Thoughts about All Watched Over By Machines of Loving Grace by Richard Brautigan

~First, write 1-2 paragraphs assembling evidence to argue that this poem has an anti-technology tone and message. 

This poem seems to have an anti-technology tone and message because he seems to give the speaker a sarcastic and an uncertain feel in the poem. He is being sarcastic by giving us a sense of uncertainty. He starts off by saying that he likes to think “(the sooner the better!)” of a “cybernetic meadow”, then he likes to think “(right now, please!)” of a “cybernetic forest” and ends up by saying “(it has to be!)” a “cybernetic ecology”. This is implying that the speaker wishes for nature and technology to coexist by the repetitive use of “I like to think”, but after some though he/she realizes that technology will take over humans/nature, and there never will be a mutual coexistence. The more technology, the worse.

~Second, write 1-2 paragraphs assembling evidence to argue that this poem has a pro-technology tone and 

message.

This poem has a pro-technology tone and message because the poet compares computers to beautiful flowers when says that he likes to think of a cybernetic forest where “deer stroll peacefully” past computers as if they were “flowers with spinning blossoms” . The poem ends by mentioning that if humans joined back with their “mammal brothers and sisters” and are watched over by “machines of loving grace”, humans will be freed of all “labors”. This means that having a lot of technology n the future will benefit us.

~Finally, write 1-2 paragraphs explaining which reading you think is more convincing and explain WHY.

I think this poem is criticizing technology, implying that in the future technology will dominant and dependant on, like a god watching over us with “loving grace” and that mutualism between nature and technology is impossible. There is a lot of sarcasm, and uncertainty in this poem, and the informal format just makes the sarcastic supposition that nature and technology will coexist in the future, simply not believable. If thought about logically, if humans “returned to our mammal brothers and sisters”  while technology and machines of “loving grace” would watch us over us like a god would be a contradiction/paradox. There would be almost no possibility for technology to remain while humans joined back to their” mammal brothers and sisters”  meaning stopping being civilized and joining back to being natural animals because the only reason technology evolved was because humans evolved mentally and physically. Both cannot benefit from each other, one has to suffers for  the other to gain something.

Casabianca by Felicia Hemans, Interpretation of Imagery

Imagery:

1.       Boy (gallant/proud child-like form)

2.       Burning deck/ship

3.       Flames/wreathing fires

4.       Father

5.       Voice / word / speak

6.       Death/perished

7.       Brave despair

8.       Shouting

9.       Thunder sound

10.   Sea

11.   Youth faithful heart

Through the use of sounds and imagery, Hemans amplifies the child’s devotion to his father.

The poem starts off by presenting the image of a lonely boy standing on a flaming deck which was over perished people. He stood proudly, brightly and beautifully, as if he could “rule the storm”. He seemed to be a “creature of heroic blood” because everyone had fled, except him; the boy with a child-like form. One can conclude that these images portray the boy as an innocent child who has seen these people die, is literally surrounded by flames, able to escape, but has the heart to remain put. There is something he is hoping for, before the fire consumes him.

Later in the poem,  it is mentioned that the boy would not go without hearing his father’s  consent through “voice” and “words”. At one point, the boy shouted and cried out, “Speak, father!”  By Hemans using positive connotation to explain that the child heard only “voice” and words” from his father and not shouts or commands, shows his father to be contained. The child saw no harshness in his father. But by the boy shouting and crying out to his father, implies that the child’s has incredible faith in his father’s life. Also, it can be interpreted that the boy does not know, or doesn’t want to accept the fact that his father has perished. He has strong faith that his father has not died.

At the end of the poem, a thunder sound was heard. Hemans writes, “The boy–oh! where was he?”. Then, she adds an image of wind carrying “fragments” across the “sea.” And concludes the poem by mentioning that the noblest thing that perished there was a faithful heart. The image of “fragments” in the wind “strewing” the “sea” implies that the ship has blown up. The wind has carried the debris of the destroyed ship and gallant child across the “sea”. By using the word “sea,” Hemans portrays the image of how strong the child’s faith was. Also, the  boom of the explosion amplifies the significance of the child’s respect and faith for his father’s existence, possibly putting his father before any god. All he probably had in his life was the respect of his father, and without his father everything perished, specially his faithful heart.

FlaxyRunescape

RuneScape is a medieval-based role-playing game, which fortunately is set up so that if you want to advance in the game, you have to read a lot through quests which also contain many riddles/puzzles.

I was about thirteen years old when I began playing RuneScape, and played it for about four years, on and off. I got the nickname Flax because in RuneScape, I used to always "pick" flax, make it into bow strings and sell them for RuneScape gold. And every time a friend would ask, what I was doing?" I'd usually respond back, "Oh, just picking flax". From then on a friend kept calling me Flaxy. I've kept the nickname with me because the name reminds me of my childhood.

Honestly, the strange thing was that in school (and still now), the vocabulary used in the game always came in handy, and teachers would always ask how I amazingly knew the vocabulary used in certain new books we read. I never answered the question from embarrassment. 

Then one day a friend came over while I was playing that game, and asked what the name of the game was called, and I said RuneScape (a landscape of magical rune essences) and he repeated, "Run Escape?" I'd never had that perspective of the name like that. I then realized that that was what I was doing all along, using the game as an escape from the real world. Runescape helped me in English class but disconnected me from my surroundings for a moment in life.