Interpretation

1.     A Temple of The Holy Ghost, by Flannery O’Connor, is a short story told in the point of view of a unnamed 12 year old girl.  Her second cousins, Susan and Joanne, come visit from their Catholic convent, Mt. Scholastica, for the weekend.  The girls are both fourteen years old, two years older than the child, and boy crazy. The child’s mother is at a loss of what to do with them so asked her child for help. The child suggested the two, Church of God farm boys, Wendell and Cory, to entertain the girls. The boys come over for dinner and sing to the girls and old hymn in response the girls then begin singing a song in Latin for them. Since the boys were not Catholic they did not recognize the Latin and conclude that it “must be a Jew singing.” After the four children eat dinner, they go to the fair and the child daydreams about becoming a saint or a martyr. The child then lays down for bed and says her prayers. Before falling asleep she thanks God she is not in The Church of God. The child is awoken by the return of Susan and Joanne, and she asks them about what they saw at the fair. They tell her that some things they can't explain to her because she is too young, but she eventually convinces them to tell her. They begin to tell he about the “freak” in the tent and how the tent was separated down the middle, men and women on different sides.  The “freak” showed them its body by lifting up its skirt, saying, "God made me thisaway... and I ain't disputing His way." The child doesn't understand exactly what the freak showed the crowd, but she falls asleep imagining the freak repeating, "I am a temple of the Holy Ghost, Amen." The next morning the child and her mother take the girls back to the convent and stay for the chapel service. While the child enters in an ugly mood she soon realizes she was in the presence of God and repents, asking God to help her not to be so mean and sassy.  After she let her mind get quiet she began to think about the tent at the fair that had the freak in it. “The freak was saying, ‘ I don’t dispute hit. This is the way He wanted me to be.” On their way back home, Alonzo informs them that some of the preachers from town had gone up to the fair and shut it down. 

2. I chose this story because I feel like it is “deceptively simple”. I feel like O’ Connor has hidden a deeper meaning within the story and intended for the reader to understand.

3. A Temple Of The Holy Ghost by Flannery O’ Connor is a short story about a little girl full of pride, sass, and arrogance on her way to discovering the true meaning of being a Temple of The Holy Spirit. This story is about the acceptance of God’s will for us and our lives. It is about not questioning but, accepting the life that God has given us and trying to touch others with our story.

4. Flannery O’Connor was born with Lupus, which not only paralyzed her and was the cause of her death. Having Lupus made her somewhat of a “freak” herself.  Flannery O’ Connor was also a Catholic woman which gives her first hand experience on the faith and on what the life of a “freak” would be like. First, we can tell that this story is going to have an emphasis on the body by just looking at the title, A Temple of The Holy Ghost. Then throughout the story the child points an emphasis of describing everyone’s appearance. Throughout the story we see many examples of the child’s pride and arrogance  “The child decided, after observing them for a few hours, that they were practically morons and she was glad to think that they were only second cousins”, because her cousins were obsessed with looks and boys she found them to be lower than her.

            Although the child is prideful she has a lot of profound thoughts within the story. The first was when the girls were explaining what Sister Perpetua had told them to say to boys if they tried anything. The child thought to herself that she was a Temple of the Holy Ghost and it pleased her because she thought that someone had given her a gift. The child recognized in that moment that her body was gift and was happy.   

            I noticed that when the child talks about the two Wilkinses boys she refers to them as numerous animals and I have come to the conclusion that she doesn’t like them or the Church of God very much. She says that they are just farm boys who want to be Church of God preachers because you don’t have to know anything to be one. But, she also describes them as monkeys sitting on the banister, giving a dog-like look towards the girls, and screams “You big dumb ox” at them. I am not quite sure why she has such negative feelings towards the Church of God. But the child even thanks God for not having her in The Church of God.  Perhaps, O’Connor had negative feelings towards the Church of God. She brings in quite the contrast in her story with the Church of God and Catholic faiths.

            The part that sticks out to me the most is the part with the “freak”. This part is prominent because it brings the whole meaning of the story together. The hermaphrodite has completely accepted the body and life God has given them. “God done this to me and I praise Him.” The child imagines him saying “Raise yourself up. A temple of the Holy Ghost. You! You are God’s temple, don’t you now? Don’t you know? God’s Spirit has a dwelling in you, don’t you know?” The person in the tent has put such an impact on the child and her way of thinking.

            When they go to the chapel service at the convent the next day she has a revelation of faith, acceptance of love, and repentance. She realizes through her ugly thoughts that she was in the presence of God.  While her thoughts go quiet she beings to think of the freak saying, “I don’t dispute hit. This is the way He wanted me to be.”  God made him that way and still praised him. It is almost like a very weird and deep sermon.

            At the very end of the story when she imagines the Host drenched in blood, O’Connor could have been trying to symbolize Jesus’ body, which is what the Host is a religious symbol of.

5. I think that the interpretation of this story is a very important thing. Flannery O’Connor, throughout this story, wanted the readers to open their hearts and minds and begin to except and love the freak. Perhaps, not only the freak of this story but to take this story out into the world and to love people who may be different from us. To extend God’s loving grace unto everyone. 

A Temple Of The Holy Ghost

I get a sense of ignorance from this story or, at least in the beginning. Perhaps, that is the wrong word so let me describe what I mean. These two girls, Susan and Joanne, are boy crazy. They want to look beautiful and put on bright lipstick and strut in the front of the mirror. Which I suppose is like every young girl. The comments about to be a Church of God Pastor you don't need to know much or when the girls are singing they immediately jump to say it "must be a Jew singing".

I feel as Christians we sometimes pray like how the child prays. We forget and when we remember it is sometimes like a routine. We say our thank you’s, ask for a couple things, and then make sure we pray that if we were to die in our sleep we would make it to Heaven. I think that everyone who is a Christian can honestly say that they have had a season where prayer hasn't been their best. 

All I truly get out of this story, aside from my miniature tangents, is they are children. They remind me so much of just my nieces and nephews and how they act and tell stories. I suppose the "freak" at the circus could have been real. However, the girls could have just made him up. But, if they did see him it could bring up the lesson of how we should love even the "ugly", because in God's eyes no one is ugly, everyone deserves love. (or at least a chance at love)

Did the preachers shut down the fair because of this “freak”? Was he a false teacher? Was he a threat to “religion”?

Perhaps I am not getting everything I should out of this story like I should. I almost feel like I am looking too much into it, when the meaning could be right out in the open.

I am excited to read it again and discuss it in class to further my understanding. 

The Ones Who Walk Away From Omelas

When I first started to read, "The One Who Walk Away From Omelas" by Ursula K. Leguin, I wanted to be in Omelas. This town seemed to be so wonderful and perfect. Daily stresses and worries, they don't even bother these people. They seem to have a pure form of happiness, untainted by mindless extravagent things. We ,as people, can't be happy with the simple anymore. We need bigger,better, we need the newest technology, the biggest house, and  the best car to give us happiness. 

But as I keep reading, I realized that this story has a lot of turns. "If an orgy would help, don't hesitate." Is the author trying to state that we as a human race can't have a "pure", if that is even the right word, society? Do we have to assume that they do something quote on quote wrong? Or do the people in Omelas really do this?

When it askes "Do you accept the festival, the city, the joy?", it makes me wonder who wouldn't?! This place sounded wonderful but, I suppose it seems unrealistic. Sure not everything in this world is awful but, the awful and ugly is what we look for. We figure that to find such a place like Omelas, we need to dream. This place seems like such a delight.

But, then you reach the part about the small child locked in the room and the story takes a turn for the worst. This part makes me very angry. To say that the happiness of one is not worth, perhaps, upsetting some, just ticks me off. Everyone is special, beautiful, and perfectly made. Their flaws and things that make them "weird" are the things that we as people should love and cherish the most.  However, that would be a perfect world and we will never be able to truly see only the beauty in people, which is saddening. 

I am not sure I completely understand this story, but I do understand that it is significant. The words jump off the pages at me and I want so badly to understand what Leguin wanted to me to get out of it. I want to run and help this child and hug him and let them know that they no longer have to be afraid, that they can find true happiness it just takes one person to take a stand. 

A Very Old Man With Enormous Wings

 Gabriel Garcia Marquez's story was an odd one. I can definitely see that his grandmother had an influence on his stories and it makes me wonder if his grandmother's stories were as outlandish has this one. 

I have many, I don’t want to say problems but, issues with this story. 

First, why the crabs? I feel like, because they were brought up so much in the story that they hold some significance. They had crabs in the house when they found the angel and the crabs were mentioned again when the spider had finally taken the fame away from him. 

Secondly, if I was walking outside, when it was raining, in the dark and I saw a man with wings lying on the ground I would call the police. I would have not been like Pelayo and gotten closer to see what he/it was. Pelayo is definitely a lot braver than I am or ever will be. However, this brings me to my next few questions, is this really an angel and if it's an angel where is it from? This family has this angel held up in a chicken coop for years, I would assume because the child grows up and tries to play around it. So why in a chicken coop? I guess there is nowhere else to hold him but still, a chicken coop? I live on a farm and we have a chicken coop and it is one of the most disgusting places. But when I think about the chicken coop it makes me wonder why they are even keeping this "angel" captive. I know that he was providing a way for them to receive money, but still I am not quite sure I'd want a creature that I couldn't even communicate with kept locked up on my land. 

But what I don’t understand the most is how the angel remains so patient. These people keep him locked up like an animal, throw food at him, burn him, laugh at him, and just treat him like he is a circus act. Yet, he never loses his patience. This angel never freaks out and shakes the cage; he just sits and allows these people to gawk at him. 

Overall, this story is just plain interesting. I am not sure I get it, or even that I will ever get it. I have a feeling patience is a key factor, but I am not sure it is the moral of the whole story.

Lake Bonny/ Mary Oliver

I went to Lake Bonny Park for this field trip, and I stayed there for at least 45 minutes.

One thing I don’t usually voice to people is how much I enjoy nature. Since I was little I have been surrounded with it and I have always wanted nothing more than to work with animals and plants. To not only be surrounded by God’s creations but to also be able to work with them on a daily basis will be a dream come true. I actually just changed my and just being surrounded by God’s beauty.  I just changed my major, actually, to biology, which is incredibly exciting.  I think that being a zookeeper or park ranger or even an environmental educator would be absolutely fantastic.

However on the note of poetry, it is definitely not my strong suit. Now I realize that when I say that I could get in the argument of how the Bible is full of poetry. We could even get into how music could be considered poetry. But when we just look at poetry, like Emily Dickinson, I just don’t understand or like it. Many people can just sit back and read a poem over and over and get all of this meaning out of it and I can’t. To be honest I don’t even remember what makes a poem a poem. I do remember it has something to do with rhythm and lines. I also know that many people associate poetry with things that rhythm.

Although, in saying all of this I didn’t enjoy Mary Oliver. Perhaps not specifically for her poetry, because to be honest I didn’t understand some of it, but for what it was about. For example in her poem Messenger, I could picture everything that she was talking about and I enjoyed that.

The second line specifically sunflowers and hummingbirds. These are two of my mother and my favorite things. (Which is kind of ironic)  We grow sunflowers every year and with hummingbirds every time we could see one my mom would get so excited. Talk about how beautiful they were. They are definitely two things that I hold dear to my heart, so this poem stuck out to me because of that.

“One cannot truly love and be present to God without being led back to loving the world. And one cannot truly love and be present to the world without being mortally disappointed” This really stuck out to me, all I could think of was how we shouldn’t be apart of the world and there are even times when I have had people tell me that there is nothing good in the world. But then you have to begin to think about what God intended this world to be. How he wanted us to enjoy the things that surround us, however there

are obvious things we should not enjoy. ( I don’t really think I need to go into all of that. )

The Uses of Sorrow is definitely an example of poetry I don’t like. Granted, it is a deep poem, which is probably, what people love about it, but I just don’t understand what is the darkness and why is it a gift?

When I think about the trees

I wonder how long they have been here and

If anyone appericiates their beauty.

I wonder how they got to be here.

Did they happen to be a small seed

that traveled in the fur of a bear 

from a different state?

Or maybe they floated through 

the wind.

Has anyone deemed this tree 

their tree?

Kissed the one the love dearly under it?

Maybe they carved their names

into the bark when they first met.

When I think about the trees

I wonder how much oxygen it has produced 

so we may live.

I wonder how much shade and comfort 

they have provided for us. 

I wonder, has anyone apperciated their beauty.

Circle B

This trip to the reserve was absolutely perfect. It reminded me so much of my childhood. From the time I was 5 to when I was 13 I was in girl scouts. My mom just happened to be the leader of our troop and insisted that we spend as much time outside as possible. We took camping trips one weekend out of every month and every week we would go on a hike or just a walk at some wildlife part around our house in Ohio. We went searching for salamanders and searched for rare flowers. Some people may not think of this as a normal childhood, but to me this was my entire childhood. I couldn't imagine spending my time in any other way. Not only was there girl scouts but also my mom and I would have a mother/daughter date every week after school where we would bird watch or just walk down to the park and sit. These memories are ones I hope to make with my family to. 

Now after moving to Florida, we live on 10 acres of land that is surrounded by 100's of acres of woods and pastures. I often find it very enlightening to go lay out under the trees to pray and soak up the sunshine. Nature is a wonderful example of God's beauty and power. A good example would be the tornado on Thursday. 

I absolutely loved this trip, even if it was a little gloomy outside. I have always wanted to do something with environmental studies but I could never decide for sure. However, I think that doing something our tour guides would be very enjoyable. I am still not sure exactly how I feel about the poem, but just because it is poetry and I have never truly been able to completely enjoy it. However, I know for a fact that I truly enjoyed this whole experience with nature and I am very excited to go to Lake Bonny.