Anglicizing the Analysis of Others

Patrick McJury ENG 105.66 Professor Norm Gayford Paper Draft #2

In Steven Daley’s paper one I found it interesting how he focused in on all of the little details that differ from story to story. These details often seem so insignificant that they are over looked when you read the story. However then you see them all in one place you begin to see that it is actually a very different story. At first glance the stories of the manner in which Uther takes Igraine to bed, seems to be fairly consistent, simply by trickery. When you begin to delve deeper into the plot you see just how far the levels of trickery go, just how determined Uther was to take Igraine.(Daley 1). I find this to be somewhat intriguing because I would expect there to be some sort of a closer agreement between all of the different stories. Some stories tell of simple trickery, while others tell of a violent attack. Is there any way to know what really happened? Is there one definitive source that we can go to and have final word? Or are we left simply to wonder, and try to combine all of the stories into one mesh and hope that it is some what close to the truth.

I think that this is critically important because so often I find my self saying “oh I know that story” and missing out on getting a different view point. Even if the story is the same, the details may still be different. This is where I think Culler’s idea of questioning the obvious comes into play. When can we say that we really know a story?

When you hear it the first time? The Second time? Or does it come more from the number of sources that you hear it from. Can you know a story after hearing it from only one person or is it necessary to hear the story from as many different people as possible in order to try and cover all the angles. I think that if that is the case then we can never truly know any story. There is almost always some unexplored angle, or that one person that you didn’t get a chance to talk to about it. I think that is idea frustrates people because they want to know the story, the whole story and be able to say so. In a society where it is often said that “Knowledge is Power” many people do not wish to ever admit that they do not know the story.

In Rachel Campbell’s paper one draft I found her discussion of Igraine to be very interesting. Although I do not agree with much of what she said it does provoke thought and makes the paper all the more interesting.

Here is a woman who risked the safety and security of

herself and the family she loved more than anything to

uphold the values that she believed to be right and

good(Campbell 1)

To me this is a complete contradiction. If Igraine valued her family more then anything else she would have never but them at risk. She would have been willing to sacrifice some of her beliefs in order to ensure the safety of those most precious to her. I believe that Igraine held her beliefs far higher then her family, which is why she was willing to risk her family, to keep her believes above water so to speak.

At first I thought that this might simply be a typo and that she meant that she was willing to sacrifice her self for her beliefs which I do agree is a very righteous thing to do.

But then Rachel continues along the same line of thought in saying that. I believe it is important to see that Igraine loved her

husband with all her heart because that is the only way it is

possible for me to understand why she would put his life at

risk.(2)

I can some what understand where Rachel is going with this but it is just such a sharp contrast to what I would normally think of. When I think of the things that I hold dear to me I think of making and possible sacrifice for that person or items safety, not vice a versa.

Another quote that caught my attention was

I thought that if I married Uther, Gorlois would have not died in vain. He and many brave men had given their lives because the king wanted me for himself. Marriage to Uther, whom I didn’t love, would be my punishment for the deaths of those knights (Steinbeck 15).

This quote I found interesting just because of the idea that marriage could act as a punishment. While many men often joke about such a thing in modern society, I think you would be hard pressed to find someone that actually believed that. But according to

Steinbeck Igraine did. It is just another example of the manner in which the world has changed from the time of Kings and Knights, in this case for the better.

When it comes to Culler I am probably one of the worst people to talk to about him and his book Literary Theory but it does make some key points which are often some of the best ways that I have ever considered when anglicizing literature. The simple question that he starts with “What is literature” is simple only until you get past the point where it is simply books and magazines and print stories. When you consider literature broken down and stripped to its most basic elements it actually becomes much more complicated. Along the same lines comes the idea of questioning your believes and trying to ask yourself why you think something, or why your believes are right and someone else’s are wrong (which is not always the case “the opposite of one profound belief if another profound belief” [Postman The End of Education]). I think that Rachael is wrong when she talks about Igraine caring so much about her family that she would sacrifice them to uphold her beliefs, but who is to say whether that is right or wrong.

Right and Wrong are probably the two most subjective words in the English language.

There can be two completely different right answers to the same question simply depending upon whom you ask. And the same is true of wrong. I may say that I think

Rachael is wrong, and eight people might agree with me, but twenty people might agree with Rachael and tell me that the eight people and I are wrong. One issues such as this there can never really be a set fast right and wrong answer. There is only what is in your heart and that is often one of the most confusing things to understand. Works Cited

1. Daley, Steven “English 105.66 Paper #1” English 105 Homepage 3 March 2004

http://faculty.genesee.edu/nrgayford/105_daley_paper1.htm

2. Campbell, Rachel “A New Reason for Chivalry” English 105 Homepage 2 February

2004 http://faculty.genesee.edu/nrgayford/105_campbell_paper1.htm