Short Story

Oh, how nerdy he was. She’d watched him from a distance in the book shop as he clumsily tried to take yet another book from the “Love & Relationships: Self-Help”-shelf. Sitting in the corner, drinking her skinny Chai-Latte, she couldn’t help but giggle. As he struggled more and more with carrying his large assortment of books about “How to find the perfect woman”, or “Marriage psychology for beginners” she decided to walk over to him and offer some help. And of course, just when she was right behind him, he had to turn around, trip over his own feet, knock her drink out of her hand and all over her fancy, white dress. So that’s what you get for trying to be friendly, she thought.

They told this story of their first meeting at numerous dinner parties. Especially Anne’s now- parents-in-law loved this story. They were over joyous about their son marrying her. And guess how glad they were about their first grandchild! And the second one. And the third one, too. Maybe they had just never expected their nestling, their shy little kid, their chemistry student, to actually find a woman willing to be with him, at all. But Anne really loved him. Although Paul most definitely wasn’t her “preference prey”, he’d still intrigued her with his weird hair-cut and geeky way of talking. She didn’t mind tossing her dreams about an acting career in the trash and settling down in the suburbs with him and the children. She’d be an awesome mum to her kids and a perfect wife for her husband. They were even planning to get a dog, or a cat, because their youngest daughter Lilly really loved animals. Maybe for her next birthday? She would absolu…

KNOCK, KNOCK!

“Anne? Are you sleeping? What the… it’s the last show tonight and the star-actress is sleeping, hahaha, I can’t believe it!”

She woke up on the couch in her dressing room. “Oh god, Richard, I was dreaming that I’m still with that idiot Paul and we even had three kids, can you imagine?? What a nightmare. Did the play start already? Am I running late?”

“No, it’s all right; you’ve got a couple of minutes to get ready. As if anybody cares about the play, anyway, they just wanna see you, darling, so of course we’re not going to start without you.”

Anne got up from the couch and went over to the mirror to refresh her makeup once more. This last performance tonight, and then it’s off to New York for a holiday with Richard. This was exactly the jet-set live she was always hoping to live one day! All her college friends, stuck at home with their snotty brats now, surely envy her when they saw her on the magazine covers. She was so glad she hadn’t become one of those unsatisfied all-American housewives.

And yet, even after the performance and the holiday, that dream about Paul kept on running through her head again and again…

Florence + the machine

Florence + the machine

“Bird Song”

Well I didn't tell anyone but a bird flew by
he saw what I’d done, he set up a nest outside

 and he sang about what I'd become 

 He sang so loud, sang so clear

I was afraid all the neighbours would hear
so I invited him in just to reason with him
I promised I wouldn't do it again

But he sang louder and louder inside the house
and now I couldn't get him out
so I trapped him under a cardboard box
stood on it to make it stop
I picked up the bird and above the din
I said “that's the last song you'll ever sing!”

Held him down, broke his neck
taught him a lesson he wouldn't forget

But in my dreams began to creep

the old familiar

‘tweet tweet tweet’

I opened my mouth to scream and shout
and I waved my arms and flapped about
but I couldn't scream and I couldn't shout
couldn't scream and I couldn't shout

I opened my mouth to scream and shout
and I waved my arms and flapped about
but I couldn't scream and I couldn't shout
the song was coming from my mouth

from my mouth 

 from my mouth

from my mouth

from my mouth…

Thesis

The song “Bird Song” by the band “Florence and the machine” makes me feel intrigued about the theme of guilt and its suppression/admission because the applied storyline and setting convey the different stages of committing a crime, trying to cover it up and finally admitting to it in a very sober, down-to-earth, and yet poetic way.

The song evokes feelings of empathy and being frightened at the same time. The listener is not lengthily introduced to the story, but thrown right into it. The setting and story itself are sort of unreal and creepy and still have a certain beauty to it.

“Bird Song” illustrates the theme of having a guilty conscience in an unconventional way because of the author’s use of original imagery and alternative songwriting style.

Questions

1. Can you make out a leitmotif in the song? What are the prevailing imageries?

2. Why do you think did the songwriter choose the image of a ‘bird’?

3. Does the song intend to convey a message, or does it just tell a story?

4. Do you think the pace of the song is consistent throughout, or does it change? How does it support the storyline?

5. What do you think about the lack of conventional song features, such as recurring choruses and rhymes? Why was this structure chosen for the song?

6. Can you make out a narrative arc in the song? How does the storyline develop?

7. What sort of tone/mood/atmosphere is created in the song? How?

8. Do you view the speaker as a positive or negative character? Do you think the speaker in the song is relieved or anxious at the end of the song?

Interpretation of a Poem

The Butcher’s Daughter

The poem “The Butcher’s Daughter” consists of 14 stanzas. It is an alternating exchange between mother and daughter about the daughter’s dating antics. The girl meets all sorts of men who make approaches to her, her mother, though, reminds her of the fact that she is the butcher’s daughter and must therefore not date outside her social class.

The attitude of the mother thereby changes between rather tender motherly care (where have you been, my little daughter out in the wild weather?) and a slightly more condescending tone in telling her daughter off (Oh no, my treasure you must come in and shut the door).

The men her daughter meets in her life are somewhat stereotypes of desirable men who young girls would naturally fall for. The sailor, the man of war and the prince are all connected with romantic and exotic ideas about passionate love.

The men’s “gifts” for the girl to win her over develop from a mere materialistic value up to abstract concepts like the knowledge of good and evil. Yet the girl’s mother is not satisfied with any of those proposals and tells her daughter to stop associating with such men.

The last man who the girl meets is eventually a butcher. Apart from the already rather unromantic reputation of this profession, also the gift the butcher provides is questionable. He is sharpening a knife for her. Butchers usually do this in preparation for killing something. In this case, a possible interpretation would be that he is finally killing the girl’s dreams about affectionate flings with desirable men and brings her back down to earth. She is a butcher’s daughter and therefore she has to get together with a fellow butcher, and that’s that.

For that reason the mood of the poem changes from harmless and romantic at the beginning towards melancholic and slightly depressing at the end.

Diamante Poem

                            Life
                     vibrant, free
         enjoying, flourishing, sparkling
                Time is running out
         ticking, haunting, frightening
               certain, inescapable
                          Death

I am quite satisfied with this poem. I think the topic of Life & Death works well with the strict symmetrical order of the poem.

I tried to change the second to last line, because I think “inescapable” is too long a word and does not really fit the flow, but as yet I couldn’t think of something better… So any suggestions are welcome ;-)

Literary Criticism

“DOUBT – A Parable” by John Patrick Shanley

John Patrick Shanley’s play “Doubt” is naturally intended to be performed on stage, and numerous successful and critically acclaimed stage adaptations of the material speak for themselves. The script itself, however, is worthwhile reading, too, as it manages to leave a lasting impression on the reader, even without the support of great actors and elaborate stage design.

As the title already says, the theme of doubt and uncertainty pervades the whole play: Not only is the main plot itself about unproven allegations, but we can also find signs of obscurity on the level of character depiction. Especially Father Flynn presents us with ambiguous behaviour. He seems to change his ways of talking depending on his conversational partner. Whereas he is very nice to Sister James and supportive of her ideals, he speaks very disparagingly about Sister Aloysius in the same breath. In the course of the play, the reader gets the impression that Flynn is probably shrewder than first expected. The further the play advances, the more defensive, and therefore more suspicious, Flynn seems to become.

Sister Aloysius’s straightforward and accurate sentences, though, reveal a lot about her point-blank and out-right attitude. She does not care too much about her manner of speaking and thereby reduces Sister James almost to tears at one point. Her occasionally rude and careless behaviour makes it hard for the reader to sympathize with her, and thereby gives rise to doubts about her motives. Is she accusing Father Flynn for, in fact, feeble reasons, such as her dislike of his long fingernails and his preference of taking sugar in his tea? Is she really concerned about the pupils of the school, or is she just so obstinate to disapprove of and think the worst of anyone broader-minded than herself?

Sister James, in contrast, appears to be a lot more emotional, which shows not only in her stumbling sentences, but also in her concern about how what she says might affect other people’s feelings. She is very hesitant in forming an opinion and is more interested in restoring harmony than finding out about the truth. As sympathetic as her behaviour makes her appear to the reader, this indecisiveness makes her highly unreliable, as she is so easily impressionable that her opinions sway in almost every act.

Therefore, with the depiction of the characters, Shanley manages to create a forceful sense of uncertainty within in the reader, as both Flynn and Sister Aloysius seem to have valid arguments to support their points of view. Though as nothing is ever explicitly stated, we have to read between the lines and are often left doubtful, too.

The setting and character constellation further underline the twisted impressions the reader gets. The story takes place at a catholic school; there are nuns and priests, lots of religious imagery. In this case, though, doubt and uncertainty undermine those symbols usually representing faith and devotion. Even in this environment of benevolent Christianity none of the characters trusts each other or believes in the good of man. Although the reader is reminded many times of the strict hierarchy within the church system, this chain of command is never actually followed. Father Flynn would not have to justify himself to either Sister Aloysius or Sister James, and yet he does. Sister Aloysius should not take things into her own hands and investigate by herself, and yet she does. As a Christian nun she most definitely should not tell lies to expose someone, and yet she does. Likewise Mrs. Muller, the child’s mother, acts contrary to all expectations by accepting the possible molestation of her son without objection, if only it is for the sake of his scholastic achievements.

What makes all these constellations so vigorous is the fact that Shanley presents them as totally natural and acceptable. None of the characters ever really questions his/her behaviour. Everybody believes themselves to be doing the right thing, when maybe, none of them knows the real truth and is only making things worse: Flynn maybe downplays his inappropriate relationship with the boy, Sister Aloysius maybe over-interprets it, Sister James maybe does not want to see the truth at all, and Mrs. Muller maybe has lost sight of what is really important for the well-being of her son.

In the end, whenever re-reading the play, new facets of the characters and their situations will present themselves to the reader and leave him/her probably even more confused and uncertain than before. Although Shanley used rather simple wordings and plain language, he managed to create an extremely memorable piece of literature by confronting the play’s characters with vague and yet obvious dilemmas, by making the readers feel confident and yet uncertain.

Analysis: Mind Map

In this scene, the manipulative character of Father Flynn is revealed.
The reader realizes that Flynn adapts his way of talking according to his listeners' expectations: He tells Sister James exactly what she wants to hear, and how she wants to hear it until she is finally convinced of his innocence.

What is good writing?

        A few days ago, this year's winner of the Nobel Prize in literature, Mario Vargas Llosa, was announced, and right away, bookstores are crammed full of works by this obviously "good" writer. But what is "good writing" really? When thinking about this question, it becomes clear that what is considered "good writing" differs tremendously in different cultures.
        Firstly, "good writing" in English countries differs from "good writing" in Germany. Whereas the use of organizers is liberal in English, a German reader would be overwhelmed by too many "linkers" and think them totally unnecessary for a good text.
        Secondly, German texts focus much more on the content than the form. What is considered interesting and fluid writing in Germany must seem like disorganized rambling to an English reader.
        Finally, the author's approach to their readers varies in different cultures. German writers rely on their readers' comprehension and therefore do not over-simplify the writing. English authors, though, usually take their readers by the hand and make their texts much more reader-friendly in general.
        To conclude, it seems difficult to say what exactly "good writing" is especially when comparing different cultures. We see that text structure, the use of certain words (such as organizers) and even the basic approach of the authors towards their readership makes the classification "good writing" a very vague one and at least very culture-specific.