English 104 - Introduction to Narrative
Jim Light
The Word Became Flesh
Category: 2 Essay: Carroll, Twain, Faulkner, Sebold | Jim Light
The biblical incarnation of Christ is a seemingly unfathomable mystery. To fully comprehend the notion that a person could be both fully human and fully God is an impossible task. Instead, it is preferable to accept the divine qualities—omniscience, infiniteness—of Christ and ignore the human side. It is certainly harder...
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Posted by jlight on December 09, 2003 at 10:03 AM
The Perfect Physician
Category: 10 Blog: The Lovely Bones | Jim Light
From relatives like Lindsey to friends and acquaintances such as Ruth, Susie’s mourners seem related through their possession of prominent gifts and talents. Outstanding among these is Ray Singh—the boy Susie grew fond of during the last weeks of her life. He was a man of “higher breeding”; he, “…saw...
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Posted by jlight on December 04, 2003 at 01:14 AM
To Laughter and Contempt
Category: 09 Blog: As I Lay Dying | Jim Light
In books and movies, insanity is frequently associated with irrepressible laughter. This comes at little surprise as laughter is fundamentally an outburst of emotion, often coupled with repressed feelings of shame, fear, and hatred. Darl’s case is no exception. After setting fire to the barn—a desperate effort, it seems, to...
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Posted by jlight on November 25, 2003 at 09:59 AM
Instrument of Division
Category: 08 Blog: As I Lay Dying | Jim Light
The world’s rugged, pastoral qualities shape the narration throughout As I Lay Dying. Though there are many voices, each articulates their piece of the larger story with an understanding of humanity’s necessary relationship to the land. One of the most potent symbols of this bond is the sound of Cash’s...
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Posted by jlight on November 18, 2003 at 09:45 AM
Motivation
Category: 07 Blog: Huckleberry Finn | Jim Light
Huck’s father is dead. At first glance, this revelation itself (made at the novel’s close) has little effect. The fact that Jim reveals it, though, has the farthest reaching effect on his character in the novel. The disclosure occurs quietly at the end of the novel when Huck inquires about...
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Posted by jlight on November 11, 2003 at 09:49 AM
Love/Hate Relationship
Category: 06 Blog: Huckleberry Finn | Jim Light
For Huck, the presence of the King and Duke is a constant reminder of Pap. As if the discovery of his father, dead, polluting the sanctity of the river was not enough of a foreshadowing, the King and Duke presage a return to the corrupt social order. Huck knows the...
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Posted by jlight on November 04, 2003 at 09:43 AM
White Fog
Category: 05 Blog: Huckleberry Finn | Jim Light
There is a kind of haze that frames the character of Jim; perceived by the world as a naive slave, Jim is actually loyal and wise—causing Huck to continually question his own moral bearings. This becomes most evident when Huck’s raft runs straight into a thick, white fog. Huck and...
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Posted by jlight on October 28, 2003 at 01:01 AM
Stained Glass Frames
Category: 11 Essay: James and Bronte | Jim Light
From humble rumpus rooms to grand Gothic cathedrals, churches strive to be representations of the characteristics of God on earth. Obviously such a claim can never be fully realized. However, churches hold an association with righteousness and harmony that is found nowhere else. It is in this light that authors...
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Posted by jlight on October 23, 2003 at 09:51 AM
Race to Knowhere (or, The Caucus Race)
Category: 04 Blog: Alice in Wonderland | Jim Light
Alice’s journey through Wonderland is certainly a curious one, but it is Carroll’s manipulation of language and conversation that is, “curiouser and curiouser.” Assuredly, much of the narrative is a commentary on the absurdity of the English language and the ease in which communication is distorted. One such episode occurred...
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Posted by jlight on October 07, 2003 at 01:16 AM
A Means to an End
Category: 03 Blog: Wuthering Heights | Jim Light
Throughout literature, the demise of minor characters has often been used to illustrate the nature of evil in the world. Blind to the “innocent”, evil can destroy even the most pious of characters. Isabella has the ill-fated fortune of symbolizing that injustice, and even more tragic is the first-person narrative...
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Posted by jlight on September 30, 2003 at 12:24 AM
Churches
Category: 01 Blog: Turn of the Screw | Jim Light
After pondering the many intriguing sources of imagery and symbolism in The Turn of the Screw brought up in class discussion, I found myself recalling the instances of “going to church” within the novel. The theme piqued my interest, so I searched the book and found two significant instances of...
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Posted by jlight on September 23, 2003 at 01:37 AM
Delusions
Category: 02 Blog: Wuthering Heights | Jim Light
Reminiscent of Douglas in The Turn of the Screw, Lockwood constructs his own terse yet poignant framing of Wuthering Heights. But unlike the removed Douglas, Lockwood physically frames himself with the ghost of Catherine, seemingly “stepping into” Heathcliff’s position. It begins when Lockwood falls asleep and has a dream about...
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Posted by jlight on September 23, 2003 at 01:13 AM
Framestory
Category: 01 Blog: Turn of the Screw | Jim Light
Frame ('frAm) 4 : to fit or adjust especially to something or for an end : ARRANGE (Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary) It has been said that the eyes are the windows to the soul. This expression, though cliché, is insightful. But eyes—narrow and proportionally small to the whole body—allow little penetration...
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Posted by jlight on September 15, 2003 at 03:15 PM
The Importance of NOT being sternest...
Category: Jim Light
For my first blog I thought I would reprint some humor I found especially entertaining--a satirical Oxford entrance exam, to be exact. Enjoy! Oxford University Entrance Exam 1. H I S T O R Y Describe the history of the papacy from its origins to the present day, concentrating especially,...
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Posted by jlight on September 09, 2003 at 12:22 PM