Blog 1

 This is most definitely not my first time reading this poem but every time I read it I seem to get a new perspective. I used to think Thomas Gray was just writing about his creepy experience in a graveyard, but it is actually much more than that. While walking through the churchyard, Gray makes up a story about each persons tombstone he sees. I found it very interesting the way he could base an entire life story based simply off of someones name and the way their tombstone looked. It is quite possible Gray is putting into perspective how much people judge others simply on the way they look, when in reality no one will ever know a persons real story. Gray also could have just been creative in this poem and making up stories about the people, but once again, no one will ever know the true story. 

In the film Tom Jone's, there was a scene where essentially every man in the film and a large group of dogs were chasing after a deer for a very long amount of time. The way the scene was displayed seemed extremely similar to one of the first poems we read this semester called "The Hunting of the Hare" by Cavendish. Although the men and dogs were chasing two completely different animals, the scenes were extremely similar, to the point where when I was watching this scene I questioned whether it was based on "The Hunting of the Hare." I also found the scene to be a bit unnecessary. It just showed a bunch of men falling off their horses while chasing a deer that the dogs ate most of when it was caught, just to show Tom Jone's save Sophia. Despite this one part, I really do enjoy the film so far and look forward to finishing it.  

 It has been said that Lord Chesterfield did not intend on these letter to his son to be released to the public, and I can most definitely see why. His letters exposed the fact that he was somewhat of his poser in life before he actually reached his wealth and fame. In letter 23, he simply told his son that although he is not in the upperclass, if he looked at acted like it, people would think he was, and treat him better than others. In letter 24 he seems to be talking down on a certain group of people. Chesterfield explained to his son that if he is interacting with others he might as well got something out of it in return, whether it be education, or something materialistic. Chesterfield wants nothing but success for his son and makes sure he understands that he must find a balance between business and fun. He seems like a very supportive father that wants the best for his son, but sometimes I feel as though his advice is a bit elementary and he is talking to his son like he is ...

 I find journals to be the most boring pieces we cover in class. It is very unnecessary for an author to include every minuscule detail that has happened in his life for over a year. The book moved so slow and I felt as though after I read six pages, Boswell was still talking about the same conversation he had with one of his friends over dinner. One of the few things I actually did find interesting was the fact that Boswell and his friend, Mr. Johnson, often talked about other poets and authors during this time such as Swift, whom Mr. Johnson referred to as overrated at one point in the journal. The small parts where Boswell explained his father being upset with him for not pursuing a job as a lawyer was also intriguing to me because it was somewhat of a story and kept me engaged for a slight period of time. It was very difficult to focus on this book. Nothing personal toward Boswell, I just really struggle in following journals. 

This was most definitely not only one of my favorite books I have read in this class, but one of my favorite books I have read in general. I love the message of this story. Something I found so important was the fact that when the Wakefields were wealthy in the beginning they were still relatively generous to the community, but when they lost all their money no one really seemed to care. The family continued to get struck down with terrible luck but remained by each others side the entire time. As the story began to rap up, Thornhill, the man that betrayed Olivia was exposed for what he had not only done to her but several other people as well. Suddenly everything that had gone wrong in the Wakefields lives had essentially reversed itself. Goldsmiths reasoning for having this family make almost a full circle of their lives could be a lesson to always appreciate what you have when you are fortunate, and those that give back will soon be given something in return, no matter how long it t...

 When reading this novel I began to quickly loose patience. I have never read a story that has jumped around and contradicted itself as much as this one. When writing this novel Sterne seemed to approach this with absolutely no plan and simply wrote whatever came to mind in the moment. Although some of my peers seemed to enjoy this novel because at the beginning of every chapter Sterne gave a very in-depth introduction and essentially summarized the chapter himself. In a sense I did enjoy this because it somewhat cleared up the confusion I felt throughout this entire novel, but I also found it a bit unnecessary. I do not recall reading any other pieces by Laurence Sterne so I am unsure if this is his constant writing style. If that is the case I have no intentions of exploring his writing anymore than i already have. I have read a lot of novels throughout my life and this is possibly of my least favorite in terms of writing style and simply the story itself.