Response to Gabby's Tarot Cards Post

(This is a response, but I wanted to include pictures, so I made a new post.)

In Part I of The Waste Land, Eliot references many different tarot cards, and I thought it would be interesting to look more into the traditional meaning of some of them.


-Drowned Phoenician Sailor (Eliot made this up)
The motif of the drowned sailor comes up later in the poem and is connected with Shakespeare's "eyes like pearls" quote from The Tempest and the dual nature of water as both a source of life and a bringer of death.

-Belladonna, the Lady of the Rocks (made up)

Belladonna is a hallucinogenic poison, and the Lady of the Rocks is a reference to DaVinci's painting of Mary and Jesus, "The Virgin of the Rocks." I think it is interesting that Eliot connects poison and Christianity. The picture above is DaVinci's painting.

-Man with three staves (traditional)
Also known as the Three of Wands, it traditionally represents that success is coming in the future. Eliot says he connects him with the Fisher King.

-Wheel (traditional)
Known as the "Wheel of Fortune," this card represents the cycle of time and presents an optimistic view of good things to come in the future.

-One-eyed merchant (made up)
The theme of blindness is important throughout the poem. There's a lot less to be said about this card.

-Hanged Man (traditional)
The Hanged Man tells us to let go of what you think you know and turn your views upside down (I think this accurately portrays the views of modernism, especially since Madame Sosostris says she DOESN'T see the Hanged Man. Eliot is trying to get people stuck in ennui to change their views.). It can also symbolize scapegoating and martyrdom, which seems to reflect the World War that had just occurred.

Sources:
https://fashionmagazine.com/culture/tarot-cards-meaning/
https://www.keen.com/articles/tarot/three-of-wands-tarot-card

Fragmentation in The Waste Land

As y'all know, in the 1900s, authors and artists rejected previous schools of thought and formed their own movement: modernism. Some hallmarks of modernism include the theme of alienation of the individual in the modern world and the fragmentation of society as a result of toxic nationalism and the First World War. T. S. Eliot explores the theme of fragmentation in his poem The Waste Land in both his poem's content and its form.  

In lines 20-21, Eliot tells the reader, "You know only a heap of broken images." Here, he addresses the ravages of World War I that have left Europe in ruins. The war has physically destroyed cities, but it has also broken the spirit of so many soldiers and their families. His entire poem even refers to the post-war world as the "Waste Land." 

In addition, Eliot's form also reflects the theme of fragmentation. He uses multiple speakers, different settings, seemingly random imagery, and a plethora of allusions to vastly different time periods (for example, he alludes to Greek mythology, Dante, and Baudelaire, to name a few). The fragmented form addresses fragmentation in and of itself, but it also supplements how he explores the theme in the content of the work. In my opinion, Eliot matches his form very closely with his content, which many modernists aimed to do.

Literal Waste Land

As a literature layperson, if someone were to mention the phrase "Waste Land," then I would think of land engulfed in literal waste, meaning garbage. If you google "Waste Land," and filter out the results concerning the masterpiece that is T.S. Eliot's poem, then you can find information on a 2010 film titled "Waste Land."

The documentary is about a trip to Brazil to visit the world's largest wasteland, or garbage dump. The film focuses on the lives of "catadores," or workers in the wasteland in addition to artwork created from trash in the wasteland. The film was very popular. In fact, it was awarded as the most positively reviewed documentary by rotten tomatoes. Below are some images from the documentary's website. (Sources: http://www.wastelandmovie.com/index.html, http://www.wastelandmovie.com/gallery.html)

Tarot Cards in NOLA

As many of you know, I'm sure, there are many fortune tellers in the Big Easy, a lot of them pitching a table with a decorative table cloth smack dab in front of the St. Louis Cathedral and in front of Jackson Square by the French Quarter. Since my group in class had the stanza in the Wasteland that talked about such fortune readings in giving examples of tarot cards and explaining Madame Sosotris's practice, I thought it'd be cool to reflect upon the fact that such comparable practices are present just about 10 miles away from our school. Therefore, I've included photos below of some readers that are present in front of the Cathedral. Y'all should comment and let us know if any of you have had a reading there or somewhere else and if it compares to anything T.S. Eliot mentioned in the third stanza of his poem, the Wasteland.

"Belladonna of the Rocks"

In one section of part 1 of "The Waste Land", Eliot talks about different tarot cards, including "The Lady of the Rocks". While this isn't a common card to attain, it references to one of Leonardo Da Vinci's more popular works, "Belladonna of the Rocks". The painting depicts the Virgin Mary (Belladonna), Jesus, and John the Baptist. The concept of baptism can also be related to the card mention before, the "Drowned Phoenician Sailor". Drowning was often seen as a way of "washing
away morality" and leaving the past behind.

The Holy Grail in the Da Vinci Code

Whenever I see the words "holy grail", I usually think of two things: the song by Jay Z, and "The Da Vinci Code". In the movie, symbology professor Robert Langdon is met with the seemingly-impossible task of finding the Holy Grail, which he still assumes to be a cup until historian Sir Leigh Teabing explains the grail's true identity. According to Teabing, Jesus was actually married to Mary Magdalene, and had children with her; this was overlooked by the council of Nicaea when they were forming different scriptures for the Bible in order to emphasize Jesus's divinity. The Grail is shaped like a V, which is a reference to Mary's uterus, meaning that the real Grail would be Mary's children, the offspring of Jesus Christ. Thinking about the original myths of the Holy Grail from Celtic tradition, I just find this interesting how Dan Brown (the original author) was able to think of such an incredible conspiracy about this legend, and have it all tie into Christianity nonetheless.

Oh no, someone "accidentally damaged" Modernist beauty!

Pablo Picasso is probably the most renowned, and biggest household name, individual that was made famous from displaying Modernist beliefs. Below is an image of one of his paintings called "Le Marin" (1943). The painting was to be auctioned at $70 million, however, an onlooker "accidentally damaged" it before the auction! Interestingly, the owner of this painting accidentally damaged another Picasso painting, shown below, valued at approximately $40 million called "Le Rêve" (1932). This man certainly does not have good luck with Picasso!
(Sources: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/14/arts/design/picasso-painting-damaged-christies.html
https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2006/10/23/the-40-million-elbow)

Le Marin-1943 

Le Rêve- 1932

¿socialism?

The Soviet Union implemented socialism. In result, the union collapsed created what resembled a wasteland in some areas.  We are reading the Waste Land by T. S. Elliot. Bernie Sanders is a self-proclaimed socialist, who is running, again, for president.

This past Tuesday, Bernie Sanders announced his second presidential campaign. Senator Sanders believes that he has a much better chance of winning this election cycle due to the "coming around" of the political atmosphere to his very radical views. Will he get the democratic domination with as big of a field, we shall see?

Holy Grail Artwork

Since we read the story of Perceval and the Holy Grail, I thought it would be interesting to look at some depictions of the holy grail itself.

Apollo or Dionysus: Who Do You Prefer?

Although Nietzsche is not one of my all-time favorite philosophers, I think his discussion of the balance between Apollo and Dionysus is quite fascinating. Just to remind you, the "History of Modernism" article we read stated, "Apollo represented the essence of light, rationality, civility, culture, and restraint. In contrast, Dionysus suggested wine, the primitive urge, all that was uncivilized. Although these two gods existed in opposition to one another, they were both, nevertheless, revered equally, thus striking a balance between form (the Apollonian) and creative impulse (Dionysus)." 

Basically, the modernists wanted to bring back Dionysus, as he was getting lost in a sea of Apollo. 

I was wondering if y'all prefer reading literature that leans more toward the Apollo or Dionysus ends of spectrum. For me, it kind of just depends what I am in the mood for. For example, sometimes reading a poem with rigid form and strong emphasis on details and perfection is very pleasing and impressive. At other times, Apollonian poetry seems stuffy, and I'll prefer reading a more free-flowing and sporadic poem. Regardless, I disagree with Nietzsche's implication that Apollonian works are less creative than their Dionysian counterparts. I simply think that different types of creativity are employed to create different kinds of literature. I don't think either type necessarily takes more talent or expertise. Just like the modernists said, I think we shouldn't always group everything together; sometimes it's better to judge works of art individually, based on their own merit. 

The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock

Going into this unit, I was so excited to dive into The Wasteland as I remember reading and loving The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock last year. Each word of that poem has meaning, and the whole piece moves so tragically and beautifully that the reader can't help but be impacted. I found some art that relates to that piece and I thought it'd be fun to share, enjoy!

Reminded me of the Waste Land

Yesterday I was visiting Auburn University's campus. While I was there, I also had an interview with some lady from the honors college. She was super nice, but she talked sooooo fast! It was so hard to keep up with what she was saying, and she would not stop, so I had no time to ask her any questions about things that made no sense. My brain at one point was so focused on her speaking to try and understand every word she was saying, my mind eventually just stopped working for like 5 seconds. Literally! My hearing shut off completely. My vision became blurry, I felt like I was floating in the air, and my eyes felt like they rolled in a 360 degree motion. It looked like I was upside down at one point. It was the trippiest experience ever. I had no idea what was going on. I thought I was about to seize or pass out or something. After my brain lapse was over, my body returned back to normal, but I was not following the lady at all. This little experience reminded me of the writing style of the Waste Land. The poem is fragmented and really hard to follow. If you don't pay attention, you'll miss the point of the poem. But if you focus to much on it, you may explode your brain like I seemed to do.

Osiris, Egyptian Numerals, and Destiny 2

In reading the story of Osiris, I was surprised to recognize a few elements. For senior teacher day, I taught about Egyptian math and numerals; one of my examples for how certain numbers were Important in mythology was the number of scorpions Isis had accompanying her when she was looking for her husband, which was 7. I hadn’t known the background, though, and so now I find it far more interesting. Also it’s significant that Osiris was cut into 14 pieces because that’s a multiple of 7. (7 was a number considered divine by the Egyptians.) Further, I recognized the name Osiris from a video game I like called Destiny 2. In the game, Osiris has a connection to almost supernatural powers. He can exist in multiple places and is depicted as all knowing. He also has the intention of saving the world, and started a cult based around the planet Mercury, which is a garden planet in the game. This is similar to how Osiris in mythology was connected to harvest, plants, and life. They are also both worshiped. Destiny’s Osiris is in exile because of his focus on the aliens and his intellect, which I suppose can be likened to how Osiris in mythology was attacked for his power.

Fun Facts about T. S. Eliot!

Here are some cool facts that will help give everyone a better sense of who Thomas Stearns Eliot, the famous author of The Waste Land, was!

• Eliot loved to play practical jokes. Apparently, some of his favorite pranks were stink bombs, exploding cigars, and whoopie cushions.
• He was never a full-time poet. He always had other, more steady jobs. He was a teacher, editor, and literary critic, to name a few.
• He limited himself to writing a maximum of three hours per day.
• Eliot became as British as he possibly could. Not only did he move there in 1915, but he also became a British citizen in 1927 and even converted to Anglicanism.
• He attempted to write fiction in French and wrote a couple poems. However, he soon abandoned the attempt and stuck with English.
• ...and last but definitely NOT least (haha): He may have coined the popular curse word, "bulls***." He wrote a poem in the early 1910s called "The Triumph of Bulls***." According to the Oxford English Dictionary, it was the first time a curse word appeared in print.

Source: 

http://mentalfloss.com/article/86011/12-things-you-might-not-know-about-ts-eliot 

Sir James Frazer

In class today, we spoke a bit about Sir James Frazer, the anthropologist who wrote the Golden Bough, inspired by the Aeneid. He, in turn, inspired Weston to write Ritual to Romance, which is depicted in Eliot's work. Since he was such an influential guy, I thought it'd be interesting to learn a bit more about his life. Here are a few facts about him:

- In 1907, he became a professor of social anthropology at Liverpool. He returned to Cambridge after one session and stayed there indefinitely.
- He went to the University of Glasgow for undergraduate studies and Cambridge following.
- He deemed religion and science mutually exclusive.
- His father was a pharmacist.
- He originally was more focused on the classics rather than anthropology, but his friend, William Robertson Smith, helped him to focus his interest elsewhere while they were studying at Cambridge.

http://www.oxfordbibliographies.com/view/document/obo-9780199766567/obo-9780199766567-0196.xml

mythology in literature

Not only did tales of vegetation and fertility inspire modernists like T.S. Eliot, they, along with the rest of mythology, inspired Rick Riordan. Riordan, of course, is the author of not only the Percy Jackson series but also the series of the Kane Chronicles, which were books that I greatly enjoyed in Lower and Middle School. I'm sure many of you can identify with such an obsession. After reading Osiris's myth, I couldn't help but think of the Kane Chronicles' masterpiece of the Red Pyramid, which is the first time I even realized that mythology existed beyond Greece and Rome (in Egypt). Ra, the sun god, was Zeus's O.G. It was great to read the Osiris piece in class today and be able to reflect upon the times I enjoyed such pieces of literature and how more significant literature is also influenced by mythology. Pictured below is the cover of one of my childhood favorites that I've mentioned here (if anyone'd like to read).

Being a bug must suck

In the Metamorphosis, we see Gregor Sansa, a normal traveling salesman, turn into a a disgusting bug. But what does it mean to be a bug? Well, in Gregor’s case, he is looked down upon by other humans, crawls all over the place, eating nasty food, and no longer sleeps in his own bed. How terrible is that!? Well, guess what? I had a similar experience to this over the past few days!

On Thursday, Friday, and some of today, I got the chance to go to Tulane for a multicultural fly-in program called Bievenue TU. Although I went in expecting a sub par experience and expecting not to interact with many people, I had a fun time meeting new people and doing group activities such as a scavenger hunt across the French Quarter.

This being said, I had a bad time in some aspects. The breakfast for starters, OH WOW. That was terrible. I don’t understand how someone could possibly mess up scrambled eggs! The sauasage patties weren’t good either. The only saving grace was the waffles and that only because it was made in a waffle maker. I had chocolate milk too, hoping that this wouldn’t be terrible. Alas, my chocolate milk had FLAKES IN IT. What! But this wasn’t my only problem. When I went to sleep in the dorms, I had to sleep on the hard floor. The fact that I had a sleeping bag and pillow didn’t help this at all and I was very uncomfortable having to sleep like this. I guess you could say I was sort of like a bug because I sure felt like one!

I Think the Metamorphosis is Bad

Kafka’s Metamorphosis  is grossly overrated. Centuries after its writing, the novella somehow remains a staple in the Western canon. How? I do not understand! An overwhelming amount of the book describes the excruciatingly boring domestic duties of the Samsa family. Kafka elaborates for paragraphs upon paragraphs about the cleaning hobbies of the family now that they have to deal with Gregor’s bug state. Simply put, there are very few sections in the novella that are not painfully boring. Disregarding Kafka’s subpar style of prose, the premise of the story initially has potential; “As Gregor Samsa awoke one morningfrom uneasy dreams, he found himself transformed in his bed into a gigantic insect-like creature.” “Oh this should be a great story,” thinks the eager reader (I being one of those readers). Oh, how wrong I was. Like the Falcons with a 25 point lead in the Super Bowl, Kafka absolutely blew it. He had the Lombardi Trophy of plot potential in his hands and handed it over to Mr. Brady himself.

My Initial Thoughts on The Metamorphosis

Having done a project on existentialism last year which drastically impacted my views and subsequently the way I read and interpret texts, I dove into The Metamorphosis ready to find all the implications on life and the absurd. As a result, I read Part I as a commentary on existence and everyday life, not necessarily as it relates to Modernism. I remember a video I watched last year during my research that described absurdity as looking at the world with shocking objectivity; a man and woman eating dinner at a dining room table present us with an average, normal scenario, however we can look at it from an entirely new perspective and address the strangeness behind our lives.
I noted my initial reaction at the bottom of p. 946 (where Gregor reacts with concern for his job, avoiding the fact that he has literally turned into a cockroach): peculiarity/absurdity? Our reactions to life itself; we live among the elements of life that are unexplained but are determined to react reasonably/lack perspective which makes us see the bizarre state of reality.
Do you think Kafka could be commenting on the unknown that we walk with in our daily lives (the human condition)?

Kafka and Dostoevsky

I think Kafka’s The Metamorphosis brings about a topic that we discussed concerning Underground Man and that I have blogged about previously which is emotion is the “enemy” of logic. We have explored the theme that Gregor isn’t fully in touch will his human emotions until he is well into being a bug. Concerning the Underground Man, we have debated what makes animals human and if they are purely logical for the purpose of surviving in their environments. But I really enjoy this topic, although fictional, that the physical being of an animal enhanced emotions not previously felt by Gregor due to his mechanical, robotic everyday life. This obviously just goes to convey Kafka’s overlying meaning of his work that we in society are the ones truly just “surviving” in our environments. Does this change your perspective relating the two works? I would love to hear what everyone thinks about this!

¿british library?

When I went to Europe, with Dr. Vaccarro and others, this summer our first stop was in London. On our second to last day there, we made a stop at the British National Library. And let me just say, it was fantastic, there were so many historical artifacts that lined the walls. At the library, like any museum-like place, there was a gift shop. So I purchased a collection of poems. And guess who it was by T. S. Elliot. I have read a few of his poems, and they are actually quite interesting and well written.

¿national emergency?

Fyodor Dostoevsky was sentenced to death in 1849. You could say he was in quite a predicament. You might even say he was in an emergency.

Presidents Trump declared a national emergency, on the southern border of the United States, yesterday. The national emergency was put into effect to stop massive amounts of drugs, criminals, and illegal immigrants from entering the United States. This was done because of the refusal from Congress to fund the border wall. There will be at least $3.6 billion heading to funding a border wall. Democratic leaders in the house and Senate have vowed to challenge the legality of this declaration and it is possible there could be a case in the supreme court.

I Bet You Didn’t Know: A Glimpse into the Life of T. S. Eliot

I always like that before we begin reading a work of literature, we read the author’s biography first. I thought I’d share some thought-provoking details of T.S. Eliot’s life with y’all before we start reading “The Waste Land.” (Hopefully some of these won’t come up in his biography in Norton.) I picked the most interesting ones for my blog post, but if you want more, click on the link!

1. He never wrote for more than three hours each day! This actually makes sense considering he held down a multitude of other jobs (banker, teacher, editor, publisher, etc.) throughout his life. He said, “The danger, as a rule, of having nothing else to do is that one might write too much rather than concentrating and perfecting smaller amounts.”

2. His 1939 book of poetry, Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats, was transformed into one of the longest-running Broadway shows of all time. I bet y’all have heard of Cats!?

3. Eliot’s colleague, poet Ezra Pound, helped raise money for Eliot so he could quit his banking job. Pound and others who respected Eliot thought he should put more time into his writing. Eliot had different ideas: he kept his job and didn’t accept the money. 

4. During a period of writer’s block, he found another outlet by writing in French (only for a short time). 

 
5. He wrote a poem called “The Triumph of Bulls**t.” “[...] The Oxford English Dictionary credits the poem with being the first time a curse word ever appeared in print.” Oooh! 

6. Eliot’s marriage was complicated by his wife’s addiction to ether and her frequent physician and mental issues. “Eliot [...] would later reveal that his state of despair during his first marriage was the catalyst and inspiration for "The Waste Land.”

Huh! Another poet with a bizarre life. What a surprise...

Source: http://mentalfloss.com/article/86011/12-things-you-might-not-know-about-ts-eliot

Dostoevsky, Kafka, and the Modern World

Both Dostoevsky and Kafka use their voices as authors to draw attention to the degradation of society they've noticed in the modern era. With the rise of industrialization and urbanization, the economy has boomed all over the world. At face value, it seems that human life is improving. There is better medicine, new inventions such as the steam engine, and cities are expanding. However, underneath the surface, society itself is coming apart at the seams because of a lack of the basic thing all humans need: emotional connections to others.

Dostoevsky's Notes from Underground highlights the effects of a bureaucratic society. The Underground Man has a minor job with some faceless company and lives the bare minimum of a life. While he has a stable (albeit meager) income, a home to call his own, and even a servant, he has no social life and fails at all attempts to make friends. Without emotional connections to others, his life has no meaning. Likewise, Gregor in The Metamorphosis is very responsible and provides for his entire family by working for a traveling sales company. However, the job takes up almost all of his time, and Gregor has no social life either (like the Underground Man). Furthermore, when Gregor misses work for the first time in five years, his employers immediately assume he is stealing or just faking an illness. They don't view him as a person; he is a source of profit and nothing else. Both Dostoevsky's and Kafka's main characters reveal that the impersonal bureaucracies of the modern world don't fulfill all aspects of the human experience. Humans don't just need money; they also need empathy.

The Trinity and Religion in The Metamorphosis

I don't think anyone can deny that there are a LOT of examples of the number three (which normally represents the Trinity) in Kafka's The Metamorphosis. Here are all of the examples I could find:
-3 parts to the novella
-3 doors to Gregor's room
-3 members of Gregor's family
-3 boarders
-3 servants (the cook, maid, and charwoman)
-3 weapons are used against Gregor by his father (the newspaper, cane, and apples)
-Gregor dies at 3 a.m.

However, the purpose of using groups of threes is unclear. Kafka himself was Jewish, so it seems odd that he would include so many references to the Trinity in this work unless he was simply doing it to appeal to his mainly Christian audience. On the other hand, Kafka didn't have a lot of time to publish his work during his lifetime (although The Metamorphosis was released while he was alive), and it doesn't seem that he was writing to please an audience other than himself. In his lecture on The Metamorphosis, Nabokov says that we shouldn't read too much into any religious symbols or aspects of the novella because he is familiar with Kafka and believes that it wasn't his intention to write a religious story.

Maybe three was just Kafka's favorite number? Why do y'all think Kafka used so many threes?

The Metamorphosis and Brother Bear

I just about had a stroke when Anna Beth compared the Metamorphosis and the classic film Brother Bear the other day in class. Since she didn't take the opportunity to write about it on the blog, I will. (that's right Talbot i'm taking yo thunder)
Then, I almost died from finding out Ms. King hasn't seen Brother Bear. I mean, cmon, Ms. King, you haven't seen the Lion King, Brother Bear, and even MORE Disney-Pixar movies that really culturally shape the entire world that we live in today. The way I see it: you've been teaching us all year and exposing us to all of these literature phenomenons that influenced the world in some way or another, so we should be able to spend a couple classes giving that experience back to you- Disney style (I think it's especially fitting considering the cheerleaders recent trip).

Anyway, brother bear- if you haven't seen it (shame on you)- is about a boy who's world changes when his brother Sitka  is killed by a bear. Kenai in turn kills the bear, only to be magically transformed into one himself. To make matters worse, his other brother Denahi vows to kill the bear Kenai has become (thinking it killed both his bros). Kenai's only hope is to get to the northern lights where he believes he can be changed back to a human, and he gets help from a real bear cub, Koda, to get him there. Ugh just typing that put me in my feels and now I'm gonna go watch it after I'm done writing this (my family really does love this movie yall). Anyway, the similarity comes in that Kenai can't communicate with his brother or any other human to get help as a bear- just like Gregor as a bug. Unsimilarly, Gregor's family instantly recognizes him, whereas Denahi only sees Kenai as a ferocious bear.

Kill Gregor! A Freshman's Confusion of Cockroaches

When I was a freshman at St. Martin's, my brother was a senior- one a part of the AP English IV/ Humanities course. I had always heard about the course from him and some friends- the blog, the double lectures, etc- just as you would talk about school like usual with your sibling and parents. One day me and Antonio were playing video games or watching TV, I don't really remember, and a cockroach climbed up a curtain. I hate cockroaches. I hate them more than rats, snakes, spiders, allll that jazz. Cockroaches are the WORST. So naturally I screamed and commanded him to (*trigger warning*) go kill it. Antonio took one of his running shoes and spent like 10 minutes trying to kill the thing while calling it GREGOR. I was confused and horrified, but the whole time was cracking up laughing as he was acting like he was actually in a fight with a cockroach he called Gregor. I really did think he was just being stupid and made it up- it wasn't unusual for Antonio to do something goofy like that. Anyway we went on the next three years calling every cockroach we saw (only when we were together bc college duh) Gregor, and the whole time I thought it was just something stupid and funny he did one random night my freshman year. I thought that up until I went to do homework last Sunday night as I opened my English book to read a story of a man turned cockroach named......wait for it...... GREGOR. To bad antonio had his facts wrong because Gregor was a beetle kinda thing not a cockroach.. but still.

True story.

A poor little creature killed by savages

It was a Thursday night (I think) and I was checking Snapchat. A couple snaps had popped up from a group chat that I am in with three of my friends. I will keep the names anonymous, but I am going to reveal a cruel and horribly true story of what I saw on those snaps. One of these said friends was staying at the other friend's house when he discovered a small, brown lizard searching for a quick meal in the corner to bring back to his loving lizard family who was living outside. He had traveled inside following a group of smaller insects he hoped that he could sneak up on by surprise. The lizard spotted a spider and jumped up on the shower and was about to pounce on it, when he was smacked. His body whipped across the room. He had died almost instantly from the impact. The poor lizard was only minding his own business trying to support his lizard family. He knew that trespassing on my friend's home would be a big risk. The daddy lizard had been brutally murdered by my friend. Many humans do not know what it is like to be a bug, or even a small creature like a lizard. They don'y know how it feels to be the little guy surrounded by enormous objects and people. They have no clue what being on the bottom of the food chain is like. The friend acted out of cowardice and disgust and killed that lizard simply because he was an outsider who was not supposed to be in the nice, clean bathroom. Entering the home of my friend uninvited proved to be costly for the lizard. When I saw the videos and photos on snapchat of the little lizard, I felt sympathy and the question we were asked in class about what being a bug would be like came to my mind. I could not help feeling sorry for the small creature because his life was ended just because someone else wanted it over. If you are scared to touch live animals to put them back outside, shame on you. But if you would like to pick them up with out hurting them or touching them to bring them outside, check out this link!!!! I forgot where I saw this but this came to mind when I heard about the lizard haha. 

https://www.amazon.com/My-Critter-Catcher-Spider-Insect/dp/B0192MB5RS

"God is Dead" Analysis

During class the other day, Nietzsche's famous quote "God is dead" was brought up, but I felt the question of what he actually meant by it wasn't truly resolved. Many people lump this quote in with Nihilism and the direct rejection of religion, but that wasn't necessarily its purpose. Nietzsche himself wasn't a nihilist, and though he wasn't particularly religious himself, the quote was supposed to be a reflection of society at the time. It represented the death of hope and faith in society, in everything from their government to actual religious belief itself. "God" meant something much broader than the Christian God at face value, it meant everything He used to represent to Western Christian society. His "death" wasn't Nietzsche's thinking God had literally died, but the belief in his values were.

¿AOC and the GND?

"Gregor Samson turning into a giant beetle. That's obviously not true. A famous representative in the United States Congress proposes to provide economic stability to all who are unable or unwilling to work. That's obviously not true." - a rational person.

"What are you talking about! I just proposed exactly that!!" - Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

Attached is the Green New Deal outline that the office of Cortez has taken down. I suggest you take a look.
https://www.scribd.com/document/399182602/Green-New-Deal-FAQ#from_embed

PS: for all of you scared of flying, don't worry, the removal of air traffic is proposed as well.

The Samsas in Part III

By Part III, all members of the Samsa family have undergone a drastic transformation. Gregor is the most obvious example: he metamorphoses into a beetle! Aside from that though, his personality doesn’t change that much. Even until the end (his death as a result of lack of eating and exercise and an overall will to live), Gregor still thinks of his family with love and devotion. He tries, for the most part, to make his presence the least inconvenient for them. The personalities of the other Samsas change far more than Gregor’s. All three of them get jobs now that Gregor can’t provide for the family, and they are overworked, tired, and a lot less lively at the dinner table and in the evenings. His father has treated Gregor with violence, and his mother can’t stand the sight of him. Finally, Grete, who has treated him with the most kindness out of anyone, stops caring about Gregor over time. She no longer cleans his room, and eventually SHE is the one to suggest that they need to get rid of Gregor and even calls him a monster. The title of the work refers to not only the metamorphosis of Gregor but of the Samsa family as a whole.