DQ5 - 7/6/17
Hi, all. DQ 5 is on the Sigmund Freud reading, pages 1-12 and/or the reading of T.S. Eliot's Selected Poems 11-33, 38, 42, and 46. This covers the poems, "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock," "Portrait of a Lady," "Preludes," "Rhapsody on a Windy Night," "Gerontion," "A Cooking Egg," "Whispers of Immortality," and "Sweeney Among the Nightingales."
These readings might use some vocab words- if you find a word you're unfamiliar with, you should do a quick Google search for the word to get a definition. If you use Chrome, all you have to do is type the word into the search bar + definition. For instance, a quick search for "Gerontion" would yield the definition: little old man.
Thanks for a great discussion of our readings today. Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on Freud and/or Eliot.
These readings might use some vocab words- if you find a word you're unfamiliar with, you should do a quick Google search for the word to get a definition. If you use Chrome, all you have to do is type the word into the search bar + definition. For instance, a quick search for "Gerontion" would yield the definition: little old man.
Thanks for a great discussion of our readings today. Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on Freud and/or Eliot.
Ethan Vaughan 7/5
ReplyDeleteFreud quotes Jentsch who says, “In telling a story, one of the most successful devices for easily creating uncanny effects is to leave the reader in uncertainty whether a particular figure in the story is a human being or a automaton”. When Jentsch says this does he mean it automaton literally as in a self-operating robot or is he simply using the term to describe characters that lack humanizing features?
In “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” T.S Eliot repeats the lines “In the room the women go, talking of Michelangelo”. Why does he repeat the line twice in different part of the story? Is it to emphasize the regularity with which theses women are speaking of Michelangelo or is there another point to it?
Freud talks about the concept of a situation or thing being “ uncanny, “ incorporating Jentsch’s study about the same subject. Jentsch suggests that the feeling of uncanniness is attributed to “ intellectual uncertainty, “ while Freud says this definition is “ incomplete “ and that we should “ proceed beyond the equation ‘uncanny’ = ‘unfamiliar’. “ Do you agree with Freud that there’s more behind something coming off as uncanny, psychologically speaking?
ReplyDeleteFreud discusses the fact that certain events during childhood could lead to the uncanny effect in adulthood. He says that these experiences, even if you don't remember them, stay in your unconscious mind to create impulses of uncanniness towards certain objects or events. Do you think those certain events have to be major, or minor in your childhood? Have you ever experienced this yourself?
Isaac Bendus
ReplyDelete7/5/17
While reading “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock” by T.S. Elliot it left me with a question. Based on the unusual imagery that Elliot uses throughout the poem what period is this from and where is it taking place? Elliot describes the air to be filled with yellow smoke and the women having hairy arms.
The second question is from T.S. Elliot’s style in general. Why does he choose to use such weird imagery and descriptions of everyday items? Was this just his style of writing or is it something else? “At four and five and six o’ clock; And short square fingers stuffing pipes, and evening newspapers, and eyes assured of certain certainties”
What is the importance of the word Heimlich? What does it have to do with the uncanny since they seem to be opposite words? Heimlich means homey and comfortable which would be the opposite of uncanny. Is he trying to make a comparison between the two or is he trying to say that even though something is Heimlich it can still be uncanny?
ReplyDeleteWhat is the importance of reading this pice from a literary standpoint? If Freud was a psychologist and did most of research in psychology, what is the importance of reading this from a literary point of view?
Sean Butler
ReplyDelete7/5
In "Preludes" by Eliot, he opens the poem describing a small town in which the day is coming to an end by a somewhat gloomy tone. Lots of imagery is also shown about the environment of the town. Is Eliot trying to make people feel a certain mood? Or possibly by starting this way, this could be just a lead up to what else he has to say about the town.
In "Gerontion" Eliot seems as if he is trying to get his audience to feel pity towards him by calling himself an old man being bitten by flies and who has a decaying house. Just like in "Preludes", Eliot did not start off the poem in a happy or positive way. Could he possibly be showing pattern between his poems?
Brieanna Graves
ReplyDeleteJuly 5th, 2017
1. My first question is from Frued, on the bottom of page 219, it explains the word "uncanny" as a German word which literally means unhomely. Yet, continues to explain that the English definition is not the same. With this being said what does the word uncanny actually mean? Why did the author not give us the English definition?
2. My second questions is from The Love Song of J. Alfred, I interpreted the piece as if the narrator is about to say something to someone but gets scared, why does the author choose not to share this with the reader?
Lauren Fiorito
ReplyDeleteJune 5, 2017
In “Portrait of a Lady” by T.S Eliot, he mentions “And four wax candles in the darkened room, Four rings of light upon the ceiling overhead,” is there a reason that there is exactly four candles and four rings of light and is it symbolic? The poem also mentions “Now that lilacs are in bloom/ She has a bowl of lilacs in her room” so what is the significance of the lilacs as compared to all other flowers?
In “A Cooking Egg” T.S Eliot talks about how life will be like in Heaven, what he wants and doesn’t want, who he will see and what to expect, but it never mentions anything remotely similar to “a cooking egg” so where did get that title from and what is the meaning of it?
Peter Hoyt
ReplyDeleteMy questions are on “the love song of J. Alfred Prufrock”
I get the overall idea of the poem, but i am not completely certain that i know the specific scenario he is describing. I know he is speaking about him and a woman, and i know he is wondering about asking a question to her.
1)Is he describing taking this woman out on a date?
2) if the question he keeps talking about is something that he wants to wait to ask till the end, and if he’s worried if he’ll be able to ask, is he going to ask if she will have sex with him?
Daniella Alamo
ReplyDeleteIn the poem The love song of J. Alfred Prufrock, the narrator Pufrock, lives a somewhat lonely and empty life. He seems to want to do life changing important things but never gets around to them and eventually he grows old and dies. Why does he never get around to them? What was holding him back?
In Rhapsody on a Windy Night, the narrator is traveling alone on an empty street in the middle of the night. He describes the night and what he sees every hour or so, that is how the poem is set up. In each paragraph he goes back to referencing the street lamps and what they are saying to him in the night. Why? What meaning does the street lamps have?
Julia Weisberg
ReplyDelete7-5-17
In “The Love Story” by J. Alfred Prufrock, why is the phrase “There will be time” repeated? He uses the phrase five times and he could have worded it differently if he wanted to. What is Prufrock trying to emphasize by using this phrase so much in such a short space of time?
Frued tells the story of the sandman in “Uncanny” and he goes into detail about everything in the story. What is the purpose of him telling this to the readers? Is he trying to prove something about uncanny by telling it and if so what is Frued revealing through the story?
Carolyn Collins
ReplyDeleteJuly 5, 2017
In the poem “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" by T.S. Elliot, Prufrock says “"I have measured out my life with coffee spoons." What exactly does he mean by this? Is it because he tends to live his life carefully without taking any risks? The narrator also states, “Do I dare disturb the universe?”. Does this mean he lets the outer world dictate him? He seems very self-conscious and is scared to do anything out of the ordinary. He was also too scared to reveal the secret he was going to share, so what is he so afraid of?
Kylie Simmons
ReplyDeleteJuly 5, 2017
After reading the selected pages from Freud's The Uncanny, I have come up with two questions. The first being Freud's insistence that every new experience is frightening or "uncanny." Simply because something is new doesn't mean it should be frightening. Why does he feel every new experience is "uncanny?" New occurrences are a basic part of life, and are not something that should be feared.
My second question arises from page 10 in the reading where Freud discusses "helplessness in dream states." What is exactly helpless about dreaming?
In the poem on page 42, "Whispers of Immortality," T.S. Eliot uses three characters to explain life. The first two were males, Webster and Bonne. Both these characters were described as dark and depressing. The third was a female, Grishkin. She was described as a majestic "bliss". Do you think Eliot specifically used a female for the third character because females are more graceful?
ReplyDeleteHe also talks about Grishkin in a sexual way. He says, "Uncorsetted, her friendly bust gives promise of pneumonic bliss." Could this be his way of describing the phases of life, one of which being reproducing lives?
In the love song of J. Alfred Prufrock, the women often mentioned Michaelangelo. Michealangelo wasn't referenced any other time during the poem unless the women said something about him. What was the purpose of mentioning michealangelo? Gerontion begins by saying "no youth or age", but the narrator goes on to say "but I'm an old man." Why did Eliot say there wasn't an age then makes the narrator say he was old?
ReplyDeleteWhy do you suppose that in T.S. Eliot’s The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock his first stanza is in Italian? The poem is still understandable if you were to skip over the stanza because you did not know Italian. So then why does Eliot even include it in the first place?
ReplyDeleteIn T.S. Eliot’s Rhapsody on a Windy Night the second stanza is describing what the street lamp said and how it spoke. Why do you suppose Eliot used personification on the street lamp? Do you think that what the street lamp had to say was significant?
Tyler Crane
ReplyDelete7-5-17
In both poems, Portrait of a Lady and The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock, T.S Elliot mentions either smoke or fog. Elliot describes "yellow fog" and "yellow smoke" in The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock, and "the smoke and fog of a December afternoon" in Portrait of a Lady. Is this a common motif used by Elliot? Does he incorporate this motif for any other reason than developing setting?
Frued states " Naturally not everything that is new and unfamiliar is frightening, however; the relation is not capable of inversion." Im having trouble understanding what he means by this. Is he saying that not everything frightening is unfamiliar/new?
Lexy Liggett
ReplyDelete7/5/17
As I was reading Freud's "Uncanny", a couple questions arose.
1) Freud describes everything as if he is wary of it. He treats every situation as if your first reaction should be uneasiness due to the "uncanniness" he interprets them as. He seems very hesitant and self-conscious. What are Freud's true underlying fears?
2) Freud brings up the concept that certain events that occurred in adolescence or feelings you had as a child stay in your unconscious until you grow to be an adult and they are revealed. Freud himself does not admit to having impulses that stayed with him throughout his life in this text, but I wonder what they are?
ReplyDelete1. One phrase that stuck out to me in "The love song of J. Alfred Prufrock" was 'I have measured out my life with coffee spoons.' This begs many questions and allows the reader to draw his or her own conclusion. But what does this mean on a deeper level of T.S. Elliot's life? Does it mean that his life is measured and precise, and is this good or bad?
2. The tone of "Portrait of a Lady" seems to be negative and monotone. A woman is mentioned multiple times, so assuming that this poem is about a relationship: is the man in the poem T.S. Elliot himself, and could this be a true recounting of events?
Isabeau Cordes
ReplyDelete7/5/17
1.In the reading by Freud, it stated that “people vary so very greatly in their sensitivity to this”, meaning the uncanny.What might make a person more or less sensitive to the uncanny, and what would that mean for them?
2.Is Freud trying to say that everything unfamiliar or “uncanny” is frightening? If he were, how would people function throughout their life, as they encounter unfamiliar things daily?
Kevin Driggs
ReplyDelete7/5/17
In Freud's writing he speaks about the uncanny and how it is what excites fear. Earlier than that he talks about how a psycho-analyst is compelled to try and understand the theory of the qualities of feeling but he speaks on how it is a dangerous place to lurk and try to explore since it is where fear arises from. How do you think Freud went into looking into the uncanny himself and try to explore it? Do you think someone told him or that he found out about the "uncanny" himself?
He also says that something has to be added to something unfamiliar to make it uncanny. Do you think this added item has to do with pre-thoughts and bias people have, or is it something that just clicks when exploring the uncanny?
Olivia LongshoreIn
ReplyDelete1. “A Cooking Egg” of T.S. Eliot’s Selected Poems, Eliot repeats the phrase “I shall not … in heaven” in the beginning of each stanza, then, he breaks the pattern by asking a question. What is the significance of this form and does it contribute to the function of the poem.
2. “Prelude I” in T.S. Eliot’s Selected Poems describes an eery scene that takes place in the winter at 6 o’clock. The scene describes the point in the night when the sun first sets and it is not yet dark enough for street lights to come on. Is the reason Eliot places a break in the poem before revealing that the lights come on because in real life there is a pause between sun set and street lights coming on? Or is this break in form more symbolic?
Karina Amalbert
ReplyDeleteJuly 5, 2017
This may be too specific of a question but, analyzing “Portrait of a women” by T.S Eliot, the main apparent stylistic technique seemed to be his usage of couplets and triplets when either the persona is speaking or, which this may vary based on analysis, the “women” in the poem is giving advice. I was wondering as to why this was chosen and the variety it was utilized in relating back to the overall meaning of the poem?
More of a general question would be the darkness and somber tone found in the poems. Did Eliot relate his life to his poetry or was it a trend in the time?
In one of the selected readings from "Uncanny" the author mentions how there has to be some sort of unfamiliar type of language to make the novel or story interesting. Is he saying that the english language lacks the type of vocabulary or mystery to actually fulfill their ability to make the story more attention grabbing, or does he mean no language is able to do this? My second question I had from this reading is does the story actually have to be a mystery or a certain type of genre to be able to use this? Or should all pieces of writing have this type of uncertainty to grab readers attention?
ReplyDeleteWhile reading "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock", there was a phrase that was repeated multiple times: "How should I presume?" and he then asks if he should. This was interesting. What was the purpose of it? Was it because he wanted to remind the reader to think of the question or was there a deeper underlying meaning?
ReplyDeleteAlso, is Freud’s use of the German language an effective approach to discussing what the “uncanny” is in todays times? In other words is Freud’s explanation one that has regional and time bounds or is the premise of the topic one that serves no bounds?
Kayla Camarillo
ReplyDeleteJuly 5th, 2017
I get what is going on in the poem, “Portrait of a Lady” but I was confused at the part when the man takes his hat instead of making “a cowardly amends”. Did he take his hat to make it less awkward or does he not want to show how he truly feels about the situation?
After reading, “The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock I don’t really understand the ending of the poem. I know that Prufrock is drowning with his love in the ocean but it just doesn’t make complete sense to me. I don’t really understand how it relates to the rest of the poem. Maybe this isn't really happening, could it be a dream or something?
In "The Love Song," by J. Alfred Prufrock, one line really stuck out to me and I could not figure out what he was referencing to, he says "That is not it at all, That is not what I meant, at all." The only conclusion I could come to was that someone had misinterpreted what he had said, but what did they misinterpret? To me, it seemed to not fit in the spot he put it and it left me confused. I feel that he has a deeper, or hidden meaning behind that phrase. With that being said, what does he mean by that line and who or what is he referencing it to?
ReplyDeleteIn the poem, "Rhapsody on a Windy Night," why does he switch languages? He goes from "Regard the moon," to "La lune ne garde aucune rancune" is it for more than artistic reasons? Does he have another message or point to the switch in languages?
We know that "Portrait of a Lady" and "The Love Song of J Alfred Putrock" were T.S. Eliot's two Boston poems. In them, he describes high class life and society at the time. He portrays life, and the people around him, as cold and unfeeling. Thinking about the descriptions he gives us in these two works, are there any parallels you can draw between society during the post- World War I era and society today?
ReplyDeleteThinking specifically about "Portrait of a Lady", Eliot portrays the "lady" as one who lacks warmth and life ("atmosphere of Juliet's tomb") and is unable to connect with people (specifically, the male in the poem). Why do you think that women were portrayed in this manner during this time period? Did the war have anything to do with it or was that behavior simply a societal custom? Was it just women that remained closed off or were men that way too?
Jesse Spear
ReplyDeleteIn Portrait of a Lady T. S. Eliot is describing hearing or feeling his heart beat in his head but then says "That is at least one definite "false note." "; a false note is an insincere gesture. Why would he call the racing of his heart insincere does he not truly love her, I don't get that from the poem or does it mean he does not want the love he feels for her and knows nothing can or will come of it?
In Rhapsody on a Windy Night it ends with the line "The last twist of the knife." is this a metaphor like how the last twist of the knife kills someone hitting the bed is the final thing that puts him to sleep or is this literal where he kills himself?
In "The Cooking Egg" the author TS Eliot describes his ideal heaven while sitting in what seems like the living room of a home. He consistently explains what he doe not want heaven to be like, and proceeds to follow up with what he personally wants from heaven. What does he up to achieve using this pattern in his writing? Is it indicative of a deeper symbolism?
ReplyDeleteIn the poem by TS Eliot "Sweeney Among the Nightingales" the author makes an allusion to a character known as Agamemnon. Upon further research I learned Agamemnon and Sweeney both mistreated women, so it is assumed that the two women from the poem are conspiring against Sweeney. With this in mind, can it be assumed this poem has feminist values? It is possible that the author is supporting the women in their plot against Sweeney.
Anthony Duarte
ReplyDeleteJuly 5, 2017
Throughout “The Cooking Egg” the narrator talks about his expectations for what heaven will be like and then goes on to say what he will not want. The line “Where are the eagles and the trumpets?” states how he is not content and has higher expectations that are not being met. What is he referring to that is not good enough for him?
Within the poem “Whispers of Immortality” I questioned the following “The circles of the stormy moon Slide westward toward the River Plate, Death and the Raven drift above and Sweeney guards the hornèd gate”. It’s as if he's getting the feeling that something bad is going to happen but what is going to happen and why?
In Freud's essay Freud explains how Spalanazi and Coppola are recreations of Nathaniel's father. The characters seem nothing alike. Nathaniel's father was nice and canny whereas Coppola is uncanny and evil. How did Freud make this claim?
ReplyDeleteTo clarify, the word uncanny has an assortment of meanings. In my opinion, the most helpful claim regarding uncanny is the fact that uncanny feelings are sparked from the cross between reality and cognitive imagination. Do you all agree?