Wednesday, February 24, 2010
Guest Blogger - Sarah A.
While reading Alex Pope's Rape of the Lock I found myself laughing at the outrage of such small things. After reading it however, I realized it is not as ridiculous as it sounds. While it is based in the 18th Cenutry the poem has a lot more in common with our world today than one would think. Today many people blow trivial things out of proportion. But one thing that really caught my attention was the last few lines in the poem, “This lock, the Muse shall consecrate to fame, and ‘midst the stars inscribe Belinda’s name.” It is saying that the lock will be set amongst the stars so that everyone can admire them. Belinda put a fight for her lock and was completely violated that someone would take her lock of hair. However, when the hair will be able to be admired by everyone in the world and seems to have a greater value than it did before, then it is okay. I feel people do this a lot today. If something they do not like happens they get very upset and make a scene out of it that it is wrong. But the second they will receive fame or something of greater value then they completely forget they way they felt before, and suddenly everything is fine. Do you feel this is the way people act in our society today? Why? And if you do not think people do this why? It seems that if people were to wait things out they would realize some things happen for a reason. It is in our minds that if something does not go our way, we throw a fit and sometimes give up. If one were to sit and think about the event that happened then maybe they could see the light at the end of the tunnel. Also can you think of examples of something like this happening in our world today?
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What you are saying is exactly right. Most people in the world have a fit if they don't get their way. And in the case of this poem, war breaks out. This is a daily occurance especially in high school. But the funny part is when something that you thought had gone wrong becomes famous we switch our attitudes instantly. Personally i think this is done mostly to get attention.
ReplyDeleteI couldn't agree with this post more! I think telivision has made this world how it is with people blowing things out of proportion. For example, reality tv isn't really reality. The producers of the show usually script the show and tell the stars what to say to make the show seem more interesting.
ReplyDeleteWe deffinatly experience this in high school. It seems that anything that happens has a more dramatic ending then what actually happened.
I agree that things get blown out of proportion a lot, but I don’ think people necessarily get fame because it. If by some chance a fight or conflict does become front page news, usually people look at it like that is stupid and ridiculous. Or at least I would hope so over a trivial conflict. I don’t think television is the source of the problem, but more of a fuel. It takes an incident that was already blown out of proportion and spreads it everywhere. So instead of keeping it to a single area the whole world knows but the problem or issue doesn’t necessarily get worse. Eventually all trivial problems either get forgotten or people realize how stupid it is and just get over it.
ReplyDeleteI think that everyone has a stubborn side and that when they are single mindedly set on that idea, no one can change their mind. But maybe after that moment, they will look back and see the other persons point of view and realize they didnt have to make such a big deal when they did not get what they wanted. But if there were not disagreements on the little things, one would not know what bothered other people. when someone gets extremely annoyed, they react in a way that shows that it really bothers them. They usually do not just let it go.
ReplyDeletePeople today defiantly do blow things out of proportion. The Rape of the Lock was defiantly relatable to things that happen today. I don’t think that Belinda put up a very good fight for her hair that she lost; I think she was simply just adding more drama to the situation. Seriously, if you wanted to hurt the person who cut off a piece of your hair, would you use a hair pin? Maybe she was trying to be symbolic by using the one thing she had to save her “favorite” lock of hair, but to me it was stupid. But maybe it added to the satire of the poem. Who knows…
ReplyDeleteI think people and their feelings rely on people around them and society a lot these days. So their moods or attitudes can change quicker than the weather outside. They try to exaggerate things in order to get a certain reaction out of others. Once people get the reaction they are looking for and in many case craving, they continue doing what they're doing. To anyone else its not needed, but to that one person its a lot.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you Sarah. Even though this poem was written in the 18th century, you still can compare it to today. Many people blow little things out of proportion as this poem is all about. It's ridiculous how a lock of hair can be turned into a decent poem. The characters in this poem relate to people today by the way they react to the little things that happen to them in life.
ReplyDelete