No Name Woman

Blog Post 3: No Name Woman

by Maxine Hong Kingston

Pages 383-394

In her 1975 essay No Name Woman, Maxine Hong Kingston, known for helping to establish the personal memoir as a writing form, writes of her father’s forgotten sister. The woman was impregnated by an unknown man and was thus scorned by her community. She drowned herself and the newborn and was forgotten as though she had never been born. Kingston, not allowed to inquire about this lost aunt, fantasizes about her in a stream-of-consciousness manner, and in the process reveals the Chinese societal expectations for women and their repression of individuality.

        The story of the forgotten aunt, Kingston writes in an anecdote, was told to her when she began to menstruate as a warning to remain pure. Rather than being frightened, Kingston is curious, as her fantasies lead her to imagine what kind of woman her aunt might have been. Vivid imagery is used to take the reader inside the story and within Kingston’s imagination to personally visualize the life of a Chinese woman. She knows, however, that this curiosity is strictly forbidden. Her mother would do nothing unless “powered by Necessity” (Kingston 385). The capitalization indicates necessity is a powerful force in Chinese society, as well as a repressor of individuality, as it does not allow for one to be expressive unless it is absolutely required.

Kingston also uses the term “roundness” throughout one section to symbolize familial unity and dependency on one another. “The round moon cakes and round doorways, the round tables [...] these talismans had lost their power to warn this family of the law, a family must be whole, faithfully keeping the descent line by having sons to feed the old and the dead, who in turn look after the family” (Kingston 391).  The aunt was punished for placing herself above her family through her engagement in sexual activities. The repression, however, exists only for women. Kingston stated that many men in the village journeyed to America, leaving their wives at home to live in accordance with tradition. Thus, Kingston successfully portrays the way in which Chinese society represses individuality and women.

(347 words)

http://www.viralhunger.com/un-women-ad-campaign/

Women Should...

Both the image and Kingston's essay express the restrictions placed on women in their daily lives. Though the essay is focused primarily on Chinese women in the past, the image above displays that what many may regard as an issue of our ancestors is in reality a struggle of the present. Google's search prediction, which is based upon commonly searched phrases, completes the phrase "women should" with "stay at home," "be slaves," "be in the kitchen," and other such oppressive concepts.

The Moral Equivalent of War

Blog Post 2: The Moral Equivalent of War

by William James

Pages 45-56

  William James, an established American thinker in the fields of philosophy, psychology, and physiology, published an essay entitled The Moral Equivalent of War in 1910, in which he proves that despite his own pacifist beliefs, a world without war is not yet possible or desirable. The author of numerous related books argues that in the absence of war, political unity and the character of man cannot be built until pacifists find a more moral tool to serve its mental and emotional purposes.

        Man, says James, has been bred to be militaristic: “We inherit the warlike type; and for most of the capacities of heroism that the human race is full of we have to thank this cruel history” (James 47). Not only does he believe war to have merit, but even that it is an inherited aspect of human nature. The metaphorical comparison to something passed from generation to generation, whether viewed from a biological perspective or in terms of family heirlooms, links war with human identity, establishing its profound sentimental value. Despite any objection to war’s bestial qualities, James insists upon thanking the “cruel history.” “War is the strong life; it is life in extremis,” he emphatically states (James 46). Such poignant diction appeals to the reader on an emotional level, a basis for much of James’s writing.

        James bolsters his thesis with historical and literary evidence, allowing him achieve his purpose. References to the Boer War (James 47), recent in his initial readers’ minds, and The Iliad (James 46) give him credibility he would not otherwise command. James recognizes that to date there is no better solution than war, but offers a suggestion all the same: rather than conscription into the military, young men might enlist to work in road-building or dish-washing to make them tough without the callousness obtained in warfare. He appeases fellow pacifists with the notion that a peaceful utopia may be obtained later, while also reaffirming the militaristic belief that war is necessary. Therefore, while offering hope for the future, he successfully convinces his audience that war, for the time being, is a necessity.

(350 words)

http://www.seattlepi.com/local/article/WSU-puts-World-War-I-and-II-propaganda-online-4968772.php#photo-5437347

War is a Part of Us

Through James's essay and this propaganda poster, one can see fact that war is engrained in human nature. "Be a man," the poster commands. Just as James states in his essay, war is used as a means to toughen young men. This also implies that if one does not sign up to fight, he is not a true man. Society has an idea of what a man should be, "tough" or "brave" being masculine qualities. War, it seems, is the only way to prove one's gallantry. James hopes, however, that the future might offer a less violent solution, while still to some degree upholding those ideals.

Illumination Rounds

Blog Post 1: 

Illumination Rounds

by Michael Herr

Pages 327-341

Illumination Rounds is a 1969 essay by Michael Herr, a correspondent for Esquire magazine during the Vietnam War, and published in Herr’s 1977 book, Dispatches. Herr spent over a year in Vietnam during some of the most intense fighting, and, uninhibited by deadlines, traveled about at will, experiencing the war alongside American troops. The essay portrays the war through Herr’s eyes and through the eyes of those with whom he came into contact in short, provoking stories. He paints a grotesque picture of warfare as someone seeing its brutality for the first time.

The title, Illumination Rounds, is a double entendre. Illumination rounds are used militarily to light up the enemy at night. However, the essay is meant to act as an illumination of the realities of war to a naive American public. Herr entered the war zone blind to its brutality, once describing a dead boy’s hand as a “pound of liver fresh from the butcher paper” (Herr 328). The metaphor exemplifies how death appears to a man seeing it for the first time. The comparison that he chose helps Herr to illuminate the horrors of war to Americans, as relating a man to a piece of meat is highly disturbing. In peacetime, humans regard themselves as superior to all other creatures. War, however, makes corpses of man and beast equally.

Additionally, Herr makes known the corruption of warfare. He comments on some American civilian engineers, who were well-paid by the government and had their salaries matched on the black market (Herr 329). He describes their sad mistresses and their insensitivity to Vietnamese culture (Herr 330). In another portrait of Special Forces captain he met, he tells the story of a man who received a medal through a lie (Herr 331). His testimonial experience in the first case, and the quoted story of a real man in the second build Herr’s credibility. The blatant corruption of the matters reveals the lawlessness of war, helping him to achieve his purpose. Herr’s written images of Vietnam would not allow an American audience to see war the same way again.

(348 words)

 

Photo by Horst Faas, 1965

"War will make corpses of us all" 

The image and essay relate closely with a quote from Faramir in The Two Towers (film). An addition not included in Tolkien's original work, the character states that "war will make corpses of us all." Through the combination of death and corruption exposed by Herr, it is clear that whether one becomes a literal, lifeless corpse, or suffers the fate of the corrupt, a body rid of morality, war does indeed make corpses of all. Similarly, the band on this soldier's helmet says "war is Hell." Again, whether or not one is physically dead, he or she still experiences hellish horrors.