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.