Isaiah 43:2

Inspiration and Faith: Biblical Message

My classmates and I had a religious retreat today at my school. I really didn’t take interest in the whole retreat thing. Although the retreat was kind of boring, Sister Sandy brought up a biblical verse that talked about inspiration and strength during tough times. This reminded me of a prayer that had helped me get through hard times; “When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee.” (Isaiah 43:2)
       This prayer was taught to me by my ninth grade bible teacher pastor Bill Henry. It was supposed to be a homework assignment where we had to memorize a specific passage from the bible. The same day that the prayer was taught, my great grandfather was rushed to the hospital because his liver had shut down from a parasitic virus. I also had a basketball tournament later that night and my mind wouldn’t focus. I remember Isaiah 43:2 which was assign to me. I took a few minutes to get myself into the zone and I recited the prayer many times. The words really spoke to me and I was able to concentrate during the game. My team made it to the finals and my great grandfather recovered 3 days later. This prayer is very inspirational. No matter how tough or difficult something is, God will always protect you and be with you. He wants the best for us.
       Another great prayer that I find very motivational is Jeremiah 29:11: "For I know the plans I have for you," says the Lord. 'They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope'. This verse talks about faith, which is another topic of discussion during our retreat today. If we believe in the lord, then we believe in faith. We know that God have plans for us and we have a purpose. Be strong in your faith towards God, for he has everything planned out for us.

"The Short, Happy Life of Francis Macomber" By Ernest Hemingway

One of my favorite authors is Ernest Hemingway. I know so much about him and I’ve spent most of my freshmen year reading his novels and short stories. I’ve enjoyed many stories by Hemingway such as The Old Man and the Sea, The Snows of Kilimanjaro, and I just finished reading The Short, Happy Life of Francis Macomber. In most of Hemingway’s short stories, the common themes he likes to use are Wilderness, Nature and Isolation. In The Old Man and the Sea, Santiago was isolated from society (Class struggles/Marxism) and dragged into the wilderness of the ocean while trying to catch the Marlin. In The Snows of Kilimanjaro, The setting takes places in the Safari of Africa (Ironically, the readers would expect it to be in Mt. Kilimanjaro) where he awaits his slow and painful death. There is a connection between Hemingway and the wandering Wilderness. The short, Happy life of Francis Macomber takes place in the safari. Macomber, his wife Margot, and the guide Wilson are on a hunting trip. Macomber wants to redeem himself after he was scared from the lion and to prove that he does indeed have courage. Meanwhile, Wilson slept with Margaret and the situation got intense between Macomber and Wilson. The next morning, they went out to hunt buffalos and Macomber got the first kill. Margaret was somewhat surprised of her husband’s sudden courage. She ends up shooting Macomber in the head, Wilson and Margaret had a verbal exchange and the story ends there. There was a major use of irony in this story. The title of this story is the short, happy life of Macomber. I wouldn’t say it was anything like that. Macomber was viewed as a coward by Wilson and Margaret, His wife ended up sleeping with Wilson, and he was killed by his wife in the end. His life was short but bitter. I didn’t really grasp the last scene quite clearly. Wilson kept going on with the situation and all Margaret could say was “Stop it,” If you read this story, Then you would ask this same question: Did Margaret really intended on killing her husband, or was it an accident?

In-depth analysis and Critical Approaches on "The Secret Agent"

         This Blog post will consist of an In-depth analysis and criticism of the Political novel by Conrad. The Novel’s main focus is on Anarchism, Terrorism, and the political system. Verloc’s main goal was to bomb the Greenwich Observatory. The fact that all of Verloc’s friends and associates were part of the Anarchism and revolution places an emphasis on the theme of going against the system and politics. This novel mentions rebellions and communism to indicate corruption in the system. The circle is a major symbol throughout the book. Even some books of The Secret Agent have circles drawn all over the cover. The circle Stevie draws, which unveils the plot, represents wholeness and infinity. It goes on forever. “innumerable circles, con centric, eccentric; a coruscating whirl of circles that by their tangled multitude of repeated curves, uniformity of form, and confusion of intersecting lines suggested a rendering of cosmic chaos, the symbolism of a mad art attempting the inconceivable.” (pg 52) Foreshadowing was one of the major literary devices in this novel. “I had to take the carving knife away from the boy….. some people don’t deserve much mercy” (pg 62) This quote spoken by Winnie foreshadows Verloc’s death when she plunges the carving knife into his heart. There are many critical approaches to this story but the two that works the best are Topical/Historical and Economic Determinist/Marxist. I mentioned briefly in the earlier blog post that this novel has historical significance. The bombing of the Greenwich Observatory was actually based on a historic event that happened in 1894. Martial Bourdin, the character Stevie was based from, was a French Anarchist who died when the bomb he was carrying prematurely detonated. The Economic Determinist/Marxism approach is the revolt of Anarchist and the political systems. You see a lot of classes in this novel such as: Verloc is a small business owner of a pornographic shop as well as an agent provocateur, the proletariats, and the Anarchist. The anarchist believed in no government control and the people should be free to do what they choose. They didn’t support the political systems so they figure a way to get rid of it. http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/11/books/review/11reiss.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0
This article I found online is another criticism from a different writer that is very useful in analysing this novel

My Opinions on "The Secret Agent"

I read The Secret Agent by Joseph Conrad. I really enjoyed this book because of how the plot flows and the events that occur are easy to comprehend compared to other books I read in AP Lit such as: The Tale of Two Cities and Their Eyes were watching God. Joseph Conrad wasn’t really my favorite author because of the style of writing he uses. His sentences are very long, he uses very deep descriptions of characters, and he uses complex vocabulary that is challenging to an average high school student. The structure of this story is different and it takes a while to catch on to it. It is like a book that you want to finish as soon as possible and get it over with. The first few chapters were just introducing the family and the conversation between Verloc and Vladimir. There was no action. But after chapter four actions begins to rise and the reader will soon be able to identify the conflicts and themes. Conrad’s novel was based on the political system of England and had some historical significance. The bombing of the Greenwich Observatory was based on a real event that happen in 1894 and the character Stevie was derived from the French anarchist Martial Bourdin. *Spoiler Alert* One of my favorite scene (as well as the Climax) was when Verloc revealed that the bomb that went off had killed Stevie and he was the person who trained Stevie to carry it. The character I despise the most is Ossipan. Although he was a secondary character, his actions in the end were harsh and cruel. How could you confess that you love someone and desert them in the end? Love is love, right? I seriously thought that Ossipan would come and help Winnie but he did the exact opposite. This story can be portrayed as a tragedy. All of the main characters (Stevie, Verloc, Winnie) died in the end and we feel pity for all the characters. Some people consider Verloc as a tragic hero while others believed that Winnie is the tragic hero. It could be both since they all demonstrated the characteristics of a tragic hero and died for a cause in the end. They all suffered and somehow changed from the experience. Overall, I do want to recommend this book to all the readers who enjoys terrorism, tragedy, and politics.