Romanticism

As an avid lover of 19th century literature, I had a very good idea of what I wanted to do with this unit. Using a thread of clear social commentary within many of the books, I knew what I wanted to accomplish. I did, however, encounter an unexpected difficulty. The nature of my theme requires me to strip my perception of a romanticized Victorian utopia and discover the imperfect reality of the time period. This is turning into a major challenge for me because, I have found it hard to relinquish my personal prejudices about the era.

When thinking about the characters of books like Pride and Prejudice or Vanity Fair it can be hard to look past the twirling ball gowns and see the true societal issues that drive conflict in the stories. In my mind I don't want to see Charlotte Lucas as a stereotype for 'traditional' values or economically motivated women. I simply want her to be the unlucky girl that married a very stupid man. Completing these activities make me separate my own feelings about characters and situations from their intended purposes. In this way, my activities are forcing me to view the work of the time period in a very different way.

This change, while very vexing, is helping me in my exploration of literature. It is helping me uncover some of the blaring double-standards of the time period and understand much of the hypocrisy of 19th century England. Social, political and economic changes fueled massive changes in English culture and in many ways redefined what it meant to be British.  Once I can overcome my difficulty reconciling the imperfections of my dear Victorian predecessors, I am sure that I will be able to fully complete my task of unpacking the commentary of the time to present a clear understanding of the 19th century.

A Revolution

This unit of Honor British Literature was, perhaps, one of the more eye-opening experiences I've had thus far in this course. This was the first time that I can honestly say that exploring literature in class has caused me to really question the way I view things. I consider myself to be a relatively grounded person. I have strong convictions, and I don't tend to be very surprised by most of the literature I read. However, the works I've read lately have made me start to look at things differently.

It started when I was reading chapter ten of Hobbs' Leviathan. Going into the work, I thought I had a good grasp on the concept of power. I watch the news, and am borderline politically active so I wasn't expecting to be blown away by what I found. It wasn't that anything he wrote was new information. It doesn't take much intellect to grasp how people gain and exploit power to meet their ends. What did catch me off kilter was just how much of a hold power has on our lives. The more I thought about that chapter, the more I began to see the effects of power in the world. I began to see it in everywhere. Walking down the hallways, all I could see was a web of intrigue, people vying for social positions, aching for the power to come out ahead. I know it may sound extreme, but whether people mean to or not, they are always asserting their power to be heard, to be understood, to be accepted. It occurred to me just how amazing power and influence are. That we can use our own situation to influence others is fascinating and a truly mind-boggling concept for me.

I can't explain why this had such an affect on me, but I'm glad that it did change a part of how I see the world.  I can't help but think that this exploration has led me to become just a tad more aware as a person and as a student. I can only hope that I will continue to be amazed by the power of literature.

Uncertainty

I struck me, this week, just how horrible uncertainty can be. It paralyzes you and stops almost all productive activity. You can sit and write for hours, but if you don't have a direction, all of that work amounts to nothing. You need this direction for pretty much anything you do in school, and in life. What's nice about the ISP (information search process), is that it acknowledges the fact that when you start a project, you probably have absolutely no idea where it will go. Uncertainty is the emotion linked with the first step of the process. With this, the ISP gives you hope that you will find some sort of continuity in your research.

Moving past this overwhelming sense of ambiguity is hard. It required work that many people aren't willing to put into a project.  But, when this feeling of insurmountable indecision is finally moved past, great things can happen. Overcoming uncertainty leads us to discovery. Sure, it may be a simple discovery. It may be a small snippet of information or even a slightly new way of looking at something you've seen a million times, but it is significant. It frees you do accomplish things you would never had dreamt of. There is a finite and absolute reason why uncertainty is the first step in the ISP. It's only the start of the journey...