Response to Ali's Entry

I agree with Ali that a customer usually depends on the packaging to decide whether or not to buy a product. It would be gross if underwear is returned, so the best way is to look at the model in the front. So I guess people go like, "Maybe I can look like that too if I buy it." Women's lingerie have been advertised sexually for a long time and now it's the mens turn. Like we discussed in class, I think it is unnecessary to make briefs or boxers with a waistband condom pocket. This is just to grab people's attention. It would be cool to be ABLE to spend $150 on just a pair of undergarments, but that's not really necessary.

Response to Jillian's Entry

I agree with Jillian about her post on the story In the Combat Zone. Marmon Silko does a good job in describing how women are the targets of crime. I can particularly relate to the first two paragraphs of the story because I am actually quite scared to go out alone at night. I am more relieved when I have my friends with me. I'm lucky because my best friend lives across the street from me, so we usually walk home together. Like Marmon Silko said, "women have to be aware of persons walking on the sidewalk behind us..." Coming from New York City, I am usually paranoid when I am out really late. I was a bit surprised to read that she had a habit of carrying a gun around her at all times. However I think it was cute when her father said, "My girls can do anything your boys can do, and my girls can do it better." Like Jillian, I would probably be too scared to take the risk. I think women should carry around pepper spray and take self defense classes as well. 

From the Black Notebooks

In the story From the Black Notebooks, Toi Derricotte speaks about being a rather light-skinned African American. This causes her trouble because she feels as if she doesn't fit in both communities. Although she is treated as a white, deep down she knows she isn't. When she goes into the real estate agents' offices, she "puts on a mask." She needs to be white in order to buy a house in a white neighborhood. She also talks about the time she took her car to the shop and the mechanic said, "You don't have to worry about stealing as long as the niggers don't move in." She was able to control her temper knowing that she might need his help in the future. But if it were me, I probably wouldn't be able to stay calm. She is afraid that if she tells people that she's African American, they will disdain her.

The Socks

For the reading due Wednesday, I particularly found The Socks very interesting. First off, I liked that it was in a comic-type form and not a long ten page story. This sounds cliche, but sometimes a picture does speak louder than words. The beginning takes place in an anatomy class in which the women are suppose to draw the model. But the model was covered up that not a single part of her body was seen. That was pretty ironic. I would be so angry if I was the girl running and police said what they said to her. I'm glad they decided to rebel and party. I especially liked the line, "Our behavior in public and our behavior in private were polar opposites." the pictures show them all dressed the same with their heads covered with veils. Then the bottom drawing shows the girls with different outfits and hairstyles. I also liked the line that says, "that day, half the class turned on me... happily, there was still the other half." She lost some and gained some. 

Body Collage

It took me a while to figure out what I was going to write about for this essay. At first I wanted to write about my legs because I had always been a bit self-conscious about my height. I'm 5'0" and sometimes I wish that I was taller. The worst part is going to concerts and the people there are so much taller. Bummer. Eventually I ended up writing about my eyes. I didn't really focus on the physical aspect but more on my poor eyesight. I think I'm practically blind without my glasses and it sucks under certain circumstances. I have to find a place for them when I go on roller coasters. I hated glasses at first because I thought they looked nerdy. But that was a long time ago and I've come to accept it. I actually like picking out new glasses and trying them on. It's kind of like picking out a new bracelet or necklace. I consider it shopping. My most memorable experience with my glasses was when I kicked them into a pond. I'm still surprised at how I managed to kick it as soon as it fell off the collar of my shirt. They were actually a birthday gift from my parents since they were so expensive and I feel sorta bad. 

Response to Kate's Entry

In response to Kate's entry on "A Few Words About Breasts," I couldn't agree more that Nora Ephron's writing is incredible. I really liked how she adds a bit of humor. She is honest and she expresses herself in a way that many people can relate to. As Kate said, it was comical how her breast size is a more difficult experience than her period. Nora backs this up by explaining that you can lie about your period but others can see your breasts. I really enjoyed this story because many girls can relate to this. Whether its breasts or not, many people have their own insecurities about themselves. I liked how she separated each memory like the story by Alice Walker. I loved how she is so honest. Especially since this is the 1950s I wouldn't expect her to be so open about her breasts. I am very surprised she was able to remain so calm after what her boyfriend's mother said to her. His mother was basically insulting her small breasts. I would have probably had a different reaction.

At War With My Skin

In the short story At War With My Skin, the protagonist speaks up about his "situation" with psoriasis. Right in the beginning, he informs the reader that "disease is a strong word." Instead he refers to it as a condition that is not contagious. In this story, John Updike uses lots of imagery. For happier memories, he talks about "fuzzy sun-warmed towels." This makes me want summer to come when the sun is out and I don't need to have my jacket wherever I go. He also describes his skin as "silvery scales" and "red spots." I like how he related this condition to a war and that it invaded his skin in the winter. It shows that he is optimistic because he knows when summer comes, he is healed for the time being. My favorite part of the story is that the protagonist is honest about his actions. He isn't hesitant to about why he was a writer. Because of his skin, he didn't want a job that required him to present himself. He also addressed why he married so young. This was because he found someone who looked past his skin, so he didn't want to risk it and find another girl. 

Free Union by Andre Breton

In the poem "Free Union", Andre Breton uses unusual characteristics to describe his wife. He focuses on particular body parts more than others. He goes from top to bottom and back to the top again. That is, he starts with images of her hair and then to her sex and finally back up to her eyes. In this poem, Andre only uses metaphors and not similes. This technique makes it much more specific. For example, by saying his "wife whose hair is a brush fire", the images are pretty vivid that his wife has wild, fiery hair. Some metaphors are easier to picture than others. An example of this is "whose waist is an hourglass." This is pretty implied. But when he says, "whose waist is the waist of an otter caught in the teeth of a tiger", this is something one would think about when referring to the waist. Andre Breton also describes body parts that are less obvious like the fingers, armpits, tongue and eyebrows. My favorite line is "My wife with eyes that are the equal of water and air and earth and fire." This is my favorite line because it is basically summing up the entire poem into that one line. To me, it means that his wife is and has everything. By referring to her eyes has having the four elements, it makes his wife sound complete. He might have saved the eyes for last because it is what he notices the most or that his wife's eyes basically tell the whole story. In the poem he does include the 4 elements by using the words fire, matches, landlocked sea, forests and steam. 

Response to Christine's Entry

In response to Christine's entry, I agree with her in feeling more sympathy for the character. In the beginning, she was a carefree girl whose only worry is to get her dad to take her to the fair. The little girl in the beginning is a confident, excited child. She even says with assurance, "I'm the prettiest," to her dad. Like Christine said, there is a difference in her tone as she goes from being confident to insecure. However in the end, the character finally accepts her eye and is even proud of it. What sets this story apart from others is that it focuses on outer beauty. Most stories would have chose the path to talk about how much inner beauty is more important. Alice Walker was honest when she talks about how she didn't raise her head up for years. She admits that she resented her eye. Even though one's personality does matter, in reality physical appearance matters a lot to one's self as well. I also agree that the story was made more interesting because it was written more from memory and in fragments. It felt like a journal entry so the reader got a taste of what the character was feeling.