Word Entry "A Rose For Emily"

1. "She looked bloated, like a body long submerged in motionless water, and of that pallid hue" (392)

2. My guess: I am not familiar with the word pallid. I do know that hue means color, so based on the other context of the sentence and the word hue proceeding it, my best guess would be that pallid means pale.

3. Definition: Pallid - 1. deficient in color or intensity of color 2. lacking sparkle or liveliness
(http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pallid)

4. Explanation: The definition I found for pallid basically means pale. From the content of the sentence I knew it might have meant pale but I was curious to know if it had a different or more powerful meaning. Using the word pallid adds to the description of the character and poetic-like flow of the sentence. It is much more interesting to read this sentence by the author as opposed to a sentence saying, "she was fat and pale".

Discussion Question - A Rose for Emily

Why Emily dress Homer Barron up after killing him? ( She ordered a man's toilet set in silver and a complete men's outfit. )

Discussion Question: "A Jury of Her Peers"

Why do you think the sheriff's wife, Mrs. Peters, decided not to turn in the evidence to her husband? The evidence that the women found a box with a dead bird inside of it and they found a quilt with a bad stitch.

Word Entry: "A Jury of Her Peers" (page 370)

11.       “And yet,” said he, with the gallantry of a young politician. “for all their worries, what would we do without the ladies?” (page 370)

22.       My guess is the word gallantry is used to describe the character role in the story. In this case it is the young attorney whose’ name is not stated in the reading.

33.       Definition: “courteous attention to a lady” (Merriam-Webster)

44.       I guessed wrong in the definition of gallantry. I understand that the young attorney was trying to flattery the women in the room, Mrs. Hale and Mrs. Peters. It makes more sense because before the attorney said anything Mrs. Peters’ husband said a smart remark about the fruits. On page 369, he said “Oh, well women are used to worrying over trifles.”As you can see, Mr. Peters, are disrespecting the roles of women. The attorney was trying to give respect to the women that are present in the house.

Word entry #4:" A Jury of her peers" (374)

1. "Mrs. Peter's back turned, Martha Hale now scrutinized that piece, compared it with the dainty, accurate sawing of other blocks." (374)
2. My Guess: Because Martha Hale tries to compare the piece with other blocks, I guess scrutinize in here means to exam.
3. Definition: To examine in detail with careful or critical attention. (Dictionary.com)
4. Explanation: My guess was right, and I find I'm getting better at finding meaning of a word---read the sentence a couple more times and combine the information the author try to deliver. 

Alfred Hitchcock - A Jury Of Her Peers - 26 December 1961

Word Entry - A Jury of Her Peers

1. "The county attorney was looking at the cupboard- a peculiar,ungainly structure, half closet and half cupboard, the upper part of it being built in the wall, and the lower part just the old-fashioned kitchen cupboard."

2. My guess is that ungainly could mean some quality that takes away from the attractiveness of something. Maybe ungainly means to describe the cupboard as very ugly.

3: Dictionary.com gives the definition of this word as something awkward or not graceful.

4: So after finding the definition of this word I can understand and see that it now makes better sense with the end of the sentence. It's meant to describe that the cupboard is not necessarily ugly, (it later says that it is almost attractive) but it was just an oddly placed or awkward looking cupboard.

Discussion Question #1 - A Rose for Emily

What do you think the "long strand of iron-gray hair"(on page 397) that was left on the pillow beside the corpse of Homer Barron symbolize?

Word Entry #4 - The Yellow Wallpaper

1. "They have used a horizontal breadth for a frieze, and that adds wonderfully to the confusion" (359).

2. My guess: I know that the character is talking about the wallpaper, and from the context clues, frieze must be some sort of decoration or technique that adds to the wallpaper.

3. Definition: "A broad horizontal band of sculpted or painted decoration, esp. on a wall or near the ceiling" (Google.com)

4. I understand now, frieze is just an added decoration to the wall where the yellow wallpaper is; this addition is adding to the characters confusion of the frustrating yellow wallpaper.

Word Entry #4: "A Jury of Her Peers"

1) " 'Of course it's no more than their duty,' said the sheriff's wife, in her manner of timid acquiescence."(371)

2) My Guess: Given the word timid before this word I can guess it means agreeable or shyness.

3) Definition: "Passive assent or agreement without protest" (dictionary.com)

4) The "agreement without protest" part really shows me what this word means and how it fits in this context. Mrs. Peters is just agreeing with her husband out of duty rather than actually agreeing with him which is symbolic of marriage back in this time period. The man was right and the wife agreed without protest no matter what.

"Aggrieved Wives"

1."Two-thirds of these marriages were were granted to aggrieved wives."(p.384)
2. I had no clue what this meant alone or in context but my guess would be that it means these wives were sad or lonely.
3. I found that aggrieved means resentment that someone feels after being poorly treated or unfairly treated (dictionary.com). Together aggrieved wives would be wives that were poorly treated by their husbands. During earlier times, women were rarely granted their request for divorce. In 1909 your the likelihood of a marriage ending in divorce was about one in fifteen(Booth,Mays 385).
4.I put together that aggrieved wives would mean wives that were poorly treated by their husbands and thus would be granted a divorce on that account.

Word Entry 4 "A Rose for Emily"

1. "Thus she passed from generation to generation- dear, inescapable, impervious, tranquil, and perverse" (396). 

2. My guess: This is an adjective so I know it's describing Miss Emily. I would think "impervious" meant something along the lines of immortal or long living. 

3. Definition: "Not affected or influenced by something." (Dictionary of American English)

4. Explanation: I understand this, the author is trying to convey that Miss Emily is becoming sort of cut off from society. She cannot be affected or influenced by anyone else. This is emphasizing her detachment. 

A rose For Emily-(P-396)

1. "Now and then we would see her in one of the downstairs windows--she had evidently shut up the top floor of the house--like the carven torso of an idol in a niche, looking or not looking at us, we could never tell which. Thus she passed from generation to generation--dear, inescapable, impervious, tranquil, and perverse". 

2. My Guess: Th word impervious meant full awareness or be conscious of everything bad and good that is around us, Which can be the true meaning of the word because Emily was someone who was very smart, intelligent and humble. 

3. Definition:  Unaffected by, untouched by, immune to, invulnerable to, insusceptible to, resistant to, indifferent to, heedless of, insensible to, unconscious of, oblivious to; proof against.

4. Now I know that impervious means not letting things to bother us or taking it easy or unable to be effected by.

A Rose For Emily- (P-392)

1."So SHE vanquished them, horse and foot, just as she had vanquished their fathers thirty years before about the smell". 

2. My Guess: I thought the word Vanquished meant giving. 

Definition: : conquer, defeat, beat, trounce, rout, triumph over, be victorious over, get the better of, worst, upset; overcome, overwhelm, overpower, overthrow, subdue, subjugate, quell, quash, crush, bring someone to their knees, tear someone apart; informal lick, hammer, clobber, thrash, smash, demolish, wipe the floor with. 


4. It was hard to understand the meaning of the word vanquished because of understand the entire meaning of the case and there was not much description given. 

A Rose for Emily- (P-395) 

1."The men did not want to interfere, but at last the ladies forced the Baptist minister--Miss Emily's people were Episcopal-- to call upon her. He would never divulge what happened during that interview, but he refused to go back again". 

2. My guess: I thought the word divulge meant dicussing or telling. 

3. Definition:  disclose, reveal, tell, communicate, pass on, publish, broadcast, proclaim; expose, uncover, make public, give away, let slip; informal spill the beans about, let on about, let the cat out of the bag about. 

4. I think reading is an excellent way to develop our vocabulary just by focusing the case that is mentioned in the sentence and relating the meaning of the word that we dont know to it. Like in the previous sentence I understood that divulge had to something with communicating what happened to Emily's father.

 A Rose For Emily (P 393)

1. "The day after his death all the ladies prepared to call at the house and offer condolence and aid, as our custom Miss Emily met the door and with no trace of grief on her face".

2 My Guess: Since lost her father so people were trying to help her to stay emotional happy and motivated, therefore I thought the word condolence meant emotional support.

3. Definition: sympathy, commiseration(s), compassion, pity, support, comfort, consolation, understanding. I used my computer's online dictionary.

4. It seems like I did understand the meaning of new word just by relating it to he death case mentioned in the sentence.

A Rose For Emily- (P 392)

1. "The next day he received two more complaints, one from a man who came in diffident deprecation"


2. My Guess: I thought diffident meant confident.

3. Definition: The word Diffident means bashful, modest, self-effacing, unassuming, meek, unconfident, unassertive, timid, timorous, humble, shrinking, reticent, hesitant, insecure, self-doubting. I got the definition to this word bu using my computer's dictionary.

4. I was on the right track in terms of defining this word but the opposite, which is not that bad. Now i am glad I learned a new word. 

 A jury Of Her Peers- (P 371)

1. "Then, as if releasing herself from soemthing strange, Mrs. Hale began to arrange the dirty pans under the sink, which the county attorney's disdainful push of the foot had deranged"

2. My Guess: I thought the word "disdainful" meant strong or powerful.

3. Definition: The word disdain means disrespect so disdainful would mean disrespectful.
Th definition of this word comes from using my computer's online dictionary. 

4. The reason why assumed that Disdainful meant strong or powerful because the man used his foot to push something, so he applied forced on it. Good to know another new word.

Personally I am not really a big fan of literature, but I do appreciate and admire it from the bottom of my heart. Both my father and grandfather were crazy readers and they had interest in all kinds of literary work , especially my grandfather. I never realized how beautiful and fun reading was until I graduated from high school. After a week of my high school graduation, I was on a flight from D.C. to Kabul Afghanistan, to visit my mother and my little brother. It takes 30 hours of constant flight to get to Kabul, now imagine being on the air for that long, and nothing else to do. My seat mate was an old man who was on his way to make some money in the Arab money spring somewhere in the United Arab Emirates. I am saying this because he looked like a businessman. We did not speak at all this whole flight. I was bored to death, so I  decided to look for soemthing fun, eventually I found this magazine titled the "Paris Review", I started reading short stories, poems and so on. Long story short, I really understood the benefit of reading on that flight and it will always be a life long memory because it got me addicted to reading, more specifically literature. Now I read the Washington Post, the New York Times daily or at least four times a week. I also follow the http://www.theparisreview.org/ website for reading short stories and some other literary work. I recommend this site for those of you who have interest in reading, because it has lots of good stuff for reading.

Here is the site


http://www.theparisreview.org/

Word Entry- "The Yellow Wallpaper"

Word Entry - "The Yellow Wallpaper"

1. "Looked at in one way each breadth stands alone, the bloated curves and flourishes-a kind of 'debased Romanesque' with delirium tremens-go waddling up and down in isolated columns of fatuity." (pg.359)
2. This word might mean deformed or ugly since it's describing the "debased Romanesque".
3.Fatuity: something foolish or stupid (merriam-webster.com)
4.This word doesn't mean what I thought it did. In context, the author is describing how stupid she thinks the wallpaper's pattern is and not how ugly it is.

Word Entry - "The Yellow Wallpaper"

1. "I wanted one downstairs that opened on the piazza and had roses all over the window, and such pretty old-fashioned chintz hangings!" (pg 355) 

2. My guess: The narrator is talking about how the room looks and the decorations in it. So, I assume that chintz are some kind of decoration, I know that it is something that hangs, but I can not tell exactly what she means by it. 

3. Definition:  1. A printed calico (a cotton cloth) from India  2. A usually glazed printed cotton fabric 
 ( http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/chintz ) and ( http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/calico ) 

4. Explanation  Now I understand that when the narrator says chintz hangings that she is referring to Indian drapes. Looking back, the chintz hangings are probably on the window that she is talking about. 

Discussion Question: The Story of an Hour

In the short story "The Story of an Hour" by Kate Chopin, the setting is very limited in detail. The setting is only described as a room, a front door, and a staircase. Do you think this was done on purpose? Does it make the story more/less effective?

Word Entry: The Story of an Hour

The Story of an Hour 

By: Kate Chopin

1. "She could see in the open square before her house the tops of trees that were all aquiver with the new spring life" (Page 353).

2. To me, it sounds like the trees are being described as full or green. My guess would be that aquiver means something along the lines of "covered". If I replace the word "aquiver" with my guess the sentence would read. "...the tops of that were all covered with the new spring life". 

3. Aquiver:  marked by trembling or quivering <all aquiver with excitement>

4. Now I understand that aquiver is similar to the word quiver. The sentence is showing imagery by telling that the trees were trembling with spring life; meaning that the trees were in a sense shaking back and forth. 

Cultural Knowledge Entry( Everything That Rises Must Converge)

1. "I tell him", "that Roman was not Built in One Day" (P327)

2. My guess: Since Rome was such a beautiful and modern presidential palace in the past, which attracted the attention of people from the world to its beauty and the way it was designed. It took years to build such a unique presidential palace. Therefore in the story Everything That Rises Must Converge, Julian's mother used the phrase to tell her that achieving success and accomplishing our ambitions require hard work, patience, and time. 
3. Results: All things take time to create. And great things like the city of Rome take a very long time. So we shouldn't expect to accomplish something or achieve success immediately. We just need to work hard as time passes by us and that is the best we can do to become who we imagine ourselves in life ahead of us.
4: This phrase tells me as a student that in order for me to do well in all aspects of life not only in academics, I need to rely on time. More specifically, as a student right now I need to work hard and focus on things that are considered as my immediate concerns and not worry about things such as marriage, having kids, and things that can cut off the bride that will take me safely to other side of my life, which is becoming a successful young man.

Word Entry #3- "Passages from Essays and Letters"

1. "I think if the novel is to give us virtue the selection of hope and courage is rather arbitrary- why not charity, peace, patience, joy, benignity, long suffering and fear of the Lord?" (336)
2. I have never read a sentence with the work "benignity" but I guess it means something positive. Reading the review that was published in 1961, I believe the word has a positive influence towards the sentence. It is right after the words patience and joy.
3. Benignity (noun): a good deed or favor; an instance of kindness (Dictionary.com)
4. My guess was correct, the word is used in this sentence in a positive way. I am sure the writer was trying to search our for a different prospective.

Word Entry #3

1. "Her collars and cuffs were white organdy trimmed with lace and at her neckline she had pinned a purple spray of cloth violets containing a sachet."(p. 300)
2. My guess: I think organdy is the type of clothes she is wearing. I'm not sure if it is the fabric or the design but based on the context it definitely describes what she is wearing.
3. Definition: "A fine, thin cotton fabric usually having a durable crisp finish, white, dyed, or printed: used for blouses, dresses, curtains, trimmings, etc." (Dictionary.com)
4. Now not only do I understand what they are talking about, but I know exactly what it looks like and could point it out. I never knew it had a specific name.

Word Entry #3 "Good Country People"

1. The artificial limb, in a white sock and a brown flat shoe, was bound in a heavy material like canvas and ended in a ugly jointure where it was attached to the stump."
2. It sounds like it may be some type of object given to amputees, and the word is specifically for that type of object.
3. The act of joining or the condition of being joined
4. Thank makes sense, it basically is another way of saying "...it ended in an ugly joined-structure where it was...". It's actually a really simple word describing the artificial limb and how it was attached.

Word entry #3: A good man is hard to find

1. "She said the house had six white columns across the front and that there was an avenue of oaks leading up to it and two little wooden trellis arbors on either side in front where you sat down with your suitor after a stroll in the garden." (page 303)
2. My guess: I know it is a wood structure in front of the house, and people can sit on it. I think it might be a porch sort of thing.
3. Definition: a latticework bower intertwined with climbing vines and flowers. (Dictionary.com)
4. Explanation: Oh, I see it now: the trellis arbors is something I often see today in people's backyard as a part of the garden.  

Word Entry #3- "Everything That Rises Must Converge"

1. "The sky was a dying violet and the houses stood out darkly against it, bulbous liver- colored monstrosities of a uniform ugliness though no two were alike." (pg.324)
2. I think this word could mean disgusting or repulsive. It is describing something that's liver- colored so that doesn't sound very pretty.
3.Bulbous: Bulb -shaped; bulging (Dictionary.com)
4.This word didn't mean what I thought it did. It is describing the shape of the houses. They were kind of like big ugly blobs that forced their way into the view of the sunset.

Word Entry "Revolting fictions: Flannery O'Connor's letter to Her Mother"

1.""Her mother, like many of O'Connor's characters, is a self-satisfied, platitudinous woman who "had no bad qualities of her own but...was able to use other people's in such a constructive way that she never felt the lack(272)"(342)
2:My Guess: Since she has a history of referring to her mother as a sort of hovering obsessive mother and since this statement is saying that her mother is content with her self it may mean some form of contentment.
3. Definition: Dictionary.com refers to platitudinous as staleness and trite or dull.
4.Explanation: My original thought was wrong, but now I see that she means O'Connors character's are self-satisfied with themselves and therefore since they may not feel they have anything to work on they can be considered dull and or flat.

Word entry: "Everything that Rises Must Converge"

1. "He decided it looked less comical than jaunty and pathetic" (324)
2.My Guess: I know he is referring to his mother's hat and he had already expressed a strong distaste for it calling it hideous. He also described the  hat as looking like a cushion with the stuffing out. From these contexts I assume it means that it looked disheveled and uncoordinated.
3.Definition: dictionary.com describes it as smartly trim or expressive and lively.
4.Explanation: At first I wasn't sure what he was trying to say now I conclude that he means that the hat looks really lively and messy and the whole look together may appear to be a weak effort on her part. Because the hat is so "lively" to him it doesn't seem comical but appears to be more of a weak and pathetic attempt.

What do you think of this interpretation of "A Good Man Is Hard to Find"?

"Black Hearts Bleed Red" short film

Discussion Question "A Good Man is Hard to Find"

By the end of the story the grandmother, Bailey, his wife, and their children were all murdered. However, the grandmother still believes the "Misfit" can change his ways and be a good person. She even says to him "'Why you're one of my babies. You're one of my own children!'" (309) This line can be interpreted in many ways, do you believe what the grandmother says was literal? We never heard of a grandfather in the story and you never hear from the Misfit about what happened to his mother. Or do you believe this line was metaphorical? As if the grandmother was referring to him as someone she could see as her own son because she felt he was a good person. 

Word Entry 3 "A Good Man is Hard to Find"

1. "Shad had her big black valise that looked like the head of a hippopotamus in one corner (300)...
2. My guess: I'm thinking from the context of the story it's some sort of possession or item, something one brings when traveling somewhere. 
3. Definition: A small piece of luggage that can be carried by hand, used to hold clothing, etc. (Dictionary. com)
4. This makes sense to me, I can imagine what's happening in this part of the story better. The grandmother was carrying luggage into the car and through the description I can tell the luggage was very large. 

Word Entry #3 - "A Good Man is Hard to Find"

1. "The car turned over once and landed right-side up in a gulch off the side of the road" (304).

2. My guess: From looking at the context clues, I think that a gulch is kind off like a divot on the side of the road.

3. Definition: "A deep narrow ravine, especially one marking the course of a stream or torrent" (Dictionary.com).

4. This makes sense because the family was in an accident and their car flipped off the side of the road, and then landed in a huge ditch; I don't recall the author talking about any form of water nearby, just the forest.

Word entry #3 "Everything That Rises Must Converge"

1) "He decided it was less comical than jaunty and pathetic."

2) My guess: over the top and too much. Based on the context the hat seems hideous and it is clean Julian does not like it so it must be a negative comment.

3) Definition: Having or expressing a lively, cheerful, and self-confident manner.

4) I understand now, Julian's mother thought she looked good in her hat and was looking lively and confident but Julian thought it was less than this and just made her look silly. It was a nice way to be negative.

Word Entry #3 "A Good Man Is Hard To Find"

1. "children were more respectful of their native states and their parents and everything else. People did right then. Oh look at that cute little pickaninny!" (301)

2. My guess: I had never seen or heard the word "pickaninny" before so if I were to just look at the original statement made by the grandmother, the word could really mean anything that could be described as cute. However, based on the rest of the conversation about the "pickaninny" it is clear that the grandmother is talking about a young African American child. The narrator refers to the child as a "Negro" and the grandmother uses the term "Little Niggers" when she talks about him. I understand the term a little bit now but it leaves me wondering, was "pickaninny" a common term for children during the time period or was it a derogatory term used to refer to African Americans?

3. Definition: Often offensive: A black child
( http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pickaninny )

4. Explanation: Well, even the short, five word definition of "pickaninny" cleared up the confusion I had about its meaning. It clearly states that "pickaninny" is not just a term used to describe black children, but it is often offensive. Looking back I should have known that it was offensive because the grandmother, the same person who used the offensive term "niggers" was the one who said "pickaninny", where as the narrator was the one using the term "Negro".

Word Entry #2

 The Thing in the Forest-p(225)
1. "With Their Suitcases, some of which were almost  too big to carry, and their other impedimenta"

2. My Guess: Since in the story The Thing in The Forest little kids are going away from their home for their own safety from the war, they need impedimenta, meaning basic necessities such as blankets, tooth paste/brush, night lights, bug spray and so on, while they are gone on their journey.

3. Definition: Impedimenta means equipment for an activity or expedition, esp. when considered as bulky or an encumbrance. I found the definition of this word through using my computer's dictionary.

4. Explanation: It was easy to understand the basic meaning of the word, since I knew that the little kids were sent  away from their homes by their families to the jungles to be safe from the war, in order for them to make their living possible in the jungle, they needed equipments to use and live by. 

Word Post #2 "The Thing in the Forest"

1. "They were billeted in a mansion commandeered from its owner."
2. My Guess: The way the word sounds by the surrounding sentences makes it out to sound like it means to use force on someone as if they were forced into the mansion.
3. Definition: (verb) To obtain lodging; stay; to assign lodging
Source: Dictionary.com
4. Explanation: So it doesn't mean forced at all, it means that was the house they were assigned temporarily to stay in, while waiting to be picked up by a family.

Check Out a Modern Reimagining of "The Grasshopper and the Bell Cricket"

"The Grasshopper and the Bell Cricket" Interpretative Dance

Word Post # 2 "The thing in the forest"

Sentence: "With their suitcases, some of which were almost too big to carry, and their other impedimenta." (Page 225).

Guess: I am guessing this word means belongings. I think this because the sentence talks about their suitcases, and to me impedimenta sounds like other bags or other items the girls might have had.

Definition: "Equipment for an activity or expedition esp. when considered as bulky."

Source: www.dictionary.com

Meaning: My guess was almost there. This sentence means that the girls had suitcases that were too big to carry and other equipment that is just as big or bulky.

Discussion question -- the thing in the forest

The minor character Aly, one of the smallest girl, who was briefly mentioned on page 227 and later in Penny and Primrose's conversation (page 232). How does her role shape our interpretation of the story?

Word entry #2: the thing in the forest

1. "It had a tubular shape, as a turd has a tubular shape, a provisional amalgam." (Page 229)
2. My Guess: Since the creature is made of weird stuff, I guess "provisional amalgam" means some kind strange material.
3. Definition:
 Provisional: providing or serving for the time being only; existing only until permanently or properly replaced;
Amalgam: 1)an alloy of mercury with another metal or metals. 2) an alloy that consists chiefly of silver mixed with mercury and variable amounts of other metals and isused as a dental filling. 3) a rare mineral, an alloy of silver and mercury, occurring as silver-white crystals or grains. 4) a mixture or combination. (Dictionary.com)
4. Explanation: From the definition, I think the two words together means a temporary mixture since the creature is a combination of wired materials. 

The Thing in the Forest

1. "The floor under the rainbow chairs was gleaming dappled marble" (238) 

2. My guess: Based on the context of the word, I would assume dappled has something to do with the way the marble looks, and the marble is gleaming so maybe it has to do with the way the marble shines. 

3. Definition: Having spots of a different shade, tone or color from the background. (Dictionary.com)

4. The word itself does not give a whole lot of importance to the story, but it does help the author paint a detailed picture of the setting for the reader. Now, using this word, I can picture the scene exactly as was intended all the way down to the multicolored floor she is standing on. 

"A wall of fire rising" pg 245 in "The Norton Introduction to literature"

1."Our son,your son,you do not want him cleaning latrines."

2. My guess: My guess is that "latrines" are a kind of trashcan. I guess this because trashcans are an item that needs cleaning and i'm sure doing that as a living is not an admirable profession. Hence the father sayin he doesnt want his son cleaning them.

3. Definition: "A communal toilet of a type often used in a camp or barracks."

4. I see the connection now. His father did not want his son to clean toilets for a living undoubtedly because that profession is looked down upon.

Word Entry- "Recitatif"

1. Strife came to us that fall. At least that's what the paper called it. Strife. Racial strife. (pg. 147)

2. I think this word could mean something like an inconvienient change. The author describes it as a big scary bird that it always lurking around and watching you. This makes me think that it is bad and unwanted and you just want it to go away.

3. Strife- vigorous or bitter conflict, discord, or antagonism. (Dictionary.com)

4. This definition helps me understand the word better. It is not really an inconvienient change, it is more so a big and serious problem. Racial stife means that it affected everyone because race is a part of everyone. That is what the author is saying when she describes the bird, nobody could hide from this problem and it was everywhere you turned.

Word Entry "The Grasshopper and the Bell Cricket"

1) Then these wise child-artists, cutting out round, three-cornered, and lozenge leaf shapes in the cartoons, coloring each little window and different color, with circles and diamonds, red and green, made a single and who decorative pattern.(291)

2) My guess is that the word lozenge has something to do with the shape or color of the pattern because the rest of the sentence depits what the patterns look like and how the children are going about making them.

3) Definition- a figure with four equal sides and two acute and two obtuse angles. Ex: Diamond (Merriam Webster Dictionary)

4) Now I understand that the author is using this word to describe the shape of the pattern. The author is using this word to give a specific shape and design so the reader can picture what it all looks like.

Word Entry #2- "A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings"

1. "Frighten by that nightmare, Pelayo ran to get Elisenda, his wife, who was putting compresses on the sick child, and he took her to the rear of the courtyard. They both looked at the fallen body with mute stupor." (p.279)
2. I think stupor in this story means that the angel that has fallen out of the sky was unable to talk because the author uses the word "mute". 
3. Definition: a state of unconsciousness (Dictionary.com)
4. I was somewhat close to the actually definition! It makes more sense that the angel was in an unconsciousness state after falling out of the sky. I just thought the angel was unable to speak at first.

Word Entry #2- The Thing in the Forest

1." They remembered too solid flesh, too precise a stink, a rattle and a soughing that thrilled the nerves and the cartilage of their growing ears." (p.229)
2.My guess: Since "soughing" is paired with the world rattle, I think it is some kind of sound that the creature is making.
3. Definition: soughing: to make a moaning or sighing sound. (merriam-webster dictionary)
4. Explanation:This was an interesting word which combines moaning and sighing. I've never come across it before but it does help me visualize the thing a bit better.

Word Entry #2 - "The Grasshopper and the Bell Cricket"

1. "Even when you have become a young man, laugh with pleasure at a girl's delight when, told that it's a grasshopper, she's given a bell cricket; laugh with affection at a girl's chagrin when told that it's a bell cricket, she is given a grasshopper."

2. My Guess: I think that the word means annoyance, because the narrator tells the boy to laugh with affection when the girl is told something but gets something else in return.

3. Definition: "A keen feeling of mental unease, as of annoyance or embarrassment, caused by failure, disappointment, or a disconcerting event." (Freedictionary.com)

4. Explanation: This short story is about two young kids falling in love. I believe that the "grasshopper" and the "bell cricket" symbolize something deeper. I think that the bell cricket is that one in a million person you fall in love with and a grasshopper is just any ordinary person. This sentence is told to Fujio by the narrator and the narrator is giving advice based on previous experiences. He saying that Fujio needs to laugh with happiness when the girl is adored with a "bell cricket", and he needs to laugh with love and care when the girl is disappointed when she is told she's going to get a "bell cricket" but is given a "grasshopper". The reason the narrator says this is because the boy is the girl's "bell cricket" and she doesn't want any old "grasshopper", she's in love with the "bell cricket". 

Word entry #2 "The thing in the Forest"

1) " The rest pf its very large body appeared to be glued together, like still wet papier-mache, or the carapace of stones and straws and twigs worn by caddis flies underwater."  (229)

2) My guess: I think "carapace of stones and straws" might mean armor or shell because of the example of the caddis fly. I know flies have an outer shell and it might be referring to that.

3) Definition: "A bony or chitinous case or shield covering the back or part of an animal." (merriam-webster.com)

4) That makes sense now that the worm has a bony shield made of stones and sticks that looks similar to flies underwater. I was very close with my guess.

The Thing in the Forrest Word Entry

1." Having your head held roughly back over the basin to have your hair washed, with cold water running down inside your liberty bodice." (p.226)
2.My Guess: I think the term is referring to an undergarment of some kind, but I was unable to really picture what it was suppose to look like. I pictured something more like a corset since it was popular during that time.
3. Definition: The liberty bodice, as stated in dictionary.com, is a heavy cotton type undergarment that is vest shaped was used to be worn by young children.
4. Explanation:This all together means that as the character would, or anyone would get there hair washed they will get there thick cotton vest wet at the same time.

Word Entry - "The Thing in the Forest"

1. "...to the ground and moved toward the children between its forearms, which were squat, thick, powerful, and akimbo..." (229)
2. My guess: This is some sort of descriptive word, it's used when the author is describing what the children saw. Maybe this words is naming some sort of body part or stance. 
3. Definition: With hand on hip and elbow bent outward. (Dictionary.com) 
4. Explanation: The author is describing the stance of the creature the girls are seeing in the forest. Along with his description of how the thing looks and smells, this makes sense. I can imagine the way the thing looks much better now that I know this.

Question - "A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings"

In "A Very Old Man with Enormous Wings," Gabriel Garcia Marquez chooses to use an angel and depicts him as an old, frigid man with enormous wings stuck in the mud. The unusual being is described as very weary and almost unable to fend for himself.

Something that caught my attention was the fact that this writer has chosen to paint the image of a frail angel in our minds. Often, angels are associated with the idea of God and/or the devil. Angels are thought to be timeless beings.

Why does everything about the being contradict the universal image of an angel and what was the purpose of this contrast?

Word Entry # 2 - "The Thing in the Forest"

1. "With their suitcases, some of which were almost too big to carry, and their other impedimenta,  a doll, a toy car, a comic, they were like a disorderly dwarf regiment, stomping along the platform" (225). 

2. My guess: Using the context clues in the sentence, I would guess that the word "impedimenta" maybe means "personal items" or something like that. I think this because the author continues on by naming some items that children often have to play with. 

3. Definition: Baggage or other things that retard one's progress, as supplies carried by an army. (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/impedimenta?s=t) 

4. Explanation: Now I understand the sentence a little bit better. The word "impedimenta" means items that stall the progress of the journey. So in the sentence, the author is using the word in reference to the large suitcases that were hurting the progress and adding that the toys that the children were carrying were also stalling their progress walking along the platform. Looking back now that I know the meaning of the word, the phrase "some of which were almost too big to carry" is the critical context clue in understanding the meaning of the word "impedimenta". 

Question

In The Thing in the Forest by A.S. Byatt, what do you think the creature that the girls saw in the forest symbolizes?

Cultural Knowledge Entry (A Very Old Man with Enormous WIngs"

1) Investigating: "They spent their time thinking finding out if the prisoner had a navel, if his dialect had any connection with Aramaic, how many times he could fit on the head of a pin..." (274)

2) My Guess: I found this sentence rather confusing, especially the part where it says "how many times he could fit on the head of a pin" (274). I assumed it was just some sort of test that would help them into figuring what he is.

3) Results: The whole angel fitting their head on a pin is an argument between medieval theologians. Basically they were wondering if angels could be at the same place at once. That's where the whole "how many angels could dance on the edge of a pin" came from and it seems to be an unimportant question since no one really knows if angels do exsist and if they have any mass to them.  (Straightdope.com)

4) Now that I have a clearer understanding of what that phrase meant, I believe that Father Gonzaga's superiors wanted to know if the Old Man had any mass to him by asking how many times his head could fit on a pin. Since no one knows of the exsistance of angels, one can not simply tell how many times an angel can fit on the head of a pin. Which means Father Gozanga's superiors were giving him an impossible task.

The Jewlery

1. "Even the clerks came froward to stare at Lantin, with gaiety in their eyes and smiles about their lips"  (62).
2. My Guess: While reading I believed this to mean a sort of shock, that maybe the clerks were surprised that this man possessed these valuables. I did not believe that this word had a negative connotation.
3. Definition: (Noun) High spirits: merriment. (Merriam-Webster)
4. Now I understand, when the clerks realized that what the man had was worth so much money, they wanted to treat him well and make him feel delightful. They were being cheerful, kind, encouraging and welcoming. The people in the store want to make sure that M. Lantin feels comfortable so that he follows through with his transactions at that particular store.

The Jewelry Word Entry

1. "Finding himself seated at the same table with a man who seemed to him quite genteel, he could not resist the itching desire to tell him, with a certain air of coquetry, that he had just inherited a fortune of four hundred thousand francs." (63)
2. My Guess: The story says he cannot resist to tell the man and it seems every time he tells someone the sum of money gets larger so I think coquetry probably means something like to flaunt or to brag.
3. Definition: 1 the behavior or arts of a coquette; flirtation. 2 dalliance; trifling.
*Coquette- A woman who flirts lightheartedly with men to win their admiration and affection
4. Explanation: To define it i had to look up the word coquette which describes a woman who desires a mans admiration or affection, so what it means in the sentence is he has a distinct need for someone else to approve and admire what he has just inherited.

WORD ENTRY "The Jewelry"

"He was unutterably happy with her. She ruled his home with an economy so adroit that they really seemed to live in luxury." (Page 58)

Adroit:

I think that the word adroit means powerful, because it says thats why they live in luxury. Power can lead to having a luxurious lifestyle.

Adroit (Adjective): clever or skillful in using hands or mind.

The sentence means that she was good with the economy and ruled it, and thats the reason they live in luxury. When she died in the story, M. Lantin seemed to lose the money. This shows that she was clever and skillful using her mind in the economy sense.

Word Entry- Sonny's Blue

1. "And I had a lot of things on my mind and I pretty well forgot my promise to Mama until I got shipped home on a special furlough for her funeral." (p.72) 
2. I've never seen this weird but the way it is used in the sentences I think it means coming back to a special occasion. It's a good guess because the son is coming back to his mom's funeral.
3. A vacation or leave of absence granted to an enlisted person. (Dictionary.com)
4. So it makes sense now, the older son is must have been part of the military/army. He got a special time off from service to come back home for his mothers' funeral/passing away.

Word Entry "The Jewelry"

1. "For the first time in his life he went to the theater without feeling bored by the performance; and he passed the night in revelry and debauch." (62). 
2. My guess: At the end of the sentence it describes that Lantin was not feeling bored and that he continued his night in "revelry" and debauch. Upon reading the excerpt I did not know what debauch meant. Since the idea of him not being bored is at the beginning of the sentence and the word "debauch" is joined with the word revelry (which means lively or noisy) my guess would be that debauch has a meaning along those lines. 
3. Definition: Debauch : To corrupt morally. To lead away from excellence and virtue.
4. I understand now that debauch is used in a negative way. The author is trying to explain that Lantin continued his night steering in the wrong direction. 

Word Entry -- Sonny's Blues

1. "It filled everything, the people, the houses, the music, the dark, quicksilver barmaid, which menace; and this menace was their reality." (Page 66)
2. My guess: I think "it" in this sentence means the drug; "menace"means harm, as the drug danger to people's everyday lives.
3. Definition: (noun) something that threatens to cause evil, harm, injury, etc.  (Dictionary.com)
4. Explanation: as I expected,  "menace"means the drug was a hazard to people's lives (in the way both to themselves and those around them). In the article, as the author describes the problems people had while dealing with drugs, especially his own brother Sunny, he felt everyone's life was threatened by it.

The Jewelry Word entry

1. Time did not assuage his grief.(pp. 59)
2. I think in this context the word assuage would mean to get rid of his grief.
3. Assuage. Verb: To make (an unpleasant feeling) less intense.
4. The original excerpt from The Jewelry, stated above, shows that even as time goes on Lantin still couldn't shake away the grief and sadness for his loved one after she had passed away

Word Entry- "The Jewlery"

1. She ruled his home with an economy so adroit that they really seemed to live in luxury. (pg. 58)

2. I think this word has a positive meaning. It might mean something like smart or creative because living in luxury is obviously a good thing. The husband and wife in the story weren't rich but this sentence is maybe saying that she spent the money that they did have in a smart way and made the money go further.

3. The definition of adroit is cleverly skillful, resourceful, or ingenious.

4. My original thought of the meaning of the word is almost the same as the actual meaning. I now know the author is definitly saying that the wife was really good at spending money in the right ways. Maybe she would find sales or good deals or buy the "store brand" food and wines,  but they had everything they needed and couldn't complain.

Word Entry - "Cathedral"

1. "They're so big, some of them, they have to have these supports. To hold them up, so to speak. These supports are called buttresses. They remind me of viaducts, for some reason."

2. I know that buttresses are supports for buildings, like the cathedral Robert is attempting to describe to the blind man. My guess is that a viaduct is also some form of support for a building or structure.

3. Definition: A long elevated roadway usually consisting of a series of short spans supported on arches, piers, or columns. (Merriam Webster Dictionary)

4. Buttresses remind Robert of viaducts because they're used to support roadways overpassing a river, lake, valley, etc.

Word Entry, "The Jewelry" by Guy De Maupassant

1. "She ruled his home with an economy so adroit that they really seemed to live in luxury" (58).
2. My guess: The context at the end of the sentence after the word "adroit" indicates the word has a positive meaning. So, I believe this word means along the lines of being skillful or adequate.
3. Definition: Ability to use your hands skillfully, or to think and use words quickly. (Dictionary of American English)
4. Explanation: The author wants readers to realize how useful the girl is to M. Lantin, her husband, so he emphasizes her abilities in this sentence and several others. These traits seem a little too good to be true, this leads me to conclude the author did this on purpose so the girl's flaws would seem more ridiculous later on in the story.

Word entry Sonny's Blues

1. "they sang, and the sister with the tambourine kept a steady jangling beat." (78)
2. My guess: a steady and consistent rhythm, a sound that is rhythmic with a steady beat and no obscurities.
3. Definition: verb when used with an object it means to make harsh, discordant, usually metallic sound
4. Since the girl was using a metallic object, tambourine, the sound it played would be described as jangling. Using the word jangling describes the harshness and severity of the tambourine as the girl depicted in this scene is playing it. This explains that the sound all though it was a steady beat the nature of it just being a metallic object made it harsh.

Word entry "The Jewelry"

1. Then, completely worn out with greif and fatigue, he went to bed, and slept a leaden sleep.

2.  I had trouble understanding what the meaning of this word is. The sentence that comes before this portrays the man crying uncontrolably and screaming out. The sentence shows that the man is very tired and worn out so i would guess that the word leaden means deep or long because someone who is worn out and has a lot of fatigue would likely go in to a deep or long sleep.

3. Leaden- oppressive; heavy (dictionary.com)

4. Now that I know the correct definition of the word I realize that the sentence means that the man was so sad and distraught that he went into a heavy sleep to help cope with his grief. All of the mans emotions were coming out of him and made his so tired that he couldn't do anything but sleep.

Word Entry " Sonny's Blues"

1) "I knew this wasn't the ideal arrangement because Isabel's folks are inclined to be dicty and they hadn't especially wanted Isabel to marry me.

2) My Guess: Given the context that Sonny doesn't want to live with Isablel I think dicty is a negative term that could mean judgmental or strict.

3) Definition: "high-class, snobbish, or haughty" (Dictionary.com)

4) Explanation: I was very close with my guess, now knowing the definition I can see that Sonny doesn't want to live with Isabel's parents because they are snobbish and won't understand him and may judge him. It is not the type of place he wants to live because he is not a your prototypical perfect child and is sensitive.

Word Entry "The Jewelry"

1. "Her lady-friends (she was acquainted with the wives of several small office holders) were always bringing her tickets for the theaters; whenever there was a performance that made a sensation, she always had her loge secured, even for first performances; and she would drag her husband with her to all these entertainments, which used to tire him horribly after his day's work."

2. This word gave me difficulty in adding some meaning to it, despite an attempt at the use of the context. The word "secured" seems to hint that the word has to do with something perhaps being ready at her command to go out.

3. Loge - a small compartment, a box in a theater. (Merriam-Webster's Dictionary)

4. After finding the correct definition of the word, I can understand that the sentence expresses that she had a certain place in the theater that could have been hers and was always ready for her when she wanted to go.

Cultural Knowledge Entry "Hills like White Elephants"

1.   "You want them with water?" asked the woman.
     "Yes, with water."
     "It tastes like licorice," the girl said and put the glass down.
     "That's the way with everything."
     "Yes," said the girl. "Everything tastes of licorice. Especially all the things you've waited so long for, like absinthe."
     "Oh, cut it out." (Pg. 106)

2. This exchange was mysterious to me. I know that absinthe must be an alcoholic beverage, but I don’t know why the woman says that everything tastes like it or why the comment makes the man angry.

3. Absinthe is a highly addictive alcoholic drug that was very controversial when Hemingway wrote the story. It was banned in multiple European countries in the 1920s and later in the United States. At first, absinthe use creates an opiate like effect in its users and produces feelings of happiness and a sense of greater awareness.  In chronic users though, it causes nervous system damage and serious mental problems.The drink’s taste is usually described as “bittersweet.”  (Lanier, Doris. "The Bittersweet Taste Of Absinthe In Hemingway's 'Hills Like White Elephants'." Studies In Short Fiction 26.3 (1989): 279. MasterFILE Premier. Web. 2 Feb. 2013.)

 4. I see now that the bitter taste of absinthe is what the woman is referring to. The woman sees the relationship as “bittersweet” like the taste of absinthe. The mention of absinthe is also a metaphor for the nature of the relationship. At first the couple’s relationship was happy and fruitful but it later developed complications, particularly the man’s desire for the girl to have an operation (abortion). The relationship mirrors the effects of absinthe in the body, which initially produces good feelings in the user but cause complications to develop later.