Comments by ry gotterbarn Most recent public comments by ry gotterbarn https://nowcomment.com/users/13210 We are sure what is inevitable because of the the title and, for lack of a better word at the moment, "tag-line" before the first paragraph tell us what to expect. https://nowcomment.com/documents/25279?scroll_to=330787 https://nowcomment.com/documents/25279?scroll_to=330787 The paragraph further confirms it as we start off with a conflict between Sylvia and Assia that was well underway, one that already had her "on the edge." Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:49 -0500 After all the background we were given, the dramatic impact of the sentence allows let's us know that Sylvia was content with whatever peace she had made. https://nowcomment.com/documents/25279?scroll_to=330781 https://nowcomment.com/documents/25279?scroll_to=330781 The title let's us know that Sylvia was doomed to die, however we don't start there because we don't know why. It also wouldn't make narrative sense for the author to start with the death of Sylvia Plath as it would be completely confusing to the reader. By the conclusion we are more knowledgeable for why Sylvia would want to kill herself, but also it now is an acceptable time in the author's narrative for Sylvia to die since we are given her background. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:51 -0500 Like others have said, "It is likely" tells us that the author is uncertain. What's interesting is that this is one of the few times we hear the author's words and not testimony, quotations, or citations from others. https://nowcomment.com/documents/25279?scroll_to=330777 https://nowcomment.com/documents/25279?scroll_to=330777 Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:51 -0500 The phrase "According to" is typically used more towards a scientific or credible citation. As the author is directly citing Ted's diary, it is entirely credible, rather than having to take the author's paraphrasing of it for granted. https://nowcomment.com/documents/25279?scroll_to=330776 https://nowcomment.com/documents/25279?scroll_to=330776 Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:51 -0500 Narrative can use seemingly innocuous circumstances and events to highlight how much life began to weigh down on her. https://nowcomment.com/documents/25279?scroll_to=330775 https://nowcomment.com/documents/25279?scroll_to=330775 The author also draws a parallel earlier in the paragraph, as just like the snow began to pile up on the ground, a life without Ted began to emotionally pile up on her until she herself was flattened beneath it. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:51 -0500 The poet can feel too connected to the work and make it too personal. If the poem comes under criticism, it can be perceived as a personal attack and would have further frayed the rope Plath was nearing the end of. https://nowcomment.com/documents/25279?scroll_to=330773 https://nowcomment.com/documents/25279?scroll_to=330773 Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:50 -0500 The allusions to her own poetry are used to mirror Plath's emotions. https://nowcomment.com/documents/25279?scroll_to=330772 https://nowcomment.com/documents/25279?scroll_to=330772 Going back to testimony and quotations, the author is using Plath's own words to further describe her emotions and situations. The author is also pointing our that Plath's poems seem to have a basis in her own personal life. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:50 -0500 Pretty much what everybody else said. https://nowcomment.com/documents/25279?scroll_to=330771 https://nowcomment.com/documents/25279?scroll_to=330771 Destiny's doorstep is usually used in an ultimate sense, as a preface to a monumental event. The phrase works in two ways here as she is literally on the doorstep of her dream home, and as a preface to her eventual suicide. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:50 -0500 Here Porter's authority on the situation may not be entirely credible due to his distance, but it is an authentic account. https://nowcomment.com/documents/25279?scroll_to=330768 https://nowcomment.com/documents/25279?scroll_to=330768 He may not have been intimate with Sylvia or Ted, but he was around when their conflict was occurring and in an optimal position to observe it for what it was. A limited first-hand account can still be more useful than a second-hand account. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:50 -0500 In narrative writing, quotations give a reader true insight to how a character is feeling. https://nowcomment.com/documents/25279?scroll_to=330765 https://nowcomment.com/documents/25279?scroll_to=330765 They also are a person or character's own words, rather than the authors or biographer's ideas. The author uses Plath's quotations throughout as a testimony to Plath's true feelings. Why should the author try to convince of something, or lead you to an idea when Plath has already done it? Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:50 -0500 Testimony functions here to validate Plath's problems. Her friend confirming that she was experiencing personal issues and struggling with them let us know that the problems that eventually led her to suicide weren't entirely self-contained. https://nowcomment.com/documents/25279?scroll_to=330762 https://nowcomment.com/documents/25279?scroll_to=330762 Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:49 -0500 Background is an essential part of narrative. It allows an author to further connect to his/her readers, without being too subtle or getting too distracted. Here it is being used to further flesh out Sylvia's complicated relationship with Ted. https://nowcomment.com/documents/25279?scroll_to=330758 https://nowcomment.com/documents/25279?scroll_to=330758 Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:49 -0500 Shows that the Library is the problem, not the British people. https://nowcomment.com/documents/25283?scroll_to=323370 https://nowcomment.com/documents/25283?scroll_to=323370 In the more local and less stuffy pub, the British people are more likely to accommodate the American. This is probably due to the library and it's employees being more old-fashioned and conservative than a typical London environment/citizen. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:41 -0500 Shows the dismissive British nature. https://nowcomment.com/documents/25283?scroll_to=323369 https://nowcomment.com/documents/25283?scroll_to=323369 I agree with the others who said that this paragraphs furthers the idea of a cultural divide between England and America, however it's dismissive message also furthers the idea of judgmental Brits the author encounters. "Enjoy the walk home," is a sarcastic statement that insults the disorderly drunk more than it needs to. The sign would suffice with the author's paraphrasing ("The rail management reserves the right to refuse rowdy passengers"). Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:41 -0500 Remarking how bland the British seem to be. https://nowcomment.com/documents/25283?scroll_to=323367 https://nowcomment.com/documents/25283?scroll_to=323367 Both the American author and Sylvia Platt remark at how boring the British can be--"pale beige embossed with faintly sheened white roses," does not a vibrant environment make. However, going back to the author's earlier notes in paragraph 10, "The trouble is, we (that is both sides of the transatlantic cultural coin) don’t always appreciate how our respective cultures encourage as well as retard our initiative." While a British person may see a modest and homely looking room as normal, an American person will see as boring and antiquated. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:40 -0500 An expression to show you're fed up with the rules. https://nowcomment.com/documents/25283?scroll_to=323366 https://nowcomment.com/documents/25283?scroll_to=323366 While not obscene, the childish gesture would be used by the author to mock how stuck-up the British librarians are, as well as the library's archaic rules and traditions. Using the phrase "to cock a snook" at the staff is also important because it is a traditionally British form of insult, rather, than say the middle-finger. Using a outdated British insult at an outdated British person/institue is a use of irony by the author to further show the reader the extent of his contempt. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:40 -0500 Specifically Belushi would use this phrase in the SNL sketches where something nonsensical is reality (i.e. "You'd think it'd be Australia, BUT NO!!!!"). The reader here is showing a relatable exasperation to the situation at hand. https://nowcomment.com/documents/25283?scroll_to=323365 https://nowcomment.com/documents/25283?scroll_to=323365 Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:40 -0500 Connection to the author. https://nowcomment.com/documents/25283?scroll_to=323364 https://nowcomment.com/documents/25283?scroll_to=323364 The author uses it to bring the reader closer in; by asking the reader to "imagine" two looks of indignation, the author is putting the reader into his shoes, as the reader is recollecting a past experience. The request by the author enriches the connection the reader can make to him, as the reader has undoubtedly had a similar experience. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:40 -0500 Why the librarian and the author don't get along. https://nowcomment.com/documents/25283?scroll_to=323363 https://nowcomment.com/documents/25283?scroll_to=323363 One of the setups of this paragraph is to give the reader a better understanding for why the traditional British librarian gave the author such a hard time. The author has already compared himself to Plath with their arrivals, so it's fair to assume that the author is also "pushy" at times, and a "go-ahead American." The author, like Plath, is also initially unaware of the cultural divides aforementioned (the queuing, and the crosswalks, explicitly), and as such, wouldn't be aware that chewing gum in the reading room would not be kosher. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:39 -0500 Feelings of danger https://nowcomment.com/documents/30622?scroll_to=321646 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30622?scroll_to=321646 Ishmael claims that, at certain times, all men cherish the feeling of danger. The sea takes Ishmael away from his life on land which we are told is a safe, albeit fruitless one in the second sentence. He references not the actual act of suicide by Cato, but it's philosophical flourish, meaning he sees the sea as a way to escape a disagreeable society. While the sea may ultimately end up being the sword he throws himself upon, right now its risks are worth taking to Ishmael. The dangers at sea, and the loneliness it causes are something he cherishes because they are different from the norm. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:33 -0500 Fist Person Narrative https://nowcomment.com/documents/30622?scroll_to=319886 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30622?scroll_to=319886 By formally introducing himself to the reader in the opening lines, we are instantly told this will be a first-person account of Ishmael's. It may not be the absolute truth, but will be what the narrator believes is the truth. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:32 -0500 It shows how personal he is. https://nowcomment.com/documents/30636?scroll_to=317263 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30636?scroll_to=317263 This comment relates back to the comment about Michael's anger because it shows how personal Michael takes anything that is in opposition to him. Mervyn isn't friends with him anymore due to differences in his biography, and Own is considered a traitor for leaving the Labour party. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:27 -0500 A small enough amount https://nowcomment.com/documents/30636?scroll_to=317260 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30636?scroll_to=317260 Michael claims to have made various editorial suggestions to Jill's books over the years, and had enough of an impact that the biographer felt the need to include them, despite Michael not asking for them to be included. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:27 -0500 Michael's laziness and "special"-ness. https://nowcomment.com/documents/30636?scroll_to=317258 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30636?scroll_to=317258 A specific issue I feel need to be sorted out here is Michael's general laziness. He is portrayed by Julie as oafish and selfish, often impeding Jill's work. According to Jill he is also "special," while Julie can't even find a shred of this apparent trait in Michael. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:27 -0500 An escape from reality https://nowcomment.com/documents/30636?scroll_to=317256 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30636?scroll_to=317256 To echo Channelle's thoughts, Michael's encouragement can be seen as an escape from reality. When you approach the difficult realities of what is happening, it's human nature to try and back away from the confrontation of something harsh. I feel that's what Michael is doing here. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:27 -0500 Both comments tell the reader how much he cared about Jill. https://nowcomment.com/documents/30636?scroll_to=317255 https://nowcomment.com/documents/30636?scroll_to=317255 I see the value in setting it up as he lived for and about Jill. While the mess can be attributed to laziness, or Jill being the glue to keep his life in order, it can also be seen as a memorial to Jill. Almost as if he let the house go into a quasi-state of disrepair because he tried to leave it as it was. The house wasn't a mess when she died, but gradually grew into one because Michael didn't want to change anything. Sat, 20 Feb 2016 08:46:27 -0500