Thursday, June 07, 2007

Battles and Breakthroughs

Battle
Angela vs. Webshots
I'm currently trying to post all our good pictures online in big albums so we have a system we can just keep adding to. I've opted for Webshots again because there's better organizatonal tools than Facebook, and it has a function where you can share your Webshots photos on Facebook. BUT now Webshots has decided that about 1 out of every 3 of my photos is "in the wrong format" and I for the life of me, despite hours (Oli can attest) of comparing file types and sizes and orginals to renamed version, cannot figure out why. I am going to email Webshots.

Breakthrough
Esther Greenwood = Holden Caulfield = Huck Finn
I re-read the Bell Jar last week and LOVED it. It had depressed me beyond belief when I read it sophomore or junior year of college, probably because I held so many of the same fears as Esther Greenwood. Now that I realize choosing one life path doesn't necessarily exclude all others, I was able to appreciate how well the book is written and the narrator's voice crafted. I even got dorky and wrote out a character sketch of things Esther would and wouldn't do because I wanted to see how well I understood her just from reading her story. Answer: pretty well. Well done to Sylvia Plath; it's just a shame she can't be here to revel in her genius....

Thinking about Esther got me thinking about Holden Caulfield of Catcher in the Rye and Huckleberry Finn and I am convinced they are very similar:
1. Their personal opinions don't jive with those of the society around them
2. They all act out and go on personal adventures in relation to their rebellion
3. They all think humorous self-depricating thoughts constantly in relation to 1 and 2 to make things not seem so bad

In any case, I'm half way done re-reading Catcher and will move on to Huck next week. My train rides to and from work are pretty fun lately.

Why did you need to know all that? Just because, I suppose.

2 comments:

TaylorStreet said...

i am pro-Angela stories.
And I agree with you on the Bell Jar.

sir henry oglepants said...

the bell jar was a breath of fresh air compared to the other novels i had to read senior year of high school: the awakening, return of the native, madame bovary. on my book shelf i have sylvia plath and catcher in the rye next to each other, on the top shelf (like good hard liquor, and just as potent). i like your ideas.