Reading What Interests You

Short story 1:  Staley Flemings Hallucinations by Ambrose Bierce

• It was a horror and I wanted to know what the hallucination was
• Yes I liked it because it had a creepy ending that makes the reader left wondering
• Sometimes the most interesting part happens at the end of a horror story
• I may use this technique in the future; the entire story leads up to a good ending

Short Story 2:  A Diagnosis of Death by Ambrose Bierce

• I wanted to find out the story of how the man started to believe in ghosts (based on the logline)
• I liked it because it grew more intense as the story went on, and had a scary ending
• I liked the suspense, so I would use that in my short stories
• Lead up to an ending that is interesting and makes the reader want more

Short Story Activity

Desiree's Baby

By Kate Chopin

Chris & Erica

Log line: Suspect and deciet between a married couple leads to an unforeseen conclusion.

Summary:

• Couple (Armand and Desiree) falls in love and has a baby
• The baby has darker skin so Armand acuses Desiree of cheating on him with a slave
• Desiree denies his accusations, and leaves him 
• She leaves him a note from Armand's mother to his father saying that his mother is of the race that is enslaved- meaning it was Armand who carries the African American gene 

Symbols: ( chapter 11 )

• Descriptions of steep black roof and solemn oaks that surround the couple's house-  represent the sadness and the betrayal that has occurred 

Blog 3 Moth Hour

1.) The Moth Hour I chose this week is called,  "A Tale of Two Lives," by Marie Walsh.  I chose this because the description about how a normal housewife had a secret life had caught my eye and seemed really interesting to me.
http://themoth.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/111208_MarieWalsh_TwoLives.mp3

2.)

• Marie Walsh (Susan Lefevre) was convicted and sentenced 20 for withholding information about the war on drugs when she was only 19.
• Her grandfather helped her escape prison, and she moved away from Michigan to San Diego, and got married and started a family.
• Years later, the police reignited a search for her and they found her, brought her back to prison for a year before having her hearing that determined there was no evidence against to support their claims and she could be free

3.)  The story teller was really good at hooking me in at the beginning and made me really curious as to what was going to happen.  She started with a part that came later in the story, and described the moment the police came to her door after years of being a fugitive.

4.) I learned from this story, that when I tell my own stories, I should include my feelings about what is happening, and also use a great hook, such as starting with a piece that happens in the middle to get the reader interested. 

Blog 2 Short Story

• I read the story "Falling" by author Elizabeth Baines
• I chose it because the title caught my eye and the cover looked very interesting compared to the other short stories
• I enjoyed it, because it was different but I didn't like the ending because there were four different endings the story offered

• A woman who was looking for her boyfriend slipped and fell and injured her hand, knee, shoulder, and her head
• Her and her boyfriend had a fight about him dancing with other woman and not being there when she fell
•  The woman fell again on the street behind a truck, hurt her knee really badly, and decided she needed to have more care when she would go out
• In the summer, she tripped again this time being already careful, but she felt no pain
• She believed and thought of four different ways that she could have died during her past falls, because she had felt no pain during the last fall

• I couldn't find any real elements from HTRLLAP, that applied to this story, except when the author stated the woman's last fall was in the summer, and this season may have been a symbol.
• The fact her last fall was in the summer, and that she imagined all sorts of death scenarios she had gone through, could represent that she was happy and at peace. 

What's Going On

The song , "What's Going On" by Marvin Gaye is one that really portrays the singer's views on  what was happening in the country during the late sixties.   In the lyrics, he states that too many soldiers are dying in the Vietnam war, and they are dying for nothing.  The song is  a cry for peace and is in support of those who opposed interference in Vietnam's issues.  His mention of "picket lines and picket signs" and "don't punish me with brutality" is referencing the peaceful nonviolent protests people and hippies would particulate in to show their disapproval of violence and war.  Because the song centered around the idea that "only love can conquer hate," Marvin Gaye proved his music to be a symbol of people's feelings toward violence during the late sixties.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=r6jKE6YIxmc