Jalen's World Lit Blog

      Having received the opportunity to traverse the deep-secret vault underneath the university's library and explore it's deepest treasures (this is exactly how I explained our field trip to my friends), I got the chance to see some really awesome stuff. It is not often I think about book history (a surprise, I know), so being able to visualize all of the different formats that "books" and stories took was informative. I had no clue that palm leaves or even animal hide were a medium for writing text, so being able to interact with those mediums connected me to the history of those texts. I believe all art is temporary at best- that as viewers we don't just change art with our interpretations of it- but that even physically interacting with art alters it fundamentally. This is proof enough. Literature before computers is a fragile thing, so to see it in such a preserved state was a unique experience. Seeing the evolution, too, from tablets to animal hide to scro...

   One image that stuck out to me in Hayy Ib Yaqzan as important was sunlight, or light in general. It is mentioned several times in regards to life and how it is formed as well as how the Earth is heated. I believe that heat represents life and consciousness. Three ways are detailed as to how heat reaches the Earth, which could represent how life (heat) is formed. The first is motion. As the Earth is motionless (relatively speaking), heat cannot form in this way. This represents the creationist belief that life and consciousness cannot from from nothing. As heat cannot come from a motionless Earth, life cannot spring from a lifeless Earth. The next way in which heat could arise is contact with another heated body. The Sun is not directly in contact with Earth, and the author reasons that if Earth were heated from contact with the Sun, then the air closest to Earth would be coldest as it is furthest, which is not the case. Thus, the Sun, which in this analogy could represent l...

    I've thought long and hard about this final project (all of ten minutes spent brainstorming as hard as possible), and I think I have a few ideas for what it could look like. As for topic, I think looking into plays that feature rebellions like Antigone  would be interesting. I think what conditions create rebellions, and what makes one successful are interesting topics to explore, especially in the context of a variety of cultures. Another idea I have would be the relationship between religion and government. I'm not entirely sure what I would specifically look for in this topic, but I am sure there are some interesting texts I could find. For example, in my research about the Bosnian War, I found that the Byzantine Empire, which ruled over the same area as modern day Bosnia, believed in a symphony between church and state. These two topics seem like good starts to my final project.     As for the format, I am a bit less certain. NeatLine, for all its faults...

 Lecture 2 was also really helpful for me when it comes to visualizing the history and context of the play. Again, whenever I have to consider ancient societies, it can be hard to remember precisely what technologies and ideas they had. For example, the printing press. Obviously, I know the printing press came into existence long after ancient Greece. I guess I just never really thought about the implications that had on the copying and distribution of the play. The infamous argument over that one line that could be either Ismene's or Antigone's is the perfect example. The play we see today is one that has been altered radically. To credit the play to Sophocles alone could be considered inaccurate, seeing as we barely know what Sophocles originally intended Antigone to be, completely separated from the hands of other people. A lot of artists discuss how the mere act of viewing art changes it. Jordan Peele's Nope is a good example of a story that delves into how art and our...

 I found a few things interesting in Lecture 1. First and foremost, it was really neat to see how the play was more of a political event than anything. I would have never imagined as many as fifteen thousand people saw the play at once at different festivals. I'd always envisioned smaller venues at night for mostly wealthier people, but it makes sense that plays were so open and performed during the day, seeing as Athens was extremely dedicated to the ideas of democracy (for men). I also has no clue that the plays were more political than for entertainment. I suppose my entire idea of plays is Shakespeare and his work, which aren't very political and are primarily for entertainment. I recognized the political elements of Antigone, but to think that plays used be a part of the political process is really interesting. Another thing I found interesting was the geography and history, which I was not very knowledgeable about before the lecture. I was unaware that Thebes was a rival ...

     One major difference I noticed between Home Fire and Antigone is the characterization and actions of the characters Isma and Ismene. Isma very decidedly chooses to side with Karamat Lone and the media when Parvaiz passes. She explains to Aneeka that she is merely trying to preserve what is left of their family. Obviously, in Shamsie's rendition of the story Aneeka passes before Karamat can detain or punish her. We as readers are left to interpret how Isma could have reacted to her sister and Eamonn's death, or what would have happened if Karamat had actually detained Aneeka like Creone does to Antigone.  Where Antigone differs from Shamsie's retelling is that we are explicitly told how Ismene reacts. Antigone is caught and brought to Creone, only for Ismene to give herself up as well. Antigone even shows some contempt at her sister for doing this, accusing her of stealing her glory in a way. This is different than Aneeka, who wants Isma to side with her, not car...

      Neatline was pretty neat, for lack of a better term. The process of learning it was simple, and it seems like a great way to organize thinking in terms of a map. My question, though, is exactly how I would use it for a project. I am researching the Bosnian War right now, which has a lot of places, dates, and moments that would lend themselves well to Neatline's geographical organization. Despite this, I can't see precisely how it would fit into my research process. Maybe it is just the way I do research, using one singular Google Doc with my quotes, outline, and sources listed, but I didn't see an opportunity to use Neatline, unfortunately. For those of you who are using it, how have you incorporated it? How well has it worked?     I am excited to try it for a later project, though. As someone with a messy note-taking process, and an even messier outline for my current research project, I think Neatline could streamline and organize my thinking a bit ...

     Home Fire 's theme of terrorism is one I found particularly interesting. I think the book does a great job of humanizing terrorists, many of whom are just young people that get caught up like Parvaiz. I also read Acts of Faith by Eboo Patel, which is a story that goes to great lengths to describe precisely what creates terrorists. Most often. they are young people, who, unfortunately, are charmed by some institution. Patel doesn't necessarily forgive terrorists, but he does understand that they are more a symptom of a failure of positive institution's ability to connect with youth.       Parvaiz represents this exact thought. He is particularly lost, not having parents and slowly losing his sisters to their own pursuits. All of this is made worse by the society around him, which is full of Islamophobia. The Pasha family is forced to suppress their own identities and live in fear of their own homeland. This, I believe, is what makes terrorism so al...