Friday, March 29, 2019
Monday, March 25, 2019
Week 8 Reading and Writing
The reading and the writing assignments are helpful for me. They allow me to analyze the text in different aspects. They also allow me to reflect on my own way of living and relate many pressing and significant topics to the literary works. My favorite readings so far are The Luck of Roaring Camp, an excerpt from Sun Sui Far's Mrs. Spring Fragrance, and The Life and Adventures of Joaquin Murieta: The Celebrated California Bandit. I also like the Four Poems from Angel Island and Chinatown, and Coyote Cooks his Daughter.
The reading notes that I have are usually direct quotes from the text. Initially, I would just put them in quotations, now I include in-text citation pages so that I could select which quote can support my argument as evidence, and copy + paste them instead of typing the longevity of the quote. Recently, I started adding some other factors that can help me with my analysis, like keynotes that say 'research about the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo'.
I guess my biggest accomplishment is that I am still here despite being busy and having to deal with some troubles in life. Also, being able to write the first project is also a huge accomplishment.
Right now, I would like to start the week early. I usually start late because I have work and some other assignments to manage, so I tend to put this class last. It's not a promise, but I would try.
The reading notes that I have are usually direct quotes from the text. Initially, I would just put them in quotations, now I include in-text citation pages so that I could select which quote can support my argument as evidence, and copy + paste them instead of typing the longevity of the quote. Recently, I started adding some other factors that can help me with my analysis, like keynotes that say 'research about the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo'.
I guess my biggest accomplishment is that I am still here despite being busy and having to deal with some troubles in life. Also, being able to write the first project is also a huge accomplishment.
Right now, I would like to start the week early. I usually start late because I have work and some other assignments to manage, so I tend to put this class last. It's not a promise, but I would try.
Project Brainstorm: Project 2
Choice 1: From a piece of fiction (short story, section of novel, or a play) choose a female character on whom to focus, and create a project that discusses some of the following questions:
• What is the author’s attitude towards her? (how can you tell?)
• What is your attitude towards her?
• How do (at least 2) other characters view her?
• How does she view herself?
I was taught to learn about the protagonists in the stories that I read, and frankly, most protagonists are male characters. There is very little credit given to female characters especially if she was not related to the male character, or if she was not given any romantic interests in the story. I believe that every minor character plays her/his role to help the major characters attain development. I want to learn more about the roles of women in history, and how they were represented. As a female myself, I think I would be able to provide insights involving female emotions. I want to focus on Lae Choo, the Chinese mother from Sun Sui Far's Mrs. Spring Fragrance collection.
Choice 2: Choose a reading selection, and write an argument in response to it answering:
How are class differences presented in the work? Are characters aware or unaware of the economic and social forces that affect their lives?
My views from this choice hasn't changed since the first project brainstorm. Since my five siblings and I were enrolled in a private Catholic school from first grade to senior high school, I didn’t realize that my family was poor until I got bullied for having hand-me-downs: uniforms, shoes, books, and backpacks, and recycling materials for art projects. This topic shakes my heart, and I want to delve into it, not because of bitterness, but because I want to learn how the people of upper classes discriminate people of lower classes, and how it is historically relevant. I believe that a child wouldn’t be so mean towards another child if he/she wasn’t taught of their privileges as part of the upper classes. So, is in nature or is it the way they are nurtured that made them discriminate against the “untouchables” (based on the Indian caste system).
• What is the author’s attitude towards her? (how can you tell?)
• What is your attitude towards her?
• How do (at least 2) other characters view her?
• How does she view herself?
I was taught to learn about the protagonists in the stories that I read, and frankly, most protagonists are male characters. There is very little credit given to female characters especially if she was not related to the male character, or if she was not given any romantic interests in the story. I believe that every minor character plays her/his role to help the major characters attain development. I want to learn more about the roles of women in history, and how they were represented. As a female myself, I think I would be able to provide insights involving female emotions. I want to focus on Lae Choo, the Chinese mother from Sun Sui Far's Mrs. Spring Fragrance collection.
Choice 2: Choose a reading selection, and write an argument in response to it answering:
How are class differences presented in the work? Are characters aware or unaware of the economic and social forces that affect their lives?
My views from this choice hasn't changed since the first project brainstorm. Since my five siblings and I were enrolled in a private Catholic school from first grade to senior high school, I didn’t realize that my family was poor until I got bullied for having hand-me-downs: uniforms, shoes, books, and backpacks, and recycling materials for art projects. This topic shakes my heart, and I want to delve into it, not because of bitterness, but because I want to learn how the people of upper classes discriminate people of lower classes, and how it is historically relevant. I believe that a child wouldn’t be so mean towards another child if he/she wasn’t taught of their privileges as part of the upper classes. So, is in nature or is it the way they are nurtured that made them discriminate against the “untouchables” (based on the Indian caste system).
Choice 3: Choose a reading.
In your project, consider the following:
What does this work reflect about its historical, social, political and/or economic context? You may focus on race, class, power, cultural values and beliefs, historical events, the author’s biography, gender, psychology, etc.
I would like to examine the Four poems of Angel Island and Chinatown. I think it gives us a glimpse of how Chinese people are treated for almost 4 decades. Historical, social, political and/or economic context are present from these four poems.
Friday, March 22, 2019
Week 8: Literary Analysis of Four Poems of Angel Island and Chinatown
The poems by the detained Chinese immigrants of the years ranging from 1910 until 1940 were inscribed on the wall of the building where they were imprisoned. The translated poems in this anthology allow us to see how desperate the "undocumented" immigrants were to be released to their relatives that were legally documented, immigrants.
The first poem talks about how many depressed cries are written on the walls. The Chinese detainees are all looking for comfort, and because they feel like their circumstance cannot be consoled by another person since they are all experiencing the same misery, they resort into writing their pains against the wall. This poem shows that social class doesn't matter in the face of oppression. But this particular poem sounds hopeful for the poet writes, "Why should one complain if he is detained and imprisoned here? From ancient times, heroes often were the first ones to face adversity (Hicks, p. 354)". The poet still clings to a sliver chance of getting his/her liberty back, and that hope brings comfort to his/her own misfortune.
The second poem talks about a lady who is longing for her husband who hasn't come home. Perhaps, she has given up on her freedom that she decides that the island where she is detained is now her home. She talks about the passing of time, and how it could never be returned. She is quite turning this misfortune to a positive way and wishing to enjoy her remaining years instead of sulking about crying for justice.
The third poem talks about how a man who is detained in the Island has been there for so long he awaits death. He doesn't believe in anything hopeful anymore that he has to resign in his prison which he implies to be the first level of Hell, he awaits King Yimlo at Hell's tenth palace. I think that King Yimlo is the equivalent of Satan in the Chinese culture. This poem also allows us to compare it with Dante's Divine Comedy; a novel where the different levels of Hell are imaginarily created.
The last poem talks about how the Chinese "undocumented" immigrants transform this prison, their hellhole, into a town of merry events. They create their own community and decide that if they weren't going to be with their legally documented relatives, they will celebrate their own lives in the comfort of their people and despite being prisoners, they gain the power of camaraderie. They learn to build and support each other rather than wait for redemption that will surely not arrive, not in this government.
The first poem talks about how many depressed cries are written on the walls. The Chinese detainees are all looking for comfort, and because they feel like their circumstance cannot be consoled by another person since they are all experiencing the same misery, they resort into writing their pains against the wall. This poem shows that social class doesn't matter in the face of oppression. But this particular poem sounds hopeful for the poet writes, "Why should one complain if he is detained and imprisoned here? From ancient times, heroes often were the first ones to face adversity (Hicks, p. 354)". The poet still clings to a sliver chance of getting his/her liberty back, and that hope brings comfort to his/her own misfortune.
The second poem talks about a lady who is longing for her husband who hasn't come home. Perhaps, she has given up on her freedom that she decides that the island where she is detained is now her home. She talks about the passing of time, and how it could never be returned. She is quite turning this misfortune to a positive way and wishing to enjoy her remaining years instead of sulking about crying for justice.
The third poem talks about how a man who is detained in the Island has been there for so long he awaits death. He doesn't believe in anything hopeful anymore that he has to resign in his prison which he implies to be the first level of Hell, he awaits King Yimlo at Hell's tenth palace. I think that King Yimlo is the equivalent of Satan in the Chinese culture. This poem also allows us to compare it with Dante's Divine Comedy; a novel where the different levels of Hell are imaginarily created.
The last poem talks about how the Chinese "undocumented" immigrants transform this prison, their hellhole, into a town of merry events. They create their own community and decide that if they weren't going to be with their legally documented relatives, they will celebrate their own lives in the comfort of their people and despite being prisoners, they gain the power of camaraderie. They learn to build and support each other rather than wait for redemption that will surely not arrive, not in this government.
Tuesday, March 19, 2019
Reading Notes W8: Four Poems of Angel Island and Chinatown
The poems by the detained Chinese immigrants of the years ranging from 1910 until 1940 were inscribed on the wall of the building where they were imprisoned. The translated poems in this anthology allow us to see how desperate the "undocumented" immigrants were to be released to their relatives that were legally documented, immigrants.
The first poem talks about how many depressed cries are written on the walls. The Chinese detainees are all looking for comfort, and because they feel like their circumstance cannot be consoled by another person since they are all experiencing the same misery, they resort into writing their pains against the wall. This poem shows that social class doesn't matter in the face of oppression. But this particular poem sounds hopeful for the poet writes, "Why should one complain if he is detained and imprisoned here? From ancient times, heroes often were the first ones to face adversity (Hicks, p. 354)". The poet still clings to a sliver chance of getting his/her liberty back, and that hope brings comfort to his/her own misfortune.
The second poem talks about a lady who is longing for her husband who hasn't come home. Perhaps, she has given up on her freedom that she decides that the island where she is detained is now her home. She talks about the passing of time, and how it could never be returned. She is quite turning this misfortune to a positive way and wishing to enjoy her remaining years instead of sulking about crying for justice.
The third poem talks about how a man who is detained in the Island has been there for so long he awaits death. He doesn't believe in anything hopeful anymore that he has to resign in his prison which he implies to be the first level of Hell, he awaits King Yimlo at Hell's tenth palace. Search for King Yimlo, and see Dante's Divine Comedy for analysis.
The last poem talks about how the Chinese "undocumented" immigrants transform this prison, their hellhole, into a town of merry events. They create their own community and decide that if they weren't going to be with their legally documented relatives, they will celebrate their own lives in the comfort of their people and despite being prisoners, they gain the power of camaraderie. They learn to build and support each other rather than wait for redemption that will surely not arrive, not in this government.
WORK CITED:
Hicks, Jack et al. Anonymous Chinese Immigrants. The Literature of California, vol. 1, University of California Press, 2000, pp. 354-355.
The first poem talks about how many depressed cries are written on the walls. The Chinese detainees are all looking for comfort, and because they feel like their circumstance cannot be consoled by another person since they are all experiencing the same misery, they resort into writing their pains against the wall. This poem shows that social class doesn't matter in the face of oppression. But this particular poem sounds hopeful for the poet writes, "Why should one complain if he is detained and imprisoned here? From ancient times, heroes often were the first ones to face adversity (Hicks, p. 354)". The poet still clings to a sliver chance of getting his/her liberty back, and that hope brings comfort to his/her own misfortune.
The second poem talks about a lady who is longing for her husband who hasn't come home. Perhaps, she has given up on her freedom that she decides that the island where she is detained is now her home. She talks about the passing of time, and how it could never be returned. She is quite turning this misfortune to a positive way and wishing to enjoy her remaining years instead of sulking about crying for justice.
The third poem talks about how a man who is detained in the Island has been there for so long he awaits death. He doesn't believe in anything hopeful anymore that he has to resign in his prison which he implies to be the first level of Hell, he awaits King Yimlo at Hell's tenth palace. Search for King Yimlo, and see Dante's Divine Comedy for analysis.
The last poem talks about how the Chinese "undocumented" immigrants transform this prison, their hellhole, into a town of merry events. They create their own community and decide that if they weren't going to be with their legally documented relatives, they will celebrate their own lives in the comfort of their people and despite being prisoners, they gain the power of camaraderie. They learn to build and support each other rather than wait for redemption that will surely not arrive, not in this government.
WORK CITED:
Hicks, Jack et al. Anonymous Chinese Immigrants. The Literature of California, vol. 1, University of California Press, 2000, pp. 354-355.
Sunday, March 17, 2019
Week 7: Close Reading Analysis of an excerpt from Sun Sui Far's Mrs. Spring Fragrance
Warning: This analysis may imply a biased opinion against White people. I do not wish to inflict any forms of microaggression on anyone, so if my statement had in any way offended you (reader), I express my sincerest apology.
The story revolves around a Chinese couple who begrudgingly let the Americans take their son for the reason that the infant doesn't have any legal document available to migrate to California. I believe that the reason why they took the Chinese couple's two-year-old son is to brainwash him, to make him believe that the Americans/White people are dominant, and to strip away his Chinese culture maybe because they want to assert that if he (or anyone) wants to continue living in their (White people's) land, he has to adapt to their culture.
I believe that the mention of the difference between the clothing of a Chinese boy Lae Choo used to play with, and the clothing of her Little One when she finally sees him again is an indication of brainwashing.
Sun Sui Far gave us a glimpse of traditional Chinese clothing by writing, "A roly-poly woman in black sateen, with long pendant earrings in her ears, looked up from the street and waved at her smiling greeting. It was her old neighbor, Kuie Hoe, the wife of the gold embosser, Mark Sing. With her was a little boy in a yellow jacket and lavender pantaloons (Hicks et. al. pp. 324-325)." Then, she writes ". . . she [White woman] reappeared leading by the hand a little boy dressed in blue cotton overalls and white-soled shoes (Hicks et. al. p. 329)."
This is a blatant attempt to strip away a young boy's identity and culture that has succeeded. One may argue that the White people who took away Lae Choo's son don't have any clothing resembling the child's traditional clothing. However, if the people who took and "nurtured" the Little One could take some time to teach him his culture through pictures, perhaps, he wouldn't be thinking of his mother as a stranger. I assume that when Lae Choo meets her son again, she is wearing her traditional clothing. Little One has been deprived of his own identity, and as his young mind and heart seeks attention and affection, he finds it with his captors as they so provided. I assume that Lae Choo wears her traditional clothing every day, as to that day she meets her child, so Little Kim's young mind is confused finding no resemblance to what he currently has, he is inclined to dispel his own mother.
On this note about the difference in clothing, I believe that the White caretakers had Little Kim on a short leash, and it had completely brainwashed him. Sun Sui Far writes, "She fell on her knees and stretched her hungry arms toward her son. But the Little One shrunk from her and tried to hide himself in the folds of the white woman's skirt.
"Go 'way, go 'way!" he bade his mother. (HIcks et. al. p. 329)
This also proves that the White people have, slowly yet surely, controlled and asserted their dominance over People of Color. It is tragic and unimaginable to see your own child turn away from you; the same child you bore and raised for two whole years had been brainwashed by his captors in just five months. It may have been because of the depravity of a mother's love that the White captors had inflicted Little One. His yearning and longing for his mother's love and touch had vanished because he was made to feel unloved. Not just that, the captors had also taken the liberty of naming the child, Little Kim, which his mother had unfortunately lost. The captors created a new identity for the Little One, not for his own sake, but flourishing their dominance, establishing their authority to rule over People of Color, and inflicting psychological and mental damage to People of Color to tremble in fear.
In relation to this, I would like us to look at the children being detained by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
WORK CITED:
Hicks, Jack et al. From an excerpt of Sun Sui Far's Mrs. Spring Fragrance. The Literature of California, vol. 1, University of California Press, 2000, pp. 321-329
*****
Please see my reading notes for a summary.
The story revolves around a Chinese couple who begrudgingly let the Americans take their son for the reason that the infant doesn't have any legal document available to migrate to California. I believe that the reason why they took the Chinese couple's two-year-old son is to brainwash him, to make him believe that the Americans/White people are dominant, and to strip away his Chinese culture maybe because they want to assert that if he (or anyone) wants to continue living in their (White people's) land, he has to adapt to their culture.
I believe that the mention of the difference between the clothing of a Chinese boy Lae Choo used to play with, and the clothing of her Little One when she finally sees him again is an indication of brainwashing.
Sun Sui Far gave us a glimpse of traditional Chinese clothing by writing, "A roly-poly woman in black sateen, with long pendant earrings in her ears, looked up from the street and waved at her smiling greeting. It was her old neighbor, Kuie Hoe, the wife of the gold embosser, Mark Sing. With her was a little boy in a yellow jacket and lavender pantaloons (Hicks et. al. pp. 324-325)." Then, she writes ". . . she [White woman] reappeared leading by the hand a little boy dressed in blue cotton overalls and white-soled shoes (Hicks et. al. p. 329)."
This is a blatant attempt to strip away a young boy's identity and culture that has succeeded. One may argue that the White people who took away Lae Choo's son don't have any clothing resembling the child's traditional clothing. However, if the people who took and "nurtured" the Little One could take some time to teach him his culture through pictures, perhaps, he wouldn't be thinking of his mother as a stranger. I assume that when Lae Choo meets her son again, she is wearing her traditional clothing. Little One has been deprived of his own identity, and as his young mind and heart seeks attention and affection, he finds it with his captors as they so provided. I assume that Lae Choo wears her traditional clothing every day, as to that day she meets her child, so Little Kim's young mind is confused finding no resemblance to what he currently has, he is inclined to dispel his own mother.
On this note about the difference in clothing, I believe that the White caretakers had Little Kim on a short leash, and it had completely brainwashed him. Sun Sui Far writes, "She fell on her knees and stretched her hungry arms toward her son. But the Little One shrunk from her and tried to hide himself in the folds of the white woman's skirt.
"Go 'way, go 'way!" he bade his mother. (HIcks et. al. p. 329)
This also proves that the White people have, slowly yet surely, controlled and asserted their dominance over People of Color. It is tragic and unimaginable to see your own child turn away from you; the same child you bore and raised for two whole years had been brainwashed by his captors in just five months. It may have been because of the depravity of a mother's love that the White captors had inflicted Little One. His yearning and longing for his mother's love and touch had vanished because he was made to feel unloved. Not just that, the captors had also taken the liberty of naming the child, Little Kim, which his mother had unfortunately lost. The captors created a new identity for the Little One, not for his own sake, but flourishing their dominance, establishing their authority to rule over People of Color, and inflicting psychological and mental damage to People of Color to tremble in fear.
In relation to this, I would like us to look at the children being detained by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
WORK CITED:
Hicks, Jack et al. From an excerpt of Sun Sui Far's Mrs. Spring Fragrance. The Literature of California, vol. 1, University of California Press, 2000, pp. 321-329
Thursday, March 14, 2019
Reading Notes W7: Baum
Characters:
Dorothy
Zebediah
Jim the horse
Eureka the cat
DISCLAIMER: The following quotes are verbatim from L. Frank Baum's Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz.
. . . the buggy began to sway dangerously from side to side and the earth seemed to rise up before them. Next minute there was a roar and a sharp crash, and at her side, Dorothy saw the ground open in a wide crack and then come together again.
The sky had grown darker again and the wind made queer sobbing sounds as it swept over the valley.
The horrible sensation of falling, the darkness and the terrifying noises, proved more than Dorothy could endure and for a few moments, the little girl lost consciousness.
"I'm sure we are in no danger," said Dorothy, in a sober voice. "We are falling so slowly that we can't be dashed to pieces when we land, and this country that we are coming to seems quite pretty."
"We'll never get home again, though!" declared Zeb, with a groan.
"Oh, I'm not so sure of that," replied the girl. "But don't let us worry over such things, Zeb; we can't help ourselves just now, you know, and I've always been told it's foolish to borrow trouble."
WORK CITED:
Hicks, Jack et al. From L. Frank Baum's Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz. The Literature of California, vol. 1, University of California Press, 2000, pp. 347-353
Dorothy
Zebediah
Jim the horse
Eureka the cat
DISCLAIMER: The following quotes are verbatim from L. Frank Baum's Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz.
. . . the buggy began to sway dangerously from side to side and the earth seemed to rise up before them. Next minute there was a roar and a sharp crash, and at her side, Dorothy saw the ground open in a wide crack and then come together again.
The sky had grown darker again and the wind made queer sobbing sounds as it swept over the valley.
The horrible sensation of falling, the darkness and the terrifying noises, proved more than Dorothy could endure and for a few moments, the little girl lost consciousness.
"I'm sure we are in no danger," said Dorothy, in a sober voice. "We are falling so slowly that we can't be dashed to pieces when we land, and this country that we are coming to seems quite pretty."
"We'll never get home again, though!" declared Zeb, with a groan.
"Oh, I'm not so sure of that," replied the girl. "But don't let us worry over such things, Zeb; we can't help ourselves just now, you know, and I've always been told it's foolish to borrow trouble."
WORK CITED:
Hicks, Jack et al. From L. Frank Baum's Dorothy and the Wizard in Oz. The Literature of California, vol. 1, University of California Press, 2000, pp. 347-353
Wednesday, March 13, 2019
Reading Notes W7: Sun Sui Far
Characters:
Hom Hing - Chinese merchant
Lae Choo - Hom Hing's wife
Little One (Little Kim) - the couple's son
James Clancy - the family's lawyer
Hom Hing went back to China to fetch his wife and son. When they are about to board the ship going to California, the custom officers stopped them saying that there are no records indicating that Hom Hing and Lae Choo have a child. Despite the couple's resistance, the custom officers take their Little One for hold in a camp in Washington. They promised that the child will be returned to them by morning.
When the morning comes, the people in Washington said that there will be a delay, so their child will not be returned. Time passes, and they acquire a lawyer who sends their message to Washington. For over 5 months, they keep receiving the same letter, until James Clancy, their lawyer, suggests that he will go to Washington on their behalf. The pale Lae Choo instantly regains color and thanks the kind man. Clancy reveals that he needs $500 to go to Washington despite knowing that the couple have no more savings left. Lae Choo (although she knows they're being ripped off) offers her jewelries that Clancy sells to fund his journey to Washington.
Finally, their child will be returned to them. Lae Choo is filled with delight, but Little Kim, as the white caretakers name him, dismisses his parents.
Quotes:
When my wife told me one morning that she dreamed of a green tree with spreading branches and one beautiful red flower growing thereon, I answered her that I wished my son to be born in our country, and for her to prepare to go to China. p. 323
There cannot be any law that would keep a child from its mother! p. 324
A roly-poly woman in black sateen, with long pendant earrings in her ears, looked up from the street and waved at her smiling greeting. It was her old neighbor, Kuie Hoe, the wife of the gold embosser, Mark Sing. With her was a little boy in yellow jacket and lavender pantaloons. p. 324-325
The winter rains were over: the spring had come to California, flushing the hills with green and causing an ever-changing pageant of flowers to pass over them. p. 325
He was being kept in a mission. White women were caring for him, and though for one full moon he had pined for his mother and refused to be comforted he was now apparently happy and contented. p. 325
[White woman] she reappeared leading by the hand a little boy dressed in blue cotton overalls an white-soled shoes. p. 329
She fell on her knees and stretched her hungry arms toward her son. But the Little One shrunk from her and tried to hide himself in the folds of the white woman's skirt.
"Go 'way, go 'way!" he bade his mother. p. 329
WORK CITED:
Hicks, Jack et al. From Mrs. Spring Fragrance. The Literature of California, vol. 1, University of California Press, 2000, pp. 321-329
Hom Hing - Chinese merchant
Lae Choo - Hom Hing's wife
Little One (Little Kim) - the couple's son
James Clancy - the family's lawyer
Hom Hing went back to China to fetch his wife and son. When they are about to board the ship going to California, the custom officers stopped them saying that there are no records indicating that Hom Hing and Lae Choo have a child. Despite the couple's resistance, the custom officers take their Little One for hold in a camp in Washington. They promised that the child will be returned to them by morning.
When the morning comes, the people in Washington said that there will be a delay, so their child will not be returned. Time passes, and they acquire a lawyer who sends their message to Washington. For over 5 months, they keep receiving the same letter, until James Clancy, their lawyer, suggests that he will go to Washington on their behalf. The pale Lae Choo instantly regains color and thanks the kind man. Clancy reveals that he needs $500 to go to Washington despite knowing that the couple have no more savings left. Lae Choo (although she knows they're being ripped off) offers her jewelries that Clancy sells to fund his journey to Washington.
Finally, their child will be returned to them. Lae Choo is filled with delight, but Little Kim, as the white caretakers name him, dismisses his parents.
Quotes:
When my wife told me one morning that she dreamed of a green tree with spreading branches and one beautiful red flower growing thereon, I answered her that I wished my son to be born in our country, and for her to prepare to go to China. p. 323
There cannot be any law that would keep a child from its mother! p. 324
A roly-poly woman in black sateen, with long pendant earrings in her ears, looked up from the street and waved at her smiling greeting. It was her old neighbor, Kuie Hoe, the wife of the gold embosser, Mark Sing. With her was a little boy in yellow jacket and lavender pantaloons. p. 324-325
The winter rains were over: the spring had come to California, flushing the hills with green and causing an ever-changing pageant of flowers to pass over them. p. 325
He was being kept in a mission. White women were caring for him, and though for one full moon he had pined for his mother and refused to be comforted he was now apparently happy and contented. p. 325
[White woman] she reappeared leading by the hand a little boy dressed in blue cotton overalls an white-soled shoes. p. 329
She fell on her knees and stretched her hungry arms toward her son. But the Little One shrunk from her and tried to hide himself in the folds of the white woman's skirt.
"Go 'way, go 'way!" he bade his mother. p. 329
WORK CITED:
Hicks, Jack et al. From Mrs. Spring Fragrance. The Literature of California, vol. 1, University of California Press, 2000, pp. 321-329
Wednesday, March 6, 2019
Reading Notes W6: Josiah Royce
DISCLAIMER: The following are direct quotes from Josiah Royce's From California: A Study of American Character
The attitude that chance, the choice of one or two representative men, and our national character made us assume towards the Californians a the moment of our appearance among them as conquerors, we have ever since kept, with disaster to them, and not without disgrace and degradation to ourselves.
Nor our desire for California in itself an evil. However difficult the righteous satisfaction of the desire might prove, the desire was inevitable.
The Mexican War, if deliberately schemed, and fore into life through our aggressive policy, would be indeed a crime; but it would be adding another great crime if we wronged these nearly independent Californians, while assailing their unkind but helpless mother.
The proclamation of the sovereign state itself is only as the sound of the trumpet, signaling the beginning of the real social battle.
...nothing have shall remained pure: most ministers who happened to be intent gambled, society was ruled by courtesans, nobody looked twice as the freshly murdered man, everybody gayly joined in lynching any supposed thief, and alike rejoiced in raptures of vicious liberty.
Their greatest calamities they learned to laugh at, their greatest blunders they soon recovered from; and even while they boasted of their prowess, and denied their sins, they would quietly go on to correct their past grievous errors, good-humored and self-confident as ever.
They sought wealth, and not social order.
WORK CITED:
Hicks, Jack et al. From California: A Study of American Character. The Literature of California, vol. 1, University of California Press, 2000, pp. 279-286
The attitude that chance, the choice of one or two representative men, and our national character made us assume towards the Californians a the moment of our appearance among them as conquerors, we have ever since kept, with disaster to them, and not without disgrace and degradation to ourselves.
Nor our desire for California in itself an evil. However difficult the righteous satisfaction of the desire might prove, the desire was inevitable.
The Mexican War, if deliberately schemed, and fore into life through our aggressive policy, would be indeed a crime; but it would be adding another great crime if we wronged these nearly independent Californians, while assailing their unkind but helpless mother.
The proclamation of the sovereign state itself is only as the sound of the trumpet, signaling the beginning of the real social battle.
...nothing have shall remained pure: most ministers who happened to be intent gambled, society was ruled by courtesans, nobody looked twice as the freshly murdered man, everybody gayly joined in lynching any supposed thief, and alike rejoiced in raptures of vicious liberty.
Their greatest calamities they learned to laugh at, their greatest blunders they soon recovered from; and even while they boasted of their prowess, and denied their sins, they would quietly go on to correct their past grievous errors, good-humored and self-confident as ever.
They sought wealth, and not social order.
WORK CITED:
Hicks, Jack et al. From California: A Study of American Character. The Literature of California, vol. 1, University of California Press, 2000, pp. 279-286
Monday, March 4, 2019
Project 1: Redemption
“Be the change you want to see in the world,” said Mahatma Gandhi. Change is an integral part of human nature for it constantly happens in the various aspects of our lives. Some of the changes that happen in our lives are inevitable, like how the day goes by as the night creeps in. Some of the changes that happen to our lives are truly remarkable that they help shape our values and morals. Like the stories The Luck of Roaring Camp and The Life and Adventures of Joaquin Murieta: The Celebrated California Bandit, change is fundamentally incorporated in the characters’ lives that the result of surpassing the challenges they experienced allow them to change positively.
The characters in the stories presented change as a sense of responsibility. In The Luck of Roaring Camp, we see a positive change to the rough men of the camp as they treat the infant as a blessing. Thus, they name him Thomas Luck: notoriously known as The Luck. The change starts when Stumpy, The Luck’s caretaker, demanding that every inch of the infant’s cabin should always be cleaned thoroughly and spotless and that holding the infant is a privilege that requires overall hygiene improvement amongst the men (Harte, paragraph 16). We know that the rough men of the Roaring Camp are outlaws and somehow barbaric, but when they were blessed with young life, they desire to father him, and that desire let their parental instincts to kick in: only wanting the best for their child.
Our protagonist’s change in The Life and Adventures of Joaquin Murieta, is rather complicated. Joaquin attains a sense of responsibility to himself after he is deprived of his blissful freedom. Ridge writes, “They [Americans] left him, but the soul of the young man was from that moment darkened (Hick, page 165).” We know that Joaquin respected and adored the American people especially after they had taken California from Mexico. He ventures in California and becomes satisfied of his work as a miner when he is attacked by the lawless Americans in his home and his lover is ravished in front of him and he is not able to fight back (page 165). This marks his skeptical views of the Americans, yet, he shrugs this discovery off and moves on from this experience without inflicting harm against them as he keeps his state of mind in check. Joaquin’s xenocentric perception toward the Americans starts to waiver. This doubt makes Joaquin conscious of his own well-being, and it is his stepping stone towards self-actualization.
The change in the stories reveals the reality cloaked in fantasy. As Harte describes notable characters in The Luck of Roaring Camp, we can associate their behaviors and their physical appearances (Harte, paragraph 6) as fantasy—their demeanors are that of derailed runaway teenage boys. They do not seem to care about their hygiene, they gamble to feed themselves, they have vices, and they especially do not act their age. When the baby is born, their perspective in their own lives has positively changed, and they are open to sacrifice their little happiness for the infant. All of a sudden, they desire to be a good role model for the young life that inhibits their premises. They begin acting civil, and they also contemplate on building a hotel in their camp to expose The Luck of female companionship for the betterment of the infant (Harte, paragraph 19). The rough men are now facing one of the realities of life—that when a new life is born, he or she craves love and attention, and he or she needs a model to help him or she grow and flourish. This is the reality that the men of the Roaring Camp meet when The Luck is born.
However, in The Life and Adventures of Joaquin Murieta, Ridge writes, “His sky seemed clear and his prospects bright, but Fate was weaving her mysterious web around him, and fitting him to be by the force of circumstances what nature never intended to make him (Hick, page 166).” Joaquin fantasizes about being a man of his own in California as it had been won by the American to be its territory, and as an American citizen. He desires to be as free as the American people handling their own property and being able to speak their own minds as opposed to the usurpations and revolutions in his country, Mexico. He does not expect that he will always be betrayed wherever he goes and whichever party he tries to save himself from. There are debilitating instances that enable Joaquin to face reality as a huge cold hard stone that he carries on his shoulders: he is forced to leave his mining job and his lover is sexually assaulted, his farm is remanded from him, and he is branded a thief while is being battered and his half-brother is murdered. These instances shape Joaquin to act as his predators and become a lawless criminal; he kills his oppressors one bullet at a time. Joaquin’s demeanor changes from being a gullible American Dream believer to being cautious and suspicious of the Americans whose goal is to steal from legal owners of a property, and to oppress the People of Color on the land they acquired through war.
Both stories present death as a huge factor that changes our lives forever. Harte ends his story with, “the strong man, clinging to the frail babe as a drowning man is said to cling to a straw, drifted away into the shadowy river that flows forever to the unknown sea (Harte, paragraph 23).” We realize that even though we are blessed with luck in our lifetime, the cycle of life dictates that we will inevitably perish. This may provide negative changes as to the people left to inhabit Earth moves forward clinging to memories and crying rivers of grief. But ironically, Ridge writes in a metaphorical manner that taking your oppressors' lives can bring forth peace and justice for you (Hicks, pages 169-170). Joaquin Murieta becomes a hero of his colleagues because he initiates and urges them to stand up for themselves, like Robinhood, he is a symbol of salvation.
The stories The Luck of Roaring Camp and The Life and Adventures of Joaquin Murieta: The Celebrated California Bandit offers the same theme and that is change. We realize that change can bring forth positive or negative effects depending on the circumstances we face each day. Both stories allow us to explore changes as a sense of responsibility, and as a reality check that might have been cloaked by fantasy. We realize that the simplest change in our lives can provide us immeasurable happiness or deprive us of it. As we live a cycle of life, we understand that death is unpreventable and that we have control over it to make it a positive or a negative change in our being. We might be twisted by the changes that happen to our lives, but no matter how much we adjust to them, we have to remember that we are unbreakable.
WORK CITED:
Harte, Francis Bret. The Luck of Roaring Camp. Vol. X, Part 4. Harvard Classics Shelf of Fiction. New York: P.F. Collier & Son, 1917; Bartleby.com, 2000. www.bartleby.com/310/4/.
Hicks, Jack et al. The Life and Adventures of Joaquin Murieta: The Celebrated California Bandit. The Literature of California, vol. 1, University of California Press, 2000, pp. 163-170.
Revised: 3/10/2019
3/17/2019
Revised: 3/10/2019
3/17/2019
Friday, March 1, 2019
Week 5 Analysis: Literary Analysis of the Squatter and the Don
The Squatter and The Don occurs in a rancho owned by Don Mariano Alamar of San Diego County. He is a wealthy Spanish family man, whose land is being sought by the squatters (persons who unlawfully occupies uninhabited land). In this case, however, the squatters are White dwellers who seek prosperous land, like William Darrell from Alameda County. Once, he was a squatter, homeless, and needy. As a White person, Darrell is protected by the American law, and that protection is the sole fear of Don Alamar, for that color-power overturns his right to property as a Person of Color. In the end, Darrell takes Don Alamar's properties. (This is a summary).
The story happened in San Diego County. Don Mariano Alamar, a Spanish family man who owns a cattle ranch, is worried about his property being seized by the squatters. His herds of cattle are being shot for the White squatters claim that their agriculture (grains and other plants being cultivated) is being destroyed by the cattle. They refuse to put a fence for even when they do, the cattle manage to go beyond the boundary and feed on the agriculture of the squatters' "claimed" land. The government created a law that prioritizes agriculture over the livestock.
WORK CITED:
Hicks, Jack et al. “From The Squatter and the Don” The Literature of California, vol. 1, University of California Press, 2000, pp. 244-253.
The story happened in San Diego County. Don Mariano Alamar, a Spanish family man who owns a cattle ranch, is worried about his property being seized by the squatters. His herds of cattle are being shot for the White squatters claim that their agriculture (grains and other plants being cultivated) is being destroyed by the cattle. They refuse to put a fence for even when they do, the cattle manage to go beyond the boundary and feed on the agriculture of the squatters' "claimed" land. The government created a law that prioritizes agriculture over the livestock.
WORK CITED:
Hicks, Jack et al. “From The Squatter and the Don” The Literature of California, vol. 1, University of California Press, 2000, pp. 244-253.
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