Response to Thoreau Post

Wow--tough passage to parse! The first thing I noticed in this passage was his pathos remember--we generally talk ethos, pathos, and logos when we are looking at persuasive texts. They're the three main types of appeals in persuasive rhetoric. when discussing his spiritual connection to the universe. I also noticed the hyperbole when he explains his solitude as, "a region viewed nightly by astraunomers." Is that really hyperbole? He truly sees his home as the dominion of astronomers. These two things create a mood of mysticism proving the point that conformity is the enemy of creativity. I'm not quite with you here. How does mysticism prove conformity thwarts creativity? The next thing i noticed was his diction when placing, "celestial corner," and, "the system," directly after on another. This contrasting technique reinforces the idea that society is very mechanical and systematically makes people do things. Interesting reading. The, "celestial corner," reinforces the peace of mind from staying away from society. The next thing I noticed was his ethos when discussing the different stars and constellation showing his, "genius." The way you use "genius" here sounds like factual knowledge, not spiritual connection with the universe. Next, I noticed when he said the, "new and unprofaned universe." This contributed to Oneness, and showed that the over spirit is in nature. The Metaphor of him being a star showed the idea of improving oneself to be unique. Interesting reading of this metaphor--good. He states that he would be, "as fine a ray," in a, "moonless night." Finally, he says, "Such was that part of creation where i had squatted." This humoressly shows the important idea of happiness in romanticism.

Response to Douglass Post

You chose a great passage. It's an ideal length to read closely, and you've got a lot of elements in there to work with. The first thing i notice about this passage is the repetion Douglas uses with, "Work, work, work". This repetion shows the demanding attitude many whites had toward slaves. Yes, goodThe second thing i notice is how he interchanges the words, "long," and, "short." Interchanging these words shows that no matter what the slaves did, reward was never the outcome. By "interchanging" these words, I think you mean that he sets up parallel sentences; this certainly shows the futility of their efforts, yes. These attitudes masters had compliment each other in the first and second sentences. The next thing I notice is the personification when he uses the word, "Tamed." This is used to show how the masters treated the slaves like animals and not like equals. Nice point The Metaphor of, "breaking me," is using pathos to invoke sorrow in the reader. The Age of Reason now comes into play with the broken, "body, soul, and spirit." The, "body," shows the diminishing of the physicality and strength of manhood, the ,"soul," Remember--the ideal man is strong and sensitive shows the lessening of education, and the, "spirit," shows the dampening of religion. The Contrasting imagery of the, "spark that lingered about my eye," and the, "night of slavery," gives readers the chance to see the contrast between happiness and the life of a slave. This is also persuasion through pathos. Finally, ending with, "transformed into a brute," shows a turning point in his life of hope to a life of unhappiness. It's interesting to me, too, that he uses "brute," because he does use the word "tamed." It's clear he's resisting taking the animal comparison too far. Excellent job with this one, Michael.