Blog #6- The Cove

Blog #6-The Cove

The documentary The Cove (2009) was directed my Louie Psihoyos and is a dramatic documentary about the capture and slaughter of dolphins in Taiji, Japan. The objective of the producers of this film was to expose Japan’s cruelty towards these animals and their blatant disregard for the dolphins. Throughout the entire film, The Cove made the viewer feel uncomfortable because of the tense situations the participants of the film were put in, like going into restricted areas, sneaking into the cove, hiding cameras, and taking pictures of things they weren’t supposed to. The Cove had two major scenes where the tension of these situations were highest.

The first scene where the tension was highest was when the participants of the film were watching the images they had captured on the cameras they had placed in different areas of the cove. As they all sat together, they watched as the Japanese fishermen corralled the dolphins into one area by hitting on long sticks to make loud sounds because dolphins are very sensitive to noise. Once the fishermen had all of the dolphins together, they would start stabbing the dolphins and the entire cove turned a deep red color. The once beautiful, clear water of the cove was immediately polluted with all of the dolphins’ blood. The images were horrific and made the viewer want to look away, but also made it impossible because the images were so horrible that it was unbelievable that something like that was actually happening. 

The other scene that was very tense was the scene where Ric O’Barry walked into the meeting for the International Whaling Commission wearing a television on his chest with videos taken from the cove. This was a huge deal because the representative from Japan was telling the other members of the IWC that Japan was not using any cruel means of capturing these dolphins and that it was a quick death for all the dolphins that were caught. The videos on O’Barry’s chest showed everyone in that meeting that the Japanese representative was lying and that the dolphins were dying a slow, painful death. 

These scenes of high tension were both satisfying and unsatisfying. They were satisfying in the sense that we finally got to see actual evidence of what was going on in Japan and knowing that there were people taking steps to stop those actions. It was unsatisfying, though, because not much happened after this movie. Although the Japanese representative at the IWC was replaced, the slaughter of the dolphins still began in September and there has been no movement towards ending it. 

Revised Portfolio essay #2

Critical Response: Achebe’s Article on Heart of Darkness

Chinua Achebe, a professor of African Literature at the University of Massachusetts, wrote the critical article “An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad’s Heart of Darkness.” Achebe does not hold back in his article; he says exactly what he wants to say about Heart of Darkness and about Joseph Conrad as a person and as an author. Achebe points out many of the problems with Conrad’s novel, such as the fact that “Western psychology [has the need] to set Africa up as a foil to Europe, as a place of negations at once remote and vaguely familiar, in comparison with which Europe’s own state of spiritual grace will be manifest” (337). He also says that Joseph Conrad is “a thoroughgoing racist” and that “this simple truth is glossed over in criticisms of his work is due to the fact that white racism against Africa is such a normal way of thinking that its manifestations go completely unremarked” (343). Achebe feels that everyone knows that Conrad is racist, but that he is the only one who has ever commented on the fact that his entire novella is filled with racist comments. Achebe also questions whether or not Heart of Darkness can be considered a “great work of art” because it “celebrates” the “dehumanization of Africa and Africans” (344). His answer: “No, it cannot” (344). Although Achebe correctly points out the racism in Joseph Conrad’s novel, he shifts his attack from the novel to the writer and he anachronistically imposes contemporary values on a novel almost 100 years old. 

The title of Achebe’s article is “An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad’s Heart of Darkness,” and therefore, he should criticize the racism in the story as opposed to Joseph Conrad being a racist author. Achebe claims that Conrad is racist because of the things that he says in his novella and, because of that, we should not study the book.  In “Should We Read “Heart of Darkness?” J. Hillis Miller claims “that ‘“Heart of Darkness”’ is a literary work, not history, autobiography, travel writing, journalism, or other journal” (465). Miller disagrees with Achebe on the issue of studying and reading the novella. Miller says that we can and should read the novella because it is a great literary work and not a work of personal accounts and feelings. He says that even though there are racist comments, one should look past that and read the novella for what it is-a literary work and not a personal journal. Achebe feels that because Conrad “depersonalizes a portion of the human race” and writes as if it were a personal account, we should not consider this novella a great work of art. Achebe is not basing his critique on the racism in the novel; he is solely basing it on the author.  

Achebe also brings up arguments that would not have applied to the era in which Joseph Conrad wrote the novella. All of Achebe’s arguments are influenced by what he had grown up learning and therefore, Achebe should know that the comments Conrad makes are also influenced by what he grew up learning. Achebe even says that “it was certainly not [Conrad’s] fault that he lived his life at a time when the reputation of the black man was at a particularly low level” (344). Even though he said that, he goes back to say “even after due allowances have been made for all the influences of contemporary prejudice on his sensibility there remains still in Conrad’s attitude a residue of antipathy to black people” (344). Achebe agrees that Conrad’s prejudice is not entirely his fault, but he also feels that even if you take all the different factors into account, Conrad is still a racist at heart. Chinua Achebe is an African-American man who is obviously offended by the words written in Conrad’s novella. The way Achebe critiques is based on these facts and it is hard for him to write a fair, unbiased critical article when this novella clearly touches so close to home. 

Chinua Achebe also reduces the novella Heart of Darkness to only two sentences. Achebe says, “his method amounts to no more than a steady, ponderous, fake-ritualistic repetition of two antithetical sentences, one about silence and the other about frenzy” (338). He even gives specific examples to back up this claim. Achebe said, “We can inspect samples of this on pages 34 and 35 of the present edition: a) It was the stillness of an implacable force brooding over an inscrutable intention and b) The steamer toiled along slowly on the edge of a black and incomprehensible frenzy” (338). He is being completely unfair in his decision to say that Heart of Darkness is basically only two sentences and nothing more. Achebe is also contradicting himself. He said earlier in the article that Conrad “is undoubtably one of the great stylists of modern fiction and a good story-teller into the bargain” (337). Achebe is being unclear in what his opinion is about Conrad as an author. He says that Conrad is a great stylist, but then goes on to say that the novella is written in only two sentences.

I also didn’t like the fact that he wrote so harshly about the novella when he has so much power in the literature world. The review that he gives about a work carries a lot of weight and I feel that he takes advantage of that. Not only did he say that Heart of Darkness can not be considered a great work of art, but he goes on further to say that it is an “offensive and deplorable book” (345). Achebe needs to realize the power in his words and choose what he says carefully because it can influence the way other people read and judge this book. His critique might also cause people not to read it because of the judgements he has passed on the novella. This is unfair to the people who have decided not to read it based on his critique because they are missing out on the great literature of Joseph Conrad. People should read this book and make their own judgements without being influenced by Achebe’s harsh criticism. 

Although I did not agree with everything written in Chinua Achebe’s article, I did like the fact that he used context from the book. Throughout the entire article, he uses quotes and excerpts from the novella to back up his main points. He quotes Conrad when he said, “Herein lies the meaning of Heart of Darkness and the fascination it holds over the Western mind: ‘What thrilled you was just the thought of their humanity-like yours...Ugly” (339). He lets the reader know what he thinks the main point of the novella is and backs up his thinking with context from the story. Achebe says that the main point is that the western people didn’t want to think that the way they lived and acted was like that of the natives, but it was. The western humanity and the native humanity were both “ugly”. 

Achebe also writes with pathos and emotions. He has so much passion in his writing that you can tell that he really cares about what he is saying. He is also very blunt with what he has to say. He says, “The point of my observations should be quite clear by now, namely that Joseph Conrad was a thoroughgoing racist” (343). He feels strongly about this and he does not sugar coat it for his readers. He also feels that he is the only one who comments on the racism that Joseph Conrad shows in his novella Heart of Darkness. Achebe said, “[the] exploration of the minds of the European characters is penetrating and full of insight. But that has been more than fully discussed in the last fifty years. His obvious racism has, however, not been addressed. And it is high time it was!” (344). He knows that Conrad is racist and it is frustrating to him that no one has even bothered to discuss this issue. His use of the exclamation point only further shows how strongly he feels about Conrad being racist and about the fact that no body cares enough to address this fact.  

Although Achebe says harsh things about Joseph Conrad and of Heart of Darkness, he also does say a few good things about them. Achebe says that “Conrad...is undoubtably one of the great stylists of modern fiction...His contribution therefore falls automatically into a different class-permanent literature- read and taught and constantly evaluated by serious academics” (337). Achebe knows of the racism in the book, yet he still considers Conrad to be one of the greatest authors. He also says that because of the complex writing of Joseph Conrad that “[he] is a dream for psychoanalytic critics” (345). Achebe is acknowledging the fact that Conrad is an excellent writer and that he can and should be studied and analyzed. Achebe found not only the bad things in Heart of Darkness and in Joseph Conrad, but he also managed to find some good in both. 

I think that is important for people to read critical reviews of literature. I think that it helps get a better understanding of not only the book, but the author as well. It is important to know as much as you can about the things that you read so that can form new opinions about the what you read or make your old opinions that much stronger. Reading these types of articles will also give you more things to things to think about so you can participate in a discussion of a the book. I also think that it is important to read opposing views of the same issue on the book. It might also give you another view point of the material. If you are a female, it might be good to read an article written my a man, or maybe you should read one written by someone of a different race or age. Doing so can help broaden your horizons. Reading this specific article helped me to better understand the view point of an African American reading Heart of Darkness. Chinua Achebe had picked up on the little things that were racist that I never would have picked up on. 

Works Cited

Achebe, Chinua. “An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad’s Heart of Darkness.” Armstrong 336-49.

Armstrong, Paul B, ed. Heart of Darkness. New York: W.W. Norton, 2005. 

Miller, J.Hillis. “Should We Read ‘Heart of Darkness’?” Armstrong 463-74.

Blog #5- Koyannisqatsi

Koyaanisqatsi: Life Out of Balance

The movie Koyaanisqatsi was directed by Godfrey Reggio in 1982. Koyaanisqatsi is a word that comes from the Hopi Indian Tribe and it means “life out of balance”. Reggio uses different moving scenes to communicate his arguments. He starts out with different scenes of nature and gradually moves to scenes with people and different forms of technology. Each scene is either sped up or slowed down to help Reggio prove his point; he was trying to prove that even though modern technology can be great and helpful and beautiful, it can not compare to the beauty found in nature. 

As the movie starts out, Reggio shows clips of moving clouds and of the oceans tides to show the calmness and the beauty of nature. He goes on to show how beautiful the lines are on the canyons and mountains. He also gives images of different plants growing. Each image is either sped up or slowed down to really show the beauty that all of them have. The beauty of nature is over looked most of the time because people are so used to seeing these images every single day. I believe that Reggio is trying to not only show that beauty in nature, but to also make people realize that they need to pay more attention to the beauty that nature has to offer. 

Throughout the movie, Reggio starts to add in images of technology. He shows how technology tries to mimic nature, whether it is in its lines or in its chaotic movement. He shows the reflection of the clouds on the skyscraper, trying to show how modern building structures can  show the beauty of nature. The chaotic movement of the cars on the streets, going through the street lights and moving along on the highways mimics the quickness of nature.

I agree with the argument that technology can not compare to the beauty found in nature. Although modern technology can try to imitate the beauty of nature, it is not the same as actually experiencing the beauty first hand in nature. I think that is important that people appreciate the beauty nature has to offer and to not take it for granted. I think that Reggio does an excellent job with putting the different scenes in the order that he does because it shows how the calmness and beauty of nature has turned into the chaotic, busy life that we have today. 

Portfolio essay #3 Documented Argument

Influence of Media on Body Image

Media is a huge influence in the lives of people world wide. It tells us what to eat, where to shop, what is pretty or good-looking, and what we should look like. Every time a person opens a magazine or turns on the television, they are bombarded with advertisements telling them what to buy. These ads are not only advertising products, but they are also advertising the ideal or “perfect” person. The female models are extremely thin with flawless skin and bodies, beautiful hair that is always in place no matter what they are doing, and have straight, white teeth. The male models are very muscular, tan men with nice, thick hair, and they too have perfectly straight, white teeth. These models are not portraying the average person, they are showing someone who has been photoshopped and enhanced and the person shown to you is not how they actually look in person. Many people say that these unrealistic bodies constantly shown in the media cause people to have a low self-esteem and a poor body image. In the article “Pretty Unreal: ever wish you could look as hot as celebrities do? Well, they don’t look as good as you think,” Julie Mehta says that “Perfect images of celebrities are everywhere. It’s enough to make anyone feel insecure or envious” (Mehta). Still, others say that the media isn’t to blame; they say that the problem comes from home, when a child sees the way their parents act. People say that kids act in a monkey-see monkey-do way, they do the same things that they see their parents doing, whether it be in the way that they eat or the way they view themselves and their bodies. Either way, people are constantly influenced on how to think about themselves, and about their bodies.

The media has put unrealistic standards on what is to be considered the “perfect body”. Because of the media, “We are being brainwashed to hate our bodies so that we can buy unnecessary products to remedy them, and waste endless hours on artificial beauty” (The Images of Beauty are Unrealistic and Hurt Women). The advertisements that the media has for any given product has a model who has a toned, tan body and is considered beautiful. What most people don’t realize, though, is that every single picture that is in an advertisement has been photoshopped and enhanced to make the model look as great as they possibly can. Shari Graydon states that, “The media sets up impossible comparisons. Whether you’re watching sitcoms or music videos or looking through magazines, the images you’re seeing are airbrushed and enhanced” (qtd. in Mehta). These models, actors, and musicians are just like everyone else and they, too, have flaws. The media should show that side of these people so that the average person doesn’t feel bad about the way that they look. Julie Mehta goes on to say that “Perfect images of celebrities are everywhere. It’s enough to make anyone feel insecure or envious” (Mehta). She also says that “Seeing all those artificially perfected images can hurt your body image--the way you see and feel about your body and the way you think others see you” (Mehta). These images can actually make someone feel depressed about the way that they look. Kiesbye says that “The barrages of images of ultra-thin women and extremely muscular men has led to a general dissatisfaction among consumers, and might be a cause of depression, low self-esteem, and eating disorders” (Kiesbye). The feelings from the depression can cause people to take drastic measures to fix whatever it is that they see wrong with them self. 

Many times, celebrities are considered role models. Many young girls will want to be like whoever is in the latest movie or who they saw on TV that night. The only problem with that is many celebrities have eating disorders that cause them to be stick thin. These young women are basically skin and bones and are influencing the impressionable minds of young girls. 16-year-old Erika, of Scottsdale, Arizona, said, “I think the media has a big impact...It sets the standard--says thin is in. If the media wasn’t saying skinny is appropriate, people wouldn’t feel like they need to be so thin” (qtd. in Mehta). Celebrities don’t just put pressures on girls on their weight, but also in the way that they act, the way they style their hair, the way they wear their make-up, and the way they dress. Katherine Schwarzenegger said that “[Girls] go to such extremes to fit into this mold of the perfect girl, and society puts so much pressure on [them]” (Stewart). The pressure to fit in causes some girls to result to extremes measures to fit in--whether it be fad diets, behavioral changes, or radical outfits or hair styles.

Another way that the media influences the way that people view themselves is with different television shows. In the article “The Images of Beauty are Unrealistic and Hurt Women”, it states that “women are reduced to size, told to be less, told to shed big chunks of themselves for acceptance” (The Images of Beauty are Unrealistic and Hurt Women). That is exactly what some shows do. They show women who are not considered beautiful according to the media and have them undergo surgery to make themselves fit into the beauty mold. According to Julie Mehta, “Last year in the United States, more than 300,000 teens, age 10 or older, had some sort of cosmetic work done” (Mehta). She goes on to question this and said “were teens following the example of so-called reality TV shows, including Extreme Makeover, The Swan, and I Want a Famous Face?” (Mehta). These shows glorify the influence of media over people’s thoughts about themselves. 

These computer enhanced, surgery constructed, fake bodies are not how the majority of people look. In the article “The Body Image Presented by the Media Promotes Disordered Eating”, Stefan Kiesbye says that “there is a significant dichotomy [division into contradictory opinions] between society’s idealized rail-thin figure and the more typical American body”(Kiesbye). In the same article Jennifer Derenne, an assistant professor of psychiatry and behavioral medicine at the Medical College of Wisconsin, and Eugene Beresin, the co-director of the Harvard Medical School Center for Mental Health and Media say that “the modern media culture is relentless in advertising ideal figures, represented by male and female supermodels and action heroes” (qtd. in Kiesbye). All forms of media force people to judge themselves on the way that they look. The models in the magazines make even the thinnest people feel fat and make them feel bad about themselves. 

Some people do say that media is not the one to blame for a poor body image. According to the article, “Your Mirror Image? A daughter often reflects a mother's unhealthy obsession with weight,” Francine Russo states that “Study after study has found that mothers who are fixated on their body image are more likely to have daughters with eating disorders than less self-conscious moms” (Russo). It goes on to say, “Sure, you can blame the media for imposing a parade of surgically enhanced pop icons on your impressionable child, but the real danger to her self-image comes from closer to home-you!” (Russo). Russo claims that the way in which a person gets their poor body image and low self-esteem is from the way that their parents act and feel about themselves. She also says that, “daughters are watching [their mothers]. They observe you trying on jeans, overhearing you grousing to your friends. They notice what you eat. If you declare yourself “good” for eating only salad and “bad” for eating cookies, they will judge their own goodness and badness the same way” (Russo). They may not realize it, but their children are watching and they learn first from their parents and that is when they make their first judgements about themselves and other people. Even though this may be true, the mother’s learn to judge themselves from the media throughout their lives. Their daughters are indirectly being influenced by the media through their mothers. 

Another argument can be made about media’s influence on women and their body image. In the article, “The Images of Beauty Don’t Hurt Women,” Linda M. Scott states “that beauty companies and fashion magazines are, in fact, dominated by women, not a patriarchy...self-decoration- make-up, clothing, cosmetic surgery- is a fundamental for of human expression with different meanings to the individual” (qtd. in The Images of Beauty Don’t Hurt Women). This article is arguing that women should be able to dress, eat, and look in any way that they please without having to worry about how it is going to affect other women. Although I do agree that every person has the right to act as they please and should do things that please themselves, I think that if a person is going to be in the public eye and viewed as a role model, then she should be conscious of that and make many of her decisions about her body based on that. 

The media has influenced people throughout history. With passing time, “Standards of beauty are constantly changing, are never realistic, and depend heavily on social context” (Kiesbye). These unrealistic standards of beauty have forced people to judge themselves harshly against other people who are in magazines. These people are unfairly judging themselves because the ones who they are comparing themselves to have been retouched and enhanced. There is no way that the average person can compete with that and that fact causes many people, especially women, to have a poor body image and a low self-esteem because they feel like they are not good enough. This also causes people to take extreme measures to change themselves, either through cosmetic surgery, fad diets, or eating disorders. The media needs to understand the powerful influence that it has on people and look for a way that it can change advertisements to show people as they are and not who the media wants them to be. 

Works Cited

Kiesbye, Stefan. "The Body Image Presented by the Media Promotes Disordered Eating." Anorexia. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2010. At Issue. Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 27 Oct. 2010.

Mehta, Julie. "Pretty unreal: ever wish you could look as hot as celebrities do? Well, they don't look as good as you think." Current Health 2, a Weekly Reader publication Jan. 2005: 15+. Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 27 Oct. 2010.

Russo, Francine. "Your Mirror Image? A daughter often reflects a mother's unhealthy obsession with weight." Time 6 June 2005: W16. Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 27 Oct. 2010.

Stewert, Sara. "SHE WILL PUMP YOU UP! - ARNOLD'S DAUGHTER URGES TEENS TO 'ROCK WHAT YOU'VE GOT' IN NEW BODY IMAGE BOOK." New York Post [New York, NY] 14 Sept. 2010: 41. Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 27 Oct. 2010.

"The Images of Beauty Are Unrealistic and Hurt Women." The Culture of Beauty. Ed. Roman Espejo. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2010. Opposing Viewpoints. Gale OpposingViewpoints In Context. Web. 27 Oct. 2010.

"The Images of Beauty Do Not Hurt Women." The Culture of Beauty. Ed. Roman Espejo. Detroit: Greenhaven Press, 2010. Opposing Viewpoints. Gale Opposing Viewpoints In Context. Web. 27 Oct. 2010.

Blog #4- Apocalypse Now Redux (2001)

The movie Apocalypse Now Redux (2001) is based off of Joseph Conrad’s novella Heart of Darkness. The director of the movie used the same kind of descriptions that Joseph Conrad used to describe Kurtz. Conrad made Kurtz a huge man who could control any group of people and convince them to follow him. The director of Apocalypse Now chose an actor who portrayed all the characteristics described by Conrad. They both kept Kurtz very mysterious, dangerous, and frightening. 

The movie shows Kurtz being captivated by darkness. From the moment we, as the audience, meet Kurtz for the first time, his entire face is hidden in the shadows. You could notice the huge size of this man and you could hear his voice, but you could not see his face. It made you question who Kurtz is, what he is doing, and why his face is hidden. Throughout the movie, his face continued to be hidden in the darkness, but each time we saw him, he showed a little bit more of his face. He began to show part of his face or just his eyes. The darkness of his face shows how mysterious Kurtz is and how frightening he really is.

Another characteristic that makes him so terrifying is the fact that he is so large, the way he looks, and his voice. Kurtz is a giant man; he is taller than all the other men that are around him and he is much stronger than them as well. He has a dark eyes and a mean, angry scowl on his face at all times. He has such a frightening voice as well. You would expect him to have a deep, booming voice, but his voice is actually high-pitched and is eerily sing-song like. This contradiction not only further shows the mysteriousness in Kurtz, but also adds to the reasons that make him so intimidating and frightening. 

Kurtz could also make anyone follow him. In the movie, a soldier just like Willard, (the Marlow of the movie) was sent on the same mission as Willard, to go and get Kurtz and shut down what he was doing. This soldier ended up going there and following Kurtz, even though the soldier had direct orders to get him. If Kurtz could convince him to follow him, then he could convince anyone to follow him. The power that Kurtz had over people was especially terrifying. Everything about Kurtz is frightening, from the way he looks and his size, to his voice, and even to the power he had over people. 

Portfolio essay #2

Critical Response: Achebe’s Article on Heart of Darkness

     Chinua Achebe, a professor of African Literature at the University of Massachusetts, wrote the critical article “An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad’s Heart of Darkness.” Chinua Achebe does not hold back in his article, he says exactly what he wants to say about Heart of Darkness and about Joseph Conrad as a person and as an author. Achebe points out many of the problems with Conrad’s novel, such as the fact that “Western psychology [has the need]to set Africa up as a foil to Europe, as a place of negations at once remote and vaguely familiar, in comparison with which Europe’s own state of spiritual grace will be manifest” (337). He claims that Conrad is using his novella to further this idea of using Africa as a foil to Europe. He also says that Joseph Conrad is “a thoroughgoing racist” and that “this simple truth is glossed over in criticisms of his work is due to the fact that white racism against Africa is such a normal way of thinking that its manifestations go completely unremarked” (343). Achebe feels that everyone knows that Conrad is racist, but that he is the only one who has ever commented on the fact that his entire novella is filled with racist comments. Achebe also questions wether or not Heart of Darkness can be considered a “great work of art” because it “celebrates” the “dehumanization of Africa and Africans” (344). His answer: “No, it cannot” (344). He feels that because this novella is so full of racism and because of the fact that Conrad disregards the African race that Conrad’s novella can not be considered a great work of art. Although Chinua Achebe correctly points out the racism in Joseph Conrad’s novel, he shifts his attack from the novel to the writer and he anachronistically imposes contemporary values on a novel almost 100 years old. 

The title of Achebe’s article is “An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad’s Heart of Darkness”, and therefore, he should criticize the racism in the story as opposed to Joseph Conrad being a racist author. Achebe claims that Conrad is racist because of the things that he says in his novella and because of that, we should not study the book.  In another article, “Should We Read “Heart of Darkness?”, J. Hillis Miller claims “that ‘“Heart of Darkness”’ is a literary work, not history, autobiography, travel writing, journalism, or other journal” (465). Miller disagrees with Achebe on the issue of studying and reading the novella. Miller says that we can and should read the novella because it is a great literary work and not a work of personal accounts and feelings. Achebe feels that because Conrad “depersonalizes a portion of the human race” and writes as if it were a personal account, we should not consider this novella a great work of art. Chinua Achebe is not basing his critique on the racism in the novel, he is solely basing it on the author.  

Achebe also brings up arguments that would not have applied to the era in which Joseph Conrad wrote the novella. All of Achebe’s arguments are influenced by what he had grown up learning. Achebe even says that “it was certainly not his fault that he lived his life at a time when the reputation of the black man was at a particularly low level” (344). Even though he said that, he goes back to say “But even after due allowances have been made for all the influences of contemporary prejudice on his sensibility there remains still in Conrad’s attitude a residue of antipathy to black people” (344). Achebe agrees that his prejudice is not entirely his fault, but he also feels that even if you take all the different factors into account, Joseph Conrad is still a racist at heart. Chinua Achebe is an African-American man who is obviously offended by the different words written in Conrad’s novella. The way in which Achebe critiques is based on these facts and it is hard for him to write a fair, unbiased critical article when this novella clearly touches so close to home. 

Chinua Achebe also reduces the novella Heart of Darkness to only two sentences. Achebe says, “his method amounts to no more than a steady, ponderous, fake-ritualistic repetition of two antithetical sentences, one about silence and the other about frenzy” (338). He even gives specific examples to back up this claim. Achebe saids, “We can inspect samples of this on pages 34 and 35 of the present edition: a) It was the stillness of an implacable force brooding over an inscrutable intention and b) The steamer toiled along slowly on the edge of a black and incomprehensible frenzy” (338). He is being completely unfair in his decision to say that Heart of Darkness is basically only two sentences and nothing more. Achebe is also contradicting himself. He said earlier in the article that Conrad “is undoubtably one of the great stylists of modern fiction and a good story-teller into the bargain” (337). Achebe is being unclear in what his opinion is about Joseph Conrad as an author. He says that Conrad is a great stylist, but then goes on to say that the novella is written in only two sentences.

I also didn’t like the fact that he wrote so harshly about the novella when he has so much power in the literature world. The reviews that he gives about a work carries a lot of weight and I feel that he takes advantage of that. Not only did he say that Heart of Darkness can not be considered a great work of art and said that it was only made up of two different sentences, but he goes on further to say that it is an “offensive and deplorable book” (345). He critiques this book so harshly and what he thinks and feels about it influences the way in which other people read and judge this book. It might also cause people to not read it because of the judgements passed by Achebe. 

Although I did not agree with everything written in Chinua Achebe’s article, I did like the fact that he used context from the book. Throughout the entire article, he uses quotes and excerpts from the novella to back up his main points. He quotes Conrad when he said, “Herein lies the meaning of Heart of Darkness and the fascination it holds over the Western mind: ‘What thrilled you was just the thought of their humanity-like yours...Ugly” (339). He lets the reader know what he thinks the main point of the novella and backs up his thinking with context from the story. 

I also like that Achebe writes with pathos and emotions. He has so much passion in his writing that you can tell that he really cares about what he is writing. He is also very blunt with what he has to say. He says, “The point of my observations should be quite clear by now, namely that Joseph Conrad was a thoroughgoing racist” (343). He feels strongly about this and he does not sugar coat it for his readers. He also feels that he is the only one who comments on the racism that Joseph Conrad shows in his novella Heart of Darkness. Achebe said, “[the] exploration of the minds of the European characters is penetrating and full of insight. But that has been more than fully discussed in the last fifty years. His obvious racism has, however, not been addressed. And it is high time it was!” (344) He knows that Conrad is racist and it is frustrating to him that no one has even bothered to discuss this issue. 

Although Achebe says harsh things about Joseph Conrad and of Heart of Darkness, he also does say a few good things about them. Achebe says that “Conrad...is undoubtably one of the great stylists of modern fiction...His contribution therefore falls automatically into a different class-permanent literature- read and taught and constantly evaluated by serious academics” (337). Achebe knows of the racism in the book, yet he still considers Conrad to be one of the greatest authors. He also says that because of the complex writing of Joseph Conrad that “[he] is a dream for psychoanalytic critics” (345). Achebe is acknowledging the fact that Conrad is an excellent writer and that he can and should be studied and analyzed. Achebe found not only the bad things in Heart of Darkness and in Joseph Conrad, but he also managed to find some good in both. 

I think that is important for people to read critical reviews of literature. I think that it helps get a better understanding of not only the book, but the author as well. It is important to know as much as you can about the things that you read so that can form new opinions about the what you read or make your old opinions that much stronger. Reading these types of articles will also give you more things to things to think about so you can participate in a discussion of a the book. It will also help you go into a deeper discussion of the book. I also think that it is important to read opposing views of the same issue on the book or whatever is was that was read. It might also give you another view point of the material. If you are a female, you it might be good to read an article written my a man, or maybe you should read one written by someone of a different race or age. Doing so can help broaden your horizons. Reading this specific article helped me to better understand the view point of an African American reading Heart of Darkness. Chinua Achebe had picked up on the little things that were racist that I never would have picked up on. 

Works Cited

Achebe, Chinua. “An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad’s Hear of   Darkness.” Armstrong 336-49.

Miller, J.Hillis. “Should We Read ‘Heart of Darkness’?” Armstrong 463-74.

Blog #3- Recess is Important in Schools

          Many school districts are forced to cut programs in their schools because their budgets are being cut. Many times, one of the first things that is cut in elementary schools are recess and physical education. Children need their free time, their recess, their play time. Some people say that children need to be learning at all times while they are at school because there is so much to teach and for the students to learn. Others say that the children work better when they have time to release energy and that they also learn to work with others and work through problems when they have free time and recess. I agree with the second group of people; children need to have time to be outside running around and playing with other children. 

  In my opinion, all elementary schools should be required to have recess time and all middle and high schools should be required to have a physical education class every single day. In the article, “The 3 R’s? A Fourth is Crucial, Too: Recess”, the author points out that research shows that “play and down time may be as important to a child’s academic experience as reading, science and math, and that regular fitness...can influence behavior, concentration and even grades”(Parker-Pope).  If recess is just as important as core classes are, why are member’s of school boards voting to cut it? 

  While some people believe that recess is important in schools, others say that it is wasting time that could be better spent teaching students core subjects. Many “educators cite[multiple] ...reasons, besides academic pressures, to explain why recess is going the way of inkwells...:a fear of lawsuits if children become injured, a concern...of unsavory adults lurking at the edge of playgrounds and a shortage of teachers and volunteers willing to supervise the children”(Johnson). Even with all of these concerns, I feel as though the positives far outweigh the negatives. If every parent was aware of the benefits of daily physical activity in their child’s life, then they would probably would be more willing to volunteer to help watch their children out on the playground. 

  Children should be guaranteed play time while they are going to school. They need the time to release energy, to socialize, and to learn to deal with conflicts on their own. The physical activity is not only good for their physical health, but also for their mental health in the classroom. Recess and physical education should never be cut from schools; it is an important part of daily education for children, from elementary school age to high school students. 

Brown, Stuart. “Let the Children Play (Some More).” The New York Times. The New York    Times, 2 Sep. 2009. Web. 1 Oct. 2010.

Johnson, Dirk. “Many Schools Putting an End to Child’s Play.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 7 Apr. 1998. Web. 30 Sep. 2010. 

Kolata, Gina. “Thinning the Milk Does Not Mean Thinning the Child.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 12 Feb. 2006. Web. 4 Oct. 2010. 

Parker-Pope, Tara. “Do You Overestimate Your Child’s Activity?” The New York Times. The New York Times, 6 Jan. 2010. Web. 13 Sep. 2010. 

Parker-Pope, Tara. “The 3 R’s? A Fourth Is Crucial, Too: Recess.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 23 Feb. 2009. Web. 1 Sep. 2010.