SSRJ #2: STRAIGHT

From the first few lines, I was hooked and wanted to know more. “Mines,” was a piece that made me feel appreciative that my parents raised me the way they did, and that they cared enough to try their best.

Clarette works in a youth correctional facility among many young men who seem to have thrown their lives away. Covered in tattoos, fighting to stay alive, living every day as if it might be their last. Although, this isn’t Clarette’s dream job, it does provide for her family, and has benefits. Considering her husband, Ray, has been out of a job, this job is an essential. When she does arrive home, it seems like her role has not changed. She still has to protect her children from their dad, who doesn’t know what he is doing is hurting them. Ray seems to only be trying to protect his son by cutting his hair, and keeping him from playing the piano, but eventually with these mannerisms he is only turning him into what walks the halls at the local youth correctional facility. When the story ends with Clarette looking into the advertisement for the piano, I am happy to say she is fighting for what she believes in and trying her best to help her children succeed in the future.

Tattoos seemed to play a large role in “Mines,” which I found particularly interesting due to the fact that I have them. It showed me how different life inside a prison can be. The wrong tattoo in a prison could get you killed, but it also could keep you alive. Tattoo’s could tell your whole life story, being family, why you’re in, who you role with, who you hate, and how you think. Outside the prison system, you don’t see it much except in certain areas of towns, but tattoo’s to certain people seem to have lost that value that they started out with. Some see them as art, some see them as a way to remember an event that happened in life that they want to relive forever. It does seem to be a lifestyle though. Tattooed people are different in ways that can’t be described.

A literary element that stood out a lot was imagery. Straight did a good job of painting a picture in my head, of the world she lived in, and the people she was surrounded by.

I could relate to this particular story because my uncle works as a correctional officer at a level four prison, which is the highest it goes. He talks a lot about the people inside and how tattoos do play a large role in their daily lives.  The only question I had would be if she disagreed with the way Ray was treating her son, and if he didn’t seem to be present or help in any way, why was she with him? 

SSRJ #1: Chopin

When I first began to read Chopin’s story I felt uncomfortable with the given situation. As it started off,  I edged towards remorse due to the fact that I have recently lost someone but it all turned to questions when she yelled she was free.  I can’t say I understand personally, but the time period was different and women didn’t have the choice of separation from a bad situation, which was almost given by the description of the beauty she saw when first looked outside.

The element that stood out as interesting to me was the irony of the situation. Although not given much information of the husband, or why she seemed free when notified of his passing, with the information given, I found it interesting when she died at the end.  Her death was questionable as well though, given it could have been to shock of seeing her dead husband, all that is implied is she is now trapped again.

In my own life, the only situations this made me think about, being a different time period, was women who stay with their husbands after they cheat. Due to the fact that this was written in 1894, I can’t say I have a personal experience, or could even imagine what it must have felt like to lose and regain a husband within a matter of minutes.  If i had to ask a question, it would be where her husband was, that made him be so far away from the scene of the accident, that he did not know there had been one.

[.1.] Introductions

My name is Amanda, I am nineteen, graduated from Roseville High School in 2009 and I am currently in my second year at Sierra College. English 1B is required for transfer, and I am taking it online because i would much rather be able to do my homework outside on a nice day, than being stuck in a classroom.  My favorite authors include, Edgar Allen Poe, Ellen Hopkins, Shakespeare, David Pelzer, David Sheff, and Melvin Burgess.