Reflection on The Caretaker

I personally didn’t enjoy reading The Caretaker, by Harold Pinter. The play is ample with non-sequitors and the writing style doesn’t make the reader engaged in the reading. The text contains long speeches of the characters inner ideas or interrupted dialogue. The conversations that take place between the characters contain a lot of interruptions this confuses the reader. The three main characters in the play are Mick, his brother Aston , and Davies. The play is set in Mick’s house. The stage directions are were very useful they helped me visualize the play in front of me and understand clearly what was happening. Although I found it annoying to keep looking at the back of the book, where there was a diagram drawn. One absurd thing that occurs in the play is when the characters argue over the owner of the bag. They continue to argue until the bag is finally opened , and Davies realizes that the bag they’ve been fighting over isn’t the one he left at the place. I also didn’t like the ending of the play. It wasn’t very clear to me. It seems that the brothers are turning Davies out of what may be his last chance for shelter.

1. Write a brief descriptive paragraph that summarizes your IOP. Be sure to include the topic, your thesis, and the hook and any visual aids you used.

The aim of my IOP presentation was to investigate David Lurie's fall from grace; How and why did he fall from grace to disgrace?and IF he returns back to grace. I started my presentation with a song called I'm in Disgrace for The Kinks(I was able to relate the song to David's character and state after he fell from grace.) I then continued by giving brief definitions for the words grace and disgrace and the I started presenting my topic. I tackled my topic from two points : Political Disgrace and Personal Disgrace. I included quotations from the novel to support my interpretations and anaylsis.

2. In a well-developed paragraph reflect upon the lessons you learned as a result of the IOP process. This process includes the preparation of your presentation, its delivery, and the subsequent reflection you engaged in following the presentation itself.

The IOP presentation consists of three stages: planning, preparing, and delivering. Working on the IOP was a very fruitful experience. I learnt how to interpret a particular aspect from a story(in my case-thematic focus) and present it to the class in a formal yet entertaining way. I learnt to be ponctuel and present for less than 10 minutes and this helped me focus on the important things and exclude details and useless information (Its the quality not the quantity). After watching myself present the IOP presentation, I realized that it could have been much better. I should’ve practiced more reading the information and not reading from index notes. I should’ve concentrated more on the PowerPoint rather than on the index cards. I was a bit nervous, towards the end of the presentation I read the quotations fast. At some points I was hesitant, and I stopped at the end of every slide as if each is separate. I was supposed to link them. The song at the beginning was a good hook but I should’ve related it to my topic and spent some time talking about how it is relevant to my presentation and why I chose to put it. All in all, the IOP presentation was a great experience and its the start to the many presentations I will have to present in the future.

Oracle Night

1. What is your reaction to the novel as a whole? If you liked it, what did you enjoy most about it? If you didn't, what about the story did you find lacking?

I really enjoyed reading Paul Auster’s novel, Oracle Night. Even though the novel consists of a novel within a novel the plot was clear and I was able to keep track of the events. What I enjoyed most about the novel was the author’s writing style, footnotes and stories within stories. Auster uses simple language and through his characters he skillfully describes their exterior and interior worlds. The novel is enjoyable and its writing style grasps the readers attention.

Reflection on The Rock of Tanios

#1 : Most of the events depicted in the novel The Rock of Tanios by Amin Maalouf take place in a small village in the mountains of Lebanon called Kfaryabda. The author uses alot of Arabic terms and phrases. He also mentions several Lebanese customs which I am familiar with since I am Lebanese., for example the "kishk" meal they refer to on p.66, the uniform that the sheikh's wear p.10 " black baggy trousers(seroual), white striped shirt, terracotta colored cap...". The obligation for the citizens of Kfaryabda to kiss the Sheikhs hand at least once per month wasnt suprising to me becuause this is an old arabic custom that is still applied till now in certain arab countries. The act of kissing the hand shows respect and in many arab countries nowadays the children are obliged to kiss their fathers hand. Even the appelations that were used such as "Sheikh, Khoureeye.." sounded familiar. I really enjoyed reading the novel, the writing of this novel is admirable.

DON JUAN

1. The mock epic poem Don Juan is considered by many scholars to be Lord Byron's greatest work. What are your thoughts as to the literary worth of the first two cantos that we have read? Are they good poetry?

The mock epic poem Don Juan by Lord Byron is definitely good poetry. The poem is based on the life of the seducer Don Juan. Although the first two canto's were very long but its amazing how Lord Byron was able write a long story using poetic devices followed by a consistent rhyme scheme for each stanza(ottava rima stanza form) abababcc. Throughout his poem, Don Juan Lord Byron is poking fun at other poets, critics, and society. The speaker of the poem is Lord Byron himself and he speaks directly to the reader. Byron's Don Juan blends drama with humor, and sharp mockery of Western societies. Although many modern critics consider the self-proclaimed epic to be his masterpiece, however since I'm not very familiar with Byron's other works thereforeI'm in no position to judge his talent according to only one work.

Attached

I sat on the doorstep waiting for you

I waited for too long

I think its about time

I search for a new direction

that would take me somewhere not far away from you

I believe you'll show up someday

I will continue my life with this hope

Endless love is what its called

I hate that I love you.

Reflection on Disgrace

The novel Disgrace is a story seen through the eyes of David Lurie. David's point of view dominates the story. This technique gives the reader an access to not only David's words but also his unspoken thoughts. The reader becomes closely familiar with Lurie's desires and passions.

I enjoyed reading the novel, however I didnt understand most of the allusions but after I researched them it made more sense and I was able to relate them to the characters in the novel. I wasnt able to understand the Latin and Italian phrases, but I know they represent David's background.

Coetzee was truly able to grasp my attention at the beginning of the novel, but later when David goes to the farm it gets a bit boring. However the contrast between the urban life and the rural life is interesting. The ending wasnt very powerful. (I'm not sure this is the proper word to use, but I just didnt like the ending I was expecting a twist in the end).I was hoping to know what happened to Soraya, however she is never mentioned again. All in all, Disgrace was worth reading , its not a hard nor obscure novel, it explores the downfall of David Lurie. I strongly recommend others to read this novel.