This article and the different responses of the women were very strong. Although we are told that they come from a third world country and that the conditions they live in and their lifestyles is very hard, I think there is also a different lifestyle amongst those eight women. Some of them are very young and already working in factories to support their younger brothers and sisters while others are in school or even university. I am not saying life is not horrible and unfair for them, but I am just saying that some of the women are getting educated.
Paradise of the Blind
February 13, 2011
Paradise of the Blind Leave a comment
Vietnam Public Holidays:
On January 1st the Vietnamese celebrate the New Year. The local name for this celebration is known as “Tết dương lịch”.
On the last day of the last Lunar month to the 3rd day of the first lunar month, the Vietnamese New Year is celebrated. This in local Vietnamese is called “Tết Nguyên Đán”. This is the largest holiday of the year, it generally takes place around late January and early February.
On the 30th of April the Vietnamese celebrate the liberation/ reunification day, also known as “Ngày giải phóng”. This represents the fall of Saigon and the reunification of Vietnam in 1975.
As a lot of different countries, Vietnam celebrates workers day on the 1st of May. This is known as “Ngày Quốc tế Lao động”.
On September 2nd it is a National Day. This is the day Vietnam declares its independence and forms the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam). This holiday is locally called “Quốc khánh”.
Link: http://www.helium.com/items/834273-traditional-holidays-in-vietnam
D. Reading Blog: Language Analysis for Macbeth (Act 5)
January 20, 2011
7) Find a passage whose meaning is created by the use of punctuation. Post the passage on your blog and break it down. What is the key punctuation, how does it interact with the content and other devices in the passage.
MACBETH-
She should have died hereafter:
There would have been a time for such a word.
Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow,
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,
To the last syllable of recorded time;
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!
Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player
That struts and frets his hour upon the stage,
And then is heard no more: it is a tale
Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,
Signifying nothing. (Act 5, V, l. 17-28)
The passage I chose to analyze is the very important scene 5 in Act 5 where Macbeth has just been told his wife id dead. After reading it a few times and looking closely at the metaphors, I didn’t at first realize how the meaning of this passage could be interpreted as being created by the use of punctuation.
“She should have died hereafter:
There would have been a time for such a word.”
(Act 5, V, l. 17-18)
The very first verse ends with a colon; for me, Macbeth says- “she should have died after this” ‘:’ and the colon symbolizes the beginning of the rest of the play, being the tragic fate of Macbeth’s death. The colon can be interpreted in two different ways, it can either symbolize “she should have died after” … what Macbeth is going to say in the next stanza, OR what happens in the rest of the play. I believe this can be interpreted both ways.
“Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow,(. . .)”
(Act 5, V, l. 19)
In the third verse, there is again a set of punctuations that interacts with the content, this time in a different way. The third verse symbolizes the days to come, and is formed by the repetition of one word, “tomorrow”. Between the three repetitions of the word, there are commas, accentuating the fact that Lady Macbeth should not have died right away or in the next few days, but in a long time, which is what Macbeth seems to be wanting in this passage. (the death of Lady Macbeth to in a way be “delayed”)
“The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!”
(Act 5, V, l. 23)
At the end of the seventh verse there is a very short sentence that’s meaning is accentuated by punctuation. The meaning of that last small sentence is to be “small, lasting for a short time- ‘Life like the light of a candle quickly goes out’”. This is accentuated by the fact that the sentence is extremely short, it is cut into sections by commas and the repetition of the word “out” and the exclamation mark.
C. Reading Blog: Devices of Drama Analysis for Macbeth (Act 4)
November 30, 2010
How do stage directions affect and further our understanding of character, conflict, or theme? Choose a scene where they play a big role, analyze their effect and explain significance.
The first scene of Act 4 is a scene where all the magical and fantastical creatures of this play like the witches, their spells and Hecate are united. The stage directions in this scene have a great role in making the reader understand what message is trying to be conveyed. The reader is first introduced to the setting as: “a dark cave, in the middle a boiling cauldron, thunder”. Through out the play, every time the witches make an apparition there it is a dark and gloomy setting and thunder in the stage directions, which helps set the mood of the scene and create a particular atmosphere. In the first scene of Act 4, the reader is introduced to a new prop in the stage directions, the cauldron. The cauldron will be the prop that the witches use to circle around and work their charms with.
Still in scene 1 of Act 4, every time an apparition appears the thunder is mentioned and chants and singing from the witches are also mentioned. I think this emphasizes the fact that the apparitions not only are made and created by the witches, but also have a great impact on what is going to happen in the next scenes. We know the apparitions foreshadow Macbeth’s thoughts and actions in the next few scenes, by making the apparitions stand out with stage directions such as lightning, thunder, chants, it gives the reader a better image of what is happening and it emphasizes how important this passage is for the rest of the play.
Another important part the stage directions have in this scene is to guide the reader into who is talking to who and about what. When Duncan’s son’s apparitions appear Macbeth points at some, and talks to others, without the stage directions that tell us who he is pointing at, the reader would be lost and quickly loose track of what is happening. Seeing as “Macbeth” (the play) is supposed to be performed and not read, I believe stage directions are essential for the reader to have a good image and understanding of what is happening in a scene.
B. Reading Blog: Motif, Imagery and Symbolism Analysis for Macbeth (Act 3)
November 24, 2010
B. Reading Blog: Motif, Imagery and Symbolism Analysis for Macbeth
The reoccurring elements I decided to focus on for Act three are the supernatural elements. These can be seen through three big apparitions, Banquo’s ghost, the three sisters and a new character that we are introduced to in scene 5 of Act three; Hecate. All three elements are supernatural and relate to an unnatural, nearly magical power that we can relate to through out the whole play. The act is made so that the tension builds up and the fantastical over takes Macbeths’ thoughts and ambitions. The first scene where the element of supernatural occurs is in scene 4; line 49 (pg. 121) where Macbeth first sees Banquo’s ghost. It is an apparition that reveals a lot about Macbeths thoughts and desires to the rest of the banquet guests, it is also after this scene that suspicions about Macbeths rein start to spread. Before we see the suspicions there is scene 5 where Hecate comes and prepares to meet with Macbeth with the witches the next morning.
The second part where supernatural elements come up is in the scene where we are introduced to Hecate (scene 5) and where the three witches reappear. Hecate is known to be the goddess of witchcraft. There is a reason for the scene of the banquet and Macbeth’s apparition and the scene of Hecate to be right after each other. Hecate predicts the future and Macbeth’s destiny and sets a time and place, for the prophecies to be revealed. Her whole scene is turned around the evil spirits of the night, the setting is the heath and ‘thunder’ is written down as a stage direction.
The whole scene is set up to have a supernatural aspect that we can relate to from very first scene of the play where the three witches are first seen. Supernatural elements are the foundation of the whole play, without the witches Macbeth would have never had the ambition to murder the King, which would not have led to Banquo’s death or the apparition of his ghost. Without the supernatural elements the play ‘Macbeth’ would have had a totally different plot.
Character Analysis of Act two
November 9, 2010
Carefully analyze a key static character from this act. Observe his/her role, actions and key moments of dialogue. What is his/her effect on the conflict/character/theme development in this act?
In act 2 I believe Lady Macbeth is a key character in influencing Macbeth to thrive to be King but also in getting Macbeth to his goal and to not get caught. Lady Macbeth is the one in act 1 that pushed Macbeth to murder the King, she made him feel weak and we can practically say bullied him into killing the King for his crown. Although Lady Macbeth appears a lot towards the end of act 1, she is not part of act 2 as much, but when she does come into scene she has a great impact on the story line of the play. An example would be the very first scene of act 2 (scene 1, act 2), where Lady Macbeth puts the daggers and the blood herself on the Kings guards as Macbeth refuses to go back and do it himself. Again in scene 3, act 2, lines 115-116, Lady Macbeth to take the attention off her husband right after the discovery of King Duncan’s death pretends to faint. In act 2 I have the feeling Lady Macbeth always covers for Macbeth, weather it is the murder of the King, or taking the suspicions off him. In the banquet scene, scene 4, act 2, Lady Macbeth again stands up for Macbeth who is having a weird hallucination about the murder of Banquo and is betraying his plans of murder to his guests.
Lady Macbeth has a lot of effect on the development of this act, as we can see mainly on helping out Macbeth who she considers weak, and cowardly. Lady Macbeth always brings a sense of uneasiness in the play, I find her over confident about her plans of actions and that makes her character interesting but challenging to depict.
E. Plot Structure Analysis for Macbeth Act One
October 26, 2010
4. Each act does its part to build the central conflict. What is the ultimate conflict and where do you see this act contributing to our understanding of the conflict? What events work together to build this meaning?
We all know that a conflict is a struggle between two opposing forces, which may be internal or external. In the first act, the main conflict is an internal conflict that Macbeth struggles with. He starts struggling after the witches predict his future (scene 3 act 1) and tell him he will become Thane of Cawdor, and King, even though both are alive. In the same scene, Rosse, and Angus, the messengers of King Duncan come and give Macbeth the title of Thane of Cawdor. The internal conflict then begins within Macbeth, of how he could become King, and if he does want to become King, would he be ready to murder Duncan. The central conflict builds up in Macbeth’s soliloquies through out the first act, where the reader is told his thoughts and can see how they change as the scene’s pass. The pros and the cons Macbeth deals with in his head. Lady Macbeth and Duncan also play a big part in influencing Macbeth’s decision about weather or not to murder the King. This internal conflict sets out to describe the main conflict of the play; it is essential to be able to understand the rest of the play.
Through out the whole of act one, every scene starting with the very first ones lead to build the internal conflict within Macbeth. First the apparition of the witches and their predictions, then the scene where Duncan gives the title of Thane of Cawdor to Macbeth through his messengers Angus and Rosse; they all lead to Macbeth’s main conflict, which is: can he become King without murdering Duncan.
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