Guadalupe

The picture of the Virgen de Guadalupe that I chose is extremely colorful. She is hovering in the air, with a bright blue sky and white clouds in the background. It is semi-symmetrical in the sense that the painting is completely balanced on both sides, only with different objects. On the right side of Guadalupe is a long bouquet of red and pink roses running up the entire length of the Virgen Guadalupe. On her left side, instead of another bouquet to complete the symmetry, a Mexican flag hangs from a royal scepter. It gives the impression of balance, but I suppose it would not qualify as strictly “symmetrical” because symmetry necessitates balance of the same objects, shapes, etc. As opposed to having a mere halo illustrate how holy she is, she is completely surrounded by an aura that encompasses the colors white, yellow, orange, and red. A crown rests on her head and her hands are folded in prayer. Light seems to emanate from every pour of her moca-colored skin and from every fiber of her elegant gown and robe. Just to show how beloved she is by the Mexican people, a small child appears to be at her feet clutching at her garments and surrounded by the colors of the Mexican flag: red, white, and green. A small child appears to be doing that, because upon closer inspection, the colors of the Mexican flag are the colors of the child’s wings, thus signifying that he is in fact an angel after all. This depiction of the Virgen de Guadalupe really helps put a picture into the reader’s mind every time that Anzaldua describes Mexicans crossing the Rio Grande illegally to enter the United States as “they pull themselves along the banks with a prayer to Virgen de Guadalupe on their lips” (p. 33). It was also very interesting to do some research on the Virgen herself. I thought that maybe that was just what Mexicans called the Virgin Mary, because I don’t know if there is a Spanish equivalent of “Mary,” because “Maria” is also an English name as well as a Spanish one, so that wouldn’t be the direct equivalent. However, there’s an entire fascinating story behind the Virgen de Guadalupe (who depicts the Virgin Mary) appearing to a man near Mexico City in the 16th century.  She spoke to a man in Nuahatl, the language of the indigenous Mexican people, and proclaimed that a church should be built at that site in her honor. Ever since, she has been the most famous idol in all of Mexican history.

kathrynhoughton.com

I haven’t had a chance to explore this entire website, or even most of it for that matter, but what I have read has actually been quite fascinating. I explored two different stories, both under the “Formal Writing” section. I clicked on this section just because it was the first one that is available from left to write, and I figured there would be no better way to see what this website is about than to read the first thing that is available. The first piece under “Formal Writing” was labelled “Truthful Fiction,” which immediately aroused my interest. This paper consisted of several short stories, actually more like paragraphs, and then analysis explaining how and why she was able to write each different short story the way that she did. She explores the seemingly random transition of tenses, and what I took away from it is that it’s not random at all, but it’s supposed to appear that way in order to give the reader a sense of a stream of consciousness style of writing. It’s amazing how keenly good writing can speak to you. For instance, in the first short story, a woman is driving a car at nighttime with one hand on the steering wheel and the other hand holding a cigarette, just staring off into the distance, letting her mind wander. I can immediately relate to that because I’ve done exactly that probably hundreds of times. Things would go briefly through her mind, and then immediately that would remind her of something else, constantly switching back and forth between the past, present, and future. I think everyone can relate to that. When you are alone, it is impossible to keep track of all the things you think about. You think about something that happened to you and then that reminds you of something you’d like to do. Right there is an immediate transition from the past to the future, completely bypassing the present, because the present is constant: driving in the dark. This story made me realize that when I am alone, the things that pass through my mind are incredibly similar to what passes through my mind when I am dreaming. The things that I think about are very brief, and almost impossible to direct or control. The only difference is that I have a vague sense of reality that enables me to keep the car on the road.

The second piece I explored was an analysis of a two-paragraph reading that she did from the book Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov. I really didn’t understand it because I haven’t read the book. The only thing I know about it is that an older man falls in love with a girl in her early-to-mid teens. The only reason I know that is because in the song “Don’t Stand So Close To Me” by The Police, where a teacher falls in love with one of his students. Part of the song goes like this:

Loose talk in the classroom
To hurt they try and try
Strong words in the staffroom
The accusations fly
It’s no use
He sees her
He starts to shake he starts to cough
Just like the old man in
That famous book by Nabakov

One piece of criticism I do have for Houghton is that in that particular piece which discusses Lolita, she deals in very esoteric detail. What I mean is that someone couldn’t possibly begin to grasp her psychoanalysis of the main character from two paragraphs of an entire book that he/she hasn’t even read. I continued to read, hoping it would wrap up, tie into itself, or just perhaps become a bit more clear, but she really should have mentioned in the opening sentences explaining the piece that someone who hasn’t read the book will find it extremely difficult to follow along. That’s not a huge flaw in the overall structure of the website, but it’s all I could find with the extremely small amount of time I was given to explore and analyze an entire website.

First 2 Chapters of Borderlands

Anzaldua’s Borderlands is definitely an interesting read. It’s not exactly enthralling, although there are many heartwrenching descriptions, such as the little boy named Pedro who is an American citizen, but speaks no English, so he was deported when the border patrol came across him. Although I couldn’t help but think that it was foolish of Anzaldua’s aunt to take a small boy near the border if neither of them could speak English to explain that they are Americans to any number of the authorities that are bound to be patrolling the area. It’s not being racist if a grown adult on the very Mexican-American border is assumed to be Mexican if she can’t speak a single word of English. It’s not racist. It’s common sense. And some form of ID in this day and age needs to be carried if someone is indeed a citizen of America but cannot speak English. Give yourself a chance. Don’t let yourself or your little boy be deported when there are so many ways you can easily prevent it. Carrying an ID or learning a couple of really important phrases in English are just two.

Back to the book, however. I would say that this book definitely constitutes literature, since my very definition of the word has changed to encompass pretty much any form of written expression since I’ve joined this class. I like the fact that the author uses Spanish and English interchangably, although I can imagine the frustration of people trying to read it who don’t speak a word of Spanish. The author’s yearning for a land/culture/people that encompass Indian, Mexican, and American heritages is quite apparent, and she communicates it well with the use of poetry and switching back and forth between reminiscences and present straight-talking. However, as a journalism major and just an outright lover of literature in general, her credibility as a writer and the credibility of the publisher and the editor of this book went way down in my eyes as soon as I started to read. In the preface, there was a typo in English, and then on the fourth page of Chapter One, there was another typo…in Spanish! In the preface, a simple spelling error ruined for me what would have otherwise been a very heartfelt message. She wrote, “My love of images-mesquite flowering, the wind, Ehecatl, whispering its secret knowledge, the fleeting images of the soul in fantasy-and words, my passion for the daily struggle to render them concrete in the world and on paper, to render them flesh, keeps me alive.” She no doubt meant “to render them fresh,” not “flesh.” “Flesh” doesn’t make a lick of sense. This is the preface. It’s how you’re supposed to kick off your book with professionalism and background, and give your readers the sense that you are credible. A spelling error is a terrible way to go about that. I can’t believe no editor caught that. And then four pages into the first chapter, she says, “Del otro lao,” instead of “Del otro lado.” “Lado” means “side” in Spanish. Del otro lado means from the other side. In this case, from the other side of the Mexican-American border. This occurs on page 26 when describing how the aunt told Pedro not to run, because they’ll think he’s “del otro lado.” “Lao” is not a word in the Spanish language. So, however much my heart goes out to her being a lesbian revolting against her heritage because she’s frustrated with the way mestizo culture and the Chicanos have turned out together, the fact that there are two typos in two different languages in the first 5 pages of the book is just too much for me. That’s ridiculous. This is a piece of literature; a very interesting and heartfelt piece of literature. And it is also a very poorly edited piece of literature that I can no longer take seriously.

Are Pictographs Literary? (Codex Borgia)

Thousands of years ago, before the written word came about, pictographs or hieroglyphs were the only form of trying to express what words so easily can. The Codex Borgia of the ancient Aztec civilization is no exception. However, does that make it literature? No, I don’t think it does. At least to me, literature is only possible through the use of the written word, and even then it’s not as if anything that uses a sophisticated written alphabet can be considered literature. This entry is by no means a piece of literature. . Pictographs and hieroglyphs are definitely a form of art, and if not that then at the very least a form of communication. I feel that it is a very vague form of communication. The Codex Borgia is a fantastic achievement well ahead of its time, but literature I think it is not. There are vast amounts of communication, and there is a distinct difference between art and literature. And as we all know, between thought and expression lies a lifetime.

The Cascajal Block

On the FAMSI website, I chose to read about the Cascajal Block, which is claimed to be the oldest example of writing in the Americas. What is interesting about it is the fact that nobody knows what it means. It has 62 symbols on it, some of which are repeated. So the Cascajal Block is obviously telling a story as opposed to just listing the letters of their ancient alphabet. This website doesn’t seem to be very well organized, because it doesn’t clearly state when the Cascajal Block was disovered or when scholars believe it to be dated to. The only reason I chose the Cascajal Block to write about is because it reminds me of the Venus statue I saw in Bratislava, Slovakia. It is over 18,000 years old, and among the more amazing things I have ever seen.

Autobiographical Reflection on Technology

WHAT IS YOUR RELATION TO TECHNOLOGY?

Since my generation is among the first to have grown up with an overwhelming technological availability, I suppose I take technology for granted. If I want to know what Derek Jeter batted in 1999, I can look it up on baseball-reference.com in about two seconds. He batted .349 by the way. If I want to know what movie won Best Oscar in 1981 over Raiders of The Lost Ark, I can go to imdb.com and check in about another two seconds. It was Chariots of Fire by the way, and it sucks. Don’t see it. My point is that while technology has become an integral part of our lives in the 21st century, unless I am doing research for a school project, I rarely use the internet for more than looking up baseball stats and movie quotes. I play video games once in a while and only if I have someone else to play with, so the vast technological advancement in the field of gaming really hasn’t affected my life. I love to travel, but planes went just as fast when I was born as they do now. I think Facebook is a brilliant idea, but we of the college community are all kind of slaves to it now. I don’t get my news from the internet because I read newspapers. I just think they are more well written. I love to read books. A lot of them. Does that make me old fashioned? I watch DVDs now instead of movies on VHS, so I guess there’s a big technological advance. Or is it? I mean great, so we can skip to a certain scene, or to a certain song on a CD instead of a tape cassette where you have to rewind and fast forward. Did that piece of technology really save anyone’s life? No, it just merely made life slightly more convenient for a lot of people. And that’s how I feel a lot of technology is being spent: on making life slightly more convenient for people. Don’t get me wrong, the internet is an absolutely incredible invention. And honestly, it’s hard to imagine life without it. And there have also been many incredible advances in medicine, which is where technology should be making a difference. Like Jerry Seinfeld said, “Some scientist out there said to himself, ‘Sure, AIDS, cancer, heart disease is killing millions, but I’m gonna devote myself to the melon.’ Who needs seedless watermelon?” I love my iPod. It’s great. It’s a very convenient invention. But it’s not saving lives. I wouldn’t die without it. I could easily never listen to my iPod ever again, and I live to rock. Cell phones are a great technological advancement. They fall right in between medicinal advances and iPods I think, because they are incredibly convenient, and having a cell phone on you to call 911 could very well save your life. Cell phones have changed the horror movie genre forever in that sense. I guess what I’m trying to say is that technology is rarely absolutely necessary. Technological advancements are great because things like the internet make our lives easier, which is really nice, but making homework easier isn’t absolutely necessary to the enrichment of human existence like it is in the fields of science and medicine, which make life longer and more enjoyable than in the past. People survived for thousands of years without the iPhone. We can’t ever act like we are so dependent on iPods, Playstations, and using the internet to do research for a paper that it’s out of the question to go to the library and do it the old fashioned way. Technology’s main responsibility is bigger than Google producing ” Results 1 – 10 of about 691,000 for derek jeter stats. (0.10 seconds). People forget the amazing scientific and mathematical discoveries, inventions, and breakthroughs that the likes of Gallileo, da Vinci, and Newton innovated. And they didn’t even have calculators.

What Constitutes Literature?

Aesthetic Value: A philosophy of interpretation grounded in various types of experiences and is present in “nature,” ordinary artifacts, and “art.”

1) Is information architecture an art form?

2) Is inscription technology literary?

3) Is there a detectible theory of computing aesthetics?

4) How does the move to digital publishing change what counts as literature?

5) What happens to literature when we are no longer limited by the aesthetic concerns of the literati?

6) Do hieroglyphs and pictographs qualify as literature?