Extend the discussions we have had about David Gessner's "Benediction" and Kate Hopper's "Becoming a Sanvicenteña".
Make particular, precise observations and discuss the significance of those observations.
Use your annotations.
Comment on each by class time on Wednesday, October 19.
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ReplyDelete"Becoming a Sanvicenteña"
ReplyDeletethe titles seem to provide more insight about her topic than the other content. As a whole, the piece only seems to illustrate the difficulty of understanding something foreign. Kate Hopper explores the impact of culture on self by showing her own attempts to join another culture.
It's very clear what Hopper is meaning to say, if anything, but i think she was simply commenting by narrating, and meant by the narrative that she can't just become something. "for now" her host sister says, and it means that Hopper can try to join them, and that she can even be accepted, but that she is separated by experience and is only permitted to be a sanvientina.
when Hopper hesitated to flip the tortilla, and was pushed aside, but when she acted without concern for her own habitual inhibitons and she instead dances despite her immediate inclination to decline, then she least is governed by her native culture, and can be accepted to a new one. also illustated, is the importance to her (thence humanity's) to be in unity with others by mimicry. perhaps. i guess hopper expects the reader to have a visceral understanding rather than a critical one.
Benediction:
ReplyDeletefirst, I wonder if Gessner originally wrote this in tribute alone to his teacher, and only revised it later, creating something different. i mean, i wonder if he entirely reworked it, or if he just added the part about mentor-disciple relationships on the end.
opening, Gessner introduces a scene of excitment, whcih he meets with what seems at first (therefore essentially is) anticlimax, going on to describe a boring scene. The title is "benediction," but what Gessner describes is anything but that--it's a death rattle from a depressed old man. after describing his subject, in order to better illustrate their relationship, he contrast himself with Bate as starkly as his shock-content allows. throughout the narrative, Gessner continues to illustrate his relationship with Bate, introducing ideas out of his reading from that time that apply here and help to illustrate, which makes that material seem all the more real. he quotes "the hunger of youth is for greatness" and parallels this with his desire to know Bate. through conversations with his roomate, Gessner relates his aspirations to be great and to befriend his hero and path to greatness. the two desires are like one. Gessner would humbled of his youngest days of writing, just as his beloved teacher would estrange him. that is Gessner feared to first make contact with his teacher--he preferred the fictitious greatness to real trial. Because Bate is dead, and could not give his own reflections, the story is Gessner's, therefore focusses more on his development through it. so it's the tragedy of youth. Though the subject is decrepit age, and wisdom, Gessner describes the turbulence of youth as he becomes subject to the constraints of reality and must reconcile his youthful ideals with the world. it closes describing Bate's hands. which i like. for reasons.
Becoming a Sanvicentena: Five Stages
ReplyDeleteI liked how Hopper organized this essay into five paragraphs, each on revealing her progression from fear and discomfort to excitement and enthusiasm in the Costa Rican community. However, I thought that some of the paragraphs had content that was not relevant to its particular emotion. For example, I felt that the context in the Withdrawal paragraph was irrelevant to withdrawal as an emotion. Also, I agree with Maddie when she says that Hopper “explores the impact of culture on self by showing her own attempts to join another culture”. By writing about her experiences in another culture, Hopper shows us that we can certainly try to become part of a culture besides our own. However, we can not truly belong in a culture that we are not familiar with.
Benediction
ReplyDeleteI liked how Gessner was able to utilize story-telling in his essay in order to show the arrogance and foolishness he had before he met Bates. This emphasizes to the reader why his relationship with Bates was so important to him. However, although Bates was an inspiration and a hero to Gessner, I feel that it was tainted by Bates’ frank lack of support for Gessner’s book. Though Bates was entitled to his own opinion about the book, I feel that he should not have been so offended as to break off the relationship between him and Gessner. After all, a book about yourself should be a compliment, not an insult.
Benediction
ReplyDeleteOne aspect of this piece by David Gessner that allowed me to make connections was the element of truthfulness that was included in the stories. Because he included his attempts to not fit in at school and showed the confusion and dangerous behavior it is a more realistic story and I feel more likely to be affected when I trust the author. Another part of this story that made it so powerful was the descriptive style that was used to describe Bate. Through this eccentric decision I can see a teacher that would maybe inspire me as Gessner felt inspired. One thing that came as a surprise to me was Bate’s protest to the portrayal of himself in this piece. I would assume that as a writer he would be able to tell the difference between praise and insult in the piece. I never compared Bate to a bumbling lunatic as he thought he was described as but I believed that the description of this man was the best element of this piece of writing.
Becoming a Sanvicentena: Five Stages
ReplyDeleteI did not feel that this piece was as powerful a piece of writing as Benediction. In my opinion breaking up the piece into five sections is an immature writing style which to me made me think of a fifth grade writer. I also believe that the title, as well as each sections title did not really fit the piece of writing. The way this was written it seems as if she is on a vacation and maybe trying some new things rather than actually becoming a local. And while comparing each section to its title I rarely was left with the feeling that she had or was trying to portray. I believe that this was a poor writing style with only narration and no reflection.
Becoming a Sanviceña: Five Stages
ReplyDeleteI found a few of the titles of the paragraphs confusing, because I read each one expecting to see fear, uncertainty, enthusiasm, withdrawal, and understanding, but didn't always recognize it in the text right away. Fear was easily seen, because of the phrases used (like "pale as bone," “leached of color”) along with a description of what Kate Hopper was doing and seeing. Others, like "Withdrawal" I had to read a couple of times to understand her lazy attitude was what it was referring to, but if I stretch my imagination far enough, I can connect the titles and stories to all of them. I also have a better understanding of how difficult it is to write a story 750 words or shorter, whereas when I first read this I hadn't written my personal essay yet and didn't realize it's more difficult than it seems. So for a short essay, she did a decent job and I gain a little bit of knowledge about her and her trip. The writing was pretty good and painted a vivid illustration of the story being told. I still think she could have made the titles connect to the text a bit more though, or added something else, because in all I think it was a very one-dimensional essay. I could find hardly anything with a deeper meaning or connecting to other parts of the text. There was also no reflection, or if there was I didn’t notice any of it. It was all purely storytelling. But I still enjoyed reading it.
Benediction
ReplyDeleteDavid Gessner wrote this story in almost chronological order, which I liked. It didn’t give away the ending too soon, and then the last few paragraphs went back in time to examine part of his relationship with Bate when he was younger. Throughout the essay Gessner led me into trusting Bate, so when I found out that they had ended their friendship in bad terms, I could feel my heart drop. There was almost tangible sadness that was extremely unexpected. Gessner achieved this by never mentioning anything bad about Bate until he rejected his writing. I can understand Bate’s outrage though. No one likes their faults to be highlighted and exaggerated, and then published so hundreds of people could read it. Especially after he spent his life building up his reputation. But I think he could have been a bit nicer about the way he told Gessner. And I think that’s how Gessner wanted it to sound. The way he wrote he seemed to accept the fact that they never would be friends again, and a little sad. And I didn’t really feel as angry at Bate than I probably would have if Gessner hadn’t spoken so highly of him during the piece. He put a great deal of perspective in the essay. For example Gessner’s way of viewing his writing on Bate compared to Bate’s actual opinion. He also, as I mentioned earlier, comes full circle on a few things. First his roommate Jon goes up for a weekend to visit Bate’s farmhouse, and then ten years later visits there himself. Gessner also talks about how he told Bate about his book, but Bate didn’t talk about it until we find out in the end, after we already know their friendship won’t last, what he said about it. The entire piece had a lot of story telling, and perspective, and that along with the rest of the techniques he used made this essay excellent.
Unlike the typical opinion of the class, I actually enjoyed Kate Hopper's personal essay. I found it relate able and easy to understand. Yet, I did find it a bit hard to understand how her titles were connected to the paragraphs she wrote. They didn't really relate to what she was saying. I wished her titles made more sense. I felt like her emotions were real and normal. You can tell she strives to be accepted and constantly tries to prove herself. I felt like when i was reading the paragraphs under the titles, i was almost trying to make it fit the title in a way. Reading it like it should make sense with the tile, and i think that may have affected the way i looked at the story. The essay as a whole made me happy, for several reasons, 1. It was relate-able, 2. It was easy to understand, 3. It showed a normal story that anyone could write about. It makes me want to go to a different country and experience the things she did.
ReplyDeleteOn Gessner’s Benediction
ReplyDeleteIn general, I agreed and could identify with Gessner’s purpose and desire to write this piece because I feel that it is important to analyze those whom we admire and try as best we can to distinguish between what is actually admirable and what is not about the role model in question. Gessner does this and helpfully shows us both sides of Bate, what was truly admirable and what was not. Although it needs to be pointed out that he did this for his own gain as much as ours. Gessner intentionally goes into detail to describe how much Bate hated his original work in a rhetoric strategy to get us to side with him. That description of the vain side of Bate is important to us getting to know who Bate really was and what Gessner really felt about him. And the reason it is key is despite how amazing Bate may seem at the beginning, Gessner reminds us that no one is perfect.
And I agree with what the class said about Gessner’s piece being more about Gessner than Bate to some degree. I think that the original piece that Gessner wrote was more about Bate than about himself, and those parts about himself were added after.
The reason I think this is because I bet that Gessner felt disillusioned with Bate and was not so much in awe of him after he requested that Gessner not publish this piece. So I think Gessner decided to figure out why he was so drawn to him in the first place, and to do that he first had to relive his life at college, so he could better understand what he was feeling at the time so he could better figure out and in turn, show us, why he admired Bate so much.
In David Gessner’s personal essay, I really felt like we got to know him as a person. I liked the way he wrote his story in order. Like Elizabeth said, it didn’t give away the ending, and that really helped the story move along. I enjoyed his honesty mostly because I felt like he didn’t leave out many details about his life. He made the story realistic by showing how he was different than most people in college. He didn’t care as much about his studies, and only found true happiness in Bate’s class. At first, I thought he had an almost creepy obsession with Bate. The way he was describing how he loved his class and how he could not pluck up the courage to talk to him really struck me as creepy. I was disappointed in the end how negatively it ended with Bate. I can understand how he wouldn’t want anything negative published about him, but I would be honored. I’d be honored that someone admired me so much that he would want to write a book about it. That’s where I am disappointed in Bates, and sad he didn’t respond better. As a whole, the essay was quite interesting and makes me want to read more.
ReplyDelete“Becoming a Sanvicenteña"
ReplyDeleteI felt as if Hoppers descriptions were too brief to actually feel what she was feeling while in a foreign country. I understood that she was trying to fit in with another culture, but it seemed more like she was telling us rather than showing us. I’m not a huge fan of Hopper’s structure either. By breaking it into short vignettes, it made the piece less powerful and the writing didn’t seem as advanced as it could have been if she used a different structure. Also, I didn’t think the titles of the five stages fit with what she said she was feeling. For example, “Stage 1: Fear” doesn’t create a sense of fear for me. When I read this paragraph words that came to mind were “unfamiliar” and “exciting.” To me it seemed like Hopper was describing something new, rather than something scary.
“Benediction”
I like how Gessner appealed to ethos. He didn’t leave out any details or try to portray himself in a positive light. He showed his audience how he developed as a person over time. I think it was important that Gessner talked about his recklessness at Harvard, because a lot of students experience the same thing. It helps the audience relate to his struggle with attempting to start a friendship with his idol, as well as the difficulty he was having try to write his novel. Also, I liked how Gessner described Bate in great detail. It was a good choice because if that part was completely left out, my opinion on the memoir would not be nearly as strong. He created this image of an old man with so much knowledge and so many stories that the audience wants to learn more about him. It draws interest and makes the audience understand why Gessner is so nervous to finally meet him. Bate is a hero to Gessner. Was Gessner hesitant to meet Bate because he would realize that Bate isn’t perfect? Maybe he wanted to keep his idol shining and not cast any shadows over him. That is what happened at the end of the story when Gessner sent Bate a copy of his personal memoir, only to receive a negative response from him. Maybe that is why Gessner was nervous about meeting Bate in the first place; he thought his writing would not satisfy Bate.
When I read Hopper’s piece I was not as impressed as I was with Gessner’s piece. Of course, Hopper had the disadvantage of having a maximum word count of 750 words to work with, but I feel that she could have made better use of her if she had developed the emotions she felt during different sections of the trip. As an example, you have her saying that she was “breathless” after dancing in the last part of the story, but in her “withdrawal” section, she doesn’t give any insight into her emotions during the example, she only writes about watching a truck go by, as if that is supposed to instill some sort of feeling of withdrawal for the reader, when all I really thought of was relaxation. And I agree with Romy on the first part of the selection, “Fear”. If she had more described how weird it was to be leaving home to go to a place she had never seen before instead of just writing like she would tell the story to a parent, it would have been better.
ReplyDeleteBecoming a Sanvicentena: Five Stages
ReplyDeleteAfter talking in class about Kate Hoppers piece, to me the overall opinion of the essay was that it was almost less significant than the others we had read. After the first time reading through this I would have agreed with the class. Instead I went back and re read the story and I was able to what to me were important moments. I thought that in the first paragraph Kate did a great job of relaying that she clearly wasn’t excited about arriving in San Vicente, “The old highway to San Vicente is nothing more than a dirt road.” I found it extremely interesting to watch Kate grow from being a hesitant person, to a person of admiration of the culture.
Another component Kate added to her story that was significant was her details on the San Vicente culture. She gives the reader strong visuals that play with the emotions. Kate easily gets across that this culture is filled with necessary, hard, daily work. I find it amazing that it is routine for the San Vicente people. From her story I find out not only things about the way Kate is as a person but how San Vicente people are too. Just like Kate I was able to appreciate everything I have here in the U.S. and also admire the drive and pride these people take in their culture.
“Becoming a Sanvicentena: Five Stages”
ReplyDeleteUnlike my classmates, I believe I was able to make some connections with the titles that went along with each passage. I did not mind the titles so much and I think it made readers examine the vignettes in a different way which was interesting and different. I believe that in each of the passages there are at least parts of it that really do relate to the titles and it made me examine these parts more closely. They were not always easy to pick up on but after rereading, I certainly was able to make some connections to the titles and what these events could have meant to her. I felt as if the sentences that I could relate to the title had more significance than some other parts. In so few words though, it’s hard to think that Hopper would mention anything that was not worthwhile to the point she may have intended on making. Some of my classmates said that there was no reflection and only storytelling but I wondered if the titles may have been her way of reflecting on the event because it portrays the emotions she was feeling when these parts of her trip occurred.
Benediction
ReplyDeleteI thought I would be done with Gessner’s piece after annotating and blogging about the story, but I have actually been able to connect it to my own writing. I felt extremely connected to David’s idea that all relationships aren’t seen the same from everyone perspective. I found that this could be related to the way I wrote my personal essay. I had said in class that I wouldn’t want my sister to read my personal essay, even though I am extremely proud of my work I know that the way I see things compared to the way she does is completely different. I felt that this helped me connect to the story on a different level. One of his techniques that I found amazing was his bravery when putting himself out there for the reader to judge. I think this story said a lot about David’s personality when he went ahead and published the writings anyway, even when the person he wrote about hated it. This gave me the courage to do the same. Reading this piece was extremely helpful in writing my own, and I thought Gessner had a fantastic way of using ethos to make me trust him. His writing in a way was a big part of my inspiration.
“Benediction”
ReplyDeleteI agree with Winslow about being able to trust Gessner more as a writer because of the honesty he has about his own past and the mistakes he made. It also makes me more certain that the things he’s saying about Bates are also true and that some of the important descriptions the story begins with are not exaggerations. I definitely did not think the story would proceed or end the way it did because of the structure Gessner used. From what seemed could be just an old, uninteresting professor was not a character I thought Gessner would have so much admiration for and then after so much admiration was built up, I never expected the turn at the end and the reaction Bates had to his book. This structure kept me more interested and surprised while reading. Like Abby, I was also able to make the same kind of connection to my personal essay. After writing about my mother I would certainly not want her to read what I had written so the amount of motivation and pride Gessner must have had in his work to still publish it is amazing. I found what Romy said about Gessner being hesitant to meet Bate because he may realize that he isn’t perfect very interesting. After looking up to someone for so long but from a distance, it is hard to imagine having all of that destroyed so abruptly.
Benediction
ReplyDeleteThe thing that struck me the most at the end of reading Benediction several times over, was that no matter how many times I read it, and tried to pick up details about him that showed positives, I just do not like Bate. The oart of this observation thats kept me thinking the most is wondering whether Gessner did this on purpose. I mean, he wrote this piece pretty much in honor of Bate (although he ends up revealing more about himself), and never says anything negative about him. It is possible that I dislike Bate more because of the fact that Gessner never says a word against him. Even when he describes Bate's strong reaction to his attempt to publish, he uses language only to create a statement of fact.
Overall, I really enjoyed this piece, although at the beginning I was unsure of where it was headed. Gessner was one of my main difficulties in writing my own essay, because he showed so much of himself in Benediction. I really wanted to get the same effect. Not sure that happened... I can comfort myself with the difference in word count though I guess. On a side note, I loved the sub-title "On Being Boswell's Boswell" I had no idea what it meant at first, but something about the riddle/inside joke-ness of it makes me love it.
"Becoming a Sanvicentena: Five Stages”
ReplyDeleteAs I discussed in class, I was not a big fan of this essay. Some of my choice annotations say things like "Don't feel fear here" (at beginning) "Imagery, so much imagery". I'd say this theme continued in my mind throughout reading. I enjoyed a lot of the specifics of the writing, the voice (like "Dust billows in the open windows, and I cough, struggling to catch my breath") Its possible that I just have an issue with the structure more than anything else, because reading random sentences on their own, the writing really appeals to me. I don't quite get anything out of the ending. Mostly I'm not sure how the author feels about her "sisters" response. Does it bother her? Does she admit that she still isn't a native? I feel like I just don't learn enough about Hopper to predict, or decide on my own what she feels.
The blog won't let me post? It seems this happens a lot and I don't know why, but here are my posts:
ReplyDeleteBecoming a Sanvicenteña
I enjoyed Kate Hopper's personal essay,Becoming a Sanviceña. I thought it was easier to understand than the rest of the personal essays we read. Usually, Hopper said what she meant. Unlike the rest of the class, I believe her tites made sense for the most part. These are the few circumstances that Hopper does not say exactly what she means, but you have to infer it. It is almost like Bechdel's personal essay where she says one thing, but shows another. For instance, when Hopper titles the second paragraph, Uncertainty, she demonstrates a misunderstanding between her and her host brother. He laughs at Kate, and she is unsure why, but he soon goes on to tell her it is because of how white she is. Her title could relate back to this in two ways, and I am unure which one is correct. First, she could be unsure whether or not her brother was telling the truth, or if he was laughing at her for antoher reason. Or, the title could come from the uncertainty Hopper felt when he initially laughed at her. Either way, I feel this title, and all the others make sense, but you just have to picture the emotion behind each scene.
Benediction:
David Guessner tells a lot to the reader about his relationship with Bate. The reader can take a lot from what he says, and use it in other places. Guessner makes a choice to not inform the reader of Bate's reaction until the end of the essay. When he does so, it leaves a whole new impression on the reader. You were introduced to Bate as a literature genius, although sometimes frantic and disorganized. Surely a genius can understand the point Guessner was trying to make in his essay. This gave me a whole new perspective on Bate, and I held some animosity towards him by the end. He rejected Guesser's hard work, a work that he inspired. If this was to happen to me, I don't think I could have handled it as nonchalantly as Guessner, for it would surely devastate me. Then, Guessner goes on to tell you that Bate has passed away, and I began to question Guessner's ethos. Was it right of him to publish something a man that he once so admired hated, and a man that is physically unable to do anything about changing it? He went against a dead mans wishes, and this makes me begin to distrust Guessner a little more.
I wonder if Guessner realized how much he was letting on about himself through Bate. This is a subject we have often discussed in class, but I feel as if Guessner was solely writing it to preserve his memory of Bate. He often told about himself in a way that could only let the reader understand more about his unique relationship with Bate, but by having the reader understand this relationship, he is understanding Guessner.
My favorite part of this piece was on the bottom first column on page 37. He lists his relationship with Bate as an infatuation, and claims him to be like Luke Skywaker's Obi Wan Kan-obi. Kan-obi is a character that most people know at least a little about, where Bate is not. By referring to him as this, he implants a better image in the reader's head of their relationship. His diction by choosing the word "infatuation" also makes him a more trustable author. Infatuation is a strong word, and one that tends to be thought of along the lines with an obsession, which is how I felt Guessner was with Bate in the beginning. By letting down all his guards, and admitting to his strong love of Bate, I was able to understand more of where Guessner was coming from. All in all, I believe Benediction is an interesting portrayal of a personnel essay by describing a personnel relationship.
Danielle P wrote the previous comments.
ReplyDelete"Becoming a Sanvicentena: Five Stages"
ReplyDeleteBy Kate Hopper
It's interesting how Hopper structures her piece into 5 stages using the adjectives: fear, uncertainty, enthusiasm, withdrawal and understanding; to describe parts of her experience. I disagree with what Danielle said about how Hopper's personal essay relates to Bechdels's "Fun Home," saying one thing and showing another, because Hopper's title reflects what her emotion is from that certain experience. In Stage 1: Fear, Hopper juxtaposes "The old highway to San Vicente" as 'nothing more than a dirt road" and uses personification to describe the road to be "pale as bone." These rhetorical strategies helped to create a vivid picture of where she is at the time. I wonder why Hopper added in the brief conversation between her and the thirteen year old boy, I don't see the importance. She uses what the little boy had said to her which happens to be a simile in this section: "You are as white as a milk worm." In Stage 3: Enthusiasm, the title clearly describes and reflects on her experience of making dough. She shares with us the relationship between her and Betty. While Hopper is making the dough Betty says, "Mas rapid, hija," which means faster, daughter. Then, when Betty asks, "Do you want to flip it?" Hopper describes that she was "eager for an opportunity to earn the name hija." I like how she repeats adding in the language of the Sanvicentenas, it gives the reader a real sense of how iher experience was like.
"Becoming a Sanvicentena: Five Stages"
ReplyDeleteBy: Kate Hopper (continued)
In Stage 4: Withdrawal, I don't understand how the title has anything to do with her experience with the canero truck. She did a good job of
describing what she hears from the canero truck: "the rumble of its diesel engine, the clatter of wood and metal bouncing over pot holes, jostling the men in the tarp-covered cajon." In Stage 5: Understanding, she reveals to the reader that she feels like she belongs. While she is dancing with the lead singer of the band she "recognizes faces in the darkness outside" and someone yells, "Bravo Katty!" When she sits back down at the table she is "beaming" and says, "Now I'm a real sanvicentena."
Benediction
ReplyDeleteOn Being Boswell’s Boswell
By: David Gessner
This personal essay was easy to understand, compared to Hopper’s “Becoming a Sanvicentena: Five Stages.” Hopper’s essay was more personal than Gessner’s, he mainly tells his story talking about Bates, which isn’t as direct as Hopper’s is. The overall tone Gessner uses in this essay is humor. I believe that in class when we discussed the meaning of the title, when reading towards the end where Bates refused to let Gessner publish his piece I realized that throughout the whole essay he never said a bad word about Bates, even after Bates refused, he continued to say good things about Bates; Benediction. I lost some respect for Bates and Gessner by the end of this essay because Gessner worked hard on this essay that was inspired by Bates and Bates rejected his request to publish it. But, Gessner went ahead and published it against Bates wishes, as Danielle said.