The Bug that Proves it All

            The "Great Naitons of Europe," symbolically ironic, portrays the shallowness and both grandeur of this unit of power. By colonizing every spectacle of America, Europeans acted like the 'savages themselves.' Having conquered all of the canaries in the Canary Island (that is what gave it its name), does not only invoke the indians as being animals, but as a destroyed race. They inferiorize these people, by describing them as unholy, filthy. Nevertheless, karma that can also be called irony, steps in and presumes these white men with "great fortunes." 

            "They got tb and typhoid and athletes foot, diphtheria and the flu
'scuse me great nations comin through."

           Now the "Great Nations of Europe" have diseases caused by lack of higiene. The irony....

               In addition, the most ironic detail in these lyrics is the implication of the European being noble at first. As soon as these "missionaries" arrived to the indina lands, they acted with harmless intentions. However, one event to another, the indinas "were all dead."

                Usually, the most unexpected happens during situations such as these. Situations that are new and exciting, situations that put every individual into a vulnerable position. Strangers, although appear to be good hearted, might be bluffing. Newman is able to demonstrate this idea quite well:

"Balboa found the Pacific, and on the trail one day,
he met some friendly Indians whom the Church told him were gay,
soooooooooooooo
he had them torn apart by dogs on religious grounds they say
the great nations of Europe were quite holy in their way."

  

                  How was the Church, considered a holy institution able to "tear the friendly indians apart by dogs on religious grounds?"

            The fact that such sins were done in the name of the Church, of G-d is irony at its finnest.

              However, the most shocking exploitation of irony in this barbaric story is chorus's patterns. In first the lines: "Hide your wives and daughter; hide the groceries too.
The great nations of Europe comin through," were used to imply how European men took advantage of the indian women. Furthermore, the last chorus changes, significantly. 
"Hide your wives and daughters; hide your sons as well
with the great nations of Europe you never can tell."

           The message these lines entail are degrading and overwhelming. For they imply that the European and the "Great Nations" didn't have limits. They're moral sense was undefined. This has led me to think, indians were accused as animals, for they weren't Catholic, therefore they didn't have a 'saved soul.' However, the Europeans were animalistic and inhumane. Might the song be speaking of the Europeans all along? I think so, for after every conclusion victorious proclamation is inverted, it becomes a negative. 

"Europeans have sprung up everyone as even I can see
but there on the horizon is the possibility
that some bug from out of Africa might come for you and me
destroying everything in its path from sea to shining sea
like the great nations of Europe in the 16th century. "

             Will a bug finally prove the dark irony in this song. A bug will establish Newman's point very clearly. 

The Lost Chief

             The Combine: a representation of society.

        For many of the patients in the hospital society remains behind four walls. And in this miniature civilization, Nurse Ratched edicts. She is power. Something Bromden feels strongly. She is to be obeyed, and respected. Which Bromden recognizes. She is a threat. The reason for Bromden's mental instability. The Old Nurse is the reason for Bromden's insecurities, for she represents all women. In the other hand, Bromden represents the confused public, that follows, foraging comfort.

          Since the Chief was a small boy and lived with his tribe out in the Columbia river, his mother was always manipulative in her marital relationship. Although Bromden's father was described as "The Pine that Stands Tallest on the Mountain," his self esteem was diminutive. This shaped Bromden as a weak and "unmanly" giant. Hindering himself from the world around him, the Chief grew to be deaf, uncommunicative, and brute. Can all this be because of women? Have women become monsters for self protection? Chauvinism has always diminished women and this led to agressive women. An overpowering energy which portrayed Bromden as a foolish slave, at first.

             "I'm cagey enough to fool them that much. If my half Indian ever helped me in any way in this dirty life, it helped me being cagey, helped me all these years. 4" What kind of human wants to feel inferior and caged? The person that needs to hide in small holes, wants to become like a rat. The rat is a perfect example of Bromden's behavior. For this filthy animal likes to creep around, silently listening and observing everyone without being seen. The rat, despised by the majority of the population, multiplies and gains strength. So he can still be small individually, but when accompanied, no one will defeat the rat. Chief Bromden can be the most cowardly man on Earth. However, McMurphy builds his confidence and aspires him to increment and reach his potentials. Throughout the book, Bromden's attitude is altered, and he is no longer a helpless spectator. But like an animal his power's are underestimated. This innocent man, has a hidden agenda. Bromden is caged, but his has the key to open the door and get out.

           McMurphy and the Old Nurse's surging power, are reasons for Bromden's awakening. Always hiding in his fog, this man was able to go in a fishing trip. Being out in the real world, having seen normality, simply made Bromden realize he wasn't crazy. "He won't let the pain blot out the humor no more he'll let the humor blot of the pain." Having landed on ground, Bromden centered himself and discovered he had the power to free himself. Throughout revolts and other rebellious events, the Chief became a hero. He took his own life with his hands. He was in command.

           This indian was the man who he physically represented. However, through torturous consequences, he was able to grow into a state of mind. He would free his men. He would look out for them. He was no longer threatened by the Combine. He had outgrown his roots, his childish traumas. 

         "I figure I'm all right. Just I don't know where I want to go yet. And somebody should stay here a few weeks after your gone to see that things don't start sliding back. 265" Chief Bromden is now the leader of his own Combine. He has discovered the cage's key has been lying on his hand all along...he is a Chief.

"As I walked after them it came to me as a sudden surprise that I was drunk, actually drunk, glowing and grinning and staggering drunk for the first time since the Army...maybe the combine wasn't all-powerful. What was to stop us from doing it again, now that we saw we could?...it felt that good. 263" Now that Chief Bromden does not seclude his mind body and soul from the world, he has come to a realization, He has willpower. He is capable of taking decisions and living. How exactly did he discover this?

When a person is shown the force of power and the human capacities to surpass it, a sudden feeling merges: adrenaline. This chemical reaction in the body is what makes the mind become alert, rushed and alive. It is a feeling human's strive for, however there are very few ways to obtain it. Nonetheless, the Chief has experimented with this sentiment and craves for more. However, his expectations might seem outrageous, for he has forgotten he still remains behind bars. Unfortunately, this leads to failure in a certain manner. MacMurphy, the immortal thriving protector has been destroyed.

It will never be known if Chief Bromden gave up after this, or if he felt he had to continue fighting. All that is left is a confused Indian and an exhausted reader. 

A Milky Holocaust

              The misty fog of a Monday morning makes your eyes small and dreary. It makes you huddle into a little ball after haven woken up. The fog deprives you of seeing the sun rise. The fog impedes you to discover when the world is first illuminated. It's a blinding, impairing your eyes of what the world beholds. In a way, these smoky clouds defend you from the horrible winds that are occurring outside. They are shields, they will keep your mind and body sound. This same fog is a treatment doctors have developed to keep their patients dozy and oblivious to everything. How exactly is this fog comforting to the Chief? Do the patients overall appreciate this operation because they don't feel "as insane" afterwards? Blurry vision signifies a world not seen clearly. Although everything lies still and neat, the fog alters the eyes, causing everything to be seen distortedly. The Chief enjoys living within a lie, within a world of perfect smeariness. 

             The fog is like a perfume, intoxicating those who wear it. Leaving those who smell it mesmerized, tranquil and bathed in a sweet scent; the scent of society.

            The fog machine is like a dreaming machine. It permits those who "ride" it to fall into a limbo, where nothing around them is definite. No man or woman is one hundred percent existant. None of the terrifying screams are real. So how can it be proven that the fog is real? What exactly is the fog? Is it an imaginary zone of unawareness? Or is it an intoxicating smolder, invading those minds who just don't adapt to society's creation? "But if they don't exist, how can man see them. 80" The fog is real. Maybe not to everyone, but it is to someone. Creation lies in a creator. So if a person designs a world of his/her own, it exists because that person lives in it.

          The fog isn't literally a treatment, but it can be a self-protecting mechanism used by the Chief. This character is described as silent, reticent and mysterious, who in some way feels inadequate in the mad house. Nevertheless, at times his perception of the world becomes distorted and changes the readers view on this innocently sane human.

           It secludes the mind from illusions. It takes their power away. Nevertheless, for this reason these try to escape from the fog. For they become victims of horrible tortures from "inexistant" men who fool with their minds. "They start the fog machine again and its snowing down cold and white all over me like skim milk, so thick I might even be able to hide in it if they didn't have a hold on me. 7" The Chief is imprisoned. The fog has captivated his body and embraced it. The Chief has no where to go once the fog gets him. This might as well be the worst crime ever committed. It is a milky holocaust; captivating their victims from the soles of their feet, to every spectacle of their hair.

Clockwork Orange and One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest: a symmetrical thought

          One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest has a significant connection to the novel Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess. Alexander (main character), alike Chief Bromden is unaware of his own insanity. Both are treated within a facility of terrible means. However among all of the crazy patients, they act as outsiders who observe. In addition, these two demented minds share another trait: they view the world as a machine. Everything functions with the precision of a clock. “The attempt to impose upon man, a creature of growth and capable of sweetness, to ooze juicily at the last round the bearded lips of God, to attempt to impose, I say, laws and conditions appropriate to a mechanical creation, against this I raise my sword-pen. “ (Clockwork Orange. Anthony Burgess. Part One, Chapter Two) Alexander also believes that technology is a medieval technique used to manipulate and alter people. Technology is defined as “the application of scientific knowledge for practical purposes....” In this case, technology is a worldwide method to perfect humanity. 

         “For a tick of time, before it all turned into white dust, I saw it was a miniature electronic element like the ones I helped the Radar Corps...” 31. Through this Chiefs eyes, everything is a machine. For the world around his functions with punctuality and exactitude. In the Clockwork Orange, this element is present as well. Well, everything must be “adjusted to surroundings.” This saying exploits all of the human’s superficiality onto the world. It states that the world is destined to be a humanized utopia: one that is plastic. One that is like a doll. 

          Morality is inexistent when trying to impose “morality” upon people. Dr. Brodsky has the power the sculpt Alexander’s mind, through torture if it guarantee’s successful results. Using music, videos, and images helped distort, the patient’s mind. In the other hand, Nurse Ratched and the “black men in white suites,” use technology to create. 

         “Sometimes a guy goes over for an installation, leaves the ward mean and mad and snapping at the whole world and comes back a few weeks later with black-and-blue eyes like he’d been in a fist fight, and he’s the sweetest, nicest, best-behaved thing you ever saw. 16” Contrasting to Clockwork Orange’s ending, people are manufactured into another product with the use of technology. Patients become different life-forms, but because they are different people, they are unaware of this change. Alexander, in Clockwork Orange,  was aware of what he’d become after his treatment. After having committed such sins, and gaining a conscious, this boy had no alternative but to commit suicide. Although the medical procedures taken in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, seem grotesque and inhumane, the person is cured and is able to start fresh. For the patient has no recollection of their previous state. 

          Which method is less sinful? One that tortures, but leads to a conscious? Or, one that clears and corrects the mind? Machines have the power to transform the world, but they will never be able to change its past. Humans live life to become purer souls, to make good deeds and help others. Every act, every thought, and every word that comes out of one’s lips, constructs a definition of oneself. A person who becomes another so abruptly will still remain the same. For their wasn’t an actual transaction. To be able to develop or evolve is completely under one’s determination. No machine is justifiable. Man never had and never will have the power or intelligence to overcome G-d’s creation. The thought of manipulating nature implicates going against scientific means. Well, this simply signifies that no machine is capable of doing so.  

Vladimir and Estragon: the world's babies

                   Estragon is seemingly dense. His slow response to everything, in contrast of Vladimir's intense behavior, creates a stressful emotion to the viewer of the play. The relationship dynamics between these two characters is questionable, for they are awkward and erratic. Something I didn't detect in the play. In addition, their irish accent, although it adds some emotion to the ambiance, the dialogue is meaningless and indifferent. There lack of value to the world around them causes an aloof sensation to all the objects in the play. One is not identified with a character, the setting, nor the dialogue. The world of Waiting for Godot is in black and white.

                  Also, the one moment where there is a happening, these two act like children. This is the greatest flaw. How are they like children? Pondering on what this truly signifies led me to one conclusion: we are all children. Society is demanding, winy, and immature. We believe we know it all, when truly we are ignorant of the world around us.

                  This can be seen in Estragon, but felt with Vladimir. Meaning Estragon appears as naive and gullible (which represents the sweet blissfulness of society), but Vladimir is intense and insecure (which indicates the ego of people). Being able to physically watch these two characters behave has enabled me to understand their purpose. Among all of the grey: the mountains of rubbish, the sky and the dead tree, these two remain with an optimistic spirit. But most importantly, their everlasting faith for Godot's arrival.

                    Vladimir and Estragon don't have patience for one another. They intend to escape, but they are in an abysmal terrain, where their is not exit. This imprisoned setting, tempts their composure and their faith. Which then backfires with the idea of suicide. These two, delegate over who goes first and how they will gain an "erection" by doing this. This behavior indicates truly how childish they are. Vladimir and Estragon are willing to give "everything" up for an erection; an aspect seen in toddlers when they want something really badly. Nevertheless, the only thing retaining them from committing this morbidly innocent decision is Godot. Godot is like the disciplinarian for these two. Godot is a mother, leaving a child in "time-out" for him/her to learn a lesson.

            Is this what we are doing on Earth? Learning lessons through hardships? Must we believe that Godot, our mother is only doing what we perceive as wrong, for our own good? As readers we don't have the right to judge Estragon and Vladimir for they are a representation of humans. They are a crude and utter form of man, which is nothing but a essence in progress; an ignorant being living because "Godot told me to."

Dear Mr. Ferrebee,

           Although my essay of The Stranger was an improvement to the previous one, I do have some things to work on. For instance, many of my sentences have an ambiguous structure. “Meursault was not able to absorb the idea of conforming part of anything, not even the present; until he discovered that death tied humanity together.” After reading this sentence, I noticed my ideas aren’t quite clear or concrete. I can infer that before writing I don’t know what I want to say. Even though I am determined to develop my central topic is in the essay, I barley have any supporting ideas. The lack of variety of thought leads me to commit such mistakes. I don’t make sense, and I simply end up building a grammatically wrong sentence. In addition, many of the words I use to describe “key concepts,” aren’t of best fit. “Meursault understands that everything in life has one destiny and that both the present and the past are the roots that lead this origin.” Throughout this sentence, I detected that some words could have been removed (wordiness: everything, both the, that lead, etc.) Also, this could have been composed into two different sentences, for they are two separate ideas. Nonetheless, the word: destiny is not appropriate. “Finality” could have assembled a more significant idea. Finally, for the upcoming essay, I must be aware of word usage and sentence structure. Most importantly, it is vital for me to establish my ideas and details to support them before writing.

Thank you,

Stephanie Vainberg

Scattered Thoughts and No Commentaries...

           Who exactly is Godot? No one will ever know, including the characters themselves. Nevertheless, their whole lives revolve around him. Waiting for Godot is like waiting for the night sky to fall, or the rope to hang from the tree. It is an uncertainty and a mystery. However, this mystery is never to be resolved. The essence and product of the book: utter confusion. Suicide is the final resolution for Vladimir and Estragon's misery. Nonetheless, throughout their lives they act completely ignorant of their unhappiness. However, at the end of the day they come to realization: life has no meaning. They have no meaning to each other. And Godot is seen as a projection, running their lives forever. Godot is interpreted as the ideal of G-d. He never comes, his existence is not proved, nor are his intentions. G-d and Godot share a power over the world, making people like Vladimir and Estragon live every day awaiting for their ascendance.

           The Bowler’s hat is a representation of personality and identity. Without the hat, the characters seem to be mentally inept. They are unable to think, nevertheless with or without the hats, the characters don’t posses character or individuality. The hat is the free-will given my G-d. They are able to remove this attire (deactivating their faith) or let it lie on the top of their ignorant heads forever.  They live in a world ruled by Godot and a bowler’s hat. Vladimir and Estragon inspect the hats very often. There is one scene where they interchange the hats with Lucky’s. They can’t seem to decide which one they want to wear. Lack of decisiveness is only indicating a lack of faith in the ole mighty Godot.

          These two characters suffer from a “high diagnose ” of stubbornness. In addition, when these two discuss, they act like toddlers. One word per argument gives the reader a sensation of immaturity. The fact that time is unrecognizable leads these two men to never grow. They cannot be separated from each other, and they need to “embrace” quite often. Yet, every time they say good night, and the day has come to an end, they argue over how they wish to part from one another. They state their lives are so different, full of distinct purposes, but they do not separate, for they define each other. This behavior is also seen in The Stranger. For attachment to the material world is seen in this play, it contradicts existentialist ideals. Vladimir and Estragon do not treasure their lives just like Mersault, but these two aren't willing to hand away their last breath to Godot.

            Blindness, a simple punishment for those who don’t appreciate what is in front of them. Pozzo, a wealthy man, encounters Vladimir and Estragon during the two Acts of the play. His significance in the book is the wastefulness of life. (Which is reflected upon the two main characters.) Pozzo lives to travel, drag his slave lucky around, and eat. Pozzo is the materialistic aspect of Waiting for Godot. Towards the end, this man falls to the ground and is unable to get up. He requests the help of Vladimir and Estragon, two strangers to him (he has met them before), but these two characters hesitate. For Pozzo lies far away from the tree, where they are waiting for Godot. The clash between their usual routine and a new event takes place. But, these men don’t know what to do. They have never experimented from outside “Godot’s” boundaries. They are imprisoned.

          “The sun sets, the moon rises.... Everything’s dead but the tree” 107. If everything’s dead but the tree, then every character is dead. Dead to the world, dead to the story. They are not imprisoned, quite the opposite, they are free. Do they just not know it? These two absurd men are homeless to the world, except themselves.