Arsenic and Old Lace

To complete my reading requirement of a play for this quarter I was recommended to read the comedy Arsenic and Old Lace and I must say that I found it to be very interesting. For one, the humor was very mature, Teddy Brewster who believes that he is actually Teddy Roosevelt brings an interesting aura to the other characters who go along with his claims to be president. The fact that the murders in the book are two old ladies who run a bed and breakfast is also very comical. This play reminded me very much of the "Scary Movie" series in that there is humor that is of course very blatant and then there is humor that must be thought about and may only occur to a few people as funny. In the Scary Movies the story usually revolves around 3-4 incredibly unaware people who are trust into a journey in which they must save themselves and the entire population of the earth. The stories incorporate satire from popular horror films. And though the movie is funny it is entitled Scary Movie, most people don't pick up on this fact and will watch the movie and pay no attention to the title deeming it as unimportant.

The Reason of Things: Living with Philosophy by A.C. Grayling

The end of the marking period is fast approaching and I still have not completed my genre requirement of poetry/play. See its difficult for me to find a poetry book that strikes my fancy and perhaps even harder to find a play. I think that plays and poetry are things to be preformed and watched as entertainment, and not so much read. I have though found a few philosophy books that have been really interesting, both of which I picked up on my trip to London last month. The thing that I like about them is that they have similar layouts in that they all first decide on a topic to discuss and then offer short little thoughts or essays analyzing the human condition as pertaining to the topic of that particular section. I have never before seen this kind of writing. I have to say, reading books on philosophy has exposed me to many new ideas that I had before been completely unaware of. Hopefully I'll find a play to read over spring break so that I can complete my genre requirement.

Andy Warhol: The Philosophy of Andy Warhol by Andy Warhol

This is by far the most abstract of all auto-biographies that I have read. Maybe it's that I haven't been into the writings of artists and mostly musicians, but this book is very different. It combines the thoughts of a visionary artist while at the same time tells the story of Andy Warhol through his life. The writings are not particularly paragraphs and traditional chapters but rather little snippets of thoughts sometimes one sentence sometimes paragraphs and even in the form of poetry in come cases. He relays his idea, provides analysis and then moves right along to the next one. This is great in that most philosophy books can tend to be a tad boring as one can go on and on for pages on one topic, while Andy Warhol keeps his ideas short and sweet.

Hell's Angels by Hunter Thompson

This book really digs deep into the inner workings of a greatly respected and feared motorcycle gang who originated in California called the Hell's Angels. The author, Hunter Thompson originally began the work as an article but became so intrigued by the group that it developed into full fledged book. After spending nearly a year living along side a chapter of the gang located in southern California his research was complete and his book could be finished. The chapters explore the history of the group as well as their notable actions. Thompson mentions a gang-rape that the several of the Angels were accused of in the early 60's. This event and analysis of the events following become a recurring theme in the book. Thompson articulates that the members who were accused were taken to trial and found not guilty, but the media heard the words gang-rape and motorcycle gang in the same sentence and went to town making the gang out to look like a bunch of wild animals a label that was forever bestowed upon the group. The book goes beyond reporting all of the crimes and bad things that are associated with the gang, but describes how the men of the gang are normal people, most with jobs just trying to make ends meet, who enjoy leather jackets, close friends and large motorcycles.

Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad

The ending of this story in my opinion was very strong. The last event in the story is what really hit home in my mind with all the things that Marlow saw throughout his voyage. Kurtz, a man who dies of illness in the Congo, utters the words "The horror, the horror" with his last breath. When Marlow visits Kurtz's fiancée, she asks what his final words were. Marlow cannot bring himself to tell her the truth but instead lies by telling her that his last word was her name. This part of the book was a powerful summation of the story as a whole, all the terrible things that Marlow has witnessed through his journey will stay with him for life. From the abuse of natives Africans, to being attacked by tribes and nursing a dying man Marlow has been through much and inability to even tell a women her fiancé's last words brings all of those things to a nice close for the reader. I really enjoyed this book and recommend it to all those who enjoy more modern classics especially those with strong emphasis on human nature.

Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad

I feel that this week I have gotten into the meat of the story. And what a story it is. Marlow, the main character has left on his voyage into the Congo to explore. Along the way he is attacked by natives with guns who kill one of his crewmen. He makes it to the Inner Station which is the farthest any explorer before him has made it into the Congo and he intends on pressing further. Another parallel that I can draw between this book and The Catcher in The Rye is that, any small detail or event can lead to a monologue, flashback or analysis of human nature. Marlow spends pages upon pages analyzing the smallest of things that he notices about people. It is this aspect of the book that leads me to believe that the story is not what is important in the book and that the story is just a cover that can bear the true meaning that Conrad is trying to convey. I was going to blog about how I thought that the chapters were very long in this story, sometimes spanning 20-30 pages, but further investigation on my part yielded that the story is not divided into chapters but rather into "Parts" thus making it not such a big deal

Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad

I began this book over my Christmas break on my cousins recommendation and I have to say that despite her rather negative reviews I have found the book to be very entertaining. One aspect of the book that stikes me is they the authors writing style, the book is told as a character telling the story much like Catcher in the Rye. There is tremedous detail in this book right down to the smallest of sounds and actions of people, this really makes this book worth reading. This book is takes place during the European movement into Africa, the Congo region in particular. I can relate the events of this book to what we learned in Global History class regarding this very topic. There are also other short stories in the book as well as "Heart of Darkness" making this book perfect for fitting my two favorite genre styles, classic and short story. I look forward to getting into the meat of this book.