Quarter 1 Reflection

All in all I think Quarter 1 went pretty well. I learned a lot about writing, expecially writing the memoir. Also the research presentations we did taught me a lot about citations. I think that the visual images unit was the most interesting and I really enjoyed analyzing the movies and pictures. I think that what was hard in this class at first was keeping up with the amount of work we had in it. I think by the end I learned how to manage my time pretty well. Some nights we would have like 30 pages to read plus and blog assignment and maybe something else. Ms. Froehlich's multitasking lecture really helped me become efficient in doing my assignments. I'm excited for Quarter 2 and to learn about new styles of writing.

Blog Post 5

There are many other characters in Sense and Sensibility besides Elinor and Marianne that not only shape the plot of the story, but the girl's lives as well. The relationships between these characters are often the cause of conflict throughout the book. John Dashwood is the half brother of Elinor and Marianne. He is married to Fanny Dashwood and both are very similar in nature. Both are conceited snobs who though sporadically reach out to others, are most of the time only concerned with themselves and their well being. Fanny can be very disagreeable and difficult to live with and John is often stubborn and inconsiderate. This is proven right at the beginning of the book when John must make the decision of what to give his half sisters after the death of his father. Fanny insists they give very little and her selfishness her proven through her logic which Austen explains by saying, "And what possible claim could the Dashwoods, who were related to him only by half blood, which she considered no relationship at all, have on his generosity to so large an amount? It was very well known, that no affection was ever supposed to exist between the children of any man by different marriages; and why was he to ruin himself, and their poor little Harry, by giving away all his money to his half sisters?" (7). Right from the beginning of the book, these two characters set off the conflict and tension in the relationships in the novel.

The two love interests throughout most of the book also add conflict by leaving Marianne and Elinor behind without remorse. Marianne falls quickly in love with a man named Willoughby who I find extremely inconsiderate. He abruptly leaves Marianne and the next time she sees him it is at a party where he completely ignores her. He only later writes to her to tell her that he is engaged to another woman! I believe that Willoughby is inconsiderate and afraid to take responsibility for his actions. He basically runs away from Marianne only to go marry another woman. Edward Ferrars is also similarly cowardly. He does not tell Elinor that he is engaged to Lucy. While their relationship was not quite as outward, it still leaves Elinor very upset. Much of the conflict involving Elinor and Edward revolves around his fiancé Lucy who Jane Austen describes as "Lucy was naturally clever; her remarks were often just and amusing; and as a companion for half an hour Elinor frequently found her agreeable; but her powers had received no aid from education: she was ignorant and illiterate; and her deficiency of all mental improvement, her want of information in the most common particulars, could not be concealed from Miss Dashwood, in spite of her constant Endeavour to appear to advantage"(113). Lucy from the start does not have a compatible personality with Elinor and is one of the catalysts for the conflict.

Blog Post 4

Once again as the book continues, we see the two main characters, Elinor and Marianne faced with similar challenges and once again we see both of them act in very different ways. Both girls have their heart broken by possible love interests and prospects for marriage. While each is equally devastating, the girls respond in entirely different ways

Marianne had convinced herself that she was in love with Willoughby and was love at first sight. Her sister had warned her about such rash actions but Marianne was determined. Disaster strikes when Marianne sees Willoughby walking out the door, not to be seen for an entire year. Marianne is hysterical and acts as though it is the end of the world. She shuts herself up in her room, hardly ever to return. Austen notes, "They saw nothing of Marianne till dinner time, when she entered the room and took her place at the table without saying a word. Her eyes were red and swollen; and it seemed as if her tears were even then restrained with difficulty. She avoided the looks of them all, could neither eat nor speak, and after some time, on her mother's silently pressing her hand with tender compassion, her small degree of fortitude was quite overcome, she burst into tears and left the room." (75).

Elinor also experiences heartbreak when she finds out devastating news. Edward had returned and seen Elinor a while earlier and though she denied it, Marianne insisted he was still in love with her, to the point where he was wearing a lock of her hair around his neck. Though Elinor dismisses her sister, I believe she thought it was so. However, horrible shock came later. She had been an acquaintance to Lucy Steele and was politely talking to her when she discovers that in fact Lucy had been the love interest of Edward and it was her hair he was wearing around her neck. Jane Austen describes Elinor's emotions as, "What felt Elinor at that moment? Astonishment, that would have been as painful as it was strong, had not an immediate disbelief of the assertion attended it. She turned towards Lucy in silent amazement, unable to divine the reason or object of such a declaration; and though her complexion varied, she stood firm in incredulity, and felt in no danger of an hysterical fit, or a swoon. "(115).

The difference in the reactions between the two sisters is astonishing. While Marianne was hysterical, Elinor remained composed. At first we think that Elinor is clearly better than her sister and more mature. While it is true that Elinor might have more self-control than her sister, it is not healthy for her to bottle up her emotions. The sisters are the extremes of the situation and need to find a happy middle where they can express their emotions calmly.