Common Place Book-Comp II by Payne Comp II Commonplace Book

#1: "The Chaser" by John Collier

jtypayne — 2015-10-24 02:16:06 UTC

In Collier's short story, a young man searches out a love potion to use on his then crush. The irony in the story was that the man selling the potions also gave him information about a poison that was much more expensive, and the seller seemed to believe that the young man would be back. What stuck out to me was the old mans description of love, "How carefully she will look after you! She will never allow you to be tired, to sit in a draught, to neglect your food. If you are an hour late, she will be terrified. She will think you are killed, or that some siren has caught you". The old man’s definition of love along with the constant reminder of the “glove cleaner” should have been enough to scare off any young boy.

#4: “Desiree’s Baby” by Kate Chopin

jtypayne — 2015-11-14 20:27:28 UTC

Chopin's short story was great. The language and subtle descriptions did a great job in taking the reader into the location and time period without dedicating a large portion of the story to setting the scene. I really enjoy stories that are based in the past and allow a glimps into the culture of that time and place because I have to imagine pre civil war Louisiana was quite different from present day. When Madame Volmonde arrived to see Desiree she described the Armandi plantation as "It was a sad looking place, which for many years had not known the gentle presence of a mistress"

#10: "Two Kinds" by Amy Tan

jtypayne — 2015-11-30 17:57:45 UTC

Amy Tan's "Two Kinds" is about a Chinese-American girl who is under extreme pressure from her mother to be a child prodigy and become famous. Amy worked hard to make her mother and father proud of her until she couldn't take the disappointment and began to rebel. most people can understand the pressure described in this short story, and being that my mother's family is Korean I learned very early that my interactions with half of my family is extremely different than the other half of my family. My Nana is very goal oriented and pushed all of her grandchildren to make the most out of opportunities that she did not have. I was able to relate to this story and found the viewpoints of the young girl interesting.

#8: "Reunion" by John Cheever

jtypayne — 2015-11-30 18:17:48 UTC

I found "Reunion" to be a sad short story. The story is of a interaction between a father and son that hadn't seen each other for a period of time. The son was very excited to get a chance to spend time catching up with his father. The father was extremely rude to everyone they came in contact with, because of his rudeness the father and son grouping spent almost all of their time walking between different places to have a drink and something to eat. Their interaction ended with the boy saying"'Goodbye, Daddy,' I said and i went down the stairs and got my train, and that was the last time i saw my father". "Reunion" compared to "Two kinds" are two very different stories of the parent and child dynamic.

#2: "Eleven" by Sandra Cisneros

jtypayne — 2015-11-30 18:21:28 UTC

"I'm eleven today. I'm eleven, ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three two and one, but i wish i was one hundred and two." Sandra Cisneros's short story "Eleven" is about a young girls eleventh birthday and her experience of being upset by a teacher and classmates that give her a hard time. Looking back at a specific childhood experience after a long period of time provides a perspective that allows the situation to be analyzed without the emotions that were being experienced at the time. I really like the way age is explained as not being the number of years you have been alive but the sum of all those years.

#3: "A&P" by John Updike

jtypayne — 2015-11-30 18:22:31 UTC

"A&P" is a short story about a young man Sammy's experience at work when three young women walk in and grab ahold of Sammy's attention. The story takes the reader through Sammy's thought process when he decides to quit his job and how he feels the decision may have been made hastily. Being a man, it is easy to relate to the story. How a situation that is as simple as a 19 year old boy at work can have more going on than it initially seems and how easy it is to be distracted and lose focus when the job may not be something that you plan on doing forever. Sammy's conversation with his co-worker, the customers and his boss remind me of my first job while in high school at quiktrip.

#5: "Introduction to Poetry" by Billy Collins

jtypayne — 2015-11-30 18:23:31 UTC

Billy Collins poem is about comprehension of poems. Collins compares how he would like the reader to consume the work versus how poems are normally consumed which he describes vividly as "… tie the poem to a chair with a rope and torture a confession out of it". Having never thought about how I personally disseminate poetry, this poem provides me something that i could work towards. I would like the ability to, as Collins puts it "walk inside the poem's room and feel the walls for a light switch."

#6: "A Dream Deferred" by Langston Hughes

jtypayne — 2015-11-30 23:30:43 UTC

Langston Hughes poem "A Dream Deferred", Hughes answers the question "What happens to a dream deferred?". Without describing what the "dream" is, whoever is reading the poem is themselves left to decide the dream that is referred to and also the answer to the question. The poem is brief but allows the reader to seeks answers for themselves.

#7: "The Red Convertible" by Louis Eldrich

jtypayne — 2015-11-30 23:31:35 UTC

"The Red Convertible" is a story about two brothers that live on an indian reservation and how their relationship is changed after the older brother goes to war and comes back different. The car in the story is used to show the dynamic between the two brothers. When they first purchase the car they do so togther and use the car to spend time together, when the older brother leaves for the army he leaves the keys with his younger brother who takes care of the car but does not use it as much with his brother not there to use it with him. When his brother comes back and is not the same, "When he came home, though Henry was very different, and i'll say this: the change was no good". The younger brother no knowing how to help his brother, damages the car on purpose in the hope that fixing it up would give his brother some purpose and help restore their relationship. The story although focused on the red convertible was about how that car mirrored the brothers relationship.

#9:"The Things They Carried" by Tim O'Brien

jtypayne — 2015-11-30 23:32:09 UTC

"To cary something was to 'hump' it, as when Lieutenant Jimmy Cross humped his love for Martha up the hills and through the swamps." The things they carried gives readers a look at how a soliders personality was reflected in the things that they choose to carry with them. In the story Jimmy Cross carries letters and a picture of a girl that he has a relationship with. The personal things that Cross carries help him focus on something other than the war they are in the midst of. After reading the story I found it interesting to attempt to use the examples of what the soldiers in the story carried and thought about what I would consider valuable in that situation.

#11: "My Papa's Waltz" by Theodore Roethke

jtypayne — 2015-11-30 23:32:46 UTC

Theodore Roethke uses poetry to describe a warm childhood memory of dancing with his father. From

"But I hung on like death

Such waltzing was not easy" , we can assume this was not a one time occurrence but something that became part of their relationship. This poem add's to the two other stories about the parent child dynamic. Compared to "Two Kinds" and "Reunion" "My papa's Waltz" tells a much happier story.

#12: "Everyday Use" by Alice Walker

jtypayne — 2015-11-30 23:34:34 UTC

Alice Walker's "Everyday Use" is a story about how a family made up of a mother and two daughters (Dee and Maggie) relationship changes when the oldest daughter, Dee, goes off to college and comes back with different world views and a different name. When Dee returns with her boyfriend to visit her mother and sister, Dee requests that her mother allow her to take a few quilts that are part of their families history. The mother explains those quilts have already been promised to maggie as a marriage gift and Dee complains "Maggie can't appreciate these quilts! She'd probably be backward enough to put them to everyday use." Dee finds that her mother would rather the quilts be used more than appreciated. I found similarities between this story and "The Red Convertible" both have a pair of siblings as the primary focus and both stories have a relationship that is changed after one of the siblings is absent for a period of time.

#13: "Trifles" by Susan Glaspell

jtypayne — 2015-11-30 23:34:58 UTC

I found "Trifles" very interesting. The fact that the men searching for clues that would help solve the reason why a man was murdered, are out thought by the two women brought along to gather clothes for the suspect. Due to societies standards of that time period one of the investigators even went as far as making a comment "" about the ability of women to comprehend what would be relevant to an investigation. While the men are busy searching for clues, the two women put togther a reasonable theory as to what could have taken place. The irony in the situation that the reason the women would not be of any use in the investigation was part of their theory as to why the women murdered her husband. Susan Glaspell's play gives a glimpse back in time to when women were not treated as equals to men but that did not stop the women in this story from having logical thought.

#14: "The Dowry" by Marjane Satrapi

jtypayne — 2015-12-01 03:11:08 UTC

Marjane Satrapi is a graphic artist and author. "The Dowry" is different from the rest of the readings simply for the fact that it is done through a different medium. Satrapi uses her ability to draw to help bring the story to life. With the drawings Satrapi is able to engage the reader in a different way. Being that it is not just a graphic story but a part of her biography is even more interesting. I normally associate graphic stories with comic books that depict science fiction super heroes, in "the Dowry" Satrapi use's the graphics to tell a true story.