Journal 8

2. Keep cool: it will all be one a hundred years hence.

This aphorism means that we should not become stressed about simple things because in a hundred years, none of it will matter. I think that this is a very good saying because people often worry too much about things that only matter for a short amount of time and end up not being happy. If people followed this more, than more people would be happy and enjoy their life.

8. In skating over thin ice, our safety is in our speed.

Emerson is saying that people shouldn’t be hesitant and that if they want to do something, than they should do it. I agree with this because people are

13. All life is an experiment. The more experiments you make the better.

This aphorism is saying that life is about taking chances and seeing what happens when you do certain things. It’s also saying that the more chances you take in life, the better your life will be. I also agree with this to an extent because if you take too many chances than your life might not work out and cause you to be unhappy.

Journal 7

In the poem “To a Waterfowl” the author is very optimistic about life and is didactic. It is saying that you should go wherever God takes you. The speaker is saying how the bird is led by God. It migrates south for the winter, but it does not know why. “The Raven” is more negative and does not have an overall message. The bird in this poem has the special ability to speak and it is not an innate ability. At the end of the poem the speaker is more depressed than he was before he talked to the raven. He found out that he will never see the love of his life again. The first poem can be described as calm, harmonious, and rational. “The Raven” is more negative and imaginative. The speaker imagines that the raven is speaking to him. A similarity is that both of the poems are referencing birds. The overall message of “The Raven” is that life does not always work out the way you want it to, while the message in “To A Waterfowl” is that God will lead you through life and everything will work out.

Journal 6

1. Explain what was involved in Franklin’s plan for self-perfection? What conclusion did Franklin come to regarding the effectiveness of this plan?

Franklin’s plan for self-perfection was to make each of his virtues a daily habit. The virtues are temperance, silence, order, resolution, frugality, industry, sincerity, justice, moderation, cleanliness, tranquility, chastity, and humility. He started with temperance and used each of the previous virtues to help perfect the rest of them. Every time that he would make a mistake, he would make a mark in a book that he kept. Franklin started the first week by focusing on temperance, trying to keep that week clear of marks in his book. Each week he added a virtue and attempt to keep each of the virtues clear of any marks. For the virtue of order, he created a page in his book that plotted the time in his day for the things that he needed to do each day. Franklin found it extremely difficult to keep the virtue of order because time depends on other’s time as well as your own. He came to the conclusion that his plan was ineffective because many of the virtues require other people to be perfect as well as yourself. He also concluded that it was better for a man to be imperfect because a perfect person would be hated and envied.

2. Do you feel that a plan such as Franklin’s would improve you as a person? Why or why not? What would be your top five virtues?

I think that Franklin’s plan would improve me as a person, but only if I continued to do it for the rest of my life. If I stopped, I would eventually go back to what I was before I began his plan. My top five virtues are industry, frugality, moderation, sincerity, and temperance.

Journal 4

Today for lunch, I bought a chicken sandwich and French fries from the John Carroll Cafeteria. As I took off the top bun to put on the honey mustard, I could see the steam rising off of the chicken patty. When I sat down and started to eat the sandwich, the succulent chicken meat, infused with the taste of honey mustard, left the feeling of joy in my mouth.

I would take breaks from enjoying the chicken sandwich to test my pallet against the tastes of the French fries and hot sauce. Unfortunately, the fries had been doused with too much of the spicy sauce and it was not very comforting to eat them. There was so much that the smell made my nose burn. I could only handle so many of them at one time. Overall, the chicken sandwich with the side of fries created a pleasing combination of sweetness and spice.

Journal 3

1. Cite three specific examples of Hodgman’s descriptive imagery that you find to be particularly effective.

“The mock marrow inside was bit more problematic: in addition to looking like the sludge that collects in the treads of my running shoes, it was bursting with tiny hairs”

“It was the only one to contain ‘dried beef digest’; a mysterious substance that the Purina spokesman defined as ‘enzymes’ and my dictionary defined as ‘the products of digestion.’ ”

“In the world of canned dog food, a smooth consistency is a sign of low quality—lots of cereal. A lumpy, frightening, bloody, stringy horror is a sign of high quality—lots of meat.”

2. What do you think Hodgman’s purpose was in writing this essay? What overall message/meaning do you take from the essay?

I think that Hodgman’s purpose in writing this essay was to show how humans are more advanced than dogs and other animals and how we can discern between things that animals can’t. The overall message that I take away from this essay is that marketing is deceptive. She contrasts the products’ marketing with how the products actually taste.

Journal 2

1. How are the moths in the essay’s opening different from the moth at the campsite? What do the different moths represent?

The moths in the essay’s opening are different from the moth at the campsite because the moth at the campsite died from being burned, but then the body started to burn like the wick of a candle and it is given a second life. The moths at the beginning of the story represent Dillard before she became a writer and the moth at the campsite represent Dillard wanting to become a writer again and rekindling her desire.

2. What lesson does the moth provide that Dillard takes back to her students?

The lesson that the moth provides that Dillard takes back to her students is that if they want something then they have to exert all of their energy towards it like a moth is drawn towards a fire.

3. How many references are there to fire in the essay? What’s the larger significance of fire in the essay?

The larger significance of fire in the essay is that it represents a goal that her students are drawn to.

4. Address how each of the following quotes connect to Dillard’s overall point.

a. “I would rather be ashes than dust!
I would rather that my spark should burn out in a brilliant blaze than it should be stifled by dry-rot.
I would rather be a superb meteor, every atom of me in magnificent glow, than a sleepy and permanent planet.
The function of man is to live, not to exist.
I shall not waste my days trying to prolong them.
I shall use my time.”

-Jack London

This quote connects to Dillard’s overall point because Jack London is saying that he would rather die in something majestic than by doing nothing and wasting away his life. Dillard’s point is similar to this because she says to her students that they should be attracted to their goal like a moth is attracted to fire and their goal should completely consume them.

b. “Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire.”

-William Butler Yeats

This quote by Yeats connects to Dillard’s overall point because he is saying that education sparks more and more interest and creates something beautiful. Fire will continue to burn but a pail can only hold so much water.