Quote Response #2

After reading Kurt Vonnegut's "Harrison Bergeron" I felt pessimistic, but yet a little intrigued by this story. It all takes place in the year 2081, and everything is different, everyone is equal. This part I found most interesting. I understand the point behind equality for every individual, however I find that it's absurd to believe that each individual will actually receive the fair treatment. How could that even happen? The story actually had a group called the Handicapper General that oversaw the "equality" for each person. So is this group not equal? It seems that way to me. In order to achieve any type of equality then everyone must undergo the same situations and be treated with the same attitudes. Despite the idea of having everyone become equal and eliminate any feuds or conflicts, it was clear that doing so made an even more complicating experience for many people. The quote that moved me was, "And then, neutraling gravity with love and pure will, they remained suspended in air inches below the ceiling, and they kissed each other for a long, long time. It was then that Diana Moon Glampers, the Handicapper General, came into the studio with a double-barreled ten-gauge shotgun. She fired twice, and the Emperor and the Empress were dead before they hit the floor", (Vonnegut). It gave me one short moment in the story to feel joy for someone. Even though Harrison and his Empress were shot, I found it intriguing that they were able to enjoy a last moment of happiness without the chaos of all the "equality" issues. I really enjoyed this story and am glad to have read it.
NOTE: No page number because I am still without books...terribly sad.

Quote Response #1

I really like a quote form John Updike's A&P. The quote is: " and my stomach kind of fell as I felt how hard the world was going to be to me hereafter", (Updike). (Sorry I don't have the book yet, so I read it online.) This quote made me think of what it was like when I moved away from home, leaving my parents and close friends to start my life as an adult. It's a scary time when a person realizes that the world is a confusing and complicating place. This quote summed up many things that I personally have felt in the past few months. (I just left home in March.) I think that growing up, or any transitions for that matter, make a person realize how hard things can be. I like that the character "Sammy" quits his job, but in the moment just after he thinks these words. I find that interesting, and slightly ironic. Interesting because he went with an impulse to quit his job, but then realizes how complicating life will be because of this situation, and ironic because he did something he clearly thought was best, but then thought it through and made the connection that even though it was best, it will make things harder in the long run. Why is it that sometimes the best choices are the hardest? This doesn't always make sense to me. If it's best then shouldn't it make things easier? The words that really jumped out to me where stomach, world, and hereafter. I think that these words caught my eye because they are very profound as far as the context they were written in. This quote is the very last of the short story and I think it wraps up the story, but also leaves the idea that all of the choices a person makes in life will effect them from there forward. However, I do find it interesting that it is the "world' that will be hard on him, not the people in it. I do find truth in this statement. I think the people on this planet make up the world, so therefore, it must be the world that is, indeed, hard on a person.

Freestyle #1

I love to read, it has always been a passion of mine. The ability to get lost in another world and to not have to think about the things going on in my own life, is what excites me the most! My mother always read stories to me growing up and I think that has played a big part in my passion for books. Something funny I like to do is re-read old books, I always feel like I catch up on pieces I missed before, and if it was good the first time its always better the second time. Currently I'm reading Dear John for the second time. I enjoyed it very much when I first read it, but also watched the movie and became very dissapointed so I thought I should read the book again just to make me feel better. One quote that I like very much from this book is, "...the saddest people I've ever met in life are the ones who don't care deeply about anything at all. Passion and satisfaction go hand in hand, and without them, any happiness is only temporary, because there's nothing to make it last...I've found that someone else's happiness is usually infectious." This quote says it all. I agree wholeheartedly with this, in order to truly be happy, a person must be passionate about something. If that can't happen then how is it possible to even know what real happiness is? I also think that if you surround yourself with positive and happy people, it does indeed rub off and creates a better attitude for yourself. It's important to me to read because it makes me happy, I am entirely passionate about sitting down with a new book in hand, opening it up to smell that fresh new paper with all the wonderful text waiting to be enjoyed. It really does put me in a better mood, and I think my husband likes that part.

Hello All!

Hello everyone! My name is Amber Barney and I currently live in Nebraska. My husband is in the US Air Force, so we live on Offutt AFB, in Omaha. I am a very outgoing person and love to meet new people. We don't have any children, except of course our two lovely dog, Zeus and Bart, and our crazy cat, Bella. I'm taking this course because I always loved literature. I took all English honor classes in high school and enjoyed them very much. I loved to read poems, but mostly PB Shelley. I also think Oscar Wilde is hilarious! My favorite from him is his play, The Importance of Being Earnest. As a kid I grew up reading Harry Potter, so of course I still have to enjoy those from time to time. I also got into the Twilight Saga, I blame it on my mom! Along with these I like to read anything by Nicholas Sparks, and Dean Koontz. I tend to stay reading the same authors, and always love re-reading old books!
I asked my husband what he enjoys to read and he said he liked scary books, or some thrillers like Steven King. These excite him more than any other kind, he's not much of a reader.
I asked my mother what she liked and she said all Nora Roberts' books, she (like me) love to get lost in another world that has many gorgeous men.
I asked my best friend was she likes to read and she too likes Nora Roberts, but she is a big fan of Kurt Vonegut and his Cat's Cradle. She just loves to read interesting books, stuff that is different from others.
Hope this gives everyone a little insight to myself, and I look forward to chatting with everybody! Have a great term and don't get too sunburned out there!
Peace and Love,
Amber