My Crazy Thoughts.

A. In these chapters in the book talked about the life of Dr. Hoenikker and about Newt. Also, Dr. Asa Breed was introduced. He takes Newt to his work at the labortory and provides useful information to Jonah.

B.

Gait- a manner of walking, stepping, or running

Charlatan- Fake, Fraud person

Dictaphone-Dicate Machine; recorder

C.

What was the relationship between Dr. Breed and Dr. Hoenikker’s wife?

How are science and religion connected?

1. These chapters were about how Jonah wrote to Mr. Newton Heonikker. He was the son of the creator of the atomic bomb. He describes the day, and about his father. 

    B. 

           Anecdotes- short tale narrating an interesting or amusing biographical incident. It

           Tendrils- A twisting, threadlike structure by which a twining plant, such as a grape or cucumber, grasps         an  object or a plant for support.

            Karass- a group of people who, often unknowingly, are working together to do God’s will

     C. 

            Why was string all the father wanted?

            What is sin?

A.      The first three chapters of the book are kind of confusing. The narrator is a man by the name of Jonah. He used to be a Christian, but is now a Bokonist. He was writing a book about the day the atomic bomb was dropped.

B.       

a.       Amoeba- An animal composed of only one cell that has no fixed shape.

b.      Conveyances-  the act of conveying; transmission; communication

c.       Bokonism- a made up religion the author created

                C. 

                                a.    What made him switch religions?

                                b.     Why doesn’t the woman like worms?

First of all, that podcast was very touching and insightful. It made me angry and more aware of what happens in wars. The main connection with this podcast and Heart of Darkness and Apocalypse Now was that a majority of soldiers develop PTSD and it ruins their lives. The podcast just showed that many soldiers develop PTSD because of their actions, actions that they are told to do, and what they have seen. The soldiers don’t realize what they can do until they are put in a situation and then their choice of action haunts them for the rest of their life, even if it causes them to die. One line in the podcast that stood out to me was towards the end when the Chavez family went to the memorial service and this man said, ” A veteran is someone who, at one point of his life, wrote a blank check, payable to the United States of America, for an amount up to, and including his life” (Smith). Many soldiers don’t realize what they are going into until they come back and have destroyed the rest of their lives. They are basically signing their lives away. In both, the movie and the book, Kurtz and Willard are affected by what they have seen; they will never be the same. They went out to do what they were told and by doing that signed a blank check to the government.

http://americanradioworks.publicradio.org/features/vets/

Section 1 pp 65-80 (15)

1.        Describe in detail the setting where the story begins.

Takes place in a boat on the Thames River, close to London. Takes place in the 1910’s.

2.        Who is the narrator of the story?

The narrator is an unknown seaman on the boat.

3.        Describe Marlow’s physical appearance.

Sunken, yellow, Buddha like.

4.        The narrator describes the recent history of the Thames. What are some of the activities of the men who have sailed out, from the mouth of the river?

The men explore, search for treasure, and trade.

5.        How does the narrator describe the River Thames?

A mystery or adventure

6.        What effect does Conrad achieve by alluding to the pirates Francis Drake and John Franklin?

Knights who search for adventure

7.        How is Marlow different from typical seamen?

He is a wanderer.

8.        What technique does Conrad start using once Marlow begins to speak?

Marlow’s talking never seems to end. He goes on to different tangents. The author never uses end marks to end Marlow’s talking.

9.        What simile does Conrad use for the mighty river that Marlow wants to explore?

A snake and a bird

10.     As he travels on a French steamer to his new post, how does Marlow describe the coast?

Solid green façade

11.     On the steamer Marlow observes a French warship firing at the coastline. What does this scene suggest about what the rest of the story will entail?

War and hardship is going to happen.

12.     How does Marlow describe the scene upon arrival to his Company’s station?

Inhabited devastation, bright sun, rocky

pp 81-99 (18)

13.     Why does Marlow call the chief accountant a “miracle”?

Pretty compared to the outside world

14.     What does Marlow learn about Kurtz from the accountant?

First class agent

15.     How does Marlow get from the first station to the Central Station?

Walking with a caravan

16.     What does Marlow learn about his steamboat when he arrives?

It has sunk.

17.     How does Marlow describe the general manager at the Central Station?

Mysterious

18.     What does Marlow like about his hard work repairing the steamboat?

It’s concrete and he can see his progress.

19.     How is the Eldorado Exploring Expedition a contrast to Marlow’s mission with the steamboat?

They are looking for treasurer. Marlow is looking for Kurtz.

20.     What is Conrad suggesting by calling the rival company the “Eldorado” expedition?

They were looking for gold. (Kind of like that movie, Road to Eldorado Jk :] )

21.     What does Marlow need to complete the repairs on the steamboat and why is this so frustrating to him?

Rivets, he doesn’t get them.

22.     What rhetorical device is illustrated when Marlow says of the Eldorado Expedition, that they were, “reckless without hardihood, greedy without audacity, and cruel without courage” (99)?

Making connections

23.     Heart of Darkness was originally published in three installments. On what suspenseful note does Conrad end this first installment?

Overhears a conversation

Section 2 pp 99-128 (29)

24.     On what suspenseful note does this second installment begin?

Marlow overhearing a conversation with manager and Uncle

25.     What does Marlow learn when he overhears the station manager talking to his uncle?

That Kurtz wants to take over and that they want to kill him.

26.     What is significant about the image Marlow begins to develop of Kurtz?

Voice

27.     What is the prevailing metaphor Marlow uses to describe traveling up the river?

Traveling towards something new

28.     How do the African crew members help Marlow?

Helped with the boat

29.     What metaphor is used for the steamboat as it moves up the river?

Sluggish beetle

30.     How does Marlow characterize the fireman on his boat? Look closely at the diction, tone and attitude of Marlow conveyed in this description. What is the fireman compared to? What does “a parody of breeches” suggest about Kurtz’s attitude toward this man (106)?

The diction implies that the fireman is a dog. The words the author uses like crawl on all four, or lap water sound like they are referring to an animal.

31.     How is the steamboat attacked?

Arrows and spears

32.     Who is the only person to die and how is he killed?

Helmsman, he gets a spear in his side.

33.     How does Marlow frighten the Africans on the shore and stop the attack?

The boat whistle

34.     How does Conrad treat the speech and communication of African characters in the novel? When do these characters speak? To whom? Concerning what? (Track the three distinct occurrences, beginning with the dialog found on page 111)

Only speech when need or very important. They speak to the Superiors.

35.     Why does Marlow dispose of the helmsmen’s body so quickly?

So he wouldn’t get eaten.

36.     What mysterious book does Marlow find at a station fifty miles below Kurtz’s station?

Reports written by Kurtz

37.     Describe the man who greets Marlow at the Inner Station.

Russian trader, Outdid by Dutch, went to African interior

38.     Marlow thought there were notes written in code in the book he found. What was this “cipher”?

Russian Words

39.     Why do the surroundings seem prehistoric to Marlow?

All around is forest and jungle.

40.     The steamboat anchors for the night eight miles below Kurtz’s station. What troubling events happen in the morning?

They are attacked.

41.     What does Marlow mean when he says that women must be helped to “stay in that beautiful world of their own” (121)?

They wouldn’t make it in such a different place.

42.     How does Marlow describe the death of the African helmsmen? How does he characterize their relationship?

Shouldn’t have happened, was his instrument

43.     Kurtz wrote a pamphlet for what organization?

The International Society for the Suppression of Savage Customs

44.     What surprising sentence did Kurtz add to his pamphlet long after he wrote it? What might have motivated him to write it?

Exterminate all of the brutes, being in Africa

45.     On what suspenseful note does Conrad end the second installment of the novel?

The Russian’s story about Kurtz

Section 3, pp 129-144 (15)

46.     The Russian says, “I had gone so far that I don’t know how I’ll ever get back” (53). What does this mean literally and symbolically?

They are lost; he is lost in his mind and soul

47.     When Marlow asks what Kurtz had traded for ivory, what does the Russian reply?

There’s a good lot of cartilages left.

48.     Why did Kurtz threaten to shoot the young Russian?

Wanted ivory

49.     What does the Russian tell Marlow about Kurtz’s recent activities?

He disappears for awhile looking for ivory.

50.     What does Marlow suddenly realize about the knobs on the posts by the building and the symbolic meaning they may have?

They are human heads. They symbolize that corruption will happen.

51.     As Marlow talks with the Russian, a group of men suddenly appears with a stretcher. What happens next?

Loud cries then men run into the forest, then silence.

52.     Describe the physical appearance of the woman who walks up along the river and describe what she does.

Savage, superb, head high lifts her arms by the boat.

53.     How does Marlow characterize the African woman who enters the story on page 138? What relationship does she seem to have had with Kurtz? Why do you think Conrad draws this character in considerably more detail than other African characters?

Like the wilderness, Kurtz has a thing for her

54.     When Kurtz is very ill, Marlow says that the manager “considered it necessary to sigh, but neglected to be consistently sorrowful” (138). What does he mean?

He doesn’t really care about how Kurtz is doing.

55.     What does Marlow do when he discovers that Kurtz has left his sickbed?

Goes and looks for him himself.

56.     Why does Marlow believe Kurtz’s soul has gone mad?

Being alone in the wilderness

pp 145-158 (13)

57.     Why don’t the pilgrims want Marlow to blow the steamboat whistle as they take Kurtz and the ivory away?

It will scare them away

58.     Marlow believes that the dark wilderness has cast a spell over Kurtz. What is the effect of this spell?

It will ruin him and make him like the natives.

59.     What shakes Kurtz’s confidence in returning to a glorious welcome in Europe?

The delay in the journey

60.     What does Kurtz entrust to Marlow?

Documents

61.     Why does Marlow consider Kurtz’s last words a victory?

Expression of some belief

62.     What is the significance of Kurtz’s dying words?

Can be interpreted in many ways

63.     What was the nature of Kurtz’s idealism that the Intended still reveres? How might this explain the significance of his final words?

He doesn’t like what has happened.

64.     Why do you think Conrad only refers to the woman as “the Intended”?

Represents the whole European culture

65.     Explain what Marlow means when he says, “I have wrestled with death” (148).

Through experience he has wanted to give up 

66.     What are the eerie physical details associated with the Intended and her drawing room?

Dark, sad-lighted, pale

67.     When the Intended extends her arms as if after a retreating figure, what does Marlow think of and why?

African woman, eloquent phantom

68.     When the Intended asks about Kurtz’s last words, what does Marlow say and why?

Her name to make him seem more peaceful, easy her heart, and to have her think he remembered of her

69.     Compare how Marlow conveys the African woman versus the British woman. What is similar in his treatment of each character? What is different?

The are a duality to each other. They are also a foil, just in different societies.

Joseph Conrad is considered to be an impressionistic writer. Impressionistic writers use the following five things: write ambiguous, write as though the event is occurring at that moment, portray an emotional landscape using diction and imagery, make the reader stand back to clearly understand the idea, and lastly, avoid chronological order. Conrad displays those characteristics throughout his book, Heart of Darkness. I used the passage found on page 20-21. This is where Marlow is on his way to the station, but stops to take a break in the shade. Conrad then has Marlow describe the Africans to the reader. Conrad uses almost all of the five characteristics in this passage. Conrad uses almost all of the five characteristics in the passage I choose.

In this exert there seemed to be a lot of “emotional landscaping” going on. “One of these creatures rose to his hands and knees, and went off on all fours, towards the river.” This creates a reaction from the reader, or should anyways. I found that anytime Conrad dehumanizes a person it provides vivid imagery. Conrad likes to write as if to include the reader. The whole passage is written at the time of its happening. It provides the reader with the step by step action and thoughts of Marlow, the main character. As the author starts this section of writing, he goes so in detail that the reader might forget where the character was going. The line “and I made haste towards the station” draw the reader back to the main picture. There is some ambiguity in the passage as well. “Why? Where did he get it? Was it a badge-an ornament-a charm-a propitiatory act? Was there any idea at all connected with it?”  Conrad doesn’t give an answer to those questions. By doing that he leaves the conclusion to the reader.

Conrad, Joseph. Heart of Darkness. New York: Prestwick House, Incorporated, 2004. 20-21.

Many people don’t understand what it really means to plagiarize something. Plagiarism is a very easy task to do, which is why people need to be careful. So what exactly is plagiarism?

It is taking someone’s writing or work and taking it as your own or using it in your assignment without giving credit to the original owner. Plagiarism can be unintentional or intentional, which means whether you might realize it or NOT.

Why it is bad?

First of all, it’s not your own. It’s kind of like a form of cheating, well actually, it IS cheating. Plagiarism is a major offense in the school or job environment. If you get caught you can get explosion or fired. Honestly, it’s not worth it. By plagiarizing you don’t learn anything from it, except how to steal. It doesn’t benefit you in the long run, especially for college.

How not to steal.

1.  Develop a topic, but write based on your own ideas

2. Cite all your work. Add more to it.

3. Give credit to the author even if your writing just influenced your paper. It’s called the “Works Consulted” page.

What paraphrasing really is.

Paraphrasing by rearranging the words in a sentence or changing two or three of the words is plagiarism.  Don’t take notes with the book open, it’s easier to steal from the author that way. In order to clearly show that the idea you are writing about is yours, you must edit the sentence by changing almost all the words. Or reword the whole thing. But even if you do that it would still be safe to add the source to the “works consulted” page.

The thesis of the article is that Okonkwo’s killing of Ikemefuna was an unconscious act and because of that he didn’t offend the Earth or the Oracle’s command. He backs up his thesis with reasonable reasons and quotes from the book. One main point is that Okonkwo was considered an elder and it was the elders who took Ikemefuna on his journey so “are we then to condemn him for not staying behind” (87)? Another important point is that it was more of a “question of strategy” (87). Okonkwo was like a father figure to Ikemefuna. More so than his actual father. If Okonkwo was to stay behind it would have been suspicious. That might have been a reason Okonkwo went with the elders. The third main point was that Okonkwo killed Ikemefuna out of instinct (89). It happened because it “wasn’t premeditated” and “the situation” forced the act on him (89).

The McGuffey Reader has a lot of bias in each of the articles. Overall, however, the McGuffey Reader is more of a conservative, Christian view. In Honest Boy and the Theif, the author writes that “Charles would never take any thing for his own which didn’t belong to him; but Jack would take whatever he could get (103) and he was rightly served” for trying to steal (104). This is the author’s view on what a theif and honesty is. Also, a person who steals should be punished. The characters also act as a duality to each other. In Lesson LVIII, Sarah says to Mary, “I have a place for everything and I put everything in its place when i have done using it” (128). The bias is that organization is very important. If messy and unorganizated, a person would lose everything and would not be reliable. In the last article, Respect for the Sabbath Rewarded, the bias is found in this sentence: “Thus was man’s extremity God’s opportunity. Had the poor barber possessed one half-penny, or even had credit for a candle, he might have remained unknown for years; byt he trusted God, who never said, ‘Seek ye my face,’ in vain” (70). The man is rich because he listened and became poor, but was then blessed. The author shows bias to the Christian belief, listen to God and be blessed when the time is right or in Heaven.

“As you shape a child’s behavior, you shape his growing personality” (Sears 47).

A parent who constantly bribes their child is influencing not only that moment in their life, but the future of who they are going to become. Bribing a child doesn’t prepare them fore life. “When [they] are an adult, [they] will have to wait for many things that [they] want, [they] will have to choose which are most important to [them], and [they] won’t get everything [they] want” (Sears 49). So why should they get everything they want when they are young? A parent’s job is to raise their child up so they are ready for the future.  As a parent of a child, “their goal is not to make [the] child happy ever minute of everyday…[the] actual goal is much harder: raise a first-rate human being” (Pantley 35). Parent’s who only aim to make their child happy will get run over later in life. They are setting their child up for failure in the future.