The Genre of Plays

In the play Intimate Apparel, Lynn Nottage explores the issue of race and the sense of woman’s worth. The reader explores these themes in a different way then normal. There are no narrators when you read plays. A play reads as one would see it on stage.

Lynn Nottage opens the play with
“Wedding corset. White satin with pink roses
Lower Manhattan, 1905
A bedroom. It is simple, unadorned with the exception of beautifully embroidered curtains and a colorful crazy quilt.
A clumsy ragtime melody bleeds in from the parlor. In the distance the sound of laughter and general merriment.
Esther, a rather plain African American woman (35) sits at a sewing machine table diligently trimming a camisole with lace. She is all focus and determination.”

This provides the reader with the description of the opening scene of the act. It tells us that the setting is in 1905, in Lower Manhattan. The characters are in a bedroom. with beautiful curtains and a colorful quilt. We are then introduced to Esther. Who is a plan African American woman of 35. Who is sewing at a sewing table.

“MRS. DICKSON
(O. S.) Don’t be fresh, Lionel. I know your Mama since before the war.
Mrs. Dickson (50), a handsome impeccably groomed African-American woman, enters laughing.”

This is the first quote from the dialogue. We find that the character speaking is Mrs Dickson and she is 50 and a African American as well. This differs from your traditional narrator because the narrator would be describing all this to the reader as she is a character his or her self. Here in the play it just feels like there is no narrator.

 

Protectorate

Proctectorate – Noun –  a small country that is controlled and protected by a larger one

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/protectorate

Mina Loy Feminist Manifesto

The man who lives a life in which his activities conform to a social code which is protectorate of the feminine element—–is no longer masculine

What I understand about the passage now is that the feminine element is controlled by man.

 

A Manifesto of OUR Society.

If I were to write a manifesto about woman and our society today. I would write about gender discrimination. Gender discrimination refers to “the practice whereby one sex is given preferential treatment over the others. The practice of giving social importance to the biological differences between men and women is there everywhere. In some societies, these differences are very much pronounced while in others, they are given less importance. If I were to write about this issue in a bold way I might go for the smaller things that people do not really notice.

The first being; We have yet to have a woman president. 49 other countries in the world have. Yet America has not, granted we are currently experiencing our first black president so I am sure one is coming in the future. Why is it hard for us to vote a woman president? Why has only one run so far that has had a decent chance of wining?

The second being this; Haircuts. I was getting a haircut well 2 months ago, but I am sure it has not changed since then. I got my haircut and looked at the price for a mens which was $12 and then I look at the price for a woman and it said $25. I thought thank god I am a guy. Okay so maybe I am a guy and do not know anything about woman but an extra $13 for a haircut? I just feel we should all be entitled to a cheap haircut. Is there that much more supplies / energy / work that goes into it? maybe they could each be $18 or $15? Also this was at a local barber shop, do not get me started on those salons, and the people that pay $200 for a haircut.

A very modern Manifesto for such an old time

In Mina Loy’s “Feminist Manifesto” she promotes superiority of women over men. I believe the second and third paragraphs on the second page really shows this.
“The value of man is assessed entirely according to his use or interest to the community, the value of woman depends entirely on chance, her success or in success in maneuvering a man into taking the life-long responsibility of her—
The advantages of marriage are too ridiculously ample—
Compared to all other trades—for under modern conditions a woman can accept preposterously luxurious support from a man (with-out the return of an sort—even offspring)—as a thank offering for her virginity.” What Loy is saying in the first paragraph  is that the value of a man’s life is based solely on his use to the community. Whereas the success of a woman’s life is solely chance, whether she can successfully maneuver a man into taking life long responsibility of her. In the second paragraph she is saying that a woman can accept luxurious support from a man without the return of any sort. This is simply a thank you from the man for the woman giving him her virginity.

Atrocious

Atrocious – Noun

“The Yellow Wallpaper” By Chaelotte Perkins

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/atrocious

Passage: I am sitting by the window now, up in this atrocious nursery, and there is nothing to hinder my writing as much as I please, save lack of strength

Now that I know the meaning of the word. I can now visualize this picture a lot better. I can see that the nursery is a scary and evil place.

Stay away from the yellow wallpaper

In the story “The Yellow Wallpaper” it is clear that the narrator is an unreliable narrator. This is clearly displayed throughout the course of the story, but here is where I think it sticks out most.

1) “It is getting to be a great effort for me to think straight. Just this nervous weakness I suppose.” This quote shows that we have an unreliable narrator because it is starting to become clear that she is succumbing to the madness. I think that the fact that she is struggling to see straight is symbolism for her trying to distinguish herself from the wallpaper.

2) “Did not that sound innocent? But I know she was studying that pattern and I am determined that nobody shall find it out but myself.” This is an example because it shows the narrator becoming very defensive about the wallpaper. Jennie was simply just looking at the wallpaper because she is trying to figure out where the yellow stains are coming from on the clothes. However the narrator thought she was trying to figure out the pattern thus showing the audience how defensive and possessive she has become of the wallpaper.

3) “I have locked the door and thrown the key down into the front path” This show us that the narrator can not be trusted and locks herself in the bedroom.

Quotes that present the couples relationship.

1) “If a physician of high standing, and ones own husband, assures friends and relatives that there is really nothing the matter with one but temporarily nervous depression-a slight hysterical tendency-what is one to do.” To me this quote shows authority and that the opinion of the wife does not matter… Even if it is the patient herself.

2) “He said I was his darling and his comfort and all he had, and that I must take care of myself for his sake and keep well.” This quote clearly shows that John is selfish.

3) “Dear John! He loves me very dearly and hates to have me sick. I tried to have a real earnest reasonable talk with him the other day, and tell him how I wish he would let me go and make a visit to Cousin Henry and Julia.” This quote shows us that John does not understand the negative effects of his treatment. He doesnt understand that the narrator needs to get out and about. This quote also shows that John does not consider the narrator’s opinion.

Paternalistic

Paternalistic – Noun

Definition – A policy or practice of treating or governing people in a fatherly manner, especially by providing for their needs without giving them rights or responsibilities.
The Free Dictionary
“There was Once”
Passage: “Then you can scratch the condescending paternalistic terminology. It’s woman pal woman.”

From what I can gather it sounded like the storyteller was misusing the word “girl” and when the speaker called him out on it he said that she is a woman because she has a right to marriage.

Cinderella, Cinderella.

In the short story “There was Once” the author Margret Atwood took many risks in the writing of this story. “There was Once” has two speakers in it. The audience is not given a description of them; we are more so just thrown off into the deep end of dialogue. The story starts off with the first speaker telling the story of Cinderella. “There was once a poor girl, as beautiful ash she was good, who lived with her wicked stepmother in a house in the forest.” This is when we meet speaker two he interrupts the storyteller by asking a bunch of questions. “Forest? Forest is passe, I mean I have had it with all this wilderness stuff. It’s not a right image of our society today. Let’s have some urban for a change.” This brings us to the first change that the speaker prompts the story teller to make. The next change the speaker prompts the storyteller to make is when the storyteller is describing Cinderella as “a middle-class, girl as beautiful as she was good.” The speaker tells the storyteller to cut beautiful because we are dealing with to many intimidating physical role models. Thus leading the storyteller to revise his story to “There was once a girl who was a little overweight and whose front teeth stuck out.” We see that the storyteller has made her out to be the farthest from beautiful.

You might need to reconsider something, if it takes your husband to die to realize you weren’t happy… And other life lessons.

In the short story “The Story of an Hour” the author Kate Chopin paints a very ironic story of Mrs. Mallards journey to happiness. When Josephine broke the news to her of her husbands death Mrs. Mallard took it pretty hard. Mrs. Mallard acted the same way as any other wife that just lost her husband would, with tears, and lots of them.

After her initial shock of her husbands death Mrs. Mallard went into her room by herself. There in her room lies a window and we find Mrs. Mallard starring out of this window at a blue sky and at a typical spring like happy day. Chopin stated, “The Delicious breath of rain was in the air. In the street below a peddler was crying his wares. The notes of a distant song which some one was singing reached her faintly, and countless sparrows were twittering in the eaves.” Mrs. Mallard begins to get this feeling that she is not able to describe at first. She then utters the word “Free” over and over. Chopin stated, “There would be no one to live for her during those coming years; she would live for herself.” This is when Mrs. Mallard realizes that she is free from her husband.

Josephine then knocks on the door yelling for Mrs. Mallard. Mrs. Mallard opens the door and the two walk downstairs to find Brently Mallard standing in the doorway. Mrs. Mallard then died of heart disease. This is ironic because once Mrs. Mallard realized she was free and could live for herself the independence literally killed her.

Welcome to my life.

My name is Gregory DeVico. I am attending City Tech and studying Hospitality Management. My dream position is to be a wedding planner. When it comes to school I am not an “A” student, however I am a student who works their hardest and their works proves just that. What interested me in the Hospitality field is the feeling you get when you make someones day. Weather it is during those five seconds when they are getting a cup of coffee at Starbucks, or serving them at a restaurant. Regardless making someones day go from okay to great is something I strive for everyday I am at work. I am taking this course because well its a requirement. However I do enjoy reading and I am excited to be exposed to all sorts of literature this semester. I currently live with my sister in west Harlem. I am originally from Cape Cod, Mass so naturally I feel like I should live on a beach. I enjoy being outdoors and rock climbing. I just came back from spending the last seven months doing the Disney College Program, and it was the best seven months of my life. I also enjoy travelling and am going to Italy this summer for 2 weeks.