Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam

After reading 50 of these 4-lined poems I noticed that the first, second, and fourth lines rhymed with each other while the 3rd line did not. I did not understand this method but I suppose all poems have their own method of how they are constructed. It seemed to me that most of the poems that I read were about love and or celebration of some sort.
I decided to take my own spin on these poems and created four of my own:

Like the lyrics to my favorite song
I would sing for her at sun up and all nightlong
Her lips so soft, her kiss so pure
The girl of my dreams—she’s been here all along


Lace up your skates and jump on the ice
Watch out for the stick it’s their scoring device
Keep your head in the game and don’t commit too early
Cause if so they’ll put it top shelf—make you pay the price


She’s playing these games-messing with my head
When did you turn our light from green to red?
Making me crazy I’ll try to keep hope alive
She’s not worth it I found another girl instead


These college days are winding down but not just yet
I have a plan after school-- my life stage is set
The years have past within the blink of an eye
But as for the memories and friends—those I will never forget

Paper 1 Focus

I took a gamble with this first paper and decided to write about how women are portrayed in 1001 Nights as opposed to how they are treated today. I know for a fact that a woman has a better perspective on this topic than I do but I wanted to challenge myself and see where this paper was going to take me. In full honesty, I am still having some difficulty as to how I am going to conclude this paper but I guess that lies in my hands. Here is a sample from what I have created thus far:
“As I stated before women were considered to be a prized possession rather than a human being. It is mentioned twice that both of the kings expected their wives to be loyal and faithful. They became convinced that all women are the same unfaithful creatures. Even the beautiful women from the golden box did not hesitate to demand sexual pleasure when she discovered the two kings. Could it be safe to say that women during this time would turn their backs on their husbands for a one-night stand? Even after they stated a vow to remain loyal and trusting during the marriage ceremony? Maybe women decided that since their husbands were allowed to marry as many wives as he sought fit that they could engage in their own “fantasy”.”
I would appreciate any feedback on some ways I could add more to this paper focusing on the comparing of women in the 1001 Nights era as opposed to today’s society.

1001 Nights

“Wow” would best describe my reaction to the four stories I read from 1001 Nights. It was interesting to know that the main story revolves around King Shahryar and Scheherazade, the vizier’s daughter. She is the primary narrator of a story but at points a character in a tale will begin telling characters a new story and so on which ends up being a mixture of tales. I’m not sure if I liked each tale starting before the previous one ended. Nonetheless, I became more and more interested in each new tale and although they left the reader hanging at times, they were enjoyable.

The first story I read was that of King Shahryar and His Brother. This one was more novel-like but it introduced and set the mood for the other tales to be told. I think most people could agree that this story involved a good deal of fornication and other sexual material. If there were one thing that could catch a reader’s eye it would be writing about how a woman demanded fornication or else she would have that man put to death. (She seems to be wearing the daddy pants in that relationship).

The second tale was that of the Bull and the Ass. This seemed more of a humorous/revenge tale with the Bull and the Ass going back and forth trying to see who could outdo the other. The third tale was that of the Trader and the Jinni. When I first read this tale I thought that the Jinni’s son was struck down by a piece of date. Then I thought how could a kid get stuck down by a piece of fruit? The final tale that I read was the First Shaykh’s Story. This was the quickest read of them all but left me confused towards the end of the tale. Scheherazade is obviously still alive and hasn’t been taken off to be executed, still, is this the end of part one of 1001 Nights?

Othello: Part 2

After reading different articles on Othello I kept my focus on how the characters developed throughout the play. Beginning with the title character, Othello is described as an honorable, respected, and powerful man. As the play progresses though, Othello seems to have other hidden traits about him that we soon discover. One of these traits is jealousy. We find out that Iago has used deception against Othello, making him believe that Desdemona, his wife, is having an affair. When Othello is told from Iago that Desdemona and Cassio shared a sentimental handkerchief, Othello goes into a jealous rage. I can picture this situation occurring in a real life situation. If Othello would have stayed calm and kept in mind the saying “there’s always a reason for everything” then this tragedy would have never occurred.
Unlike Othello, Iago’s character starts out villainous and never steers clear of that evil path, even at the play’s end. Iago is hell bent on getting revenge on Othello that nothing will stand in his way. He is intelligent and savvy in every move he makes in order for him to complete his disastrous plan. Iago shows no remorse towards the actions he takes towards ruining the life of Othello and watching it crumble before his eyes. Again, in real-life some people deep down have a dark side, a side that if triggered can cause a chain reaction leading to negative outcomes. Othello should have been more aware of where he stood with his “best friend” after Iago was not promoted and not have let Iago take him for a fool and ultimately a character that takes a turn for the worse.

Othello

I have read Othello for a class here at Western a couple years ago but this time I gained a better understanding of the tragic play. I was unsure of what the term “moor” meant but after reading some background information at Wikipedia I found that it refers to what people now call “black”. The term “moor” also referred to Arabs of North Africa. It was stated that this play was banned in the 1930s because the lead role of Othello is portrayed as a black man and being married to a white woman.

Othello is a play by William Shakespeare, which, if you don’t pay close attention, has many sub-plots involved. This is a play about deception, jealousy, and tragic deaths. I guess the old saying “keep your friends close but your enemies closer” would be a perfect fit for Othello. I know our class is focused on the Middle East but how is Othello incorporated into our overall topic of discussion? There are times when a reading is transformed into a film (sometimes easier to interpret), as this is also the case for Othello. I have seen the 1995 film starring Laurence Fishburne, although the dialogue compared to the play is difficult to understand.

Even though Othello is the title character of this play I feel that if he would have stayed calm he could have prevented this tragedy from occurring. His quick reactions caused him to over analyze what Iago had been telling him. Othello should have kept trust in his wife, Desdemona, instead of wrongly accusing her of having an affair with Cassio. Iago is the deceitful villain who ruins the lives of anyone who crosses his path. In the end, characters are knocked off one by one like a mobster movie and tragedy has struck again in Shakespeare’s Othello.

Canterbury Tales

I first read Canterbury Tales, from the Nun's Story, in high school. The Lawyer's Tale was very different. It mentions Christianity throughout. Each line has its own imagery but I had a difficult time with his tale even though it was in modern English.

The Decameron

At first, I found it difficult to read the Decameron but as I kept reading I found it interesting. This tale reminded me of one's quest or a chapter in his or her life. Half-way through reading, the film "Lord of the Rings" and other adventure/fantasy films came to mind.

The Middle East

It seems as though the Middle East before 1400 AD was a time of religious views as well as an individuals life journey or quest. After reading about the Crusades I learned that these religious military conflicts lasted for many years. In these times Christians strongly believed in the Holy Land and were not going to back down.

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