Island of Adventure

Upon first review of the Floating Island by Dorothy Wordsworth it didn’t seem to relate much to Romanticism and the aspects therein. However, once I really dug deep and tried to understand what else the author could be using this “island” to represent I began to see how it did possess those aspects. A few examples of where we see these typical Romanticism characteristics are in imagination, freedom and worship of nature.
Wordsworth used imagination to create a new world out of this island that has broken away from the land it was once attached to. It becomes a ground where life is sustained and given room to grow (ln. 12-16). She develops a sense of freedom by revealing this land that has escaped the grasp of the overwhelming world, “loosed from its hold” (ln. 7). It now has the ability to roam in freedom and adventure, to create its own destiny. We can definitely see how she portrays a worship of nature, the whole poem is about a floating island! The first line tells of the uniting power between the forces of this powerful nature. How it controls and directs the paths of life, “But Nature, though we mark her not, Will take away – may cease to give, (ln. 19-20). This line clearly shows the power given to Nature and Wordsworth’s choice to personify it as an entity of fate.
This poem shows the roots of being driven from the overflow of emotion. Wordsworth writes with such intensity about the adventure this “floating island” undergoes. From birth to travel to sustaining life and then eventually its death that takes it to the bottom of the lake and turns it into fuel for another life, it lacks no feelings of excitement for what lies ahead. I think she uses these ideals to create an appreciation of the spontaneity that comes with everyday life, and the possibility of what may happen, even when we least expect it.

Writing a Picture

Edgar Huntly is astoundingly full of nature imagery, that fact was painfully clear. I think it was at the point when Edgar is following Clithero through the woods and cave which took 3 full pages in description of the environment around them, that I began to skim forward to the next paragraph with plot details. What I’m trying to say is it was a LOT! I tend to get lost, or bored in these kinds of literature, I just want them to get to the point! It is interesting because like this blog assignment states, it is not a very picturesque novel. Even with all that description, I struggled to actually imagine the surroundings. All that aside, I thought we could definitely feel the impact and threat the surroundings produced. One such event is when Edgar has gone back to his makeshift bridge in some opening of a rock area (again, this is where I’m not so clear what the place actually looked like) and attempts to find where Clithero has escaped and reach him, pg. 118-120. He describes the panic of facing the grey panther and how he expects death at any moment. In this aspect he is very detailed about every emotion and thought that passes through his being as he struggles with the environment which is seemingly always out to get him.
If another author more focused on building a clear picture of the surroundings had written this scene I believe they could have taken away the readers ability to connect on such a strong emotional level with Edgar’s plight. Though they would have gained a better understanding of the setting, we may have lost the pure and unclouded intensity of this moment of horror.

The Terrible and Horrible, Oh My!

Yes, my blog is late. I would like to start off by saying that if I am unsure or unclear about what to do for an assignment or fear that I will not do it perfectly, I put it off. I’m going to call that being a perfectionist. So, now feeling like it is the last minute I will take a stab at it.
Terror is apparently the feeling you have when you think something bad is about to happen. That, stomach in your throat, hold your breath, tense every muscle in your body type of experience. This feeling can last for a few seconds before the horrible thing actually happens, or it can last days, in anticipation of something dreadful. Since I tend to steer clear of movies and literature that possess these type of terror related circumstances, it’s hard for me to think of examples. One that sort of fits this category is in the novel The English Patient when the nurse finds a man in a mine field and he cant move because he has stepped on a mine, and he urges her to not come any close, but she is set on helping him. So she walked through the mine field casually and carelessly as the man is yelling at her because she may die any second, but she makes it safely. That I think would constitute as terror.
Horror seems to be the scared feeling you experience once you are have encountered the thing that has elicited your terror. To actually come face to face with your fear. This can be seen in movies like scream, when the man in the mask jumps out from behind the door or under the bed and the victim experiences horror and reacts in a negative way to the aversive experience and the fear of what is happening to them.
And that’s all I have to say about that.

A new semester...

Hello everyone,
This is my second sememster at WSU, and I am an English major, and thus far I'm really enjoying it. I took Julie's class last sememster and had a blast. She's an awesome teacher and I'm sure you will all enjoy it just as much as we did. I really like having this blog to discuss the books we read, I tend to not say as much in class as I do on here, due to having more time to reflect, and my thoughts start developing around 2 am. I'm looking forward to getting to know you all. Good luck!