This is a place to brainstorm, share group work, pose questions, comment before/during/after discussions, post drafts--and anything else we decide to blog about on our education odyssey.
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Bablyon :#s 3, 5, &6 but with style
Return to one of the questions from the previous post [3,5, or 6 p.53] and support your answer with evidence that comes from an author's style choices.
What I find very interesting about this piece of writing is the fact that Benet never actually said anything about the Bible, but the story's title is from Psalm 137. Even the story referenced to Psalm 137, when John saw the city to be in complete ruins, while the Bible talks about Jerusalem being in ruins. The Psalm also talks about remembering the Lord. I found the way he worded things interesting. He did make allusions but he didn't make them obvious at all. His sentences were intricate, with his allusions woven into it somehow. After reading "By the Waters of Babylon" several times, I am starting to enjoy it because of the way Benet worded things to make his meanings hidden. I believe this makes a piece of literature better because he doesn't come right out and say what's on his mind.
The theme that Benet displays is be yourself. He uses his style to exhibit that. He makes John's character revolutionary compared to his people, and he learns something important about his society; about the truth behind the Place of the Gods. This allows his people to grow and want to explore other unknowns about their surroundings. Also, Benet makes his main character as simple as possible to try to put the emphasis on the plot or theme. He creates this effect by naming the character John and by making him speak simply.
I did not get the theme in this story when I read it the first time, but when i went back and read it again I started picking up on key things. I strong theme I believe is to go with your heart. I say that because the main character John does what is so called "forbidden" that no one else would do. Crossing the Hudson River was a strong example in supporting this theme. John knew that no one ever crossed the river and that he would most likely die if he did but that was not satisfying to him if he just turned around and went home, he knew he needed to cross the river. That was a strong decision to cross but he knew it was right because he went with his heart.
Benet writes with a style that seems very mysterious and does make me think of things from the Bible when I read it. His word choices seem like that, and when your reading theirs always sort of a calm mysterious air around you. Also, sort of like an old Bible story, John is setting on a sort of Pilgrimage, and he has to go through obstacles like crossing a river and escaping from dogs which he conquers. So I think this is why the title is an allusion to the Bible, he is referring to messages from the Bible, but applying them to the future.
Question 5 that I answered says that the title "By the Waters of Babylon" is not litterly meaning waters in Babylon. I learned this from first of all looking up where this book was published which was in the U.S. and then second looking at the bible passage from psalms 137. Here it said how the people from Zion are crying from a foreign land and are saying they cant pay respects to it from this foreign land they are in. But in Benets story, he has someone, the hero, who reclaims the are of destruction and vows to set it back up again for the rest of the people. By the way Benet balences destruction and regrowth, it gives u hope at the end of his story just like in the bible how their is always a solution to the tales.
I agree with Jeremy. Benet's style is mysterious and reminds me of the Bible. In the first few paragraphs you don't really know what's going on and it's sort of confusing, but as time goes on, more is revealed. It ties in to the fact that the title of the story is a reference to the Bible.
Benet has an eerie form of writing. Like Jeremy said, his writing is always mysterious. Benet has a unique style of writing and I could tell by him making an allusion to the Bible in the title of his story. Through out the story Benet gave examples on how John was very couragous and followed his heart by crossing the river even though there were many signs telling him to go back. I think that this theme relates to the allusion to the Bible because in the books of the Bible the people follow their own hearts and sometimes find things out the hard way. Like Jeremy said, they also go on journeys that involve many obsticles, and in the "Waters of Babylon" John did as well. After reading the selection a few times, things such as the theme, and Bible allusion all fell together to create Benets creative, mysterious and eerie writing style.
On question 3 it asked why I thought it was forbidden for anyone but a priest to go into forbidden land. I think Benet is trying to say that a priest is more responsible to cross over to the dead places because they have more maturity in them than a normal person would. He uses a lot of detail to describe what he's trying to back up. "It is forbidden to go to any of the dead places except to search for metal, and then he who touches the metal must be the priest or son of the priest." page 43
I think that Benet has a very mystical ad clouded writing. It makes me think of the way the Bible is written. This ties in very well with the title "By the Watrs of Babylon" which in itself is an allusion. Basicly the whole book can be looked at as an allusion to psalm 137. Almost everything can be related, from the river, to the destruction of everything.
The book seemed very confusing to read at first until I realized it was just the authors style of writing. While reading the short story I got a different feeling than when I read any other story. I really had to think and reread parts of the story which gave the story a mysterious vibe. As I continued reading I tied loose ends together and understood the story more clearly. Benet refers to the Bible which makes the title stand out more. Most authors just put a title on the story without much meaning.
I agree with Christine in that I thought it was interesting how in the title Benet made an allusion to the Bible, but the story did not directly have to do with the Bible or the Bible was never stated in the story. I thought Benet's style was that he wrote for us to think. To get the full meaning of the story one had to read Psalm 137, look up what major bombings happened in 1937 and maybe even look at other works by Benet. I thought his sentence structure was not complicated butt hard to understand, he never stated things flat out, there was always more to understand. To really understand his writing one had to "read between the lines."
I agree with abby completely about how you really had to understand Benets style by reading his story more than once to get what the story was about. Benets writing leaves you wondering about different meanings that it might have. I think his work had a lot of underlying means that i couldn't figure out at first until I thought about and reread it. He had a very mysterious way of writing and I grew to like it more after having to read it multiple times.
Benet is the type of writer that makes you think in depth about a certain something or wants you to reread his works to understand the full messages. He uses mystery and the unknown to lure the reader in and trap them so to speak, that way they have to look things up and ask for help when stuck. It is a way of learning by force almost, and it helps you understand the reading more and more when you find new meanings and connections. Benet's writing style is quite opposite of Vonnegut, Vonnegut was the type of write to get straight to the point with preciseness and concrete. On the other hand, Benet is the type to make the reader think and researh the unknown and engage the reader in outside materials. The rice of progress is mentioned as the overlook for this unit and i have two takes on the phrase. My first, is how much we, as people, are willing to literally pay to get ahead or get an edge on a situation to gain the advantage. Then my second take was that how much are we willing to pysical and mentally endure in order to make headway or move along. I say that price should be weighed and balanced with the amount of effort and drive to progress more and move forward before even acting upon thoughts.
Psalm 137 opens up with the line, By the Waters of Babylon, hence the title of Benet's work. Benet alluded to psalm 137 throughout the story. Also, the Forbidden City (aka New York) is forbidden because it was destroyed in a fire long ago. When John (another Bible allusion) goes to New York, he sees many writings such as UBTREAS and ASHING. I am not sure about ASHING but I think UBTREAS is a broken sign that once said sub-treasury.
I like Benet's mysterious style of writing. He made allusions to the Bible without directly talking about the Bible. The whole story felt like you were reading from the Bible. When I first read it, even though I didn't know exactly what was going, I still had the sense that I was reading something from the Bible. After finding what Psalms 137 said, I immediately understood more about the story. Also I like Benet's style because it makes you think deeply about it and reread it to understand. It kind of made you do a little research to understand, and I like the mystical feeling throughout the story.
Benet's style of writing is mysterious and you really have to dig to find the true meaning of what he is saying. Like others said I also feel his writing relates in style. It relates in the manner that not everything can be understood right away in the bible, Just like how "By The Waters Of Babylon" was hard to understand at first. His style leads me to believe he chose the title based of a stylistic chose of how closely related his and the Bible's writing style are.
What I find very interesting about this piece of writing is the fact that Benet never actually said anything about the Bible, but the story's title is from Psalm 137. Even the story referenced to Psalm 137, when John saw the city to be in complete ruins, while the Bible talks about Jerusalem being in ruins. The Psalm also talks about remembering the Lord. I found the way he worded things interesting. He did make allusions but he didn't make them obvious at all. His sentences were intricate, with his allusions woven into it somehow. After reading "By the Waters of Babylon" several times, I am starting to enjoy it because of the way Benet worded things to make his meanings hidden. I believe this makes a piece of literature better because he doesn't come right out and say what's on his mind.
ReplyDeleteThe theme that Benet displays is be yourself. He uses his style to exhibit that. He makes John's character revolutionary compared to his people, and he learns something important about his society; about the truth behind the Place of the Gods. This allows his people to grow and want to explore other unknowns about their surroundings. Also, Benet makes his main character as simple as possible to try to put the emphasis on the plot or theme. He creates this effect by naming the character John and by making him speak simply.
ReplyDeleteI did not get the theme in this story when I read it the first time, but when i went back and read it again I started picking up on key things. I strong theme I believe is to go with your heart. I say that because the main character John does what is so called "forbidden" that no one else would do. Crossing the Hudson River was a strong example in supporting this theme. John knew that no one ever crossed the river and that he would most likely die if he did but that was not satisfying to him if he just turned around and went home, he knew he needed to cross the river. That was a strong decision to cross but he knew it was right because he went with his heart.
ReplyDeleteBenet writes with a style that seems very mysterious and does make me think of things from the Bible when I read it. His word choices seem like that, and when your reading theirs always sort of a calm mysterious air around you. Also, sort of like an old Bible story, John is setting on a sort of Pilgrimage, and he has to go through obstacles like crossing a river and escaping from dogs which he conquers. So I think this is why the title is an allusion to the Bible, he is referring to messages from the Bible, but applying them to the future.
ReplyDeleteQuestion 5 that I answered says that the title "By the Waters of Babylon" is not litterly meaning waters in Babylon. I learned this from first of all looking up where this book was published which was in the U.S. and then second looking at the bible passage from psalms 137. Here it said how the people from Zion are crying from a foreign land and are saying they cant pay respects to it from this foreign land they are in. But in Benets story, he has someone, the hero, who reclaims the are of destruction and vows to set it back up again for the rest of the people. By the way Benet balences destruction and regrowth, it gives u hope at the end of his story just like in the bible how their is always a solution to the tales.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Jeremy. Benet's style is mysterious and reminds me of the Bible. In the first few paragraphs you don't really know what's going on and it's sort of confusing, but as time goes on, more is revealed. It ties in to the fact that the title of the story is a reference to the Bible.
ReplyDeleteBenet has an eerie form of writing. Like Jeremy said, his writing is always mysterious. Benet has a unique style of writing and I could tell by him making an allusion to the Bible in the title of his story. Through out the story Benet gave examples on how John was very couragous and followed his heart by crossing the river even though there were many signs telling him to go back. I think that this theme relates to the allusion to the Bible because in the books of the Bible the people follow their own hearts and sometimes find things out the hard way. Like Jeremy said, they also go on journeys that involve many obsticles, and in the "Waters of Babylon" John did as well. After reading the selection a few times, things such as the theme, and Bible allusion all fell together to create Benets creative, mysterious and eerie writing style.
ReplyDeleteOn question 3 it asked why I thought it was forbidden for anyone but a priest to go into forbidden land. I think Benet is trying to say that a priest is more responsible to cross over to the dead places because they have more maturity in them than a normal person would. He uses a lot of detail to describe what he's trying to back up. "It is forbidden to go to any of the dead places except to search for metal, and then he who touches the metal must be the priest or son of the priest." page 43
ReplyDeleteI think that Benet has a very mystical ad clouded writing. It makes me think of the way the Bible is written. This ties in very well with the title "By the Watrs of Babylon" which in itself is an allusion. Basicly the whole book can be looked at as an allusion to psalm 137. Almost everything can be related, from the river, to the destruction of everything.
ReplyDeleteThe book seemed very confusing to read at first until I realized it was just the authors style of writing. While reading the short story I got a different feeling than when I read any other story. I really had to think and reread parts of the story which gave the story a mysterious vibe. As I continued reading I tied loose ends together and understood the story more clearly. Benet refers to the Bible which makes the title stand out more. Most authors just put a title on the story without much meaning.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Christine in that I thought it was interesting how in the title Benet made an allusion to the Bible, but the story did not directly have to do with the Bible or the Bible was never stated in the story. I thought Benet's style was that he wrote for us to think. To get the full meaning of the story one had to read Psalm 137, look up what major bombings happened in 1937 and maybe even look at other works by Benet. I thought his sentence structure was not complicated butt hard to understand, he never stated things flat out, there was always more to understand. To really understand his writing one had to "read between the lines."
ReplyDeleteI agree with abby completely about how you really had to understand Benets style by reading his story more than once to get what the story was about. Benets writing leaves you wondering about different meanings that it might have. I think his work had a lot of underlying means that i couldn't figure out at first until I thought about and reread it. He had a very mysterious way of writing and I grew to like it more after having to read it multiple times.
ReplyDeleteBenet is the type of writer that makes you think in depth about a certain something or wants you to reread his works to understand the full messages. He uses mystery and the unknown to lure the reader in and trap them so to speak, that way they have to look things up and ask for help when stuck. It is a way of learning by force almost, and it helps you understand the reading more and more when you find new meanings and connections. Benet's writing style is quite opposite of Vonnegut, Vonnegut was the type of write to get straight to the point with preciseness and concrete. On the other hand, Benet is the type to make the reader think and researh the unknown and engage the reader in outside materials. The rice of progress is mentioned as the overlook for this unit and i have two takes on the phrase. My first, is how much we, as people, are willing to literally pay to get ahead or get an edge on a situation to gain the advantage. Then my second take was that how much are we willing to pysical and mentally endure in order to make headway or move along. I say that price should be weighed and balanced with the amount of effort and drive to progress more and move forward before even acting upon thoughts.
ReplyDeletePsalm 137 opens up with the line, By the Waters of Babylon, hence the title of Benet's work. Benet alluded to psalm 137 throughout the story. Also, the Forbidden City (aka New York) is forbidden because it was destroyed in a fire long ago. When John (another Bible allusion) goes to New York, he sees many writings such as UBTREAS and ASHING. I am not sure about ASHING but I think UBTREAS is a broken sign that once said sub-treasury.
ReplyDeleteI like Benet's mysterious style of writing. He made allusions to the Bible without directly talking about the Bible. The whole story felt like you were reading from the Bible. When I first read it, even though I didn't know exactly what was going, I still had the sense that I was reading something from the Bible. After finding what Psalms 137 said, I immediately understood more about the story. Also I like Benet's style because it makes you think deeply about it and reread it to understand. It kind of made you do a little research to understand, and I like the mystical feeling throughout the story.
ReplyDeleteBenet's style of writing is mysterious and you really have to dig to find the true meaning of what he is saying. Like others said I also feel his writing relates in style. It relates in the manner that not everything can be understood right away in the bible, Just like how "By The Waters Of Babylon" was hard to understand at first. His style leads me to believe he chose the title based of a stylistic chose of how closely related his and the Bible's writing style are.
ReplyDelete