Zitkala Sa

Throughout these chapters you really feel her age as a factor, I mean the perspective that she is writing the "Impressions of an Indian Childhood" there's an overall sense of innocence and freedom yet she tries to act older, and usually shows age doing it. In the the first chapter "My Mother" one totally sees the freedom that she posses, just with her activities but the reader learns of the harsh realities of the paleman and what has come from their movement into the Natives land. She develops a quick hatred for them, but its a childish hate because its quickly formed and because her mother expresses such feelings for it. I'm not saying that the feelings are without good cause, just that there without backing because of her age and experience with the subject. Also with the chapters "The Legends and The Beadwork" you can see the traditions start coming through within the writings. How she waits for them to tell the legends that will someday give her a sense of culture and home, but for right now they serve merely for entertainment, she doesn't realize what she's really hearing. "The Beadwork and The Coffee-Making" can over lap in showing how she tries to act older and take the responsiblities that she will one day be in charge of doing. When she begins the beadwork like her mom she has to stay with simple patterns because of her attention span kicks in. Also it talks about their playing, and you once again feel how free she is, especially in spirit. With he coffee-making she knows she's suppose to be a good hostess and what she is expected to do yet she falls short because her lack of experience. Her very innocence is shown because she doesn't even pick up on her fault or the quick stab at her skills by the visitor and her mom. Lastly in the chapter "The Dead man's Plum Bush" child selfishness (not sure if word haha) is seen because her blantant disregard for the ill older lady because the feast is more exciting and even picking the plums without thinking of why they are there.

I think throughout the writings her innocence and freedom is definitely present, just with her activities and how she views everything. But like with all younger kids she tries to act older than she is, yet falters when put to the test. It's expected most younger kids try but its very easy to see within the writings.

Washington and Du Bois

Within The Atlanta Exposition Address, Booker T. Washington takes a somewhat passive approach to racism and the different expectations between the races. In his speech he relates the races with two different ships, one asking for help and the other offering yet without being herd, when he goes on you never really know which race is which ship because the point is that each need each other to prosper. Without being harsh and negative about the events of past times, he is able to project a better future that can be accomplished; just with some patience and time. He knows that this problem will not fix itself over night and the world will not learn to live as one, but more of an inch by inch sort of way. During his speech he also says "Much dignity in tilling a field as in writing a poem.." which is his way of showing the greatness in every ones life, no matter what they may be doing, hoping to show that even though they were slaves what their lives entailed was just as important and needed as what the whites were doing. Further within his piece he talks about how he didn't feel that his speech accomplished much until the next day when people were gathering to shake his hand, showing that just a speech can alter people opinions and that it will take time to reach everyone.

Whereas W.E.B Du Bois writing of: Of Mr. Booker T. Washington and Others he is more straight forward and demanding of what blacks deserve, and almost gives the reader the feeling that he doesn't approve of Washington. That he has become to passive and isn't as great as the general opinion is, but more negative because of how he goes about looking for change. Whether it's envy or straight disagreement Du Bouis gives the impression that Washington is almost more white than black with his thinking. Du Bois comes right out and says " Negroes must insist continually, in season and out of season, that voting is necessary to modern manhood, that color discrimination is barbarism, and that black boys need education as well as white boys." He comes off as threatening and judgemental, and probably isn't seen to well by others that aren't strongly agreeing with him.

Reading these two pieces as though the two men were having a conversation, I'm sure it would be heated and more about each others approaches then the actual content. Their ideas are justified because they both reach for equality but Washington is more telling it gently where Du Bois is pushing it down the throat.

Henry James on Edith Whartons: Belated Souls

Within Henry James' essay he writes about creating believable characters, how important it is to have the readers cling to them so that they can put themselves inside the story. In Edith Wharton's Belated Souls there isn't any characters that seems too out there for one too connect with. We can all understand being in a relationship, friendship or romantic, that becomes repetitive and boring persay, then when someone new and exciting comes along they grab our attention, it's human nature. Even the very setting is realistic, Wharton doesn't add anything extreme enough to push the reader out of the story and question where the character was coming from; each one of her characters has a purpose, a reason for what they say or do she doesn't add random people in the story.
Wharton's ending isn't really the "fairy tale" ending either,to the point that Lydia leaves her boring husband to travel the world and ends up getting married to Gannet it is, but there is another part of it that seems different on how they come to the idea of getting married. It's almost as if there is a part of them that hates the very idea of getting married espically Lydia, except she finds herself coming back to marry instead of being alone. James talks about the ending shouldn't be as "mechanical" as most of them have been instead you should get something out of it. The reader questions almost why she goes back, she hates the idea of marriage and almost everything it stands for yet she chooses it over trying to find love again. I know it sounds like I'm contradicting myself from the first paragraph to this one but Wharton still doesn't bump the reader out instead she makes them wonder why they wouldn't choose the same path that Lydia does. I think that's really what James was saying about the ending and how it should have a point not just a finsih. With hers makes the reader examin themselves and their own ideas.
Also in Souls Belated there's a main storyline of how these two run away together only to become the very thing they had once mocked, but there's more to the novel then that. She also introduces at the hotel a couple, The Lintons, that are in the same lie and predictament that they find themselves in; but Warton also makes sure that there are a few couples that stand for everything that Lydia hates and yet she sides with them. It shows a very different part of Lydia and Gannetts character that wasn't available in the begining and maybe even starts to show them changing. It gives the novel more than just the blunt storyline, adding the color that Henry James talks about on pg 564 in The Art of Fiction.

Summerized Henry James

Henry James' critical essay "The Art of Fiction" is about how writers face problems when creating fictional novels. How novels used to be seen as novels and that's it, not anymore or less (pg556: "a novel is a novel, as pudding is a pudding.) but now readers take everything they read to heart, unknowing whether it is true or not. James also come to contradict himself because he says that you should write about what you know (End of pg558) yet he is appalled when Anthony Trollope tells his readers that his characters and events are make beleive (pg556). He also relates literature and writers to artist and the creations they make, showing how the two have many similaraties on how the readers/viewers emotionally connect with their peices of work. Yet with artwork you know what it is, and you take it for that; whereas when people read novels they aren't always aware of the mistrust that authors may use, and the readers may be hurt without any knowledge. He goes on to address endings and how there are different views on what makes a good ending whether you're they type who likes the "happy ending" with marraige, babies, ect. Or if you're the type who beleives a good ending has that of a fufillment to it, knowing that even though it didn't work out in the end the character still defined who they were. He ends that section with the idea that fairy tale endings are endless but whats important is that a voice has come out in the ending. He touches on how quilckly characters are being produced and that there are more bad than good, that today it is easier to make a crappy character then take the time to evolve and produce one that can make an impact;beleiving that they must be realistic for the readers to relate to. It allows the readers to become apart of the novel, and really embrace the story that they are living through the characters. As we hit the next part of his essay he discusses the differences of the story which is believed to be the essence of the novel; the actual purpose of the novel. But there is more than just story to a novel, you need the mystery the details that make the story interesting; that allows you to become involved within the novel. He wraps it up with the obvious statement that a great novel depends on the mind that it is written from.

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