Lidia Soriano

March 28, 2008

english cp 1

The Plum Plum Pickers’ Essay

In the passage when Manuel finally stands up to Roberto Morales and learns a new important lesson that all mean should experience some sort of honor or pride sometime in their life or life is just not worth living the author suggests that the main experience of manhood all men should experience is a sense of honor and pride.

The passage means that every man some time in their life must have some sense of honor or pride why because men are strong human beings. Also because since this story takes place in a Spanish type theme Hispanic men are always raised to be a strong figure at all times the man of the house, the boss. I know this from growing up in Spanish background myself all my life I’ve seen how the men in the house always had to have the control in the house hold it’s just a tradition I guess. Also because it shows a sense of strength “ He salvaged his money savagely and he had earned respect from his fellow slaves.” meaning since he showed that honor and strength he redeemed his rightfully earned money and won his fellow slaves respect all just by showing pride.

The author establishes his point by getting in to real detail about how bad a time Manuel was going through before he stood up to Morales. “ Whenever Roberto Morales spoke, Manuel had to force himself not to answer. He had to keep his temper from flaring.” meaning Manuel didn’t have enough honor or pride in himself to stand up to Morales. This is why the author suggests that a man must have some sort of honor or pride because if he didn’t then he’ll let everyone step over and abuse his rights that everyone is allowed to. A good example I can put for this is “ No matter where he turned, he was trapped in an endless, maze of apricot trees, as though for ever, neat rows of them, neatly planted, row after row, just like the blackest bars on the jails of hell.” meaning since Manuel thought he had no power in his job since Morales was the boss he felt trapped like a slave to his own job.

The purpose of this passage is to reach out to all men out there in the world old, young, rich poor a man must experience at least once a sense of pride and honor because it will feel so good at the end of the day that it will make life worth living every other new day it will give them a sense of strength also and enthusiasm to start a brand new day for example “ Manuel felt a thrill of power course through his nerves. He had never won anything before.” meaning that after Manuel stood up to Morales he felt the strength that in the end the story trying to let out to men that life is just not worth living without that great feeling of honor and pride. “ Men are built to experience a certain sense of honor and pride. Or else they are dead before they die.” the end.

Lidia Soriano 3/8/08
Hamlet’s Video Clip
In the passage in act 1 scene 2 where Hamlet performs his first soliloquy I really admired Shakespeare’s unique talent in writing because I could actually picture the scene of Hamlet in my mind. The way he must have been feeling the scenery and the actual act I viewed in my mind. I liked the actor's representation of this scene because I think he did a outstanding job with the dialogue and the acting. However, what really caught my attention was that no words were changed and I could understand word for word what was actually happening in the scene.
In the video clip Hamlet introduces the scene by standing in between the middle of two chairs that seem to be the king and queen’s thrown. His head facing down holding himself from one of the arms of the two chairs as if he was defeated and weary as if asking god to make his problems disappear like he is praying for forgiveness and regret. The reason for why I think Hamlet introduces this scene like this is because of all these problems going through his head that are confusing him and making his life miserable and that is the reason why he is acting insane. After all the book is called the tragedy of Hamelt Prince of Denmark. The scenery seems to be in the main room where particular events or where important meetings take place. It also seems like a important meeting had just ended and Hamlet just stayed there still judging his father's death, that really scared him. The reason why say an event just ended is because of the white confetti all over the scenery and on Hamlet’s head and shoulders and because in the book right before the scene where he performs his soliloquy Hamlet was just done talking the Claudius and Gertrude about his father and how hard it has been for him to move on from the kings death. I guess the confetti was because usually royalties have subjects that follow them and treat them with such worthiness and throw petals on every step they take. They also do this when a special event is about to take place. He begins speaking in a low and soft voice once he straightens himself up his voice becomes stronger he begins to walk off the thrown and the look now his face seems so confused and unsatisfied he begins to move his hands as he speaks showing aggression and a force that builds up with his speech. He is walking towards looking at this atmosphere around him as if everything seems different now that his father is gone.
When he refers to his father “...So excellent a king...” In line 143 of the book, he looks up to the ceiling with the light now touching his face with a proud angelic look on his face as if to heaven when he says this. But, once he says “...that was to this Hyperion to a satyr;” In lines 143-144 when Hamlet says this he looks around the palace and the expression on his face seems like he is trying to say that the palace wasn’t good enough for his father that his father deserved better than this and that he deserved a better kingdom with better subjects. When he says "Heaven and earth, Must I remember? Why, she [would] hang on him As if increase of appetite had grown By what it fed on. But yet, within a month..." In lines 146-149 his voice brakes the expression on his face changes he shuts his eyes strong and lowers his head with both hands on his ears as if trying to fight a noise or trying to fight the memory of his father from appearing in his head. I find this piece very astonishing because what the actor did in the scene is what I pictured in my mind when I first read it.
When he remembers the love Gertrude had for his father he seems relieved again he straightens himself and keeps walking at the same slow pace but once he realizes that only a month went by and Gertrude had already married again and to his own uncle he turns and for one instant then front again and yells that with in a month she was married again. He keeps on walking forward to the right and when he mentions within a month again he looks back again and yell still walking forward. He keeps walking but also keeps looking back he also uses hand movements as he speaks while looking back as if he were speaking to some. As he continues walking he begins to give his back to the camera his voice begins to crack again as he begins to scream at the top of his lungs as he says that even a cold hearted beast would have mourned his father longer than Gertrude did. He lows his voice again and uses his hands as a symbol of his anger and points. His walking pace slows down he keeps looking back as if still he is talking to some one behind him. Finally, he ends the scene looking up at the ceiling and taking a deep breath as if he finally let out allhis feelings and thoughts.

In the end I chose this scene because I found it beatiful and strongly developed and written.