The Romance of Etymology

In choosing the word romance I began to realize my obvious inclination toward sappiness and the like. I feel naturally drawn toward romance and all that the word embodies; lust, love, sexuality, enchantment, and/or amour. Maybe it's the fact that I can relate toward this deeply rooted humanistic aspect of life or that romance is ridiculously predictable so I never feel lost, but whatever the reason may be for my unrelenting passion for romance, it exists nonetheless. I think it'll be interesting to discover romance and it's many facets. The complexity is overwhelming, for example, romance can be public or secretive, full of lust or sincerity, genuine or artificial, sexual, emotional, and the list goes on and on. Romance is a universal feeling that can be found anywhere from television and novels, to real life.  

Codes of Chivalry

The Song of Roland serves as an important source of the codes of chivalry which many stories of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table live by. The song suggests 17 codes ranging from "protect the weak and the defenseless" to "despise pecuniary reward". These sacred oaths outlined the mannerisms and conduct of the Middle Ages and Medieval Era and are displayed in Medieval Romantic literature such as Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. Although other sources of these codes have been found such as the Duke of Burgandy in the 14th Century, the core principles (bravery, courtesy, honor, and gallantry toward women) remain consistent. This moral system, also known as Charlemagne's Code of Chivalry, was composed between 1098-1100 and describes the betrayal of Count Roland and his eventual death. These moral codes embody Roland's loyal character and the meaning of chivalry. 

To fear God and maintain His Church

To serve the liege lord in valour and faith

To protect the weak and defenceless

To give succour to widows and orphans

To refrain from the wanton giving of offence

To live by honour and for glory

To despise pecuniary reward

To fight for the welfare of all

To obey those placed in authority

To guard the honour of fellow knights

To eschew unfairness, meanness and deceit

To keep faith

At all times to speak the truth

To persevere to the end in any enterprise begun

To respect the honour of women

Never to refuse a challenge from an equal

Never to turn the back upon a foe

Source: http://www.middle-ages.org.uk/knights-code-of-chivalry.htm

He doesn't know who I am.

He doesn't know who I am, and I'm his own mother. He goes day in an day out thinking that I don't love him, thinking that I'm incapable of feeling emotion, not knowing how much I long to communicate with him. God hasn't just cursed my son, he's cursed me too. What is a mother without the love of her child? I see the loneliness in his eyes and yet I can do nothing but cry inside. He doesn't know what I'm feeling, he doesn't know how much I want. I see him go out into the world searching for that someone that will teach him how to live and his role on this planet knowing that I can never provide him with the necessities he longs for. The fact that I can only show my love through physically saving him on occasion from harm in the world pains me in a way that he will never know. He suffers, but I do too.

I have this feeling inside that my baby has been hurt. He's different now; he's more violent, more cynical, increasingly agitated. What has the world done to my baby? There is nothing I can do but sit in my cave and watch the world slowly destroy him bit by bit. It's painful to watch his inevidable demise. Why can't I help him? Why must I have this blessed curse? Just once to talk to him, to tell him how I feel, to let him know he's not alone and unloved in this world. If only...

Translating the Chronicler

The Norman Conquest

Project #6: "Thus com engelond in to normandies hond. And the normans ne couthe speke tho bote hor owe speche, and speke french as hii dude atom, and hor children dude also teche."

My attempt to translate: "Thus came England into Normandy's hand. And the Normans could not speak anything but our own language, and speak French as they did before, and our children did also teach."

Interpretation: I think the chronicler is trying to explain that when the Norman's invaded England they could not speak any language but their own, so French and English coexisted in France.

Literary Criticism

     In 1824 an anonymous author from Knight's Quarterly wrote a review of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. The writer was succinct and justified in his or her negative criticism and reveals many imperfections the book contains. There are a couple key points that are important to highlight:

• Mary Shelley wrote the entire book with a hasty tone. The plot line is rushed and leads to many unrealistic situations. The critic writes that this type of story would require time and development.
• The science is completely unrealistic and unbelievable. Points such as the unnecessary great size of the monster, the unearthly ugliness from something that was made out of human parts, and the fact that Shelley tries to define life by making it create-able, bring up many aspects of the book that detract from the quality.
• The critic sympathizes with the monster only because his suffering from loneliness and bitter occurrences with humans. The suffering of the monster is the only thing imaginably human in the novel but is quickly drowned out by the obvious imperfections within the other characters.  

     This new information has shed light on a completely different aspect of the novel that I hadn't thought about before. The critic unveils many problems, such as those listed above, that I had never thought of before. Now when I read passages from the novel I look at the story with a critical eye and different, more negative, opinion.

Close Reading

     Mary Shelley's Frankenstein is a novel of much complexity, particularly within Victor Frankenstein's, thought process. Being that he is the narrator of a big part of the story, the reader is able to peer into the complicated inner-workings of Frankenstein's mind. By doing so, one realizes that his opinions and ideas shift and his intentions become convoluted.
     In Chapter III Mary Shelley describes the process in which Frankenstein goes about creating his monster. Specifically in the paragraph "No one can conceive...the body to corruption", Frankenstein seems to occupy selfish thoughts. He states, "A new species would bless me as its creator and source; many happy and excellent natures would owe their being to me." The idea of being a creator and god-like figure greatly appeals to Victor and it appears as though his greed and curiosity combine as driving forces in beginning his creation. Even before Frankenstein begins to work on his project he establishes his condition of having a variety of feelings that, at first, presented themselves as exciting. The tone of his narration, however, suggests that this excitement was not everlasting. With a background of in-depth scientific study, it is only obvious to assume that Frankenstein was naturally compelled to seek out greater scientific phenomenon, however, it appears as though the selfish desire of being able to call something his own drove Victor as well.
     The next paragraph, which begins with "These thoughts supported my spirits" and ends with "I brought my work near to a conclusion", shows the metamorphosis of both Frankenstein's mental and physical state. He describes his emaciated body and pale countenance and suggests the development of an obsession. Frankenstein addresses the shame and embarrassment of anyone ever finding out of his monstrous creation. However, he adds that he had an unrelenting hope that he could not let go of. The dark-side of his experiment was his unhealthy fixation to finish the constructed entity. The paragraph ends by depicting the chore-like fashion by which Frankenstein concluded his work.
     Even at the early stages of the story Shelley creates a complex attitude towards Frankenstein's work and  shows an evolution of thought process. This intricacy establishes a more life-like character because everyone goes through a metamorphosis of ideas and opinions, and the increased severity of the scenario creates a more interesting character as well.

Love

I find the fact that love exists within both the natural and artificial beings to be the most intriguing fact of the entire novel. In the case of the monster yearning for a female version of himself, we are shown a version of love that is not created, but rather, one that exists among all life forms on this planet. The demise of both Victor Frankenstein and his creation is accredited to the lack of companionship and increased loneliness. The absence of affection drives both characters insane and eventually leads to the death of one of them. I like that love is emphasized as a really important factor to stay sane and ultimately, stay alive.

Most Memorable Books

1. Beachy summer novels by Sarah Dessen. In 7th grade these books compelled me to read more than I had ever before. They were simple and cheesy, but so addicting. I'll admit, I am a romantic.
2. Alright, if I'm going to claim to be a real romantic I have to add a Nicholas Sparks book as well. The Choice literally brings me to tears every time. Plus, Sparks is a super safe alternative if you're hoping for a happy ending, because these Victorian love stories really leave me distressed when all doesn't end well.
3. In 2nd grade I picked up The Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum and read the book cover to cover in 2 days, and I've read it every year since. Something about those flying monkeys just get me every time.
4. I just recently picked up Wuthering Heights and could not get enough of it. The dark love story drew my attention more than any other love story I've ever read.
5. I can't forget to add Gone with the Wind to that list of dark love stories. Rhett Butler might not give a damn about Scarlett O'Hara, but she was one of the most admirable female characters I've read about. 
6. Khaled Hosseini's The Kite Runner struck a cord in me because of the similar cultural context. I could relate to the reactions of conditions in the Middle East because of my Iranian background and felt the need to make a change after reading the story. 
7. Of course I had to read Stieg Larsson's well-known murder mystery series. I actually went through a phase in 7th grade that consisted of numerous murder mystery novels, but Larsson's Dragon Tattoo series was some seriously good stuff. 
8. I read The Color Purple Sophomore year and as depressing and heart-wrenching as the story was, it was just too good to put down. Books like this one and The Kite Runner show the existence of immorality and injustice and make me want to punch a hole in the wall and scream while I'm reading them. I figure the more I educate myself, the more well-equipped I am to help make a change.
9. Okay, I'm sorry Mr. Swingler, you aren't a very boring teacher, but I couldn't help reading Jhumpa Lahiri's short stories during your physics class last year. They're short, but interesting. Lahiri explores topics such as diversity, assimilation, love, identity, and tradition in concise tales. 
10. Fahrenheit 451 has got to be one of the only-and if it isn't then it's the best because it's the only one I can remember-science fiction novels I have ever read. Dare I say it was amazing? It was only the most outlandish, futuristic, backwards, hard to imagine stories I have tried to follow. 

Okay so as I've reached the end I must too admit that I've only read the first Harry Potter. I have tried to read The Hunger Games but I had no idea what was going on in the beginning so I gave up. I had to stop with the Twilight nonsense after Eclipse. And I have a giant list of books that I will undoubtedly never manage to finish.

P.S. I lied, I just remembered I read A Wrinkle in Time and that has to be the most outlandish book I've ever read.