I Stand Here Ironing

This short story was a sad account from a mother about her oldest daughter, Emily. The story from the time Emily was born until now - primarily the regrets and the heaviness that the mother still holds over Emily's life. 

Level 1 - How was Emily different than the other children?

Level 2 - Why does Emily need help?

Level 3 - What was the "cost of Emily's goodness?

i actually really liked this piece. i feel that it was brutally honest. the piece starts off with a crisp introduction " i stand here ironing" - a repetitive somber motion, that when one is ironing, they are often lost in a daze - lost in their thoughts inside this tedious action. 

whoever says this to the mother - someone that knows emily - tells the mother that she would manage time to come in and take about her daughter with them so that this unknown person can help her. 

However, the mom backs away from this question. she immediately refers to herself as not being able to understand her daughter - not being a good thing for her.

this piece demonstrates the guilt that the mother feels about emily's childhood. she sums it up completely in the last paragraph - especially when she says "she is a child of her age, of depression, of war, of fear" - all these things that "sum up" different areas of her childhood that the mother affected and feels regretful towards. 

the mother indirectly is saying that she couldve done something different for emily. while emily was struggling with her age, with her body - she couldve been there more. while the mother was young and taking care of other children, she couldve not sent emily away. she couldve been there. while emily was away and losing weight, the mother couldve been there.

but now the mother sits here - and "stands here ironing" - lost in her guilt, in her depression. it is a long self pity because now she truly believes that emily will not be able to live life to its fullest because the effect that the mother had on her. there is not much choice or hope left for emily in her mothers eyes. just that she does not want her to lead down the same life she did. 

The Lesson Response

So the lesson was about a detailed story about a girl who lived in a poor area of town, and had to be taught by this hated black lady named Miss Moore. The story particularly focuses on an afternoon when the main charactor goes to the rich side of town with a few of her "friends" and Miss Moore for a lesson. It was an interesting piece. i dont think i liked it very much. 

Level 1 question: Where did the group go for the lesson?

level 2 question: who were the charactors and what role did each of them play in the short story?

level 3 question: Why did miss moore teach these children and put in an effort for them? 

yea i didnt like it very much. the story carried on and on, and just by the middle of the piece we understood how bitter and strong headed the main charactor was. She looked down upon almost everyone she was around, including her teacher and her aunt. i think this piece was a good example of a culture being introduced - a mindset - these kids all hung out, all were taught together, all knew eachother, and they attempted to be themselves and speak their mind - however, each one would shoot down the other. but it seemed this is how it worked - this is how their relationships were. they did not respect authority or people seemingly above them (aka rich people, referred to as white people). whatever was not in their comfort zone or their own natural, they criticized or commented on it. and they were brought up it seems to speak. to live their lives and say what they want to say. the culture aspect is quite interesting though in the piece it kind of carries on - each new situation to the next. and even miss moore was not shut down by their words - she continued to teach and test them. in a way, they were all very similar. 

and i love how it ends - "But ain't nobody gonna beat me at nothin" 

i think its perfect and sums up in a way the theme of the short story. the mindset of the charactors and of the culture. 

What does Joe realize at the end of the book? Who is he pointing the gun at?

joe realizes that he is the future. what has happened to his body, to his soul, is the future. it is what the masters of war want - the authority in society. the authority that is leading our country to more and more fighting. the authoritative people who keep these wars going on, one after the other. because joe knows that WWI, this war is not the end. it is only an example. and he knows that the hospital will not go with what he desires - to show people the threats of war, the devastation and the terror- they wont do it because of the very reason that joe wants to show people. the hospital wont show people Joe, they wont show them his warning of the future. because they need people in those wars. the masters of wars need people to fight. and joe knows the future - he has seen the airplanes, he has seen the wars, hes seen romance and dreams turn to horror and darkness, to screaming boys and crippled fathers, hes seen starving mothers, headless babies, dead mass silence from the amount of innocent deaths. and the masters of war, the people that enforce those regulations, keep joe a secret because they need these realities to be secret. because if they werent, people wouldnt fight. they need people to fight. and he realizes that it really is the little people vs the big people. the soldiers, the civilians, the people of the world against those who enforce evil, who promote it. who continue these awful devastations for their own gain. but joe goes into taking the voice of the people as one - for he goes against these masters of war - he declares their injustice, their root of the problem - how they are the ones who force those who wants only to live to kill others who only want to live. and how they use the people, use the men of peace, throw their slogans at them, their lies. and joe says yes, do that all you want. and we will follow you and do waht you say - but the guns will be pointed at you. the guns will be pointed at the masters of war. the people against the authority. authority/war vs. peace, people. that is the future. that mess is the future.

i hope i understood this right. lol

Do you agree with Joe's desires? Would that be what you wanted in a similar situation?

Joe desires to die. to end this close to death life that he "lives" anyways. i dont blame him for wanting to die. i cant even imagine what kind of life that is anyhow, how bored, how drained, how lonely, confusing, and lost i may feel. how distant, how crazy. like joe says, his knowledge isnt enough. having me just in my own body is not enough. at all. if joe continues to live secluded from the world, in his own mind, his own dreams/reality, i honestly can understand joe and his desires to die. but there is another option, because when joe finally comes into contact with the outside world, and works with himself to be in communication - to have some purpose in his life beyond all of his calculations and thoughts - when he feels the sunrise, he feels vibrations, he taps, he feels, he begins to be somewhat connected to people - i dont agree with him desiring to die. because when he is in connection with people - not only wiht people, but with simply the world and the reality around him - that is a life worth living. that is life. life is not just a secluded world inside your head like the one he lives in during the first half of the book. there is life when there are connections. 

What does Joe want? Why does he want it? Why is it against regulations?

Joe wants out. he wants out of the hospital and out of this isolation. he wants connection with people - he wants to affect people with what happened to him and his state. he is tired of living this life, more so living a life that is more compatible to death, where he is complete alone. he wants to travel, to influence and show people the effects of war. he wants to be taken in a glass box to show people. he uses morse code to tell the nurses this. he wants to be an exibit to show how cruel war is, the horrors of war. but the regulations of the hospital are that they dont want people to see the horrors of war - if they did, people wont fight and support their country - they wont join the army. people will see the future - what will happen to them, to people all over the world. and they will be scared of their government, of their country, of fighting for their country. the hospital wants to keep joe a secret because of the tragicness of his life. it is awful. these regulations keep joe from being truly connected to people - to influence people. he is forced to continue to live a life in isolation, in the stream of his thoughts, memories, yet personal growth and understanding. 

How injured is Joe? How much does it matter?

well. joe is more than injured. he doesnt have arms or legs. he is deaf. he doesnt even have a face. he is beyond injured. he is like incapable of every physical action - he is fed through his stomach. he compares it to being in the womb once again. i dont even really like this question, i think its kind of a hard question to answer, because like i said, he is more than injured. he is half alive, barely alive. he is closest to death than every other human being. so really to him, his body is barely there - he can not truly feel it or move it. he simply just breathes, and his body allows his conscience to go on and continue working. his conscience is all he has left. his conscience and the darkness and loneliness and suffering all around him. he is distant from everyone. so the fact that he is injured like this does matter. its matters to everything. because it keeps him away from everything, from everyone. having him only be drowning in his concious and unconcious self keeps him from even knowing what is real and what is a dream. only when the nurse comes is he once again connected to reality, to people, in a very distant way. but this matters. the fact that he is so lonely, in such darkness, andfilled with such thoughts make this life that he is living closer to death than ever. 

Gender Roles Extra Credit

i thought the gender roles were very interesting in the play. and oh yes - the play was wonderful!! so funny. good job everyone. 

the most obvious gender role in the play was of the queen. instead of being the "inferior degraded weak woman," she was quite the opposite. she was the dominant, much more powerful extravagant woman, and incredibly controlling. she is like the stereotypical controlling wife, who has power over her husband, speaks for him, thinks for him, etc. and it is obvious that the wife is insecure - therefore hungry for power. and meanwhile, then the king is the stereotypical cynical husband who somewhat succumbs to what his wife has to say and what the queen tells him to do. 

though this scenario clearly shows the dominance of woman, obviously, it in a way doesnt. because the people don't like the queen at all - everyone thinks shes ridiculous. and the king even makes fun of her behind her back and still has "the dominance" in a way. and this is clearly shown once he gets his voice back - when he starts yelling at her. like the male dominance has been "restored." because obviously the people/the crowd really liked the queen. boo ya. i think i got it.