I didn't know if I would like this story when I first started reading. The title makes it seem like the adventures of a talking dog, but the story is mostly about the family. It seems like an ordinary family, but a lot happens to them in the story. The death of the father kind of just passes along. There isn't much description. This seems to be a reflection of what the family is like, distant from one another. They deal with things on their own. Jimmy says at the end of the story that the older sister "had powers," and the younger sister disagrees. Life is ordinary for most people, and it ends so abruptly like the father and the daughter in this story. Maybe Jimmy sees something remarkable about that ordinariness. He was always trying to be extraordinary himself, and he doesn't amount to much by the end of the story. Melanie asked if it would be better from Jimmy's perspective, and I think it would be interesting to see the family from the outside looking in.
In the last line of the story it says that Jimmy would love the older sister more for pretending to talk to a dog. The dog represents dead people in the story, so maybe he means that by talking to dogs she was trying to make some sense of death. Everyone else in the story seems to move along without thinking much about what happens. The younger sister says that Jimmy would always "prefer [the older sister's] smoky opacity to" her "transparent face" (pg. 504). He sees some mystery in the older sister, and maybe he connects this mysteriousness with the mystery about life and death. Even if she was only pretending to talk to dogs, he would forgive her because she was trying to find some meaning.
Why does the author include the detail about the mother's views on race? Does this tie into the theme of the story?
Thursday, December 6, 2007
Monday, December 3, 2007
Talking Dog
I agree with the previous post, I don’t think that the narrator’s sister had forgotten Jimmy at all. In my opinion, the image of the talking dog reflects her grief. She is mourning because of Jimmy’s dead and she imagines that dogs are sending her messages from him. Also, when Jimmy comes back, she goes away with him without caring that she’s already married. This shows that she was still in love with him. I think that what they had can be called true love because they were somehow linked to each other, like destined to be together, and sometimes it seems like they knew exactly what they were feeling without them saying anything. An example of this could be the fact that when Jimmy came back, he already knew where the older sister was, it’s like they had already planned to meet again. It also seems like Jimmy already knew that she was married because he wasn’t surprised at all when the little sister told him the news. It’s like something magical that is beyond the reader’s understanding unified them. What makes me doubt about their love is that the older sister left Jimmy when her mother came to their shack. “Going for lunch? Jimmy said. But we all knew they weren’t. Mother told me to get in back. Jimmy looked in and I saw him notice my sister’s suitcase.” (pg510). But it’s interesting that Jimmy didn’t do anything to stop her from leaving. “He did nothing to stop us – that was the strangest part. He let me get in and let us take off and stood there and watched us go.” Maybe the older sister really had powers and already knew that she was going to die.
It’s hard to say what was really going on between them because the story is told from an external point of view which is also a subjective point of view. The little sister says that her sister forgot about Jimmy, I don’t think that’s true, but maybe that’s what the little sister wanted to believe. She was kind of obsessed with Jimmy since she didn’t care about her sister’s death as long as she could have him.
I like the fact that the story was told from the little sister’s point of view because we can see how frustrated she is when she can’t have what her sister has. When Jimmy came back, he didn’t care or realized that the little sister had waited for him, but instead she took the big sister back, even if she was already married to someone else. The little sister is jealous of everything that her older sister has, everyone seems to love her because they all believe that she has powers, but the little sister doesn’t seem to get any special attention from anyone. I think most of people that have big brothers or sisters can relate to this feeling, because sometimes having an older sibling is like having an example to follow, and not being able to follow it or not being able to have the things that the other person has makes it very frustrating. Although this only happens when the younger sibling is still very young and doesn’t know quite yet what he really wants, so he just wants what the older sibling wants. I think this story portrays very well the selfishness and frustration that a younger sibling could have towards an older brother or sister.
I like the fact that this story seems to be realistic, but it inserts a supernatural side, the image of talking dogs. The reader never knows if the big sister really knew how to talk to dogs or if she was only inventing everything as the narrator said in the end, “I wanted to tell Jimmy that my sister didn’t have powers. (…) I wanted to say that she’d lied to us all, she’d faked it about the dog”. But the fact that Jimmy believes that the sister can really talk to dogs and that she has powers, makes the reader doubt about this being true or false. I really like this kind of stories that mix reality with fantasy and make the reader think that something supernatural could be happening in the real world.
Do you think it would have been better if the story had been told from Jimmy or the older sister’s point of view?
It’s hard to say what was really going on between them because the story is told from an external point of view which is also a subjective point of view. The little sister says that her sister forgot about Jimmy, I don’t think that’s true, but maybe that’s what the little sister wanted to believe. She was kind of obsessed with Jimmy since she didn’t care about her sister’s death as long as she could have him.
I like the fact that the story was told from the little sister’s point of view because we can see how frustrated she is when she can’t have what her sister has. When Jimmy came back, he didn’t care or realized that the little sister had waited for him, but instead she took the big sister back, even if she was already married to someone else. The little sister is jealous of everything that her older sister has, everyone seems to love her because they all believe that she has powers, but the little sister doesn’t seem to get any special attention from anyone. I think most of people that have big brothers or sisters can relate to this feeling, because sometimes having an older sibling is like having an example to follow, and not being able to follow it or not being able to have the things that the other person has makes it very frustrating. Although this only happens when the younger sibling is still very young and doesn’t know quite yet what he really wants, so he just wants what the older sibling wants. I think this story portrays very well the selfishness and frustration that a younger sibling could have towards an older brother or sister.
I like the fact that this story seems to be realistic, but it inserts a supernatural side, the image of talking dogs. The reader never knows if the big sister really knew how to talk to dogs or if she was only inventing everything as the narrator said in the end, “I wanted to tell Jimmy that my sister didn’t have powers. (…) I wanted to say that she’d lied to us all, she’d faked it about the dog”. But the fact that Jimmy believes that the sister can really talk to dogs and that she has powers, makes the reader doubt about this being true or false. I really like this kind of stories that mix reality with fantasy and make the reader think that something supernatural could be happening in the real world.
Do you think it would have been better if the story had been told from Jimmy or the older sister’s point of view?
Friday, November 30, 2007
Talking Dog- Francine Prose
I think that this was a very well written short story. In my opinion, the author was able to grab the readers attention with the title alone. When I first saw the title, it grabbed my attention and made me want to read on because there obviously arent dogs that can really talk. So I was definatly interested to see what this piece was all about.
Prose also did a very good job with characterization. She created very distinct characterisitics between all of her characters. With her abilitly to do this, we were able to see how big a change came over the narrators sister once Jimmy dies. In the beginning she seemed to be a laid back, fun person who idolized another person with the same qualities. Once Jimmy dies, we see a drastic change and she goes from driving out onto the lake in a car to not even wanting to get out of bed to answer the phone. I found it intersting that in the middle of the story, the narrator is convinced that her sister has forgotten about Jimmy simply because she got married to someone else. I dont think that this was the case at all. I think that after something that tragic happens, and the grieving is done, you reach a point where you realize that things arent ever going to go back to the way things were, and you have to move on with your life... as hard as it may be. Sometimes there is no use dwelling on what could have been. The narrators sister just moved on with her life. However again because of the characterization that the author created, we were able to see the change in her that occured not only once Jimmy died but also after she got married. Her happy , fun loving side was gone and in its place there was a very serious person, who just kind of went along with things. I think that that in itself should portray how she still at that point was not over the death of Jimmy.
Theres that saying that you always want what you cant have and I think that this idea is what the narrator was portraying in regards to Jimmy. on the last page of the story. It was clear that she had a very big crush on him, but then , she says " For a fraction of a second, i thought that I might still want him. But I didnt want him. I just didnt want her to have him forever. I was shocked to be so jealous when death meant that it could never be fixed. I didnt want it to be that way, but that was how it was." p.512. How selfish is it that she would rather have her sister dead, than see the two of the together.
The narrator was convinced that her sister had forgotton about Jimmy, but after reading the story and seeing the outcome of the situation ... would you agree? Do you think that the love they share for one another is true love??
Prose also did a very good job with characterization. She created very distinct characterisitics between all of her characters. With her abilitly to do this, we were able to see how big a change came over the narrators sister once Jimmy dies. In the beginning she seemed to be a laid back, fun person who idolized another person with the same qualities. Once Jimmy dies, we see a drastic change and she goes from driving out onto the lake in a car to not even wanting to get out of bed to answer the phone. I found it intersting that in the middle of the story, the narrator is convinced that her sister has forgotten about Jimmy simply because she got married to someone else. I dont think that this was the case at all. I think that after something that tragic happens, and the grieving is done, you reach a point where you realize that things arent ever going to go back to the way things were, and you have to move on with your life... as hard as it may be. Sometimes there is no use dwelling on what could have been. The narrators sister just moved on with her life. However again because of the characterization that the author created, we were able to see the change in her that occured not only once Jimmy died but also after she got married. Her happy , fun loving side was gone and in its place there was a very serious person, who just kind of went along with things. I think that that in itself should portray how she still at that point was not over the death of Jimmy.
Theres that saying that you always want what you cant have and I think that this idea is what the narrator was portraying in regards to Jimmy. on the last page of the story. It was clear that she had a very big crush on him, but then , she says " For a fraction of a second, i thought that I might still want him. But I didnt want him. I just didnt want her to have him forever. I was shocked to be so jealous when death meant that it could never be fixed. I didnt want it to be that way, but that was how it was." p.512. How selfish is it that she would rather have her sister dead, than see the two of the together.
The narrator was convinced that her sister had forgotton about Jimmy, but after reading the story and seeing the outcome of the situation ... would you agree? Do you think that the love they share for one another is true love??
Thursday, November 29, 2007
g string
I dont know how unlikely a pair Gillan and Mr. Kip actually are. Personally, I think that there are alot of couples out there today that are just like them. You have a a female who is not too confident in themselves and a male who has money and loves to flaunt it. Usually in realtionships like this the male always is in control and the female kind of just goes along with it, like a puppet because she isnt confident enough to speak up for herself. The woman in Gillians position, go to great lenghts in order to make the man happy, including buy expensive clothes and hoping that they notice it, or doing exactly what they say so they wont make them mad in any way. I also think that alot of middle aged woman today are in the same boat as Gillian because the world that they grew up in is completely different than the more modern one that they have to adapt to today. Alot of the time, they decide that its easier just to stick with their old ways, instead of trying to keep up with the changing times.
I dont know if anyone has seen it, but this story kind of made me think of the movie "The Holiday" starring Kate Winslet. The movie took place in England, so everyone spoke with an English accent and she was kind of out dated from the rest of the world. She is hooked on a guy who constantly plays with her, and only calls when its convient for him or he needs something from her. Kate's character goes online and ends up replying to an offer to swap houses with another woman who lives in LA (very modern), and ends up moving there for a good amount of time. Its obvious once she gets there that these two woman live completely different lives. Kate was used to having living in a little one bedroom bungalo, with no tv or any other modern things, and then she moved to LA where she got to live in a home where there was a remote control for everything in site and a maid to clean up any mess that you might make. She goes from wearing "knickers" to "g-strings" kind of like Gillian and in the end, she puts her foot down with this guy and tells him that the way he has been treating her will not continue to go on. Similar to what happend with Gillian. I think that changing with the times and trying to adapt to the modernized way of living is important as far as womans rights go. If they are stuck in the older way of living, more likely than not they will also have an older mentality. And in this day and age, its so important for woman to speak their minds and stick up for themseleves and not just settle for anything less than they deserve.
Both Gillians and Kate Winslet's character finally learned to be modern woman with modern ideas and a bit more confident than they started out to be. Very important in todays society.
I dont know if anyone has seen it, but this story kind of made me think of the movie "The Holiday" starring Kate Winslet. The movie took place in England, so everyone spoke with an English accent and she was kind of out dated from the rest of the world. She is hooked on a guy who constantly plays with her, and only calls when its convient for him or he needs something from her. Kate's character goes online and ends up replying to an offer to swap houses with another woman who lives in LA (very modern), and ends up moving there for a good amount of time. Its obvious once she gets there that these two woman live completely different lives. Kate was used to having living in a little one bedroom bungalo, with no tv or any other modern things, and then she moved to LA where she got to live in a home where there was a remote control for everything in site and a maid to clean up any mess that you might make. She goes from wearing "knickers" to "g-strings" kind of like Gillian and in the end, she puts her foot down with this guy and tells him that the way he has been treating her will not continue to go on. Similar to what happend with Gillian. I think that changing with the times and trying to adapt to the modernized way of living is important as far as womans rights go. If they are stuck in the older way of living, more likely than not they will also have an older mentality. And in this day and age, its so important for woman to speak their minds and stick up for themseleves and not just settle for anything less than they deserve.
Both Gillians and Kate Winslet's character finally learned to be modern woman with modern ideas and a bit more confident than they started out to be. Very important in todays society.
G-STRING
I thought the story was too short also but, it was quite amusing. Although I do hate reading stories in which the characters have English accents. I was able to relate to Gillian and her dilema's with keeping up with the modern time. I myself feel as though it hard to keep up with everything that changes in the world one a daily basis.
Gillian and Mr Kip to me seem like an unlikely couple. It shows that they are both uncomfprtable with their relationship in different sections of the story. Gillian is uncomfortable with herself and how Mr Kip perceives her to be and Mr kip seems uncomfortable with the way Gillian looks and acts.
The part where Gillian is in the Lingerie shop with her friend trying out clothes sticks in my head for many reasons. This part of the story makes it so realistic to me. As woman we all have our moments when we are out with friends shopping for that special item that is going to make us feel like we are beautiful. Unfortunatly we usually end up with something uncomfortable that makes us look better. The fact that Gillian is pretty much forced into wearing a g-string to make her outfit look more acceptable. She felt uneasy about it the whole time but did it anyways.
Mr Kip seemed very self-centered. He was comparing Katherine Hepburn to Gillian. Making her feel insecure about her appearance. He told her she was frizzy not fizzy like Katherine. When it came time for the to go to the Rotary club he told her not to put her head on the head rest if she had used hairspray. This shows that her comfort level isn't important to him. While they are at the club he compared her to a cone-shaped upstanding white napkins instead of trying to compliment her. He sat at the table with her and drank and smoked, tipped ash on her and didn't introduce her to any of his friends.
While the were on the way home Mr Kip's windshield wiper flew off and ontop the side of the road Mr Kip's fogged up glasses prevented him from seeing much, so he demanded Gillian to help him look. In her new dress went flopping around in the muddy side of the road and found the wiper. When it didn't work he blamed her and Gillian finally took control. She took his tie, her G-string and swiss ary knife and constructed a way to make the wipers function. He then in some effect got "Off" on this and tried to come on to her but, Gillian wasn't having it. She had finally realized she was a modern woman and she wasn't going to be a fool for Colin(Mr Kip) anymore.
I believe that the story should have gone on a bit but, it did get its message accross. I think that if the story was to proceed from that point maybe they would stay in the relationship but, Gillialn would now wear the pants.
Gillian and Mr Kip to me seem like an unlikely couple. It shows that they are both uncomfprtable with their relationship in different sections of the story. Gillian is uncomfortable with herself and how Mr Kip perceives her to be and Mr kip seems uncomfortable with the way Gillian looks and acts.
The part where Gillian is in the Lingerie shop with her friend trying out clothes sticks in my head for many reasons. This part of the story makes it so realistic to me. As woman we all have our moments when we are out with friends shopping for that special item that is going to make us feel like we are beautiful. Unfortunatly we usually end up with something uncomfortable that makes us look better. The fact that Gillian is pretty much forced into wearing a g-string to make her outfit look more acceptable. She felt uneasy about it the whole time but did it anyways.
Mr Kip seemed very self-centered. He was comparing Katherine Hepburn to Gillian. Making her feel insecure about her appearance. He told her she was frizzy not fizzy like Katherine. When it came time for the to go to the Rotary club he told her not to put her head on the head rest if she had used hairspray. This shows that her comfort level isn't important to him. While they are at the club he compared her to a cone-shaped upstanding white napkins instead of trying to compliment her. He sat at the table with her and drank and smoked, tipped ash on her and didn't introduce her to any of his friends.
While the were on the way home Mr Kip's windshield wiper flew off and ontop the side of the road Mr Kip's fogged up glasses prevented him from seeing much, so he demanded Gillian to help him look. In her new dress went flopping around in the muddy side of the road and found the wiper. When it didn't work he blamed her and Gillian finally took control. She took his tie, her G-string and swiss ary knife and constructed a way to make the wipers function. He then in some effect got "Off" on this and tried to come on to her but, Gillian wasn't having it. She had finally realized she was a modern woman and she wasn't going to be a fool for Colin(Mr Kip) anymore.
I believe that the story should have gone on a bit but, it did get its message accross. I think that if the story was to proceed from that point maybe they would stay in the relationship but, Gillialn would now wear the pants.
Monday, November 26, 2007
"G-String"
I like the evolution of the characters throughout the story. I think this story represents the evolution of the place of women in society. Before, women were only supposed to have kids and clean the house, they didn’t have any opportunities to study or work, and they were totally dependent of men. However, nowadays women have the same rights as men, the right to study, work and be independent, although this has not been fully accomplished in some countries.
We could compare the evolution of women in society with the evolution of Gillian in this story. At first, she is presented as a quiet character that lets Mr. Kip control her and bring her down. She doesn’t particularly stand out in her job, working for “a car-hire firm in Grays Thurrock”, whereas Mr. Kip’s insurance business is “small but flourishing”. She is very insecure and has no self-esteem because she is constantly compared to this perfect actress, Katharine Hepburn, who is “skinny and elegant and sparky and intelligent.” Gillian doesn’t like anything about herself; she doesn’t like her frizzy hair or her body, and tries constantly to fit in the “modern woman” stereotype. Also, Mr. Kip’s behavior doesn’t help her. He compares her to “the cone-shaped upstanding white napkins on the fancily made-up tables” when she is wearing her new white dress, and doesn’t introduce her to any of his friends. He even “tips ashes on her” while smoking his cigar.
However, “all of a sudden, wheeewwoing!”, the wipers of the car flew off as the character’s roles dramatically changed. Gillian finally stands out for her dignity. She proves that she can be clever, strong, independent, and that she has the right to be respected. She no longer calls him “Mr. Kip”, but she now calls him “Collin”, and finally, Collin ends up falling for her. As far as I am concerned, I think that the author created an evolution in character and situation which surprises the reader. I think this dramatic change is what makes the story stand out for itself in only 3 pages.
What do you think about the story beginning with a question: “Ever fallen out with somebody simply because they agreed with you?”, how does this question relate to the situation described in the story?
We could compare the evolution of women in society with the evolution of Gillian in this story. At first, she is presented as a quiet character that lets Mr. Kip control her and bring her down. She doesn’t particularly stand out in her job, working for “a car-hire firm in Grays Thurrock”, whereas Mr. Kip’s insurance business is “small but flourishing”. She is very insecure and has no self-esteem because she is constantly compared to this perfect actress, Katharine Hepburn, who is “skinny and elegant and sparky and intelligent.” Gillian doesn’t like anything about herself; she doesn’t like her frizzy hair or her body, and tries constantly to fit in the “modern woman” stereotype. Also, Mr. Kip’s behavior doesn’t help her. He compares her to “the cone-shaped upstanding white napkins on the fancily made-up tables” when she is wearing her new white dress, and doesn’t introduce her to any of his friends. He even “tips ashes on her” while smoking his cigar.
However, “all of a sudden, wheeewwoing!”, the wipers of the car flew off as the character’s roles dramatically changed. Gillian finally stands out for her dignity. She proves that she can be clever, strong, independent, and that she has the right to be respected. She no longer calls him “Mr. Kip”, but she now calls him “Collin”, and finally, Collin ends up falling for her. As far as I am concerned, I think that the author created an evolution in character and situation which surprises the reader. I think this dramatic change is what makes the story stand out for itself in only 3 pages.
What do you think about the story beginning with a question: “Ever fallen out with somebody simply because they agreed with you?”, how does this question relate to the situation described in the story?
Sunday, November 25, 2007
G-String
I think some of the story captured the essence of what men and women are today, but not all. When it comes down to Mr. Kip, I don't think all men think like he does. The men that I know want a woman to be able to support herself if need be and they want them to have a voice because they want to know what they think or at least they want to argue with them. When it comes to Gillian, I think she's insecure about her weight and size and the fact that she's not like Katharine Hepburn. Which, in turn makes Gillian so much more insecure due to Mr. Kip's obssesed affections towards Hepburn.
When Gillian is convinced to buy and wear this G-String, she's at a lost about this new contraption. She's so used to being her old self and being in place where not even Mr. Kip respects her for who she is. Gillian doesn't even respect herself because she's with a guy who is always comparing her to an actress that he'll never meet and if he met her, he wouldn't like her because she's old now. Why would this woman ever stay with a man like that? Like I said before she has no self-respect.
She wears the G-String on a night where Mr. Kip takes her out. It's the same thing all over again. He downs her, makes her feel like she's worthless, but this time she's had enough. She agreed with Mr. Kip in the beginning, thinking that she was worthless. But she doesn't agree with him anymore and now she's the one that's going to get herself out of the situation that Mr. Kip put her in, but also in the situation that she put herself in. She saves herself and Mr. Kip out of the rain, but I also see her saving herself from Mr. Kip. Katharine Hepburn would never do what Gillian did to get out of rain and for that Gillian should be proud of herself.
When Gillian is convinced to buy and wear this G-String, she's at a lost about this new contraption. She's so used to being her old self and being in place where not even Mr. Kip respects her for who she is. Gillian doesn't even respect herself because she's with a guy who is always comparing her to an actress that he'll never meet and if he met her, he wouldn't like her because she's old now. Why would this woman ever stay with a man like that? Like I said before she has no self-respect.
She wears the G-String on a night where Mr. Kip takes her out. It's the same thing all over again. He downs her, makes her feel like she's worthless, but this time she's had enough. She agreed with Mr. Kip in the beginning, thinking that she was worthless. But she doesn't agree with him anymore and now she's the one that's going to get herself out of the situation that Mr. Kip put her in, but also in the situation that she put herself in. She saves herself and Mr. Kip out of the rain, but I also see her saving herself from Mr. Kip. Katharine Hepburn would never do what Gillian did to get out of rain and for that Gillian should be proud of herself.
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