Author Archives: Sereyrath Ly

Racial War (186-223 pp)

Leave a reply

It seems like a tiny issue to ignore people in the daily live. It is normal that sometimes you feel dislike any specific group of people. In The Sellout, the narrator was slapped by his grandmother and his parents because this black man claims that he is white (188). Moreover, the black kids are not allowed to receive the education in the white kids’ school (193). What is wrong to be born as a black person? Why shouldn’t people blame them just because they are black? In American society in the past decades, racial discrimination becomes a tense issue when it has relentlessly happened in the society. Paul Beatty said, “When someone whiter than us, blacker than us, Chineser than us, better than us, whatever than us, comes around throwing their equality in our faces, it brings out our need to impress, to behave, to tuck in our shirts, do our homework, show up on time, make our free throws, teach, and prove our self-worth in hopes that we won’t be fired, arrested, or trucked away and shot” (208). This piece of evidence proves that Americans treat the racial issue seriously unlike its appearance just as the non-violent activities. Paul Beatty also compares the racial discrimination to the tension in North Korea (196) which makes the racial issue more serious and it needs more attention from American people to solve it as soon as possible.

The Role of Writers in America

Leave a reply

James Baldwin emphasizes on the importance of writers in America in The Discovery of What It Means to be an American. He strongly believes that escaping from America to Europe is the best way for black American writers to speak up the reality of the American society. Baldwin, who is an American Novelist, essayist, playwright, poet, and civil rights advocator, criticizes, ”American writers that they do not describe society, and have no interest in it. They only describe individuals in opposition to it, or isolated from it” (22). After moving to Europe at the age of 24, he realizes that he can freely express the racial and sexual issues. He assumes that writers is the ones who find out hidden laws, and unspoken but profound assumptions to govern the society. Since living in America demotivates black American writers to fully get ”freedom of expression”, Baldwin encourages the American writers to keep running to Europe and sustainably fulfill their writing careers.

Matching Reality to Theory (Nickel and Dimed 1-60)

Leave a reply

In the first 60 pages of Nickel and Dimed, Barbara Ehrenreich describes low minimum wage workers who barely make their livings. Simultaneously, her point about “Someone ought to do the old-fashioned kind of journalism — you know, go out there and try it for themselves” (1) sparks my interest. Just learning the theory or hearing from others does not provide enough reality to the facts of something that we want to know. In order to explore minimum wage workers’ lives, the journalist in Nickel and Dimed puts herself in low wage workers’ shoes so that readers know how hard it really is to support housing, food, childcare, medical care, etc. In another case, the new generation after a genocide would not fully understand the awful emotional pain of survivors, including post-traumatic stress disorder. Is it always true that we need to experience a phenomenon in order to understand it?

Hypothetical Novel (The Great Gatsby)

1 Reply

It’s my first time of reading this novel. Even I try to consciusly read the Great Gatsby, I still keep questioning myself in every chapter. From page 1 to 112, I am wondering about what Gatsby’s background is, why Daisy didn’t choose Gatsby but get married with Tom, how this novel relate to American dream, etc. It is really interesting that Fitzgerald shows complicated relations between Tom and Daisy, Gatsby and Daisy, Tom and Myrtle, George and Myrtle. I’m curious how Fitzgerald writes their relationship ending.

O Pioneer (Page 73-107)

Leave a reply

Cather expresses strong inner monologues which are interesting and genuine. For instance, in Part III section I at the scene of Marie’s monologue, it sparks my interest that Cather makes a well description on Marie’s life without using any conversation. Simultaneously, it seems that nothing happens to Alexandra and Carl’s relationship, but Emil and Marie make a big change in their affair. I am not curious about the relationship between Alexandra and Carl. In contrast, the affair among Frank, Emil and Marie is more likely complicated. I am eager to know the result of this triangle connection.

The ability of Individuals in O Pioneers

Leave a reply

Starting from a Swedish-American immigrant in the farm country of Hanover, Cather artificially writes a fiction, mirroring societal situation in the early 20th century. Bergsons’ family, taking as an example, partly shapes and builds the life structure in America. Specifically, Alexandra has devoted herself in young age, lifting up her family and confronting with the social pressure. At the same time of having hardship, this individual has never given up her intention to preserve what she already owned and striven to achieve her dream of developing her farmland. Cather also emphasizes on page 26, “The history of every country begins in the heart of a man or a woman.”

While every immigrant cannot deal with the economic issues then decide to leave their farmlands, Alexandra highly commits to stick with her land even though it is risky to own the bank’s contracts. She invests her time to go down among the river farms with Emil, trying to make sure her decision of staying up there is absolutely right. She goes to ask Ivar, seeking for advice to retrieve her family’s farmland as the father’s will. So to speak, she has tried all her best to save family’s heritage. Cather also shows that it is not necessary that only man can lead the family. Alexandra, who represents the potential women, is one of the good role model for eliminating discrimination against women in the society.

At this first half of novel, Alexandra’s dream comes true. Her hard work does pay off. I am very curious of what is going on after this scenario.