2019年11月29日金曜日

BR 3-11: The Kiss

Have you ever been in deep pool of love or lost yourself? Today I'll introduce The Kiss from Kate Chopin.


The Kiss 
Harvy was among the guests at the wedding, and he found her at a moment when she stood alone. (p.4) 

「the kiss oxford bookworms」の画像検索結果     When Braintain take part in a tea party or dinner party, there is a charming woman sitting next to him. She is sure that he is love in her and suspect he asks her out to get marry. With her potential guess, she knows that he hesitates to do that openly and honestly because all he has confidently is just money. He is likely to half give up due to his not good-looking. During the dinner party, a pretty young man kisses her hand gently, which it seems to supposed to be her partner. Suddenly he gets the picture and leaves the supper as though a criminal ran away from the family. In the next day, she tells him furiously that she wants him to keep the man from doing such a embarrassing thing. If she asks him, this means the same thing with marriage. At last, they reach the wedding. Surprisingly, the young man is invited to it and speaks to the bride before she becomes his wife officially. He says he supposes to be a gentle man to any woman even if they have their husbands, and implies he is hot on her. To the serious confess which is enable common woman to answer the suitable return quickly, she says Brantain is a million dollars and no woman refuse to approach him. After all, enough money is her priority.
     How come Braintain judges the woman fairly? Maybe those don't get accustomed to love people are up to their ears in love blindly. This story can be constructed with such a man and an evil woman ironically. The connection of them are unstable and love between them usually is.

Bassett, Jennifer. The Kiss. (2013). UK, Oxford; Oxford University Press. 

2019年11月24日日曜日

BR 3-10: Nothanger Abbey

Henry's first words were of love. (p.60)



Image result for northanger abbey macmillan

     When you were in the eighteenth century, the view around you would not stop surprising you. At that time, women should be too polite and elegant to talk against men. Those women often appear in Jane Austen's novel influenced by her background, and Nothanger Abbey is one of them. 

     Catherine is an upper-class woman. She goes to Bath, England with her friends and meets Henry Tilney who is so clever and gentle that every woman wants to dance with a ball. Every time they talk, they get closer and closer, and then, he invites her to go to Nothanger Abbey with his family. They had the happiest day of their life, which seems to imply their marriage. One day, Catherine has to go home without being told the reason and decides to forget Henry. After a while, he comes to her house and asks her out, and then they get married. 
     Apparently, it is a common sequence that a couple meet and go into the deep pit and they get a marriage life while overcoming their difficulties. However, Nothanger Abbey gives us more complicated situation of the time. Sometimes there are greedy friends and her brother which disturb Catherine's right. It shows that men had great authority, which forced women to obey them. However, there is a typical rule which we can see in Jane Austen's novels. That is to give right for every one to choose their life, especially women. Her heroines have never given up unless they are in undesirable situation. Every reader is attracted by the latest women figure all the time. 

Austen, Jane. Nothenger Abbey. (1997). Oxford, UK: Macmillan Publishers.


2019年11月21日木曜日

BR 3-9: A Tale of Two Cities

Image result for a tale of two cities macmillan     
     We're back to the time of 1775 to 1792 when wars and revolutions occurred and congested in the world. Two cities are Paris, France and London, England. In Paris, people had strong desire to govern the nation by themselves, and executed aristocrats who had powerful authorities and made others frightened. In 1776, there was a revolution in which people want to be independent from the England and created their own country, the United States of America. 


I am going to die. But Lucie and Charles are going to live. (p.62) 

     
     While the full tide of challenging movement kept, there is a tragic story ( for a man). Charles Darnay is from France and has another name, Charles St Evremonde whose name shows he is an aristocrat. He often visits the England to do his business. One day, a man is stopped by an officer because he goes back and forth between the England and France many times, which makes him a spy unfortunately. He is in court and everyone thinks this man is Charles Darnay from his appearance. However, Sydney Carton, who is like Charles appears and his crime gets well. After that, Charles get married to Lucie who Sydney has longed to love, and they become parents. In 1789, French people are sensitive to be equal citizen and remove the power of aristocrats. Charles is also an upper-class man and sent to a jail with his wife and child.  Sydney gets the news that Charles's wife is also forced to wait for guillotine and separated from her family. Therefore, he makes a plan to go into the jail instead of Charles and make Charles, his wife and his child take to the England. 
     There can be seen two perspectives; unfair individual point and historical background. Like Charles, not every aristocrats had kept their power strongly until those incidents happened. However, the social current go together, focusing on a peaceful society among lower class people. 

Dickens, Charles. A Tale of Two Cities. (2005). Oxford; Macmillan Publisher Limited. 

2019年11月17日日曜日

BR 3-8: Through the Looking Glass

It pretended it had not heard Alice's question. (p. 69)


Image result for through the looking glass oxford university press      When it comes to Alice in Wonderland, it comes up with an idea that a strange girl is dreaming of exploring in a world which she creates in her mind, which are all her dream. In other words, they are supposed to be her loving fantasy.
     This is the first time I've read Through the Looking Glass and take a look at the different world. The common thing with the former story is that we can see the word play which is sometimes similar to Japanese dajare and sometimes grammatical ones. For example, Alice says she loses her way, but the Queen answers that it can never happen because all the ways are belong to her in the world. The most interesting point is the Queen claims seriously and Alice can't tell anything against her. Besides, there is a scene which can be seen understandable and convincing. An egg like a man, Humpty Dumpty is wearing a beautiful neck-tie which is given by the Queen on an un-birthday. Are you with me? He would like to just tell that the day is not his birthday. Apparently it can be understood, not in this way of speaking, but it gives us time to think that logically.
     Through the Looking Glass leaves us a problem that who is seeing the a sequence of the story and what is the intention. I'm guessing most of them comes from Alice, but her kitty and a mother cat appear in the introduction, so she is talking with them through her dream in her way.


Carroll, Lewis. Through the Looking Glass. (1992). Oxford; Oxford University Press.

2019年11月14日木曜日

BR 3-7: Chance of a lifetime

Helen picked up the plate from Jill and read its message: 'Be true to yourself.' She smiled. (p.55)

Image result for chance of a lifetime penguin     Have you ever fell in the crucial situation? In my case, though it was smaller thing than the protagonist, Helen's one, making my choice among so many schools is the most important like high school, university and language school. Today, I'll focus on Helen's work and life on the ups and downs incidents.
     She has a potential boyfriend, Tom in Scotland, and expects that he will ask her to merry and live together. Pleasant news comes to her; she can become a tour guide in Europe. While she is worried about the distance and relationship with her boyfriend, tour is taken place. In the tour, there are all walks of people from noisy guys to a rich woman. It's the first job for her, so there is no enough time to take a rest by herself. Besides, in the end of the story, an accident happens in which two participants are criminals and they've been escaped from police. Helen counts on them confidently all the time, which makes her more desperate.
     After she comes back from the tour, an idea comes up with her. She realizes work and private life shouldn't be always perfect, sometimes one needs taking more time. I guess she grasps how potential her life is, which is possible to change ways any time after making a big decision. Through a big incident, we can gain a truly new idea.


Lggulde, Margaret and Allen, Julia. Chance of a lifetime. (2000). Edinburgh; Person Education Limited.

2019年11月7日木曜日

BR 3-6: Dubliners

One sentence read: Love between man and man is not possible because there mush be no sex; man and woman cannot be friends because there must be sex. (p.29)

This book has six stories, and I'll introduce Eveline and A painful case.

Image result for dubliners penguin readers

Eveline 

     There is a depressed woman in her tiresome life. Her father is always beating her with the strongest power he has and threatening her to give him money while she is only a 19 year-old girl. When he feels good, he deals her with some kindness, but it's up to his condition. Fortunately, there is a meeting with a guy called Frank, which gives her another way of life. He wants her to start living in Buenos Aires. It also means she can run away from her father's violence. When she leaves her house, it takes her back to her recollection with her dear mother, and then she determines to give up living with her boyfriend.
     As we read this kind of ups and downs story, it's tempting to think that a protagonist should gain better choice. In this case, though life with her boyfriend seems to be going well, it turns into her unhappiness in her mind. I suspect she doesn't want to leave his father because his madness doesn't come from his hate for her, but from the severe condition. Even if a member of a family becomes unfavorably, their family can't disgrace their bond. If you were her, which ways would you choose a happy life or a miserable life?


A painful case 

     Mr Duff  lives in a quiet countryside which is far from the center of Dublin. He devotes himself on reading books. Nothing special days passes, and he doesn't have any interest in the outside. One evening, he was at a concert, and met a woman who looks intelligent and calm. Then, he saw her after a few weeks at the same theater again. Gradually, he opens his mind to her and starts sharing each other's situation. The woman has a husband who often leaves home due to his business, and a daughter who is enthusiastic about her lessons. As you can see, she has no connection which allows her to comfort her spirit. The situation is similar to Mr Duff, so they're getting closer and closer. One night, they're sure that they love each other, but he knows that he has to prevent any situation with her. After that, they don't see any more. After a while, he read a newspaper which says she dies of an accident and her marriage life isn't good. At last, he learns that he should love her with his utmost love.
     There is a saying,'Birds of a feather flock together.' Mr Duff finds himself getting into herself as he spends time together. However, they pay attention to each other's life too much to have a happy life.


Joyce, James. Dubliners. (1993). London; Penguin Books.
   

2019年11月4日月曜日

BR 3-5: San Francisco

San Francisco has a long story and interesting story, from the early days of the gold rush to today. (p.39)


Image result for oxford university press sanfrancisco     I think San Francisco is more familiar with us followed by New York because of the meaningful history and multicultural society. Today I'll introduce its culture and significance. Have you ever heard the word the 'Summer of Love'? This shows historic time in the 1960's.  At that time, many young American people worn out the traditional lifestyle and wanted to regain the natural lifestyle. They put on some jeans and clothes with long hair, which now we may feel very conspicuous, and became wanderers. They called hippie. Hippie, the idea that people want to create their own favorable style against the society also spread in Japan, and then known as subculture. In the States, it was a kind of utopia in both good and bad meaning. Of course, the ties among them who had the same aims to change the situation took pressure off, but they abused their health with drugs. Gradually they were got mixed up with others, and it led to a multicultural city.

Image result for lombard street san francisco   Let's take a look at the travel points which attract people around the local people and foreign people. Firstly, transportation. See the picture. How steep and interesting the street is, which reminds us of a green roller coaster!! This is Lombard Street. People say it's easier for drivers to go down along the small flower garden. Similarly, there are more steep and narrow streets in San Francisco than the other city, so this book recommend us that we go around the sightseeing on foot. In addition, there is a traditional cable car which is similar to Kumamoto's streetcar. Travelers are welcomed by a driver and a conductor when they get on it. Among the conductors, Maya Angelou is the most well-known African-American woman. She also wrote an important book, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings in which her young days are. I'm sure her book helps us study issues related to racism and strong woman. Next, sightseeing. I'm guessing most of you've seen this a bright long orange-red bridge to the city, Golden Gate Bridge. All you have to do is observe the change of the bridge according to time. The area's weather is not stable, so sometimes it's too foggy, sometimes it reflects the sun's light and it's getting romantic. When you go there, don't forget to bring your camera. Moreover, there is a famous soul food which I strongly recommend you. That is Clam chowder in sourdough bread. One of the most loving restaurant is at Fisherman's Wharf next to the water on San Francisco Bay. As I said before, travelers should walk in the city, so when lunch time comes, they enjoy this mouthwatering food.
Image result for clam chowder san francisco     As you can see, there is no word that indicate the city easily, and every aspect keeps attracting people at every time. How about joining San Francisco's fans?








Hardy-gold, Janet. San Francisco. (2012) Oxford; Oxford University Press.