1) Pilate uses voodoo dolls.
2) Pilate is the archetypal African medicine woman.
3) This archetype makes her a vehicle, connecting the Dead family to their African origins and with their negative attitudes toward her, helps to show the families attitude toward their African heritage as well.
4) "'She gave me funny things to do. And some greenish-gray grassy-looking stuff to put in his food.'...It worked to. Macon came to me for four days. Then it was over. And two months later I was pregnant. When he found out about it, he immeadiately suspected Pilate and he told me to get rid of the baby" (Morrison 125).
5) Her knowledge, insight, and power in the realm of magical realism, illustrated by her mythic sense of supernatural forces in the arts of healing, protection, and manipulation, allows her to be completely independant of anything material, reinforcing the idea of her as an African mystic. Macon's reaction shows his fear of Pilate and metaphorically, his denial of his African heritage and his hatred motivated by his his jealousy of the freedom that Pilate possesses.
6) Pilate is the character most closely connected to magic realism and is therefore a very colorful character by nature. She is respectable because of her inate strength that is shown is such contrast to the self percieved weakness of the other characters. The most confusing thing about her is that her complete independance and freedom from all worldly qualities is the quality that is hardest for the reader to identify with because no one who reads the story is truly independant and free like Pilate. Morrison creates this character, most likely, to induce this exact frustration and confusion, pointing out how limiting the life that everyone leads, confined by ideas of what is "real".
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
Wednesday, March 14, 2007
LOVE, LOVE ME DO
What is love?
I cant define love. Much like other feelings and emotions, love is different for each person. In my experience, love is pretty uncomfortable. Not ultimately of course, but more in the "in between" moments of love. When I am with someone I love, especially in a romantic sense, there is nowhere else that I would rather be, absolutely nothing I would rather be doing. It is like being high on some sort of drug that dulls everything that exists around me, like the surroundings and the other people, and enhances the focus and connection between myself and the loved. A perpetual euphoria exists when I am with that person. But with the "with moments" there are of course the "without" moments. Saying goodbye to someone who I love is probably the hardest thing that I have had to do. Not in the break up sense at all. In every "Goodnight!" there is a nagging sensation of impatience looking forward to the next time I will see that person. I am, by nature, a very impatiente person and it is very hard for me not to constantly think about the person when I am not with them, wishing and anticipating when I will see them again. This is the uncomfortable aspect and it usually dominates most of the time when I am involved with someone who I am in love with. This has only happened twice in my life. Fortunatly, the "with" moments are so incredibly, undeniably wonderful that they easily make up for the "without" moments.
Falling in love has never been slow for me. Sometimes I confuse "lust" with "love" but this is usually only an intitial feeling. When I fell in love for the first time, it took 4 days. It sounds absolutely unfeasable however, I maintain, and will always believe that I was in love and still do love the person. I am no longer in love, however I was for more than a year and it happened in 4 days. Other than that, I have been usually able to tell whether or not someone at least has a the potential of being someone that I love within a short while of being romantically involved. Sometimes it sneaks up, and that is fine. I think that people who jump to quickly to a defined emotinonal state in a relationship, close themselves off to the truth in that connection. Something like love can grow, however, it assumes a certain gravity that must be supported by REAL feelings that are not simply motivated by lust. I do believe that lust is essential to romantic love.
I think that feelings of love can be manipulated. Hormones released during sex have been proven to create a chemical feeling of love in women. Something about how humans are animals that mate once, as opposed to chimpanzees who have many mates. Almost some sort of cave woman instinct or something...its not me, its scientists. Anyway, I think that emotions are easily played upon and the same holds true for love. The number of ways people do this to each other is endless, however, it can be purposely done or subconsciously done as well.
But regardless of the somewhat questionable aspects of love, I think that it is one of the most pure emotions and if felt truly, can be the most wonderful thing that someone can experience.
I cant define love. Much like other feelings and emotions, love is different for each person. In my experience, love is pretty uncomfortable. Not ultimately of course, but more in the "in between" moments of love. When I am with someone I love, especially in a romantic sense, there is nowhere else that I would rather be, absolutely nothing I would rather be doing. It is like being high on some sort of drug that dulls everything that exists around me, like the surroundings and the other people, and enhances the focus and connection between myself and the loved. A perpetual euphoria exists when I am with that person. But with the "with moments" there are of course the "without" moments. Saying goodbye to someone who I love is probably the hardest thing that I have had to do. Not in the break up sense at all. In every "Goodnight!" there is a nagging sensation of impatience looking forward to the next time I will see that person. I am, by nature, a very impatiente person and it is very hard for me not to constantly think about the person when I am not with them, wishing and anticipating when I will see them again. This is the uncomfortable aspect and it usually dominates most of the time when I am involved with someone who I am in love with. This has only happened twice in my life. Fortunatly, the "with" moments are so incredibly, undeniably wonderful that they easily make up for the "without" moments.
Falling in love has never been slow for me. Sometimes I confuse "lust" with "love" but this is usually only an intitial feeling. When I fell in love for the first time, it took 4 days. It sounds absolutely unfeasable however, I maintain, and will always believe that I was in love and still do love the person. I am no longer in love, however I was for more than a year and it happened in 4 days. Other than that, I have been usually able to tell whether or not someone at least has a the potential of being someone that I love within a short while of being romantically involved. Sometimes it sneaks up, and that is fine. I think that people who jump to quickly to a defined emotinonal state in a relationship, close themselves off to the truth in that connection. Something like love can grow, however, it assumes a certain gravity that must be supported by REAL feelings that are not simply motivated by lust. I do believe that lust is essential to romantic love.
I think that feelings of love can be manipulated. Hormones released during sex have been proven to create a chemical feeling of love in women. Something about how humans are animals that mate once, as opposed to chimpanzees who have many mates. Almost some sort of cave woman instinct or something...its not me, its scientists. Anyway, I think that emotions are easily played upon and the same holds true for love. The number of ways people do this to each other is endless, however, it can be purposely done or subconsciously done as well.
But regardless of the somewhat questionable aspects of love, I think that it is one of the most pure emotions and if felt truly, can be the most wonderful thing that someone can experience.
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
Life vs. Legend
I choose life. The only fame that I would find attractive is withdrawn, refined fame that existed out of the public spotlight. If I were to pick the kind of fame that would last 2000 years, it would obviously not be that kind of quiet fame. People who achieve such extreme levels of fame are not normally happy. I would much rather live out a quiet life in obscurity, respected by those who know me and loved by those whom I love. I also believe in some form of reincarnation and therefore, being insanely famous would not benifit me in this life or in the next. However, living a wholesome, quiet, yet good life without fame would be much more beneficial to my soul. The only scenario that I would choose legend over life would be one in which I am famous because I save humanity from a huge disaster and die doing so. This sort of fame would not be meaningless because it would have a greater purpose. Unless this scenario were to occur however, I would much rather have a long regular life.
10 Things to Carry
1. Shield
2. Picture of an open field because war would make me feel claustrophobic.
3. Mask to put between myself and reality.
4. Movie Ticket to remind me of an escape from the reality of war.
5. Copy of "The Dumbwaiter" to remember how aburd and random life is.
6. Picture of a baby.
7. Compass
8. "Finding Neverland"- The movie.
9. My "best actor" medal.
10. Strong pain killing drugs.
2. Picture of an open field because war would make me feel claustrophobic.
3. Mask to put between myself and reality.
4. Movie Ticket to remind me of an escape from the reality of war.
5. Copy of "The Dumbwaiter" to remember how aburd and random life is.
6. Picture of a baby.
7. Compass
8. "Finding Neverland"- The movie.
9. My "best actor" medal.
10. Strong pain killing drugs.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)