Brainstorming Ideas

My group decided to do my idea of an afterlife scene off of "Children of the sea". We have not figured out character choices yet, since both of us could fluctuate between either. We have started to finish the script so we can get an idea of how the blocking is going to work, as well as how the characters will be emotionally. For the most part, the blocking will be very simple, but the lines will be more profound and audience-catching. We are trying to continue Danticat's poetic writing, so the characters will seem like they are in the same mind-set and space. The main goal for this scene is to help the audience understand exactly what the idea is, since bringing dead characters to life can be complicated. Overall I feel that we are off to a good start, and will build the scene up over time.

Top 5 Choices

1) #6 Dilyara --> Dramatic story, interesting ending
2) #4 Ethan --> Backstory of 1937, a lot of opportunities
3) #7 Yichen --> Characters from different stories
4) #2 Sarah --> Fills in gaps
5) #1 Jack --> Can explore what happens after night women

Background info on Endgame

Author: Samuel Beckett
-Samuel Barclay Beckett was an Irish avant-garde novelist, playwright, theatre director, and poet, who lived in Paris for most of his adult life and wrote in both English and French 


-Born: April 13, 1906, Foxrock, Republic of Ireland
-Stabbed by a pimp in 1937
-The play opens on a bare stage in gray light. It is a room of Hamm's house. (He's also blind.) The first character to appear is Hamm's servant, Clov, who goes through a long routine – he opens the curtains on the windows and pulls the sheets off of all the other characters. He then goes to his kitchen. 
-When Hamm awakens, he calls for Clov, and the two of them discuss the possibility of things ending. 
-Hamm calls again for Clov so that Clov can take him for a tour around the room in Hamm's wheelchair. As Clov returns Hamm to his original spot, Hamm becomes obsessed with being in the exact center of the room. 
-Hamm then demands that Clov look out the window and report what he sees, which is nothing. Clov says that he is sick of their farce, day after day. Hamm, for his part, worries that the two of them are beginning to mean something. Clov discovers that he has a flea. Both of them worry that the flea might have babies and start up the world from scratch again. Clov kills it dramatically with a can of insecticide.
-Later, Hamm asks Clov to kill him, but Clov says that he can't.
-Clov wonders why he never refuses Hamm's orders, and Hamm says that it is because Clov is unable to. Hamm recalls a madman that he knew, who thought that the entire world was ashes.
-Once again, Clov threatens to leave. Hamm and Clov get into a long debate about how Hamm would know if Clov left or if Clov died in the kitchen. 
-Hamm has Clov awaken Nagg, so that Nagg will listen to his story. Hamm recounts what is probably the story of how he obtained Clov from Clov's father, who was one of Hamm's subjects before the end of the world. At the end of the story, Hamm tells Nagg that there are no more sugarplums. Nagg curses him at length, and returns to his bin.
-Hamm makes Clov bring him his dog again. After he does so, Clov begins to tidy things up around the room. When Hamm asks what he is doing, Clov says that he is trying to put things in order, because order is his dream. Hamm demands that Clov check on his parents, and they learn that his mother, Nell, is dead, and Nagg is in his trash bin crying. Neither Hamm nor Clov show any sign of sympathy for Nagg. 
-Hamm asks Clov if he has ever been happy. Clov says no. Hamm makes Clov bring him under the window because he wants to feel the light, but he realizes that there is none. When he gets back to the center of the room, Hamm asks Clov to kiss him, but Clov refuses. Hamm makes a speech in which he talks about how the end happened right in the beginning and yet they continued on. Hamm forces Clov to check the windows again for action outside. Clov becomes extremely frustrated with him, and when Hamm again asks for his stuffed dog, Clov rushes over and hits him with it.
-Clov, looking out the window, thinks that he sees a boy, and decides to go find him. Hamm says that he doesn't need Clov anymore, but asks him for a few parting words for Hamm to hold in his heart. Clov recalls all the promises of happiness people made to him when he was growing up, and then thinks how happy he will be when he finally falls. Clov goes to the kitchen. Hamm calls for him, but he does not respond. Hamm calls for his father, but he does not respond either. Hamm decides that this is good, and casts away his few possessions. He makes a short speech on the nature of ending and then covers his face with his handkerchief. Clov stands in the doorway the entire time, dressed to go, but unmoving.
Theme:

Died: December 22, 1989, Paris, France

-Met his wife in a hospital 
-Plays are related to dark humor
-Plays focus on human despair and the will to survive in a world that offers no help in understanding 
-Awarded nobel prize for literature 
-Died soon after his wife

Plot: 
-Endgame is set after some sort of apocalyptic disaster (though we never learn the details). Hamm, his servant Clov, his father Nagg, and his mother Nell are trapped together in Hamm's home.

-Language and communication
-Compassion and forgiveness
-isolation
-defeat
-suffering 
-pride
-existence 

Theatre:
-Minimalism
-Absurdism 
-Not a lot of furniture 
-Dark lighting 
-Dark walls and floor 

Krik? Krak! Quiz #3 (Script)

Characters:

Mother & Son from Night Women

Setting:

Shack (In the future, son is now 16)

Script:

Gianna DiMarino -mother

Dilyara -son (grown up)

Night Women

(Son attempts to get up and leave)

Mother: where are you off to with that heavy bag?

Son: *sighs* I need to leave mother

Mother: for what? I already brought home dinner

Son: no. I am leaving. Forever.

Mother: *laughs* please, sit down and explain this foolishness

Son: I am not the foolish one. You are. *Sits*

I know what you do in the night.

Mother: What do you mean? Have you been having nightmares?

Son: This is something that has been bothering me lately, I cannot stay here with you anymore.

Mother: I do not understand your troubles. Please, explain to me these nightmares.

Son: Nightmares? They are not nightmares, they are real. I know what you have been doing. I am no longer a naive child. Your silly dreams can no longer shield me from your sinful life.

Mother:W-What…….I don’t understand what you’re telling me sweet boy

*RAISED VOICE* Son: Mom you need to wake up, I know that you’re screwing men every single night right next to me!

Mother: *Slaps son* Do not speak to me in that disrespectful manner. You know nothing of the sacrifices I have made for you!

Son: Sacrifice? I cannot ignore this fact anymore. I’m sick of living in shame. Do you know what my friends’ parents have been saying about you? They know you are a whore.

Mother: Oh, you ungrateful brat!!! I have done nothing but provide for you! I could have left you on the sidewalk a long time ago like my sister had with her daughter. I have loved you unconditionally.

Son: And apparently every other man within a ten mile radius!!!

Mother: I fed you, I made it possible for you to be an educated boy, I never made you starve and I provided you with a roof to stay under!

Son: well now it is time for me to provide for myself, in a honorable manner, unlike your scum-worthy self. I cannot continue my life as a man, living with a mother who does such dirty deeds. I need to be free from you.

Mother: I… I… I don't… Do you think about my stories at night? All the angels and butterflies? Wasn’t that so nice?

Son: You are crazy. You have tried to fool me for too many years. *Attempts to leave*

Mother: No! *Grabs his arm* Son, you are my world. I am trying to make the night stories come to life for you…  everything my boy has ever wanted!

Son: No, Everything you ever wanted. *Leaves*

*Silence pause*

Mother: Oh no!! Son! Please! I need help! *Hacks, coughs* Help! HELLPPP!

Son: *turns around in doorway* What, what, what happened?? Please, someone, anyone, my mother!! *kneels down next to her*

Mother: No, no people *cough*

Son: what? You need help!

Mother: No, *Stands up* You need to stay with me. *wraps arms around son’s neck*

Son: Please, let me go. This is foolish, you know I am stronger than you! *Escapes from mother’s arms*

Mother: *frustrated* Think about everything I have done. Sacrificing so much, always being there for you. I have given my whole life to you. How selfish could you be to leave me like this? Alone and in pain. Please, think about your fault.

Son: *solemn voice* I cannot fight with you anymore. I will stay with you now, but know that I can no longer live with your shame.

*Mother hugs son*

Mother: *smiles grimly* I love you.

Blog Post #8

Storytelling plays a crucial role to the style and reason behind Danticat's work. The author uses storytelling in many different ways throughout her pieces. She makes it an integral part of her character's lives, as well as a way to identify the meaning or reasoning behind certain settings and problems. It is interesting how Danticat has her characters telling stories, at the same time that she is telling her own. Each of her pieces in Krik? Krak! represent stories that included character's who make storytelling play a meaningful role in their lives.

Danticat has a close affiliation with stories, and why they are told. She was able to include this part of her life into her writing. Each character has different reasoning and meaning behind what they believe in, and how things become possible throughout their lives. Storytelling is important because it shows a certain amount of faith in her characters, as well as how they cope with their lives. There is a lot of storytelling and speculations associated with dreams. Danticat's characters speak of dreaming quite often, whether they mean the thoughts in their sleep, or the aspirations they have for the future.

The title makes way for readers to piece together the overall theme of dreams and stories. I did not consider the title in depth until I had finished the last story in Danticat's Krik? Krak!. This is not because I did not understand the meaning behind the title, but I could not see the idea that the author related her own personal storytelling experiences, to those of her characters. In the end, it was clear to me that all of the pieces in Krik? Krak! as well as all the stories told throughout them, represent the title completely in a very personal way to the author.

Two stories that represent the idea of storytelling throughout the book are "Night Women" and "Nineteen Thirty-Seven". Night women represents the dream aspect of storytelling. A mother tells whimsical stories to her child at night to distract him from her job as a prostitute, as well as cope with herself as a person. She tells her son stories, and tries to act like she could live in them one day herself. "Nineteen Thirty-Seven" represents characters who live and believe in their stories. A girl is fighting with the idea that her mother has wings and can fly. There are many stories told to the girl about what her mother can do, as well as what her friends are capable of as well. The girl does not want to believe in what is being told to her until she realizes that the stories are a metaphor for her mother and friends fighting for their lives.

In the epilogue, Danticat goes in depth of how her family did not want her to write for a living. They believed it was dangerous, but Danticat saw the beauty in storytelling everyday. She uses the example of the stories she was told while her hair was being braided, and how stories are just like braids. She explains that the people in her family were storytellers, but Danticat wanted to tell her stories to more than just her loved ones. There is great beauty in Krik? Krak! since readers can see that Danticat has come such a long way to speak bold truths through her characters, and integrate storytelling into the meaning of her pieces.

Notes

Epilogue

-Parents did not want Danticat to be a writer (did not think she would be successful)

--> wanted her to be a nurse

- $$$

-Writing was dangerous in Haiti 

-Art is political 

-Writing is like braiding hair 

-Memory of stories 

-Kitchen poets (private artists)

Caroline's Wedding 

Characters:
Caroline
Sister/narrator/grace
Mother

In-class writing (Respond to talk)

I enjoyed when Danticat spoke of what it was like to grow up in Haiti and then move to the US when she was twelve. She spoke of the discrimination she got during school, and how she did not have as many opportunities as other kids. I feel like her talk covered many tough subjects, that showed how real Danticat is as both an author and a person. She was genuine in her deliverance, and I felt that she was someone that a lot of people could look up to, or relate to. (Even if they were not going through the same kind of life as her.) I appreciated how articulate and poised she was throughout the discussion, and similar to her writing, she delivers her ideas in a calming way that does not appear as a facade, but shows a new side to more darker ideas. I felt like I was able to see part of myself in the idea that Danticat takes initiative to get things done, and I feel that I am similar in that way. Danticat is very inspiring and proves that as long as you stick to something and continue to learn and get better, you can succeed.

Blog post #7

Haitian VS American Stories 

I feel that there was a great difference in the stories by Danticat when they took place in different locations. The characters faced different problems depending on where they were located. Readers got to experience how setting affects a character's way of life and how they avoid different kinds of obstacles. All of Danticat's stories took on their own life, but there was a specific correlation between the area they were in. You could relate where the characters were to how they spoke and the kind of dialect they were using as well.

In the stories that took place in both Haiti and America, women had to deal with the severe oppression to their male counterparts. In Haiti, the problem was extremely apparent and would completely affect how the stories came to life, as well as the motivation for a character's actions throughout their journey. When a woman was placed in New York, it was automatic for readers to assume she was oppressed. That did not necessarily serve as the main obstacle though. In the NY stories, it was much more obvious that a bigger issue was the culture difference. There was a constant pull and argument over keeping old traditions and cultures of Haiti, or embracing a new setting. 

When the characters were not focusing on creating a new life in NY, they had to deal with remembering the ones they left behind in Haiti. There was a great divide in the stories, and the feel that Danticat was able to achieve was extremely effective. Before the characters even said they were in New York, readers could already tell that the setting was new, or affecting them in some new way. Danticat played with the possibilities of how some people could end up moving away from where they were born, VS being the first of their family to be born in a new place. It was very natural for the older folks to have a harder time embracing a new culture, the middle-aged having somewhat of a hard time, and the youngest having the easiest (with the most exposure.) 

Caroline's wedding was a great example of the difference of cultures. It is based in NY with three ladies who are all at different stages in their lives. They each face different obstacles, and have very different opinions. The story shows how families can experience a clash when it comes to their choices of living their lives. Certain members of the family in that story were extremely connected to their past area, and others wanted to be as American as they could. The story covered many areas of conflict and showed how difficult it is to make decisions in a tight-knit family. 

Notes 1/10/17

Between the Pool and the Gardenias

Characters:
-Woman
-Rose (dead baby girl)
-People she works for
-Garden man

Plot:
-Woman goes out to get food to prepare for the people she works for
-Finds a baby left on the side of the road (apparently dead- readers don't know)
-Takes the baby and keeps it for her own
-Husband left her a long time ago and cheated since she could not give birth
-Takes care of the baby
-Baby starts to smell (because it is dead)
-She tries to keep the baby but can't
-Buries the baby behind the shed
-Garden man catches her (she had sex with him awhile back)
-Got caught (the man, her, and baby were standing there and she thought they looked nice as a family)

woman crazy??
Damaged from past experiences
wishes for what she had with husband, tries to reconcile her past with the dead baby

Notes 1/10/17

New York Day Women:

Contrasts the choices made by women in Haiti vs United States (night women)
Bold-face print is her mothers voice inside daughter's head

Characters:
-Woman (Suzette) 20s
-Her mother 50s

Plot:
-woman follows her mother around the city all day
-mother stuck in the past of Haiti
-mother has a job watching children while parents do other things (nanny)
-Daughter finds out what her mother does all day
-Finds out that mother had to work all day to provide for daughter
-Realizes that she needs to be more "pro-mom"

Comparison:
-Mother and daughter do not have a great relationship (clash w/ generation gap and where they were brought up)
-Mother wants daughter to be something else, nags her about job, how nice she is, etc.
-Agrees that her mother is right, but thinks her mother never did anything for her

Notes 1/8/17

Night Women: 
-25 yr old woman
-Son (maybe 10-12?)
-Men
-Working women           (Could have been a possible reality for Lili and son)
-Father of son
-Angels

-Son grows in his sleep? -- no (Watch as he grows up everyday)
-Can see him becoming older (sees father in him)
-Contradiction of how old she treats son
-Reality vs dream (contrast)
-Night = Bad
-Father is a Ghost (woman narrator)
-Harsh reality (trying to find a piece of hope)
-She is not respected (Not honorable)
-Rationalizes herself

Plot --> woman is prostitute (sex for $$$)
-Night comes and woman puts son to sleep
-Gets ready for male visitor
-Compares herself to other women, glad she has the day to herself
-She feels lucky that she has a life
-Avoids herself

In-class writing (Night Women)

Discuss the tone of the story through the narrator (what do you think? How does it relate to content?)

      In "Night Women" by Danticat, the narrator speaks of whimsical thoughts in a very real and difficult household. The word choices throughout this story almost seem like a facade for what the woman is dealing with. She speaks of her life as if the content is being told to an adult, but understood by a child. She uses stories to hide her son from the work she does at night, but the relationship she has with her son seems to make up for her lost husband. She has a softer tone of voice, but in no way does it reflect numbness. The narrator seems very alive in her own mind, but detached from the life she has created for herself. When she tells stories to her son, she slips into a distracted mindset of a different world. She has a cover for her son if he ever wakes up while she is working, which is that his father's ghost came to visit her. The way she tells that excuse to the readers gives an essence that she tells herself that when she works, slipping into the fantasy that she expects to tell her son. The way she speaks is not only a cover for her son, but her as well. The story is interesting because of the way it is told. It is also frustrating in the sense that the woman tells it in an  excessive quaint manner, trying to cover the truth for herself and the readers.

Blog Post #6

The theme that appears in all three of the stories by Danticat is gender roles. This theme is extremely apparent and affects all of her stories, and the characters involved. Danticat has used gender roles as an automatic catalyst for the time frame she is working with throughout her stories. Every story involves different relationships and situations for the characters, but no matter what, they are living in a male-dominated world. This affects the decisions they make throughout their story and the kind of situation readers can automatically sense for the characters.

Danticat uses this theme as a tool to drive the characters through their story. Each character has a different goal or idea of life, so living in a male-dominated environment explains why some characters are in their specific situation, or why some of their relationships have certain dynamics. Gender roles are an automatic obstacle for the female characters of the story, and at times put pressure on the male characters to perform. Gender roles also play a part in the biased of some characters, as well as stereotypes put on them as well.

This theme is important because the characters always have to work with it in some way. In the story "Children of the Sea," there is a girl writing letters to her boyfriend who is fleeing on a boat. Her letters are more diary-like and casual, whereas the boy's writing is formal. (Implying that he received education and she did not.) The girl shows hatred towards her father throughout the story for having such large power over her, but in the end realizes that as the male figure in her life, he was obligated to protect her and be strong. The girl lived a secluded and boring life, forced to flee from soldiers who could have raped her.

In the story "Wall of Fire Rising," a troubled man and his family are trying to live their life in poverty. Most of the story shows the man in a state of confusion and depression, fighting with his own mind. The man wants his son to be strong and powerful when he is older, so he can support his family. He wants his son to start working soon, whereas his wife believes their child should stay in school for better opportunities. The man does not see how the boy could be a strong figure if he did not have a strong work ethic. As much as the man wanted to have a different life, he was caught up in what he was stuck with at the moment, letting the little opportunities he had dominate his outlook on his lifetime itself. The man ends up committing suicide to feel like he did something of his own, and to gain power over his life.

Overall in Danticat's stories, readers can see the pressures put on men to perform, and the oppression that women were succumbed to. Her characters all come from different stories, and are passionate about different things. No matter what though, they are faced with the feelings and requirements that come with a male-dominated culture. Danticat successfully portrays what it is like to face such obstacles, and allows her characters to face their issues head-on, and give new perspectives.

Wall of fire rising notes 1/6/17

Wall of Fire Rising

Characters:

Guy (has no work, frustrated with himself/life)

Little Guy (idealistic)

Lili 

Boukman (former slave that became leader of rebellion)

--> freedom/hero/fighting for what you believe

Expectation of Gender Roles:

Males --> Powerful in charge, strong, take care of family, $ 

Assad Family

-Owners of workers and guy 

Mother wants child to have a future of education

Father wants child to start to work in the mill (pessimistic vs realistic)

Father steals hot air balloon, flies it, and jumps to his death

--> depressed/powerless

--> escapes from his life (control)

Different views of life 

1937 Notes 1/6/17

1937

Characters:

Girl- Josephine

Mother 

Jacqueline (mother's friend/group of river)

Madonna (Virgin Mary/symbol of purity) --> crying involves the Voodoo aspect

Prisoners

Story:

-Mother was accused of being a Voodoo Priestess (She did indeed practice Voodoo)

-Mother dies from gross mistreatment in prison (malnutrition) 

--> prison guards beat her (could have though she was escaping/no use in saving/etc.) 

-Guards tell daughter that the mother died in the prison 

-Jaqueline tells the story of river:

Mother dipped hands in the river to pay homage to what happened in 1937 (grandmother's dead body in the river)

-Mother escaped from Dominican Republic to Haiti through the massacre river while pregnant 

-Fire wings were a symbol of escape/freedom (blood)

-Daughter finally understands her mother's power and reason

-Daughter embraces mother at the end and continues her tradition 

Notes:

-Voodoo is a religion, not magic 

-Voodoo was made illegal at the time 

-Huge divide between mother and daughter at the beginning, but reconciliation in the end

-Everything is superstition 

-Fire Wings is a way for the women to support each other's freedom and practice of voodoo 

-Men wanted to make sure women had no power

-Flying = Freedom 

Themes:

Gender --> male dominated society/women in prison 

Krik Krak Notes 1/5/17

KK:
Storytelling
Genre - Fiction, Collection of short stories
Connections
Historical Basis
Author immigrated from Haiti to US
Theme - immigrant/travel stories
Gender (male dominated society)

"Children of the Sea"

Diary-like (recording experiences)

Reader is in the middle of the two characters

Contrast between genders

Narrator 1: 

Male

Formal writing style

Regular print 

Record of history(?) - understand experience and what he went through

Radio host - Public voice

Audience could be public

Educated/formal voice (went to university)

Part of rebellion against government (oppressive gov.)

Flee Haiti by boat - believes he will die there 

Narrator 2:

No caps

Bold-faced print 

Female

Casual/Diary-like/Personal 

Audience is narrator 1

Caught in the middle of father and boyfriend (gender in history)

Flees to village to escape from government 

Targeted because of the boyfriend 

Father pays off soldiers 

Gets all the information off the radio

Overall:
-Girl believes the boat sank, but finds out the boy passed exam
--> Black butterflies (symbol of bad news, death)
-Signs for the reader that the boy has died (not 100% sure though)
-Nothing is definite about the ending
-Corruption of government

Major themes:
Love with boundaries
Sacrifice
Power --> gender/voice
Family relationships --> generational divide/reconciliation
Storytelling vs official history

Danticat Quotes

1) 

This quote connects well to the third story in Krik? Krak! because it involves a family of three passionate people. The young boy was extremely invested in his lines for the play he was cast it. He would spend all day focusing on memorization and delivery. There would be moments where he would focus so much, that he would get stressed out and forget his lines completely. The father also had trouble with being too invested. He was interested greatly in a hot air balloon near their house. He would think about going in it so often, and what it would be like to fly away. Once he finally reached the point where he felt that he had to go in it, something happened where he may have gotten overwhelmed and ended up jumping to his death.

2)

This quote reminds me of the girl in the second story of Krik? Krak!. Her mother was in prison and the girl would go to visit her, but not be able to say any words in front of her. For some reason the girl was too overwhelmed with the fact that he mother was in prison. Once she finally spoke out to her mother, she asked a question that she already knew the answer to deep down. Once she could remember when her mother flew, she was released from the question or doubt about who her mother truly was.

Krik? Krak! Notes (second and third)

1937:
-Madonna(?) = statue
-Spanish Massacre
-Visiting mother in prison
-Mother taking skin off at night(?)
-could not speak to her mother after she got arrested (mute)
-Prison did not want their prisoners to grow wings of fire
-Women were put in prison because they were seen rising from the ground at night, causing death to children
-Daughters of the river
-Her mother could fly because of the river
-Jacqueline knew her mother, and knew that she had died as well
-Her mother got beaten to death
-In the prison cell the girl remembered her mother flying when she was in the womb

A wall of fire rising:
-Guy, Little guy, and Lili
-Little guy is in a play
-Boy is Boukman in the play
-Father questioned if his son could handle the part in the play
-Son read the lines well, parents were proud and amused
-Very poor family
-Family traveled to the sugar milll, and near it was television for the town
-Where the community came together
-Shantytown
-Man explained to wife that he got a job at the sugar mill
-Man said he wanted to put their son on the list for the sugar mill and the wife said no
-Husband is very interested in the hot air balloon
-Boy woke up because he could not remember his lines
-Lili told her son that his father's heart hurt
-The husband went up into the hot air balloon
-The man jumped out of the hot air balloon and fell in front of his family