"LeGuin's El Dorado"

"Without Question"- Elton John. From "The Road to El Dorado". This song is about questioning the world the two men are now in..

The concept of a "Utopia" is something very foreign to the real world today, and only heard of in books, myths and story. Achieving a utopia is asking for a type of happiness almost unknown to man.Ursula LeGuin’s “The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas,”  shows just this. LeGuin's allegorical tale, featuring a speaker who 'walked away' from Omelas, tells of its Utopian society in which its happiness is made possible by the sacrifice and mistreatment of one innocent child for the sake and prosperity of the entire city. Tthe disney movie, "The Road to El Dorado" sends the same message to viewers as does the story of Omelas. 

The movie, produced by Elton John, takes you on a journey between two swindlers, Miguel and Tulio. The pair is determined to follow a map to El Dorado, where it is rumored that when you find it, all your happiness, dreams, and wishes will come true. They do in fact find El Dorado but quickly realize that the happiness of the city is sustained by flesh-hungry gods and an evil dictator. The two realize that morals and values are more important than all the riches in the world and decide to leave.

 Happiness is something that can never be fully achieved, for there is always something left unspoken. Just like Yin and Yang, there is always some evil in a lot of good. The message that LeGuin and the writers of El Dorado were trying to achieve clearly shows through and teaches a strong lesson of morals and real happiness to everyone. 

Cinceros's "Dreaming Tree".

As children get older, their responsibilities and realizations about the world begin to differ. We always wish for things we don't have, and as a kid you may not really realize as to why you may not have it. These are the same feelings and wishes that young Esperanza in Cisneros's "The House on Mango Street" goes through on a daily basis throughout her childhood. In a passage from the book, Esperanza expresses her dream to one day move away from her old house on Mango Street. This dream remains prominent throughout the book. It is only till the very end when a nun walks by and asks the girl about her house, that Esperanza finally realizes that she is poor. And that she is not like the other children who can get all the nice things. You cannot just win the lottery by asking nicely. Esperanza longs for a better life, but the harsh reality of the "real world".

"Beneath his dreaming tree
Conquered fear to climb
A moment froze in time"

-Dave Matthews Band - "The Dreaming Tree"

 It is only till the very end when a nun walks by and asks Esperanza about her house, that she finally realizes that she is poor. She is not like the other children who can get all the nicer things in life. You cannot just win her concept of "the lottery" by asking nicely.

"No matter what the world
You'll always be my baby
Mommy come quick
The dreaming tree has died"

One of the themes of the book is "a loss of innocence". Esperanza's dreaming tree of her childhood has died, and it is now time for her to explore the harsh realities of the real world. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpONTlO6r8w&feature=related

My dreaming tree. (Caumsett State Park, NY via Horseback)

Cisneros's Dreaming Tree.

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Jamaica Kincaid's, "Girl"

"Girl", by Jamaica Kincaid is written as a one sentence dialogue between a mother and daughter. Kincaid's choice to write this story in such a way creates a very strong tone which serves to be of great importance in the message of the short story. As the Mother is telling her daughter a long series of instructions and warnings, the daughter may respond, yet they seem to go unnoticed by her mother. During the time period of "girl" women were going through great oppression and it seems that the Mother is very imminent on informing her daughter of what to do in order to live the "right" life as she develops into a woman. This story truly is a philosophy about how to become a woman who is successful in the current culture of the world. 

Kincaids one-sentence dialogue is truly amazing; resulting a feeling that is is even stronger to a reader, rather than reading the same story as individual sentences. 

The Appointment

Death is inevitable, yet many people believe they can escape. The truth is we all have a destiny, and no matter what we do, our time to leave this earth will be there waiting for us. William Somerset Maugham's "The Appointment in Sammara" tells just this with a clear and eerie feel that is constant as one reads. However, if you watched the MySpace video "The Appointment", viewers may feel unclear as to how the clip ends. The message of "you cannot escape death" is stated by an old woman who reads the word "Death" off a tarot card to a cowboy, who in turn runs away in fear. At the end of the clip, you see the Cowboy run to the trailer, followed by someone else chasing him. You do not see what has happened inside, yet one can only assume death has come. It is all very confusing and without reading Maugham's flash-fiction story, viewers will not get the right type of message or appreciate the moral of the story.

Lindsay R's "ENG 102 SPACE"

Welcome to my blog! I will be posting several things pertaining to my English 102 class at Nassau Community college, as well as other exciting things going on throughout my first year.

I attended my first year of college at UMass Amherst, pursuing a BS in Equine Science, but realized that I wanted to have a steadier job so I have transferred back home to Nassau Community College and have switched my major to Physical Education. I am currently on the volleyball team here and in the future I am hoping to transfer out again to SUNY Cortland or Manhattan College and continue my Volleyball playing and Physical Education Degree.

I love going to the beach, hanging out with friends and my horse, HD. Have a huge passion for animals, singing, modeling and acting, I hope that one day I can explore careers in every field. I am a member of a Sketch Comedy group and perform in NYC doing things like improvisation and skits. I have also been in several musicals through school, and love to write and compose my own songs.

In the future I hope to be a Phys Ed teacher, and work at a school that offers Equestrian activities, therefore I am teaching what I love and have the summers off to pursue my other passions.

I cannot wait for the school year to start!