As I Lay Dying

As I Lay Dying is written in a stream of consciousness so there is never a worry about what each character is thinking. However, because it is written from so many different points of view, it is difficult as a reader to see things as they happen from the outside. This lack of interaction leaves much assumption to be done by the reader. This novel is primarily about a family and how dysfunction defines each of them. As talked about slightly in a previous post, Dewey Dell and Addie are only seen as related in the way they handle feminine love situations. There are no physical interactions between the two throughout the novel but there is an influence because the way they act as individuals to similar situations.
As I Lay Dying shows familial influence through the stream of conscious dialogue and not necessarily through verbal or physical communication. By getting into each character’s thoughts, it is access into how the influence is used by each character. Because there is more than one offspring, and both parents do a narration, you can see how each child is similar. There are huge differences in families but when accessing thoughts you can see a common influence in most cases. Anse, one of the most selfish characters in the novel is constantly after something. Every character seems to have a goal, but the materialism is what comes from the father. The lofty and more anxiety-ridden issues come from Addie and are prominent in every character. That feeling of anxiousness shows through when they are trying to obtain or secure materialistic items. Although this may not define a family, or define self, it shows the great influence that the ones nearby have over anyone in close relation.
The most important part of this whole explication has been to notice that self-identity is something people struggle with for a really long time. It is difficult to ever actually know who you are in every situation, where you came from, and how you influence others. However, it is important to note that while your family may not be what helps you or how you define yourself, but they have a great influence in who you are. While it may not always be a positive thing, it is still something that is enough to note. As I Lay Dying shows how each character relies or is influenced by others because the reader has access into each other’s thoughts. In Death of A Salesman and Long Days Journey Into Night the characters are seen physically and heard physically relating or following in family members footsteps. I think that reading all three works lets the reader know that even if you do not have access into each characters thought, or even if you cannot see how their relationships work out physically, there is still an influence. As opposed to saying that family orientation defines self, it is more appropriate in saying that family experiences influence the way in which one starts to look for self.

Eminem's Version of Family (edited of course)

My mom loved valium and lots of drugs
And that's why I am like I am cause I'm like her
Because my mom loved valium and lots of drugs
That's why I on what I on cause I'm my mom.

My mom my mom I know youre probably tired of hearing about my mom Oh ho! Whoa ho!
But this is just a story of when I was just a shorty and how I became hooked on va-al-ya-hum
Valium was in everything food that I ate, The water that I drank (swear) peas on my plate,
She sprinkled just enough of it to sea-son my steak, So everyday I have at least three stomach aches,
Now tell me what kind of mother would want to see her
Son grow up to be an under a undera-(Swear)-chiever, My teacher didn't think I was going be nothing either,
What the (swear) you sticking gum up under the (swear) seat for?
Mrs. Mathers your son has been huffing ether, Either that or the mother (swear) been puffing reefer,
But all this huffing and puffing wasn't what it was either,
It was neither I was buzzing but it wasn't what she thought, Pee in a tea cup?
(swear) you aint my keeper, im sleeping, What the (swear) you keep on (swear) with me for?
(swear) you need to leave me the (swear) alone I aint playing,
Go find you a white crayon and color a (swear) zebra.

A Happy Tune for a Happy Fmaily

You've Got A Friend
James Taylor, Carole King

When you're down and troubled
and you need a helping hand
and nothing, whoa nothing is going right.
Close your eyes and think of me
and soon I will be there
to brighten up even your darkest nights.

You just call out my name,
and you know wherever I am
I'll come running, oh yeah baby
to see you again.
Winter, spring, summer, or fall,
all you have to do is call
and I'll be there, yeah, yeah, yeah.
You've got a friend.

If the sky above you
should turn dark and full of clouds
and that old north wind should begin to blow
Keep your head together and call my name out loud
and soon I will be knocking upon your door.

You just call out my name and you know wherever I am
I'll come running to see you again.
Winter, spring, summer or fall
all you got to do is call
and I'll be there, yeah, yeah, yeah.

Hey, ain't it good to know that you've got a friend?
People can be so cold.
They'll hurt you and desert you.
Well they'll take your soul if you let them.
Oh yeah, but don't you let them.

You just call out my name and you know wherever I am
I'll come running to see you again.
Oh babe, don't you know that,
Winter spring summer or fall,
Hey now, all you've got to do is call.
Lord, I'll be there, yes I will.
You've got a friend.
You've got a friend.
Ain't it good to know you've got a friend.
Ain't it good to know you've got a friend.
You've got a friend.

Dr. Suess Would Be Jealous

The Woes of a Diner Whiner



“Pepsi, Pepsi, two Cokes and a Sprite—

And as for you hun, what’s your delight?”

Faced with a feeling of complexity,

I shrug my shoulders and say, “iced tea.”



She gives me a look and I feel deflated

I ordered the only drink that’s not carbonated.

It’s not any more difficult to get than the tonic

However, ordering different than the rest of the family is a bit ironic.



Now I know Mr. Cook, that is not real irony,

But for the sake of the story just let it be.

This tale is not one of literary merit you know,

It’s a rhyme about how family makes your identity grow.



So let’s head back to the dilemma at the table

Where I was sitting with the “loser” tag I was sure to be labeled.

As the waitress bounced away, our order in hand

I waited for everyone’s reaction for I knew it would be grand.



To my surprise as I looked up at their faces

Not a look of dismay or any disgusted traces.

“I’ve made it out of this one,” I thought with force,

That is until the waitress came back for the main course.



Everyone in my family got some kind of fish

And before I knew it, it was my turn to order a dish.

When I didn’t ask for haddock but Rosemary Chicken,

I got a look from that girl like I was gunna get a licken.



Taking a look around as I did before

I realized that my family didn’t care they weren’t keeping score.

I didn’t think I was the type to lose my head

But this chick kept making me feel like I was going to be dead.



It was not the issue of ordering the certain kind of food

But the way she looked at me was just plain rude

I knew what she was thinking, “she’s the odd ball out

She must not be a member of the family, no doubt.”



The truth of the matter was she kind of got to me

Did I belong with this group; was a branch on the tree?

Before I had time to delve further into that proposal

My sisters started talking about the kitchen disposal.





Of course we were all hungry so the talk revolved around chow

And I knew I had to say something I just didn’t know how.

I was about to pipe up when the appetizers arrived

Extra Spicy Buffalo wings, what a surprise.



My oldest sister ate hers without Blu Cheese,

The youngest inhaled hers almost hands free.

Kelly ate the celery with every bite,

And it came to me and I felt kind of uptight.



I did not like Extra Spicy Buffalo wings at all,

And I felt if I were any more different I would fall.

As the tears almost welled up, Kelly said to me,

“Here have this one I made it sauce free.”



Not a surprised look on anyone’s mug

As I looked at the wing and gave it a tug.

I chewed and chewed it was so delicious

And wouldn’t ya know it I no longer felt vicious.



I looked around and realized everyone was a little quirky,

My sister Halli got her salmon with a side of beef jerky.

Tess refused to eat her shrimp without white wine sauce,

And without ketchup my mom was at a loss.



I was not so weird for ordering that Iced Tea

Nor was it strange to like chicken with rosemary.

My family loved me and knew all my funny ways,

I was just too distracted to realize it I was in a haze.



It is through this story I have understood

That self is not defined through your familial hood.

Those around you will always help to influence self,

But they will never make you something you’re not, just look at the movie ELF.



Thanks for taking the time to listen to this tale

And next time I’ll think twice and maybe order a ginger ale.

On second thought I still don’t like bubbles,

And ordering an iced tea with my family will never cause trouble.

Death of a Salesman

Death of a Salesman is annoying. Death of a Salesman is aggravating. Death of a Salesman is frustrating to the point you want to jump through the page and hit one,, if not all, of the characters…but does that actually mean that Death of a Salesman is not necessarily meant to be pleasing but meant to prove something? It is my opinion that Arthur Miller’s work was maybe not meant to make anyone’s eyes open up to anything, it could have been a source of pleasure for him for all we know, but it does a great job of showing family dysfunction and how it affects every member regardless of goals or self-worth.
One of the largest problems within family relations is that between Edward and his mother. Edward seems to be the most like his mother in that he is quieter and a little more understanding, although that is where the problem starts. As both children in the family are the extremes of one of the parents, it makes for an extreme household. Edward comes down with a sickness and his mother’s nerves act up causing her to go back to her morphine addiction. This problem is not helped by the fact that the father chooses to ignore it along with the rest of the family. Like Long Day’s Journey Into Night, the family is too afraid to admit anything to each other because then it will be real and the admittance of a problem would mean that there is one and a something needs to be done about it.

Defining Family Via Hollywood

One of the most prominent issues in most Hollywood films today is that of self-identity through family orientation and how to work with one’s self while developing through this time. As a movie that articulates itself through relationships and reactions with different breeds of people, Spanglish is one of the greatest examples of self-identity through family. The movie is structured around a Mexican mother who flees Mexico with her daughter in search of a better life in America . The duo lives in and work for a wealthy, but visibly unstable, family. One of the most heartfelt and eye-opening parts of the whole movie is the comparison between how the Mexican mother treats her daughter, and how the American mother treats her daughter. This interaction highlights the difference in culture, which is the essence of the movie, but it also illuminates the theme of family interactions defining self in doing so.

The daughter of the wealthy woman is young, possibly twelve or thirteen, and is a little heavy-set in comparison with her exercise fiend of a mother. Obviously as a budding young woman with an unstable home life, she is dealing with identity an issue which is fueled, if not fired, by the judgmental mother. After coming home from a shopping spree for her daughter, it is quickly concluded that the daughter is too heavy for the sizes her mom has picked out and she is left with the clothes and disappointment. Observing all of this, the Mexican mother makes a few alterations and the daughter throws on the clothes to make her mother happy, only to see that her mother is only happy that she is losing weight (which any mother who has been paying attention would note that no change has been made), not that she looks beautiful in the clothes. This causes a complex to develop got the young girl in the misleading belief that beauty is in shape and nothing else. If her mother cannot accept her for who she is, then how can she even begin to like herself and make a conscious decision about her identity.

In regards to other great works of literature such as the characters in Faulkner’s As I Lay Dying, the movie cannot depict emotions as verbally or obviously as the narration provides in a novel. However, it is through the actions and repeated disappointment that show how dependent each character is on their family’s approval. Because the relationship is one of mother vs. young daughter in Spanglish, most things are materialistic bonds between the two, making it very obvious when there are disapprovals. The disapproval between the mother and daughter is physically seen when the daughter begins to weep after the mother berates her for her weight issues. Although the bond may be one that disgusts a lot of viewers, it is an obvious one with clear emotions and feelings from known sources. The stark difference between As I Lay Dying and Spanglish is in that very sense that interactions are not known and the relationship between the mother and daughter pair is not physically heard or seen, but must be inferred by what the narration says.

In Faulkner’s work, the narrations do not have the characters verbally interacting too much, but is written with a stream-of-consciousness so the materialistic crises are surpassed by the emotional issues. So much of the novel is situated around the emotions that the characters may or may not portray through their brief narration, and much is left to the reader to decide. Addie and Dewey Dell do not once interact verbally or physically throughout the whole novel and most of Dewey Dell’s narrations are focused on self as opposed to her mothers casket or body like the others. This self-obsession is the key to the relationship between the two because Addie’s one narration is all about herself and her dissatisfaction with the world she created for herself. Addie so much disliked her routine that she had an affair with another man which resulted in an illegitimate child. As Dewey Dell admits to the reader, she is pregnant out of wedlock and her goal for the whole trip is to get an abortion. This issue with sex and fertility is one that only comes up between the two females which gives the reader the idea that their relationship is one of shared mistakes. Each time Dewey Dell goes into detail about her night with Lafe it resembles Addie’s passionate night with Whitfield. This link is what exposes the two and makes them a mother daughter pair, much like the duo in Spanglish.

Because Spanglish is a Hollywood film it has those moments where it is not a work of literature, but a story to be told just to have a happy ending. However, though fairytale it may be at some times, it still has the elements in creating a relationship between two members of a dysfunctional family trying to find themselves and in doing so create a new correlation.

Long Day's Journey Into Night

One of my favorite works that we have studied this year has been Long Day's Journey Into Night. Although not everybody read it, the basic idea of the play can be described in a few words: A two-act play describing a day in the life of a family of four with a mother relapsing into a morphine addiction, a stingy father who like his two sons battles alcoholism, and how the pending news of a a son's illness will bring them all down.

The part of the play that is the most aggravating, as a reader and therefore audience member, is the knowledge that all of this is happening and knowing that the family sees it too but fears that if they talk about it then it is true. They continue to tiptoe around each others issues while in front of them, gossip about the problems with each other, and act like there is nothing wrong at the end of the day.

This is frustrating because just in reading, and I would assume watching, the family is not functioning very well together and that could all be solved if they were not so scared to admit it. This idea of admitting that there is something wrong on the inside is very difficult for a lot of families and every member is affected individually as well. Take young Edward for example, the youngest of the family suffering from what is assumed to be consumption, but is afraid to see a doctor for fear that it will enhance his mothers abuse of Morphine. Meanwhile, the whole family is walking around acting as if there is nothing wrong with the mother's addiction. How is Edward supposed to deal with this sickness if he cannot even tell his family what is going on. There is no support which makes growing impossible and seems to if anything cause a regression in behavior for all family members.

This is more of a family that is dysfunctional, but because of the lack of inner thought, it is difficult to really get emotions out of who they feel they are. However, because there is less inner thought, there is a lot more interaction and dialogue which is a needed contrast between reading plays versus prose or poetry.

Some food for thought

Before plunging into the topic at hand, there are some links (below) that will connect you to some works of literature, art, and music that relate to what we will be talking about. The links will be updated and more will be added, but make sure to look every so often to ensure that nothing is missed.

The Cheesy Hollywood meaning of Dysfunction: http://www.imdb.com/find?s=all&q=spanglish&x=4&y=11

Sparknotes to three novels with this theme we've studied this year: http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/asilay/
http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/longdays/summary.html
http://nfs.sparknotes.com/lear/

Welcome!

Welcome one and all to my beautiful and bountiful, but not bothersome blog. Although that was stark alliteration we will not be dwelling on such trivial matters of grammar and syntax, but delving into the essence of self identity. Yes, I am aware that we have been stuck on this topic for centuries on end but I bet you didn't think of who someone is because of their family orientation now did ya? And if you did, aren't you curious as to what others are thinking about it? If not then this self-coined 'witty introduction' serves you no purpose but perhaps a waste of time not spent on facebook (but let's be serious, it's your next destination on the interweb train). If you are intrigued however, feel free to leave posts and read what others have to say about self-identity as it is in relation to family orientation in works of literature YOU deem merit worthy.