The Luck of Roaring Camp

The first reaction I had to The Luck of Roaring Camp was how interesting it was that the baby brought so much hope to the camp. I initially thought the baby would be seen as an unwanted hassle. However, the baby is seen as a symbol of luck and brought positive change to the men throughout the camp. The fugitive men of Roaring Camp transformed into profane, rugged men into ones who longed for prosperity. The camp was described as " They've got vines and flowers round their houses, and they wash themselves twice a day" (391). It is strange to think such a small, helpless baby could change such aggressive, tough men. They relied on the baby, Thomas Luck, on the whole prosperity and future of the camp. When Luck finally dies, they believe their hope has too. Ultimately, the men feel that without the baby, they have no hope for their future and claim that all the luck from the camp will be lost. I found this idea strange that such tough men could seriously believe that an infant could bring all that; in the end it only hurt themselves because all their hope is lost now that the child is no longer.

The Yellow Wallpaper- Change

In the story, The Yellow Wallpaper, Gilman depicts change through the different layers of the wallpaper and the different appearances it seems to have. As the story progresses, so does her illness, and we see her become crazier as the pages go on. The woman is isolated, with no one to share her feelings or opinions with because her husband just turns the other way, and discredits her feelings. She has so much bottled up inside of her. The wallpaper is a way for her to spend her time and she is mesmerized by the pattern because it gives her something to express her opinions about, as she says, "But I must say what I feel and think in some way--it is such a relief!" (359). As she continues to analyze the paper deeper and deeper, she sees things she didn't before. She remarks, " There is one marked peculiarity about this paper, a thing nobody seems to notice but myself, and that is that it changes as the light changes" (361). She claims during the day, the pattern is of ugly designs, like a "fungus", and at nightime she sees a woman in bars shaking, trying to get out. I think the daylight represents how John and Jennie, as well as the rest of the world, see her- just a little sick, but not serious. But I think the night represents how she sees herself, alone and stuck in a prison-like place. As she slowly peels off the layers, the 'lady behind bars' becomes more apparent, until her true craziness is revealed once she peels it all off, and John truly sees her psychotic behavior and faints. I think the change in her sickness is represented through the changing wallpaper. As she gets crazier, so does the pattern as she sees it.

Tom Sawyer

One of the most interesting aspects I found in reading Tom Sawyer is how likable a character he is, yet all he does is create mischief and trick those around him for his own personal gain. Even through all of his deceptive ways, we all still love him. However, when reading Ragged Dick, although many still like him, there were more feelings of distrust toward him. They are, essentially, the same character with extremely similar characteristics. Both are excellent performers of trickery and seem to always get their way. One of the main differences, however, that I feel contribute of our likeness to Tom is because he is a country boy, and Ragged Dick is from the city. Throughout all the stories we have read, we seem to perceive the south having innocence, whereas the north is full of distrusting people only out for themselves. Also, they both have different motives for deceiving others. Ragged Dick was actually out on the streets, with no parents or someone looking out for him, and his reasons for tricking others was for economic gain. In Tom's case, we see him more as just a kid doing what kids do. Instead of receiving actually money, his gain is the wealth of childhood. Twain narrates, " Tom was literally rolling in wealth. He had besides the things before mentioned, twelve marbles, part of a jew's harp, a piece of blue bottle glass to look through, a spool cannon, a key that wouldn't unlock anything..." (18). Tom was not receiving money, rather things of little value for children. I think we see Tom as more innocent because we see him acting as the average kid would. It is emotionally appealing to see a character like Tom and remind us of childhood.

The Yares of the Black Mountain

The aspect I found most interesting from this reading was the comparison of the North and the South. In this story, we see the South as a refuge for the woman and her baby, and a place for the dying baby to gain health. It contrasts greatly with the fast paced North. The baby's mother takes note of this and states, " The kind little act of giving it was something new to her. It seemed as if in the North she too had been in a driving hurry of work since her birth, and never had the time to be friendly" (248). The South represents kindness, yet when we read Uncle Tom's Cabin, the North was seen as a place to escape the cruel south. In addition, Miss Cook complains about the South and upon arriving, notes "The scenery disapoints me...it lacks the element of gradndeur" (240). Ultimately, I found it interesting that these two places, the North and South, represent two totally different things, and although the differences are quite obvious, different characters see these differences in either a positive light, or a negative one.

Ragged Dick

The different gender roles taking place in American literature are very evident in the characters throughout the past stories we have read. Traditionally, girls have been portrayed in the domestic novels as having to be dependent. Gerty and Ellen both relied on a role model type in order to survive. It was unseen for a girl to take care of herself and find work to do, as shown by Capitola. She had to dress up as a boy in order to find honest work. However, in Ragged Dick, Dick supports himself and is very street smart. He shines shoes and knows the city like the back of his own hand. It was unheard of for a girl to have any of his rebellious and self independent qualities.

In reading Ragged Dick, a trait that stood out to me was that men had to be seen in society as being financially stable. Women were supposed the be the ones taken care of, while men brought home the money. Dick shines shoes and that is how he makes his money. He has to find his own way to survive. When a customer complains that Dick's prices are a little expensive, Dick has to get creative in order to get business. He responds, "Well, you know 'taint all clear profit," (253) and immediately sets to work. Boys have to have this aggressive, rebellious behavior to get what they need financially, or else someone else will.

The Hidden Hand Prompt

While reading The Hidden Hand I noticed a particular theme that had occurred in the other domestic texts we read. Capitola is a young, poor little girl who has had to learn to take care of herself. Growing up in New York all alone, she has had to teach herself all the lessons a parent should. Even though so young, she has seen a great deal and had to endure situations no girl of her age should. I saw the same aspect, in that she had to grow up faster than normal, in Ellen's character in the Wide, Wide World and in Gerty of The Lamplighter. I saw all the same little girls, but due to their surroundings, different characteristics and different personalities within each of them.

Capitola, as I mentioned above, had to grow up quickly and learn how to survive. She had no parent like figure to guide her or teach her. She dressed up in boys clothes in order to get a decent, honorable job. The more comical and wild spirit of the three, Capitola had seen and learned a lot from living on the streets, but not what a girl of her age should be seeing. The author recalls, " She had indeed the innocence of youth, but not its simplicity" (187). Capitola still was a child, helpless and wandering, but her lifestyle was not simple in that she had seen horrible lifestyles and dangerous ways for her age.

Ellen did have a parent to love her, spoil her, and teach her. However, because her mother became so ill, at a young age she dedicated herself to going above and beyond to take care of her. By giving her mother her daily tea and toast, as the author impressed on our minds so much, Ellen truly dedicated her life to taking care of her mother. After the doctor visits her mother on her deathbed, he warns Ellen, " You mustn't let her talk much, or laugh much, or cry at all, on any account; she mustn't be worried in the least-will you remember? Now, you know what I must expect of you; you must be very careful" (31). The doctor instills on her to take responsibility for her mother; a job of too much pressure for a girl her age. Although Ellen had this character in her life, she had to put on a brave face in order to deal with the fact her mother was dying. She had to do this all on her own, with her father out of the picture, and relied on other characters for support, such as the old gentleman. Like Capitola, Ellen is forced to be seen as a 'little adult' yet she is only a mere child.

As for Gerty, even though she is a little more angry than the previous two, grew up with Nan Grant, whom treated her awfully, beating her and hardly feeding her, if at all. Nan robs her of her innocence, creating this little monster. Gerty never had the chance to have a childhood because she was too busy taking care of her own self. Only when True comes to rescue her does she almost get a chance to restore some of the innocence of childhood lost. But it is hard to reverse what Gerty has already been through, witnessing the horrible and angry ways of Nan; that is all she has ever known. When her friend asks her about the bible and God, Gerty has not a clue of anything he is talking about. She never learned anything a normal girl her age would have, not even basic things like cleaning, as Mrs. Sullivan states, " You never have been taught to do anything, my child; but a girl eight years old can do a great many things, if she is patient and tries hard to learn" (108). Just like Capitola and Ellen, their youth was taken from them when they had to start being their own caretaker and missed out on normal things.

I completely agree that young girls are still stuggling today with different social issues just as girls were 150 years ago. Yes, obviously, times have changed but the issues have always stayed the same. Gerty is trying to find balance between all these new aspects in her life just as girls from all different times and find where she really fits in. In the video, the girl Anna says that when she gets frustrated she tries to find balance in her life. For Anna, the way she does this is through meditation; it is her way of "blanking her mind" as she calls it. Yoga is what makes her feel better, and Anna says, " we all need something to hold onto". Although she was speaking about balance in yoga, I think Gerty needed something to hold onto in order for her to find that balance. While living in those horrible conditions with Nan Grant, Gerty would always look for the lamplighter to brighten her day. Also, when the girls at school tease Gerty, she comes running to Emily for support. Gerty shouts, "Did anybody ever drown your kitten? Did anybody ever call your father Old Smutty?" (148). She is clearly upset and is searching for her place, all the while trying to balance her anger in her struggle to be good, but she cannot do it alone. She needs someone to hold onto, and Emily is her support in helping her find this balance.

Another strategy Anna talks about in overcoming your obstacles is never giving up. When asked what she would tell someone who is having a hard time, she answers "try harder". I think this relates to girls everywhere, because I know that no matter what time period or what situation, there will always be those instances that we believe we just can't do it. For Gerty, she tries so hard to be good. She has never been around anyone of any sort of good influence, so this new task proves a challenge for her. When Emily proposes that she must be good in order for God to love her and go to heaven, Gerty, frustrated, responds, "I can't do it, so I s'pose I can't go" (149) and again with, "I mean to try, but I don't think I can" (149). Girls will always have their doubts about themselves, but just as Anna said, you can't give up.

Another important aspect Anna mentions is you can't worry about what others think about; they have to love you for you and you can't worry about what you have to do for people to like you. This relates to what I said earlier about girls having doubts about themselves. Gerty has such a low self esteem and believes no one loves her because she is ugly. After she learns that Emily is blind, she exclaims, " So glad you can't see me!- because now, perhaps, you'll love me" (140) and again with "Because folks say that I'm an ugly child, and that nobody loves ugly children" (141). All children worry about if they are loved and what to be loved. They also worry about personal appearance, especially for girls. Those combined can make someone who has issues in both have some serious self confidence troubles. Gerty just wants to feel accepted, because never once in her life has she ever felt both pretty and loved.

I think that if Gerty had been on that show, she would have not offered the same advice. Anna seems very comfortable and mature while Gerty is dealing with many different social issues, still trying to fit in and overcome her struggles.