Journal #3 Betty Fussel Writing

 2-3 quotes

 “ The kitchen is the one place in which we’re all required to begin again, eaacch day, at ground zero-“

 “ To eat and be eaten is a consummation devoutly to be wished in a universe that is all mouth, “

 “ All foods, all mouths, are sacred to the force that created them, whatever sumptuary laws man invests to triumph over his enemies in the vain attempt to deny that all alike are food for the mouths of worms”

Sensory Detail:

     There was a lot of sensory detail in the reading of “ Breaking and Entering with a Wooden Spoon.” It started off in the beginning of the story with “ It’s the place where, if we but have eyes to see, we can see the miraculous in the ordinary-can see each day water turn into wine” This was definatly visual sensory detail and made you picture what really goes on in the kitchen and how beautiful cooking can be to people.  Betty Fussell also says “ After a day of violent vomiting, the hallucinations began at night.” He uses words like violent to describe vomit coming out and with the way he uses sensory detail makes the reader cringe.  One last quote that was very interesting to me was “ I began as a mouth, sucking mothers milk like gin and will likely end as a mouth , as my father did, sucking Jell-O and Kool Aid through a straw.” With this descriptive image you can really picture yourself in this situation.

 Observations about the writer’s style:

 The first observation I had when reading this was that the writer used a lot of imagery and strong diction choices.  When describing the idea that every morning you spend time in the kitchen he said “ Reborn after the death of sleep to feed the gut, brain, and soul by daily murder and redemption.” When using words such as death, sleep, gut, soul, murder and redemption you get the feeling of something dark and unknown, but basically Fussell used these word choices to stress the idea. Betty also used words that had a dark or emotional tone.  For example, “ without lines no life, without breakage no change, without being swallowed no swallowing.” Betty Fissel has a very strong writing style that stands out.

Personal response:

I personal really liked this reading because of the tone that was prevalent throughout and the strong diction choices that were used. The imagery throughout the section kept me entertained and helped me picture what was going on. Also I really liked the example she used at the end of the last paragraph that had to do with the sign that read: “ OCCUPIED BY A THROUGH PASSENGER.” Also the part that talks about what keeps the body going.  Lastly I really liked how she used Eve and God as examples of the mouth in the world.

Questions over passenger:

 I personally was really confused when they brought God and Eve into the picture at first and I had to read it a couple of times to actually understand what she was meaning.

Lindsay Frank Eng 150 Essay Response

1.Essays I chose to read:

      1. “Courage Comes With Practice” by Theresa MacPhail

                                          2.”Navigating Turbulent Waters” by Jimmy Liao

                                          3. “The Potential for a New Life” By Damali Ayo

2.Quotes from the text that were most interesting:

            “Courage Comes With Practice” had many quotes that stood out to me as a reader. The one that intrigued me the most was, “ I believe that embracing fear produces courage” This quote was the opening statement of the essay and it was a one-sentence paragraph. When MacPhail wrote this in his opening statement to his essay he clearly got his point across on what the essay would be about. Also later on in the essay, she started a paragraph off with “I became a natural worrier.” I thought that all the most important and interesting quotes in her essay tended to be the shortest sentences out of her whole essay. To sum up her essay, she made sure to include “Courage isn’t a natural attribute of human beings…and using courage is like developing a muscle.” This last quote made me think about how you really do have to work on your ability to withhold your courage. In order to be courageous you have to work on it.

            “Navigating Turbulent Waters” also had a lot of interesting quotes to me as a reader. He started off his essay by saying  “ I believe in using turbulence in my life. “ When I read this I automatically knew that he had experienced some obstacle in his life that he used as motivation. It was odd to me that he apparently “Learned this studying fish.” In reality, you would not think that you could learn so much from something so small.  Another quote that interested me was “ I find by letting go I can harness the complex currents of my life to propel me forward.”

            Lastly, the essay “ The Potential for a New Life” had a large impact on me and had one very strong quote that stood out to me. When she stated “I realized nothing is trash” it made me think about all the times that I have simply looked at something and said “gross.” I thought that that quote was very insightful and meaningful to the rest of the essay as well as life period.

3. Similarities and Differences

            All the essays are very similar that I chose to read because they all relate to making more of a situation. For example, in “ Courage Comes with Practice” Theresa used her brother and mom’s death as a way to encourage herself to live life to the fullest and even though your frightened of something you need to push through it and do it anyways. “ Navigating Turbulent Waters” is also very similar. He used the obstacles in his life to push forward. As for “ The potential for a New Life” Damali ayo one day just realized that nothing is trash and that everything should be appreciated. Even though there wasn’t a tragic event to her essay like the other two had, she experienced a situation with her adopted dog that made her wish that everything is recycled and not something to just be “ thrown away” when she passed.

4. My Favorite:

            My favorite essay was by far the “Courage Comes With Practice” by Theresa MacPhail. I enjoyed it a lot because of her writing style. When she was talking about how she felt about her mom and the rules she had because of her brother’s death, I started to feel like I was in her shoes. Also I liked her sense of rebellion and her energy towards doing things that increased her courageous personality. She was straight on when she said that you have to practice being courageous and when she compared developing courage to building muscle.

Obviously, if you do not do things that may frighten you, your courage will never get any bigger then what it already is.  Just like if you don’t work out your muscles will stay the same. Basically, the main reason I liked this essay, is because she embraced her brother and mom’s death as an inspiration to live life to the fullest.

5. Personal Response

            My personal response would have to involve the “Courage Comes with Practice” and “Navigating Turbulent Waters” because they both relate to what I have been through in a way. I have experienced many obstacles in life. One that stands out for me is when I tore my ACL. At first I was pretty depressed, but then I eventually used this as an obstacle to become even stronger and better. When I finally was able to play again, I was very timid to play to my potentially in fear something else would happen to me and I could not play soccer. Eventually I put my fear aside and over came it. Eventually I built up enough courage where I did not have to play scared. Basically, these two essays stood out to me the most because I could relate to them. 

"Nani" by Alberto Rios Response Blog continue...

Personal response
     I really liked the poem by Alberto Rios and I can really connect to the grandchild because I had a Grandmom that recently passed away and whenever I went to her house she always took the best care of me. Alberto Rios did a great job getting the emotional tone out and showing the feelings of the grandson being sad about his Grandmom passing away  the is loss of some of his cultural. The most meaningful quote out of the whole poem to me was "I wonder just how much of me will die with her"

-Any questions the piece raised for you as a reader
      I wonder what kind of experiences Alberto has gone through for him to write such a meaningful poem. Also I would like to know what kind of poem this is and what inspired him to write this. 

"Nani" by Alberto Rios Response Blog

1.     2-3 Quotes I highlighted from the Poem

“ All my words make her smile. Nani never serves herself, she only    watches me with her skin, her hair.”

 -I picked this quote because it signified how much she really cares for her grandson and how she puts him first. It’s second nature for her to love her grandson and this quote shows that.

“I wonder Just how much of me will die with her”

   -I chose this quote because it adds sympathy for the boy because one he’s sad about losing his Grandmom and second he doesn’t want to lose his culture or traditions because she’s gone. And he’s scared of losing it. I think this is the most important line of the poem.

“She asks me if I want more, I own no words to stop her. Even before I speak she serves”

   -This is the last stanza of the poem and it just clarifies the passion the Grandmom has for caring for her grandson and shows that the Grandmom is always looking out for what her grandson needs. 

SENSORY DETAIL:

    When I was reading “Nani” by Alberto Rios there was a lot of sensory detail throughout the poem that stood out and caused attention to what was actually going on in the story.  The line “ I watch the mama warming more tortillas for me. I watch her fingers in the flame for me” showed the dedication of the Grandmom and the feelings of fire. By using the word flame it gave me the feeling of fire and how hot it would be to touch. Rios used this word choice to add to the sensory detail of touch and sight. Even though he used these word choices for sensory detail it also shows the Grandmoms dedication to do anything for her son.  Another quote that stood out to me was “ Near her mouth, I see wrinkle speak of a man whose body serves the ants like she serves me.”  When you read the word wrinkle you think of her old age and how fragile she must be and when he uses the word “man” you picture a strong person who is powerful but in reality she’s an old lady who just has an overpowering desire and passion to be the best Grandmom she can be.  The last quote that stood out to me with sensory detail was “her insides speak through a hundred wrinkles how more than she can bear, steel around her shouting.” I have already stated how wrinkles show her old age and when Rios uses words such as steel you think of something strong. Also when you read the word “shouting” and “her insides speak” you picture someone struggling and wanting to get out. The sensory detail add so much to this poem because it allows me as a reader to picture the Grandmom and what she’s doing and how she’s feeling. 

Observations about the writers style:

Rios uses a lot of literary devices to strengthen the poem and to clarify the main idea. Rios starts off by using a strong diction choice. For example instead of saying soup he decided to use “sopa de arroz”. Also he uses personification when saying “ I see a wrinkle speak of a man whose body serves the ants like she serves me” The wrinkles are being personified to show her age and how willing she is to care for her grandson. Also there seems to be a lot of repetition throughout the poem. And all the most important words that were continuously used are all found in the last stanza. “ She asks me if I want more. I own no words to stop her. Even before I speak, she serves.”

Lindsay Frank's Blog

When I was younger my parents read to me before I went to sleep every night and that is how I started to learn the language. When I was about three my parents made me write the alphabet over and over again so I could remember it as well as learn it.