Ants, Again.

I'm pretty sure we blogged about this in like August or September as it related to the Tin Drum and 100 Years of Solitude, but ants reappeared in Midnight's Children, as a symbol of death and decay. We see ants when Saleem encounters his friends dead and on the brink of death. We also see ants in the the general who dies under the loudspeakers. Before this year, I always saw ants as the prime example of working together against the greater odds (probably because of that Pixar movie, A Bug's Life), but now I totally see ants as a symbol of decay in literature.

Matthew Barney...

http://www.cremaster.net/#

From what I've seen, I personally do not like his films. It's probably because I don't understand them. Some of his stills are crazy-psycho-cool, but I don't like the films after watching more film clips and trailers. Reading on the official website however didn't clarify anything for me. He talks about the cremaster cycle and pre-sexual development and how that represents to him a state of purity. That's an interesting thought, but I feel as if his films in no way whatsoever portray these ideas! Well, other then his diagrams which, even if they're strategically placed or formed out of grapes or people or horses, are so literal and straightforward. Boring! I don't know if I'm missing something crucial, but I personally am just not a fan by the slightest means.

Helen Frankenthaler

I really liked her piece when I saw it in Fleming and I liked what the book had to say about her blotting acrylics as if they were watercolors. I was intrigued so I decided to look her up on google when I found this picture.

I didn't realize Frankenthaler worked in such large dimensions. Furthermore, in this picture, her painting style reminds me Pollock in that she physically gets in her paintings just because they are so large. Although she may not be classified as an action painter, she still has to become very physically involved with the piece as with Pollock.
To me her art is just as revolutionary as Pollock, yet I did not learn about her until this month whereas I've known about Pollock for some years now. Who or what determines what becomes such famous art?

Rothko Painting in the Sky!

I was on the plane right after the sun had set and I looked out the window and thought it was beautiful. I decided to take a picture and after I looked at the picture, I was struck by the resemblance it held to a Rothko painting (minus the typical border thing).

"White Disease"

The disease that the Rani of Cooch Naheen contracts turns her skin from dark to light over a period of time. Eventually, when she dies, she is completely white. Though this probably is meant to mirror some actual disease, I think that it is mostly a metaphor for cultural assimilation and blending in India during this time. Though it is a good thing to be receptive to other cultures, it's important not to forget your roots though. The Rani even says that she is split between two cultures and her skin is a testimony to that.

Things Fall Apart.... In Other Countries Too, Not Just Africa

So I thought I would draw a parallel between the fragmented pieces of Saleem Sinai's world and those of a  character like Okonkwo's. In both stories, there is political and social upheaval which causes destruction to their respective communities. Both books deal with outside (and inside) sources that shatter their worlds. Especially with all of Saleem's worries about cracking off piece by piece, I think this book could also easily be called Things Fall Apart.

Re-Reading :/

So far, in my life I've never re-read a book (with the exception of like Dr. Seuss and other childhood books). I simply never thought I would enjoy a book the second time around once I know the ending. However, as I'm working on my pre-write, even though I'm not re-reading the novel by any means, I can see how re-reading could be interesting. Morrison uses a lot of foreshadowing that you wouldn't notice on a first reading. For example, early on she describes Beloved as holding her head up because her neck is too fragile to support it. Also a lot of events in the novel seem to have different meanings on a second reading. For example, when Denver thinks that she has been thinking of an excuse to try to get Beloved to share her room on first reading it seems that Denver is simply obsessed with Beloved and having a friend finally. However, on a second reading it can also be interpreted as an attempt of Denver to protect Beloved from Sethe. Finally I think by now we've also reached a point where we could re-read plenty of the novels and short stories from freshmen and sophomore year just because we've probably forgotten them by now. I always thought I might would re-read The Catcher in the Rye at some point or A Rose for Emily and Child by Tiger. Now I actually think I will!