Cognitive Dissonance

Cognitive Dissonance: The state of having inconsistent thoughts, beliefs, or attitudes, esp. as relating to behavioral decisions and attitude change.

Doubtfulness prevails as the main idea of the second part in Heart of Darkness. Marlow experiences a constant cognitive dissonance, as defined above, when he understands that the Indians are human beings just like him, yet is expected to treat them as peasants. The novel has an unexpected change of heart. This dissonance will drill further on into Marlow’s moral, affecting aspects of his expedition drastically.

                Marlow was convinced before leaving London that he would be exposed to tropical atrocities. He was prepared for the worst. “It was unearthly, and the men were—No, they were not inhuman”, Marlow claims. Europeans had created a connotation between the unconquered and the savages. It was all the same to them, their only goal was to exploit ivory. When the resource was over they would simply move on.

                Only few like Marlow were able to see that: “Well, you know, that was the worst of it –this suspicion of them not being inhuman.” In the novel, Kurtz is the first one to notice this, and for that he is seen as an idol, for both Indians and his fellow expedition. Marlow comes in and notices the same pattern, he is confused. He will have to choose whether to defy what is expected of him by the Company back home. Or on the other hand stick to what he is feeling and better off seeing.

 It took a whole expedition for only one person to notice the savages were not uncivilized. Later throughout the novel, Marlow will have to solve his cognitive dissonance. Either he will have to change his ideas to suit what he is supposed to do, or change his actions to meet with the same ideals he is now experiencing. 

Coexist

Stories matter, they can be used to empower and humanized and repair broken dignities.

•           “Show people as only and one thing over and over again and that is what they will become.” I live in pretty similar conditions as Mexicans do. Yet, I sometimes ignore that fact and imply they are as the rest of the world picture them.
• “Stereotypes are not untrue but they are incomplete.” We as Colombia suffer the same single story idea.
• “America has no single story.” Therefore it is not judged that commonly
• “People tend to insist on only negative stories that form them” As Chimamanda Adichie said, writers insist you need to have a tragic life to be a good writer, but it is good to share both sides of the story.
• “Single stories rob people from their identity.” They believe their country is that way and stop caring which is the real reality
• “It emphasizes on how we are different and not on how we are similar” If the world as one would try to link each other through similar aspects, instead of overwhelming themselves with differences that separate them, we would all coexist.

When there is no story about a single place we regain a kind of paradise.

Darkness of the Soul

What is darkness?

Indeed, it is implicit in the title that the novel will contain some kind of darkness. Gathering erroneous conclusion one may think of it in a cliché way, as a treacherous love that will darken the hearts of the characters. Yet, in the novel the darkness is different; it is one that consumes the sole with hatred against the conquered Indians. Conrad will mention darkness in various aspects such as: setting, character description, color, race or a state.

“I thought of these two guarding the door of Darkness knitting black wool as for a warm pall…” (Pg. 74)

The above quote talks about Darkness as a setting. The doors represent the entrance to the new world he came to explore, the entrance to the darkness of the Congo.

“…Too dull even to know you are being assaulted by the power of Darkness.” (pg. 122)

In this case darkness is the Indians of the Congo. They will be referred to as the bronze people throughout the novel. Marlow will later understand they are the same color, all humans.

“…A treacherous appeal to the lurking death, to the hidden evil, to the profound Darkness of its heart.” (pg. 102)

            This is the precise moment when Marlow notices that his heart is filled with darkness towards something that has been created in his mind. A hatred that is not malleable, yet it has been drilled into his mind since he set sail to the Congo.

            Throughout the novel we see the development of Marlow’s ideas. As we notice in the first quote he believes he is going to encounter a place full of darkness, were the uncivilized reigns. As he comes in contact with such evil at a glance they seem bronze. All that surrounds them seems brought up from hell. Finally he notices that the darkness is not what he believes so to be. The darkness is a state of mind, his state of mind. When he notices this he recalls it being “the profound darkness of its heart”.

The Great Nations of Europe

What examples of the song are ironic? How can you tell?

-“The Great Nations of Europe” has a mismatch between what is said and versus what is meant, the author clearly states how great the nations of Europe are yet he is satirically calling great while meaning the opposite.

  

-The chorus of the whole song which goes: hide your wives and daughter; hide the groceries too. Upon there being a tension between what is said versus what is meant, there is a mocking tone to the whole sentence. The author is stating in tribal words, what would really happen. Giving us discordance between what we know, living five hundred years later, and from the point of view this song was written or what the character knows.

-“The great nations of Europe were quite holy in their way.” The author is expressing a mismatch between two settings. First of all between what is said and what is meant, because he is not truly talking about the holiness of the nations instead the contrary. On the other hand, there is a tension between expectations versus reality. It would be obvious for later generations that the great nations of Europe would not be that holy and beneficial.

What examples are not ironic? How can you tell?

-Most of the song is not ironical; it might be taken so because of the tone the author uses and the word choice that makes everything seem exaggerated. The following are example fragments, that might at first glance be perceived as ironical, yet are just the truth stated in a childish way:

-“They'd conquered what was behind them and now they wanted more,
so they looked to the mighty ocean and took to the Western sea.”

-“Some bones hidden in a canyon some paintings in a cave
they're no use tryin to save them, there's nothin left to save.”

Yes Ma'am

"There is a good principle which created order, light, and man, and an evil principle which created chaos, darkness, and woman." -Pythagoras

In the novel One Flew over the Cuckoo's Nest, main ruler Nurse Ratchet would be in discordance with the above quote. Instead her ruling upon the combine is imposed with the attitudes of man as described by Pythagoras. As well, men would feel emasculated by Nurse Ratchet's mere presence, the roles are reversed.

Ratchet is first introduced to us as a calm woman, with nice body and charisma. This statement coming from a man that is accustomed to the nurse being on top, the narrator, Chief Bromden. It would not be until McMurphy comes into the combine that her abuse will become noticeable. Before McMurphy came in, there was a dissonance in terms of masculinity: how men are supposed to act to overpower women, and how they acted in the mental institute. As the new inmate settles in revolts against this regime arises. Throughout the novel McMurphy will walk around in his boxers, exposing his body; sing out loud and direct authority as friends. These all because McMurphy knew relatable ideals prevailed over physical power, such as the one Nurse Ratchet imposed. 

Women are marginalized as evil in Kesey's novel. Upon there being few women present in the narration, there are only three types: first there is the distant wives of the inmates, the second is the imposing almost man figure of the Big Nurse and other small nurses, lastly there is the prostitute figure of women. None of them represent well-rounded women; they take to extremes the worst characteristics of women.

McMurphy and Nurse Ratchet are in a constant dispute for power. As it catalyzes to the end, McMurphy begins to lose power against the empowering nurse figure. He knows drastic measures are needed to be the savior the combine had so long awaited. That is when he approaches the nurse and with no stutter rips opens her shirt and begins to choke her. Not only does he for the first time use physical power, but he exposes the nurse’s femininity, her breasts. It is the end of his revolution, his point has been stated: the nurse is not a machine following societal expectations, but a human just like the inmates.

              

She simply could not lose. At the end McMurphy becomes a vegetable after various electro shock therapies were mandated by Nurse Ratchet, as pure revenge.

He died a martyr. 

PTSD

When exposed to the fog Chief claims: “I can’t see six inches”. He is blinded by this substance prevailing in the atmosphere. What it is precisely I do not know, wonders that become bigger when we take into account that he is in a mental hospital. It could be the electric shocks, sweat, a sedative, or one of my top choices Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.  Such disorder also affected Billy Pilgrim in Slaughterhouse Five. Through satire, the author, Kurt Vonnegut narrates Billy’s story through war and his abnormalities years after the war finished.

Billy settled for an alien civilization to sober his traumas. He was abducted by the Trafalmadorians, who taught him life lessons and exposed humanities faults. He was able to “fog” reality by entering another civilization that was molded to what he in his subconscious believed.  For Chief the fog has not been thoroughly described as for us to know certainly what it is.  Yet, by taking Vonnegut’s approach to a person suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, if Chief is really suffering form that (I infer so do to his constant mention if the old times in the Army), we will later on learn his fog.

The fog appears after an uncomfortable situation happens and Chief is taken to seclusion. In here he is set around the black kids and then the fog blinds him. If asked right now what the fog is I would have to conclude it is Chief’s way of escaping uncomfortable situations that remind him of the past.

Breaking Habit

I wondered and keep on wondering if Godot will ever arrive? Will he/she/it ever arrive, not only in the play, but in my life? Even though Beckett insists that his play has no near relevance to God, I do believe the idea of eternity and religion was in the back of his head. During some lows and highs in my life I come to question God’s existence. Why do we attribute our wellbeing to His greatness or indeed our failures to His teachings?

Instead of being optimist like Vladimir, setting his faith on Godot and knowing that one day he will understand why he had to wait so long, I think more like Estragon. He keeps on complaining on time being wasted, waiting and waiting when change is not seen. God teaches us to let things happen, for in the future we will understand why. Yet in those times I question if it would not be better to stop the current and do something different.

As Vladimir and Estragon are waiting their lives go by without that worthwhile experience we all aim to achieve in life. As Estragon once suggests in the play they should leave their waiting spot and go visit the places they have always wanted to. The image above exemplifies my exact thinking in times when giving up seems right. Time is a constant, getting old as well the only way to free ourselves is by doing things differently. In the play, as I interpreted it, Beckett is upon questioning God, doubting how religious devotees live. Wrapping around that train of thought I shall say: God or Godot should not be found at the end, but through the journey.

Scene Play

Above we can see one of the representations of the play Waiting for Godot. In it the setting is arid and the sense of emptiness is obvious, but the most important of the setting is how it could be any place. Adding the relatable feeling that Beckett tries to convey throughout the play, the constant search for a meaningful life.

Were you to add a subtle change in scenery it would not be the same. A simple change such as an owl perking on the tree could mean so much more and so much less at the same time. An owl could symbolize God or Godot looking over Vladimir and Estragon always being present and them waiting for something that has always been there judging them. That would degrade the actors’ value, make them less because of the presence of more. Or even the clothing if they were to be dressed as filthy rich, one may interpret Beckett’s play as a mock towards the rich and how at the end you are left empty and insane.

Everything is human. Insisting it is our error and nothing else’s. The point is reinforced with Lucky. When reading it was hard to comprehend that Lucky was serving and animal job yet being a human (I had to see the video to be certain it was a human). Lucky and Pozzo both exemplify the relationship people have with God: Lucky is constantly trying to show Pozzo his strength and dedication when he only receives punishments and insults. If it were to be a dog or a horse guiding Pozzo, the humiliation towards the animal would be more fitting to the eye than that of a human.

Other elements of the scenery can be altered to change drastically the meaning of the play, another simple thing such as adding flowers to the tree, or few more trees and bushes around the scenario would give it a psychedelic feel, such as in Alice In Wonderland. Were the characters are blabbering about the world in non-coherent ways, yet we see the setting and find no problem in agreeing that the characters are sane in that habitat.   

Overall

The main theme of a Stranger’s discussion will always be existentialism, and the one we had in class was not an exception. As the main theme of existentialism kept arising, various aspects of this movement were clearly linkable to the story. From class discussion I was able to conclude:

-Mersault did care about his mother. However his personality blinds him from feelings of dependence on others. Therefore he defies the parameters of how life should be lived.

- The book begins with his mother’s death, then there is life in the middle in which not much is told, to finally end with death. Death, life, death. You end with what you began with: nothing.

- The sun plays a vital role. Unable to express his feelings, the sun and its heat appears when situations are uncomfortable: mother’s funeral, killing the Arab, his trail. Darkness as well makes him uncomfortable.

-Killing somebody is not a crime. Mersault states death will happen regardless it doesn’t matter if it is know or later. Society sees it as a crime, he only felt like killing someone at the moment “the sun was to bright”.

-Both Mersault and his mother suffer from bed side conversion because there is no true existentialist. As animals fighting for survival of the fittest we will fear death and evade it as much as possible.

-When Mersault is going to the guillotine, he just wants it to be over as soon as possible. His existentialism just crumbled, “the day you die you can see how much of an existentialist you are.”

-The trial at the end is a metaphor of society. Mersault for the first time feels judged, he believes everybody hates him. It shows that society will always judge you for your actions and points of view.

#YOLO

A cultural motto has been running around the last months all over the world thanks to social networks. You only live once also abbreviated as YOLO is used to express carpe diem feelings of accomplishing your dreams, because actually you only live once. It is the modern existentialist motto. Now days young adults are expected to succeed in life and be the best at what they do. Even though YOLO evolved as a childish way of forgiving every stupid action you do, it is pretty clear that adolescents are bored of societal expectations. They are fighting for some existentialist meanings in life, which gives them the opportunity to be free and do whatever they feel like no government, family, school or friends pressuring them.
 
     The death of a parent should be one of the climaxes of a person’s life. We could, prior to reading the whole book believe that the story is going to narrate Mersault’s life before the death of his mother, how this event changed his life and the future without his loved one. Those inferences would be wrong. But then why did Camus start the novel that way, if it was not a marking point for the main character? Being this an existentialist novel, things really do not matter, they simply happen. Most existentialist emphasize that the present is the only truth. There is really no need for the readers to be set in a setting; you will read this novel because it is your free will and the present gives you the opportunity. So Camus therefore exposes you to Mersalut’s life in the present, what has just happened. Some people might take death as a huge event; others just see it as one more day.

“And just then it crossed my mind that one might fire, or not fire—and it would come to absolutely the same thing” (PG. 37)

Mersault’s life is flashing before his eyes, right before a confrontation with some Arabs. When a non existentialist would quote something like “when your life flashes in front of your eyes, make sure it is worth watching”, Camus replaces it with “when life flashes in front of your eyes, it is just another day”. That is finally why Camus starts the novel where he chooses to, because simply it is just another day.

Maman Died

“Maman died today. Or yesterday maybe, I don’t know…Maybe it was yesterday.” (PG.3)

The first sentence hits us straight forward with how existentialist this novel will be. Maman just died, period. No affection, no mourn, no guilt. It is just another “thing” that happened that day or was it yesterday? We are not even told. The author Albert Camus exemplifies this existentialist movement throughout the novel in various characters and their reactions toward societal parameters.  

“A minute later she asked me if I loved her. I told her it didn’t mean anything but that I didn’t think so. She looked sad.” (PG. 35)

Marie is talking to Mersault (the main character) questioning their relationship. Mersault does have feelings for Marie and he expresses them through his actions in the novel, yet once again she is simply the moment. Why would he love something that maybe will not be there tomorrow, or feel the same way? It is not a common response to a question of that kind, “traditional human behavior”. No is still a valid answer, yet stating that the answer indeed didn’t mean anything is showing that to Mersault not even the question being asked the conjunction of words is relevant.

The narration also exposes the crudeness of humans: “So we took our time getting back, him telling me how glad he was that he’d been able to give the women what she deserved.” (PG.38) and what the women deserved was not love and compassion, it was hatred and vengeance. Raymond one of Mersault’s neighbors is telling him how he got back on his cheating girlfriend. How he hit her so hard and spit on her, he was now satisfied the lesson had been taught. Paid by a night with the police Raymond was satisfied with his actions it was worth it.

Colors

“I thought of Gatsby’s wonder when he first picked out the green light at the end of Daisy’s dock. He had he had come a long way across this blue lawn, and his dream must have seemed so close that he could hardly fail to grasp it.” (The Great Gatsby, pg. 180)

Gatsby had chosen his house strictly across the bay from Daisy’s. The green light was the only visible thing, his only memory of her. The light states Daisy’s obsession for money and how Gatsby will become obsessed with it to suit her way of living when she comes back.

The blue lawn is the vast ocean that divides them and the green lantern at the other side can also be seen as the gold pot after the rainbow. How Gatsby may pursuit it and try to reach it but every time he comes close to it he will not find anything.