Category Archives: Blog Posts

Blog Post #2

In “Perhaps the World Ends Here” by Joy Harjo, the writer uses a kitchen table to represent life and conversations to represent the different stages of life. For example, Harjo starts begins describing the meaning of the kitchen table in infancy, “Babies teethe at the corners. They scrape their knees under it”. She then moves on to childhood, “It is here that children are given instructions on what it means to be human”. Next is adulthood, “Our dreams drink coffee with us as they put their arms around our children”. Finally she arrives to death, “and have prepared our parents for burial here”. These events or “conversations” Harjo recognizes can all be shared and enjoyed in one place, the kitchen table. 

Harjo ends the poem by touching on an unexpected topic, the end of the world. However, instead of setting a dark and serious tone, Harjo imagines the end of the world to occur “ while we are laughing and crying, eating of the last sweet bite.” This image of the world ending at a kitchen table, something the writer is very fond of, makes it seem like it might not be such a gloomy thing. Almost as if the moments enjoyed at the “kitchen table” or in life are enough to leave the world satisfied. 

BLOG POST #3

In the short story, “Gooseberries,” by Anton Chekhov we explore a story told by Ivan Ivanovitch and the way he conveys happiness is not typically the way a majority of people would view it. He would convey it as no point in pursuing and feeling happiness. He explains that to obtain happiness someone must be unhappy and carry the burden of it. It relates to ways one should live because one should always be aware of unhappiness coming their way while being happy. It is always short-lived and temporary. I agree with this because it allows people to not be vulnerable to these moments and isn’t as rough when the unhappiness moments come through.

Blog #2

“Perhaps the world ends here” by Joy Harjo represents our cycle of life in the form of a kitchen table where every occasion of our life occurs from birth to death.”the gifts of earth are brought and prepared “ which beautifully begins our life journey where earth has given us the gifts in form of food, water and air but as mentioned since creation, so it keeps on continuing and does not stop for anyone. The table is also shown as the aspect of life which keeps us connected with our family and contains our memories within it. “At this table we sing with joy, with sorrow” by this we understand that it is not only related to good but also bad times which brings us together giving us strength to keep going. As the table is the center of our home, it shows no matter where a person goes they always come back to the table and always will need a good company. “Eating of the last sweet bite” where our journey ends with the pleasant memories in the table. 

Blog #3

In “Gooseberries” a story written by Anton Chekhor, Ivan Ivanish tells a story of his brother where he seeks happiness through his dream of owning a farm with gooseberries in the countryside. How never in his life thought he might be the reason to his wife’s death as he was ignoring that in wise to get the happiness like in his childhood through the farm. Through his brother’s experience and story, he concludes that everyone wants to experience happiness in their lives but that no one wants to acknowledge the sadness that is an inevitable aspect of life. Where in order to be happy people ignore the suffering of others. With all the experience he wonders “why should we wait for things to happen”.  He thinks there is no existence of happiness nor should it in one’s life purpose, but we should rather do things which are reasonable and grand while we can in order to give a purpose to our life. This way one can be at peace and fill their hearts with the pleasure of enjoying things in the present with no expectation and regret in the future.

Blog post #3

In the short story Gooseberries by Anton Chekhov, Ivan tells a story about his brother and through the story he tells about his brother it is conveyed that Ivans understanding of happiness is that some one can only be happy  from the sadness and neglect of others.In the over analyzation of his brothers life and everything that he thought not to be the way to live he then wishes he could do things differently.“Everything is quiet, peaceful, and against it all there is only the silent protest of statistics; so many go mad, so many gallons are drunk, so many children die of starvation. . . . And such a state of things is obviously what we want; apparently a happy man only feels so because the unhappy bear the burden in silence, but for which happiness would be impossible. It is a general hypnosis.”Here Ivan is saying that there are a lot of things wrong in the world yet we still remain as if nothing is wrong and the world continues as if happy with this decision thus meaning happiness is in relation to the downfall of others and without it happiness would not exist.In contrast to the downfall of others in order to be happy Ivan in a tone of a favor says “don’t be satisfied, don’t let yourself be lulled to sleep! While you are young, strong,wealthy, do not cease to do good! Happiness does not exist, nor should it, and if there is any meaning or purpose in life, they are not in our peddling little happiness,but in something reasonable and grand. Do good!” In other words Ivan  is saying that happiness doesn’t just exist from the little things in life but possibly if it did it would be in the gestures and positive differences we do for others and make. In relation to Ivan’s definition of happiness one should live their life doing good.

-Kayla Ortiz

The End of the Table. Blog Post #2

In the poem Perhaps the World Ends Here Joy Harjo tell us the importance of the family and the home through the symbol of the kitchen table. The fiscal center of the home and the place of convergence of all activities in the home. The poem starts stating that the word starts and ends at the kitchen table. The kitchen table is a place of growth and leering were we gather as family and create memories. But are only the events and the people around that give it is importance, and the converging connections and relationships that make it the center. Perhaps the word will end ones we lose that connections.

Blog post #2

Joy Harjo’s poem  “Perhaps the World shall End Here” develops the idea that the conversations held at the kitchen table are related to important stages in life. Throughout the poem each stanza discusses a different aspect of life, although this is not discussed until after signaling the importance of the table in which Harijo stated  “The world begins at a kitchen table. No matter what, we must eat to live.” Relating the kitchen table to the world and the activities done at the table as the necessity to live emphasizes the table’s role. In one stanza it’s said that “ It is here that children are given instructions on what it means to be human. We make men at it, we make women.” The discussion that will shape children into the people they will become takes a serious and important tone of conversation which then goes on to develop the idea of the kinds of conversation that take place at the kitchen table.The poem then goes on to describe different aspects in life related to love,loss,anger and grief to then end on the unexpected probabilities regarding the end of the world.Harjo characterizes the end of the world as another event that will take place at the kitchen table once again emphasizing the table and conversations held at it. 

-Kayla Ortiz

Blog post #1

After reading the Goblin Market by Christina Rossetti I’ve come to the conclusion that this poem is about the struggles two sisters faced in the attempt to overcome temptations through love and sacrifice and in doing so formed an even stronger bond for life. From the beginning Laura was warned time after time by her sister Lizzie not to be tempted by the Goblin men who sell fruits,these fruits according to Lizzie where unknown and could not be trusted.Unfortunately these warnings were not enough for Laura’s curiosity as she consumed the fruits anyway,even going as far as to hush her sisters second warning in which she stated “Nay, hush,”:“Nay, hush, my sister:I ate and ate my fill,Yet my mouth waters still;To-morrow night I will Buy more;” and kissed her:“Have done with sorrow;I’ll bring you plums to-morrow”. In consequence Laura would never hear of the Goblin men again or their fruits and would whittle away from the lack of their nectars. In an attempt to save her sister Lizzie sacrificed her own safety as she was forced and beaten by the Goblin men in order to retrieve nectar in  to save her sisters life .In the end both sisters share a new love and admiration for one another as they tell the story of the goblins to their own children now and how thanks to one sisters will was able to retrieve the antidote that binds them together.

-Kayla Ortiz

Gooseberries makes you Happy? Blog Post #3

Anton Chekhov tells a story about the search for happiness trow the story that Ivan tells about his brother and Ivan’s way to think about happiness the author underlines that happiness is not some something you have to look for or worry about but rather something natural, that does not needs anything in particular. Ivan critics his brother who in order to achieve his dream of a having a farm that in his mind is the only thing that will make him happy again, like in his childhood years. Torture himself and his wife to have a happiness that requires the people around to be unhappy. At the same time the over-analysis of happiness and the constant worry of Ivan does not allow him to enjoy the present and keeps him in the past.

Blog Post #3

Ivan Ivanovitch tells a story about his brother to reveal how he views the nature of happiness in “Gooseberries” by Anton Chekhov. Even though his brother had fulfilled his dream of owning a country estate, what he did to get there was selfish and caused him to be in a huge home, alone and still selfish. By the end of the story, readers are able to recognize that according to Ivanovitch, a person becomes happier when they are not self-seeking, strive to help others, and never forget of those less privileged. This is because even if someone may have all the land, money, or “gooseberries” in the world, unless they are using their fortune for good, they become plain ignorant just as his brother had. Ivanovitch makes it clear that riches do not make you happy, creating positive changes and helping others is what brings happiness and is good for the soul.

Blog post #3

In “Gooseberries,” Ivan Ivanych expresses his deep skepticism against those who desire joyful, comfortable lifestyles; he thinks that pain is a necessary prelude to a meaningful existence and that seeking happiness is the wrong course since it results in complacency and stagnation. The majority of the story is that Ivan relates to his friends Alekhin and Burkin about his brother Nikolai, who spent decades of his life-saving money for a country house where he could live a simple, comfortable lifestyle. Ivan believes that creating a happy life this way is selfish and delusional since it only shields one from the reality of the outer world. he then talks about the hypocrisy of landowners who disregard the pain of others less fortunate than themselves as the subject of this tale. Chekhov, however, also brings up a more complex subject than class differences, as we can see when Ivan affirms the hollowness of individual success.