the people’s feelings from the 18th century are still present today in the 21st century.
Halli Spraggins
The piece of literature that comes out to me and has the most poverty in it would have to be "Modest Proposal." Modest Proposal has a great deal of poverty in because of the poor can't handle things on there own. It was just an idea, but in Modest Proposal it talks about the poor eating other people to eat. They didn't have anything to eat so they eat the youngest in the family that they think won't live. Modest Preposal says "Infant's flesh will be in season throughout the year, but more plentiful in March, and a little before and after,.." which talks about eating of the infants.
ReplyDeleteYes there is still this in the world today. People from haiti lost all there houses and jobs, so they can't pay for anything. There is many poor people now because this happen. I don't know if this right, but I am going to say it anyway. That people are so poor in haiti that they acually eat their young. They is many people that are trying to help the country of haiti. Many of the poor look so hungry in the photos I have seen, they are jobless and foodless.
Chris Macke
Most of the literature from this group unit has caught my attention because of its quality and detail. However, "The Vultures Talk About Man" has made the most influence on me. I enjoyed reading it because it was very entertaining. Samuel Johnson used fiction well when relating the mindset of vultures to a flaw in mankind. In "The Vultures Talk About Man," the mother vulture says, "Man is the only beast who kills that which he does not devour, and this quality makes him so much a benefactor to our species." This quote stood out to me because it is so true. Men have fought one another, hated one another, and killed one another for centuries. What is the point behind all this? Men have injured the well-being of their own species. Johnson criticizes the fact that the most advanced animal as far as intelligence is the only animal that kills without a credible reason. One of the young vultures tells his mother, "I could never kill what I could not eat." It is both sad and ironic that a simple bird can grasp a concept, which man cannot come to fathom and practice.
ReplyDeleteThis 200 year old material does have some relevance for today. Wars still occur; our own nation is participating in a war in the Middle East right now. If men could put aside their hatred for one another and solve issues a different way, the many lives that are lost due to war every day could be saved. Although the concept of war being pointless is still an active issue for mankind, the sense in which the vultures discuss it is somewhat outdated. This is because the whole culture during the time period in which "The Vultures Talk About Man" was written focused on war. It was a life-style in that era rather than just a political issue. Many more wars occured then and much more often.
Victoria Tindol
The best story that i really liked was A Journal of the Plague Year because i understood what it was talking about. I have studied the plague and knew alot about it so when we read this story i got what it was saying. The story that i didnt like was Gulliver's Travel because i had no clue what it was trying to say. I never got anything from that story.
ReplyDeleteI like the part in the plague story when the poor piper was in the death cart because it was just funny to me. "Hey! where am I?"
After discussing with our group, I find out that it is very interesting that these satires using in “Modest Proposal.” In this article, author Swift suggests that the people of Ireland can sell their babies to the rich people as food to solve the poverty. “I have been assured by a very knowing American of my acquaintance in London, that a young healthy child well nursed is at a year old a most delicious, nourishing, and wholesome food, whether stewed, roasted, baked, or boiled ...” Swift even calculate the detail profit for selling babies. “I am assured by our merchants, that a boy or a girl before twelve years old is no salable commodity; and even when they come to this age they will not yield above three pounds, or three pounds and half-a-crown at most on the exchange; which cannot turn to account either to the parents or kingdom, the charge of nutriment and rags having been at least four times that value.” Calculation makes this ridiculous theory acceptable, which satirizes the disable of government that aggravates the poverty.
ReplyDeleteI always think that satire is an obscure method which shows an extremity by extreme facts. When readers first read it, they will feel ridiculous and funny, but it makes them think more until they find the true meaning of author wants to say.
Though the articles that we are discussing are hundred years ago, they still are meaningful to current society, like the fact that we learn history is to avoid the mistakes in the past happen again. The valuable thoughts cannot be judged by times.
The piece of literature that has attracted me the most has been “The Journal of the Plague Year.” It originally enticed me with its title because I have previously learned about the Plague in other classes. I liked that it showed that not only did people die from the physical illness of the disease, but also because their mental state was compromised. Not only were the lower classes affected, but also the upper class and everyone in between.
ReplyDeleteThis material is still applicable today because it shows that an epidemic this large, or any other major disaster, takes a toll on all people and not just a select few.
This piece is outdated in that obviously, medicine is so advanced today that this particular disease is not likely to have such a dramatic affect; however, other diseases can. Other things can destroy the way that people live too, such as the stock market, etc.
Bekah Tomlin
The most attractive piece of writing is "Gulliver's Traverls". Although I just read Part 1: A Voyage to Lilliput and Part 2: A Voyage to Brobdingnag, I admire the author which is Jonathan Swift so much.
ReplyDeleteIn the first part, the scenes depicted in Lilliput is the British Empire in miniature. The Tory and the Whig struggle against the endless wars, and in fact the politicians have nothing to do with a number of sections on the national economy. In this miniature country, King of Lilliput uses the rope trick game to select official. The style habits and institutions are all identical with the British government. In the second part, Gulliver introduces the British electoral system and parliamentary system, but he gets the sharp criticism from the king of Brobdingnag. The king expressed doubt and denial, and he also thinks the history of Britain is full of "greed, competition, cruelty, hypocrisy, lust, sinister and ambitions."
Looking at all the circumstances of the novel, Gulliver's Travels is a clear political orientation. It is a critical edge, focusing on attacking the British parliamentary politicas and reactionary religious forces. And also the artistic features are mainly embodied in the use of the sharp and deep satire, which is the soul of this work.
I think the reason why this 200 old work still apply to today is that it reflects the first half of the 18th century British social contradictions, exposing the corruption of the ruling group at that evil time, and attacked the war of aggression and colonialism. Although it is a satire about the court and politicians, its work extends beyond the limitation of the times and places, especially these two parts are considered to be "one of the great literature treasure house."
Wayne Shen
"A Journal of the Plague year" was my favorite piece of literature in this unit. It was the most effective, in a way that made you realize the effect of the plague and what the people had to go through.
ReplyDeleteI think this story applies to today by how fast and unexpectedly the plague spread. The plague spread all over and killed thousands of people, " . . .the danger was spreading insensibly, for the sick could infect none but those that came within reach of the sick person." Today we have faced many scary infections, illnesses and diseases. The swine- flu for example spread so quickly in such a short amount of time, that people around the world did not even know they were infected until it was to late. In that same way, people of the 18th century were taken off guard by the plague, ". . . many persons in the time of this vistation never percieved that they were infected till they found to their unspeakable suprise. . .which they seldon lived six hours."
Unlike the 18th century, today we have cures and vaccines to heal infected people. While people today do occasionally die from disease outbreaks, not as many died as they did in the 18th century. So many people died from the plague in the 18th century they had a death cart to take the bodies to a large pit, ". . . poor and rich went together, there was no other way of burials, neither was it possible there should, for coffins were not to be had for the prodigious numbers that fell in such a calamity as this."
Taylor Landeros
(P.S.- nice e-mail hahahaha)
“An Essay on Man”is my favorite poem. Alexander Pope is describing the potential improvements to some aspect of human nature .The epistle discusses human as unique beings and show self-interest , “passion” or emotions. I also know that the poet wants to explain the universal characters of humankinds, the human have the limited abilities and imperfect is diminished by pride and intellectual limitations.
ReplyDeleteIt talks about the people is ignorant because of the human get the knowledge. It makes them wise, these make the people think that they know a lot of thing in the Earth. I like the poem is that the poet teach the people have to be humble and kind. It is never pride “with too much knowledge for the skeptic side, with too much weakness for the stoic’s pride.” It is a way to improve our knowledge. Although the poet expresses the feeling of how the human were like at that time, however, it teaches the people of now a day too.
The one that did not catch my attention much is The rape of the Lock ,this poem is also compose by Pope. However, in the canto III-V, the two families always fight with each other because of the trivial happening in a lofty. May be the poet wants to tell the people to ignore or not much care about the trivial happening in our daily life.
Among all the literature works I have read, I kind of like the journals. While I was reading journals, I could easily follow what is happening mainly because the journals have a very clear time line. Besides that, reading journals can also help our group to compare the literature and history, and this helps us can think more. In The Diary, I especially like the description of the coronation of Charles II because it has created a very beautiful image in my mind, and I can see how great it is – “with 10,000 people covered with blue cloth.” I also like the part of the Great Fire of London that “they pulled down the houses to spare from the fire. However, it could never be applied to today: if there is a fire somewhere, I don’t think anyone would like to pull their own house down even it can stop the fire.
ReplyDeleteSome of the works are outdated because life is changing through time. Old ideas may not stay in modern days anymore. Also, the old thinking and old consumptions are not enough for us because the worlds are different from the 18th century to nowadays society
Even though all the literature works are old and may not be applied in our daily lives, it is also a part of history that reviews the way of how people live. It is a very good evidence and resource for searching details and information about the 18th century history. Besides history, we can also see their religious thinking and faith to god in the 18th century English literature works. When Pepys talks about the plague in The Diary, “… being at the end of town that I took him up; But God have mercy upon us all!" And also when the king could do nothing to the fire, he also asked God what he should do. From all the above evidence, we can figure out the importance of religion during that period of time.
During the project, we read a lot of 18th century literature, but “The Vulture” by Samuel Johnson. He starts a story that naturalists realized birds have a language like a humans do and are avail to tell their thoughts. And one of naturalist can understand Vultures’ language thoroughly. So basically he ‘translated’ vultures’ language to English.
ReplyDeleteHe translated a conversation between an adult vulture and a child vulture about human. Adult vulture said humans kill each other like vultures’ do, but they don’t eat each other and that characterization of human is very benefit to their species. And call human as ‘vegetables with a power of motion.’
I thought what the adult call human was very impressive. Samuel Johnson maybe wanted to criticize the human nature that they kill each other without any strong reason that are unbeneficial to their own race but is benefit to other race.
In reading and working through the project I have found that the story “The Modest Proposal” really stands out to me. In this story I can see clear indications with the distinctions of both the poor people and common wealth. In the story Jonathan Swift is being very sarcastic when he is describing both the presents and the common wealth. At the beginning of his story he tells of woman and children having to beg. He writes, “These mothers instead of being able to work for their honest livelihood, are forced to employ all their time in strolling to beg sustenance for their helpless infants who, as they grow up, either turn thieves for want of work, or leave their dear native country, to fight for the Pretender in Spain, or sell themselves to the Barbadoes.” Swift tries to come up with a solution on how to make the young children be of some service to the common wealth.
ReplyDeleteSwift says how the Americans are dealing with the over population and the starvation. He writes, “I have been assured by a very knowing American of my acquaintance in London, that a young healthy child well nursed, is, at a year old, a most delicious nourishing and wholesome food, whether stewed, roasted, baked, or boiled; and I make no doubt that it will equally serve in a fricasie, or a ragoust.” Swift feels that he can help both the peasants and the royals by offering a solution. His solution is that the royals could buy the babies and children from the peasants and then they would have food to eat and the peasants would have money to buy food and clothes.
This story is out of date because barley anyone is dealing with such starvation that they would be willing to eat babies. However, there are still people in the world that are hungry and need clothes and maybe are or have already thought of Swifts idea. I really have loved learning about this time period. One of the things I have learned is that both sides where always facing the same thing, weather it be starvation a fire, or the plague. What is fascinating is how both deal with it. Swift at the end of his story writes, “I profess, in the sincerity of my heart, that I have not the least personal interest in endeavoring to promote this necessary work, having no other motive than the public good of my country, by advancing our trade, providing for infants, relieving the poor, and giving some pleasure to the rich.” Swift even though he was being sarcastic he was really speaking the truth and that I one thing I like so much about this story.
Bryan Lewis
Many of the stories we have covered in this study have drawn my interest and made a relative impact. I particularly enjoyed “The Vulture” by Samuel Johnson. I like to hunt, and nearly all the time, I eat what I kill, so I can relate to the vulture who is presenting this abstract idea. “Man is the only beast who kills that which he does not devour…” He is referring to the act of one human killing another, just for the sake of killing them. He criticizes war as a foolish act.
ReplyDeleteAnother story that stood out was part of “The Diary” by Samuel Pepys. I am referring to the fire of London in which he wrote his accounts. This fire destroyed all aspects of London. The economy was shutdown, the infrastructure was compromised, and many lives were lost. This by any definition was a disaster. “Jane comes and tells me that she hears that above three hundred houses have been burned down tonight…” That was just on the first night of the fire too. This great fire went on to do much more damage than three-hundred houses.
These two points are still relative today. There are still disasters, and there are still killings. Both are still crisis that we have to deal with today. Dealing with them is how we differ than in the times when “The Vulture” and “The Diary” were written. Technology has greatly improved our response and understanding of the things that happen around us.
Austin Cole
thats 3 paragraphs btw, the formating jus didnt turn out like i wanted
ReplyDeleteThe reading that attracts me the most is “A Modest Proposal.” “A Modest Proposal”, by Jonathan Swift, talks about Swift proposes an idea of having royalties and nobles paying beggars for their in purpose of having their children as food and clothing, as Swift “believe no gentleman would repine to give ten shillings for the carcass of a good fat child, which, as I have said, will make four dishes of excellent nutritive meat.” He believes this idea can help to solve the problem of having “beggars of the female sex, followed by three, four, or six children, all in rags, and importuning every passenger for an alms.” He also believes the idea can reduces the number of Catholics, helps tenants to pay their rents, increases national treasury of fifty thousand pounds per year, increases salary of poor mother, creates a new kind of dishes, and encourages marriage.
ReplyDeleteI find out “A Modest Proposal” attracting is because of the Swift’s satire toward eighteenth century English society. In the passage, Swift greatly satires the cruelty of British royalties and nobles by suggesting royalties and nobles to pay ten shillings to women beggars for their children to use them to make food and clothes. He also satires the arrogant life royalties and nobles of describing the way of them cooking children, “whether stewed, roasted, baked, or boiled; and I make no doubt that it will equally serve in a fricasie, or a ragoust.”
This 281 years old literature can still apply to the society today. In society today, there are always rich people who doesn’t care about the poor, and weaken and take away things that the poor people have. But at the same time, “Modest Proposal” is also outdated because no one today practice cannibalism due to people’s moral beliefs.
Caesar Tang
p.s. 18th century=1700s not 1800s, so its 300 years old literature, not 200
Well I’d like to start this blog post out with a quick comment: A Modest Proposal is satirical. Nothing was meant to be taken literally. That’s been bugging me. I seriously doubt anyone is going to read this post but you may want to mention that at some point so people will stop freaking out. No one wanted to eat babies!
ReplyDelete… Anyways back to the real stuff!
A Modest Proposal stands out most to me (and everyone else in the class apparently) mostly because of the shock effect of the satire. It truly shocks the readers with the proposal to sell children for “eight shillings net profit.”
This work still applies today in the effect that there still are poor and homeless people today. Swift mentions some “turn thieves for want of work” and burglaries happen all the time. Who leaves their car or house unlocked anymore these days?
In some ways this work really doesn’t apply. The number of poor people was MUCH higher in the 1800’s and Swift estimates the number at “an hundred and twenty thousand children of poor parents annually born.” Today there are considerably fewer poor people and the problem is not so widespread (at least in America). It really is amazing though that so many poor people lived in one city.
CHEEK.
The piece of literature that caught my eye the most was "The Vulture." Samuel Johnson discusses war in a satirical way. The vultures talk about killing other animals to eat, and waiting for humans to kill other humans so they can eat them. The vultures, no matter how old they are, still do not understand why humans kill other humans and do not eat them. Johnson says, "When you hear noise and see fire, with flashes along the ground, hasten to the place with your swiftest wing, for men are surely destroying one another; you will then find the ground smoking with blood and covered with carcasses...." Johson goes on to describe men coming together in masses to hunt(war). Johnson says, "Man...is the only beast who kills that which he does not devour...."
ReplyDeleteThis story is very applicable today. War is still seen throughout our world today just as it was back then. Humans still kill other humans without the intent to eat. The vultures do not really know why men kill each other;however one vulture says he "...observed something of contrivance and policy among these mischievous beings...." Today, fallen soldiers generally are not left out for the vultures as they are in this story. I believe this story talks about war in a way that will be relevant for many more years.
Leah Robbins
"A Modest Proposal" made me laugh. It is funny to think of eating children in order to combat poverty and overpopulation. "That the remaining hundred thousand may at a year old be offered in sale to the persons of quality, and fortune, through the kingdom...to render them plump, and fat for a good table." It's a very unique idea that caught my attention. I know this was Swift’s purpose for writing it, in which, he succeeded.
ReplyDeleteI also liked "A Journal of the Plague Year". This story was very visual. It gave details of what it was like to live during this plague. It gives the reader a chance to see the chaos and horror and also provides a laugh with the story of the not-quite-dead piper.
Both of these stories give an insight of what it was like to live during that time. While most of that is outdated, parts are still applicable today. We do not deal with outbreaks of diseases to that extent due to the medicine that is available, but we do deal with overpopulated areas. I enjoyed reading these pieces of literature.
The one work that attacked me the most was "The Rape of the Lock" by ALexandar Pope. I admired his use of satire and comedic way of telling this story. I believe this piece of lietaure was very essentile during his time. "The Rape of Lock" shows how people react by emotion and sometimes not by reason.
ReplyDeleteIt was not only a lesson about the upper class but about people in general.
In "The Rape of Lock" Clarrisa persuades the Baroon to cut Belinda's hair in order to get her attention, "Just then Clarrisa drew with tempting grace a two edged weapon from her shining case...He takes the gift with reverence..." In today times, a man will usually do anything in their to get a womans attention, but Im sure he will not cut of her hair because this action will definitely work against him! After, Belinda finds out what happened, she immeadiately reacted by screming, in which most girls would do if they found out someone cut theur hair unexpectedly. She says, "O hadst thou cruel been content to sezie hairs less in sight or any haris but these." Even today, looks are very important to yound girls and woman. They believe their outter appreance is more essential than what is on the inside whether they are rich or poor. The two families begin to agrue and this is a prime example of how human being react but emotions whether in the eighteenth century or in now in 2010. Clarrisa eventually calms the two families down and they act as if nothing happened. Clarrisa makes a speech on how woman than just their beauty which should be more expressed today. As usual, the Baroon gets Belinda and they have fun together which is very realistic today when the guy gets the girl he has been chasing after.
Lenora Taylor
In 18th century, many writers wrote interesting literatures. From the Jonathan Swift’s satirical literature “Gulliver’s Travels” to the James Boswell’s “The life of Samuel Johnson”, it all attracted me. However among all literatures in this period, “A Journal of the Plague Year” most attracted me.
ReplyDeleteThe reason that I picked this literature as the most attracted writing is it is not bored. All this writing talks about is how plague spreads, how people reacted about it, and how it ends. However, comparing with Samuel Pepys’s plague part of “The Diary of Samuel Pepys”, it is a lot more interesting. By weaving with fictional stories, which could have happened, it expresses more realities.
Moreover it is amazing that this piece of writing can be applied to today. As all we know, until few months ago we were afraid of a contagious disease “Swine Flu” as much as that period people were of Plague. Although comparing the strength of the disease and contagious it is a lot weaker than that of Plague, in the prospective of having definite fear, it was same. In “A Journal of the Plague Year”, Daniel Defoe describes one woman’s reactions towards Plague that “… Terrible shrieks and screeching of women, who, in their agonies, would throw open their chamber windows and cry out in a dismal, surprising manner.” In the same manner, when the Swine Flu struck young beings, their parents reacted just as those who from 200 years did toward to Plague.
However, this piece of writing is somewhat outdated to be applied the whole thing to today. 200 years ago when Plague struck the whole world, there is no cure to be found. Believing that it was the revelation of God, people did nothing to find the cure but put their life upon the faith of God. According to Daniel Defoe’s “A Journal of the Plague Year”, he says that “… in that very moment it pleased God, to cause the fury of it to abate, even of itself…" By this I see that even when the plague diminished itself, people believe that it is because they pleased God somehow. On the other hand, since out medical science has developed greatly, when Swine Flu struck us we tried to find the cure. Not by putting out life upon the faith of God and wish it diminished by itself, we put all our effort on finding cure.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteIn 18th century British Literature some of the authors like to satirize in their works. Some authors like to present their own ideas or opinions in their works. Overall all the literature works that I read “A Journal of the Plague Year” attracted me the most. It is an easy, simple and meaningful journal, because it describes the verisimilar of the plague, writes about the Neighborhoods, streets, and even houses in which the events take place. Thus, Defoe uses his own childhood memories, the reminiscences of his uncle Henry and other old people, city records, and sermons about the plague to write his work.
ReplyDeleteAt the beginning of the journal talks about “one man who may have really received the infection and knows it not, but goes abroad and about as a sound person, may give the plague to a thousand people.” The plague spreads out everywhere in the street, “nor could physicals themselves know certainly how it was with them till they opened their breasts or other parts of their body and saw the tokens.” Even the physicians don’t have any method to heal those who are infected. After a long time, finally “the plague was abated and the bills decreased almost two thousand”, so many people were glad that the plague is over. At the end of the journal the plagued is over and kill lots of people. In this journal, Defoe shows the readers how the London plague raged in 1665 and killed ten thousand people every week.
Even though the London plague was happened 345 years old, the history will not change forever. History is a part of human’s life and it will be last forever. Everyone will know all the things that were happened several centuries before, because it is our history. This is one of the reasons that 200 year old material can still apply to today’s world. And also “A journal of the plague year” can be last after 345 years because Defoe detailed talked about the verisimilar of the plague; also he put all the people’s memories together, that makes the journal becomes more verisimilitude.
Emily Tsui
A Modest Proposal attracted me the most. It really caught my attention when it talked about “…or wanting food and raiment for the rest of their lives, they shall, on the contrary, contribute to the feeding and partly to the clothing of many thousands.” This stood out to me because it really grosses me out that they would raise babies to eat! In one way I understand because it says that he thinks that “… is in the present deplorable state of the kingdom, a very great additional grievance; and therefore whoever could find out a fair, cheap and easy method of making these children sound and useful members of the commonwealth would deserve so well of the public, as to have his statue set up for a preserver of he nation.” I can see how he want to find a useful way to use all the babies that the poor people were having that was just making more and more poor people.
ReplyDeleteEven in today’s society it seem like a lot of people who cannot afford to have children are having them. So this story would still apply today. A lot of parents have children and have to give them up because they are unfit parents or have unfit homes. To the use the babies to “ …flay the carcass; the skin of which, artificially dressed, will make admirable gloves for ladies, and summer boots for fine gentlemen.” This way they could make some money off the babies for the parents and the poor wouldn’t be as poor.
In other ways this story wouldn’t apply because not nearly as many people live on the street. There are also many more people against the killing of babies and other organizations against that sort of thing and so they would get in a lot of trouble for killing babies.
The material that I liked the best was "A Modest Proposal" by Jonathan Swift. He caught my attention with his huge satire and imagery. He poked fun at the royalty and wealthy people as well as dramatizing the humongous percentage of poor people. He tells the poor to sell their young children so that the rich people may eat them. This is a highly grotesque image of how wealthy people were viewed and even portraying that there might have been some drastic, idiotic things done by the wealthy just because they could. The story says, "Those who are more thrifty (as I must confess times require) may flay the carcass; the sin of which, artificially dressed, will make admirable gloves for ladies, and summer boots for fine gentlemen."
ReplyDeleteToday, this article could be used to show how satire can really burn a mental image into a readers head to get across a point in which they value. Obviously Swift did not much care for the wealthy of his time and boldly showed it in an unusual way that it would not be easily forgotten. I believe we can take this today and know that satire is a powerful tool that can be used to get people to know your ideas and beliefs.
It is somewhat outdated in the since that in today's world, talk of cannibalism (especially with young children) would be very heavily frowned upon. I believe that if this article were published today, it would be criticized to a point where it would probably show up in the news for several days like other silly things (i.e. 'balloon boy' or Tiger Woods). Also, America today does not have a big problem with wealthy people anymore, therefor the article would probably not have been written in the first place if Swift lived in the present.
Stefan Bushey
out of all the stories that we read for this unit i like " a Modest Proposal" the best. I found it comical that people would go as far to eat babies to help with the problem of over population and poverty. it is also rather ironic that the people that would be buying the babies were the rich people. i think this kind of thing still applies today because there are still people that are having children that cannot afford them and have issues with feeding them etc. in other ways this story would not apply to today becasue people are not all living homless and would never consider eating babies today. today the problem of overpopullation does not casue as many problems as it did in this time.
ReplyDelete“The Rape of The Lock” was the piece of literature that stuck with me the most. I loved the story. It was interesting and funny, but it still got the writers point across about his views of the leisure class. The satirical view of law officials, as well as the rich, is still applicable today because corruption in those circles is still a part of society. Pope starts shows his views on the politicians in this in, when he describes the way they sent a man to death just because they were ready for lunch. “The hungry Judges soon the Sentence sign, /And Wretches hang that Jury-men may Dine….” Politicians can be corrupt today as well as they were in this time period, and some of the rich and famous (not all of them) care more about their lives, parties, and their money than other people that need help. Though “The Rape of The Lock” was written 200 years ago I don’t think that it is outdated. I think that it discusses issues and political problems that are still prevalent today. Some in those social circles are corrupt and this story addresses this.
ReplyDeleteBlair Hand
Gulliver's Travels is the story that has attracted me the most and that I have been able to most easily relate to today.
ReplyDeleteThis story made me think about how people relate themselves to each other. People become self concious if they are not just like everyone else.In Gulliver's Travels, we learn that size is a very relative thing. People are either big or small compared to others. People compare themselves to others in other ways also. People think they are fat only because there are people that are more skinny. People think they are ugly only because they hae seen models in magazines.
If people would stop comparing themselves to each other and start making their own individuals goals in life, people would be much more confident. Im Gulliver's Travels, Gulliver th ought he was better than everyone else and that he lived in a superior country(England. But he got a reality check by visiting other lands with people that were nothing like what he was used to.